Chapter XVIII: Conclusion

The men in the canoe continued paddling ahead. There was no sleep for any of the occupants during that night.

When daylight stole upon the sea they looked toward the spot, far astern, where the island had been but where there was nothing now to mark the spot except a mass of agitated waters, gradually subsiding.

Straight and tall, at the stern of the canoe, sat the stranger guide, he whose features had previously been hidden and the breadfruit leaf, now thrust aside.

Brand, who had been gazing toward the place he occupied, ever since the day began to break, now was visibly agitated. He trembled all over, while his face was perfectly ghastly.

As the light increased, and the stranger's features became yet more distinct, the captain uttered a wild cry, and while his eyes rolled wildly in his head, sat as if transfixed to his thwart still gazing upon the man before him.

A moment he remained thus, then fell senseless upon his face.

Mary, who had hitherto been gazing away toward the west, turned at the cry Brand uttered, and seemed for a moment, like one spellbound as her gaze fell upon the stranger's face.

Then her eyes lighted up her whole countenance a gleam with joy.

"My father!" she exclaimed, "father! father! Oh! thank God, I have found him at last!"

Stretching forth her arms, she moved towards the guide, who, however, still sat looking at her half wonderingly and half pityingly, without seeming to recognize her.

Mary, however, knew him well. She could not mistake those familiar features, and the fact of his not seeming to recognize her, seemed to inspire her with the deepest grief.

"Oh, papa! papa! Look! behold! Here is your daughter! I am Mary, papa! Don't you know me?"

An expression of partial intelligence came to the man's eyes, then passed like a gleam of sunlight obliterated by the shadow of a cloud.

"Ay, ay, now!" exclaimed Tom Turk as he gazed at the man, "this is too bad! I know ye well enough as the passenger once aboard the _Maxwell_, and who was supposed to be lost; the father of this lass. It's mighty strange you don't know your own child."

"Mr. Manton," exclaimed Harry, stepping forward, and grasping the hand of him he addressed, "this is a great, great pleasure! Thank God we have found you at last, alive and well! Do not, I beg of you, afflict your daughter longer by playing off this joke upon her!"

"Joke! joke!" said Mr. Manton, running a hand through his gray hair and looking up in a bewildered manner, "I don't understand you! Ha! ha! it's all safe, my money!" he added, "all safe! safe!"

Harry looked sorrowfully at the speaker.

Glances of intelligence were exchanged between him and Turk.

Even Mary could no longer doubt the fearful truth, which had gradually been forcing itself upon her mind.

Her father was insane!

She flung herself at his feet--she grasped both his hands, and kissed them again and again--then burst into tears, sobbing as if her heart would break, at the vacant stare, which was the only response to her manifestations.

Harry endeavored to soothe her.

"I am confident," said he, "that your father is not a confirmed lunatic. He may be restored to his reason, if care be taken. I have seen worse cases than this cured."

So excited were Harry and his friends over the discovery they had made, that, although the singular emotion of Brand had not escaped their attention, yet they had not noticed his being unconscious.

Now, however, Turk perceived it.

"A strange affair, this," said he; "had old Nick himself come to claim the captain, he couldn't have acted queerer than he has at the sight of Mr. Manton!"

In a few minutes, the captain recovered, staring wildly around him, until his eye was caught by the spectacle of the old man astern, when he started back with an affrighted cry.

"It is real flesh and blood, then," he exclaimed.

"Why, of course, Cap," answered Turk, "you don't suppose, I hope, that we'd take a ghost passenger!"

"Real flesh and blood," continued Brand, an expression of relief passing over his face, as he noticed the vacant stare of Mr. Manton, showing that the latter did not recognize him. "I am glad of it--ay, very glad. So he was not lost overboard, after all!"

"It seems not!" said Turk; "but I shouldn't have thought the discovery would have set you off into a faintin' fit?"

"Well, you see," said Brand, with a forced laugh, "the fact is I am a little superstitious--always was!"

This explanation hardly seemed to satisfy the old sailor, who shook his head without saying a word.

Meanwhile, the canoe, still urged along by Turk's paddle, was gliding through the blue waters, now just beginning to catch the tinge of the coming sunlight.

Suddenly the old sailor, who had long been gazing far away towards the west, sprung to his feet, screaming out! "Sail O!" with all his might.

"It's the same craft I saw t'other night from the cliff!" said he; "I didn't say anything about it, as I wasn't sure it was a sail in the imperfect light, and didn't want to awake false hopes."

Harry Glenville now seizing his paddle, assisted Turk.

Meanwhile Brand, with an old handkerchief, continued to raise a signal, which it was soon evident, was seen by the vessel.

Previously standing away towards the southward, she now was seen to come 'round, bowling along, close hauled towards the canoe.

This at last was reached, and the occupants picked up, to learn they were aboard the ship _Empire_, of New York, homeward bound.

Every kind attention was bestowed upon the castaways, who, on their arrival home, a few months after, published a letter of thanks to the good skipper.

Mary took her father to a little cottage she occupied with an aunt.

A celebrated physician, accustomed to lunatic cases was called.

He pronounced Mr. Manton's case, a curable one, and, in the course of a year proved it so, by restoring the old man fully to his reason.

Words may not express the joy of Mary, who had awaited this happy moment to become the wife of Harry Glenville.

The old man was present at the wedding, in which he took the interest natural to the father of the bride.

On the very night of the ceremony, the old man, who had not previously touched upon that 'dark affair' aboard the _Maxwell_, was able to reveal events, so as to go into a full explanation.

He stated that, after being knocked overboard by Brand, he threw out his arms, clutching the plank which had fallen with him, and which, thanks to his being a good swimmer and to a favorable current, enabled him to drift down upon the volcanic island.

The hardship and excitement undergone, however, that night, so worked upon his brain, that he was affected with a fever which lasted a couple of days.

After that all was a blank to Mr. Manton. He could not remember what took place from that time to the present.

Although insane, however, the man's instinct, or some other cause, had prompted him to stow his money away in the hollow tree.

"Ay, ay," said Harry, "it was evidently to obtain your money that that wretch Brand threw you overboard!"

"Of course," answered Manton. "But the rascal was nicely foiled, for, as it happened, it was always my custom, when I stepped on deck to put my money in the canvas bag, and thrust it into my pocket!

"This carefulness of mine may be understood, when I inform you that I intended every cent of that money for my darling child, to whom I now present it with great joy at being able to place her above want during her lifetime!"

We have little to add.

After Manton's explanation, Brand was sought for, but could not be found, as he had cleared off to parts unknown.

He was never again heard of, if we except a rumor, that he had been lost at sea!

Tom Turk was favorably recommended to the ship owners by Harry Glenville, who was thus enabled to procure him a vessel.

The old fellow followed the sea until he was seventy years of age, when he settled down in an old cottage on the outskirts of New York, within a mile of the residence of Harry Glenville and his beautiful bride.

Mr. Manton still lives; in fact his native air has seemed to agree with him. He is nearly as straight as ever, while, in spite of his gray hairs, his cheek glows with the ruddy hue of health!

Often on still summer nights, with his grandchildren at his knee, he relates the story of the wicked Brand, who, for his many crimes, and especially for his dark attempt to take a human life, was long spoken of by sea men as the Demon Cruiser.

THE END.

* * * * *

BEADLE'S FRONTIER SERIES

1. The Shawnee's Foe.

2. The Young Mountaineer.

3. Wild Jim.

4. Hawk-Eye, the Hunter.

5. The Boy Guide.

6. War Tiger of the Modocs.

7. The Red Modocs.

8. Iron Hand.

9. Shadow Bill, the Scout.

10. Wapawkaneta, or the Rangers of the Oneida.

11. Davy Crockett's Boy Hunter.

12. The Forest Avenger.

13. Old Jack's Frontier Cabin.

14. On the Deep.

15. Sharp Snout.

16. The Mountain Demon.

17. Wild Tom of Wyoming.

18. The Brave Boy Hunters of Kentucky.

19. The Fearless Ranger.

20. The Haunted Trapper.

21. Madman of the Colorado.

22. The Panther Demon.

23. Slashaway, the Fearless.

24. Pine Tree Jack.

25. Indian Jim.

26. Navajo Nick.

27. The Tuscarora's Vow.

28. Deadwood Dick, Jr.

29. A New York Boy Among the Indians.

30. Deadwood Dick's Big Deal.

31. Hank, the Guide.

32. Deadwood Dick's Dozen.

33. Squatty Dick.

34. The Hunter's Secret.

35. The Woman Trapper.

36. The Chief of the Miami.

37. Gunpowder Jim.

38. Mad Anthony's Captain.

39. The Ranger Boy's Career.

40. Old Nick of the Swamp.

41. The Shadow Scout.

42. Lantern-Jawed Bob.

43. The Masked Hunter.

44. Brimstone Jake.

45. The Irish Hunter.

46. Dave Bunker.

47. The Shawnee Witch.

48. Big Brave.

49. Spider-Legs.

50. Harry Hardskull.

51. Madman of the Oconto.

52. Slim Jim.

53. Tiger-Eye.

54. The Red Star of the Seminoles.

55. Trapper Joe.

56. The Indian Queen's Revenge.

57. Eagle-Eyed Zeke.

58. Scar-Cheek, the Wild Half-Breed.

59. Red Men of the Woods.

60. Tuscaloosa Sam.

61. The Bully of the Woods.

62. The Trapper's Bride.

63. Red Rattlesnake, The Pawnee.

64. The Scout of Tippecanoe.

65. Old Kit, The Scout.

66. The Boy Scouts.

67. Hiding Tom.

68. Roving Dick, Hunter.

69. Hickory Jack.

70. Mad Mike.

71. Snake-Eye.

72. Big-Hearted Joe.

73. The Blazing Arrow.

74. The Hunter Scouts.

75. The Scout of Long Island.

76. Turkey-Foot.

77. The Death Rangers.

78. Bullet Head.

79. The Indian Spirit.

80. The Twin Trappers.

81. Lightfoot the Scout.

82. Grim Dick.

83. The Wooden-Legged Spy.

84. The Silent Trapper.

85. Ugly Ike.

86. Fire Cloud.

87. Hank Jasper.

88. The Scout of the Sciota.

89. Black Samson.

90. Billy Bowlegs.

91. The Bloody Footprint.

92. Marksman the Hunter.

93. The Demon Cruiser.

94. Hunters and Redskins.

95. Panther Jack.

96. Old Zeke.

97. The Panther Paleface.

98. The Scout of the St. Lawrence.

99. Bloody Brook.

100. Long Bob of Kentucky.

THE ARTHUR WESTBROOK CO. Cleveland. U. S. A.

* * * * *

Transcriber's Notes

The Table of Contents has been added by the transcriber and it is placed in the public domain. Minor punctuation errors have been silently corrected.

Page 12: Changed "birth" to "berth."
(Orig: He went back to his birth, not to sleep,)

Page 19: Changed "Sidney," to "Sydney."
(Orig: visit some of them before going into Sidney.")

Page 21: Changed "steped" to "stepped."
(Orig: Then he steped to the captain's side,)

Page 23: Retained "claining," but possibly meant "clinging."
(Orig: Vainly Brand, claining to a rope near the mizzenmast,)

Page 23: Changed "sevaral" to "several."
(Orig: a violence which threw sevaral men off the yard)

Page 25: Retained "dextrious", but probably meant "dexterous."
(Orig: the old fellow by a dextrious movement,)

Page 30: Changed "swarm" to "swam."
(Orig: He swarm to a spar near him, and, with the ropes)

Page 38: Changed "accomodation" to "accommodation."
(Orig: one for the accomodation of the men,)

Page 40: Changed "apparrently" to "apparently."
(Orig: were audible, apparrently approaching the hut!)

Page 42: Retained "from," but probably meant "for."
(Orig: Harry now sprang from the raft.)

Page 47: Changed "ripling" to "rippling."
(Orig: Away it went, ripling the water,)

Page 53: Changed "rock," to "rocks."
(Orig: firmly wedged in between two rock,)

Page 55: Changed "strangly" to "strangely."
(Orig: staring eyes, were fixed strangly upon the captain.)

Page 59: Changed "decending" to "descending."
(Orig: apparently decending towards him with great rapidity.)

Page 59: Changed "aditional" to "additional."
(Orig: with the fall of aditional lava occurred,)

Page 62: Changed "in" to "is."
(Orig: "This in dang'rous traveling," remarked Turk,)

Page 63: Removed duplicate "it."
(Orig: the drowned passenger as it it was hastily withdrawn!)

Page 68: Changed "rembered" to "remembered."
(Orig: bewildered, she soon rembered all.)

Page 68: Changed "headed" to "heeded."
(Orig: The natives headed not her sufferings.)

Page 69: Changed "superstious" to "superstitious."
(Orig: The superstious natives are prone to believe weird stories,)

Page 69: Changed "eat" to "ate."
(Orig: Brand eat heartily, but poor Mary, almost maddened)

Page 70: Changed "evntually" to "eventually."
(Orig: all possible dispatch, evntually pausing upon a lofty spire,)

Page 70: Changed "hight" to "height."
(Orig: This spur, rising to a hight of about forty feet)

Page 73: Changed "peal" to "peel."
(Orig: strips of which were already beginning to peal off.)

Page 73: "salle" for "sally," is best guess for unclear word, meaning to rush out, assault. (Orig: do anything in a hurry, which do you see, will salle all.")

Page 78: Changed "conditon" to "condition."
(Orig: "Name that ere conditon of yours then, quick!")

Page 85: Retained "hear" typo, but possibly "heart" or "head."
(Orig: was enough to appal a stouter hear than that of Mary)