1579 lines
76 KiB
Plaintext
1579 lines
76 KiB
Plaintext
1843
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THE GOLD-BUG
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by Edgar Allan Poe
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THE GOLD-BUG
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What ho! what ho! this fellow is dancing mad!
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He hath been bitten by the Tarantula.
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All in the Wrong.
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MANY years ago, I contracted an intimacy with a Mr. William Legrand.
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He was of an ancient Huguenot family, and had once been wealthy; but a
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series of misfortunes had reduced him to want. To avoid the
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mortification consequent upon his disasters, he left New Orleans,
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the city of his forefathers, and took up his residence at Sullivan's
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Island, near Charleston, South Carolina.
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This Island is a very singular one. It consists of little else
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than the sea sand, and is about three miles long. Its breadth at no
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point exceeds a quarter of a mile. It is separated from the main
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land by a scarcely perceptible creek, oozing its way through a
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wilderness of reeds and slime, a favorite resort of the marsh-hen. The
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vegetation, as might be supposed, is scant, or at least dwarfish. No
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trees of any magnitude are to be seen. Near the western extremity,
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where Fort Moultrie stands, and where are some miserable frame
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buildings, tenanted, during summer, by the fugitives from Charleston
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dust and fever, may be found, indeed, the bristly palmetto; but the
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whole island, with the exception of this western point, and a line
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of hard, white beach on the seacoast, is covered with a dense
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undergrowth of the sweet myrtle, so much prized by the horticulturists
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of England. The shrub here often attains the height of fifteen or
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twenty feet, and forms an almost impenetrable coppice, burthening
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the air with its fragrance.
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In the inmost recesses of this coppice, not far from the eastern
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or more remote end of the island, Legrand had built himself a small
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hut, which he occupied when I first, by mere accident, made his
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acquaintance. This soon ripened into friendship --for there was much
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in the recluse to excite interest and esteem. I found him well
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educated, with unusual powers of mind, but infected with
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misanthropy, and subject to perverse moods of alternate enthusiasm and
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melancholy. He had with him many books, but rarely employed them.
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His chief amusements were gunning and fishing, or sauntering along the
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beach and through the myrtles, in quest of shells or entomological
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specimens;-his collection of the latter might have been envied by a
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Swammerdamm. In these excursions he was usually accompanied by an
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old negro, called Jupiter, who had been manumitted before the reverses
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of the family, but who could be induced, neither by threats nor by
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promises, to abandon what he considered his right of attendance upon
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the footsteps of his young "Massa Will." It is not improbable that the
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relatives of Legrand, conceiving him to be somewhat unsettled in
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intellect, had contrived to instil this obstinacy into Jupiter, with a
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view to the supervision and guardianship of the wanderer.
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The winters in the latitude of Sullivan's Island are seldom very
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severe, and in the fall of the year it is a rare event indeed when a
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fire is considered necessary. About the middle of October, 18--, there
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occurred, however, a day of remarkable chilliness. Just before
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sunset I scrambled my way through the evergreens to the hut of my
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friend, whom I had not visited for several weeks --my residence being,
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at that time, in Charleston, a distance of nine my miles from the
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Island, while the facilities of passage and re-passage were very far
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behind those of the present day. Upon reaching the hut I rapped, as
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was my custom, and getting no reply, sought for the key where I knew
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it was secreted, unlocked the door and went in. A fine fire was
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blazing upon the hearth. It was a novelty, and by no means an
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ungrateful one. I threw off an overcoat, took an arm-chair by the
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crackling logs, and awaited patiently the arrival of my hosts.
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Soon after dark they arrived, and gave me a most cordial welcome.
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Jupiter, grinning from ear to ear, bustled about to prepare some
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marsh-hens for supper. Legrand was in one of his fits --how else shall
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I term them? --of enthusiasm. He had found an unknown bivalve, forming
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a new genus, and, more than this, he had hunted down and secured, with
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Jupiter's assistance, a scarabaeus which he believed to be totally
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new, but in respect to which he wished to have my opinion on the
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morrow.
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"And why not to-night?" I asked, rubbing my hands over the blaze,
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and wishing the whole tribe of scarabaei at the devil.
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"Ah, if I had only known you were here!" said Legrand, "but it's
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so long since I saw you; and how could I foresee that you would pay me
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a visit this very night of all others? As I was coming home I met
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Lieutenant G--, from the fort, and, very foolishly, I lent him the
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bug; so it will be impossible for you to see it until morning. Stay
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here to-night, and I will send Jup down for it at sunrise. It is the
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loveliest thing in creation!"
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"What? --sunrise?"
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"Nonsense! no! --the bug. It is of a brilliant gold color --about
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the size of a large hickory-nut --with two jet black spots near one
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extremity of the back, and another, somewhat longer, at the other. The
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antennae are --"
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"Dey aint no tin in him, Massa Will, I keep a tellin on you," here
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interrupted Jupiter; "de bug is a goole bug, solid, ebery bit of
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him, inside and all, sep him wing --neber feel half so hebby a bug
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in my life."
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"Well, suppose it is, Jup," replied Legrand, somewhat more
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earnestly, it seemed to me, than the case demanded, "is that any
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reason for your letting the birds burn? The color" --here he turned to
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me --"is really almost enough to warrant Jupiter's idea. You never saw
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a more brilliant metallic lustre than the scales emit --but of this
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you cannot judge till tomorrow. In the mean time I can give you some
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idea of the shape." Saying this, he seated himself at a small table,
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on which were a pen and ink, but no paper. He looked for some in a
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drawer, but found none.
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"Never mind," said he at length, "this will answer"; and he drew
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from his waistcoat pocket a scrap of what I took to be very dirty
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foolscap, and made upon it a rough drawing with the pen. While he
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did this, I retained my seat by the fire, for I was still chilly. When
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the design was complete, he handed it to me without rising. As I
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received it, a loud growl was heard, succeeded by a scratching at
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the door. Jupiter opened it, and a large Newfoundland, belonging to
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Legrand, rushed in, leaped upon my shoulders, and loaded me with
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caresses; for I had shown him much attention during previous visits.
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When his gambols were over, I looked at the paper, and, to speak the
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truth, found myself not a little puzzled at what my friend had
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depicted.
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"Well!" I said, after contemplating it for some minutes, "this is
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a strange scarabaeus, I must confess: new to me: never saw anything
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like it before --unless it was a skull, or a death's-head --which it
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more nearly resembles than anything else that has come under my
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observation."
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"A death's-head!" echoed Legrand --"Oh --yes --well, it has
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something of that appearance upon paper, no doubt. The two upper black
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spots look like eyes, eh? and the longer one at the bottom like a
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mouth --and then the shape of the whole is oval."
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"Perhaps so," said I; "but, Legrand, I fear you are no artist. I
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must wait until I see the beetle itself, if I am to form any idea of
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its personal appearance."
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"Well, I don't know," said he, a little nettled, "I draw tolerably
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--should do it at least --have had good masters, and flatter myself
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that I am not quite a blockhead."
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"But, my dear fellow, you are joking then," said I, "this is a
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very passable skull --indeed, I may say that it is a very excellent
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skull, according to the vulgar notions about such specimens of
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physiology --and your scarabaeus must be the queerest scarabaeus in
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the world if it resembles it. Why, we may get up a very thrilling
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bit of superstition upon this hint. I presume you will call the bug
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scarabaeus caput hominis, or something of that kind --there are many
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titles in the Natural Histories. But where are the antennae you
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spoke of?"
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"The antennae!" said Legrand, who seemed to be getting unaccountably
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warm upon the subject; "I am sure you must see the antennae. I made
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them as distinct as they are in the original insect, and I presume
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that is sufficient."
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"Well, well," I said, "perhaps you have --still I don't see them;"
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and I handed him the paper without additional remark, not wishing to
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ruffle his temper; but I was much surprised at the turn affairs had
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taken; his ill humor puzzled me --and, as for the drawing of the
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beetle, there were positively no antennae visible, and the whole did
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bear a very close resemblance to the ordinary cuts of a death's-head.
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He received the paper very peevishly, and was about to crumple it,
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apparently to throw it in the fire, when a casual glance at the design
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seemed suddenly to rivet his attention. In an instant his face grew
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violently red --in another as excessively pale. For some minutes he
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continued to scrutinize the drawing minutely where he sat. At length
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he arose, took a candle from the table, and proceeded to seat
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himself upon a sea-chest in the farthest corner of the room. Here
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again he made an anxious examination of the paper; turning it in all
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directions. He said nothing, however, and his conduct greatly
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astonished me; yet I thought it prudent not to exacerbate the
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growing moodiness of his temper by any comment. Presently he took from
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his coat pocket a wallet, placed the paper carefully in it, and
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deposited both in a writing-desk, which he locked. He now grew more
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composed in his demeanor; but his original air of enthusiasm had quite
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disappeared. Yet he seemed not so much sulky as abstracted. As the
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evening wore away he became more and more absorbed in reverie, from
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which no sallies of mine could arouse him. It had been my to pass
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the night at the hut, as I had frequently done before, but, seeing
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my host in this mood, I deemed it proper to take leave. He did not
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press me to remain, but, as I departed, he shook my hand with even
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more than his usual cordiality.
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It was about a month after this (and during the interval I had
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seen nothing of Legrand) when I received a visit, at Charleston,
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from his man, Jupiter. I had never seen the good old negro look so
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dispirited, and I feared that some serious disaster had befallen my
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friend.
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"Well, Jup," said I, "what is the matter now? --how is your master?"
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"Why, to speak de troof, massa, him not so berry well as mought be."
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"Not well! I am truly sorry to hear it. What does he complain of?"
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Dar! dat's it! --him neber plain of notin --but him berry sick for
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all dat."
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"Very sick, Jupiter! --why didn't you say so at once? Is he confined
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to bed?"
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"No, dat he ain't! --he ain't find nowhar --dat's just whar de
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shoe pinch --my mind is got to be berry hebby bout poor Massa Will."
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"Jupiter, I should like to understand what it is you are talking
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about. You say your master is sick. Hasn't he told you what ails him?"
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"Why, massa, taint worf while for to git mad bout de matter
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--Massa Will say noffin at all ain't de matter wid him --but den
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what make him go about looking dis here way, wid he head down and he
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soldiers up, and as white as a gose? And den he keep a syphon all de
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time --"
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"Keeps a what, Jupiter?"
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"Keeps a syphon wid de figgurs on de slate --de queerest figgurs I
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ebber did see. Ise gittin to be skeered, I tell you. Hab for to keep
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mighty tight eye pon him noovers. Todder day he gib me slip fore de
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sun up and was gone de whole ob de blessed day. I had a big stick
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ready cut for to gib him d--d good beating when he did come --but
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Ise sich a fool dat I hadn't de heart arter all --he look so berry
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poorly."
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"Eh? --what? --ah yes! --upon the whole I think you had better not
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be too severe with the poor fellow --don't flog him, Jupiter --he
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can't very well stand it --but can you form no idea of what has
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occasioned this illness, or rather this change of conduct? Has
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anything unpleasant happened since I saw you?"
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"No, massa, dey ain't bin noffin onpleasant since den --'t was
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fore den I'm feared --'t was de berry day you was dare."
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"How? what do you mean?"
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"Why, massa, I mean de bug --dare now."
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"The what?"
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"De bug --I'm berry sartain dat Massa Will bin bit somewhere bout de
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head by dat goole-bug."
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"And what cause have you, Jupiter, for such a supposition?"
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"Claws enoff, massa, and mouff too. I nabber did see sich a d--d bug
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--he kick and he bite ebery ting what cum near him. Massa Will cotch
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him fuss, but had for to let him go gin mighty quick, I tell you --den
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was de time he must ha got de bite. I didn't like de look ob de bug
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mouff, myself, no how, so I wouldn't take hold ob him wid my finger,
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but I cotch him wid a piece ob paper dat I found. I rap him up in de
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paper and stuff piece ob it in he mouff --dat was de way."
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"And you think, then, that your master was really bitten by the
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beetle, and that the bite made him sick?"
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"I don't tink noffin about it --I nose it. What make him dream
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bout de goole so much, if tain't cause he bit by de goole-bug? Ise
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heerd bout dem goole-bugs fore dis."
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"But how do you know he dreams about gold?"
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"How I know? why cause he talk about it in he sleep --dat's how I
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nose."
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"Well, Jup, perhaps you are right; but to what fortunate
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circumstance am I to attribute the honor of a visit from you to-day?"
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"What de matter, massa?"
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"Did you bring any message from Mr. Legrand?"
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"No, massa, I bring dis here pissel;" and here Jupiter handed me a
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note which ran thus:
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My DEAR --
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Why have I not seen you for so long a time? I hope you have not been
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so foolish as to take offence at any little brusquerie of mine; but
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no, that is improbable.
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Since I saw you I have had great cause for anxiety. I have something
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to tell you, yet scarcely know how to tell it, or whether I should
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tell it at all.
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I have not been quite well for some days past, and poor old Jup
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annoys me, almost beyond endurance, by his well-meant attentions.
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Would you believe it? --he had prepared a huge stick, the other day,
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with which to chastise me for giving him the slip, and spending the
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day, solus, among the hills on the main land. I verily believe that my
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ill looks alone saved me a flogging.
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I have made no addition to my cabinet since we met.
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If you can, in any way, make it convenient, come over with
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Jupiter. Do come. I wish to see you tonight, upon business of
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importance. I assure you that it is of the highest importance.
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Ever yours,
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WILLIAM LEGRAND.
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There was something in the tone of this note which gave me great
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uneasiness. Its whole style differed materially from that of
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Legrand. What could he be dreaming of? What new crotchet possessed his
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excitable brain? What "business of the highest importance" could he
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possibly have to transact? Jupiter's account of him boded no good. I
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dreaded lest the continued pressure of misfortune had, at length,
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fairly unsettled the reason of my friend. Without a moment's
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hesitation, therefore, I prepared to accompany the negro.
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Upon reaching the wharf, I noticed a scythe and three spades, all
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apparently new, lying in the bottom of the boat in which we were to
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embark.
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"What is the meaning of all this, Jup?" I inquired.
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"Him syfe, massa, and spade."
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"Very true; but what are they doing here?"
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"Him de syfe and de spade what Massa Will sis pon my buying for
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him in de town, and de debbil's own lot of money I had to gib for em."
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But what, in the name of all that is mysterious, is your 'Massa
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Will' going to do with scythes and spades?"
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"Dat's more dan I know, and debbil take me if I don't blieve 'tis
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more dan he know, too. But it's all cum ob de bug."
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Finding that no satisfaction was to be obtained of Jupiter, whose
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whole intellect seemed to be absorbed by "de bug," I now stepped
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into the boat and made sail. With a fair and strong breeze we soon ran
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into the little cove to the northward of Fort Moultrie, and a walk
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of some two miles brought us to the hut. It was about three in the
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afternoon when we arrived. Legrand had been awaiting us in eager
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expectation. He grasped my hand with a nervous empressement which
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alarmed me and strengthened the suspicions already entertained. His
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countenance was pale even to ghastliness, and his deep-set eyes glared
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with unnatural lustre. After some inquiries respecting his health, I
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asked him, not knowing what better to say, if he had yet obtained
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the scarabaeus from Lieutenant G--.
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"Oh, yes," he replied, coloring violently, "I got it from him the
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next morning. Nothing should tempt me to part with that scarabaeus. Do
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you know that Jupiter is quite right about it?"
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"In what way?" I asked, with a sad foreboding at heart.
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"In supposing it to be a bug of real gold." He said this with an air
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of profound seriousness, and I felt inexpressibly shocked.
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"This bug is to make my fortune," he continued, with a triumphant
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smile, "to reinstate me in my family possessions. Is it any wonder,
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then, that I prize it? Since Fortune has thought fit to bestow it upon
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me, I have only to use it properly and I shall arrive at the gold of
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which it is the index. Jupiter, bring me that scarabaeus!"
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"What! de bug, massa? I'd rudder not go fer trubble dat bug --you
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mus git him for your own self." Hereupon Legrand arose, with a grave
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and stately air, and brought me the beetle from a glass case in
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which it was enclosed. It was a beautiful scarabaeus, and, at that
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time, unknown to naturalists --of course a great prize in a scientific
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point of view. There were two round, black spots near one extremity of
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the back, and a long one near the other. The scales were exceedingly
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hard and glossy, with all the appearance of burnished gold. The weight
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of the insect was very remarkable, and, taking all things into
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consideration, I could hardly blame Jupiter for his opinion respecting
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it; but what to make of Legrand's agreement with that opinion, I could
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not, for the life of me, tell.
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"I sent for you," said he, in a grandiloquent tone, when I had
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completed my examination of the beetle, "I sent for you, that I
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might have your counsel and assistance in furthering the views of Fate
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and of the bug"--
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"My dear Legrand," I cried, interrupting him, "you are certainly
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unwell, and had better use some little precautions. You shall go to
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bed, and I will remain with you a few days, until you get over this.
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You are feverish and"--
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"Feel my pulse," said he.
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I felt it, and, to say the truth, found not the slightest indication
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of fever.
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"But you may be ill and yet have no fever. Allow me this once to
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prescribe for you. In the first place, go to bed. In the next"--
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"You are mistaken," he interposed, "I am as well as I can expect
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to be under the excitement which I suffer. If you really wish me well,
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you will relieve this excitement."
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"And how is this to be done?"
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"Very easily. Jupiter and myself are going upon an expedition into
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the hills, upon the main land, and, in this expedition, we shall
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need the aid of some person in whom we can confide. You are the only
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one we can trust. Whether we succeed or fail, the excitement which you
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now perceive in me will be equally allayed."
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"I am anxious to oblige you in any way," I replied; "but do you mean
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to say that this infernal beetle has any connection with your
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expedition into the hills?"
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"It has."
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"Then, Legrand, I can become a party to no such absurd proceeding.
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"I am sorry --very sorry --for we shall have to try it by
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ourselves."
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"Try it by yourselves! The man is surely mad! --but stay! --how long
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do you propose to be absent?"
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"Probably all night. We shall start immediately, and be back, at all
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events, by sunrise."
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"And will you promise me, upon your honor, that when this freak of
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yours is over, and the bug business (good God!) settled to your
|
|
satisfaction, you will then return home and follow my advice
|
|
implicitly, as that of your physician?"
|
|
|
|
"Yes; I promise; and now let us be off, for we have no time to
|
|
lose."
|
|
|
|
With a heavy heart I accompanied my friend. We started about four
|
|
o'clock --Legrand, Jupiter, the dog, and myself. Jupiter had with
|
|
him the scythe and spades --the whole of which he insisted upon
|
|
carrying --more through fear, it seemed to me, of trusting either of
|
|
the implements within reach of his master, than from any excess of
|
|
industry or complaisance. His demeanor was dogged in the extreme,
|
|
and "dat d--d bug" were the sole words which escaped his lips during
|
|
the journey. For my own part, I had charge of a couple of dark
|
|
lanterns, while Legrand contented himself with the scarabaeus, which
|
|
he carried attached to the end of a bit of whip-cord; twirling it to
|
|
and fro, with the air of a conjuror, as he went. When I observed
|
|
this last, plain evidence of my friend's aberration of mind, I could
|
|
scarcely refrain from tears. I thought it best, however, to humor
|
|
his fancy, at least for the present, or until I could adopt some
|
|
more energetic measures with a chance of success. In the mean time I
|
|
endeavored, but all in vain, to sound him in regard to the object of
|
|
the expedition. Having succeeded in inducing me to accompany him, he
|
|
seemed unwilling to hold conversation upon any topic of minor
|
|
importance, and to all my questions vouchsafed no other reply than "we
|
|
shall see!"
|
|
|
|
We crossed the creek at the head of the island by means of a
|
|
skiff, and, ascending the high grounds on the shore of the mainland,
|
|
proceeded in a northwesterly direction, through a tract of country
|
|
excessively wild and desolate, where no trace of a human footstep
|
|
was to be seen. Legrand led the way with decision; pausing only for an
|
|
instant, here and there, to consult what appeared to be certain
|
|
landmarks of his own contrivance upon a former occasion.
|
|
|
|
In this manner we journeyed for about two hours, and the sun was
|
|
just setting when we entered a region infinitely more dreary than
|
|
any yet seen. It was a species of table land, near the summit of an
|
|
almost inaccessible hill, densely wooded from base to pinnacle, and
|
|
interspersed with huge crags that appeared to lie loosely upon the
|
|
soil, and in many cases were prevented from precipitating themselves
|
|
into the valleys below, merely by the support of the trees against
|
|
which they reclined. Deep ravines, in various directions, gave an
|
|
air of still sterner solemnity to the scene.
|
|
|
|
The natural platform to which we had clambered was thickly overgrown
|
|
with brambles, through which we soon discovered that it would have
|
|
been impossible to force our way but for the scythe; and Jupiter, by
|
|
direction of his master, proceeded to clear for us a path to the
|
|
foot of an enormously tall tulip-tree, which stood, with some eight or
|
|
ten oaks, upon the level, and far surpassed them all, and all other
|
|
trees which I had then ever seen, in the beauty of its foliage and
|
|
form, in the wide spread of its branches, and in the general majesty
|
|
of its appearance. When we reached this tree, Legrand turned to
|
|
Jupiter, and asked him if he thought he could climb it. The old man
|
|
seemed a little staggered by the question, and for some moments made
|
|
no reply. At length he approached the huge trunk, walked slowly around
|
|
it, and examined it with minute attention. When he had completed his
|
|
scrutiny, he merely said,
|
|
|
|
"Yes, massa, Jup climb any tree he ebber see in he life."
|
|
|
|
"Then up with you as soon as possible, for it will soon be too
|
|
dark to see what we are about."
|
|
|
|
"How far mus go up, massa?" inquired Jupiter.
|
|
|
|
"Get up the main trunk first, and then I will tell you which way
|
|
to go --and here --stop! take this beetle with you."
|
|
|
|
"De bug, Massa Will! --de goole bug!" cried the negro, drawing
|
|
back in dismay --"what for mus tote de bug way up de tree? --d--n if I
|
|
do!"
|
|
|
|
"If you are afraid, Jup, a great big negro like you, to take hold of
|
|
a harmless little dead beetle, why you can carry it up by this
|
|
string --but, if you do not take it up with you in some way, I shall
|
|
be under the necessity of breaking your head with this shovel."
|
|
|
|
"What de matter now, massa?" said Jup, evidently shamed into
|
|
compliance; "always want for to raise fuss wid old nigger. Was only
|
|
funnin' anyhow. Me feered de bug! what I keer for de bug?" Here he
|
|
took cautiously hold of the extreme end of the string, and,
|
|
maintaining the insect as far from his person as circumstances would
|
|
permit, prepared to ascend the tree.
|
|
|
|
In youth, the tulip-tree, or Liriodendron Tulipiferum, the most
|
|
magnificent of American foresters, has a trunk peculiarly smooth,
|
|
and often rises to a great height without lateral branches; but, in
|
|
its riper age, the bark becomes gnarled and uneven, while many short
|
|
limbs make their appearance on the stem. Thus the difficulty of
|
|
ascension, in the present case, lay more in semblance than in reality.
|
|
Embracing the huge cylinder, as closely as possible, with his arms and
|
|
knees, seizing with his hands some projections, and resting his
|
|
naked toes upon others, Jupiter, after one or two narrow escapes
|
|
from falling, at length wriggled himself into the first great fork,
|
|
and seemed to consider the whole business as virtually accomplished.
|
|
The risk of the achievement was, in fact, now over, although the
|
|
climber was some sixty or seventy feet from the ground.
|
|
|
|
"Which way mus go now, Massa Will?" he asked.
|
|
|
|
Keep up the largest branch --the one on this side," said Legrand.
|
|
The negro obeyed him promptly, and apparently with but little trouble;
|
|
ascending higher and higher, until no glimpse of his squat figure
|
|
could be obtained through the dense foliage which enveloped it.
|
|
Presently his voice was heard in a sort of halloo.
|
|
|
|
"How much fudder is got for go?"
|
|
|
|
"How high up are you?" asked Legrand.
|
|
|
|
"Ebber so fur," replied the negro; "can see de sky fru de top ob
|
|
de tree."
|
|
|
|
"Never mind the sky, but attend to what I say. Look down the trunk
|
|
and count the limbs below you on this side. How many limbs have you
|
|
passed?"
|
|
|
|
"One, two, tree, four, fibe --I done pass fibe big limb, massa, 'pon
|
|
dis side."
|
|
|
|
"Then go one limb higher."
|
|
|
|
In a few minutes the voice was heard again, announcing that the
|
|
seventh limb was attained.
|
|
|
|
"Now, Jup," cried Legrand, evidently much excited, "I want you to
|
|
work your way out upon that limb as far as you can. If you see
|
|
anything strange, let me know."
|
|
|
|
By this time what little doubt I might have entertained of my poor
|
|
friend's insanity, was put finally at rest. I had no alternative but
|
|
to conclude him stricken with lunacy, and I became seriously anxious
|
|
about getting him home. While I was pondering upon what was best to be
|
|
done, Jupiter's voice was again heard.
|
|
|
|
"Mos' feerd for to ventur 'pon dis limb berry far --'tis dead limb
|
|
putty much all de way."
|
|
|
|
"Did you say it was a dead limb, Jupiter?" cried Legrand in a
|
|
quavering voice.
|
|
|
|
"Yes, massa, him dead as de door-nail --done up for sartain --done
|
|
departed dis here life."
|
|
|
|
"What in the name of heaven shall I do?" asked Legrand, seemingly in
|
|
the greatest distress.
|
|
|
|
"Do!" said I, glad of an opportunity to interpose a word, "why
|
|
come home and go to bed. Come now! --that's a fine fellow. It's
|
|
getting late, and, besides, you remember your promise."
|
|
|
|
"Jupiter," cried he, without heeding me in the least, "do you hear
|
|
me?"
|
|
|
|
"Yes, Massa Will, hear you ebber so plain."
|
|
|
|
"Try the wood well, then, with your knife, and see if you think it
|
|
very rotten."
|
|
|
|
"Him rotten, massa, sure nuff," replied the negro in a few
|
|
moments, "but not so berry rotten as mought be. Mought ventur out
|
|
leetle way pon de limb by myself, dat's true."
|
|
|
|
"By yourself! --what do you mean?"
|
|
|
|
"Why I mean de bug. 'Tis berry hebby bug. Spose I drop him down
|
|
fuss, and den de limb won't break wid just de weight ob one nigger."
|
|
|
|
"You infernal scoundrel!" cried Legrand, apparently much relieved,
|
|
"what do you mean by telling me such nonsense as that? As sure as
|
|
you let that beetle fall! --I'll break your neck. Look here,
|
|
Jupiter! do you hear me?"
|
|
|
|
"Yes, massa, needn't hollo at poor nigger dat style."
|
|
|
|
"Well! now listen! --if you will venture out on the limb as far as
|
|
you think safe, and not let go the beetle, I'll make you a present
|
|
of a silver dollar as soon as you get down."
|
|
|
|
"I'm gwine, Massa Will --deed I is," replied the negro very promptly
|
|
--"mos out to the eend now."
|
|
|
|
"Out to the end!" here fairly screamed Legrand, "do you say you
|
|
are out to the end of that limb?"
|
|
|
|
"Soon be to de eend, massa, --o-o-o-o-oh! Lor-gol-a-marcy! what is
|
|
dis here pon de tree?"
|
|
|
|
"Well!" cried Legrand, highly delighted, "what is it?"
|
|
|
|
"Why taint noffin but a skull --somebody bin lef him head up de
|
|
tree, and de crows done gobble ebery bit ob de meat off."
|
|
|
|
"A skull, you say! --very well! --how is it fastened to the limb?
|
|
--what holds it on?"
|
|
|
|
"Sure nuff, massa; mus look. Why dis berry curous sarcumstance,
|
|
pon my word --dare's a great big nail in de skull, what fastens ob
|
|
it on to de tree."
|
|
|
|
"Well now, Jupiter, do exactly as I tell you --do you hear?"
|
|
|
|
"Yes, massa."
|
|
|
|
"Pay attention, then! --find the left eye of the skull."
|
|
|
|
"Hum! hoo! dat's good! why dar ain't no eye lef' at all."
|
|
|
|
"Curse your stupidity! do you know your right hand from your left?"
|
|
|
|
"Yes, I nose dat --nose all bout dat --'tis my left hand what I
|
|
chops de wood wid."
|
|
|
|
"To be sure! you are left-handed; and your left eye is on the same
|
|
side as your left hand. Now, I suppose, you can find the left eye of
|
|
the skull, or the place where the left eye has been. Have you found
|
|
it?"
|
|
|
|
Here was a long pause. At length the negro asked,
|
|
|
|
"Is de lef' eye of de skull pon de same side as de lef' hand of de
|
|
skull, too? --cause de skull ain't got not a bit ob a hand at all
|
|
--nebber mind! I got de lef' eye now --here de lef' eye! what mus do
|
|
wid it?"
|
|
|
|
"Let the beetle drop through it, as far as the string will reach
|
|
--but be careful and not let go your hold of the string."
|
|
|
|
"All dat done, Massa Will; mighty easy ting for to put de bug fru de
|
|
hole --look out for him dar below?"
|
|
|
|
During this colloquy no portion of Jupiter's person could be seen;
|
|
but the beetle, which he had suffered to descend, was now visible at
|
|
the end of the string, and glistened, like a globe of burnished
|
|
gold, in the last rays of the setting sun, some of which still faintly
|
|
illumined the eminence upon which we stood. The scarabaeus hung
|
|
quite clear of any branches, and, if allowed to fall, would have
|
|
fallen at our feet. Legrand immediately took the scythe, and cleared
|
|
with it a circular space, three or four yards in diameter, just
|
|
beneath the insect, and, having accomplished this, ordered Jupiter
|
|
to let go the string and come down from the tree.
|
|
|
|
Driving a peg, with great nicety, into the ground, at the precise
|
|
spot where the beetle fell, my friend now produced from his pocket a
|
|
tape-measure. Fastening one end of this at that point of the trunk
|
|
of the tree which was nearest the peg, he unrolled it till it
|
|
reached the peg, and thence farther unrolled it, in the direction
|
|
already established by the two points of the tree and the peg, for the
|
|
distance of fifty feet --Jupiter clearing away the brambles with the
|
|
scythe. At the spot thus attained a second peg was driven, and about
|
|
this, as a centre, a rude circle, about four feet in diameter,
|
|
described. Taking now a spade himself, and giving one to Jupiter and
|
|
one to me, Legrand begged us to set about one to digging as quickly as
|
|
possible.
|
|
|
|
To speak the truth, I had no especial relish for such amusement at
|
|
any time, and, at that particular moment, would most willingly have
|
|
declined it; for the night was coming on, and I felt much fatigued
|
|
with the exercise already taken; but I saw no mode of escape, and
|
|
was fearful of disturbing my poor friend's equanimity by a refusal.
|
|
Could I have depended, indeed, upon Jupiter's aid, I would have had no
|
|
hesitation in attempting to get the lunatic home by force; but I was
|
|
too well assured of the old negro's disposition, to hope that he would
|
|
assist me, under any circumstances, in a personal contest with his
|
|
master. I made no doubt that the latter had been infected with some of
|
|
the innumerable Southern superstitions about money buried, and that
|
|
his phantasy had received confirmation by the finding of the
|
|
scarabaeus, or, perhaps, by Jupiter's obstinacy in maintaining it to
|
|
be "a bug of real gold." A mind disposed to lunacy would readily be
|
|
led away by such suggestions --especially if chiming in with
|
|
favorite preconceived ideas --and then I called to mind the poor
|
|
fellow's speech about the beetle's being "the index of his fortune."
|
|
Upon the whole, I was sadly vexed and puzzled, but, at length, I
|
|
concluded to make a virtue of necessity --to dig with a good will, and
|
|
thus the sooner to convince the visionary, by ocular demonstration, of
|
|
the fallacy of the opinions he entertained.
|
|
|
|
The lanterns having been lit, we all fell to work with a zeal worthy
|
|
a more rational cause; and, as the glare fell upon our persons and
|
|
implements, I could not help thinking how picturesque a group we
|
|
composed, and how strange and suspicious our labors must have appeared
|
|
to any interloper who, by chance, might have stumbled upon our
|
|
whereabouts.
|
|
|
|
We dug very steadily for two hours. Little was said; and our chief
|
|
embarrassment lay in the yelpings of the dog, who took exceeding
|
|
interest in our proceedings. He, at length, became so obstreperous
|
|
that we grew fearful of his giving the alarm to some stragglers in the
|
|
vicinity; --or, rather, this was the apprehension of Legrand; --for
|
|
myself, I should have rejoiced at any interruption which might have
|
|
enabled me to get the wanderer home. The noise was, at length, very
|
|
effectually silenced by Jupiter, who, getting out of the hole with a
|
|
dogged air of deliberation, tied the brute's mouth up with one of
|
|
his suspenders, and then returned, with a grave chuckle, to his task.
|
|
|
|
When the time mentioned had expired, we had reached a depth of
|
|
five feet, and yet no signs of any treasure became manifest. A general
|
|
pause ensued, and I began to hope that the farce was at an end.
|
|
Legrand, however, although evidently much disconcerted, wiped his brow
|
|
thoughtfully and recommenced. We had excavated the entire circle of
|
|
four feet diameter, and now we slightly enlarged the limit, and went
|
|
to the farther depth of two feet. Still nothing appeared. The
|
|
gold-seeker, whom I sincerely pitied, at length clambered from the
|
|
pit, with the bitterest disappointment imprinted upon every feature,
|
|
and proceeded, slowly and reluctantly, to put on his coat, which he
|
|
had thrown off at the beginning of his labor. In the mean time I
|
|
made no remark. Jupiter, at a signal from his master, began to
|
|
gather up his tools. This done, and the dog having been unmuzzled,
|
|
we turned in profound silence towards home.
|
|
|
|
We had taken, perhaps, a dozen steps in this direction, when, with a
|
|
loud oath, Legrand strode up to Jupiter, and seized him by the collar.
|
|
The astonished negro opened his eyes and mouth to the fullest
|
|
extent, let fall the spades, and fell upon his knees.
|
|
|
|
"You scoundrel," said Legrand, hissing out the syllables from
|
|
between his clenched teeth --"you infernal black villain! --speak, I
|
|
tell you! --answer me this instant, without prevarication! which
|
|
--which is your left eye?"
|
|
|
|
"Oh, my golly, Massa Will! ain't dis here my lef' eye for
|
|
sartain?" roared the terrified Jupiter, placing his hand upon his
|
|
right organ of vision, and holding it there with a desperate
|
|
pertinacity, as if in immediate dread of his master's attempt at a
|
|
gouge.
|
|
|
|
"I thought so! --I knew it! --hurrah!" vociferated Legrand,
|
|
letting the negro go, and executing a series of curvets and
|
|
caracols, much to the astonishment of his valet, who, arising from his
|
|
knees, looked, mutely, from his master to myself, and then from myself
|
|
to his master.
|
|
|
|
"Come! we must go back," said the latter, "the game's not up yet;"
|
|
and he again led the way to the tulip-tree.
|
|
|
|
"Jupiter," said he, when we reached its foot, come here! was the
|
|
skull nailed to the limb with the face outward, or with the face to
|
|
the limb?"
|
|
|
|
"De face was out, massa, so dat de crows could get at de eyes
|
|
good, widout any trouble."
|
|
|
|
"Well, then, was it this eye or that through which you let the
|
|
beetle fall?" --here Legrand touched each of Jupiter's eyes.
|
|
|
|
"'Twas dis eye, massa --de lef' eye --jis as you tell me," and
|
|
here it was his right eye that the negro indicated.
|
|
|
|
"That will do --we must try it again."
|
|
|
|
Here my friend, about whose madness I now saw, or fancied that I
|
|
saw, certain indications of method, removed the peg which marked the
|
|
spot where the beetle fell, to a spot about three inches to the
|
|
westward of its former position. Taking, now, the tape-measure from
|
|
the nearest point of the trunk to the peg, as before, and continuing
|
|
the extension in a straight line to the distance of fifty feet, a spot
|
|
was indicated, removed, by several yards, from the point at which we
|
|
had been digging.
|
|
|
|
Around the new position a circle, somewhat larger than in the former
|
|
instance, was now described, and we again set to work with the spades.
|
|
I was dreadfully weary, but, scarcely understanding what had
|
|
occasioned the change in my thoughts, I felt no longer any great
|
|
aversion from the labor imposed. I had become most unaccountably
|
|
interested --nay, even excited. Perhaps there was something, amid
|
|
all the extravagant demeanor of Legrand --some air of forethought,
|
|
or of deliberation, which impressed me. I dug eagerly, and now and
|
|
then caught myself actually looking, with something that very much
|
|
resembled expectation, for the fancied treasure, the vision of which
|
|
had demented my unfortunate companion. At a period when such
|
|
vagaries of thought most fully possessed me, and when we had been at
|
|
work perhaps an hour and a half, we were again interrupted by the
|
|
violent howlings of the dog. His uneasiness, in the first instance,
|
|
had been, evidently, but the result of playfulness or caprice, but
|
|
he now assumed a bitter and serious tone. Upon Jupiter's again
|
|
attempting to muzzle him, he made furious resistance, and, leaping
|
|
into the hole, tore up the mould frantically with his claws. In a
|
|
few seconds he had uncovered a mass of human bones, forming two
|
|
complete skeletons, intermingled with several buttons of metal, and
|
|
what appeared to be the dust of decayed woollen. One or two strokes of
|
|
a spade upturned the blade of a large Spanish knife, and, as we dug
|
|
farther, three or four loose pieces of gold and silver coin came to
|
|
light.
|
|
|
|
At sight of these the joy of Jupiter could scarcely be restrained,
|
|
but the countenance of his master wore an air of extreme
|
|
disappointment. He urged us, however, to continue our exertions, and
|
|
the words were hardly uttered when I stumbled and fell forward, having
|
|
caught the toe of my boot in a large ring of iron that lay half buried
|
|
in the loose earth.
|
|
|
|
We now worked in earnest, and never did I pass ten minutes of more
|
|
intense excitement. During this interval we had fairly unearthed an
|
|
oblong chest of wood, which, from its perfect preservation, and
|
|
wonderful hardness, had plainly been subjected to some mineralizing
|
|
process --perhaps that of the Bi-chloride of Mercury. This box was
|
|
three feet and a half long, three feet broad, and two and a half
|
|
feet deep. It was firmly secured by bands of wrought iron, riveted,
|
|
and forming a kind of trellis-work over the whole. On each side of the
|
|
chest, near the top, were three rings of iron --six in all --by
|
|
means of which a firm hold could be obtained by six persons. Our
|
|
utmost united endeavors served only to disturb the coffer very
|
|
slightly in its bed. We at once saw the impossibility of removing so
|
|
great a weight. Luckily, the sole fastenings of the lid consisted of
|
|
two sliding bolts. These we drew back --trembling and panting with
|
|
anxiety. In an instant, a treasure of incalculable value lay
|
|
gleaming before us. As the rays of the lanterns fell within the pit,
|
|
there flashed upwards, from a confused heap of gold and of jewels, a
|
|
glow and a glare that absolutely dazzled our eyes.
|
|
|
|
I shall not pretend to describe the feelings with which I gazed.
|
|
Amazement was, of course, predominant. Legrand appeared exhausted with
|
|
excitement, and spoke very few words. Jupiter's countenance wore,
|
|
for some minutes, as deadly a pallor as it is possible, in the
|
|
nature of things, for any negro's visage to assume. He seemed
|
|
stupefied --thunder-stricken. Presently he fell upon his knees in
|
|
the pit, and, burying his naked arms up to the elbows in gold, let
|
|
them there remain, as if enjoying the luxury of a bath. At length,
|
|
with a deep sigh, he exclaimed, as if in a soliloquy.
|
|
|
|
"And dis all cum ob de goole-bug! de putty goole-bug! de poor little
|
|
goole-bug, what I boosed in dat sabage kind ob style! Ain't you shamed
|
|
ob yourself, nigger? --answer me dat!"
|
|
|
|
It became necessary, at last, that I should arouse both master and
|
|
valet to the expediency of removing the treasure. It was growing late,
|
|
and it behooved us to make exertion, that we might get every thing
|
|
housed before daylight. It was difficult to say what should be done;
|
|
and much time was spent in deliberation --so confused were the ideas
|
|
of all. We, finally, lightened the box by removing two thirds of its
|
|
contents, when we were enabled, with some trouble, to raise it from
|
|
the hole. The articles taken out were deposited among the brambles,
|
|
and the dog left to guard them, with strict orders from Jupiter
|
|
neither, upon any pretence, to stir from the spot, nor to open his
|
|
mouth until our return. We then hurriedly made for home with the
|
|
chest; reaching the hut in safety, but after excessive toil, at one
|
|
o'clock in the morning. Worn out as we were, it was not in human
|
|
nature to do more just then. We rested until two, and had supper;
|
|
starting for the hills immediately afterwards, armed with three
|
|
stout sacks, which, by good luck, were upon the premises. A little
|
|
before four we arrived at the pit, divided the remainder of the booty,
|
|
as equally as might be, among us, and, leaving the holes unfilled,
|
|
again set out for the hut, at which, for the second time, we deposited
|
|
our golden burthens, just as the first streaks of the dawn gleamed
|
|
from over the tree-tops in the East.
|
|
|
|
We were now thoroughly broken down; but the intense excitement of
|
|
the time denied us repose. After an unquiet slumber of some three or
|
|
four hours' duration, we arose, as if by preconcert, to make
|
|
examination of our treasure.
|
|
|
|
The chest had been full to the brim, and we spent the whole day, and
|
|
the greater part of the next night, in a scrutiny of its contents.
|
|
There had been nothing like order or arrangement. Every thing had been
|
|
heaped in promiscuously. Having assorted all with care, we found
|
|
ourselves possessed of even vaster wealth than we had at first
|
|
supposed. In coin there was rather more than four hundred and fifty
|
|
thousand dollars --estimating the value of the pieces, as accurately
|
|
as we could, by the tables of the period. There was not a particle
|
|
of silver. All was gold of antique date and of great variety --French,
|
|
Spanish, and German money, with a few English guineas, and some
|
|
counters, of which we had never seen specimens before. There were
|
|
several very large and heavy coins, so worn that we could make nothing
|
|
of their inscriptions. There was no American money. The value of the
|
|
jewels we found more difficulty in estimating. There were diamonds
|
|
--some of them exceedingly large and fine --a hundred and ten in
|
|
all, and not one of them small; eighteen rubies of remarkable
|
|
brilliancy; --three hundred and ten emeralds, all very beautiful;
|
|
and twenty-one sapphires, with an opal. These stones had all been
|
|
broken from their settings and thrown loose in the chest. The settings
|
|
themselves, which we picked out from among the other gold, appeared to
|
|
have been beaten up with hammers, as if to prevent identification.
|
|
Besides all this, there was a vast quantity of solid gold ornaments;
|
|
--nearly two hundred massive finger and ear rings; --rich chains
|
|
--thirty of these, if I remember; --eighty-three very large and
|
|
heavy crucifixes; --five gold censers of great value; --a prodigious
|
|
golden punch-bowl, ornamented with richly chased vine-leaves and
|
|
Bacchanalian figures; with two sword-handles exquisitely embossed, and
|
|
many other smaller articles which I cannot recollect. The weight of
|
|
these valuables exceeded three hundred and fifty pounds avoirdupois;
|
|
and in this estimate I have not included one hundred and
|
|
ninety-seven superb gold watches; three of the number being worth each
|
|
five hundred dollars, if one. Many of them were very old, and as
|
|
time keepers valueless; the works having suffered, more or less,
|
|
from corrosion --but all were richly jewelled and in cases of great
|
|
worth. We estimated the entire contents of the chest, that night, at a
|
|
million and a half of dollars; and, upon the subsequent disposal of
|
|
the trinkets and jewels (a few being retained for our own use), it was
|
|
found that we had greatly undervalued the treasure.
|
|
|
|
When, at length, we had concluded our examination, and the intense
|
|
excitement of the time had, in some measure, subsided, Legrand, who
|
|
saw that I was dying with impatience for a solution of this most
|
|
extraordinary riddle, entered into a full detail of all the
|
|
circumstances connected with it.
|
|
|
|
"You remember," said he, "the night when I handed you the rough
|
|
sketch I had made of the scarabaeus. You recollect also, that I became
|
|
quite vexed at you for insisting that my drawing resembled a
|
|
death's-head. When you first made this assertion I thought you were
|
|
jesting; but afterwards I called to mind the peculiar spots on the
|
|
back of the insect, and admitted to myself that your remark had some
|
|
little foundation in fact. Still, the sneer at my graphic powers
|
|
irritated me --for I am considered a good artist --and, therefore,
|
|
when you handed me the scrap of parchment, I was about to crumple it
|
|
up and throw it angrily into the fire."
|
|
|
|
"The scrap of paper, you mean," said I.
|
|
|
|
"No; it had much of the appearance of paper, and at first I supposed
|
|
it to be such, but when I came to draw upon it, I discovered it, at
|
|
once, to be a piece of very thin parchment. It was quite dirty, you
|
|
remember. Well, as I was in the very act of crumpling it up, my glance
|
|
fell upon the sketch at which you had been looking, and you may
|
|
imagine my astonishment when I perceived, in fact, the figure of a
|
|
death's-head just where, it seemed to me, I had made the drawing of
|
|
the beetle. For a moment I was too much amazed to think with accuracy.
|
|
I knew that my design was very different in detail from this
|
|
--although there was a certain similarity in general outline.
|
|
Presently I took a candle, and seating myself at the other end of
|
|
the room, proceeded to scrutinize the parchment more closely. Upon
|
|
turning it over, I saw my own sketch upon the reverse, just as I had
|
|
made it. My first idea, now, was mere surprise at the really
|
|
remarkable similarity of outline --at the singular coincidence
|
|
involved in the fact, that unknown to me, there should have been a
|
|
skull upon the other side of the parchment, immediately beneath my
|
|
figure of the scarabaeus and that this skull, not only in outline, but
|
|
in size, should so closely resemble my drawing. I say the
|
|
singularity of this coincidence absolutely stupefied me for a time.
|
|
This is the usual effect of such coincidences. The mind struggles to
|
|
establish a connection --a sequence of cause and effect --and, being
|
|
unable to do so, suffers a species of temporary paralysis. But, when I
|
|
recovered from this stupor, there dawned upon me gradually a
|
|
conviction which startled me even far more than the coincidence. I
|
|
began distinctly, positively, to remember that there had been no
|
|
drawing on the parchment when I made my sketch of the scarabaeus. I
|
|
became perfectly certain of this; for I recollected turning up first
|
|
one side and then the other, in search of the cleanest spot. Had the
|
|
skull been then there, of course I could not have failed to notice it.
|
|
Here was indeed a mystery which I felt it impossible to explain;
|
|
but, even at that early moment, there it seemed to glimmer, faintly,
|
|
within the most remote and secret chambers of my intellect, a
|
|
glow-worm-like conception of that truth which last night's adventure
|
|
brought to so magnificent a demonstration. I arose at once, and
|
|
putting the parchment securely away, dismissed all farther
|
|
reflection until I should be alone.
|
|
|
|
"When you had gone, and when Jupiter was fast asleep, I betook
|
|
myself to a more methodical investigation of the affair. In the
|
|
first place I considered the manner in which the parchment had come
|
|
into my possession. The spot where we discovered the scarabaeus was on
|
|
the coast of the main land, about a mile eastward of the island, and
|
|
but a short distance above high water mark. Upon my taking hold of it,
|
|
it gave me a sharp bite, which caused me to let it drop. Jupiter, with
|
|
his accustomed caution, before seizing the insect, which had flown
|
|
towards him, looked about him for a leaf, or something of that nature,
|
|
by which to take hold of it. It was at this moment that his eyes,
|
|
and mine also, fell upon the scrap of parchment, which I then supposed
|
|
to be paper. It was lying half buried in the sand, a corner sticking
|
|
up. Near the spot where we found it, I observed the remnants of the
|
|
hull of what appeared to have been a ship's long boat. The wreck
|
|
seemed to have been there for a very great while; for the
|
|
resemblance to boat timbers could scarcely be traced.
|
|
|
|
"Well, Jupiter picked up the parchment, wrapped the beetle in it,
|
|
and gave it to me. Soon afterwards we turned to go home, and on the
|
|
way met Lieutenant G--. I showed him the insect, and he begged me to
|
|
let him take it to the fort. On my consenting, he thrust it
|
|
forthwith into his waistcoat pocket, without the parchment in which it
|
|
had been wrapped, and which I had continued to hold in my hand
|
|
during his inspection. Perhaps he dreaded my changing my mind, and
|
|
thought it best to make sure of the prize at once --you know how
|
|
enthusiastic he is on all subjects connected with Natural History.
|
|
At the same time without being conscious of it, I must have
|
|
deposited the parchment in my own pocket.
|
|
|
|
"You remember that when I went to the table, for the purpose of
|
|
making a sketch of the beetle, I found no paper where it was usually
|
|
kept. I looked in the drawer, and found none there. I searched my
|
|
pockets, hoping to find an old letter --and then my hand fell upon the
|
|
parchment. I thus detail the precise mode in which it came into my
|
|
possession; for the circumstances impressed me with peculiar force.
|
|
|
|
"No doubt you will think me fanciful --but I had already established
|
|
a kind of connexion. I had put together two links of a great chain.
|
|
There was a boat lying on a sea-coast, and not far from the boat was a
|
|
parchment --not a paper --with a skull depicted on it. You will, of
|
|
course, ask 'where is the connexion?' I reply that the skull, or
|
|
death's-head, is the well-known emblem of the pirate. The flag of
|
|
the death's-head is hoisted in all engagements.
|
|
|
|
"I have said that the scrap was parchment, and not paper.
|
|
Parchment is durable --almost imperishable. Matters of little moment
|
|
are rarely consigned to parchment; since, for the mere ordinary
|
|
purposes of drawing or writing, it is not nearly so well adapted as
|
|
paper. This reflection suggested some meaning --some relevancy --in
|
|
the death's-head. I did not fail to observe, also, the form of the
|
|
parchment. Although one of its corners had been, by some accident,
|
|
destroyed, it could be seen that the original form was oblong. It
|
|
was just such a slip, indeed, as might have been chosen for a
|
|
memorandum --for a record of something to be long remembered and
|
|
carefully preserved."
|
|
|
|
"But," I interposed, "you say that the skull was not upon the
|
|
parchment when you made the drawing of the beetle. How then do you
|
|
trace any connexion between the boat and the skull --since this
|
|
latter, according to your own admission, must have been designed
|
|
(God only knows how or by whom) at some period subsequent to your
|
|
sketching the scarabaeus?"
|
|
|
|
"Ah, hereupon turns the whole mystery; although the secret, at
|
|
this point, I had comparatively little difficulty in solving. My steps
|
|
were sure, and could afford but a single result. I reasoned, for
|
|
example, thus: When I drew the scarabaeus, there was no skull apparent
|
|
on the parchment. When I had completed the drawing, I gave it to
|
|
you, and observed you narrowly until you returned it. You,
|
|
therefore, did not design the skull, and no one else was present to do
|
|
it. Then it was not done by human agency. And nevertheless it was
|
|
done.
|
|
|
|
"At this stage of my reflections I endeavored to remember, and did
|
|
remember, with entire distinctness, every incident which occurred
|
|
about the period in question. The weather was chilly (oh rare and
|
|
happy accident!), and a fire was blazing on the hearth. I was heated
|
|
with exercise and sat near the table. You, however, had drawn a
|
|
chair close to the chimney. Just as I placed the parchment in your
|
|
hand, and as you were in the act of inspecting it, Wolf, the
|
|
Newfoundland, entered, and leaped upon your shoulders. With your
|
|
left hand you caressed him and kept him off, while your right, holding
|
|
the parchment, was permitted to fall listlessly between your knees,
|
|
and in close proximity to the fire. At one moment I thought the
|
|
blaze had caught it, and was about to caution you, but, before I could
|
|
speak, you had withdrawn it, and were engaged in its examination. When
|
|
I considered all these particulars, I doubted not for a moment that
|
|
heat had been the agent in bringing to light, on the parchment, the
|
|
skull which I saw designed on it. You are well aware that chemical
|
|
preparations exist, and have existed time out of mind, by means of
|
|
which it is possible to write on either paper or vellum, so that the
|
|
characters shall become visible only when subjected to the action of
|
|
fire. Zaire, digested in aqua regia, and diluted with four times its
|
|
weight of water, is sometimes employed; a green tint results. The
|
|
regulus of cobalt, dissolved in spirit of nitre, gives a red. These
|
|
colors disappear at longer or shorter intervals after the material
|
|
written on cools, but again become apparent upon the re-application of
|
|
heat.
|
|
|
|
"I now scrutinized the death's-head with care. Its outer edges --the
|
|
edges of the drawing nearest the edge of the vellum --were far more
|
|
distinct than the others. It was clear that the action of the
|
|
caloric had been imperfect or unequal. I immediately kindled a fire,
|
|
and subjected every portion of the parchment to a glowing heat. At
|
|
first, the only effect was the strengthening of the faint lines in the
|
|
skull; but, on persevering in the experiment, there became visible, at
|
|
the corner of the slip, diagonally opposite to the spot in which the
|
|
death's-head was delineated, the figure of what I at first supposed to
|
|
be a goat. A closer scrutiny, however, satisfied me that it was
|
|
intended for a kid."
|
|
|
|
"Ha! ha!" said I, "to be sure I have no right to laugh at you --a
|
|
million and a half of money is too serious a matter for mirth --but
|
|
you are not about to establish a third link in your chain --you will
|
|
not find any especial connexion between your pirates and goat
|
|
--pirates, you know, have nothing to do with goats; they appertain
|
|
to the farming interest."
|
|
|
|
"But I have just said that the figure was not that of a goat."
|
|
|
|
"Well, a kid then --pretty much the same thing."
|
|
|
|
"Pretty much, but not altogether," said Legrand. "You may have heard
|
|
of one Captain Kidd. I at once looked on the figure of the animal as a
|
|
kind of punning or hieroglyphical signature. I say signature;
|
|
because its position on the vellum suggested this idea. The
|
|
death's-head at the corner diagonally opposite, had, in the same
|
|
manner, the air of a stamp, or seal. But I was sorely put out by the
|
|
absence of all else --of the body to my imagined instrument --of the
|
|
text for my context."
|
|
|
|
"I presume you expected to find a letter between the stamp and the
|
|
signature."
|
|
|
|
"Something of that kind. The fact is, I felt irresistibly
|
|
impressed with a presentiment of some vast good fortune impending. I
|
|
can scarcely say why. Perhaps, after all, it was rather a desire
|
|
than an actual belief; --but do you know that Jupiter's silly words,
|
|
about the bug being of solid gold, had a remarkable effect on my
|
|
fancy? And then the series of accidents and coincidences --these
|
|
were so very extraordinary. Do you observe how mere an accident it was
|
|
that these events should have occurred on the sole day of all the year
|
|
in which it has been, or may be, sufficiently cool for fire, and
|
|
that without the fire, or without the intervention of the dog at the
|
|
precise moment in which he appeared, I should never have become
|
|
aware of the death's-head, and so never the possessor of the
|
|
treasure?"
|
|
|
|
"But proceed --I am all impatience."
|
|
|
|
"Well; you have heard, of course, the many stories current --the
|
|
thousand vague rumors afloat about money buried, somewhere on the
|
|
Atlantic coast, by Kidd and his associates. These rumors must have had
|
|
some foundation in fact. And that the rumors have existed so long
|
|
and so continuously could have resulted, it appeared to me, only
|
|
from the circumstance of the buried treasure still remaining entombed.
|
|
Had Kidd concealed his plunder for a time, and afterwards reclaimed
|
|
it, the rumors would scarcely have reached us in their present
|
|
unvarying form. You will observe that the stories told are all about
|
|
money-seekers, not about money-finders. Had the pirate recovered his
|
|
money, there the affair would have dropped. It seemed to me that
|
|
some accident --say the loss of a memorandum indicating its locality
|
|
--had deprived him of the means of recovering it, and that this
|
|
accident had become known to is followers, who otherwise might never
|
|
have heard that treasure had been concealed at all, and who, busying
|
|
themselves in vain, because unguided attempts, to regain it, had given
|
|
first birth, and then universal currency, to the reports which are now
|
|
so common. Have you ever heard of any important treasure being
|
|
unearthed along the coast?"
|
|
|
|
"Never."
|
|
|
|
"But that Kidd's accumulations were immense, is well known. I took
|
|
it for granted, therefore, that the earth still held them; and you
|
|
will scarcely be surprised when I tell you that I felt a hope,
|
|
nearly amounting to certainty, that the parchment so strangely
|
|
found, involved a lost record of the place of deposit."
|
|
|
|
"But how did you proceed?"
|
|
|
|
"I held the vellum again to the fire, after increasing the heat; but
|
|
nothing appeared. I now thought it possible that the coating of dirt
|
|
might have something to do with the failure; so I carefully rinsed the
|
|
parchment by pouring warm water over it, and, having done this, I
|
|
placed it in a tin pan, with the skull downwards, and put the pan upon
|
|
a furnace of lighted charcoal. In a few minutes, the pan having become
|
|
thoroughly heated, I removed the slip, and, to my inexpressible joy,
|
|
found it spotted, in several places, with what appeared to be
|
|
figures arranged in lines. Again I placed it in the pan, and
|
|
suffered it to remain another minute. On taking it off, the whole
|
|
was just as you see it now."
|
|
|
|
Here Legrand, having re-heated the parchment, submitted It my
|
|
inspection. The following characters were rudely traced, in a red
|
|
tint, between the death's-head and the goat:
|
|
|
|
53++!305))6*;4826)4+.)4+);806*;48!8`60))85;]8*:+*8!83(88)5*!;
|
|
|
|
46(;88*96*?;8)*+(;485);5*!2:*+(;4956*2(5*-4)8`8*; 4069285);)6
|
|
|
|
!8)4++;1(+9;48081;8:8+1;48!85;4)485!528806*81(+9;48;(88;4(+?3
|
|
|
|
4;48)4+;161;:188;+?;
|
|
|
|
"But," said I, returning him the slip, "I am as much in the dark as
|
|
ever. Were all the jewels of Golconda awaiting me on my solution of
|
|
this enigma, I am quite sure that I should be unable to earn them."
|
|
|
|
"And yet," said Legrand, "the solution is by no means so difficult
|
|
as you might be led to imagine from the first hasty inspection of
|
|
the characters. These characters, as any one might readily guess, form
|
|
a cipher --that is to say, they convey a meaning; but then, from
|
|
what is known of Kidd, I could not suppose him capable of constructing
|
|
any of the more abstruse cryptographs. I made up my mind, at once,
|
|
that this was of a simple species --such, however, as would appear, to
|
|
the crude intellect of the sailor, absolutely insoluble without the
|
|
key."
|
|
|
|
"And you really solved it?"
|
|
|
|
"Readily; I have solved others of an abstruseness ten thousand times
|
|
greater. Circumstances, and a certain bias of mind, have led me to
|
|
take interest in such riddles, and it may well be doubted whether
|
|
human ingenuity can construct an enigma of the kind which human
|
|
ingenuity may not, by proper application, resolve. In fact, having
|
|
once established connected and legible characters, I scarcely gave a
|
|
thought to the mere difficulty of developing their import.
|
|
|
|
"In the present case --indeed in all cases of secret writing --the
|
|
first question regards the language of the cipher; for the
|
|
principles of solution, so far, especially, as the more simple ciphers
|
|
are concerned, depend on, and are varied by, the genius of the
|
|
particular idiom. In general, there is no alternative but experiment
|
|
(directed by probabilities) of every tongue known to him who
|
|
attempts the solution, until the true one be attained. But, with the
|
|
cipher now before us, all difficulty is removed by the signature.
|
|
The pun on the word 'Kidd' is appreciable in no other language than
|
|
the English. But for this consideration I should have begun my
|
|
attempts with the Spanish and French, as the tongues in which a secret
|
|
of this kind would most naturally have been written by a pirate of the
|
|
Spanish main. As it was, I assumed the cryptograph to be English.
|
|
|
|
"You observe there are no divisions between the words. Had there
|
|
been divisions, the task would have been comparatively easy. In such
|
|
case I should have commenced with a collation and analysis of the
|
|
shorter words, and, had a word of a single letter occurred, as is most
|
|
likely, (a or I, for example,) I should have considered the solution
|
|
as assured. But, there being no division, my first step was to
|
|
ascertain the predominant letters, as well as the least frequent.
|
|
Counting all, I constructed a table, thus:
|
|
|
|
Of the character 8 there are 33.
|
|
|
|
; " 26.
|
|
|
|
4 " 19.
|
|
|
|
+ ) " 16.
|
|
|
|
* " 13.
|
|
|
|
5 " 12.
|
|
|
|
6 " 11.
|
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! 1 " 8.
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0 " 6.
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9 2 " 5.
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: 3 " 4.
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? " 3.
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` " 2.
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- . " 1.
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"Now, in English, the letter which most frequently occurs is e.
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Afterwards, the succession runs thus: a o i d h n r s t u y c f g l
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m w b k p q x z. E however predominates so remarkably that an
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individual sentence of any length is rarely seen, in which it is not
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the prevailing character.
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"Here, then, we have, in the very beginning, the groundwork for
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something more than a mere guess. The general use which may be made of
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the table is obvious --but, in this particular cipher, we shall only
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very partially require its aid. As our predominant character is 8,
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we will commence by assuming it as the e of the natural alphabet. To
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verify the supposition, let us observe if the 8 be seen often in
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couples --for e is doubled with great frequency in English --in such
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words, for example, as 'meet,' 'fleet,' 'speed, 'seen,' 'been,'
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'agree,' &c. In the present instance we see it doubled less than
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five times, although the cryptograph is brief.
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"Let us assume 8, then, as e. Now, of all words in the language,
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'the' is the most usual; let us see, therefore, whether they are not
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repetitions of any three characters in the same order of
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collocation, the last of them being 8. If we discover repetitions of
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such letters, so arranged, they will most probably represent the
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word 'the.' On inspection, we find no less than seven such
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arrangements, the characters being ;48. We may, therefore, assume that
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the semicolon represents t, that 4 represents h, and that 8 represents
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e --the last being now well confirmed. Thus a great step has been
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taken.
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"But, having established a single word, we are enabled to
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establish a vastly important point; that is to say, several
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commencements and terminations of other words. Let us refer, for
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example, to the last instance but one, in which the combination ;48
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occurs --not far from the end of the cipher. We know that the
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semicolon immediately ensuing is the commencement of a word, and, of
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the six characters succeeding this 'the,' we are cognizant of no
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less than five. Let us set these characters down, thus, by the letters
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we know them to represent, leaving a space for the unknown--
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t eeth.
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"Here we are enabled, at once, to discard the 'th,' as forming no
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portion of the word commencing with the first t; since, by
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experiment of the entire alphabet for a letter adapted to the
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vacancy we perceive that no word can be formed of which this th can be
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a part. We are thus narrowed into
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t ee,
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and, going through the alphabet, if necessary, as before, we arrive at
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the word 'tree,' as the sole possible reading. We thus gain another
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letter, r, represented by (, with the words 'the tree' in
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juxtaposition.
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"Looking beyond these words, for a short distance, we again see
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the combination ;48, and employ it by way of termination to what
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immediately precedes. We have thus this arrangement:
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the tree ;4(+?34 the,
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or substituting the natural letters, where known, it reads thus:
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the tree thr+?3h the.
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"Now, if, in place of the unknown characters, we leave blank spaces,
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or substitute dots, we read thus:
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the tree thr...h the,
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when the word 'through' makes itself evident at once. But this
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discovery gives us three new letters, o, u and g, represented by + ?
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and 3.
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"Looking now, narrowly, through the cipher for combinations of known
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characters, we find, not very far from the beginning, this
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arrangement,
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83(88, or egree,
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which, plainly, is the conclusion of the word 'degree,' and gives us
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another letter, d, represented by !.
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"Four letters beyond the word 'degree,' we perceive the combination
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;46(;88*.
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"Translating the known characters, and representing the unknown by
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dots, as before, we read thus:
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th.rtee.
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an arrangement immediately suggestive of the word 'thirteen,' and
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again furnishing us with two new characters, i and n, represented by 6
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and *.
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"Referring, now, to the beginning of the cryptograph, we find the
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combination,
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53++!.
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"Translating, as before, we obtain
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.good,
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which assures us that the first letter is A, and that the first two
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words are 'A good.'
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"To avoid confusion, it is now time that we arrange our key, as
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far as discovered, in a tabular form. It will stand thus:
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5 represents a
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! " d
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8 " e
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3 " g
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4 " h
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6 " i
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* " n
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+ " o
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( " r
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; " t
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"We have, therefore, no less than ten of the most important letters
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represented, and it will be unnecessary to proceed with the details of
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the solution. I have said enough to convince you that ciphers of
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this nature are readily soluble, and to give you some insight into the
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rationale of their development. But be assured that the specimen
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before us appertains to the very simplest species of cryptograph. It
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now only remains to give you the full translation of the characters
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upon the parchment, as unriddled. Here it is:
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'A good glass in the bishop's hostel in the devil's seat
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twenty-one degrees and thirteen minutes northeast and by north main
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branch seventh limb east side shoot from the left eye of the
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death's-head a bee line from the tree through the shot fifty feet
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|
out.'"
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"But," said I, "the enigma seems still in as bad a condition as
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ever. How is it possible to extort a meaning from all this jargon
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about 'devil's seats,' 'death's-heads,' and 'bishop's hostel'?"
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"I confess," replied Legrand, "that the matter still wears a serious
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|
aspect, when regarded with a casual glance. My first endeavor was to
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divide the sentence into the natural division intended by the
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cryptographist."
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"You mean, to punctuate it?"
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"Something of that kind."
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"But how was it possible to effect this?"
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"I reflected that it had been a point with the writer to run his
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words together without division, so as to increase the difficulty of
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|
solution. Now, a not overacute man, in pursuing such an object,
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|
would be nearly certain to overdo the matter. When, in the course of
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|
his composition, he arrived at a break in his subject which would
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|
naturally require a pause, or a point, he would be exceedingly apt
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|
to run his characters, at this place, more than usually close
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|
together. If you will observe the MS., in the present instance, you
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|
will easily detect five such cases of unusual crowding. Acting on this
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hint, I made the division thus:
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'A good glass in the bishop's hostel in the devil's --twenty-one
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|
degrees and thirteen minutes --northeast and by north --main branch
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seventh limb east side --shoot from the left eye of the death's-head
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--a bee-line from the tree through the shot fifty feet out.'"
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"Even this division," said I, "leaves me still in the dark."
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"It left me also in the dark," replied Legrand, "for a few days;
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|
during which I made diligent inquiry, in the neighborhood of
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Sullivan's Island, for any building which went by the name of the
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'Bishop's Hotel'; for, of course, I dropped the obsolete word
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|
'hostel.' Gaining no information on the subject, I was on the point of
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|
extending my sphere of search, and proceeding in a more systematic
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|
manner, when, one morning, it entered into my head, quite suddenly,
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|
that this 'Bishop's Hostel' might have some reference to an old
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|
family, of the name of Bessop, which, time out of mind, had held
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|
possession of an ancient manor-house, about four miles to the
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|
northward of the Island. I accordingly went over to the plantation,
|
|
and reinstituted my inquiries among the older negroes of the place. At
|
|
length one of the most aged of the women said that she had heard of
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|
such a place as Bessop's Castle, and thought that she could guide me
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|
to it, but that it was not a castle, nor a tavern, but a high rock.
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"I offered to pay her well for her trouble, and, after some demur,
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|
she consented to accompany me to the spot. We found it without much
|
|
difficulty, when, dismissing her, I proceeded to examine the place.
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|
The 'castle' consisted of an irregular assemblage of cliffs and
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|
rocks --one of the latter being quite remarkable for its height as
|
|
well as for its insulated and artificial appearance. I clambered to
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|
its apex, and then felt much at a loss as to what should be next done.
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|
"While I was busied in reflection, my eyes fell upon a narrow
|
|
ledge in the eastern face of the rock, perhaps a yard below the summit
|
|
on which I stood. This ledge projected about eighteen inches, and
|
|
was not more than a foot wide, while a niche in the cliff just above
|
|
it, gave it a rude resemblance to one of the hollow-backed chairs used
|
|
by our ancestors. I made no doubt that here was the 'devil's-seat'
|
|
alluded to in the MS., and now I seemed to grasp the full secret of
|
|
the riddle.
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|
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"The 'good glass,' I knew, could have reference to nothing but a
|
|
telescope; for the word 'glass' is rarely employed in any other
|
|
sense by seamen. Now here, I at once saw, was a telescope to be
|
|
used, and a definite point of view, admitting no variation, from which
|
|
to use it. Nor did I hesitate to believe that the phrases, 'twenty-one
|
|
degrees and thirteen minutes,' and northeast and by north,' were
|
|
intended as directions for the levelling of the glass. Greatly excited
|
|
by these discoveries, I hurried home, procured a telescope, and
|
|
returned to the rock.
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|
|
"I let myself down to the ledge, and found that it was impossible to
|
|
retain a seat on it unless in one particular position. This fact
|
|
confirmed my preconceived idea. I proceeded to use the glass. Of
|
|
course, the 'twenty-one degrees and thirteen minutes' could allude
|
|
to nothing but elevation above the visible horizon, since the
|
|
horizontal direction was clearly indicated by the words, 'northeast
|
|
and by north.' This latter direction I at once established by means of
|
|
a pocket-compass; then, pointing the glass as nearly at an angle of
|
|
twenty-one degrees of elevation as I could do it by guess, I moved
|
|
it cautiously up or down, until my attention was arrested by a
|
|
circular rift or opening in the foliage of a large tree that
|
|
overtopped its fellows in the distance. In the centre of this rift I
|
|
perceived a white spot, but could not, at first, distinguish what it
|
|
was. Adjusting the focus of the telescope, I again looked, and now
|
|
made it out to be a human skull.
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|
|
|
"On this discovery I was so sanguine as to consider the enigma
|
|
solved; for the phrase 'main branch, seventh limb, east side,' could
|
|
refer only to the position of the skull on the tree, while shoot
|
|
from the left eye of the death's-head' admitted, also, of but one
|
|
interpretation, in regard to a search for buried treasure. I perceived
|
|
that the design was to drop a bullet from the left eye of the skull,
|
|
and that a bee-line, or, in other words, a straight line, drawn from
|
|
the nearest point of the trunk through 'the shot,' (or the spot
|
|
where the bullet fell,) and thence extended to a distance of fifty
|
|
feet, would indicate a definite point --and beneath this point I
|
|
thought it at least possible that a deposit of value lay concealed."
|
|
|
|
"All this," I said, "is exceedingly clear, and, although
|
|
ingenious, still simple and explicit. When you left the Bishop's
|
|
Hotel, what then?"
|
|
|
|
"Why, having carefully taken the bearings of the tree, I turned
|
|
homewards. The instant that I left 'the devil's seat,' however, the
|
|
circular rift vanished; nor could I get a glimpse of it afterwards,
|
|
turn as I would. What seems to me the chief ingenuity in this whole
|
|
business, is the fact (for repeated experiment has convinced me it
|
|
is a fact) that the circular opening in question is visible from no
|
|
other attainable point of view than that afforded by the narrow
|
|
ledge on the face of the rock.
|
|
|
|
"In this expedition to the 'Bishop's Hotel' I had been attended by
|
|
Jupiter, who had, no doubt, observed, for some weeks past, the
|
|
abstraction of my demeanor, and took especial care not to leave me
|
|
alone. But, on the next day, getting up very early, I contrived to
|
|
give him the slip, and went into the hills in search of the tree.
|
|
After much toil I found it. When I came home at night my valet
|
|
proposed to give me a flogging. With the rest of the adventure I
|
|
believe you are as well acquainted as myself."
|
|
|
|
"I suppose," said I, "you missed the spot, in the first attempt at
|
|
digging through Jupiter's stupidity in letting the bug fall through
|
|
the right instead of the left of the skull."
|
|
|
|
"Precisely. This mistake made a difference of about two inches and a
|
|
half in the 'shot' --that is to say, in the position of the peg
|
|
nearest the tree; and had the treasure been beneath the 'shot,' the
|
|
error would have been of little moment; but the 'shot,' together
|
|
with the nearest point of the tree, were merely two points for the
|
|
establishment of a line of direction; of course the error, however
|
|
trivial in the beginning, increased as we proceeded with the line, and
|
|
by the time we had gone fifty feet, threw us quite off the scent.
|
|
But for my deep-seated convictions that treasure was here somewhere
|
|
actually buried, we might have had all our labor in vain."
|
|
|
|
"I presume the fancy of the skull, of letting fall a bullet
|
|
through the skull's eye --was suggested to Kidd by the piratical flag.
|
|
No doubt he felt a kind of poetical consistency in recovering his
|
|
money through this ominous insignium."
|
|
|
|
"Perhaps so; still I cannot help thinking that common-sense had
|
|
quite as much to do with the matter as poetical consistency. To be
|
|
visible from the devil's-seat, it was necessary that the object, if
|
|
small, should be white; and there is nothing like your human skull for
|
|
retaining and even increasing its whiteness under exposure to all
|
|
vicissitudes of weather."
|
|
|
|
"But your grandiloquence, and your conduct in swinging the beetle
|
|
--how excessively odd! I was sure you were mad. And why did you insist
|
|
on letting fall the bug, instead of a bullet, from the skull?"
|
|
|
|
"Why, to be frank, I felt somewhat annoyed by your evident
|
|
suspicions touching my sanity, and so resolved to punish you
|
|
quietly, in my own way, by a little bit of sober mystification. For
|
|
this reason I swung the beetle, and for this reason I let it fall from
|
|
the tree. An observation of yours about its great weight suggested the
|
|
latter idea."
|
|
|
|
"Yes, I perceive; and now there is only one point which puzzles
|
|
me. What are we to make of the skeletons found in the hole?"
|
|
|
|
"That is a question I am no more able to answer than yourself. There
|
|
seems, however, only one plausible way of accounting for them --and
|
|
yet it is dreadful to believe in such atrocity as my suggestion
|
|
would imply. It is clear that Kidd --if Kidd indeed secreted this
|
|
treasure, which I doubt not --it is clear that he must have had
|
|
assistance in the labor. But, the worst of this labor concluded, he
|
|
may have thought it expedient to remove all participants in his
|
|
secret. Perhaps a couple of blows with a mattock were sufficient,
|
|
while his coadjutors were busy in the pit; perhaps it required a dozen
|
|
--who shall tell?"
|
|
|
|
-THE END-
|
|
.
|