IMPORTANT INFORMATION OBTAINED

Christy walked behind the detective in his capacity as servant. It was soon evident to them that the ruffians gathered in the street meant mischief. On the staff over their heads floated the flag of the United States. Though Mr. Gilfleur was an alien, his companion was not. Of course he knew that the islands were the resort of blockade-runners, that they obtained their supplies from the two towns of Hamilton and St.

George's. This fact seemed to explain the occasion of the disturbance in this particular locality.

"What does all this mean, Christophe?" asked M. Rubempre, falling back to join Christy at the door of the consulate.

"I should judge that these ruffians intended to do violence to the American consul," replied Christy. "I heard in New York that he was faithful in the discharge of his duty to his government, and doubtless he has excited the indignation of these ruffians by his fidelity. His princ.i.p.al business is to follow up the enforcement of the neutrality laws, which compels him to watch these blockade-runners, and vessels of war intended for the Confederate States."

"That was my own conclusion," added the Frenchman, speaking his own language, as usual. "I should say that his position is not a pleasant one."

"Here comes the b.l.o.o.d.y spy!" shouted several of the ruffians.

Looking down the street, they saw a dignified-looking gentleman approaching, whom they supposed to be the consul, Mr. Alwayn. He did not seem to be alarmed at the demonstration in front of his office. The disturbers of the peace fell back as he advanced, and he reached the door where the detective and his companion were standing without being attacked. The mob, now considerably increased in numbers, though probably more than a majority, as usual, were merely spectators, hooted violently at the representative of the United States.

The gentleman reached the door of his office, and by this time the ruffians seemed to realize that simple hooting did no harm, and they rushed forward with more serious intentions. One of them laid violent hands on the consul, seizing him by the back of his coat collar, and attempting to pull him over backwards. Christy felt that he was under the flag of his country, and his blood boiled with indignation; and, rash as was the act, he planted a heavy blow with his fist under the ear of the a.s.sailant, which sent him reeling back among his companions.

"No revolvers, Christophe!" said the detective earnestly, as he placed himself by the side of the young man.

Christy's revolver was in his hip-pocket, where he usually carried it, and the detective feared he might use it, for both of them could hardly withstand the pressure upon them; and the firing of a single shot would have roused the pa.s.sions of the mob, and led to no little bloodshed.

M. Rubempre was entirely cool and self-possessed, which could hardly be said of the young naval officer.

[Ill.u.s.tration: "He planted a heavy blow with his fist under the ear of his a.s.sailant." Page 116.]

By this time Mr. Alwayn had opened the front door of the office, and gone in. The detective backed in after him, and then pushed Christy in after the consul. The ruffians saw that they were losing their game, and they rushed upon the door. One of them crowded his way in, but M.

Rubempre, in a very quiet way, delivered a blow on the end of the a.s.sailant's nose, which caused him to retreat, with the red fluid spurting from the injured member.

Taking his place, two others pushed forward, and aimed various blows at the two defenders of the position; but both of them were skilled in this sort of play, and warded off the strokes, delivering telling blows in the faces of the enemy. Mr. Alwayn had partially closed the door; but he was not so cowardly as to shut out his two volunteer defenders. As soon as they understood his object, they backed in at the door, dispersing the ruffians with well-directed blows, and the consul closed and locked the door. Before any further mischief could be done, the police came and dispersed the rioters. The consul fared better on this occasion than on several others, in one of which he was quite seriously injured.

As soon as order was restored, Mr. Alwayn conducted his defenders to his office, where he thanked them heartily for the service they had rendered him. During the _melee_ M. Rubempre had tried to address the ruffians in broken French, for he did not for a moment forget his a.s.sumed character.

He used the same "pigeon-talk" to the consul, and Christy, in the little he said, adopted the same dialect.

"I see you are not Americans, my friends," said the official.

"No, saire; we are some Frenchmen," replied the detective, spreading out his two hands in a French gesture, and bowing very politely.

"Being Frenchmen, I am not a little surprised that you should have undertaken to defend me from this a.s.sault," added Mr. Alwayn.

"Ze Frenchman like, wat was this you call him, ze fair play; and ve could not prevent to put some fingers in tose pies. Ver glad you was not have the head broke," replied M. Rubempre, with another native flourish.

"_Mais_, wat for de _canaille_ make ze war on you, saire? You was certainment un gentleman ver respectable."

Mr. Alwayn explained why he had incurred the hostility of the blockade-runners and their adherents, for he was sometimes compelled to protest against what he regarded as breaches of neutrality, and was obliged in the discharge of his duty to look after these people very closely, so that he was regarded as a spy.

"Oh! it was ze blockheads, was it?" exclaimed the Frenchman.

"Hardly the blockheads," replied the consul, laughing at the blunder of the foreigner. "It is the blockade-runners that make the trouble."

"Blockade-runners! _Merci._ Was there much blockadeers here in ze islands?" asked M. Rubempre, as though he was in total ignorance of the entire business of breaking the blockade.

"Thousands of them come here, for this is about the nearest neutral port to Wilmington, where many of this sort of craft run in."

"Wilmington was in Delaware, where I have seen him on ze map."

"No, sir; this Wilmington is in North Carolina. If you look out on the waters of the harbor, half the vessels you see there are blockade-runners," added the consul. "And there are more of them at St.

George's. It was only yesterday that a steamer I believe to be intended for a man-of-war for the Confederacy came into the port of St. George's, and I have been much occupied with her affairs, which is probably the reason for this attempt to a.s.sault me."

"Ze _man_-of-war," repeated the Frenchman. "Ze war, _c'est la guerre_; _mais_ wat was ze man?"

"She is a vessel used for war purposes."

"_She!_ She is a woman; and I think that steamer was a woman-of-war."

The consul laughed heartily, but insisted upon the feminine designation of the steamer.

"What you call ze name of ze man-of-war?" asked M. Rubempre, putting on a very puzzled expression of countenance.

"The Dornoch," replied Mr. Alwayn.

"The D'Ornoch," added the detective. "How you write him--like zis?" and he wrote it on a piece of paper by his own method.

"Not exactly," replied the consul, writing it as given in English.

"How long ze Dornoch will she stop in zat port?" asked the Frenchman, in a very indifferent tone, as though the answer was not of the least consequence to him.

"Not long; I heard it stated in St. George's that she would get her supplies and cargo on board to-day and to-morrow, and will sail before dark to-morrow night," replied Mr. Alwayn. "The government here ought not to allow her to remain even as long as that, for she is plainly intended for a Confederate cruiser, and my men inform me that she has six great guns, and fifty men."

M. Rubempre obtained all the information the consul was able to give him, and much of it was of great importance. The official was under obligations to the two strangers, and he seemed not to suspect that either of them was an American, much less a naval officer. They took their leave of him in the politest manner possible, and were shown to the door by the consul.

"I am not quite sure that all his information is correct, and we must investigate for ourselves," said the detective when they were in the street. "But this affray is bad for us, and I was very sorry when you interfered, Christophe."

"You did not expect to see me fold my arms when a representative of the United States, and under our flag, was attacked by a lot of ruffians?"

demanded Christy, rather warmly, though he spoke in French.

"I know you could not help it, and I did my best to aid you," added M.

Rubempre. "I only mean that it was unfortunate for us, for when we go about on the islands, we may be recognized by some of that mob. We must go back to the hotel."

In a few minutes more they were at the Atlantic, where the Frenchman, with his usual flourish, ordered a carriage to be ready in half an hour, adding that he was about to dress for some visits he was to make in St.

George's. They went to their rooms, and each of them changed his dress, coming out in black suits. The master wore a frock coat, but the servant was dressed in a "claw-hammer," and looked like a first-cla.s.s waiter.

It is about a two hours' ride over to St. George's, and Christy enjoyed the excursion as much as though there had not been a blockade-runner in the world. The town, with even its princ.i.p.al street not more than ten feet wide, reminded him of some of the quaint old cities of Europe he had visited with his father a few years before. But M. Rubempre was bent on business, and the delightful scenery was an old story to him. They took a boat at a pier, and for an hour a negro pulled them about the harbor. There were quite a number of steamers in the port, long, low, and rakish craft, built expressly for speed, and some of them must have been knocked to pieces by the blockaders before the lapse of many weeks, though a considerable proportion of them succeeded in delivering their cargoes at Wilmington or other places.

The visitors looked them over with the greatest interest. They even went on board of a couple of them, the detective pretending that he was looking for a pa.s.sage to some port in the South from which he could reach Mobile, where his brother was in the Confederate army. No one could doubt that he was a Frenchman, and on one of them the captain spoke French, though very badly. M. Rubempre's good clothes secured the respect and confidence of those he encountered, and most of the officers freely told him where they were bound, and talked with great gusto of the business in which they were engaged. But none of them could guarantee him a safe pa.s.sage to any port on the blockaded coast.

The excursion in the boat was continued, for the visitors had not yet seen the steamer they were the most anxious to examine. The detective would not inquire about this steamer, fearful that it might be reported by the negro at the oars, and excite suspicion. But at last, near the entrance to the harbor, the boatman pointed out the Dornoch, and told them all he knew about her. There were several lighters alongside, discharging coal and other cargo into her.

M. Rubempre, in his broken English, asked permission to go on deck, and it was promptly accorded to him. He was very polite to the officers, and they treated him with proper consideration. There were no guns in sight, and the steamer looked like a merchantman; but if she had been searched, her armament would have been found in the hold. The visitor again repeated his desire to obtain a pa.s.sage to the South; and this request seemed to satisfy the first officer with whom he talked. He was informed that the steamer would sail about five on the afternoon of the next day, and he must be on board at that time, if he wished to go in the vessel.

He learned many particulars in regard to her.