USA > California > A picture of pioneer times in California, illustrated with anecdotes and stores taken from real life > Part 40
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notice that the next time the law should take its course, let the consequences be ever so terrible. For some two years after this all went well. Lusk stood well with his commander, and had just passed his examination with credit. He was given two weeks' leave of absence, but, instead of going to see his grand- father, he stopped in London, and dashed again into every con- ceivable excess and dissipation. He soon found himself involved in debt beyond all possibility of paying, and again resorted to his dexterous pen for relief. This time he forged Sir John's name to a check for two thousand pounds. Very soon after the bank had paid the check, the clerk, whose duty it was to file away all checks, as he put this in its place, happened to observe that a private mark Sir John had lately notified the bank that he had adopted was not on the check. In an instant the forgery was discovered, and, as Lusk had himself presented the check, and as his name was in the body of it, it was not hard to trace him out, so, in a few hours more, young Lusk found himself locked in jail, on a charge of forgery. The result was his conviction, and sentence to hard labor for life in the penal colonies.
The only influence his unfortunate grandfather sought to exer- cise in his favor was to get this sentence for him, instead of an ignominious death on the scaffold, which the laws of England at that time allowed a Judge to inflict at his discretion. The mo- ment Lusk was sentenced, he assumed a sad, penitent deport- ment, and when he reached the convict ship, he wrote in this spirit to his grandfather, and begged of him to write to the Gov- ernor and prominent officials in Australia, to ask all the indul- gence in his favor that it was possible to give, not inconsistent with their sense of duty. As he closed the letter, and sent it off, he exclaimed :
" Yes; I will play my part well, and that will give me an op- portunity to escape. Yes; I will escape, as sure as there is a sun to shine in Australia. The fetters that could hold a man like me were never yet forged. Why, I have in my veins the noblest blood in England, mingled with the most daring, villainous blood ; surely, that ought to make a villain of uncommon fame. Yes; the blood of the noble lion, mingled with the blood of the sneaking wolf, ought to produce an animal with ambition to reach out for anything, and with instincts that would make it natural for it not to hesitate to adopt any means, no matter how low and vile they might be, that would accomplish the object
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sought for. So, it must be my own fault if I do not reach the summit of villainy in my coming career. They do not think that I know my father's history ; but I do, and I recollect his dark, villainous look, too, as he used to drag my mother around the room by the hair of her head. Oh, yes; he was a glorious old villain, but I will yet throw him in the shade. I will establish my headquarters on some island in the Pacific, and I will have a fleet of pirate ships under my command, which shall defend it, and which shall bring me riches to fill my treasury, and beau- tiful women to fill my harem, and the nations of the earth will at last be compelled to unite to capture me. Oh ! the name of John Cameron Ward Lusk will yet be read of in history, for all time to come, and my daring exploits will dazzle and draw many a boy away from his home to follow in my career. Even Sir Jolin shall be proud, for he can boast that his grandson is the greatest, the most powerful and most villainous robber in all the world over. I shall not change my name, for I do not want to rob good Sir John Cameron of the honor of being known as my relative."
As Lusk concluded this picture, he chuckled and laughed aloud. Whenever the Captain or officers were present, he never forgot his part during the whole voyage to Sidney. Sir John did get such letters as Lusk had asked for sent to the Governor of the Colonies, and their influence, together with his own uni- formly good conduct, obtained for him many privileges. The labor given him was of a light, easy character, and after the first year he was allowed perfect freedom for a part of each day. He never was a minute behind time in returning to his post. To all the officers he was polite, submissive, and never spoke except when spoken to, nor did he ever forget to look sad and dejected; but in his hours of freedom he had no such demeanor or look. Then he wore the fierce look of a chained tiger. In every way he could, he cultivated the acquaintance of the most desperate of the convicts, and had many of them combined in a gang sworn to obey him in everything. Among these, the most prominent was one Jack Lawson and his two sons, Ike and Mike. Jack Lawson was an old, experienced housebreaker, in London, and was once in Lusk's father's gang ; and he now often entertained the son with the details of the desperate achievements and hair- breadth escapes of his father. Jack was caught at last, and was transported to the penal colonies, where, after awhile, he was
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allowed partial freedom, which enabled him to acquire some lit- tle property and money. This enabled him to send for his two sons, and their little sister, Lizzie, then eight years of age. The little girl he placed at a respectable boarding-school, where he paid all her bills promptly. She was now seventeen years of age, remarkably good-looking, and an intelligent girl. The father and brothers were very proud and very fond of her.
The gold discoveries in California had determined the Lawsons to emigrate to that country as soon as the father could make his escape easily. As a preliminary move, they confided Lizzie to a respectable family, who were going to San Francisco, with the understanding that she was to remain with them until called for by the father or either of the sons. About this time Jack re- ported to Lusk the arrival in port of an English bark, the Blue Bell, with a very suspicious looking Captain and a villainous looking crew, made up of all nationalities, but mostly of mulat- toes and blacks from the Island of Jamaica. The Captain was a mulatto himself. He was a tall, powerful fellow, with a dark, fierce eye. He spoke English, Spanish and French, as if each was his native tongue; but, outside of that, his education was limited, scarcely enough to enable him to navigate his vessel, and he, therefore, took good care always to have a pretty well educated first officer. Lusk told his confederate, Jack, to study up this Captain as well as he could, and report to him. The next day Jack brought the news that the Captain of the Blue Bell wanted some writing done, for which he was willing to pay well, and that he had told him of Lusk, and that the Captain had agreed to an interview, at a hotel near to where they then stood at that hour. Lusk lost no time in accompanying Jack to the Captain's room. On being introduced to each other, their eyes met in a steady, unflinching gaze for an instant. In that gaze Lusk found nothing that made him fear the Captain; no, the feeling that ran through him was rather one of contempt, as he said to himself:
" I can handle that chap easily enough."
The feeling that struck the Captain was the consciousness that in the man before him he had met his match in everything, and far over his match in villainy, and an undefined fear for a moment held him silent. Lusk threw himself into a chair in a careless way, saying:
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" My friend tells me, Captain, that you want some writing done. Can I be of any service to you ?"
" Yes; if you are skilled in the pen, and do not give yourself the trouble to talk about other people's business when you are paid to hold your tongue."
" Well put in, Captain; I understand you, and you can de- pend on me, for I know a way you can oblige me more than I can repay you by doing this writing, whatever it may be, and for holding my tongue also."
The Captain bowed, and, without further ceremony, told Lusk that he wanted a full set of American papers made out for his ship, " as it was," he said, in a careless way, " convenient for him to sail sometimes under American colors, and, in case he was overhauled, he wanted to be found all right, you know."
Lusk said " the idea was a first-rate one," and agreed to go to the Custom House and get a look at some American ship's papers, and copy them exactly. The name of the bark in the American papers was to be the " Eagle, of New York, Jones, master."
Lusk appeared the following Sunday, that being the day agreed upon to meet again, with a beautifully executed set of papers for the " Bark Eagle, of New York, Jones, master."
" Why, you are skillful with the pen, sure enough," exclaimed the Captain.
" Yes," said Lusk, while a smiled curled on his lips; " and it was that skill that brought me to this cursed colony."
" Aye, surely; I now remember to have heard of that little cir- cumstance," said the Captain, laughing. " Well, how can I oblige you, Mr. Lusk, for all this work, and for your silence also, you know ?"
" Simply by taking me into your employment."
" Aye, Mr. Lusk; but you know there is risk about that."
"I know," said Lusk, carelessly; " but not much, and if that and much more could not be accomplished by you and myself when we put our heads together, in a little matter of business, you are not fit to be Captain of the enterprising little crowd you have on board the Blue Bell ; nor am I fit to enter into your em- ployment."
" You seem to understand the sort of trade the Blue Bell is destined for, Mr. Lusk," said the Captain, in the same tone Lusk had spoken in.
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" Perfectly, my dear Captain ; I dreamed of you before you came here ; I longed to be in your service. My profession, you know, bids me take to the sea as my battle-field, for I have an account to settle with " society " which I am most anxious to square up. There is a glorious chance for a beginning on the coast, between Panama and San Francisco. Look there, my dear fellow," said he, drawing from his pocket a copy of the Alta-California, a newspaper of San Francisco, dated February, 1850, and pointing to a paragraph which was a summary of the amount of gold shipped within the last three months, via Pana- ma. As the Captain perused the paragraph, Lusk continued : " Any one of these shipments would make a nice beginning for you and for those under your command."
" What can a sailing vessel do with a steamer, and that steamer full of armed Yankees, who would rather fight than eat if they had a choice ?"
" Throw yourself in the track of the steamer and pretend to be in distress until you get your guns bearing right on her broadside; then demand submission or sink her. Let the passengers be ever so brave, they will be all unprepared and will be incumbered, moreover, with a crowd of women and children. Just to show them that you mean business, send a shot or two through their upper works, and, my head for it, she will hand out the treasure. Yes, Captain; put fifty first-class men on your deck, and to capture three, at least, of those steamers, one after the other, is just no trick at all. After that, the coast might be a little too hot for us, and we would have to run out of the way for a few months; that is all."
" I confess," said the Captain, " that your plan looks well, but can we get the additional crew here of the right stamp of men ?"
" I have twenty such, bound to follow my fortunes to the end of the world, and we can easily plan a way of getting them on board the Blue Bell some dark night after she is ready for sea."
The Captain remained in thought for a minute or two, and then said :
" What position, Mr. Lusk, would you expect on board my ship in the event of my accepting your offer?"
" First mate," promptly answered Lusk.
" Well, if everything else fits, that will not be hard to give
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you, as we lost our first mate overboard in a storm just before reaching port, and have not yet supplied his place; so to-morrow I will meet you here and either close with you or decline your proposition, for I must consult with my crew."
The next day Captain Sam Jackson, of the bark Blue Bell, met Lusk and accepted his proposition. In ten days from that day, Lusk, by a special favor, got two days' leave of absence, and when they had expired he did not return to his post, for he was far out at sea, with his Sydney recruits, on board the Blue Bell, almost all of whom were escaped convicts, under the com- mand of Captain Sam Jackson.
CHAPTER V.
ESCAPE-CAPTURE OF A CHILEAN VESSEL-THE FIGHT.
The escape of Lusk and his men, as related in the last chap- ter, was not such a difficult feat to perform, for in those days the Australian authorities seemed to connive at convicts escaping, provided they went to California and not to England. The Blue Bell was English-built, but on the American model. Her masts raked; she was clipper-rigged, and evidently a remarkably fine sailer. They had fifty able-bodied men on board, four brass cannon, and were well provided with ammunition and small arms. Every calm day Lusk drilled the men, both in the use of the guns, and also of the sword and revolver. He showed such su- perior knowledge, not only in gunnery, but in all that related to navigation, that, naturally, the crew began to look up to him as the real leader, and to scarcely notice the Captain. The Captain was quick to observe this, and he began to fear and hate his first officer. To counteract the current he plainly saw setting in against him, he spoke, privately, to many of his old crew, and hinted that they must watch Lusk closely, because he was be- ginning to suspect that he was a traitor, and would some day sell them all at a price. In this way he secured the loyalty to himself of a majority of the crew, and only waited a favorable opportunity to rid himself of his rival. Lusk felt his power over the crew, and, although he saw the Captain's jealous eye often on him with no friendly expression in it, yet he treated this jealousy with contempt, privately making up his mind to rid himself of the Captain and his favorite followers as soon as he could do it safely. So passed the first month at sea, and every day it became more and more evident that the Blue Bell could not hold two such men as Captain Jackson and Lusk at the same time. Each now had his particular friends among the crew, warned to keep armed and on the watch. The Sydney convicts
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were all with Lusk, particularly the Lawsons. The intention of Captain Jackson, on leaving Sydney, was not to interfere with any vessel until after the capture of two or three Panama steamers; but now he proposed that they should overhaul the first ship they met, "just to keep their hand in and get a little spending money." His real object was that he hoped it would give him an opportunity of, in some way, getting rid of Lusk, whose presence had now become intolerable to him. His plan was to give the command of the boarding party, when taking posses- sion of the prize, to Lusk, and then abandon him to his fate, whatever that might be. To this new proposition of the Captain Lusk assented readily, because he hoped it might give him some chance of getting rid of Jackson and his friends, although he had no particular plan or idea as to how it could bring that about. The next day after coming to this understanding, a sail was sighted from the look-out on the main topmast. The Blue Bell was not long in overhauling her, and they brought her to by firing a gun across her bows. She showed Chilean colors and now the Blue Bell ran up the terrible black flag and lowered two boats, which were soon filled with armed men, under the command of Lusk. Captain Jackson supposed that Lusk would have chosen his own friends to accompany him; but, instead of doing so, he chose the particular friends of the Captain. This ended the idea of being able to abandon Lusk, as the Captain had resolved to do. The boats pulled off, with a loud shout from their savage crews. On reaching the doomed ship, they leaped on board, and without mercy shot down every man in sight. Lusk and four men quickly descended to the cabin, where they found the Chilean Captain supporting a beautiful girl and trying to encourage her. Lusk, assuming a mock civility, requested the Captain to be good enough to hand out all the money and valuables on board. Lusk had spoken in Spanish; so a momentary hope animated the Captain while he replied :
" Willingly, sir, if you spare the remaining lives on board."
" Surely, Captain, you cannot suppose that we would spill blood unnecessarily; so please, sir, hand out the money and other valuables."
The Captain now unlocked his safe, and handed out a bag of Spanish doubloons to the value of some ten thousand dollars. Then he handed out a box of jewelry and considerable silver plate. Lusk gave orders for the removal of all this to his boat,
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which being done, he ordered two of his men to conduct the beautiful, half-fainting girl also to his boat. She called out: "Father ! father ! Come ! come !" The Captain attempted to follow, but Lusk, with a half-smile, said: " No, no, Captain ; I have more business with you yet, sir." Then in English he spoke to the two men yet with him, saying: " Lash him fast to that," as he pointed to the part of the mast that went through the cabin, and continued: " Then scuttle the vessel, and I will hold one of the boats for you until you come." As Lusk reached the deck he deliberately fastened down an iron grating over the cabin gangway, closing it effectually, and then, walking to the two hatchways, he closed them down also, and ran the bars in to fasten them. This done, he leaped down the side of the vessel into his boat, taking his seat by the side of the captive girl, murmuring to himself, as he did so: " There, I am rid of two of Jackson's head devils."
He now held the boat in its place on the pretence that he was waiting for the two seamen and the Spanish Captain to make their appearance. As he sat waiting, he tried to appease the girl by assuring her that her father would come very soon. The Chil- ean vessel began to fall from side to side; then she staggered like a wounded man. At this moment Lusk gave orders to " pull away," and it was well for him he did, for in one minute more the fated craft had disappeared in the roaring water, and Lusk barely saved his boat from being ingulfed with her. The girl fainted, and did not come completely to herself until Lusk laid her out of his arms on the deck of the Blue Bell. She now sat up, and called wildly for her father. Lusk besought her to calm herself, assuring her that the death of her father was an acci- dent; but she wept and mourned, and would listen to nothing. Captain Jackson now made his appearance, for he had been in the cabin, laying away the money and other valuables captured, in safety. He walked directly over to where the girl and Lusk sat, and for a moment regarded the girl with astonishment and evident admiration. Then, suddenly turning to Lusk, he said, in English :
" I thank you for bringing me this girl, Mr. Lusk. I will treat her well. She shall be our queen, you know, and all shall respect her. After a few days, she will become satisfied with her new position; so come, let us conduct her to my state- room, where she can take some rest. I will manage the thing by degrees, you know."
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" You are mistaken, Captain," said Lusk, in a voice in which there was not the least excitement. " I did not bring the girl for you; I brought her for myself ; and, what is more, I am going to keep her for myself."
The Captain grew red, then pale with rage, and, drawing his revolver, he leveled it at Lusk's head, saying :
" Dog, do you undertake to disobey your Captain ? Rise, sir, instantly, and take that girl to my stateroom, or you are a dead man."
Lusk, continuing without the least show of excitement, arose slowly to his feet; but the instant he was erect, with a motion as quick as that of a wildcat, he knocked the pistol out of the Captain's hand, and grasped him by the throat with the grip of a vise. The whole crew now flew to the scene of the struggle. Some fought for Jackson, some fought for Lusk. A blow from some one loosened Lusk's hold on the Captain, who now called out:
" Overboard with every Sidney convict!"
" Down with the accursed negro and his band!" called out half a dozen voices on Lusk's side.
Now hand to hand they fought with the ferocity of fiends. Now Jackson falls, and the Jamaicans give way and fly down the hatchway. Lusk, with scarce a scratch, stands on the deck vic- torious, with all that are alive of his friends around him. Thirty men lay on the deck dead or dying, and Captain Jackson among them. The first thing Lusk did was to order the hatchway closed down. This done, he turned to look for the poor girl who was the immediate cause of the fight. She was lying motionless on her face and hands. He walked hurriedly to her, and, rais- ing her, found she was perfectly dead. A stray bullet had passed through her body, and sent her to her God. Her prayer was heard, which she had never ceased to repeat after leaving her father, imploring God to take her out of the hands of the pirates, and it was a merciful deliverance from the terrible fate that theatened her. When Lusk saw she was dead, he turned away, apparently unconcerned. Jack Lawson looked at her. Perhaps a thought of his own handsome child crossed his mind, for he paused a moment in thought, while a sad expression passed over his rough features. Then he turned away, but soon returned with Mike, his son, bringing a new piece of canvas and a heavy gun shot. As they both now arranged the beautiful 28
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form of the dead girl in the canvas, with the bullet at her feet, all their actions betokened respect and tenderness.
" Yes," murmured the old man; " I do this for Lizzie's sake."
Soon the canvas was sewed up, and now they lift her gently over the side of the vessel, and slowly let her drop into the ter- rible dark deep, that so reminds us of eternity. While Jack and his son were thus engaged, Lusk was superintending the clearing of the deck of the dead and wounded. The dead and the wounded both, of those who fell on the Captain's side in the fight, he ordered overboard as fast as a gun shot could be fas- tened to each. When he came to Jackson's body, he said, laugh- ing:
" Put a double shot on that old rascal; I want him to go be- yond the sound of Gabriel's trumpet."
His own dead friends were disposed of with hardly more show of feeling, the only difference being that two men who were badly wounded, on his side, were properly cared for. The deck now being cleared, the hatchways were thrown open, and the re- mainder of Jackson's men were decoyed on deck with fair promises; but, the moment they were in his power, he ordered them bound hand and foot, and, with a shot fastened to their necks, hurried them overboard, sparing only a boy of fifteen years old, who was always afterwards known among the crew as " Johnny Lucky." This boy was particularly attached after- wards to the Lawsons, as it was through Jack's interference he had been spared.
That evening Lusk seemed silent and thoughtful. Early the next morning he assembled his men; got a formal vote from them declaring him their Captain, and Jack Lawson their first mate. Then he proposed that they should, for the present, as- sume the appearance of peaceful traders, stow away their guns and hide all appearance of being armned; then run to one of the Pacific islands, and take on board a deck load of hogs. These were easily to be had, he said, and were reported to be very scarce in California. Then, after they had procured the cargo, he proposed they should sail directly for San Francisco. Their crew was so small now that, of course, the attempt to overhaul a Panama steamer was out of the question until they had more men. He then represented to his crew that in San Francisco the people were completely off their guard, as hardly any thieves
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had made their appearance there as yet, and that it would, therefore, be no trick at all to pick up a hundred thousand or so before the Yankees would realize that gentlemen of their talents were among them. All he said was approved of by the crew, to whom he now administered a solemn oath of obedience to himself. After this all worked to a charm. Lusk felt as though his career had fairly commenced, and was most zealous in attend- ing to all his duties, and disciplining his men. He announced to his crew that while among the Americans he was to be known simply as " Captain John Ward," dropping for the present his other two names.
They succeeded in getting a fine cargo of hogs, and had a prosperous run to San Francisco, where they dropped anchor in May, 1850. The hogs were easily sold at a large profit. Cap- tain Ward then moved his vessel to a safe anchorage near Sau- celito, in Richardson's Bay, and took all his valuables on shore, and buried them in a little grove of oaks that grew on a promon- tory half a mile or more east of the famous watering place for ships in those days. This promontory was known afterwards for a long time as " Pirates' Point." Leaving a disabled seaman on board as shipkeeper, all prepared to go on shore. Before sep- arating, Ward gave each of his men $500. A place of meeting was agreed on, where they were all to assemble one week from that day. On reaching the shore, Jack Lawson accompanied the Captain to Burgoyne & Co.'s bank, where they deposited the re- mainder of the money on hand in Ward's name. Jack then asked the Captain to help him to find his daughter, Lizzie, and he, having nothing in particular to do, accepted the invitation. After a little inquiry, they found her with the family with whom she had come from Australia. Lizzie was overjoyed to see her father so much sooner than she expected. Jack introduced Cap- tain Ward to her, who seemed very much pleased with her, and they all three remained laughing and talking together for a long time. On leaving, the Captain asked Lizzie to go to the theater with him that evening. Her father approved of her going, so she accepted the invitation, and the unfortunate father went away much pleased. Lizzie was not what could be called beau- tiful by any means, but she was a well-formed English girl, in vigorous health, with the beauty that youth and health bestow. She was very genteel-looking, considering her origin; had a
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