Down South Part 12

"I think it has a tendency that way. I asked Jackman if the lodger had any other snakes; but he knew of no others, and had seen none in the attic rooms from which he took his load. I went next to the St. Johns House, which is kept by a lady. She gave me all the information she could. Mr. Cobbington's rattlesnake had got out of his box, and had been killed by one of the boarders. He was so angry at the loss of the reptile that he left the house at once. The landlady did not know where he had gone. Under the circ.u.mstances, she had not taken the pains to inquire. She did not want any gentleman in her house who kept a rattlesnake in his chamber; and I was of just her way of thinking. She did not remember what cartman had conveyed his baggage from the house.

If I had had an hour more, I think I could have found the man; for the landlady gave me the day on which he left."

"I don't think it will be of much use to follow the matter any further," I suggested. "This story makes it probable that Cobbington had other snakes."

"It may make it possible, but not probable. It is only a matter of fact, and I am going to get to the bottom of it if I can," persisted the mate.

"I beg pardon, Mr. Washburn, but your breakfast is waiting for you,"

said Griffin Leeds, stepping up to the mate at this moment.

I started when I heard the silky voice of the octoroon. I had heard no step to indicate his approach, and I feared that he had listened to something one of us had said.

"I have been to breakfast," replied the mate, rather savagely for him; and I saw that he had the same fear.

The waiter hastened back to the forward cabin, where he belonged.

Washburn called to Ben Bowman, who was standing at the door of the engine-room, and asked him how long Griffin had stood behind us. The a.s.sistant engineer thought he had been there two or three minutes, at least, waiting for a chance to speak to one of us. I was vexed at the circ.u.mstance. If Cornwood was the agent of Captain Boomsby, and Griffin Leeds was the tool of the Floridian, our conversation would all be reported to the princ.i.p.al in the conspiracy, always granting there was any truth in our surmises.

"I suppose we shall get back from this excursion some time to-night,"

said Washburn, thoughtfully.

"I think we shall get back before dark," I replied.

"I don't say there is anything in what we were talking about last night, but there may be. If there is anything in it, Cornwood will tell Boomsby, after we return, what we have been talking about," replied the mate.

"Griffin will find a chance to tell Cornwood that you have been looking up the lodger, and Cornwood will carry it to Boomsby," I repeated.

"Just so. Now, we must fix things a little. Don't let Cornwood go on sh.o.r.e to-night."

"How can I keep him? He is hardly like the other members of the ship's company."

"You can need him for some purpose or other," suggested the mate, with a smile. "We must fight them with their own weapons."

"I was thinking to-day that I wanted to lay out the trip up the river with him. I bought a large pocket-map of Florida to-day, so that I could do it understandingly, though where we go will depend largely on the will and pleasure of our pa.s.sengers. I can keep him for this purpose," I said.

"All right; and I will go ash.o.r.e as soon as the mudhook touches the sand on our return," added Washburn. "There are several carriages coming down Market Wharf."

Both boats were sent to the wharf, and Washburn went off in one of them to superintend the seating of the party in them. All our extra stools and chairs had been arranged on the quarter-deck, forecastle, and hurricane-deck. There were enough of them for twice the number of persons expected, but no one could tell where the party would choose to sit, and there were enough to accommodate them in any one place they might select. Gopher was hard at work getting ready for the dinner, and Ben was expected to help him as soon as the party were on board.

I stood at the gangway, ready to receive the guests. Suddenly a band on the wharf struck up a lively air, and I found we were not to depend upon our own people for the music. The port boat came up first; and our boatmen were so much accustomed to this kind of duty, that they put the pa.s.sengers on board without delay or inconvenience to them. There were six boat-loads, including the band of twelve pieces. The boats were hoisted up, and the anchor weighed by our steam windla.s.s.

I had been introduced to all the excursionists as they came on board, and I had directed the waiters to show them to such parts of the vessel as they might select. When I went to the pilot-house, I found the seats all occupied by Owen and certain ladies he had invited there. As usual they were all the youngest and prettiest of the party. Cornwood stood at the wheel, as though he had chosen the duty he intended to perform.

I had not procured a pilot, for I had been up and down the river five times, and I thought I knew enough about it to pilot the vessel myself.

But I wished to test Cornwood's ability, and I told him to go ahead, giving him no further instructions.

He rang the bells correctly, and handled the wheel like an old salt. I was rather disappointed to find that he understood his business perfectly. His brag was not all brag. I had become considerably prejudiced against him by all that had been said; but I felt that I could do him justice. The scenery below the city is very pleasant, to say the least. The orange groves, and the dwellings, many of them occupied by people from the North, either as settlers or as winter residents, made a picturesque view from the river. Cornwood did not seem to be wholly occupied with the wheel, for he explained the nature of the country when he found that the party in the pilot-house were willing to listen to him. The herons, cranes, and many other birds were new to us.

"Mayport on the starboard hand," said the guide, when we had reached the mouth of the river. "The houses in that village are mostly occupied by fishermen, who catch shad and other fish in the winter and spring, and a good many southern people spend the summer here in cottages."

Cornwood directed the head of the steamer towards the other sh.o.r.e, and soon brought her to a pier at Pilot Town.

CHAPTER XIV.

THE EXCURSION TO FORT GEORGE ISLAND.

Fort George Island is certainly a beautiful place for a summer or a winter residence, or for both. It is three and a half miles long, not including the sand-bar at the end, and a mile wide. On one side is the ocean, and on the other the Sisters' Channel, one of the inside pa.s.sages by which steamers reach Savannah and Fernandina.

Owen told me the party would sail for Jacksonville at four o'clock, and dine as soon as the steamer was under way. All the excursionists landed, and leaving Washburn in charge, I went with them. Cornwood began to discharge his duties as guide as soon as we were on sh.o.r.e; but a considerable portion of the party were familiar with the island, and he did not have a large audience.

"This sh.e.l.l road," said he, as we left the wharf, "is the beginning of Edgewood Avenue, which is two miles and a half long. At the farther end of it is the hotel."

He continued his explanations to those who desired to hear them during the entire walk. I shall not repeat them. I found that he could give the name of every tree, plant, and flower we saw on the way. He had a name for every bird, bug, and worm; and I am ready to acknowledge that the extent, variety, and minuteness of his knowledge astonished me, partly because my prejudice led me to expect nothing of him. That those who brag most know least, did not appear to prove true in his case; for he did not have to "give it up" on any question asked him by the tourists of our party. He related the history of the island, and there was not a single particular concerning it on which he was not fully informed.

After crossing the beach on the sh.e.l.l road, we came to the forest of live-oaks, magnolias, palmettos, bay-trees, and others that one never sees in Maine or Michigan. I walked with Mr. Tiffany, and we agreed that this was one of the most delightful places we had visited. Pretty soon we were joined by Miss Margie and Miss Edith, who had become inseparable friends and companions. I learned that the Tiffanys had already accepted the invitation of Owen and Colonel Shepard to join the party for the up-river trip.

"Are there no snakes on this island, Captain Garningham?" asked Miss Margie, soon after we entered the wood.

"I dare say there are; but I don't know anything about it," I replied.

"Undoubtedly there are snakes on the island," interposed Mr. Cornwood; and I saw that he glanced at me, with a smile, as if in allusion to my experience on the evening before.

"I am very much afraid of snakes," said Miss Margie, looking timidly about her.

"But the snakes are more afraid of you than you are of them, Miss Tiffany," replied Cornwood. "Even the rattlesnake will keep out of your way, if he can."

"And I should surely keep out of his way. Are there rattlesnakes on this island?" asked the timid English maiden.

"I am sorry to say there are; but you might live on the island ten years and never see one. When you walk, you will naturally keep in the paths cut through the woods. Rattlesnakes will not visit these localities. But the rattlesnake is a very gentlemanly fellow; and if by any chance one should stray into a path, he would give you abundant warning before he did you any harm."

"I don't wish to see one," replied Miss Margie, with a shudder.

"You may be sure you will not meet any in the paths we take to-day,"

added the guide in a comforting tone. "But I would rather meet a dozen of them than step upon a copperhead or a water-moccasin. These will run away when they see you, if they can. The water-moccasin will not trouble you if you let him alone. The only danger from any Florida snake is in coming upon him when you don't see him."

"That is just what I am afraid of," said Miss Margie.

"This island has been settled so long that there can be but few snakes of the harmful kind left on it; for whites and blacks always kill them at sight."

After a very pleasant walk we reached the hotel, where a lunch was ready for us. To me the princ.i.p.al feature of this lunch was the broiled shad, the fish just taken from the water. It was the freshest and best I had ever eaten. The oysters in the chowder were small, but had been taken from the water that morning.

After the lunch the excursionists broke up into little parties, and each went where they were best pleased to go. I felt rather inclined to go where Miss Margie went, for I had found she was as agreeable as she was pretty. Owen and the Shepards went to the Palmetto Avenue, which leads to an ancient homestead, affording a fair specimen of the planter's home in days gone by. Mr. Tiffany and his daughter wished to ascend Mount Cornelia, to which there was a carriage-road all the way from the hotel to the summit. This hill has an elevation of ninety-five feet, the highest point on the coast from Navesink and Cuba. Mr.

Cornwood accompanied us, for, in spite of the warning Mr. Tiffany had given me, he was the guide's most attentive listener.

On the summit of the hill we found an observatory, which we occupied for a full hour. It commanded a fine view of the ocean, the inland channels, and the country beyond them. Before we left, Owen and the Shepards joined us.

"Have you seen any snakes, Margie?" asked Edith, when they were seated at the top of the observatory.