<pre style="white-space: pre-wrap">xt7bk35m9c4n https://exploreuk.uky.edu/dips/xt7bk35m9c4n/data/mets.xml Optic, Oliver, 1822-1897. 1892  books b92-167-30116743 English Lee and Shepard, : Boston : Contact the Special Collections Research Center for information regarding rights and use of this collection. Fighting for the right  / by Oliver Optic [pseud.] text Fighting for the right  / by Oliver Optic [pseud.] 1892 2002 true xt7bk35m9c4n section xt7bk35m9c4n 


THE BLUE AND THE GRAY-AFLOAT

   Two colors cloth Emblematic Dies Illustrated
          Price per volume z.5o

  TAKEN BY THE ENEMY
  WITHIN THE ENEMY'S LINES
  ON THE BLOCKADE
  STAND BY THE UNION
  FIGHTING FOR THE RIGHT
  A VICTORIOUS UNION


THE BLUE AND THE GRAY-ON LAND

   Two colors cloth  Emblematic Dies  Illustrated
          Price per volume x.50

  BROTHER AGAINST BROTHER
  IN THE SADDLE
  A LIEUTENANT AT EIGHTEEN
  ON THE STAFF
  AT THE FRONT
  AN UNDIVIDED UNION

     ANv VOLUME SOLD SEPARATELV  


LEE AND SHEPARD PUBLISHERS


BOSTON


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The Blue and lie Gray Series


FIGHTING FOR THE RIGHT


                        BY

               OLIVER OPTIC
AUTHOR OF" THE ARMY ANDNAVYSERIES` "YOUNG AMERICA ABROAD"' "THE
GREAT WESTERN SERIES"" THE WOODVILLE STORIES" "THE STARRY FLAG
  SERIES" "THE BOAT-CLUB SERIES" "THE ONWARD AND UPWARD
  SERIES ""THE YACHT-CLUB SERIES " THE LAKE WORE SERIBS"
     "THE RIVERDALE STORIES " THE BOAT-BUILDER SERIES"
       "TAKEN BY THE ENEMY A" WITHIN THE ENEMY'S LINES
         ON THE BLOCKADER  "STAND BY THE UNION"
           "A MISSING MILLION " "A MILLIONAIRE
              AT SIXTEEN" ETC., RTC., ETC.


              BOSTON

LEE AND SHEPARD PUBLISHERS

 
COPYRIGHT, 1892 BY LEE AND SHEPARD


         All Rights Reserved


     FIGHTING FOR THE RIGHT


7tVE-SEnINO ANfD ELEcarEYrPIMo BY
    C. J. Prnzas  Sow, BOSTON

 
            ro:

     MY GRAND NEPHEW

RICHARD LABAN ADATMS

         ciffs B3ook

 IS AFFECTIONATELY DEDICATED

 This page in the original text is blank.

 
PREFACE


  "1 FIGHTING FOR THE RIGHT" is the fifth and
last but one of "i The Blue and the Gray Series."
The character of the operations in connection with
the war of the Rebellion, and the incidents in
which the interest of the young reader will be
concentrated, are somewhat different from most of
those detailed in the preceding volumes of the
series, though they all have the same patriotic
tendency, and are carried out with the same devo-
tion to the welfare of the nation as those which
deal almost solely in deeds of arms.
  Although the soldiers and sailors of the army
and navy of the Union won all the honors gained
in the field of battle or on the decks of the na-
tional ships, and deserved all the laurels they
gathered by their skill and bravery in the try-
ing days when the republic was in peril, they were
not the only actors in the greatest strife of the
nineteenth century. Not all the labor of "ssav-
                       7

 
PREFACE


ing the Union " was done in the trenches, on the
march, on the gun deck of a man-of-war, or in
other military and naval operations, though with-
out these the efforts of all others would have been
in vain.  Thousands of men and women who
never "4 smelled gunpowder," who never heard the
booming cannon, or tie rattling musketry, who
never witnessed a battle on sea or land, but who
kept their minds and hearts in touch with the
holy cause, labored diligently and faithfully to
support and sustain the soldiers and sailors at the
front.
  If all those who fought no battles are not hon-
ored like the leaders and commanders in the loyal
cause, if they wear no laurels on their brows, if
no monuments are erected to transmit their mem-
ory to posterity, if their names and deeds are not
recorded in the Valhalla of the redeemed nation,
they ought not to be disregarded and ignored. 'It
was not on the field of strife alone in the South
that the battle was fought and won. The army
and the navy needed a moral, as well as a material
support, which was cheerfully rendered by the
great army of the people who fiever buckled on a
sword, or shouldered a musket. Their work can


8

 
PREFACE


not be summed up in deeds, for there was little or
nothing that was brilliant and dazzling in their
career. They need no monuments; but their work
was necessary to the final and glorious result of
the most terrible war of modern times.
  No apology is necessary for placing the hero of
the story and his skilful associate in a position at
a distance from the actual field of battle. They
were working for the salvation of the Union as
effectively as they could have done in the din of
the strife. They were "Fighting for the Right,"
as they understood it, though it is not treason to
say, thirty years later, that the people of the South
were as sincere as those of the North; and they
could hardly have fought and suffered to the ex-
tent they did if it had been otherwise.
  The incidents of the volume are more various
than in the preceding stories, which were so largely
a repetition of battle scenes; but the hero is still
as earnest as ever in the cause he loves. He at-
tains a high position without any ambition to win
it; for, like millions of others who gave the best
years of their lives to sustain the Union, who suf-
fered the most terrible hardships and privations, so
many hundreds of thousands giving their lives to


9

 
10                 PREFACE

their country, Christy fought and labored for the
cause, and not from any personal ambition. It is
the young man's high character, his devotion to
duty, rather than the incidents and adventures in
which he is engaged, that render him worthy of
respect, and deserving of the honors that were be-
stowed upon him. The younger participants in
the war of the Rebellion, Christy Passford among
the number, are beginning to be grizzled with the
snows of fifty winters; but they are still rejoicing
in "; A VICTORIOUS UNION."

                         WILLIAM T. ADAMS.
 DORCHESTER, April 18, 1892.


CONTENTS


                 CHAPTER I.
A CONFERENCE AT BONNYDALE

                 CHAPTER II.
A COMPLICATED CASE

                 CHAPTER III.
TiH DEPARTURE OF THE CHATEAUGAT

                 CHAPTER IV.
MONSIEUR GILFLEUR EXPLAINS

                 CHAPTER V.
AN ABUNDANCE OF EVIDENCE

                CHAPTER VI.
THE BOARDING OF THE IONIAN


                CHAPTER
A BOLD PROPOSITION  I

                CHAPTER
A NOTABLE EXPEDITION .

                 CHAPTER
THE FRENCHMAN IN BERMUDA
                      11


VII.


VIII.


Ix.


            PAGE

    .  s   .  15


    I         26


           . 37


    . .   .  48


  .   .   .  69


        .  70


   . .   .  81


  .      .  92


  .   .   . 103

 
CONTENTS

CHAPTER X.


IMPORTANT INFORMATION OBTAINED

                 CHAPTER XI.


AN UNEXPECTED RENCONTRE . .

                CHAPTER XII.


AN IMPRACTICABLE SCHEME   .

                CHAPTER XIII.
AT THE END OF THE CHASE

                CHAPTER XIV.


AN EASY VICTORY .


                CHAPTER XV.
THE GENTLEMAN WITH A GRIZZLY BEARD


.. .   . 114


c  .   . 125


. 130


. 147


. 158


. 169


                CHAPTER XVL.
AMONG THE BAHAMAS        .  .     .   .   . 180

                CHAPTER XVII.


. 191


TnzE LANDING AT NEW PROVIDENCE

               CHAPTER XVIII.


AN AFFRAY IN NASSAU .


.  .202


CHAPTER XIX.


AN OLD ACQUAINTANCE .


S..5.  .   . 213


CHAPTER XX.


A BAND OF RUFFIANS .


                CHAPTER XXI.
A QUESTION OF NEUTRALITY .  .


. . . 236


PAGS


. 224


12


.

 
  CONTENTS

CHAPTER XXII.


is

PA UX


ON BOARD OF THE SNAPPER.  .   .          . 246

               CHAPTER XXIII.


THE CHATEAUGAY IN THE DISTANCE


.  .   . 257


CHAPTER XXIV.


TuE TABLES TURNED


S  0   0.  .    268


               CHAPTER XXV.
CAPTAIN FLANGER IN IRONS.    .           . 279

               CHAPTER XXVI.


A VISIT To TAMPA BAY .


0.     0. .   . 290


               CHAPTER XXVII.
AMONG THE KEYS OF TAMPA .

              CHAPTER XXVIII.
THE SURRENDER OF THE REINDEER

               CHAPTER XXIX.


. 302


. 313


BRINGING OUT THE PRIZE.     .  .   .     . 324

               CHAPTER XXX.


A VERY IMPORTANT SERVICE.  .

               CHAPTER XXXI.
AN UNDESIRED PROMOTION.      a


. 335


a   340

 This page in the original text is blank.


    FIGHTING FOR THE RIGHT


                CHAPTER I

        A CONFERENCE AT BONNYDALE

  "WELL, Christy, how do you feel this morn-
ing'" asked Captain Passford, one bright morn-
ing in April, at Bonnydale on the Hudson, the
residence of the former owner of the Bellevite,
which he had presented to the government.
  "Quite well, father; I think I never felt any
better in all my life," replied Lieutenant Pass-
ford, of the United States Navy, recently com-
mander of the little gunboat Bronx, on board of
which he had been severely wounded in an action
with a Confederate fort in Louisiana.
  "D Do you feel any soreness at the wound in your
arm7' inquired the devoted parent with some
anxiety.
  "Not a particle, father."
                      15

 
FIGHTING FOR THE RIGHT


  " Or at the one in your thigh "
  "Not the slightest bit of soreness. In fact, I
have been ready to return to my duty at any time
within the last month," replied Christy very cheer-
fully. "It would be a shame for me to loiter
around home any longer, when I am as able to
plank the deck as I ever was. In truth, I think
I am better and stronger than ever before, for I
have had a long rest."
  " Your vacation has been none too long, for you
were considerably run down, the doctor said, in
addition to your two wounds," added Captain
Passford, senior; for the young man had held a
command, and was entitled to the same honorary
title as his father.
  " These doctors sometimes make you think you
are sicker than you really are," said Christy with
a laugh.
  "' But your doctor did not do so, for your mother
and I both thought you were rather run out by
your labors in the Gulf."
  "If I was, I am all right now. Do I look like a
sick one  I weigh more than I ever did before in
my life."
  "1 Your mother has taken excellent care of you,


16

 
A CONFERENCE AT BONN YDALE


and you certainly look larger and stronger than
when you went to sea in the Bronx."
  "But I am very tired of this inactive life. I
have been assigned to the Bellevite as second
lieutenant, a position I prefer to a command, for
the reasons I have several times given y-ou, father."
  "I am certainly very glad to have you returned
to the Bellevite, though the honors will be easier
with you than they were when you were the com-
mander of the Bronx."
  "But I shall escape the responsibility of the
comrm.anld, and avoid being pointed at as one who
commands by official influence," said Christy, rather
warmly; for he felt that he had done his duty
with the utmost fidelity, and it was not pleasant
to have his hard-earned honors discounted by
flings at his father's influence with the government.
  " It is impossible to escape the sneers of the dis-
contented, and there are always plenty of such in
the navy and the army. But, Christy, you wrong
yourself in taking any notice of such flings, for
they have never been thrown directly at you, if at
all. You are over-sensitive, and vou have not
correctly interpreted what your superiors have
said to you," said Captain Passford seriously.


17

 
FIGHTING FOR THE RIGHT


  His father recalled some of the conversations
between the young officer and Captain Blowitt
and others, reported to him before. He insisted
that the remarks of his superiors were highly
complimentary to him, and that he had no right to
take offence at them.
  " I dare say I am entirely wrong, father; but it
will do me no harm to serve in a subordinate
capacity," added Christy.
  "I agree with you here; but I must tell you
again, as I have half a dozen times before, that I
never asked a position or promotion for you at the
Navy Department. You have won your honors and
your advancement yourself," continued the father.
  "1Well, it was all the same, father; you have
used your time and your money very freely in the
service of the government, as you could not help
doing. I know that I did my duty, and the depart-
ment promoted me because I was your son," said
Christy, laughing.
  "Not at all, my son; you deserved your pro-
motion every time, and if you had been the son of
a wood-chopper in the State of Maine, you would
have been promoted just the same," argued Cap-
tain Passford.


18

 
A CONFERENCE AT BONNYDALE


   "1 Perhaps I should," answered the young officer
rather doubtfully.
   "After what you did in your last cruise with
the Bronx, a larger and finer vessel would have
been given to you in recognition of the brilliant
service you had rendered," added the father. "'I
prevented this from being done simply because
you wished to take the position of second lieu-
tenant on board of the Bellevite."
  " Then I thank you for it, father," replied Christy
heartily.
  "But the department thinks it has lost an able
commander," continued the captain with a smile.
  "I am willing to let the department think so,
father. All I really ask of the officials now is to
send me back to the Gulf, and to the Bellevite. I
believe you said that I was to go as a passenger in
the Chateaugay."
  "I did; and she has been readv for over a week."
  "Why don't she go, then" asked Christy im-
patiently.
  "On her way to the Gulf she is to engage in
some special service," replied Captain Passford, as
he took some letters from his pocket.
  " Letters! "  exclaimed the young lieutenant,


19

 
FIGHTING FOR THE RIGHT


laughing as he recalled some such missives on two
former occasions. "Do you still keep your three
agents in the island of Great Britain"
  "I don't keep them, for they are now in the
employ of the government, though they still report
to me, and we use the system adopted some two
years ago."
  " What is it this time, father" asked Christy,
his curiosity as well as his patriotism excited by
this time at the prospect of capturing a Con-
federate man-of-war, or even a blockade-runner.
  "There are traitors in and about the city of
New York," answered Captain Passford, as he
returned the letters to his pocket. "We had a
rebel in the house here at one time, you remember,
and it is not quite prudent just now to explain the
contents of the letters."
  "' All right, father; but I suppose you will read
them to me before I sail for the South."
  "I will talk to you about it another time,"
added the captain, as a knock was heard at the
door. "Come in !'
  It was the man-servant of the house, and he
brought in a tray on which there was a card, which
Captain Passford took.


20

 
A CONFERENCE AT BONNYDALE


  ",Captain Wilford Chantor," the captain read
from the card. "1 Show him in, Gates. Lieutenant
Chantor is appointed to the command of the Cha-
teaugay, Christy, in which you take passage to the
Gulf; but she will not go there directly."
  "s Captain Chantor," said Gates, as he opened
the door for the visitor.
  " I am happy to see you, Captain Chantor,
though I have not had the pleasure of meeting
you before," said the captain, as he rose from his
chair, and bowed to the gentleman, who was in
the uniform of a lieutenant.
  "I presume I have the honor to address Captain
Horatio Passford," said the visitor, as he took a
letter from his pocket, bowing very respectfully
at the same time, and delivering the letter.
  " I am very glad to meet you, Captain Chantor,"
continued Captain Passford, taking the hand of the
visitor. " Allow me to introduce to you my son,
Lieutenant Passford, who will be a passenger on
your ship to the Gulf."
  "I I am very happy to make your acquaintance,
Mr. Passford, for I need hardly say that I have
heard a great deal about you before, and this is a
very unexpected pleasure," replied Captain Chantor.


21

 
FIGHTING FOR THE RIGHT


  "1 Thank you, Captain, and I am equally happy
to meet you, as I am to be a passenger on your
ship," added Christy, as they shook hands very
cordially.
  "I had three other passengers on board, but
they have been transferred to the store-ship, which
sails to-day, and you will be my only passenger."
  "At my suggestion," said Captain Passford
smiling, doubtless at the puzzled expression of the
captain of the Chateaugay at his statement.
  "1 I am to attend to some special service on my
voyage to the Gulf, and I am ordered to take my
instructions from you," added Captain Chantor.
  "Precisely so; but I hold no official position,
and your orders will be put in proper form before
you sail," replied Christy's father. " Now, if you
will be patient for a little while, I will explain the
nature of the special service."
  " I shall be very glad to understand the subject,
and I am confident my patience will hold out to
any extent you may require."
  The conversation so far had taken place in the
library. The owner of Bonnydale rose from his
arm-chair, opened the door into the hall, and looked
about him very cautiously. Then he closed a win-


22

 
A CONFERENCE AT BONNYDALE


dow which the unusual warmth of an April day
had rendered it necessary to open. He conducted
his companions to the part of the room farthest
from the door, and seated them on a sofa, while
he placed his arm-chair in front of them. Even
Christy thought his father was taking extraor-
dinary precautions, and the visitor could make
nothing of it.
  " As I have had occasion to remark before to-day,
there are traitors in and about New York," the
captain began.
  " If you have any private business with Captain
Chantor, father, I am perfectly willing to retire,"
suggested Christy.
  "No; I wish you to understand this special ser-
vice, for ycru may be called upon to take a hand in
it," replied Captain Passford; and the son seated
himself again. "' There are traitors in and about
New York, I repeat. I think we need not greatly
wonder that some of the English people per-
sist in attempting to run the blockade at the
South, when some of our own citizens are indi-
rectly concerned in the same occupation."
  This seemed to the captain of the Chateaugay
an astounding statement, and not less so to Christy,


23

 
FIGHTING FOR THE RIGHT


and neither of them could make anything of it;
but they were silent, concluding that the special
service related to this matter.
   "In what I am about to say to you, Captain
Chantor, I understand that I am talking to an
officer of the utmost discretion," continued Cap-
tain Passford, " and not a word of it must be
repeated to any person oln board of the Chateau-
gay, and certainly not to any other person what-
ever."
  ,-I understand you perfectly, sir," replied the
officer. "' My lips shall be sealed to all."
  " I wish to say that the command of the Cha-
teaugay would have been offered to my son, but I
objected for the reason that he prefers not to have
a command at present," said the captain.
  "That makes it very fortunate for me."
  "Very true, though the change was not made
for your sake. You were selected for this com-
mand as much on account of your discretion as
for your skill and bravery as an officer."
  " I consider myself very highly complimented
by the selection."
  "Now to the point: I have information that a
fast steamer, intended to carry eight guns, called


24

 
        A CONFERENCE AT BONNYDALE            '0

the Ovidio, sailed from the other side of the ocean
some time since, and she is to be a vessel in the
Confederate navy. Her first port will be Nassaui,
New Providence."
  "Does that prove that any Americans are trai-
tors inl and about New York, father  asked Christy.
  "She is to run the blockade with a cargo con-
sisting in part of American goods."
  Captain Passford took a file of papers from his
pocket.


FIGHTING FOR THE RIGHT


                CHAPTER II

             A COMPLICATED CASE

  CAPTAIN PASSFORD looked over his papers for a
moment; but it was soon evident from his man-
ner that he had secrets which he would not in-
trust even to his son, unless it was necessary to do
so. He seemed to be armed with documentary
evidence upon which to act, but he did not read
any of his papers, and soon returned them to his
pocket.
  "' The American goods of which I speak are cer-
tain pieces of machinery to be used in the manu-
facture of arms," continued the captain. "; They
cannot be obtained in England, and the traitors
have decided to send them direct, rather than
across the ocean in the first instance. These will
form the principal and most important part of the
cargo of a steamer now loaded, though she will
carry other goods, such as the enemy need most at
the present time."


26

 
A COMPLICATED CASE


   sI did not suppose any Americans were wicked
enough to engage in such an enterprise for the
sake of making money," said Christy indignantly.
  "The steamer of which you speak is already
loaded, is she " asked Captain Chantor.
  "' She is; and now I wish both of you to go with
me, and I will point out the vessel to you, and you
must mark her so well that you can identify her
when occasion requires."
  The trio left the house and took the train
together. They went to New York, and in an out-
of-the-way locality they went down to a wharf;
but there was no steamer or vessel of any kind
there, and the pier was falling to pieces from
decay. Captain Passford stopped short, and seemed
to be confounded when he found the dock was
not occupied.
  ,, I am afraid we are too late, and that the
steamer has sailed on her mission of destruction,"
said he, almost overcome by the discovery. "' She
was here last night, and was watched till this
morning. She has already cleared, bound to Wil-
mington, Delaware, with a cargo of old iron."
  ",Do you know her name, Captain Passford 
asked the commander of the Chateaugay.

 
FIGHTING FOR THE RIGHT


   "She was a screw steamer of about six hun-
dred tons, and was called the Ionian, but she is
American."
   It was useless to remain there any longer, for
the steamer certainly was not there.   Captain
Passford hailed a passing tug-boat, and they were
taken on board.   The master of the boat was
instructed to steam down the East River, and the
party examined every steamer at anchor or under
way.   The tug had nearly reached the Battery
before the leader of the trio saw any vessel that
looked like the Ionian. The tug went around this
craft, for she resembled the one which had been in
the dock, and the name indicated was found on her
stern.
  is I breathe easier, for I was afraid she had given
us the slip," said Captain Passford. " She is evi-
dently all ready to sail."
  "1 The Chateaugay is in commission, and ready to
sail at a moment's notice," added her commander.
  "1 But you are not ready to leave at once, Christy,"
suggested Captain Passford, with some anxiety in
his expression.
  "Yes, I am, father; I put my valises on board
yesterday, and when mother and Florry went down


28

 
A COMPLICATED CASE


to Mr. Pembroke's I bade them both good-by, for
after I have waited so long for my passage, I felt
that the call would come in a hurry," replied
Christy. ";I am all ready to go on board of the
Chateaugay at this moment."
  "And so amn I," added Captain Chantor.
  "But I am not ready with your orders in full,
though they are duly signed," said Captain Pass-
ford. i; I will put you on shore at the foot of
Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn, Captain Chantor,
and you will hasten to your ship, get up steam,
and move down to this vicinity. I will put my
son on board as soon as I can have your papers
completed."
  The order necessary to carry ont this procedure
was given to the captain of the tug, and the com-
mander of the Chateaugay was landed at the place
indicated. The tug started for the other side of
the river.
  "It seems to me this is very strange business.
father," said Christy, as he and his father seated
themselves at the stern of the boat.
  "Traitors do not wvork in the daylight, my son,
as you have learned before this time," replied
Captain Passford.


9)

 
FIGHTING FOR THE RIGHT


  "1 If you know the men who are engaged in sup-
plying the enemy with machinery, why do you not
have them arrested and put in Fort Lafayette"
asked Christy, in a very low tone, after he had
assured himself that no person was within possible
hearing distance. "It looks as though the case
might be settled here, without going to sea to
do it."
  "We have not sufficient evidence to convict
them; and to make arrests without the means of
conviction would be worse than doing nothing.
The Ionian has cleared for Wilmington with a
cargo of old iron. Everything looks regular in re-
gard to her, and I have no doubt there is some
party who would claim the castings if occasion re-
quired. The first thing to be ascertained is whether
or not the steamer goes to Wilmington."'
  "Then we can make short work of her."
  "My information in regard to this treason comes
from Warnock - you know who he is "
  "' Captain Barnes," replied Christy promptly, for
the names of all the agents of his father in England
and Scotland had been given to him on a former
occasion, when the information received from one
of the three had resulted in the capture of the
Scotian and the Arran.


30

 
A COMPLICATED CASE


  ";Barnes is a very shrewd man. He does not
inform me yet in what manner he obtained the in-
formation that the Ovidio was to carry this ma-
chinery from Nassau into a rebel port; but I shall
get it later in a letter. He gave me the name of
the party who was to furnish the machinery; and
one of his agents obtained this from the direction
of a letter to New York. I placed four skilful
detectives around this man, who stands well in the
community. They have worked the case admir-
ably, and spotted the Jonian. I have aided them
in all possible ways; but the evidence is not com-
plete. If this steamer proceeds beyond Wilming-
ton, Captain Chantor will be instructed to capture
her and send her back to New York."
  "1 Then this business will soon be settled," added
Christy.
  "' Perhaps not; the government official, with au-
thority to act, is in New York. I shall see him at
once. I have no doubt the detectives have already
reported that the Ionian has moved down the
river," said Captain Passford, as the tug came up
to a pier, where father and son landed.
  They went to an office in Battery Place, where
the captain was informed that a special messenger


31

 
FIGHTING FOB THE RIGHT


had been sent to Bonnydale to acquaint him with
the fact that the Ionian had moved down the river.
Files of documents, containing reports of detectives
and other papers, were examined and compared,
and then the government official proceeded to fin-
ish the filling out of Captain Chantor's orders.
The paper was given to Christy, with an order to
deliver it to the commander of the Chateaugay.
The tug had been detained for them, and they
hastened on board of her.
  They found the suspected steamer at her moor-
ings still; but it was evident that she was prepar-
ing to weigh her anchor. The tug continued on
her course towards the Navy Yard, and the Cha-
teaugay was discovered in the berth she had occu-
pied for the last two weeks. Everything looked
lively on board of her, as though she were getting
ready to heave up her anchor.
  " Christy, you will find on board of your steamer
a man by the name of Gilfleur," said Captain Pass-
ford, as the tug approached the man-of-war.
  ",That sounds like a French name," interposed
Christy.
  "It is a French name, and the owner of it is a
Frenchman who has been a detective in Paris. He


32

 
A COMPLICATED CASE


has accomplished more in this matter than all the
others put together, and he xvill go with you, for
you will find in the commander's instructions that
you have more than one thing to do oin your way
to the Gulf. I gave him a letter to you."
  " I shall be glad to see himn"
  ",Now, my son, we must part, for I have business
on shore, and you may have to sail at any moment,"
said Captain Passford, as he took the two hands
of his son. i' I have no advice to give you except
to be prudent, and on this duty to be especially
discreet. That's all - good-by."
  They parted, after wringing each other's hands,
as they had parted several times before. They
might never meet again in this world, but both of
them subdued their emotion, for they were obeying
the high and solemn call of duty; both of them
were-fighting for the right, and the civilian as well
as the naval officer felt that it was his duty to lay
down his life for his suffering country. Christy
mounted the gangway, and was received by Captain
Chantor on the quarter-deck. He had been on
board before, and had taken possession of his state-
room.
  The passenger took from his pocket the files of


33

 
FIGHTING FOR THE RIGHT


papers given him by the official on shore; and then
he noticed for the first time an envelope addressed
to him. The commander retired to his cabin to
read his instructions, and Christy went to his state-
room in the ward room to open the envelope directed
to him. As soon as he broke the seal he realized
that his father had done a great deal of writing,
and he had no doubt the paper contained full in-
structions for him, as well as a history of the diffi-
cult case in which he was to take a part. A paper
signed by the official informed him that he was
expected to occupy a sort of advisory position near
the commander of the Chateaugay, though of course
he was in no manner to control him in regard to
the management of the ship.
  Christy read his father's letter through. The
government was exceedingly anxious to obtain
accurate information in regard to the state of affairs
at Nassau, that hot-bed for blockade-runners. The
Chateaugay was to look out for the Ovidio, whose
ultimate destination was Mobile, where she was to
convey the gun-making machinery, and such other
merchandise as the traitorous merchant of New
York wished to send into the Confederacy. The
name of this man was given to him, and it was


34

 
A COMPLICATED CASE


believed that papers signed by him would be found
on board of the Ionian.
  A knock at the door of his room disturbed his
examination of the documents, and he found the
commander of the steamer there. After looking
about the ward room, and into the adjoining state-
rooms, he came in without ceremony.
  "Here is my hand, Mr. Passford," said he, suit-
ing the action to the word.  " I find after reading
my instructions that I am expected to consult with
you, and as I have the very highest respect and
regard for you after the brilliant record you have
made "-
  "1 Don't you believe that I won my promotion
to my present rank through the influence of my
father" demanded Christy, laughing pleasantly,
as he took the offered hand and warmly pressed it.
  "If you did, your father did the very best thing
in the world for his country, and has given it one
of the bravest and best officers in the service,"
replied Captain Chantor, still wringing the hand
of his passenger. " But I don't believe anything
of the kind; and no officer who knows you, even
if he is thirsting for promotion, believes it. I
have heard a great many of higher rank than


35

 
FIGHTING FOR THE RIGHT


either of us speak of you, ard if you had been
present your ears would have tingled; but I
never heard a single officer of any rank suggest
that you owed your rapid advancement to any-
thing but your professional skill and your un-
flinching bravery, as well as to your absolute and
hearty devotion to your country. I rank you in
date, Mr. Passford, but I would give a great deal
to have your record written against my name."
  "1 Your praise is exceedingly profuse, Captain
Chantor, but I must believe you are honest, how-
ever unworthy I may be of your unstinted lauda-
tion," said Christy with his eyes fixed on the floor,
and blushing like a school-girl.
  ",I hope and believe there will be no discount
on our fellowship. A man came on board this
afternoon, and gives me a letter from the proper
authority, referring me to you in regard to his
mission."
  Christy decided to see this person at once.


36


THE DEPARTU</pre>