138 AUDUBON THE NATURALIST. 



am glad that the villains who wounded me were 

 not my conquerors. I want no pardon from 

 any one — give me some water, and let me die 

 alone." 



With the hope that I might learn from his 

 conversation something that might lead to the 

 capture of his guilty associates ; I returned from 

 the creek with another capful of water, nearly 

 the whole of which I managed to introduce into 

 his parched mouth, and begged him, for the sake 

 of his future peace, to disclose his history to me. 

 " It is impossible," said he, " there will be no 

 time, the beatings of my heart tell me so. Long 

 before day these sinewy limbs will be motion- 

 less. Nay, there will hardly be a drop of blood 

 in my body. My wounds are mortal, and I must 

 and will die without what you call confession." 



The moon rose in the east. The majesty of 

 her placid beauty impressed me with reverence. 

 I pointed towards her, and asked the pirate if 

 he could not recognize the hand of God there. 



" Friend, I see what you are driving at," was 

 his answer, " you, like the rest of our enemies, 

 feel the desire of murdering us all. "Well — be 

 it so — ^to die is, after all, nothing more than a 

 jest, and were it not for the pain, no one, in my 

 opinion, need care a jot about it. But as you 

 have really befriended me I will tell you all that 

 is proper." 



