The Ruby of Kishmoor
By
Howard Pyle
CONTENTS
Prologue
I. Jonathan Rugg
II. The Mysterious Lady with the Silver Veil
III. The Terrific Encounter with the One-eyed Little Gentleman in Black
IV. The Momentous Adventure with the Stranger with the Silver Ear-rings
V. The Unexpected Encounter with the Sea-captain with the Broken Nose
VI. The Conclusion of the Adventure with the Lady with the Silver Veil
Epilogue
Prologue
A very famous pirate of his day was Captain Robertson Keitt.
Before embarking upon his later career of infamy, he was, in thebeginning, very well known as a reputable merchant in the island ofJamaica. Thence entering, first of all, upon the business of theAfrican trade, he presently, by regular degrees, became a pirate, andfinally ended his career as one of the most renowned freebooters ofhistory.
The remarkable adventure through which he at once reached the pinnacleof success, and became in his profession the most famous figure of hisday, was the capture of the Rajah of Kishmoor's great ship, The Sun ofthe East. In this vessel was the Rajah's favorite Queen, who, togetherwith her attendants, were set upon a pilgrimage to Mecca. The court ofthis great Oriental potentate was, as may be readily supposed, fairlya-glitter with gold and jewels, so that, what with such personaladornments that the Queen and her attendants had fetched with them,besides an ample treasury for the expenses of the expedition, anincredible prize of gold and jewels rewarded the freebooters for theirsuccessful adventure.
Among the precious stones taken in this great purchase was the splendidruby of Kishmoor. This, as may be known to the reader, was one of theworld's greatest gems, and was unique alike both for its prodigioussize and the splendor of its color. This precious jewel the Rajah ofKishmoor had, upon a certain occasion, bestowed upon his Queen, and atthe time of her capture she wore it as the centre-piece of a sort of acoronet which encircled her forehead and brow.
The seizure by the pirate of so considerable a person as that of theQueen of Kishmoor, and of the enormous treasure that he found aboardher ship, would alone have been sufficient to have established hisfame. But the capture of so extraordinary a prize as that of theruby—which was, in itself, worth the value of an entire Orientalkingdom—exalted him at once to the very highest pinnacle of renown.
Having achieved the capture of this incredible prize, our captainscuttled the great ship and left her to sink with all on board. ThreeLascars of the crew alone escaped to bear the news of this tremendousdisaster to an astounded world.
As may readily be supposed, it was now no longer possible for CaptainKeitt to hope to live in such comparative obscurity as he had beforeenjoyed. His was now too remarkable a figure in the eyes of the world.Several expeditions from various parts were immediately fitted outagainst him, and it presently became no longer com