The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Privateersman, by Frederick Marryat

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Title: The Privateersman

Author: Frederick Marryat

Release Date: May 22, 2007 [EBook #21576]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE PRIVATEERSMAN ***

Produced by Nick Hodson of London, England

The Privateersman, by Captain Marryat.

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Captain Frederick Marryat was born July 10 1792, and died August 8 1848.
He retired from the British navy in 1828 in order to devote himself to
writing. In the following 20 years he wrote 26 books, many of which are
among the very best of English literature, and some of which are still
in print.

Marryat had an extraordinary gift for the invention of episodes in his
stories. He says somewhere that when he sat down for the day's work, he
never knew what he was going to write. He certainly was a literary
genius.

"The Privateersman" was published in 1846, the twenty-third book to flow
from Marryat's pen. Privateering is legalised piracy at sea.

This e-text was transcribed in 1998 by Nick Hodson, and was reformatted
in 2003.

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THE PRIVATEERSMAN, BY CAPTAIN FREDERICK MARRYAT.

CHAPTER ONE.

WE CRUISE OFF HISPANIOLA--CAPTURE OF A FRENCH SHIP--CONTINUE OUR
CRUISE--MAKE A NOCTURNAL ATTACK UPON A RICH PLANTER'S DWELLING--ARE
REPULSED WITH LOSS.

_To Mistress_ ---.

_Respected Madam_,

In compliance with your request I shall now transcribe from the journal
of my younger days some portions of my adventurous life. When I wrote,
I painted the feelings of my heart without reserve, and I shall not
alter one word, as I know you wish to learn what my feelings were then,
and not what my thoughts may be now. They say that in every man's life,
however obscure his position may be, there would be a moral found, were
it truly told. I think, Madam, when you have perused what I am about to
write, you will agree with me, that from my history both old and young
may gather profit, and I trust, if ever it should be made public, that,
by Divine p