The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Cruise of the Jasper B., by Don Marquis

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Title: The Cruise of the Jasper B.

Author: Don Marquis

Posting Date: August 12, 2008 [EBook #716]
Release Date: November, 1996

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE CRUISE OF THE JASPER B. ***

Produced by John Gidusko. HTML version by Al Haines.

THE CRUISE OF THE JASPER B.

BY

DON MARQUIS

TO ALL THE COPYREADERS ON ALL THE NEWSPAPERS OF AMERICA

CONTENTS

CHAPTER

I A BRIGHT BLADE LEAPS FROM A RUSTY SCABBARD
II THE ROOM OF ILLUSION
III A SCHOONER, A SKIPPER, AND A SKULL
IV A BAD MAN TO CROSS
V BEAUTY IN DISTRESS
VI LADY AGATHA'S STORY
VII FIRST BLOOD FOR CLEGGETT
VIII A FLAME LEAPS OUT OF THE DARK
IX MYSTERIES MULTIPLY
X IN THE ENEMY'S CAMP
XI REPARTEE AND PISTOLS
XII THE SECOND OBLONG BOX
XIII THE SOUL OF LOGAN BLACK
XIV CLEGGETT STANDS BY HIS SHIP
XV NIGHT, TEMPEST, LOVE AND BATTLE
XVI ROMANCE REGNANT
XVII MISS PRINGLE CALLS ON MR. CLEGGETT
XVIII THE MAN IN THE BLUE PAJAMAS
XIX TWO GREAT MEN MEET
XX THE PSYCHOLOGICAL DETECTIVE
XXI THE THIRD OBLONG BOX ARRIVES
XXII DANCING ON THE DECK
XXIII CUTLASSES
XXIV THE DUEL
XXV THE SECRET OF THE VESSEL'S HOLD
XXVI A DOG DIES GAME
XXVII CLEGGETT ACCOMMODATES THE KING

CHAPTER I

A BRIGHT BLADE LEAPS FROM A RUSTY SCABBARD

On an evening in April, 191-, Clement J. Cleggett walked sedately into
the news room of the New York Enterprise with a drab-colored
walking-stick in his hand. He stood the cane in a corner, changed his
sober street coat for a more sober office jacket, adjusted a green
eyeshade below his primly brushed grayish hair, unostentatiously sat
down at the copy desk, and unobtrusively opened a drawer.

From the drawer he took a can of tobacco, a pipe, a pair of scissors, a
paste-pot and brush, a pile of copy paper, a penknife and three
half-lengths of lead pencil.

The can of tobacco was not remarkable. The pipe was not picturesque.
The scissors were the most ordinary of scissors. The copy paper was
qu