Darlene's Digest

“Did Anne Bonny’s papa love her?” “As I recall the tale, he did. Sit here next to me and I will find out.” He set her next to him and, reclaiming the book, flipped a few pages then smiled. “See here, Mattie? It’s a picture of Anne Bonny sitting on her papa’s lap, just as you sat on mine. Yes, according to Captain Johnson, he ‘had a great affection’ for the child, but he dressed Anne as a little boy to fool his wife, who’d heard about the birth of a daughter that was her husband’s child. He began living with Anne’s mama and then took them to Carolina where he prospered.” “Was he a pirate in Carolina, like Blackbeard?” “No, a merchant and a lawyer, though given those two professions, he may have had some of the pirate in him.” “I am wondering if this is the best bedtime reading for a child,” Lydia said. He looked down at Mattie. “Well, child? Is it a good bedtime story?” She nodded vigorously. “Yes! I want to hear more about Anne and her pirate ways!” --THE PIRATE'S SECRET BABY (Hig...

  ...when Captain Doyle returned there was a full report. A peace treaty had been negotiated restoring Great Britain and the United States to their antebellum status. “But what of the prisoners?” Charley asked Captain Doyle. “A Yankee trader from France bound for Charleston put into port a few days back. That is how we heard the news. The governor is not interested in having a gang of Americans roaming through Kingston, and asked if we would ‘host’ them for a while longer until they can ship out with their countrymen.” It was that simple. Men who two days earlier would have run each other through or blown each other to pieces, now were up on deck toasting each other’s countries with carefully rationed grog. Captain Doyle wisely put a limit on the amount of alcohol served, knowing that it wouldn’t take much to re-ignite the conflict on a smaller scale. “Captain Fletcher told me I do not understand men, Mr. Bryant,” Charley said in bemusement later that night. “I have to agree with h...

Charley didn’t know anything about guns, but the sailors and Mr. Silas Stuart, the mate, seemed impressed with the speed of the “Cannies” at their stations. Naturally, they placed bets on whether the next shot would hit the barrel floating off the starboard bow. “They’re fast, but accuracy counts,” Stuart said. “Now, if you want to see real accuracy, watch the Americans. ‘Cousin Jonathan’ is so skinflint about outfitting ships I suspect the cost of each ball that doesn’t hit its mark is deducted from the sailors’ pay!” “Those Yankees cannot stand against our big Navy guns,” the cook said with a grin. --Sea Change (High Seas #1) The cook aboard the Lady Jane was wrong. The United States Navy was able to stand against the Royal Navy's guns in war, not once, but twice within 40 years. Each time, the young nation proved itself a force to be reckoned with. We normally would celebrate our hard-won independence this weekend as John Adams said we should: "It ought ...