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From the mouth of a side-street, over a thousand heads, I caught a huge slow-moving illuminated car, from which blue-lights and rockets and Roman candles were in course of discharge, meeting all in a dim fuliginous glare far above the house-tops. It was like a glimpse of some public orgy in ancient Babylon.
So I told him, general, that we had Baptists, and Quakers, and Universalists, and Episcopalians, and Presbyterians, old-lights, new- lights, and blue-lights; and Methodists . 'Stop, said the Devil, 'that's enough; you imp, be nimble with that horse. Let me see, commodore, what, part of the country did you say you came from? I told him the name more distinctly this time " "The very spot?"
The whole bulk of the fog teemed with such taunts, uttered in tones of universal hoarseness. All the while, the steamer's lights moved spectrally a very little, as she lay-to, waiting the upshot of whatever accident had happened. Now, she began burning blue-lights.
On the afternoon of the 24th I intended finally to evacuate the depot, and on the evening of the 23rd, to amuse my natives, I had all the rockets and blue-lights we had, fired off, since we could not take them with us, our pack-horses being barely able to carry for us the mere necessaries of life. February 24.
One might have passed within a very short distance of us, and would not have discovered us, as we had no guns on board, nor any blue-lights or rockets, to make signals. We had four old rusty muskets, it is true, but there was scarcely powder enough found to fire them a dozen times. For the best part of the night we were employed in defending our lives from the attacks of the drunken emigrants.
The blue-lights and the flashes of the guns had dazzled their eyes, and the night seemed darker than ever. In vain Jack peered for some time into the darkness to make out the frigate. A thick bank of mist, blown off the land, lay upon the water.
"There is her light, sir," shouted Jack from forward, and when their own blue-light grew dim, hers was seen shining like a star floating on the water in the far distance. Thus they went on, burning blue-lights, at longer intervals though than at first, and firing shot after shot at the felucca.
He had the box of blue-lights in his hands, and behind him, came the two boys carrying the flares. The Skipper took the box from him, with a quick gesture, and opened it. "Now, one of you men, come here," he ordered. One of the men in the Mate's watch ran to him. He took several of the lights from the box, and handed them to the man. "See here," he said.
Hardy would give no clew; and when the case was finally opened, the astonishment of all was unbounded to find that it contained four dozen large rockets and a dozen blue-lights. One dozen of these rockets were ordinary signal rockets, but the rest were covered with strong tin cases. "Fireworks!" they all exclaimed in intense surprise. "What have you brought fireworks all this way for, papa?"
I had a lookout set upon her one of the very best men in Porto Ferrajo, as everybody will tell you, sir; and I made the signals of the lamp and the blue-lights, as agreed upon; and, the ship answering, I naturally thought all was as it should be, until " "And who burnt the rockets off here where we are at this moment?
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