“Fort?” said Moses, inquiringly, and looking hard at Lewis. “‘Fort?’” he repeated. “We didn’t see any fort”—which was literally true; there was too much fog.
But the man fairly jumped at this reply, and sputtered angrily.
Little wonder, for this short, dark man was the Spanish intendant of New Orleans, Señor Morales himself, the same who had ordered the embargo! He had chanced to be spending the night at the up-river house of a French Creole friend, Doctor Lecassigne, whose children our youthful arksmen had found in the orange-orchard. That an ark had floated past his fortifications and never even seen them was not flattering to Señor Morales’ pride!
Doctor Lecassigne, a lean, sallow man, who had now come from the house, sought to soothe the irritation of his distinguished guest. Norah, meanwhile, was asking the boys what they had brought in their ark and what they had seen on the way.
“Sure I was once in Philadelphia mesilf,” she said. “And a fine, brave gintlemon was Gin’ral George Washington! Many’s the toime I’ve handed him his coffee. Ah, sure,” she added, “I’ve lived in ivery part of the world.”
The boys rather liked old Norah. Lewis told her of their nocturnal battle with the alligators; and, not to be outdone, Moses threw in an account of his Indian “Gobbler,” and the great bones which they had brought for Doctor Buchat.
“Doctor Buchat!” cried Norah. “Sure, he must be a frind of me master here,” and she spoke to Doctor Lecassigne, who became interested at once.
He went to call Señor Morales again, and immediately they both expressed a great curiosity to see the bones. The boys, therefore, led the way back to the river, where the ark lay moored.
Jimmy had already set off along the levee for the city; but Shadwell Lincoln, who had as usual been left in charge, threw out a plank for them all to come on board. He was a good deal disturbed, however, when Lewis whispered to him that the short, dark man was the hated intendant.
Of the mastodon skeleton on the ark roof, there still remained seven or eight of the long ribs, the huge skull, femur bones, one long, curved tusk and many of the smaller bones. Both Doctor Lecassigne and General Morales examined them in astonishment at their enormous size. They sent back to the house for Norah to interpret, and asked a great many questions. The intendant seemed now to forget his anger, and assented good-humoredly when Doctor Lecassigne proposed that the ark should be allowed to remain there till he could send for Doctor Buchat, who seems to have been a friend of both.