He closed the door of his room as soon as I was in it, and pushing a stool towards me, remarked politely:
“Sit down, Captain Dunn, I wish to have a little talk with you.”
“Very well,” I responded shortly.
“I have a proposal to make,” he went on blandly, “one that will be of great advantage to you personally.”
I bowed, and waited for him to go on.
“I have reasons,” he continued smoothly, “for not wishing to land in any New England port. So I had arranged with Captain Williamson to put me ashore in some retired spot on Cape Cod. I was to give him one hundred pounds in gold for doing this. The capture of the brig by your frigate has of course made it impossible for him to fulfill his contract. But if you will render me the same favor, I shall be glad to give you the same compensation.”
I thought a moment. There certainly was something strange in the man’s statement. It was clear he did not care to face the Continental authorities, and I could easily understand how there might be good reasons for that. But why he was equally anxious to avoid a port like Boston where the British were in control, for which the brig was making before her capture, I could not understand. Puzzle as I would over it I could not explain that. Hoping to draw him out, however, I now said:
“Why not offer me the other hundred pounds you were going to give Captain Williamson if he recaptured the vessel?”
He stared at me in sheer amazement. Evidently how I came to know of this fact perplexed him. But he finally replied:
“Well, I will do it. Land me in a retired spot anywhere below Boston, and you shall have the two hundred pounds.”