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Page 57
Finally they passed its last bend, and the leading canoe, in which R�n�
sat, shot out into the open waters of the sound. As it did so the
heart of the white chief gave a great leap within him, and for a moment
a mist swam before his eyes. He had not expected to find his
countrymen before passing the vast salt-marshes and reaching the River
of May; but, to his astonishment, he had already come upon them.
Within a mile of him lay three tall ships, riding gracefully at their
anchors, and from their mast-heads floated proudly in the light of the
setting sun the lily banner of France.
They were indeed the ships of his own people, whom he had never dared
hope to meet again. There was the emblem of his own land, which, when
he had last beheld it, had been torn, amid sorrow and defeat, from
above the walls of Fort Caroline, to give place to the yellow ensign of
Spain.
When R�n� had controlled his tumultuous feeling sufficiently to speak,
he gave orders for his warriors to proceed to the shell mound in the
midst of the marshes, on which he and Has-se had rested after their
flight from Fort Caroline, and there encamp and await his coming. His
own canoe he ordered to be directed, with all speed, towards the ships.
As he approached them closely, he saw that he was observed by many
curious eyes from their decks, and finally a hoarse voice commanded him
to halt and explain his presence there.
At his order, his men backed water so stoutly with their paddles that
the canoe rested motionless. Standing erect in it, R�n�, speaking in
French, to the great surprise of those whom he addressed, and wearing a
bold air that sat well upon him, asked,
"Who commands here? and in which ship is he to be found?"
There was a slight stir on the quarter-deck of the ship nearest him;
and, from a group of gentlemen who occupied it, one, wearing a plumed
hat and a velvet mantle, from beneath which peeped the richly jewelled
hilt of his sword, stood forth and answered courteously,
"I, Dominique de Gourges, chevalier of France, am admiral here at thy
service. Who art thou, that while in savage guise yet speakest our
tongue as though born to it?"
"I am known as Ta-lah-lo-ko, and am chief of that western tribe of
Indians called Alachuas," answered R�n�, who was not yet ready to
reveal his true identity. "If it suit thy convenience, I would have a
word with thee in private concerning important matters."
Upon this De Gourges invited his visitor to come on board the ship and
meet him in his own cabin, where he would with pleasure converse with
him.
As R�n� stepped upon the quarter-deck, and passed through the group of
gentlemen who still occupied it, they regarded him with the liveliest
curiosity. It was not unmixed with admiration; for his tall and
handsome though slight figure was set off by a costume which, though
becoming to him and fashioned with the best of Indian art, was strange
to their civilized eyes.
The long tresses of his sunny hair were bound by a simple fillet, and
in them was twined the Flamingo Feather that proclaimed his rank. His
face was tanned by the burning suns of that country to a shade but
little lighter than that of his Indian companions, and after the custom
of the Alachuas he had added to it here and there a touch of war-paint.
From neck to feet he was clad in garments of fawn-skin, that fitted
like a glove to his person. These had been made soft as velvet by the
Indian process of curing, and were exquisitely embroidered and fringed.
Over his shoulders was flung a light mantle of feathers, woven of the
glistening plumage of many rare birds and fastened by a clasp of two
great pearls set in virgin gold. In his hand he bore a slender lance,
of which the shaft was of dark wood highly polished, and the tip was a
splinter of purest rock-crystal.
He crossed the quarter-deck, and descended to the admiral's cabin with
a proud and dignified bearing, as became his station, but which greatly
belied his feelings, for he was wellnigh overwhelmed by the joyful
emotions he experienced at being once more among his countrymen.
In the cabin he was most courteously received by De Gourges, and
invited to a seat; but before taking it he inquired with a trembling
voice,
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