by Bob Kranich
Wrecker’s Tale, (Part 5, Excerpt 56)
This is a new story, titled “Wrecker’s Tale”. Captain Dan Benson is the captain of a two-masted schooner , the Jenney Mae. His schooner is used to take his pineapples from his plantation to market and also wrecking. Wrecking means he will go out to a shipwreck and save people, ship, and cargo. It is an additional lucrative business because of the many storms and the reefs along the Keys. He and his sailing crew are in Cuba to get some more pineapple slips to plant.
Wrecker’s Tale
Don Juan appeared to be slightly set back, “Yes it is a three-year field. I accept your knowledge. We do have a couple of fields with one-year old plants. You realize those slips would be more costly.”
Captain Dan injected himself into the conversation, “We would very much prefer the one year-old slips if you could part with them, Don Juan.”
“Ye, we will ride over to that field. It is not far.”
They proceeded to venture farther down the road. After stopping they went through the same procedure. When Benjamin came back from his inspection, this time he nodded his head and smiled. “Excellent!” he stated.
“Very good, gentlemen. If you will mount back up we will go just a very short distance farther on this road and will have some refreshments at my simple hacienda.”
They rolled to a stop after leaving the road and driving down a lane lined with Royal Poinciana palms on both sides. Then they drove through an entrance in a stone wall. Don Juan’s simple hacienda looked like a governor’s palace. A couple of hired hands or servants came out, took the horses, and opened the coach’s doors.
“Right this way, gentlemen,” Don Juan gestured, as he pointed towards the entrance to the house.
Inside they were ushered by a servant to a large room with an immense table. Servants came in bearing cool drinks and sweet breads.
“Well, gentlemen, Captain Dan, we’ll get this business over soon so we can relax. The slips from the three year field would be one hundred dollars per thousand. The one year field will be a premium of two hundred extra for the six thousand pineapple slips. That would be a total of eight hundred dollars in silver. What do you think, Captain Dan?”
“Thank you, Don Juan. You are very gracious,” Captain Dan said, “to part with your plants. I could give you a down payment and the balance when you deliver to the water.”
“A down payment will not be necessary. A gentlemen’s handshake shall suffice,” he said as he stood up and extended his hand.
Dan took it in a firm grip. “Gracias, Don Juan.”
“Your man Benjamin may be our guest and help or just observe our cutting. They will start arriving at the docks tomorrow afternoon. Do you have means to transport them to your boat?”
“Yes, we have two longboats to go back and forth,” Captain Dan replied.
The captain gave Benjamin a look, and Benjamin nodded.
“We will get back to our ship and prepare to start receiving shipment plants.
The next day the pineapple slips started arriving by wagon from the fields by noon. Juan Diego, the harbormaster had produced four men to help with the wagon unloading and boat loading. Sometime after noon of the second day, a wagon drove up to the docks with Benjamin riding up on the seat next to the driver.
Don Juan, his brother, and four additional riders, armed, were following along behind.
“Hello, Captain. Salutations. This here is the last load, as your good, hard working man, Benjamin, can ascertain to. Would you allow me to hire him? He is a one-man crew!” Don Juan said smiling.
“Thank you for the compliment, Don Juan. But I can’t lose him. He is invaluable. If it be your pleasure, we could all ride out in the longboat, and we can complete our transaction.”
They got in the boat, Captain Dan, John, Benjamin and the two brothers. John and Benjamin rowed the short distance out to the boat.
“Please excuse my armed men. But they will guarantee me getting the silver you will pay me to the bank,” Don Juan stated.
“Nothing wrong with taking precautions,” Captain Dan replied.
“A very excellent schooner, Captain. You say you can use it to save wrecks? It must be a dangerous endeavor.”
“Yes, Don Juan, exciting, dangerous, and sometimes financially rewarding.”
The next morning saw the crew of the Jenney Mae rested and lofting sails. Captain Dan had given his respects to the harbormaster, Juan Diego yesterday. He had ridden the boat back with Juan Diego and his brother to the dock and shaken hands all around.
Now their sails were filling with a soft tropical breeze. Before they knew it, they were slipping away from Cardenas heading towards the opening between the outer banks that both formed and protected the Bay de Cardenas.
“Well, John, once we get through the gap, I’m sure you know we’ll proceed northwest. We’ll parallel the shore. When we get adjacent to Havana’s light tower we’ll head north-northeast straight for Key West. Even though we’ll be leaving in the morning, the winds appear to be southerly,” Captain Dan said. He was just thinking out loud because he knew John the First Mate could take them back to Key West.
Even so, John said, “Aye aye, Sir.”
“Havana Ho!” one of the men called down from the small look-out platform high on the rear or main mast. This platform was a perch for just one man at the bottom of the main gaff topsail. They used it when this sail was not in use.
“There’s the light tower now!” the man sung out again.
Unknown to our schooner and its crew, when they slipped out through the channel opening of the Bahia de Cardenas, a sloop had rounded the headlands from the Bahia de Santa Clara (which was another bay farther inside the Bahia de Cardenas) and proceeded to stalk them.
From the Author:
My second full-length book , Florida Keys’ Watercolor Kapers is composed of 336 pages. There are 12 stories running from 6 pages to as many as 72 pages. It is fully illustrated with 88 watercolors and sketches. The watercolors I made roaming around Key West after I finished my 750 mile hike from Georgia to Key West. (See book or Don Browne’s SouthWest Florida Online News records, A Walk Across Florida.) As you read these stories you will experience Key West, the Keys, and the Caribbean. These stories span the time of the early 1800’s to 1969. bkranich.wixsite.com/bobkranich
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