Chapter 6

----"The good old plan,
That they should get, who have the power,
And they should keep, who can."--_Wordsworth._

The apartment, in which our adventurer now found himself, afforded no bad
illustration of the character of its occupant. In its form, and
proportions it was a cabin of the usual size and arrangements; but, in its
furniture and equipments, it exhibited a singular admixture of luxury and
martial preparation. The lamp, which swung from the upper deck, was of
solid silver; and, though adapted to its present situation by mechanical
ingenuity, there was that, in its shape and ornaments, which betrayed it
had once been used before some shrine of a far more sacred character.
Massive candlesticks of the same precious metal, and which partook of the
same ecclesiastical formation, were on a venerable table, whose mahogany
was glittering with the polish of half a century, and whose gilded claws,
and carved supporters, bespoke an original destination very different from
the ordinary service of a ship. A couch, covered with cut velvet, stood
along the transom; while a divan, of blue silk, lay against the bulkhead
opposite, manifesting, by its fashion, its materials, and its piles of
pillows, that even Asia had been made to contribute to the ease of its
luxurious owner. In addition to these prominent articles, there were cut
glass, mirrors, plate, and even hangings; each of which, by something
peculiar in its fashion or materials, bespoke an origin different from
that of its neighbour. In short, splendour and elegance seemed to have
been much more consulted than propriety, or conformity in taste, in the
selection of most of those articles, which had been, oddly enough, made to
contribute to the caprice or to the comfort of their singular possessor.

In the midst of this medley of wealth and luxury, appeared the frowning
appendages of war. The cabin included four of those dark cannon whose
weight and number had been first to catch the attention of Wilder.
Notwithstanding they were placed in such close proximity to the articles
of ease just enumerated, it only needed a seaman's eye to perceive that
they stood ready for instant service, and that five minutes of preparation
would strip the place of all its tinsel, and leave it a warm and well
protected battery. Pistols, sabres, half-pikes, boarding-axes and all the
minor implements of marine warfare, were arranged about the cabin in such
a manner as to aid in giving it an appearance of wild embellishment,
while, at the same time, each was convenient to the hand.

Around the mast was placed a stand of muskets, and strong wooden bars,
that were evidently made to fit in brackets on either side of the door,
sufficiently showed that the bulkhead might