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26 - Prisoner of Morro by Upton Sinclair · Prisoner of Morro

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  Speaker 1: Is in the public domain recording by Tom Weiss, Chapter
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  Speaker 1: twenty six, A game of bluff. Cliff urged his little
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  Speaker 1: band of Avengers forward with no thought of danger or
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  Speaker 1: of the consequences. The inhuman scene he had witnessed drove
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  Speaker 1: from his mind all thoughts of the flagship or the
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  Speaker 1: important papers he carried upon his person. Such barbarity called
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  Speaker 1: for vengeance at that brave American handful of American tars
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  Speaker 1: meant to wreak it on their treacherous foes, or die
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  Speaker 1: in the attempt. Come on, shouted Cliff wildly, give it
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  Speaker 1: to him, don't let a man escape. A well directed
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  Speaker 1: volley was the answer to his command that sent death,
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  Speaker 1: dealing bullets among the frightened soldiers just before them. But
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  Speaker 1: unfortunately for the heroic little band, they were now fighting
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  Speaker 1: in the open and their strength was known to the enemy.
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  Speaker 1: A little further ahead, Cliff could see that a Spanish
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  Speaker 1: officer had succeeded in rallying some of his men, and
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  Speaker 1: they were now forming in solid line to repulse the
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  Speaker 1: charge of the Americans. The first result of this was
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  Speaker 1: a shower of bullets from the Spanish rifles that, fortunately
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  Speaker 1: for the most part, went wide of the mark, but
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  Speaker 1: one slightly wounded a sailor at Cliff's side, as a
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  Speaker 1: sharp exclamation of pain quickly told him. It also aroused
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  Speaker 1: his native caution. What was the use He quickly thought
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  Speaker 1: of holding his men there in the full glare of
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  Speaker 1: the moonlight as a target for the enemy's gun, when
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  Speaker 1: a more certain conflict could be carried on from the
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  Speaker 1: shelter of the trees just behind him. He had too
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  Speaker 1: few men to risk losing any on those on even terms.
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  Speaker 1: He quickly ordered his men to drop back into the woods,
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  Speaker 1: but it was with great difficulty at first that he
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  Speaker 1: could enforce his commands upon the now thoroughly aroused sailors.
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  Speaker 1: They wanted to continue their impetuous charge, but a second
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  Speaker 1: volley from the remaining troops showed them the wisdom of
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  Speaker 1: Cliff's decision, and with a return volley, they fell back
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  Speaker 1: into the darkness and shelter of the trees. Now, boys,
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  Speaker 1: cried Cliff, every man behind a tree could fight for
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  Speaker 1: all you are worth. Let every shot tell The wisdom
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  Speaker 1: of Cliff's stand became at once apparent. From the ambush
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  Speaker 1: of the woods, they could fire with little fear of
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  Speaker 1: stopping a Spanish bullet with their own bodies, and they
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  Speaker 1: did fire, and that to good purpose. The Spaniards were
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  Speaker 1: now bolder and bore down upon the ambushed Americans with
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  Speaker 1: some semblance of order. But at each volley from the
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  Speaker 1: sailors there was a wavering in the ranks of the foe,
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  Speaker 1: and Cliff could see that more than one dropped wounded
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  Speaker 1: from the ranks. Will lick them, yet, cried Cliff with enthusiasm.
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  Speaker 1: Keep it up, boys, But the Spaniards advanced steadily in
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  Speaker 1: spite of their losses. They too were fully aroused at
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  Speaker 1: the thought that they had been so roughly handled by
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  Speaker 1: such a small number of men. Cliff and his gallant
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  Speaker 1: band were compelled to drop back from tree to tree.
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  Speaker 1: It began to look as though the Spaniards would in
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  Speaker 1: the end become victorious. But with the Americans it was
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  Speaker 1: do or die. There was no hope of help or
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  Speaker 1: succor from any source. No reinforcements were at hand, and
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  Speaker 1: none could be sent in time from the flagship. Even
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  Speaker 1: did those on board suspect the plight in which that
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  Speaker 1: boat's crew found itself. But desperate cases required desperate measures,
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  Speaker 1: and Cliff was equal to the emergency. When it became
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  Speaker 1: evident that the Spaniards would indeed fight, Cliff's busy brain
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  Speaker 1: thought of a means to turn the tide of the conflict.
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  Speaker 1: It was a slight hope, to be sure that the
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  Speaker 1: only one that presented itself. He smiled in spite of himself,
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  Speaker 1: in view of his meager forces at the thought that
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  Speaker 1: the only way to achieve victory was by a flank movement.
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  Speaker 1: I'll take two men, he said, hurriedly, and slip around
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  Speaker 1: behind those fellows. The rest of you keep up your
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  Speaker 1: fire here, and if our lungs hold out, we'll make
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  Speaker 1: them think we have reinforcements. It was a very risky move,
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  Speaker 1: but with two companions, Cliff put it into execution at once.
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  Speaker 1: They hurried through the woods so as to flank the enemy,
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  Speaker 1: an easy task, as the latter were now well up
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  Speaker 1: to the little grove. As they reached the edge of
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  Speaker 1: the woods, which would bring them in the enemy's rear,
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  Speaker 1: they set up a mighty shout at them boys, Cliff
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  Speaker 1: yelled at his imaginary forces, Come on, we've got them.
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  Speaker 1: Then in Spanish, he cried, so that the enemy could hear,
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  Speaker 1: surrender you Staniards. Twelve men have held you, and now
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  Speaker 1: will take you. He had reached the edge of the
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  Speaker 1: clearing and paused a moment, facing around and beckoning to
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  Speaker 1: his imaginary reinforcements. The Spaniards were completely bewildered. The fire
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  Speaker 1: from those that Cliff had left behind continued without intermission,
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  Speaker 1: and the Spaniards could not but think that the vociferous
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  Speaker 1: sailors in their rear were new arrivals. They could not,
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  Speaker 1: in the first place conceive of the daring and hardihood
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  Speaker 1: that would lead a dozen men to oppose their forces
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  Speaker 1: unless reserves were near at hand, and now thought they
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  Speaker 1: these reinforcements had arrived, Cliff and his companions made noising
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  Speaker 1: up give color to this belief, and without stopping to
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  Speaker 1: see what there was behind the demonstration, the Spaniards took
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  Speaker 1: to their heels. They are not men but devils, Cliff
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  Speaker 1: heard someone say in Spanish, as they dropped their rifles
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  Speaker 1: and start on the run. Even the officer who had
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  Speaker 1: succeeded once in holding a remnant of his panic stricken
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  Speaker 1: forces together now gave up the fight and sprint it
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  Speaker 1: away as fast as the rest. Every man seemed to
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  Speaker 1: be looking for his own safety, and they did not
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  Speaker 1: pause to see what was behind them. Here and there,
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  Speaker 1: it is true one of the fleeing Spaniards could be
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  Speaker 1: seen helping a wounded companion in his flight, but as
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  Speaker 1: for further resistance, there was none. Cliff could not forbear
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  Speaker 1: to laugh at the odd sight of an army in
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  Speaker 1: a foot race to escape a few American sailors. American
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  Speaker 1: bluff has won the day, he laughed. Our Cuban friend's
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  Speaker 1: death has been avenged, and that without the loss of
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  Speaker 1: a man on our side. The Spanish are good sprinters
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  Speaker 1: at any rate, said one of the men, as they
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  Speaker 1: started with Cliff to rejoin their companions. Here Cliff had
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  Speaker 1: all he could do to restrain his followers from continuing
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  Speaker 1: in pursuit of the enemy. No, said he, in response
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  Speaker 1: to the earnest pleading, we had better leave well enough alone.
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  Speaker 1: These Spaniards say we are not men but devils, and
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  Speaker 1: I guess they don't care for another interview. The New York,
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  Speaker 1: no doubt, is waiting for us, and these dispatches are
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  Speaker 1: yet to be delivered. There was no use to grumble,
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  Speaker 1: so the party set out on the return to their boat.
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  Speaker 1: They were highly enthusiastic over the good work done under
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  Speaker 1: Cliff's leadership, and were proud of his pluck as well
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  Speaker 1: as the good general ship he had shown. The tide
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  Speaker 1: of battle had carried them some distance from the spot
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  Speaker 1: where they had met the Cuban courier, and further still
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  Speaker 1: from where they had concealed their boat, But they picked
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  Speaker 1: their way expeditiously through the woods and reached the beach
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  Speaker 1: without further incident. They were near the clump of trees
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  Speaker 1: which they had recognized as that behind which they had
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  Speaker 1: hidden the boat when Cliff stopped with a sudden exclamation gory.
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  Speaker 1: He said, I have forgotten that shell. It won't take
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  Speaker 1: but a minute to return for it. What's the use, sir,
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  Speaker 1: ventured one of the men. As you said, we'd better
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  Speaker 1: let well enough alone and not run any further risk
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  Speaker 1: or a shell that don't even explode. That's just the
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  Speaker 1: reason I want it, said Cliff. That shell is more
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  Speaker 1: important than you might think. I'll But here occurred an
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  Speaker 1: interruption that opened up more startling possibilities and drove the
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  Speaker 1: unexploded shell from the attention of all. It was in
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  Speaker 1: the shape of an exclamation of surprise and alarm from
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  Speaker 1: one of the men who had gone a few steps
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  Speaker 1: in advance of the others, and had reached the boat's
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  Speaker 1: hiding place as Cliff spoke. It arrested Cliff's attention at once.
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  Speaker 1: What's the matter? He called? Sharply the boat, Sir, cried
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  Speaker 1: the marine, appearing from behind the bushes. What of it?
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  Speaker 1: It's gone gone, yes, Sir Cliff, followed by the others,
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  Speaker 1: hastened to the spot the man had spoken the truth.
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  Speaker 1: The boat, which was now their sole dependence, was no
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  Speaker 1: longer There they looked in blank amazement at one another
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  Speaker 1: and at the spot where they had fastened it in
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  Speaker 1: fancied security. What could it mean? End of Chapter twenty six.
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  Speaker 1: Recording by Tom Weiss Tom's Audio Books dot Com.