in a beautiful semi-tropic ocean, would be known only to
myself and to my crew,--and there I would pass happy days in the company
of my books, my works of art, and all the various treasures I had taken
from the mercenary vessels which I had overhauled.

Such was my notion of a pirate's life. I would kill nobody; the very
sight of my black flag would be sufficient to put an end to all thought
of resistance on the part of my victims, who would no more think of
fighting me, than a fat bishop would have thought of lifting his hand
against Robin Hood and his merry men; and I truly believe that I
expected my conscience to have a great deal more to do in the way of
approval of my actions, than it had found necessary in the course of my
ordinary school-boy life.

I mention these early impressions because I have a notion that a great
many people--and not only young people--have an idea of piracy not
altogether different from that of my boyhood. They know that pirates
are wicked men, that, in fact, they are sea-robbers or maritime
murderers, but their bold and adventurous method of life, their bravery,
daring, and the exciting character of their expeditions, give them
something of the same charm and interest which belong to the robber
knights of the middle ages. The one mounts his mailed steed and clanks
his long sword against his iron stirrup, riding forth into the world
with a feeling that he can do anything that pleases him, if he finds
himself strong enough. The other springs into his rakish craft, spreads
his sails to the wind, and dashes over the sparkling main with a feeling
that he can do anything he pleases, provided he be strong enough.

The first pirates who made themselves known in American waters were the
famous buccaneers; these began their career in a very commonplace and
unobjectionable manner, and the name by which they were known had
originally no piratical significance. It was derived from the French
word _boucanier_, signifying "a drier of beef."

Some of the West India islands, especially San Domingo, were almost
overrun with wild cattle of various kinds, and this was owing to the
fact that the Spaniards had killed off nearly all the natives, and so
had left the interior of the islands to the herds of cattle which had
increased rapidly. There were a few settlements on the seacoast, but
the Spaniards did not allow the inhabitants of these to trade with any
nation but their own, and consequently the people