The most famous of these women pirates was named Mary Reed. Her father
was an English captain of a trading vessel, and her mother sailed with
him. This mother had had an elder child, a son, and she also had a
mother-in-law in England from whom she expected great things for her
little boy. But the boy died, and Mrs. Reed, being afraid that her
mother-in-law would not be willing to leave any property to a girl,
determined to play a little trick, and make believe that her second
child was also a boy.
Consequently, as soon as the little girl, who, from her birth had been
called Mary by her father and mother, was old enough to leave off baby
clothes, she put on boy's clothes, and when the family returned to
England a nice little boy appeared before his grandmother; but all this
deception amounted to nothing, for the old lady died without leaving
anything to the pretended boy. Mary's mother believed that her child
would get along better in the world as a boy than she would as a girl,
and therefore she still dressed her in masculine clothes, and put her
out to service as a foot-boy, or one of those youngsters who now go by
the name of "Buttons."
But Mary did not fancy blacking boots and running errands. She was very
well satisfied to be a boy, but she wanted to live the kind of a boy's
life which would please her fancy, and as she thought life on the ocean
wave would suit her very well, she ran away from her employer's house
and enlisted on board a man-of-war as a powder monkey.
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