Red Rover, The, romance by
Cooper, published in 1827 and dramatized by S.H. Chapman (1828).
Lieutenant Henry Ark, on the track of the Red Rover, a notorious pirate, disguises himself as a common sailor (“Wilder”) and enlists as second in command of the mysterious
Dolphin. When the captain of the merchant ship
Caroline is accidentally injured, Ark is sent to take his place. Both ships sail immediately from Newport, and the youthful commander's skillful seamanship disturbs the superstitious crew of the
Caroline, who desert him. He is left with the two passengers, Gertrude Grayson and her governess, Mrs. Wyllys, to escape the sinking ship in a small boat, from which they are rescued by the
Dolphin. Captain Heidegger (the Rover) is attracted to Mrs. Wyllys, and becomes friendly with Ark, confessing to him that he had been a seaman in the royal navy, but that his loyalty to the colonies had led him into a quarrel in which he killed an officer and escaped to become a pirate. Ark's former ship, the
Dart, is now sighted, and, when the Rover goes aboard her, disguised as a naval officer, he learns Ark's true identity. Returning, he is persuaded to put the women and Ark aboard the
Dart. A fierce battle ensues, in which the pirate is victorious. Ark is about to be hanged, when it is revealed that he is actually Paul de Lacey, the long‐lost son of Mrs. Wyllys. At this, the Rover sets his prisoners free, sends them ashore, dismisses his crew, burns his ship, and disappears. After the close of the Revolutionary War, 20 years later, he is brought, dying, to the home of De Lacey, who has married Gertrude. He discloses that he is the brother of Mrs. Wyllys, and that after ending his piracies he reformed, led a virtuous life, and served honorably in the patriot cause.
