Читать книгу: «By Conduct and Courage: A Story of the Days of Nelson», страница 5

When the Moors had retired, Dimchurch and two others went outside the barricade and piled some heavy bales against the door, after first carrying out the dead Moors.

“They will hardly attack us that way again, sir,” he said to Will; “it will be our turn next time.”

“Yes, six of their number are killed, and probably several badly wounded, so we ought to have a good chance of success if we make a dash at them in the dark.”

They waited until night had fallen. Then Will said:

“Do you think you can lift that hatchway, Dimchurch?”

“I will have a pretty hard try anyhow,” the man said. “I will roll this tub under it; that will give me a chance of using my strength.”

Although he was able to move it slightly, his utmost efforts failed to lift it more than an inch or two.

“They have piled too many ropes on it for me, sir; but I think that if some others will get on tubs and join me we shall be able to move the thing.”

“Wait a minute, Dimchurch. Let each man make sure that his musket is loaded.”

There was a short pause, during which all firelocks were carefully examined. When he saw that all were in good order, Will said:

“Now, lads, heave away.”

Slowly the hatchway yielded, and with a great effort it was pushed up far enough for a man to crawl out. Pieces of wood were shoved in at each corner so as to hold the hatch open, and the men who had lifted it stood clear.

“Clamber out, Dimchurch, and have a look round. Are there many of them on deck?”

“Only about a dozen, as far as I can make out, sir. They are jabbering away among themselves disputing, I should say, as to the best way to get at us.”

“I expect they intend to leave us alone and take us into Algiers. However, that does not matter. You two crawl out and lie down, then give me a hand and hoist me out. I think the others can all reach, except Tom; you had better hoist him up after me.”

Each man, as he clambered out, lay down on the deck. When all were up, they crawled along aft to within a few yards of the Moors, then leapt to their feet and fired a volley. Five of the Moors fell, while the others, panic-stricken, ran below.

“Now, pile cables over the hatchway,” Will shouted.

The sailors rushed to carry out the order. They were startled as they did so by a shout from above.

“Hillo, below there! Have you got possession of the ship?”

“Yes. Is that you, Forster?”

“Yes.”

“Thank God for that!” Will shouted back, while the men gave a cheer. “Why don’t you come down?”

“I am going to slide down the mast.”

“What for? Why don’t you come down by the rattlings?”

“I have cut the shrouds. When our last man fell I made a dash for them, and directly I got to the top I cut them, and half a dozen men who were climbing after me fell sprawling to the deck. Then I cut them on the other side. I thought then that they would at once shoot me, but there was a lively argument among them and shouts of laughter, and they evidently thought that it would be a great joke to leave me up here until I chose to slide down and be killed. Of course I heard their attack on you, and trembled for the result; but when the noise suddenly ceased I guessed that you had repulsed them. Well, here goes!” and half a minute later he slid down to the deck. “How do matters stand?” he asked, when he stood among them.

“We killed six and wounded eight or ten in the first attack upon us, and we have shot five more now. All the rest are battened down below.”

“There they had better remain for the present. Well, Gilmore, I congratulate you on having recaptured the ship. It has been a bad affair, for we have lost nine men killed; but as far as you are concerned you have done splendidly. I am afraid I shall get a pretty bad wigging for allowing them to get out, though certainly the bolts of the hatchways were all right when we changed the watch. Of course I see now that I ought to have placed a man there as sentry. It is always so mighty easy to be wise after the event. I expect the rascals pretty nearly cut the wood away round the bolts, and after the watch was changed set to work and completed the job. We shall not, however, be able to investigate that until we get to Malta.”

“We have blocked up the door between the fore and the after parts of the ship,” said Will; “but I think it would be as well to place a sentry at each hatch now, as they might turn the tables upon us again.”

“Certainly. Are you badly wounded, Dimchurch?”

“I have got a slash across the cheek, sir, but nothing to speak of.”

“Well, will you take post at the after-hatch for the present. Stevens, you may as well go down and guard the door. You will be able to tell us, at least, if they are up to any mischief. I should think, however, the fight is pretty well taken out of them, and that they will resign themselves to their fate now.”

“This is a bad job for me,” Forster said, as he and Will sat down together on a gun.

“I am awfully sorry, Forster, but I am afraid there is no getting out of it.”

“No, that is out of the question.”

“There is one thing, Forster. If you did not put a sentry over the hatchway, neither did I, so I am just as much to blame for the disaster as you are. If I had had a man there they could hardly have cut away the woodwork without his hearing. I certainly wish you to state in your report that you took the watch over from me just as I left it, and that no sentry had been placed there, as ought certainly to have been done when I came on watch at eight o’clock.”

“It is very kind of you, Gilmore, to wish to take the blame upon your own shoulders, but the responsibility is wholly mine. I ought to have reminded you to put a man there, there can be no question at all about that, but I never gave the matter a thought, and the blunder has cost us nine good seamen. I shall be lucky if I only escape with a tremendous wigging. I must bear it as well as I can.”

While they were talking the sailors were busy splicing the shrouds. When this was done two of the men swarmed up the mast by means of the halliards. Then they hoisted up the shrouds, and fastened them round the mast, making all taut by means of the lanyards. The sails were still standing, flapping loosely in the light breeze, so the sheets were hauled in and the vessel again began to move through the water. Two days later they anchored in Valetta harbour.

“Here goes,” Forster said, as he stepped into the boat with his report. “It all depends now on what sort of a man the admiral is, but I should not be surprised if he ordered me to take court-martial.”

“Oh, I hope not!” Will exclaimed. “I do wish you would let me go with you to share the blame.”

“It cannot be thought of,” Forster said; “the commanding officer must make the report.”

Two hours later Forster returned.

“It is all right, Gilmore,” he said as the boat came alongside.“Of course I got a wigging. The admiral read the report and then looked at me as fierce as a tiger.

“ ‘How was it that no sentry was placed over the prisoners?’

“ ‘I have to admit, sir,’ I said, ‘that I entirely overlooked that. I am quite conscious that my conduct was indefensible, but I have certainly paid very heavily for it.’

“ ‘It was a smart trick taking to the shrouds,’ the admiral said, ‘though one would have thought they would have shot you at once after you had cut them.’

“ ‘That is what I expected, sir,’ said I, ‘but they seemed to think it was a very good joke, my being a prisoner up there, and preferred to wait till I was driven down by thirst.’

“ ‘I suppose your men sold their lives dearly?’ he asked.

“ ‘Yes, sir,’ I replied. ‘Taken by surprise as they were they certainly accounted for more than one man each.’

“ ‘And doubtless you did the same, Mr. Forster?’

“ ‘Yes, sir, I cut down two of them, and I did not cease fighting until I saw that all was lost.’

“ ‘Then I suppose you thought that your duty to His Majesty was to take care of yourself,’ he said slyly.

“ ‘I am afraid, sir,’ I said, ‘at that moment I thought more of my duty towards myself than of my duty to him.’

“He smiled grimly.

“ ‘I have no doubt that was so, Mr. Forster. Well, you committed a blunder, and I hope it will be a lesson to you in future.’

“ ‘It will indeed, sir,’ I said.

“Then he started to question me about you.

“ ‘Your junior officer seems to have behaved very well,’ he said.

“ ‘Extremely well, sir,’ I said. ‘I only wish I had done as well.’

“ ‘His plan of forming a barricade across the bow so that his little force were ample to defend it was excellent,’ he said. ‘Also the blocking up of the door of communication through the bulkhead was well thought of, and his final escape through the hatchway and sudden attack upon the enemy was well carried out. I will make a note of his name. I suppose he is not as old as yourself, as he is your junior?’

“ ‘No, sir, he is not yet sixteen, and he was only promoted from being a ship’s boy to the quarter-deck three weeks ago.’

“ ‘Promoted from being a ship’s boy?’ the admiral said in surprise.

“Then I had to give a detailed account, not only of the fight that led to your promotion, but also of your life so far as I knew it.

“When I had finished, the admiral said:

“ ‘He must be a singular lad, this Gilmore, and is likely to prove an honour to the navy. Bring him up here at this hour to-morrow; I shall be glad to see him. There, now, you may go, and don’t forget in future that when you are in charge of prisoners you must always place a guard over them.’

“So unknowingly you have done me a good turn, Gilmore, for I expect that if the admiral had not been so interested in you he would not have let me off so easily. You must put on your best uniform for the first time and go up to-morrow.”

“Well, I am afraid I should have felt very shaky if I had not heard your account of the admiral. From what you say it is evident he is a kindly man, and after all you have told him about me he can’t have many questions to ask.”

“Well, I feel a good deal easier in my mind, as you may guess,” Forster said. “When I went ashore I felt like a bad boy who is in for a flogging. I dare say I shall get it a little hotter from the captain, but it will be just a wigging, and there will be no talk of courts-martial. By what we saw of the goods on board this craft before this rumpus took place I fancy the Moor had captured and plundered a well-laden merchantman. In that case the prize-money will be worth a good round sum, and as the admiral gets a picking out of it he will be still more inclined to look favourably on the matter. Here comes the boat to take off the prisoners. I have no doubt some of them will be hanged, especially as they will not be able to give any satisfactory explanation as to the fate of the merchantman. As soon as we have got rid of them we will overhaul a few of the bales and see what are their contents.”

When the last of the prisoners were taken ashore Forster and Gilmore went below and examined the cargo. This proved to consist of valuable Eastern stuffs, broad-cloths, silks, and Turkish carpets.

“It could not be better,” Forster said; “she must be worth a lot of money, and it will add to the nice little handful of prize-money we shall get when we return home. They ought to give us a good round sum for the Proserpine; then there were the three Moorish vessels, though I don’t think they were worth much, for their holds were nearly empty and I fancy they had only been cruising a short time. This fellow, however, is a rich prize; he certainly had very hard luck, falling in with us as he did. I fancy the ship they pillaged was a Frenchman or Italian, more likely the latter. I don’t think there are many French merchantmen about, and it is most likely that the cargo was intended for Genoa, whence a good part of it might be sent to Paris. Well, it makes little difference to us what its destination was, its proceeds are certainly destined to enrich us instead of its original consignees.”

The next morning Will put on his best uniform for the first time, and, landing with Forster, ascended the Nix Mangare stairs and called on the admiral.

“Well, Mr. Gilmore,” the admiral said as he was shown in,“it gives me great pleasure to meet so promising a young officer. Will you kindly tell me such details of your early history as may seem fitting to you.”

Will gave him a fairly detailed account of his history up to the time he joined the navy.

“Well, sir, you cannot be too grateful to that young lady, but at the same time there are few who would have availed themselves so well of her assistance. It is nothing short of astonishing that you should have progressed so far under her care that you were able, after a few lessons from the chaplain of your ship, to use a quadrant. As a mark of my approbation I will present you with one. I will send it off to your ship to-morrow morning.”

With many thanks Will took his leave, and returned with Forster to the prize.

On the following morning the quadrant arrived. That afternoon the prize was handed over to the prize-agents, and the crew transferred to the naval barracks, Forster and Gilmore receiving lodging money to live on shore. Hitherto, the only fortifications Will had seen were those of Portsmouth, so he was greatly interested in the castle with its heavy frowning stone batteries, the deep cut separating it from the rest of the island, and its towering rock. Then there was the church of St. John, paved with tombstones of the knights, and other places of interest. The costume and appearance of the inhabitants amused and pleased him, as did the shops with their laces, cameos, and lovely coral ornaments. Beyond the walls there were the gardens full of orange-trees, bright with their fruit, and the burying-place of the old monks, each body standing in a niche, dressed in his gown and cowl as in life.

Will wished that he could get his share of prize-money at once, and promised himself that his very first expenditure would be a suite of coral for the lady who had done so much for him. In no way, he thought, could he lay out money with such gratification to himself.

A fortnight later the Furious came into harbour bringing another prize with her. This had been taken without any trouble. One morning, when day broke, she was seen only a quarter of a mile from the frigate. A gun was at once fired across her bows, and, seeing that escape was impossible, she hauled down her colours without resistance.

Forster and Gilmore, with the officers who had brought in the other prizes, all went on board at once and made their reports. As Forster had predicted, he was severely reprimanded for not having placed a sentry over the prisoners, but in consideration of the fact that he had already been spoken to by the admiral himself the captain was less severe on him than he would otherwise have been. Gilmore, on the other hand, was warmly commended.

“You managed extremely well,” the captain said, “and showed that you fully deserved your promotion.”

CHAPTER V
A PIRATE HOLD

The Furious was at once placed in the hands of the dockyard people, who set to work immediately to repair damages, while large quantities of provisions were brought off from the stores on shore.

“They are not generally as sharp as this,” Forster said; “I should say there must be something in the wind.”

Such was the general opinion on board the ship, for double gangs of workers were put on, and in three days she was reported to be again ready for sea. The captain came on board half an hour later and spoke to the first lieutenant, and orders were at once issued to get up the anchors and set sail. Her head was pointed west as she left the harbour, and the general opinion was that she was bound for Gibraltar. It leaked out, however, in the afternoon that she was sailing under sealed orders, and as that would hardly be the case if she were bound for Gibraltar, there were innumerable discussions among the sailors as to her destination. Could she be meant to cruise along the west coast of France, or to return to England and join a fleet being got ready there for some important operation?

“What do you say, Bill?” one of the men asked an old sailor, who had sat quietly, taking no part in the discussion.

“Well, if you asks me,” he said, “I should say we are bound for the West Indies.”

“The West Indies, Bill! What makes you think that?”

“Well, I thinks that, because it seems to me as that is where we are most wanted. The French have got a stronger fleet than we have out there.”

“Well, they have got as strong a fleet at Toulon, and quite as strong a one at Brest.”

“Yes, that may be so, but I think we are pretty safe to lick them at either of these places if they will come out and fight us fair, whereas in the West Indies they are a good bit stronger. There are so many ports and islands that, as we are, so to speak, a good deal scattered, they might at any moment come upon us in double our strength.”

“Have you ever been there before, Bill?”

“Ay, two or three times. In some respects it could not be better; you can buy fruit, and ’bacca and rum for next to nothing, when your officers give you a chance. Lor’, the games them niggers are up to to circumvent them would make you laugh! When you land, an old black woman will come up with a basket full of cocoa-nuts. Your officer steps up to her and examines them, and they look as right as can be. Perhaps he breaks one and it is full of milk; very good. So you go up to buy, and the officer looks on. The woman hands you two or three, and when she gives you the last one she winks her eye. She don’t say anything, but you drop a sixpence into her hand among the coppers you have to pay for the others, and when she has quite sold out the officer orders you into the boat to lie off till he comes back. And when he returns he is quite astonished to find that most of the crew are three sheets in the wind.

“Then they will bring you sugar-canes half as thick as your wrist, looking as innocent as may be; both ends are sealed up with bits of the pith, and when you open one end you find that all the joints have been bored through, and the cane is full of rum. But mind, lads, you are fools if you touch it; it is new and strong and rank, and a bottle of it would knock you silly. And that is not the worst of it, for fever catches hold of you, and fever out there ain’t no joke. You eats a good dinner at twelve o’clock, and you are buried in the palisades at six; that’s called yellow jack. It is a country where you can enjoy yourselves reasonable with fruit, and perhaps a small sup of rum, but where you must beware of drinking; if you do that you are all right. The islands are beautiful, downright beautiful; there ain’t many places which I troubles myself to look at, but the West Indies are like gardens with feathery sorts of trees, and mountains, and everything that you can want in nature.”

“It is very hot, isn’t it, Bill?”

“It ain’t, so to speak, cool in summer-time. In winter it is just right, but in summer you would like to lie naked all day and have cold water poured over you. Still, one gets accustomed to it in time. Then, you see, there is always excitement of some kind. There are pirates and Frenchmen, and there are Spaniards, whom I regard as a cross between the other two. They hide about among the islands and pop out when you least expect them. You always have to keep your eyes in your head and your cutlass handy when you go ashore. The worst of them are what they call mulattoes; they are a whity-brown sort of chaps, neither one thing nor the other, and a nice cut-throat lot they are. A sailor who drinks too much and loses his boat is as like as not to be murdered by some of them before morning. I hate them chaps like poison. There are scores of small craft manned by them which prey upon the negroes, who are an honest, merry lot, and not bad sailors either in their way. Sometimes four or five of these pirate craft will go together, and many of them are a good size and carry a lot of guns. They make some island their head-quarters. Any niggers there may be on it they turn into slaves. There are thousands of these islands, so at least I should say, scattered about, some of them mere sand-spots, others a goodish size.

“Well, I hope it is the West Indies. There is plenty of amusement and plenty of fighting to be done there, and I should like to know what a sailor can want more.”

There was a hum of approval; the picture was certainly tempting.

After a six days’ run with a favourable wind they passed through the Straits without touching at Gibraltar, and held west for twenty-four hours. Then the sealed orders were opened, and it was soon known throughout the ship that it was indeed the West Indies for which they were bound. The ship’s course was at once changed. Teneriffe was passed, and they stopped for a day to take in fresh water and vegetables at St. Vincent. Then her head was turned more westward, and three weeks later the Furious anchored at Port Royal. The captain went on shore at once to visit the admiral, and returned with the news that the Furious was to cruise off the coast of Cuba. The exact position of the French fleet was unknown, but when last heard of was in the neighbourhood of that island.

“I must keep a sharp look-out for them,” the captain said,“and bring back news of their whereabouts if I do catch sight of them; that is, of course, if we don’t catch a tartar, for not only do the French ships carry heavier guns than we do, but they sail faster. We are as speedy, however, as any of our class, and will, I hope, be able to show them a clean pair of heels. In addition to this, I am told that three piratical craft, which have their rendezvous on some island off the south coast of Cuba, have been committing great depredations. A number of merchantmen have been missed; so I am to keep a sharp look-out for them and to clip their wings if I can.”

“What size are they?” asked the first lieutenant.

“One is said to be a cutter carrying eight guns and a long-tom, the other two are schooners, each carrying six guns on a broadside; it is not known whether they have a long-tom, but the probability is that they have.”

“They would be rather formidable opponents then if we caught them together, as they carry as many guns as we do, and those long-toms are vastly more powerful than anything we have. I think it is a pity that they don’t furnish all ships on this station with a long twenty-four; it would be worth nearly all our broadsides.”

“That is so, Mr. Farrance, but somehow the people at home cannot get out of their regular groove, and fill up the ships with eight and ten-pounders, while, as you say, one long twenty-four would be worth a dozen of them. If we do catch one of these pirates I shall confiscate their long guns to our own use.”

“It would be a capital plan, sir. Well, I am glad we shall have something to look for besides the French fleet, which may be a hundred miles away.”

“Ay, or a thousand,” the captain added.

Will had been standing not far from the captain, and heard this conversation. His heart beat high at the thought of the possibility of a fight with these murderous pirates.

For three weeks they cruised off the coast of Cuba. They saw no sign whatever of the French fleet, but from time to time they heard from native craft of the pirates. The natives differed somewhat widely as to the head-quarters of these pests, but all agreed that it was on an island lying in the middle of dangerous shoals.

One day they saw smoke rising some fifteen miles away and at once shaped their course for it. When they approached it they found that it rose from a vessel enveloped in flames.

“She is a European ship,” the captain said as they neared her. “Send an officer in a boat to row round her and gather any particulars as to her fate. I see no boats near her, and I am afraid that it is the work of those pirates.”

All watched the boat with intent interest as she rowed round the ship.

“I have no doubt whatever that it is the work of pirates,”the officer said on his return. “Her bulwarks are burnt away, and I could make out several piles on deck which looked like dead men.”

“Send a man up to the mast-head, Farrance, and tell him to scan the horizon carefully for a sail. I should say this ship can’t have been burning above three hours at most.”

No sooner had the man reached the top of the mast than he called down “Sail ho!”

“Where away?” Mr. Farrance shouted.

“On the port bow, sir.”

“What do you make her out to be?”

“I should say she was a schooner by her topsails.”

The ship’s course was at once changed, and every rag of sail put upon her. The first lieutenant climbed to the upper crosstrees, and after a long look through his telescope returned to deck.

“I should say she is certainly one of the schooners that we are in search of, sir, but I doubt whether with this light wind we have much chance of overhauling her.”

“We will try anyhow,” the captain said. “She is probably steering for the rendezvous, so by following her we may at least get some important information.”

All day the chase continued, but there was no apparent change in the position of the two vessels. The Furious was kept on the same course through the night, and to the satisfaction of all on board they found, when morning broke, that they had certainly gained on the schooner, as her mainsails were now visible. At twelve o’clock a low bank of sand was sighted ahead, and the schooner had entered a channel in this two hours later. The Furious had to be hove-to outside the shoal. The sand extended a long distance, but there were several breaks in it, and from the masthead a net-work of channels could be made out. It was a great disappointment to the crew of the Furious to have to give up the chase and see the schooner only some four miles off on her way under easy sail.

“This is an awkward place, Mr. Farrance,” the captain said,“and will need a deal of examination before we go any farther. The first thing to do will be to sail round and note and sound the various channels. I wish you would go aloft with your glass and see whether there is any ground higher than the rest. Such a place would naturally be the point of rendezvous.”

Lieutenant Farrance went aloft and presently returned.

“There is a clump of green trees,” he said, “some ten miles off. The schooner is nearing them, and I think, though of this I am not certain, that I can make out the masts of another craft lying there.”

“Well, it is something to have located her,” the captain said. “Now we must find how we can best get there; that will be a work of time. We may as well begin by examining some of these channels.”

Four boats were at once lowered and rowed to the mouths of those nearest. The sounding operations quickly showed that in three of them there was but two feet of water; the other was somewhat deeper, but there was still two feet less water than the Furious drew. The deep part was very narrow and winding.

“It may be this one that the schooner has gone up,” the captain said. “I have no doubt she draws three or four feet less than we do, and, knowing the passage perfectly, she could get up it easily. I hope, however, we shall find something deeper presently.”

The next three days were spent in circumnavigating the sand-banks and in sounding the various channels, but at last the captain was obliged to admit that none of them were deep enough for the Furious, although there were fully half a dozen by which vessels of lighter draught might enter.

“I am ready to run any fair risk, Mr. Farrance,” he said,“but I daren’t send a boat expedition against such a force as that, especially as they have no doubt thrown up batteries to strengthen their position. They must have any number of cannon which they have taken from ships they have captured.”

“It would certainly be a desperate enterprise,” the first lieutenant agreed, “and, as you say, too dangerous to be attempted now.”

“Gilmore,” Forster said, as the midshipmen met at dinner,“you are always full of ideas; can’t you suggest any way by which we might get at them?”

“I am afraid not,” Will laughed. “The only possible way that I can see would be to sail away, get together a number of native craft, and then make a dash at the place.”

“What would be the advantage of native craft over our boats,” one of the others said scoffingly.

“The great advantage would be that, if we had a dozen native craft, the men would be scattered about their decks instead of being crowded in boats, and would therefore be able to land with comparatively little loss.”

“Upon my word,” one of the seniors said, “I think there is something in Gilmore’s idea. Of course they would have to be very shallow, and one would have to choose a night when there was just enough breeze to take them quietly along. At any rate I will run the risk of being snubbed, and will mention it to one of the lieutenants. ’Pon my word, the more I think of it the more feasible does it seem.”

After dinner was over the midshipman went up to Mr. Peters, who was now third lieutenant, and saluted.

“What is it?” the lieutenant asked.

“Well, sir, it is an idea of Gilmore’s. It may not be worth anything at all, but it certainly seemed to me that there was something in it.”

“His ideas are generally worth something. What is it?”

The midshipman explained Will’s plan.

“There is certainly something in it,” Peters said. “What a beggar that boy is for ideas! At any rate, I will mention it to Mr. Farrance.”

Mr. Farrance at first pooh-poohed the idea, but, on thinking it over, he concluded that it would be as well at any rate to lay it before the captain.

“’Pon my word it does seem feasible,” the captain said.“They could tow the boats in after them, so that, when they came under the pirates’ fire, the men could get into the boats and so be in shelter. Only one hand would be required to steer each vessel, and the rest would remain out of sight of the enemy until near enough to make a dash either for the shore or the pirates’ craft, as the case might be. It is a good idea, a really brilliant idea, and well worth putting into effect. Besides, each of the vessels could carry one or two small guns, and so keep down the enemy’s fire to some extent. Send for Gilmore.”