The mate and the boat's crew went below, and the skipper took a turn or
so up and down the deck, thinking deeply, while the two lads went and
settled themselves down aft to keep a keen look-out for any danger that
might approach, and naturally dropped into conversation, first about the
fight, a subject which they thoroughly exhausted before they began a
debate upon their position.
"What's to be done, eh?" said Poole, in response to a question. "I
don't know. We are regularly boxed up--trapped. You heard what was
said, and here we are. We can't attempt to sail out in the daylight
because Don Cousin would sink us as sure as his great gun, and we can't
sneak out in the dark because, even if we got a favourable wind, old
Burgess couldn't find the way."
"We might take to the boats, and slip off as soon as it was dark, and
row along close in shore. We should be out of sight long before
daybreak, and join Don Ramon at Velova."
"Exactly," said Poole sarcastically; "and leave a note on the binnacle,
`With father's compliments to Don Cousin, and he begged to make him a
present of the smartest little schooner, just as she stands, that ever
crossed the Atlantic.' Likely, isn't it?"
"Oh no," said Fitz hurriedly. "Of course that wouldn't do."
"Oh, I don't know," said Poole, in the same mocking vein. "It doesn't
do to be in too much of a hurry over a good idea. There, you wait till
the dad turns and is coming back this way, and then you go and propose
it to him."
"Likely, as you say," said Fitz, with a laugh. "But look here, what is
to be done?"
"I only know of one thing," replied Poole; "keep a strict watch for the
next prank they will play, and beat them off again till they get tired
and give it up as a bad job."
"That they will never do," said Fitz decidedly. "Think they could land
and get up on one of these cliffs from the shore side, and pick us off
by degrees with their rifles?"
"No," said Poole, leaning back and gazing upwards. "I think that would
be impossible."
"Well," said Fitz, "what do you say to this? Man the boats after dark,
row out to the gunboat, board her, and take her. Now, I think that
would be grand."
"Oh yes, grand enough; but she's a man-of-war with small guns as well as
the big one, and a large, well-drilled crew. No, no, they would be too
keenly on the watch. I don't believe we could do that. I've a good
mind to mention it, though, to father. No, I won't. He'd have thought
of that, and he'd only look upon it as so much impudence, coming from
me."
"I dunno," said Fitz. "Here he comes. Try."
"Here, you two," said the skipper, coming close up to them; "I have a
nice little job for you. Take four men, Poole, and drop down in a boat
cautiously. Don't be seen, and get down to where you can watch the
gunboat till dark, and then come back here and report what you have made
out. Of course if they make any movement you come back directly and let
me know."
These orders put all farther scheming out of the lads' heads, and a very
short time afterwards Poole had selected Chips and three other men, and
the boat was gliding down with the current, each bend being cautiously
rounded in the expectation of the enemy being seen once more ascending
the river. But the last headland was passed with the boat kept well
under shelter of the overhanging growth, and the open sea lay before
them; and there, about two miles away, and exactly opposite the mouth of
the river, lay the gunboat with a film of smoke rising from her funnel,
indicating that steam was being kept up, while by means of the glass
that this time had not been left behind, they could plainly make out
that she was lying at anchor, keeping watch upon the shore.
"There," said Poole, "I'll be bound to say she's just at the mouth of
the channel by which we came in, and as close as she dare come. We
should look nice sailing down nearer and nearer to her. Bah! We should
never get half-way there."
"Well, what's to be done?" said Fitz.
"What we were told. Make ourselves comfortable till the sun's just
beginning to go down, and then get back as quickly as we can.--Make her
fast, my lads, with the painter--there, to that branch, only so that we
can slip off in a minute, for we may have to go in a hurry at any time."
This was done, and they watched and waited in silence, keeping well out
of sight behind the shrubby growth, from the knowledge that the mouth of
the river was certain to be carefully scanned by those on board the
gunboat with their glasses.
"Looks to me," observed Poole, "as if they mean to tire us out."
"Oh yes, sir, that's it," said Chips. "I wish I had brought my tools
with me."
"Why?" said Poole, who was glad to break the monotony of their watch by
a chat with the men.
"Oh, it's as well to make the most use of your time, sir. Looks to me
as if the Don Captain had taken a lease of that pitch and meant to stay;
and under the suckumstances I couldn't do better than land here and get
up to that sort of shelf yonder. Beautiful situation too, freehold if
you held tight. Raither lonely perhaps, but with my axe and these 'ere
three stoopids to help me, I could knock the skipper up a nice eligible
marine villa, as they calls it, where we could all live comfortable for
a year or two; and you young gents could have nice little gardens of
your own. Then I could make you a little harbour where you could keep
your boat and go fishing and shooting and having a high old time. I
don't think you'd get such a chance again."
"And what about the schooner?" said Fitz, laughing.
"Oh, we should have to dismantle her, and work up the stuff, bulkheads
and such-like, to line the new house. I've got an idea that I could
work in all the hatches and tarpaulins for a roof; for though you get
plenty of sunshine out here, my word, when it do rain, it do! What do
you say, sir?"
"Nothing," said Poole. "It won't do, Chips."
"Well, no, sir; I thought it wouldn't when I first began to speak."
"Try again."
"Don't think I have got any more stuff, sir. But lookye here; why don't
the skipper take us all down in the boats when it's dark, and let us
board the enemy and take her? We could, couldn't we, messmates?"
"Yes, of course," came in a growl.
"There, sir! You 'ear?"
"Yes, I hear," said Poole, "and I dare say we could, but only at the
expense of half the lads killed and wounded; and that would be paying
too dear. Now, look here, my lad; here's an idea rather in your way.
Couldn't we make a plan to scuttle and sink the gunboat where she lies?
What do you say to that?"
"Can't be did, sir. I could creep alongside the schooner and do it to
her; but that there gunboat's got heavy steel plates right round her,
going ever so deep, and they'd be rather too much for my tools. They'd
spoil every auger I've got. The skipper hasn't got a torpedo aboard,
has he? One of them new 'uns that you winds up and sets a-going with a
little screw-propeller somewheres astern, and a head full of nitro--
what-d'ye-call-it, which goes off when it hits?"
"No," said Poole, as he lay back gazing at the gunboat through his
half-closed eyes, and in imagination saw the little thread-like
appearance formed by the disturbed water as a fish-torpedo ploughed its
way along; "we didn't bring anything of the kind."
"No, sir; I thought you wouldn't. But what about a big bag of powder
stuck alongside her rudder? You see, you might tie the bag up with a
bit of spun-yarn rubbed with wet powder, and leave a long end hanging
down as far as the boat in which you rowed out."
"And set a light to it?" said Fitz.
"That's right, sir. You see," cried Chips, "and it would go fizzling
and sparkling till we rowed right away out of reach, and up she'd go,
bang."
"And while you were striking matches to light the touch-string, the
enemy would be shooting at you or dropping cold shot or pig-ballast into
us to sink the boat," said Poole.
"Bah!" said Fitz. "They keep such a strict watch that they would never
let a row-boat come near."
"No, sir," said Chips; "that's just what I think. Them Spaniels aren't
very clever, but they all seem to have got eyes in their heads. Now,
this 'ere's a better idee. Say you are the skipper, and you says to
half-a-dozen of us, `Now, my lads, them there Span'ls is making
themselves a regular noosance with that there big gun. Don't you think
you could take the gig to-night, drop down under their bows, hook on by
the fore-chains, and then swarm up on the quiet like, catch hold of the
big gun, carry her to the side, and drop her over into deep water!'"
"Ha! ha! Capital!" cried Fitz. "Splendid! Yes, I don't believe she
weighs more than two or three tons. Why, Poole, we ought to go
to-night. They wouldn't be able to get her up again without a lighter
and divers from New York. But it's a capital idea."
"Don't you mind what he says," growled the carpenter. "He's a-quizzing
on us, my lads. Well, I gives that up. That job would be a bit too
stiff."
"Yes," said Poole, laughing. "Try again."
"I dunno what they wants a great clumsy lumbering thing like that aboard
a ship for. Bower-anchors is bad enough, banging against your craft;
but you can lower them down to the bottom when your ship gets tired, and
give her a bit of a rest."
"Yes," said one of the other sailors; "you'll have to think of something
better than that, Shavings."
"Ay, but that was a fine idea, my lad, if the gun had been a bit
lighter. The Span'ls would have been so flabbergasted when they heard
the splash, that we should have had lots of time to get away. Now, let
me see; let me see. What we wants is a big hole in that gunboat's
bottom, so that they would be obliged to take to their boats. What do
you say to this? I've got a bottle of stain aboard as I used to do over
the wood at the top of the locker in the skipper's cabin, and made it
look like hoggermy. Now, suppose I undressed a bit, say to my
flannel-shirt, tied an old red comforter that I've got round my waist,
to keep my trowges up, and then touches my hands and arms and phiz over
with some of that stain. Then I swims off to the gunboat, asks civil
like for the Don skipper, and says I'm a Spanish AB and a volunteer come
on the job."
"And what then?" said Fitz, laughing.
"Ah, you may laugh, sir. But you can't expect a common sailor like me,
who's a bit handy with his hammer and saw, to be up to all the dodges of
an educated young gent like you as has sarved his time aboard the
_Bry-tannia_ in Dartmouth Harbour. But of course there's a `what then'
to all I said. I shouldn't want to dress myself up like a play-hactor
in a penny show, with a red pocket-hankerchy tied to a mop-stick, big
boots, and a petticut instead of trowges, pretending he's a black
pirate, with a blood-red flag, one of your penny plain and twopence
coloured kind, you know. I did lots of them when I was a young 'un, and
had a box of paints. Not me. There's a `what then' to all this 'ere, a
sting to it, same as there is in a wopse's tail."
"Let's have it then," said Fitz. "I want to hear what you'd do when Don
Cousin there shakes hands with you and says, `You're the very man I've
been waiting for all through this voyage.'"
"Yes, sir; that's it. You've got it to rights. That's just what he
says, only it'd be in his Spanish liquorice lingo; and then the very
first time I takes my trick at the wheel I looks out for one of them
ugly sharp-pinted rocks like a fang just sticking out of the water, runs
the gunboat right a-top of it, makes a big hole in her bottom; down she
goes, great gun and all, and there you are. Now, Mr Poole, sir, what
have you got to say to that?"
"Nothing," said Poole. "It's too big for me. When do you mean to
start?"
"Well, I haven't quite made up my mind as to that yet, sir," said Chips
quietly. "There's the skipper's consent to get, and the painting to do;
and then I aren't quite sure about that there red comforter. I am
afraid it's in my old chest, the one that's at home, and I shouldn't
look so Span'l-like without a bit of colour. But it's a good idea,
isn't it, sir, although Mr Fitz don't seem to think much of it? What
do you make of them now on board the gunboat?"
"There's somebody on the bridge, and he's got a glass, and I saw the
light flash off the lens just now."
"Then they must be a-watching of us, sir, taking stock of the place. I
shouldn't wonder if we had a visit from them soon after dark, to try and
take us by surprise."
"Well, they won't do that," said Poole. "We shall keep too good a
watch; but I shouldn't wonder if they tried." The time glided by, and
the sun began to sink, to disappear quite early to the watchers, shut in
by high cliffs; and as soon as it was out of sight the boat was dragged
up stream, well hidden behind the overhanging boughs that dipped their
tips to the edge of the river, till the first bend had been passed, when
the men took to their oars and pulled hard till the schooner was
reached.
There was scarcely anything to report, the only thing that took the
skipper's attention being Fitz's statement that he had seen somebody on
the gunboat's bridge using a glass, and this was sufficient to start the
skipper making preparations for the night, for after a short
consultation with Burgess, they came to the conclusion that they would
be attacked before long; and about an hour after darkness had set in, a
whisper from one of the watch told that he had heard the faint creakings
of oars on rowlocks.
A minute later a faint spark lit up what appeared to be a scale hanging
from its chains and being lowered down from the schooner's side into the
water; but as it touched the surface it grew and grew, and went gliding
down the stream, developing as it went into a tin dish containing some
combustible which grew brighter and brighter as it went on, till it
flashed out into a dazzling blue light which lit up the sides of the
cliffs and glistened like moonlight in the water, till at about a
hundred yards from the schooner's stern it threw up into clear relief
the shapes of three boats crowded with men, the spray thrown up by their
oars glittering in the blue flare, and then ceasing.
For all at once a few softly-uttered words were heard upon the
schooner's deck, followed by a bright flash, and the roar of a volley
echoed like thunder from the cliff-sides, for the skipper's preparations
had been well made, so that about a score of rifle-bullets were sent
whizzing and hissing over the enemy's heads, while those who looked on
over the schooner's bulwarks saw the blue light begin to sink and grow
pale as it went on down stream, throwing up the boats in less bold
relief as they too went down towards the mouth in company with their
illuminator.
Five minutes later all was dark and still again.
"Showed them we were pretty well prepared for them," said Poole, at
last.
"Yes," replied Fitz. "Think they'll come again?"
"No," said the skipper, who was standing by in the darkness. "We shall
keep watch, of course, but I don't think we shall see any more of them
to-night. There, you two go below and sleep as hard as ever you can.
I'll have you roused if anything occurs."
"Honour bright, father?"
"Yes, and extra polished too," replied the skipper.
"Come on, then, Burnett," whispered Poole, gripping his companion by the
arm. "I don't think that I ever felt so sleepy in my life."