"Five sail to the eastward!"
Presently afterwards three more were seen standing down channel, under
all the canvas they could carry.
"What if they should prove to be Parliamentary ships," I said to
Lancelot.
"We must try and explain who we are, and how we came on board," he
answered.
"But what if they won't believe us?" I asked. "We may be strung up
before they find out the truth."
"That would be a hard case, but I do not see how we are to escape,
unless we jump overboard when the fight begins, and try to swim to one
of them."
Instead of running away, as we expected, the _Charles_ stood boldly
towards the approaching squadron. At length from the peak of the
leading ship we saw the Union Jack flying.
"That must be Prince Rupert's squadron after all," said Lancelot.
That this was the case was soon evident, for the frigate, ranging up
alongside the big ship, exchanged friendly salutes.
An officer in handsome costume, with a gold chain round his neck, was
seen standing on the after-castle. When Captain Blackleach raised his
beaver, the officer took off his in return, and inquired how many prizes
he had made.
"Three since we parted with your highness," was the answer, "and they
are by this time safe in Kinsale harbour."
"You have used diligence; you shall have a bigger ship before long,"
said the officer in the handsome dress.
"Who is he?" I asked one of the men standing by.
"What! have you never seen Prince Rupert, the bravest commander in the
king's armies, and now his best admiral? Wherever he leads, rich prizes
are sure to be found."
Such we discovered was a fact, for that very day the squadron captured
well-nigh a dozen merchantmen homeward bound, which mistook it for the
Earl of Warwick's fleet, and fell without firing a shot into its
voracious jaws.
In high glee the Prince with his prizes stood for Kinsale harbour, where
we found a dozen other goodly ships, which had been captured by his
cruisers, including the three taken by the _Charles_. While we lay
here, Lancelot and I, when no one was by, often talked over various
schemes for escaping, but we had to ask ourselves the question, where
should we go? The whole southern part of Ireland was in favour of the
King, as the Prince of Wales was now called, his father having been put
to death in London. Thus, even should we reach the shore, we should run
a great risk of being knocked on the head when attempting to travel
through the country, for rumours had reached us of the fearful way in
which the Romanists had treated the Protestants residing among them.
Martin to whom we confided our wishes, was as eager as we were to
escape, being anxious, as he said, to get away from the swearing,
drinking, gambling crew. "I won't say there's not a godly man among
them, because there are two or three who have been pressed into the
service, and are ready to get away if they can, but the rest, the Lord
deliver us from them," he said, while we were standing on the forecastle
one evening, out of hearing of the rest of the ship's company.
Lancelot, who was full of devices, proposed that we should take a boat
and pull away out to sea, hoping that we might get across to the Welsh
coast and be picked up by a Parliamentary cruiser, some of which were
said to be in the Irish Channel.
This plan seemed most feasible, though in reality full of danger. It
would be no easy matter, in the first place, to get hold of a boat, and
to obtain provisions and water. It would be still more difficult to
slip away out of the harbour unperceived; and then, after all, we might
be picked up by one of Prince Rupert's squadron and treated as
deserters.
"Nothing risk, nothing have!" said Martin. "I would chance it for
myself, but I do not like the thought of hazarding your young lives.
Howsumdever, I'll speak to the men I think will join us, and hear what
they say."
The _Charles_ was one of the outer line of frigates placed at the
entrance of the harbour to give due notice of the approach of an enemy,
so that we should have a better opportunity of getting off than would
have been the case had we been higher up the harbour; but then the
difficulty of obtaining a boat was greater.
Many of the crew were allowed to go on shore, but we had hitherto always
been refused. Lancelot suggested that if we could by some means get on
shore, we might obtain a boat, and late in the evening pretend to be
returning in her to the ship, instead of which we might pass her and get
out to sea.
"I fear that the guard ships keep too sharp a look-out to allow us to do
that," observed Martin; "still, I see no better way of making our
escape."
"We must wait for our opportunity; it will come, maybe, when we least
expect it," said Lancelot.
Buoyed up with this hope, when our watch was over, we turned into our
hammocks.
Next morning a frigate came in, towing a boat. She passed close to us.
On her deck stood ten men heavily ironed, their features, which we could
clearly see, showing that they felt themselves to be in a dangerous
predicament. The frigate sailed on, and brought up in the centre of the
squadron.
Soon afterwards a signal from the flag-ship was seen flying, ordering
two boats from each vessel to come alongside. Ours were in the water,
when the captain ordered Martin and three other men, together with
Lancelot, Dick, and me, to go in one of them.
"It may teach you a lesson, lads, which for your own sakes I advise you
not to forget," he said with a significant look.
"I am afraid the captain has an inkling of our plans," whispered
Lancelot to me as we went down the side.
We took our seats in our respective boats, which pulled away up the
harbour. We found numerous other boats, the men resting on their oars
round the flag-ship. Presently a gun was fired from her, and up went
ten human beings dangling by their necks to the yard-arms. Some
struggled in a way it was fearful to look at. They were the men we had
seen on the deck of the frigate, and who had, we heard, attempted to
make their escape in a boat, just as we proposed doing. Such would have
been our fate had we carried out our intention and been captured.
We returned on board very low-spirited.
"We must be careful what we are about," said Lancelot to me; "I have no
fancy to share the lot of those unhappy fellows."
"What's to be done?" I asked.
"Grin and bear it, as Martin would say," he answered.
Although we were not allowed to go on shore, we saw what was taking
place up the harbour. Boats were constantly going backwards and
forwards, carrying the cargoes of the captured vessels to the town,
where the goods were disposed of to eager traders, who came in from all
parts to purchase them--often for less than half their value; but still,
from the number of vessels taken, they must have realised a large profit
to the Prince, seeing that he had paid nothing for them.
The cargoes being discharged, the stouter ships were fitted out with
guns, there being found no lack of men ready to serve under so
successful a corsair, for such the Prince had become.
The fleet being ready, we once more sailed in quest of fresh prizes. I
did not note the number taken, but I often grieved to see the despair of
the poor ship-masters and owners when they found themselves robbed of
their hard-earned gains. No flag protected them--Dutchmen, Spaniards,
Portuguese, Englishmen, all were treated alike. Some fought pretty
hard, especially the English, but the frigates hung about them,
preventing their escape, until the big ships came down and they were
compelled to strike their flags.
We were cruising about the mouth of the Channel, and, favoured by fine
weather, had taken many prizes, when a south-westerly wind sprang up,
and soon increased to a heavy gale, harder than any we had yet
encountered.
The dark leaden seas came rolling up from the Atlantic, crested with
foam, which flew in masses across our decks. The sky, covered with
black clouds, sent forth vivid flashes of lightning, whilst peals of
rattling thunder vied with the loud howling of the blast through the
rigging, the creaking of blocks and bulkheads, and the dashing of the
waves against the bows and sides. Now the wind blew from one quarter,
now from another, and prevented our running for Kinsale, the only
harbour in which we could have found a secure refuge.
We could see the rest of the fleet tumbling and tossing about under
close-reefed canvas, scattered far and wide, some in one direction, some
in another. Thus the night closed down upon us. We had to keep a
watchful eye on every side, for should we run foul of another ship under
such circumstances, the destruction of both would be inevitable.
The next day and the greater part of the following night the storm raged
with as much fury as ever. Fearful of being driven on the Scilly Isles,
or the southern coast of England, our captain endeavoured to keep a good
offing, though we thereby lost sight of the rest of the fleet. About
the middle of the next night the storm began to abate, and when morning
came we found ourselves enveloped in a thick fog, while the ocean,
though still heaving in slow undulations, gradually assumed a glass-like
surface of leaden hue.
We, having borne up, stood to the northward in search of the squadron.
The captain ordered a bright look-out to be kept.
"Marry! a bright look-out. We must have eyes of a different nature to
most men to pierce through this dense mist," quoth Martin, laughing.
Still, such a look-out as was possible was kept, the captain hoping ere
long to see one of the Prince's vessels, and to learn from her where the
rest were to be found. At length, about noon, the sun made an effort to
burst through the thick veil which shrouded us. Soon afterwards the
mist lifted for an instant ahead, and during that instant I saw what
appeared to me the hull of a ship, the canvas just rising above it; but
it was only a glimpse, and it needed a sharp pair of eyes to discern any
object a few fathoms off. I pointed her out to Lancelot, but he was
doubtful whether I had actually seen a vessel, and no one else appeared
to have observed her. The frigate therefore stood on, and unless the
stranger which I supposed I had seen was sailing at equal speed, we must
have passed her to leeward. Presently the wind blowing stronger, the
fog once more lifted, and the sun bursting through, it fell on the white
canvas of a tall ship close aboard us to windward.
Putting up her helm, she came nearer, when the captain hailed through
his trumpet, supposing her to be one of Prince Rupert's squadron. The
answer was not heard, but the question, "What ship is that?" came down
clearly to us.
"The _Charles_," answered the captain, again putting the same question.
Scarcely had he spoken than we heard the words, "Strike to the
Parliament ship, _Constant Warwick_!" and, the mist clearing still more,
we saw flying from her peak a white flag with a red-cross.
"We are caught in a trap, and must fight to get out of it," exclaimed
the captain, ordering the drums to beat to quarters.
The men rushed to the guns, which they were well accustomed to handle;
but before they could cast off the lashings and run them out, a
broadside from the _Constant Warwick_ came crashing into us, several of
the crew being struck to the deck to rise no more. With scant ceremony
their shipmates hove the bodies overboard, while the gunners, running
out their pieces, returned with interest the fire of the other frigate.
I prayed that neither my friends nor I might be killed or wounded,
though we ran as great a risk as the rest. I felt thankful when we were
all three ordered down to the magazine to bring up powder, for below the
risk of being hit was less, though neither of us felt any cowardly
fears.
Having brought up the powder, we were ordered to sit on the tubs until
it was wanted. We could thus see what was going forward, though we
would far rather, I must confess, have been below. Captain Blackleach,
a brave fellow, to give him his due, seemed in no way inclined to strike
while he had a chance of getting off. The _Constant Warwick's_
fore-yard was soon shot away, and her main topmast shortly afterwards
fell, on which our corsair crew cheered lustily, and with redoubled
vigour plied their guns. I looked round to see how it was faring with
my friends, Dick and Lancelot. They were seated on their tubs, Dick
making himself as small as possible, so as to have less chance of being
hit. A short way off stood Martin Shobbrok among the sail trimmers.
Just then two of the gunners fell, their heads shot off, and their
brains scattered over the deck. The captain, seeing what had occurred,
shouted to Martin and another man to take their places. Martin stood
with his arms folded, as if he did not hear the order. The captain
again shouted to him.
"I'll do a seaman's duty, but will not fight against those who have
justice and right on their side," answered Martin.
"Mutiny! mutiny!" shouted the captain. "Suffer the fate of a mutineer!"
and, drawing a pistol from his belt he fired.
I expected to see my old friend fall, but the bullet merely grazed one
of his grey whiskers; and, fixing his eye on the captain, he answered--
"The Lord forgive thee, and be thankful thou hast not murdered an old
man who is acting as his conscience bids him."
The captain, unmoved by this rebuke, was about to draw another pistol.
"I must save Martin, even at the hazard of my own life," I exclaimed,
and was about to spring aft to strike up the pistol when the cry arose--
"Another enemy close aboard us!"
Looking round, I saw, looming large through the fog, the wide-spread
canvas of a tall ship coming up on our quarter.