I need not detail the incidents that occurred during the remainder of
our run to the African coast. There is not much variety in a journey
upon the sea. A shoal of porpoises,--a whale or two,--some
flying-fish,--a few species of sea-birds,--sharks and dolphins,--are
nearly all the living creatures that are ever seen, even upon the
longest voyages. Most of our course lay due southward, and directly
across the northern tropic, and, of course, the weather was hot nearly
all the time,--so hot that the pitch oozed out from the seams of the
planking, and the soles of our shoes parted with a creaking noise every
step we took over the deck.
We were in sight of several sail,--most of them were Indiamen,--some
outward bound from England, and some on their way home from the East. A
few smaller craft we saw, brigs and a barque or two, and, as they
carried English colours, we concluded they were traders to the Cape, or
Algoa Bay. None of them,--neither these nor the East Indiamen--seemed
desirous of cultivating the _Pandora's_ acquaintance; and all, in
meeting or passing, allowed her a "wide berth." Of course, the slaver
was equally desirous of avoiding them; and, therefore, none of these
vessels were "spoken."
There was one ship, however, that did not appear to shun us. On the
contrary, the moment the _Pandora_ came in sight of her the strange
vessel changed from the course in which she had been steering, and with
all sail set came running towards us. As we were now in the Gulf of
Guinea, and about a hundred miles or so from the Gold-coast, the
probability was that the vessel that had so boldly headed towards us was
a cruiser, and consequently, the very sort of craft that the _Pandora's_
people did not desire to fall in with. Indeed, this point was soon
settled beyond dispute; for the behaviour of the strange vessel, and her
peculiar rig--which was that of a cutter--combined with the fact of so
small a craft sailing boldly towards a barque so large as the _Pandora_,
all went to prove that she was either a war-cruiser in search of
slave-ships, or a pirate,--in either case, a vessel much better manned
and armed than the _Pandora_.
It was hardly probable that the cutter was a pirate; though, had it been
upon a different part of the ocean it would have been probable enough,
for at that time pirates were by no means as scarce as they are at
present. But it was not a favourite locality with pirates. The
merchant-craft that traded along this part of the coast were usually
small vessels with insignificant cargoes, and, when outward bound,
carried only such bulky articles as salt, iron, and rum, with toys and
trinkets; which, though sufficiently attractive to the black savages of
Dahomey and Ashantee, were not the sort of merchandise that pirates
cared to pick up. They were sometimes more richly freighted in their
homeward trip, with gold-dust and elephants' teeth, and pirates could
find a market for these. There were still some of these freebooters
upon the African coast, for there they could find many a secure
rendezvous, but they were never so numerous there as in the West Indies
and elsewhere. Had the cutter been met with at an earlier period--that
is, while we were further out on the Atlantic, and upon the track of the
Cape traders and Indiamen--then the people of the _Pandora_ might have
taken her for a pirate, and very probably would have taken less trouble
to get out of her way--for these gentry were far less afraid of a pirate
than of an honest warship. They knew that the pirates looked upon
traders of their kind as kindred spirits--almost birds of the same
feather; and that, therefore, they would have but little to fear from
their brother outlaws. They knew, moreover, that they had nothing to
lose but a few casks of brandy and rum; the iron, salt, and toys which
formed the remainder of the _Pandora's_ cargo, being goods that a pirate
would not be bothered with. The brandy and rum would be all he would be
likely to rob them of, and of these there were only some half-dozen
puncheons--for I had ascertained that most of the great casks in the
hold were water-butts filled with water, and of course intended to
supply the living cargo on their voyage across the Atlantic.
A pirate, therefore, reasoned the crew of the _Pandora_, would only rob
them of their six puncheons of spirits, and that would be all. Perhaps
he might take a fancy to the fine barque, and insist on pressing some of
them into his service. That would be a misfortune to the owners; but,
as for the crew themselves, I was under the belief that very few of them
would have required "pressing." Most of them would have been willing
enough to take a hand at buccaneering, or any other sort of villainy.
As the cutter drew near, however--for she was drawing near--it became
evident she was no pirate. Indeed, she made no secret of what she was,
for the British flag was run out to her peak, at once proclaiming her a
British vessel of war. It is true a pirate might have used that signal
for a decoy; but, considering the time and place, it was not likely, and
the _Pandora's_ people did not entertain the thought of its being one.
The cutter was a British cruiser beyond doubt. That was their full
belief and conviction.
No flag could have been more unwelcome to the eyes of the slaver's crew
than the one now spread to the breeze from the peak of the cutter's
main-sail. Had it been the Portuguese ensign, or the Spanish, or even
the French, they would have dreaded it less; for, notwithstanding the
promises of these nations to aid in putting a stop to the slave-trade,
it is well-known that they have acted with great lukewarmness in the
matter. Indeed, worse than that--since the governors of their
Transatlantic possessions--even the captains of their ships of war--have
been known, not only to connive at the slave-traffic, but actually to
assist in carrying it on! Had it been a ship of one of these nations
the _Pandora_ would have been less desirous of escaping from her. She
would have been brought-to, perhaps; and after a slight examination--
with a word or two of secret intelligence between her captain and the
commander of the war-vessel--allowed to go about her business; and this
would have ended the affair. But no such an easy _conge_ would be given
by the commandant of a British cutter; for, to the honour of the British
officers be it said, that in all such cases they have performed their
duty, and carried out with energy the designs of their government.
The crew of the barque, therefore, on perceiving that it was in reality
a British cruiser that was in the wake, were put into the greatest
confusion and trouble. I say in the wake, for long since the _Pandora_
had turned stern towards the strange vessel, and was making all sail to
escape.
It was evident that the cutter was a fast sailer, and knew it--else she
would have used more strategy in making her first approach. On the
contrary, she had taken no pains whatever to conceal her character; but,
setting her head right for the _Pandora_, had given chase at once. The
barque had been equally prompt in showing her stern; and for some hours
a regular tail-on-end run was kept up between the two vessels.