The night and early morning passed quietly. The chatter of many
voices showed that a portion, at any rate, of the assailants were
beyond the stockade; but it was not until nine o'clock that
numerous parties were seen coming from the forest.
"I suppose they have been making ladders all night," Harry said to
Abdool, who was with him on the wall; from which, owing to the fact
that the house stood on a rising knoll of ground, which commanded a
good view over the stockade, the assailants could be seen.
"Well, I have no doubt we shall be able to beat them off. We have
as many men as we want for the circuit of the walls and, while we
shall be partly sheltered, they will have to advance in the open."
The Malays had, indeed, been busy since daybreak in manufacturing
arrows from thin reeds and bamboos, used in the construction of the
huts demolished on the previous evening; tipping them with chips of
stone and winging them with feathers, of which plenty were found in
the houses and scattered about the yard. All felt that this would
be the decisive attack; and that the enemy, after one more repulse,
would draw off. That the repulse would be given, all felt
confident. Already the slaughter of their assailants had been very
great, while very few of their own number had fallen.
An hour later, large parties of the enemy advanced to the stockade.
This they did unmolested, as the distance was too great for
anything like certainty of aim. The rajah again took his place by
Harry's side. Presently, at the sound of a horn, a great flight of
arrows rose high in the air from behind the stockade.
"They are fire arrows!" the rajah exclaimed. "I will send a hundred
men down, to help the women to extinguish them;" and he himself
descended, an officer following, with the men.
The women were all seated close to the platforms and, as the arrows
came raining down, they ran out; being joined by the rajah and his
men. Had the leafy roofs remained in their place, the whole would
have been in a blaze in two or three minutes. As it was, the vast
proportion of the arrows stuck in the earth, and burnt themselves
out; while the few that fell among the debris that had not been
cleared away were extinguished, immediately. For two or three
minutes the showers of arrows continued; and then ceased as, to the
surprise of the assailants, there were no indications of the palace
being on fire.
Then the signal was given for the attack and, exasperated by the
failure of the plan they had relied upon as being certain to cause
a panic, the Malays, with loud shouts, rushed forward. A large
number of them carried ladders and, in spite of the many who fell
under the arrows of the defenders, the ladders were soon planted
against the walls; and the Malays swarmed up on all sides.
A desperate struggle took place. Some of the ladders were high
enough to project above the wall. These, with the men upon them,
were thrown back. On others the Malays, as they climbed up, were
met by the spears of the defenders or, as their heads rose above
the walls, with the deadly kris. Their leaders moved about among
the throng below, urging the men forward; and Harry, seeing that
things were going on well, all round, took the guns from the hands
of the soldier who attended him, and directed his aim against
these.
Three fell to his first shots. As the soldier handed them to him,
reloaded, his eye caught a group of chiefs, behind whom stood what
was evidently a picked body of men. In the midst of the group was
the rajah to whom Harry had recently been a prisoner. With a
feeling of deep satisfaction, that his hand should avenge the
murder of his four troopers, Harry levelled his gun between two of
the defenders of the wall, took a steady aim, and fired.
[Illustration: Without a cry, the rajah fell back, shot through the]
head.
As the chief was but some twenty-five yards away, there was little
fear of his missing and, without a cry, the rajah fell back, shot
through the head. A yell of consternation rose from those around
him. Two more shots then rang out, and two more chiefs fell.
The others shouted to their men, and a furious rush forward was
made. Harry snatched up a spear, lying by the side of a native who
had fallen; shouted to the rajah's guard of twenty men--who were in
the yard below, as a reserve in case the enemy gained a footing at
any point of the wall--to come up, and then joined in the fight.
The assailants fought with such fury that, for a time, the issue
was doubtful. Several times, three or four succeeded in throwing
themselves over the wall; but only to be cut down, before they
could be joined by others. At last the Malays drew off, amid the
exultant shouts of the defenders.
In a short time, the attack became more feeble at all points. The
news of the death of their leader had doubtless spread, and its
effect was aided by several other chiefs falling under Harry's fire
and, ere long, not one of their followers remained inside the
palisade. Half an hour later, the lookout from the top of the
rajah's house shouted that the whole of the assailants were
retiring, in a body, towards the forest.
Excited by their victory, the rajah's troops would have sallied out
in pursuit; but Harry dissuaded him from permitting it.
"They must have lost, altogether, over a thousand of their men; but
they are still vastly more numerous than your people, and nothing
would suit them better than that you should follow them, and give
them a chance of avenging the loss they have suffered."
"But the rajah will come again. He will never remain quiet, under
the disgrace."
"He will trouble you no more," Harry said. "I shot him myself, and
six or seven of his principal chiefs."
"You are indeed my friend!" the rajah exclaimed, earnestly, when
the words were translated to him. "Then there is a hope that I may
have peace. The death of the rajah, and of so many of the chiefs
that have joined him, will lead to quarrels and disputes; and the
confederacy formed against me will break up and, while fighting
among themselves, they will not think of attacking, again, a place
that has proved so fatal to them."
The rajah had some difficulty in allaying the enthusiasm of his
men; but he repeated what Harry had said to him, and added that,
since it was entirely due to their white guest that they had
repulsed the attack, there could be no doubt that his advice must
now be attended to, since he had shown himself a master in war.
"Be content," he said. "Wherever our language is spoken, the Malays
will tell the story of how three thousand men were defeated by five
hundred; and it will be said that the men of Johore surpassed, in
bravery, everything that has been told of the deeds of their
fathers. There is no fear of the enemy returning here. The rajah
and many of his chiefs have fallen, by the hand of our white
friend. Henceforth, for many years, you will be able to rest in
peace.
"In a month you will have rebuilt the houses, and sown again the
fields that have been burnt. After that, we shall have leisure, and
a treble stockade shall be built, stronger and firmer than that
into which they forced an entry. Your first task must be to carry
the bodies of our enemies far out beyond the town, where their
skeletons will act as a warning as to what welcome Johore gives to
its foes. A present of money will be given to each man, this
afternoon, to help him to rebuild his house, and make good the
damages that he has suffered."
The interpreter had rapidly translated the speech to Harry as it
went on and, as the rajah ended, and the applause that greeted him
subsided, Harry said a few words to the interpreter, which he
repeated to the rajah. The latter held up his hand, to show that he
had more to say.
"My white friend warns me that, for a day or two, we must not leave
the town. It may be that the enemy have halted near the edge of the
forest, in the hope of taking us unawares. This, however, can only
be for a day or two, at most; for I have no doubt that the
provisions they brought with them are, by now, exhausted and, if
they stop in the forest, they will perish from hunger; therefore
let no one go beyond the town, for two days. A watch shall be kept
on the roof of my house and, if any of the enemy make their
appearance in the forest, a horn will summon all to retire within
the walls."
There was feasting that night at the rajah's house. All his
officers and men of importance were present. Sacks of rice and
other grain were distributed among the soldiers and women; some
buffaloes that had been driven inside the wall to serve as food,
should the siege prove a long one, were also killed and cut up; and
very large jars, containing the fermented juice of the pineapple,
and other fruits, were served out.
During the day the breaches in the palisades had all been repaired
and, at night, the whole population were told to remain within its
shelter, while numerous guards were posted by the rajah. While the
meal at the rajah's was going on, a party of native musicians
played and sang, the Malays being very fond of music.
Harry sat at the rajah's right hand, and was the subject of
unbounded praise and admiration among the company. Speaker after
speaker rose and addressed him and, afterwards, the interpreter
said a few words to them in his name, thanking them for the
goodwill they had shown, and praising them highly, not only for
their bravery, but especially for the manner in which they had
carried out the orders given to them. The proceedings did not
terminate until a very late hour, and Harry was heartily glad when
at last he could retire to rest.
In the morning, the rajah said to him:
"Now, my friend, you have not told me why you have come here. We
have been so busy that we have not spoken on other subjects, save
the war. The message you sent up to me was that you came from the
great white lord of Calcutta, and desired to see me. You may be
sure that whatever you desire of me shall be granted for, were it
not for your coming, I should now be a hunted fugitive, and my
people slain."
"It is not much that I desire, Rajah. The tumangong is willing to
grant to us a trading station, on the island of Singapore and,
possibly, we may acquire from him the whole island; but we are
aware that he is not the rightful lord of the island, and it may be
that, in time, you may recover possession of all Johore. Thus,
then, I come to you to ask you if you are willing to consent to
this privilege being granted to us; which assuredly will benefit
your kingdom by providing a market, close to you, at which you can
barter your produce for goods that you require, with us or with
native traders from the east. At present, we are not in a position
to plant this trading station in Singapore, being engaged in
serious wars in India; and it may be a considerable time before
things have so settled down that we can do so. I have, therefore,
only to ask your assent to our arrangement with the tumangong,
whenever it can be carried out; and we shall certainly be willing
to recognize your authority, by a gift of money."
"I willingly consent," the rajah said; "it is, indeed, but a small
thing. So long as I live, I shall be ready to enter into any treaty
with you; and doubtless my successor, whoever he may be, knowing
what you have done for us and our state, will also agree."
[It was not, indeed, until the year 1819 that the British took
possession of the island, paying sixty thousand dollars to the
tumangong. Shortly after they had settled there the young prince,
who had escaped from Johore, came down there. He was awarded a
pension and, at the death of the rajah, was placed on the throne by
the British, to the general satisfaction of the inhabitants.]
The next day, a number of men came in from villages scattered among
the hills, who had not heard of the approach of the enemy until too
late to enter the town, and take part in its defence. By this time,
scouts had penetrated far into the forest, and brought back news
that, although there were many dead there, there were no signs of
the enemy. The work, therefore, of rebuilding the town was
commenced; every available man of the garrison, and those who had
come in, being engaged in cutting wood and bringing it in.
In the course of the next day or two several chiefs, whose attitude
had before been threatening, came or sent members of their families
to congratulate the rajah upon the defeat that he had inflicted
upon his enemies, and to assure him of their loyalty to his rule.
Harry had stayed on, at the earnest request of the rajah; but he
now declared that he must return to the coast. The rajah's approval
of the cession of a trading port, and of the island itself, was
written both in the Malay and the English languages, and signed by
the chief. Copies were also made and signed, by Harry, to be kept
in the palace, in order that on any future occasion they could be
consulted.
A great number of presents, of krises and other articles of Malayan
manufacture, were offered to Harry; but he excused himself from
accepting them, saying that, in the first place, it was not
customary for commissioners of the Governor to accept presents; and
in the second that, being constantly employed on service, he had no
place where these could be deposited, during his long absences.
On the third morning after the retreat of the enemy Harry started,
with his two companions, for the coast; attended by an escort of
twenty men of the rajah's own guard, commanded by a high officer.
There was now no fear of molestation, but the escort was sent as a
mark of honour. Starting early, they reached the coast town in the
afternoon.
They were received with great joy by the inhabitants, who had been
in a state of abject terror. A runner, who was the bearer of a
message to the rajah from the headman, had left on the morning
after Harry's party had started; and had returned with the news
that he had found the headless bodies of all the escort, but had
seen no traces of the white man nor his followers, who had
doubtless all been carried off by the enemy. The news caused
terrible consternation, as it was thought that the town might be
attacked, at any moment. Those of the inhabitants who possessed
canoes, took to them and paddled away down the coast. The others
fled to the mountains.
Finding, however, from scouts who had been left, that four days had
passed without the appearance of the enemy, most of them had
returned, on the evening before Harry arrived there. On hearing,
from his escort, of the defeat of the invaders and their enormous
loss, the most lively joy was manifested; and Harry was treated
with almost reverential respect, the men of the escort agreeing
that it was solely due to him that the victory had been gained. He
made, however, but a very short stay in the village; and the
headman at once ordered the largest canoe to be prepared. This was
decorated with flowers and flags and manned by twenty rowers who,
as soon as Harry and his two companions took their seats in it,
rowed off to the brig.
"Welcome back, Lindsay!" Fairclough shouted, as the canoe
approached; "we could hardly believe our eyes, when we saw you come
down to the canoe. We have been in a terrible fright about you. The
natives brought off news that the escort that had been sent down to
take you to Johore were, every one, killed; and that, as there were
no signs of any of your party, it was certain that you had been
carried off. We sent a boat ashore, every morning, armed to the
teeth; but they reported that the place was almost entirely
deserted, and the two or three men left there said that no news,
whatever, had been received of you."
By this time, Harry had gained the deck.
"Where is your escort?" Fairclough asked.
"I am sorry to say that they were all murdered. However, my story
is a long one and, although the rajah sent down some food with the
escort he gave me, I am desperately thirsty, and will tell you all
that happened when I have wetted my whistle."
Fairclough told Hardy to come with them below, and Harry's story
was told in full, over sundry cups of tea, which Harry preferred to
stronger beverages.
"That was an adventure, indeed," Fairclough said, when Harry had
brought his story to an end. "I would have given anything to have
been with you in that siege. I own I should not have cared about
being a prisoner in that fellow's camp, especially as you were
disarmed, and could not even make a fight for it. That affair with
the leopard would have been more to my taste; though, if I had been
in your place, with nothing but your knife and Abdool's, I doubt
whether I should have come out of it as well as you did; but the
other business was splendid, and those Malays of the rajah's must
have fought well, indeed, to beat off a force six times their own
strength."
"The great point is that I have obtained his ratification of the
tumangong's grant, whenever it may be made."
"That is satisfactory, of course; but it would not have, to my
mind, anything like the importance of your series of adventures,
which will be something to think over all your life. I wish I had
been there, with my crew, to have backed you up; though I am afraid
that most of them would have shared the fate of your Malay escort,
in that sudden attack in the forest."
"Yes; with all their pluck, they could scarcely have repulsed such
a sudden onslaught though, certainly, the killing would not all
have been on one side. I am glad, indeed, that Abdool also came
safely out of it; as I should have missed him, fearfully.
"The interpreter showed himself a good man, and I hope that Lord
Mornington will, when I report his conduct, make him a handsome
present. If he had not got away with me, it is hardly likely I
should ever have found my way to Johore and, if I had done so, I
could not have explained to the rajah that he was going to be
attacked, or have got him to erect the stockade that was the main
cause of our success. In fact, he would probably, in his anger at
the slaughter of his escort, have ordered me to be executed on the
spot. As it was, he did not take either that, or the loss of his
presents, greatly to heart."
"You saved his kingdom for him, there is no doubt. It is not likely
that he would ever have ventured to defend himself, had it not been
for the confidence that he felt in you, and in the steps you took."
"No; he told me, himself, that he would have taken flight at once
and, in that case, his kingdom would have been lost; and he
himself, sooner or later, hunted down."
"And now, I suppose we can start as soon as we like?"
"Certainly; the sooner the better. I shall be very glad to be back
again, for there is no saying what is going on there. Assuredly,
the friendship of the Mahrattas cannot be relied upon. I know that
we are not likely to make any fresh move, except in self defence,
until Mysore is completely pacified, and a firm government
established. Still, there is never any saying what will happen.
Having been in the thick of the Mahratta business, all along, I
should not like to be out of it, now."
"Well, we will get up anchor at daybreak, tomorrow."
All on board were glad, when the news that they were to sail for
Calcutta, the next morning, was circulated through the ship. To the
crew, the voyage had been a monotonous one; the weather having been
uniformly fine, since they started; and they had had no adventures,
such as they had hoped for, with hostile natives.
Nothing was talked of that night, between decks, but Harry's story;
which had been told by Lieutenant Hardy to the midshipmen, who had
retailed it to the petty officers, and it had rapidly spread.
Abdool and the interpreter were made as much of as was possible,
considering that neither could understand English; and deep were
the expressions of regret that none of the sailors had taken part
in so tough a fight.
By the time the sun was up, next morning, the vessel was under
weigh and, with light breezes, sailed round Singapore, and then
headed northwest. The winds, as before, were light and, as the
northeast monsoon was still blowing, the rate of progress was slow.
"I wish we could have got into the Hooghly," Fairclough said, as he
walked impatiently up and down the quarterdeck, "before the monsoon
broke; but I don't see much chance of it. It generally changes
about the middle of April, and we are well on in the first week,
now. At the rate at which we are sailing, we shall take at least
three weeks before we get there. You see, we are only just clear of
the northern point of Sumatra; and it is already a month since we
got up anchor."
"But we shall have the wind almost behind us, Fairclough."
"Yes, when it has settled down. It is the change that I do not
like. Of course, sometimes we have only a few days of moderately
rough weather; but occasionally there is a hurricane at the break
up, and a hurricane in the bay of Bengal is no joke. I shall not
mind, much, if we get fairly past the Andamans; for from there to
the mouth of the Hooghly it is open water, and I should be under no
uneasiness as to the brig battling her way through it; but to be
caught in a hurricane, with these patches of islands and rocks in
the neighbourhood would, to say the least, be awkward."
"Are there any ports among the islands? I recollect hearing an
officer say that there was a settlement made there, some years
ago."
"That was so. In 1791 an establishment was started in the southern
part of the island and, two years later, it was moved to a harbour
on the northwest side of the bay. It was called Port Cornwallis;
but was abandoned in 1796, being found terribly unhealthy. It was a
pity, for it afforded good shelter when the northeast monsoon was
blowing, and partially so from the southwest monsoon. No doubt it
could have been made more healthy, if the country round had been
well cleared; but it was not found to be of sufficient utility to
warrant a large outlay, and the natives are so bitterly unfriendly
that it would require a garrison of two or three hundred men to
overawe them. We should have been always losing life--not from open
attacks, perhaps, but from their habit of crawling up, and shooting
men down with their arrows."
A week later, they were some seventy or eighty miles to the west of
the Andaman group. Directly the brig weathered the northernmost
point of Sumatra, the course had been laid more to the west, so as
to avoid the dangerous inside passage. When Harry went on deck, in
the morning, he found that the wind had dropped altogether.
"There is an end of the monsoon," Fairclough said. "I am just going
to shorten sail. There is no saying which way the wind will come.
The glass is falling fast but, of course, that is only to be
expected. I think, if you are wise, after breakfast you will take
off that drill suit, and get into something better calculated to
stand rough weather; for that we are sure to have, and any amount
of rain. That is always the case, at the changes of the monsoon.
"You see, it is a sort of battle between the two winds; the
southwesterly will gain, in the end, but the other will die hard;
and it is this struggle that causes the circular storms which, when
they are serious, are called hurricanes, though at ordinary times
they are simply called the break up of the monsoon, which generally
causes bad weather all over the Indian Ocean."
Towards evening, low banks of cloud were seen to the south, and the
sky looked dim and misty in the opposite direction.
"They are mustering their forces, you see, Lindsay; and the glass
has fallen so far that I fancy the fight will be a hot one. At any
rate, we will make all snug for the night."
Sail after sail was taken in, until only a storm jib, a small fore
stay-sail, and a close-reefed main top-sail were left standing. The
bank of cloud to the south had risen considerably and, when
darkness closed in, the upper edge was lit up by the almost
incessant flicker of lightning. The upper spars were sent down on
deck and then, there being nothing more to be done, the crew, who
had all donned rough-weather clothes, awaited the outburst.
That it would be more than ordinarily severe there could be no
doubt, and the men, clustered in little groups by the bulwarks,
talked in low tones as they watched the slowly-approaching storm
from the south; with occasional glances northwards, where indeed no
clouds could be seen, but the sky was frequently lit up by the
reflections of lightning below the horizon.
"What do you think of it?" Harry asked the interpreter.
"I do not like it," the Malay replied. "I think that there will be
a great hurricane. I have seen many changes of the monsoon, but
never one that looked so threatening as this."
"It does look bad," Harry said, "though, as I have never been at
sea before, at the change of the monsoon, I am no judge at all; but
it certainly looks as if we were in for a bad gale. At any rate, we
shall be safer, here, than we were in that hut in the mountains."
The Malay made no reply, for some time. Then he said:
"Yes, sahib, but there was something to do, there. Directly we got
in, you began to prepare for an escape. It was not certain that we
should succeed. They might have come in and killed us, before you
were ready but, as we were busy, we had not much time to think of
the danger.
"Here we can do nothing."
"No. But, as you see, everything has already been done. You and I
have not been working, but the sailors have been busy in taking off
sail, and getting down all the upper spars. We are ready for the
worst, now; just as we were when we had opened the passage for our
escape, and we felt fairly confident--although we might meet with
many dangers, we had a good chance of getting safely away."
"There are the danger signals, Lindsay," the captain said, as a
pale light suddenly shone out above.
Looking up, Harry saw a ball of fire on the main-mast head.
Presently, this seemed to roll down the mast, till it reached the
top-sail yard; then it broke into two, and these rolled out until
they remained stationary, one at each end of the yard. Harry had
never seen this phenomenon before.
"What is it?" he asked Fairclough, in an awed voice.
"They are often seen, before the outburst of a severe tempest. Of
course, they look like balls of phosphorus; but in reality they are
electric, and are a sign that the whole atmosphere is charged with
electricity. Sailors have all sorts of superstitions about them
but, of course, excepting that they are signs of the condition of
the air, they are perfectly harmless."
He raised his voice.
"Don't stand near the foot of the masts, lads; keep well away from
them. There is nothing to be afraid of, in those lights; but if we
happened to be struck by lightning and it ran down the mast, some
of you might be knocked over.
"I don't know why," he continued, to Harry, "the first flash of
lightning at the beginning of a storm is always the most dangerous.
I can't account for it, in any way, but there is no question as to
the fact. I always feel relieved when the first clap of thunder is
over; for I know, then, that we are comparatively safe from danger,
in that way."
Gradually the stars disappeared.
"Mr. Hardy," the captain said to the lieutenant, who was standing
near, "will you go down to my cabin, and see how the glass stands?"
Harry did not hear the answer, when Hardy returned, but Fairclough
said to him:
"It has gone down another quarter of an inch since I looked at it,
half an hour ago; and it was as low, then, as I have ever seen it.
"Mr. Hardy, you had better send the men aloft, and furl the main
top-sail, altogether; and run down the fore stay-sail. We can get
it up again, as soon as the first burst is over. Put four men at
the wheel."
There was still no breath of wind stirring. The stay sail was run
down, but the men hung back from ascending the shrouds of the main
mast.
"They are afraid of those lights," Fairclough said, "but I do not
think there is the slightest danger from them."
"I will go up, myself, sir," Hardy said; and he ran up the
starboard shrouds while, at the same moment, one of the midshipmen
led the way on the port side. The sailors at once followed their
officers.
The latter had nearly reached the yard, when the two balls of fire
began to roll along it, joined in the centre, and then slowly
ascended the topmast. The fireballs paused there for half a minute,
and then vanished.
"Now, Eden," the lieutenant said, "let us get the work done, at
once, before that fellow makes his appearance again."
The men followed them out on the yard, and worked in desperate
haste, with occasional glances up at the mast head. In a couple of
minutes the sail was firmly secured in its gaskets, and all made
their way below.
"Thank goodness, here it comes, at last," Fairclough said; "the
suspense is more trying than the gale itself."
A low murmur was heard, and a faint pale light was soon visible to
the south.
"Get ready to hold on, all!" he shouted to the men.
The sound momentarily increased in volume, and the distant light
brightened until a long line of white foam was clearly discernible.
It approached with extraordinary speed. There was a sudden puff of
air. It lasted but a few seconds, and then died away.
"Hold on!" the captain again shouted.
Half a minute later, with a tremendous roar, the wind struck the
brig. Knowing which way it would come, Fairclough had, half an hour
before, lowered a boat and brought the vessel's head round, so that
it pointed north. The boat had then been hoisted up.
In the interval of waiting, the ship's head had slightly drifted
round, again, and the wind struck her on the quarter. So great was
the pressure that she heeled far over, burying her bows so deeply
that it seemed as if she were going to dive, head foremost. The
water swept over the bulwarks in torrents, and extended almost up
to the foot of the foremast. Then, very slowly, as she gathered
way, the bow lifted and, in a minute, she was scudding fast before
the gale; gathering speed, every moment, from the pressure of the
wind upon her masts and hull, and from the fragment of sail shown
forward. At present there were no waves, the surface of the water
seeming pressed almost flat by the weight of the wind.
Then there was a deafening crash, and a blaze of light. The
fore-top mast was riven in fragments, but none of these fell on the
deck, the wind carrying them far ahead.
"You had better make your way forward, Mr. Hardy," Fairclough
shouted, into the lieutenant's ear, "and see if anyone is hurt."
Fortunately the precaution which had been taken, of ordering the
men away from the mast, had prevented any loss of life; but several
of the men were temporarily blinded. Three or four had been struck
to the deck, by the passage of the electric fluid close to them;
but these presently regained their feet. Hardy returned, and
reported to the captain.
"You had better send the carpenter down, to see that there is no
fire below."
In a minute the man ran up, with the news that he believed the foot
of the mast was on fire. Mr. Hardy went to a group of men.
"Get some buckets, my lads," he said quietly, "and make your way
down to the hold. I will go with you. As was to be expected, the
lightning has fired the foot of the mast; but there is no cause for
alarm. As we have discovered it so soon, we shall not be long in
getting it under."
The men at once filled the fire buckets and, led by Mr. Hardy, went
below. As soon as the hatchway leading to the hold was lifted, a
volume of smoke poured up.
"Wait a minute, till it has cleared off a little," the lieutenant
said; and then, to the midshipman who had accompanied him:
"Go to the captain, and tell him that there is more smoke than I
like, and ask him to come below. Tell him I think the pumps had
better be rigged, and the hose passed down."
Fairclough, who was accompanied by Harry, joined him just as he was
about to descend the ladder.
"I will go down with you, Mr. Hardy," he said.
"Mr. Eden, will you go up and send down all hands, except those at
the wheel? Set a strong gang to rig the pumps, and pass the hose
down."
He and the lieutenant then made their way along the hold. The smoke
was very thick, and it was only by stooping low that they could get
along. They could see, however, a glow of light ahead.
"We can do nothing with this," the captain said, "beyond trying to
keep it from spreading, until we have shifted all these stores. The
gang with buckets had better come down, empty them on the pile, and
then set to work to clear the stuff away, as quickly as possible."
The men, who came along gradually and with difficulty, began to
remove the barrels, coils of rope, and spare sails stowed there.
Several of them were overpowered by the smoke, and had to be
carried up again; and others came down and took their places.
In three or four minutes the hose was passed down, and the clank of
the pumps could be heard. Mr. Hardy took the nozzle and while the
men, now a strong party, worked at the stores, directed a stream of
water upon the flames.
For a time, the efforts seemed to make no impression, and the steam
added to the difficulty of working. Another gang of men were set to
work, forward of the mast and, after half an hour's labour, the
stores were so far removed that the hose could be brought to play
upon the burning mass at the foot of the mast.
The lieutenant had been relieved by Harry, and he by the two
midshipmen, in succession. Changes were frequent and, in another
quarter of an hour, it was evident that the flames were well under
control. The men engaged below relieved those at the pumps and, in
an hour from the first outbreak, all danger was over, though
pumping was kept up for some time longer.
The captain made frequent visits to the deck. The vessel was still
running before the wind, and the sea had got up. The motion of the
ship was becoming more and more violent but, as there was nothing
to be done, the men below were not disturbed at their work, and
this was continued until smoke no longer ascended.