"Mr Delamere," said Captain Vavassour, "take a dozen men, and Mr
Gascoigne, and secure possession of that brigantine, if you please.
Stay a moment,"--as, touching my hat, I was about to dive below for my
chest--"you had better have with you Simmons and Henderson, as two out
of your dozen, to take charge of the watches, and take also two extra
hands to bring back the boat. I will remain hove-to until you have
secured your prisoners below--I have not time to tranship them now; and
when you have done that you will be pleased to bear up and join the
convoy. Now, be as quick as you can, young gentleman, for I am anxious
to be off after that merchantman yonder."
"Ay, ay, sir," I answered, touching my hat and turning away to secure my
crew. I first found Simmons, the carpenter's mate, and Henderson, a
quartermaster, and informing them of the Captain's arrangement, desired
them to pick out the best ten men they could lay hands upon, arm them,
and get them into the cutter with their bags and hammocks, and then make
their own preparations,--by which time Gascoigne and I would be ready,--
then I bundled below, found Gascoigne, and set to work to get my own
chest and bedding ready.
Ten minutes later the boat was lowered and at the lee gangway; and in
another ten minutes we were aboard the prize.
We were received at the brigantine's gangway by a most ruffianly-looking
individual, with his left arm in a sling, and his otherwise bare head
bound up in bandages through which the blood was even then oozing. As
he proffered his sheathed sword he introduced himself as Monsieur Jules
Despard, chief mate of the French privateer brigantine _Audacieuse_, of
Dunquerque, mounting sixteen long 18-pounders, and a long 32-pounder on
her forecastle, and originally carrying a crew of one hundred and
fifty-six men, of whom twenty-five were away in the Indiaman that had
vanished in the southern board, while twelve more were aboard one of the
vessels of which the gun-brigs were in chase. "Of the remainder,
monsieur," he said, "there are but fourteen, beside myself, who are fit
for duty. The others, including Captain Le Mesurier, have either been
killed outright or severely wounded in the murder-trap which that
dastardly transport of yours set for us. It was a base, cowardly act of
theirs to permit us to approach them within biscuit-toss, and then shoot
us down like--"
"Do you think it was more cowardly than for so heavily armed and manned
a vessel as this to range up alongside of and attack a perfectly
defenceless craft like the Indiaman which you surprised in the darkness,
monsieur?" demanded I. "But," I continued, "I have no time to argue the
point just now. Henderson,"--to the quartermaster--"just jump below and
see if you can find a spot where the prisoners may be safely confined."
"Ay, ay, sir," answered Henderson, touching his hat, as he turned away
to inspect the forecastle. Our friend, Monsieur Jules Despard, appeared
to understand English quite well, for as soon as Henderson had vanished
he said:
"I presume, monsieur, you have full authority from your captain to
accept the parole of such of us as are willing to give it? For myself,
I--"
"No, monsieur," I answered, "I have received no such authority; on the
contrary, my orders are to confine you all below, for the present at all
events and until an opportunity shall occur to transfer you to the
frigate."
"But, monsieur, that order surely does not apply to the officers of the
ship, as well as the men?" remonstrated the Frenchman. "It is usual to
make a distinction--"
"Pardon me, monsieur," I interrupted, "but you do not appear to
understand. Is this ship a man-o'-war, or is she merely a privateer?
Do you or do you not hold a commission?"
"The ship, of course, is a privateer--a letter-of-marque, as I have
already had the honour to inform you," answered Despard; "therefore--"
"Precisely," I cut in. "Doubtless you recognise the difference. But
whether you do or not matters nothing; my orders are definite and
precise, and it is my duty to carry them out. Should you desire to make
any representation to Captain Vavassour, when the frigate rejoins, I
shall be happy to transmit it to him; but meanwhile--" and I shrugged my
shoulders expressively.
"Very well, Monsieur Enseigne de bateau," he returned, glowering at me
savagely, "if you are determined to inflict upon me the indignity of
confinement, instead of accepting my proffered parole, I cannot help it.
But possibly we may meet again under reversed conditions, and should we
do so you will find that my memory for injuries is a good one." And he
turned and walked forward, wearing a most ferocious scowl, and hissing
execrations between his set teeth.
A minute or two later Henderson returned to the deck with the
intelligence that he had found a fine store-room abaft the fore-peak
which could be cleared out in a few minutes, and which would afford
ample room for such of the prisoners as it would be necessary to put
under restraint. Upon hearing this I went down below with him, leaving
Simmons in charge of the deck, and personally inspected the place, which
appeared to be excellent in every way for the proposed purpose. I,
therefore, gave him orders to take five men and clear the place out
forthwith, after which he was to get the prisoners below and secure
them. And while he was doing this I went aft to the cabin in search of
writing materials wherewith to pen a brief report to Captain Vavassour.
The brigantine was built with a monkey poop, extending from the taffrail
to within about eight feet of her enormous mainmast, and the main cabin,
with the captain's and first and second mates' staterooms, as also the
steward's pantry, lay beneath this. This was a most excellent
arrangement, for otherwise, the vessel being extraordinarily beamy and
very shallow, there would have been scarcely head-room enough abaft in
the ship's run for cabins; whereas the addition of the four-feet height
of poop afforded delightfully lofty and airy cabins for the size of the
vessel. I found, upon going below, that the chief and second mates'
staterooms were situated respectively on the starboard and port sides of
the ship, forward of the foot of the companion ladder, with the
steward's pantry between them, a window in each cabin, pierced through
the front of the poop, affording the occupant an excellent view of
whatever might be happening out on deck.
About three feet abaft the foot of the companion ladder a transverse
bulkhead extended for the entire width of the ship, and in the centre of
this bulkhead was a door which gave access to the cabin. Opening this
door and passing on, I found myself in the main cabin, which was an
exceedingly roomy and pleasant little apartment, of the full width of
the ship, well lighted by a large skylight in the deck above as well as
by half-a-dozen large circular ports in the sides. The furniture
consisted of a handsomely carved sideboard on one side of the door,
balanced by a well-stocked book-case on the other; there were cushioned
lockers running fore and aft along the sides of the ship, and a
beautifully polished mahogany table, draped with a handsome tablecloth,
occupied the centre of the cabin. In one part of the book-case I found
a massive inkstand well supplied with pens, and also an abundant supply
of stationery; I accordingly sat down and penned my report to Captain
Vavassour.
I had but just completed this document when Henderson came down to
acquaint me with the fact that all the prisoners who were in the least
likely to give trouble were securely lodged below; I, therefore, sealed
my report and, taking it on deck, handed it over to one of the two men
who were to take the boat back to the frigate, and dispatched them; and
a few minutes later--the _Europa_ having meanwhile shifted her berth and
hove-to again close to leeward of us--the boat passed under the
frigate's stern and disappeared from our view. Seeing the boat coming,
Mr Galway had manned the tackle-falls in readiness, and a minute later
she was run up to the davits, the boatswain's pipe shrilled out, the
mainyard was swung, and away went the beautiful craft, like a hound
released from the leash, in pursuit of the vanished Indiaman, leaving us
to our own devices.
Now we had time to look about us and note the effects of the
brigantine's disastrous encounter with the transport. Truly these were
terrible enough, in all conscience; for although as soon as the
uninjured portion of the crew had made sail upon the vessel, in their
unavailing effort to escape, they had employed themselves in separating
the wounded from the dead and carrying the former below to the cockpit--
where the ship's surgeon was then busily engaged in attending to their
hurts--there had not been time enough for them to complete their task,
and the slain and wounded still cumbered the decks to such an extent
that when, upon the departure of the frigate, I gave the order to bear
up and stand after the convoy, our lads could scarcely get at the sheets
and braces without trampling some of them under foot. They were
everywhere--between the guns, about the hatchways, and especially on the
forecastle and in the wake of the port fore-rigging, where they had
grouped themselves thickly preparatory to boarding, and where they lay
literally in heaps, while the bulwarks were splashed with blood from end
to end of the ship, and the lee scuppers were still running with it.
She had ranged up on the starboard side of the transport, consequently
the dead and wounded lay thickest on the port side of the brigantine;
but a few of the crew had apparently run round to shelter themselves
under the lee of the longboat--which was stowed on the main hatch--after
receiving the first or second volley, and the closeness and deadly
character of those volleys was borne witness to by the fact that the
boat was literally riddled with bullet-holes, the missiles having
evidently passed through and through her and probably laid low every one
of those that we found on her starboard side. And if further evidence
were needed it was to be found in the fact that the starboard bulwarks--
almost as high and solid as those of a man-o'-war--were pitted with
bullets, "a long way closer together than the raisins in a sailor's
plum-duff," as Henderson caustically remarked.
Our first duty was of course to aid the wounded who had not already been
attended to; therefore, while Simmons and three hands busied themselves
aloft in clearing away the wreck of the fore-topgallant-mast, the
remainder of the prize-crew set about their gruesome task, even
Gascoigne lending a hand, while I took the wheel. But the dead were out
of all proportion to the wounded, as we soon discovered, for when every
individual exhibiting the slightest sign of life had been found and
carried below, it proved that they numbered altogether only thirty-three
out of a total of one hundred and nineteen, which was the ship's
complement when she attempted to capture the transport. Deducting the
fourteen prisoners whom we had confined below, the remainder,
representing the killed, amounted to no less than seventy-two! These
the hard necessities of the case demanded that we should launch
overboard without delay, and this we did, getting rid of the whole of
them before closing with the convoy.
This done, and the wounded all conveyed below, we had time to think of
ourselves, and make arrangements for our own comfort during the coming
night. There was no difficulty about this, Gascoigne and I arranging to
sling our hammocks in the late captain's stateroom, which left the chief
and second mates' staterooms available for Simmons and Henderson. As
for the men, they simply screened off a portion of the mess-deck near
the main hatchway, and slung their hammocks there, the wounded being
accommodated in that portion of the mess-deck forward of the screen.
The ship had no hold, in the usual acceptation of the term; that is to
say, there was no space for the stowage of cargo, she having been built
as a fighting ship pure and simple, the space below the mess-deck being
only comfortably sufficient to accommodate the ballast, water-tanks,
provisions, and stores generally; thus, although so heavily manned,
there was ample room aboard her for the whole of her crew.
The captain's stateroom, wherein Gascoigne and I took up our quarters,
was an exceedingly comfortable apartment--a perfect palace, indeed,
compared with the midshipmen's berth aboard the _Europa_. It was
situated abaft the main cabin; was, like the latter, the full width of
the ship, and measured about twelve feet fore and aft. It was lighted
by windows reaching right athwart the stern, as well as by a small
skylight in the deck above, the combination of the two affording
admirable facilities for ventilation. It was very neatly and
comfortably, though not extravagantly, furnished--a standing bedplace,
with a commodious chest of drawers beneath it, on the starboard side,
being balanced by a book-case with drawers for charts on the port side,
together with a sort of cabinet in which the ship's chronometers and the
captain's sextant were kept. A set of cushioned lockers ran athwart the
after-end of the cabin, between the bedplace and the book-case; there
was a wash-stand and toilet-table at the foot of the bunk, and a table
occupied the centre of the apartment immediately beneath a handsome
shaded lamp which hung, suspended by brass chains, from the skylight.
The deck was comfortably carpeted; the chest of drawers was well-stocked
with clothing; and a few garments, together with an oilskin coat,
leggings, and sou'wester, hung from brass hooks screwed to the fore
bulkhead.
When I went on deck again after a brief sojourn below, I was met at the
head of the companion ladder by Simmons, who, touching his hat, said:
"What about breakfast, Mr Delamere? We've been too busy to think about
it, up to the present; but I believe we can find time to snatch a
mouthful of food and drink now; and the men are beginnin' to ask what's
the latest news from the galley."
"Ay, to be sure," I answered. "I was just wondering what is the matter
with me; but, now that you come to mention it, it means that, like the
men, I want my breakfast. Is the galley fire lighted?"
"Yes, sir," answered Simmons, "and the coppers full of cocoa. But we
don't know where to find the eatables; and Henderson an' I have been
thinkin' that it wouldn't be a bad plan to have the ship's cook and
steward up from below and make 'em work for their livin'."
"Certainly," I agreed; "have them up at once, Simmons, by all means, and
tell them--No, they will probably not understand you; send them aft to
me, and I will tell them what I want done."
A few minutes later the two Frenchmen were brought up on deck to me, and
I explained to them that I wanted them to exercise their usual
functions,--at which they seemed highly pleased; and small wonder,
either, for it was certainly more pleasant to work and be free, than to
be cooped up below in idleness. Half-an-hour later we piped to a
somewhat belated breakfast, and a very excellent one it was, too--far
better than what we had been accustomed to aboard the frigate; and we
came to the unanimous conclusion that in whatever other respect the
French might be ignorant, they at least understood the art of living
well.
Breakfast over, Simmons went to work and routed out a spare
fore-topgallant-mast, which he prepared for sending aloft, while the
rest of the watch were busy clearing away the wreck forward; and by the
time that the new spar was ready for swaying aloft we had overtaken the
rest of the convoy, when the commodore sent away a boat, with the first
lieutenant of the _Colossus_ in her, to receive my report. This I wrote
out and handed to him, retaining a copy to be handed to Captain
Vavassour; and after a little chat together our visitor instructed me to
retain command of the prize until the return of the _Europa_, and
meanwhile to take the place of that ship to assist in the protection of
the convoy. He also informed me that during our absence the _Astarte_
had captured the ship privateer that had been so busy on the outskirts
of the convoy a few hours before, while the boats of the _Colossus_ and
the _Astarte_ had recaptured no less than five merchantmen that had been
taken possession of by the marauders. As for the _Hebe_ and the
_Naiad_, they had vanished in the northern board, and as yet there were
no signs of their return.
Two days later we arrived at Carlisle Bay, Barbadoes, the _Europa_
overtaking us in the offing, in company with the recaptured merchantman
of which she had gone in pursuit; while on the evening of the same day
the two gun-brigs also arrived, bringing in with them the five vessels
which they had started to recapture; thus the little squadron of
privateers which had waylaid us, and had made such a bold bid for booty,
not only gained nothing but lost their own ships as well, together with
a good many lives. But the heaviest loss of all was that sustained by
the unfortunate _Audacieuse_ in her blundering attack upon the
transport; for in addition to the seventy-two killed which we found on
board her when we took possession, nine more had died of their wounds
before we anchored in Carlisle Bay. The remaining twenty-four wounded,
together with those who had been hurt on board the other prizes, were
taken ashore and lodged in the hospital at Bridgetown, while the whole
of the prisoners were transferred to the _Colossus_. Gascoigne and I
fully expected that we should now be ordered to rejoin the _Europa_, but
instead of this, to our great delight, we were ordered to remain on
board, our crew being increased to twenty-six--that being as many as
Captain Vavassour could possibly spare us.
We remained in Carlisle Bay just twenty-four hours; which period we
utilised by refilling our water-tanks, laying in a bountiful stock of
fruit, vegetables, and poultry, together with as much fresh meat as we
believed we could possibly consume before it went bad; and then, leaving
in the bay such ships as were bound for Barbadoes, we sailed again for
the various islands to which our charges were bound, leaving some at
every halting-place, until in the fulness of time we arrived at Port
Royal, and the thirty sail or so that remained under our protection were
safely moored in Kingston harbour.
We remained at anchor in Port Royal harbour a full week, during which
the first lieutenant was more than generous to me in the matter of
leave, whereby I was enabled to twice dine and spend the night at the
Admiral's Pen, meeting there and making the acquaintance of several
military officers from Up Park Camp as well as a number of exceedingly
jovial, hearty, hospitable civilians--planters, merchants, and so on,
from Kingston and the surrounding neighbourhood. This was my first
experience of the West Indies, and after the glorious scenery of the
island and the marvellous luxuriance, beauty, and strangeness of the
tropical vegetation which everywhere clothed it, I think that what
impressed me most was the amazing hospitality of its inhabitants, who
positively seemed to vie with each other in their efforts to show us
kindness. Did any of us want the loan of a horse or vehicle to make an
excursion into the country, we had but to hint at our requirements and
we might take our choice of a dozen which were instantly placed at our
service; while invitations to dine and spend the night or longer, to
join picnics and shooting parties, were literally showered upon us in
such abundance that it would have needed at least six months' leave to
have enabled me to avail myself of them all. Thus, in addition to the
two nights I spent under the Admiral's hospitable roof, I passed one
night--and might have passed many more--at Up Park Camp, and three whole
days and nights visiting sugar plantations at Saint Thomas-in-the-Vale
in the centre of the island. Then came our orders to sail, and I was
obliged to bid a regretful farewell to my many kind friends; not,
however, until they had extorted from me more promises than I could ever
hope to fulfil that I would visit them and make a long stay when next I
found myself in the island.
Our orders were to cruise in the Caribbean generally, and among the
Lesser Antilles, for the protection of our own commerce and the
destruction of that of the enemy; and during the succeeding six months
we performed this duty, varied by occasional brief visits to Port Royal
and Barbadoes, making a few unimportant captures, but meeting with no
adventures worth recording. It was through one of these captures that
we first got news of the surrender of the island of Trinidad (on the
17th of February 1797) to the combined naval and military forces under
Rear-Admiral John Harvey and Lieutenant-General Sir Ralph Abercromby.
It was some six weeks after the occurrence of the above event that,
while cruising off Cape Gallinas, on the Costa Firme, with our head to
the westward, we found ourselves so nearly becalmed that it became
necessary for us to set all our flying kites in order to retain
steerage-way. The night fell intensely dark, for the moon, well
advanced toward her third quarter, rose late, while the sky had
gradually become overcast, great masses of heavy cloud having worked up
against the wind, threatening one of those violent thunderstorms which
are so frequent in this particular part of the world.
The storm gathered slowly, and when I put in an appearance on deck to
stand my watch, at eight bells of the second dog-watch, it had not yet
broken, although an occasional faint flicker of sheet-lightning, away to
the eastward, warned us that we might expect it to do so within the next
hour or so. At the moment of my appearance on deck, however, there was
no very immediate prospect of an outbreak, for the wind although light
was steady, and the frigate, close-hauled on the port tack, was creeping
along at the rate of about three knots per hour, while the gleams of
sheet-lightning were exceedingly faint and infrequent, occurring at
about ten-minutes' intervals. Very gradually the brilliancy of the
flashes, as well as their frequency and duration, increased, until, by
two bells, the glimmer of some of them endured for perhaps as long as
three seconds, during which the entire sky, with its enormous, fantastic
cloud-shapes, from horizon to zenith, was lit up with a faint sulphurous
blue glare, strongly suggestive of the idea that we were afloat in the
heart of an enormous cavern, momentarily illuminated by the burning of a
port-fire.
It was during the flickering of one of these somewhat prolonged gleams
that the lookout on the forecastle-head reported:
"A small sail, three points on the weather-bow, headin' to the east'ard,
close under the land."
Mr Galway at once sprang up on the poop, and I followed, both of us
intently staring in the direction indicated by the lookout; but the
transient gleam had by this time flickered itself out, and we might as
well have been staring at a vast curtain of black velvet, for all that
we could see. However, by patiently waiting, and persistently staring
in the proper direction until the next flash came, we at length
contrived to get a momentary glimpse of her, a dozen voices at least
exclaiming at the same instant:
"There she is!"
"Did you see her, Mr Delamere?" demanded the first luff, as the
darkness again enwrapped us.
"Yes, sir," I answered. "I caught a momentary glimpse of her."
"And what did you make her out to be?" he asked.
Now, it is surprising how much detail the trained eye of a sailor will
grasp, even in the brief space of time occupied by a gleam of
sheet-lightning; it is due in part, I think, though certainly not
wholly, to what scientists describe as "persistency of vision," or the
phenomenon which causes an image to remain imprinted upon the retina of
the eye for a quite appreciable period after the object has vanished.
But I am certain that there is more in it than that, though precisely
what it may be I cannot tell; suffice it to say that I was able to
answer unhesitatingly:
"A brigantine, sir, of about two hundred tons, under all plain sail.
Very low in the water, and a decidedly suspicious-looking customer."
"Just so," answered Galway. "Exactly what I made her out to be. Have
the goodness to step down and report the matter to Captain Vavassour, if
you please."
There was no need, however; for the Captain, who had been reading in his
cabin, had heard voices, and had come up on deck to see what was the
matter. Then ensued another brief but intensely exasperating period of
waiting until another flash came and once more betrayed the stranger's
whereabouts. It came at length, and revealed her still standing to the
eastward, and so close under the land that, but for the momentary
illumination of her sails by the lightning, she would undoubtedly have
slipped past us unseen.
"Ah, yes, there she is; I see her!" exclaimed the skipper. "Wait until
we are abreast of her, and then tack, Mr Galway," he continued. "No
doubt they can see us a great deal more distinctly than we can see them,
and if we tack now, they will doubtless do the same, with the result
that they will be both to windward and ahead of us. But if we wait
until she gets fairly past us, it will be a point in our favour, because
if she stands on we can gradually edge down upon her."
"She seems to be moving through the water very fast, light as is the
wind," remarked the first lieutenant. "Ten minutes ago she was broad on
our weather-bow, while now she is almost abeam. I expect we shall find
that she is quite as fast as ourselves."