A QUESTION OF ETIQUETTE
Proudly sailed the Revenge and her attendant bark into the waters of
Honduras Gulf, and proudly stood Captain Stede Bonnet upon his
quarter-deck, dressed in a handsome uniform which might have been that
of a captain or admiral in the royal navy; one hand caressed his ornate
sword-hilt, while the other was thrust into the bosom of his
gilt-embroidered coat. A newly fashioned Jolly Roger, in which the
background was very black and the skull and cross-bones ghastly white,
flew from his masthead.
As night came on there could be seen, twinkling far away upon the
horizon, a beacon light, which in those days was kept burning for the
benefit of the piratical craft which made a rendezvous of the waters off
Belize, then the commercial centre for the vessels of the "free
companions." Having supposed, in his unnautical mind, that his entrance
into the Gulf of Honduras meant the end of his present voyage, and not
wishing to lower his own feeling of importance by asking too many
questions of his inferiors, Captain Bonnet had bedecked himself a day
too soon, and there were some jeers and sneers among his crew when he
descended to his cabin to take off his fine clothes. But his
self-complacency was well armoured, and he did not hear the jokes of
which he was the subject, especially by the little clique of which Black
Paul was the centre. But the sailing-master knew his business, and the
Revenge was safely, though slowly, sailed among the coral-reefs and
islands until she dropped anchor off Belize. Early in the morning the
now dignified and pompous Captain Bonnet, of that terror of the seas,
the pirate craft Revenge, again arrayed himself in a manner befitting
his position, and stationed himself on the quarter-deck, where he might
be seen by the eyes of all the crews of the other pirate vessels
anchored about them and by the glasses of their officers.
Apart from a general desire to show himself in the ranks of his
fellow-pirates and to receive from them the respect which was due to a
man of his capabilities and general merits, Stede Bonnet had a
particular reason for his visit to this port and for surrounding himself
with all the pomp and circumstance of high piratical rank. He had been
informed that a great man, a hero and chief among his fellows--in fact,
the dean of the piratical faculty, and known as "Blackbeard," the most
desperate and reckless of all the pirates of the day--was now here.
To meet this most important sea-robber and to receive from him the hand
of fellowship had been Bonnet's desire and ambition since he had heard
that it was possible.
The morning was advanced and the Revenge was rolling easily at her
anchorage, but Bonnet was somewhat uncertain as to the next step he
ought to take. He wanted to see Blackbeard as soon as possible, but it
would certainly be a breach of etiquette entirely inconsistent with his
present position for him to go to see him. He was the latest comer, and
thought it was the part of Blackbeard to make the first visit.
Paul Bittern now came aft. "The men are getting very restless," he said;
"they want to go on shore. They'd all go if I'd let 'em."
Captain Bonnet gave his sailing-master a lofty glare.
"If I should let them, you mean, sir. I am sorry I cannot break you of
the habit of forgetting that I command this ship. Well, sir, you may
tell them that they cannot go. I am expecting a visit from the renowned
Blackbeard, now in this port, and I wish to welcome him with all respect
and a full crew."
Black Paul smiled disagreeably. "I will tell you, sir, that you cannot
keep these men on board much longer with the town of Belize within a
row of half a mile. They've been at sea too long for that. There'll be
a mutiny, sir, if I go forward with that message of yours. It will be
prudent to let some of them go ashore now and others later in the day. I
will go in the first boat and see to it that the men come back with me.
And, by the way, it would not be a bad thing if I touch at Blackbeard's
vessel and inform him that you are here; I don't suppose he knows the
Revenge, nor her captain neither."
"I doubt that, Bittern," said Bonnet, "I doubt it very much. I assure
you that I am known from one end of this coast to the other, and Captain
Blackbeard is not an ignorant man. So you can go ashore and take some of
the men, stopping at Blackbeard's ship. And, by the way, I want you to
go by that bark of ours and give her the old black Roger I used to fly.
I forgot to send it to her, and a man might as well not own and command
two vessels if he get not the credit of it."
When Black Paul had gone to execute his orders, Ben Greenway heaved a
heavy sigh. "Now I begin to fear, Master Bonnet, that the day o' your
salvation has really gone by. When ye not only murder an' rob upon the
high seas, but keep consort with other murderers an' robbers, then I
fear ye are indeed lost. But I shall stand by ye, Master Bonnet, I shall
stand by ye; an' if, ever I find there is the least bit o' ye to be
snatched from the flames, I'll snatch it!"
"I don't like that sort of talk, Ben Greenway," cried Bonnet,
"especially at this time when my soul swells with content at the success
which has crowned my undertakings. This Blackbeard is a valiant man and
a great one, but it is my belief that when we have sat down to compare
our notes, it will be found that I have captured as many cargoes, burned
as many ships, and marooned as many people in my last cruise as he has."
"So I suppose," said Ben, "that ye think ye hae achieved the right to
sink deeper into hell than he can ever hope to do?"
Bonnet made no answer, but turned away. The Scotchman was becoming more
and more odious to him every day, but he would not quarrel on this most
auspicious morning. He must keep his mind unruffled and his head high.
He had his own plans about Greenway: he was not far from Barbadoes, and
when he left the harbour of Belize it would be of advantage to his peace
of mind as well as to the comfort of a faithful old servant if he should
anchor for a little while in the river below the town and put Ben
Greenway on shore.
Ben gave no further reason for quarrelling. He was greatly dejected, but
he had sworn to himself to stand by his old master, no matter what might
happen, and when he took an oath he meant what he swore.
Dickory Charter was in much worse case than Ben Greenway. He was not
much of a geographical scholar, but he knew that the Gulf of Honduras
was not really very far from the Island of Jamaica, where dwelt, waited,
and watched Mistress Kate Bonnet and his mother. If he had known that
during the voyage down from the Atlantic coast the Revenge had sailed
through the Windward Passage, running in some of her long tacks within
less than a day's sail of Jamaica, he would have chafed, fumed, and
fretted even more than he did now.
"Captain Bonnet," he cried, "if you could but let me go on shore, I
might surely find some vessel bound to Kingston, or to any place upon
the Island of Jamaica, from which spot I could make my way on foot, even
if it were on the opposite end. Thus I could take messages and letters
from you to your daughter and Mr. Delaplaine, and ease the minds both of
them and my mother, all of whom must now be in most doleful plight, not
knowing anything about you or hearing anything from me, and this for so
long a time; then you could remain here with no feelings of haste until
you had disposed of your cargoes and had finished your business."
Captain Bonnet stood loftily with a smile of benignity upon his face.
"It is a clever plan," said he, "and you are a good fellow, Dickory, but
your scheme, though well intentioned, is unsound. I have too much regard
for you to trust you in any vessel sailing from Belize to Kingston,
where there are often naval vessels. Going from this port, you would be
as likely to be strung up to the yard-arm as to be allowed to go ashore.
Be patient then, my good fellow; when my affairs are settled here, the
Revenge may run up to the coast of Jamaica, where you may be put off at
some quiet spot, and all may happen as you have planned, my good
Dickory. Even now I am writing a letter, hoping for some such
opportunity of sending it to my daughter."
Dickory sighed in despair. It might take a month or more before Kate's
father could settle his affairs, and how long, how long it had been
since his soul had been reaching itself out towards Kate and his mother!
When the sailing-master set out in the long-boat, crowded with men, he
stopped at the bark but did not go too near for fear that some of the
crew might jump into his already overloaded boat.
"You are to run up this rag," cried Black Paul to Clip, the fellow in
command; and so saying, he handed up the old Jolly Roger on the blade of
an oar. "Our noble admiral fears that if you do not that you may be
captured by some of these good vessels lying hereabout."
Clip roared out with a laugh: "I will attend to the capture as soon as I
get out of reach of his guns, which he will not dare to use here, I take
it. But I want you to know and him to know that we're not goin' to stay
on board and in sight of the town. If you go ashore, so go we."
"Stay where ye are till orders come to ye," shouted Black Paul, "if ye
want to keep the cat off your backs!" And as he rowed away the men on
the bark gave him a cheer and proceeded to lower two boats.
From nearly every pirate ship in the anchorage the proceedings of the
newly arrived vessels had been watched. No one wanted to board them or
in any way to interfere with them until it was found out what they
intended to do. The Revenge was a stranger in that harbour, although her
fame was known on not a few pirate decks; but if she came to Belize to
fraternize with the other pirate vessels there gathered together, why
didn't she do it? No idea of importance and dignity, which his position
imposed upon Captain Stede Bonnet, entered their piratical minds. When
the long-boat put forth from the Revenge, a good deal of interest was
excited in the anchored vessels. The great Blackbeard himself stood high
upon his deck and surveyed the strangers through a glass.
The men in the sailing-master's boat rowed steadily towards Blackbeard's
vessel. Bittern knew it well, for he had seen it before, and had even
had the honour, so to speak, of having served for a short time under the
master pirate of that day.
As soon as the boat was near enough Blackbeard hailed it in a
tremendous voice and ordered the stranger to pull up and make fast. This
being done, a rope ladder was lowered and Bittern mounted to the deck,
being assisted in his passage over the side by a tremendous pull given
by Blackbeard.
The great pirate seemed to be in high good spirits, and very glad to see
his visitor. Blackbeard was a large man, wide and heavy, and the first
impression conveyed by his personality was that of hair and swarthiness.
An untrimmed black beard lay upon his chest, and his long hair hung in
masses from under his slouched hat; his eyes were dark and sparkling,
and gleamed like beacon lights from out a midnight sky; the sleeves of
his shirt were rolled up, and his arms seemed almost as hairy as his
head; two pairs of pistols were stuck into his belt, and a great cutlass
was conveniently tucked up by his side.
"Ho, ho!" he cried, "Black Paul! And where do you come from, and what
are you doing here? And what is the name of that vessel with the
brand-new Roger? Has she just gone into the business, that she decks
herself out so fine? Come now, sit here and have some brandy and tell me
what is the meaning of these two vessels coming into the harbour, and
what you have to do with them."
Bittern was delighted to know that his old commander remembered him, and
was ready enough to talk with him, for that was the errand he had come
upon.
"But, captain," said he, "I am afraid to wander away from the gunwale,
for if I have not my eye upon them, my men will be rowing to the town
before I know it. They are mad to be on shore."
Blackbeard made no answer; he stepped to the side of the vessel and
looked over. "Let go!" he shouted to the man who held the boat's rope,
"and you rascals row out a dozen strokes from my vessel and keep your
boat there; and if you move an oar towards the town I will sink you!"
With that he ordered two small guns to be trained upon the boat.
The boat's crew did not hesitate one second in obeying these orders.
They knew by whom they were given, and there was no man in the great
body of free companions who would disobey an order given by Blackbeard.
They rowed to the position assigned them and sat quietly looking into
the mouths of the two cannon which were pointed towards them.
"Now then," said Blackbeard, turning to Bittern, "I think they'll stay
there till they get some other order."
Between frequent sips at the cup of brandy Bittern told the story of the
Revenge, and Blackbeard listened with many an oath and many a pound upon
his massive knee by his mighty fist.
"Oh, I have heard of him," he cried, "I have heard of him! He has
played the devil along the Atlantic coast. He must he a great fellow
this--what did you say his name was?"
"Bonnet," said the other.
Blackbeard laughed. "That suits him well; he must have clapped his name
over the eyes of many a merchant captain! Where did he sail before he
hoisted the Jolly Roger?"
At this Bittern laughed. "He never sailed anywhere, he is no seaman; and
if he were not rich enough to pay others to do his navigatin' for him he
would have run his vessel upon the first sand-bar on his way from
Bridgetown to the sea. But he pays some good mariner to sail his
Revenge, and he now pays me. I am, in fact, the captain of his vessel."
"You mean," cried Blackbeard, "that he knows nothing of navigation?"
"Not a whit," replied the other; "he doesn't know the backstays from the
taffrail. It was only yesterday that he thought he was already in the
port of Belize, and dressed himself up like a fighting-cock to meet
you."
"To meet me?" roared Blackbeard; "what does he want to meet me for, and
why don't he come and do it instead of sending you?"
"Not he," said Bittern. "He is a great man, if not a sailor; he knows
what is politeness on shipboard, and as he is the last comer you must be
the first caller. He is all dressed up now, hoping that you will row
over to the Revenge as soon as you know that he is its commander."
The hairy pirate leaned back and laughed in loud explosions.
"He is a rare man, truly," he exclaimed, "this Captain Nightcap of
yours--"
"Bonnet," interrupted Bittern.
"Well, one is as good as the other," cried Blackbeard, "and he be well
clothed if it be of the right colour. And you started out with him to
sail his ship, you rascal? That's a piece of impudence almost as great
as his own."
Bittern did not much like this speech, and wanted to explain that since
he had served under Blackbeard he had commanded vessels himself, but he
restrained himself and told how Sam Loftus had been tumbled overboard
for running afoul his captain, and how he had been appointed to his
place.
Now Blackbeard laughed again, with a great pound upon his knee. "He is a
man after my own heart," he shouted, "be he sailor or no sailor, this
nightcap commander of yours. I know I shall love him!" And springing to
his feet and uttering a resounding oath, he swore that he would visit
his new brother that afternoon.
"Now, away with you!" cried Blackbeard, "and tell Sir Nightcap--"
"Bonnet," interrupted Bittern.
"Well, Bonnet, or Cap, it matters not to me. Row straight back to your
ship, and let him know that I shall be there and shall expect to be
received with admiral's honours."
Bittern looked somewhat embarrassed. "But, captain," he said, "my men
are on their way to the town, and I fear me they will rebel if I tell
them they cannot now go there."
In saying this the sailing-master spoke not only for his men, but for
himself. He was very anxious to go ashore; he had business there; he
wanted to see who were in the place, and what was going on before Bonnet
should go to the town.
"What!" cried Blackbeard, putting his head down like a charging bull. "I
order you to row back to your vessel and take my message; and if you do
it not I will sink you all in a bunch! Into your boat, sir, and waste
not another minute. If you are not able to command your men, I will keep
you here and give them a coxswain who can."
Without another word, Bittern scuffled over the side, and, his boat
being brought up, he dropped into it.
"Now, men," he said, "I have a message from Captain Blackbeard to the
Revenge; bend to it as I steer that way."
"Give my pious regards to your Sir Nightcap," shouted Blackbeard. And
then, in a still higher tone, he yelled to them that if they disobeyed
their coxswain and turned their bow shoreward he would sink them all to
the unsounded depths of Hades. Without a protest the men pulled
vigorously towards the Revenge, while Black Paul, considering it a new
affront to be called "coxswain" when he was in reality captain,
earnestly sent Blackbeard to the same regions to which he had just
referred.