EXPEDITION ON SHORE--THE INFORMER'S FATE--THE SMUGGLERS CAVE--JACK
STRETCHER--THE SMUGGLER'S REVENGE--OUR DREADFUL POSITION.
The _Serpent_ was again in West Bay, just near enough to Portland Bill
to be distinguished by any one looking out for her; and she was standing
with a light breeze from the north-east, as if bound across Channel. We
stood on till dusk, and then tacked and worked back into the bay, till
we got close in with the Dorsetshire coast. The cutter was now hove-to,
and the boats were lowered and manned, all hands being well-armed.
"Mr Hanks," said my uncle, as he came on deck, "you will take charge of
the ship, and keep her as near as possible to where she now is: I expect
to be absent about an hour."
Hanks gave the usual "Ay, ay, sir," and then continued the duty he was
about in superintending the lowering the boats. I seized the
opportunity, while he was waiting for the final preparations, to go up
and speak to my uncle.
"May I go, sir?" I asked. "If there is anything to be done, I should
like to see it."
"We shall only find hard knocks and little glory," he replied.
"However, a midshipman should see everything. Can you spare Mr D'Arcy,
Mr Hanks?"
"Oh yes, sir, if you please," said Hanks, laughing.
I had at first felt very grand at the way my uncle spoke of me; but
there was something in Hanks' tone of voice which considerably lowered
my pride. However, I gained my object, and jumping into the first gig
with my Commander, the order was given to shove off, and away we pulled
towards the shore.
There was no moon, but the sky was clear, and the stars overhead shone
brightly forth into the calm, silent water beneath them. I never saw
the water smoother; and the little wind there was came off the shore,
gently sighing as it passed over the dry grass and low bushes which
fringed the edge of the cliffs above our heads. Not a word was spoken,
and our oars were muffled, as we pulled along shore, a considerable
distance to the westward of where we left the cutter. There were three
boats, so we all knew it was possible some considerable opposition might
be expected.
After we had pulled about three or four miles, our Commander ordered two
of the boats to remain off shore, the crews resting on their oars, till
they should see a blue light burned; they were then to give way as fast
as they could, and support us if necessary. We then pulled slowly in,
our people being told to make as little noise as possible on beaching
the boat.
"Neil," said my uncle, "we have a chance of catching that accomplished
rascal, Myers, through the means of another rascal, who has offered to
betray him, and who is to meet us off that point yonder, and to conduct
us where Myers and his gang are to be found. If we come to blows at any
time, just keep behind me, boy, and don't be after getting yourself
killed or hurt, or I'll never take you to see any more fun, remember
that."
It was clear, by this remark, that my uncle had not forgotten the old
country; and I promised to obey his directions.
In a few minutes the bow of the boat touched the shore, and we, by aid
of a boat-hook, jumped on the sand. Ordering two of the men to
accompany him, and giving directions to the others to keep silence, and
on no account to quit the boat, our commander advanced towards the foot
of the cliff. We went on some little way without meeting anybody.
"It is very extraordinary," he observed, in a low voice. "I cannot have
mistaken the spot or the hour. It was just here the man Langdon
appointed to meet me." We halted for some minutes and listened
attentively, but not a sound was to be heard except the low, soft, and
musical lap of the tide as it glided by the shingly beach. Above us was
the lofty cliff beetling over our heads, its dark outline well-defined
against the brilliant sky.
"Something, I'm afraid, is wrong," remarked my uncle; "or can the fellow
have been imposing on me?"
Having waited for some time in vain, we again advanced. We had not gone
many paces when a figure was seen leaning against the cliffs. The
person, apparently, from his not moving at our approach, was fast
asleep.
"That must be the fellow Langdon," said my uncle. "Why, what can he be
about?" On this he whistled twice, very softly, but there was no
answer. We then hurried up to the spot where the figure was observed.
It was no optical illusion; there certainly was a person, but he took no
notice of our presence. Our two men then went up to him, thinking to
awake him; but as they took him by the arms he slipped from their grasp,
and fell to the ground. An exclamation of horror made us hurry up to
them. It was a corpse we saw. A dark spot on the forehead, from which
a stream of blood, rapidly coagulating, oozed forth. His singed hair,
and the black marks on one side of his face, showed how the deed had
been done. It was evident that he had been shot by a pistol placed
close to his head.
"He hasn't been dead above a quarter of an hour," observed Stretcher,
one of the men, feeling his heart. "He is still warm, sir."
"Then his murderers cannot be far off," said my uncle. "I'll land our
people, and we will hunt them down. The poor wretch could scarcely
expect any other fate were he discovered."
"What--do you know the man, sir?" I asked. "Yes, he is the informer,
Langdon; the very man who was to have conducted us to Myers' retreat,"
was the answer.
"Here, sir, is a bit of card tied round the man's neck, and close to him
was this pistol and handkerchief," said Tomkins, who had placed the body
on the sands, bringing him the articles.
"Very well; do you take charge of those things, Tomkins, and on no
account lose them. D'Arcy, do you go back with Sims to the boat; burn a
blue light close down to the water, shade it by the boat's side so that
it may not be seen from the cliffs above; and then, as soon as the boats
come in, order two hands to remain in each, and bring the rest up here."
"Ay, ay, sir," I replied with alacrity, for I was always proud of having
any orders given me by my uncle; and away I and Sims hurried towards the
boat. We had not got many paces before a shout from Jack Stretcher made
us turn back, and at the same moment several men came leaping down by a
narrow path in the side of the cliff.
"Run in--they are smugglers--run in!" cried Sims, setting the example,
and shouting to our people in the boat. It was the wisest thing he
could do to get help, for the man was no coward; but before I had time
to think whether or not I could run down to my uncle, I found myself
knocked down by one of the foremost of the new comers, with a not very
complimentary remark to midshipmen in general, and to me in particular.
What became of Sims I could not tell, for the blow on my head made me
feel inclined to keep my eyes shut. When, after a moment or so, I
attempted to rise, I found myself seized by a couple of men. My arms
were lashed behind me in a very uncomfortable way, and which reminded me
of the necessity of not tumbling down, if I was anxious to preserve the
regular outline of my nose; while a handkerchief was secured tightly
over my eyes. Directly afterwards I heard a scuffle, and my uncle's
voice among that of many others; blows were struck, and two or three
pistols were fired; and then there appeared more scuffling, and all was
quiet except the suppressed murmur of apparently many voices as I was
dragged forward by the people who held me. We went along the seashore
for some way, and then up the cliffs; and next we descended, and I was
led along what seemed a narrow path by the careful way in which my
conductors stepped. We went over certainly more than a mile of ground,
and then we halted till other parties came up, and I was led down a
gentle declivity on a soft, sandy soil; but I no longer felt the light
cool wind blowing on my cheek, from which I conjectured we were leaving
the open air.
Scarcely a word had been spoken to me the whole of this time by any one
of the party. I once ventured to ask my conductors where they were
going to take me; but the answer I got in a low growl--"Hold your
tongue, you young whelp!" and the click of a pistol lock--made me
unwilling to enter on another question. I was more seriously alarmed
about my uncle. For myself I feared nothing, as I did not think that
the smugglers would hurt a young boy like me; but from the manner of
their proceeding, and the few words they let fall of concentrated hate
and anger, I was afraid that, supposing they were the crew of the
_Kitty_, they might wreck their vengeance on his head and murder him. I
had become deeply attached to him. I felt miserable at the thought of
his danger, and I earnestly, though silently, prayed for his
preservation. After we had gone a little way, I was almost convinced,
from the damp, stagnant feel of the atmosphere, that we were in a cavern
or a large vault of some sort or other. I was confirmed in this opinion
by hearing a voice before me say, "Stoop down your head or you will hit
the rock."
I thought he addressed me, so I bent down as if I were passing under a
very low archway, when my conductors laughed, and one observed to the
other, "The youngster thinks himself a giant; howsomever, he won't ever
be much bigger than he now is, will he, Jim?"
"No; he's nibbled his last biscuit," growled out his companion. "Come,
heave ahead, master."
On hearing these last observations I had stopped, scarcely able to make
my feet move on; for I thought the villains were going to treat me as
they had treated the poor wretch we had just found, for I had no doubt
they were his murderers. They again urged me forward, and I presently
found myself in a place surrounded by a number of people--at least so I
judged by the suppressed hum of voices which I heard.
"Cast off the handkerchiefs from the prisoners' eyes," said a voice in
an authoritative tone.
I felt a fellow fumbling at the handkerchief round my head; but
pretending, I suspect, that he could not undo it, he forced it down over
my face, to the considerable damage of my nose, and then, giving his
knuckles a turn with the dexterity of a Thug, very nearly throttled me.
When I had somewhat recovered, and the stars had done flying about
before my eyes, I perceived that I was in a large cave, standing at the
foot of a rude table, at the further end of which sat a
powerfully-built, bold-looking man, dressed in a nautical costume, while
a number of other men, mostly seamen, sat on either side of him.
I looked anxiously round for my uncle, and my mind was much relieved to
see him standing, unhurt apparently, a few paces from me. However, my
satisfaction was much mitigated when, being able to distinguish objects
more clearly, I perceived that there were two men standing on either
side of him, with pistols in their hands; and it instantly occurred to
me that they were there to act the part of executioners, and to blow his
brains out, at the command of the ruffian I saw sitting as judge in this
lawless court. We recognised each other at the same moment; and if I
could judge by the expression of his countenance, he had more compassion
for me than fear for himself. He made no attempt to speak to me, but
instantly resumed his former undaunted attitude, with his arms folded on
his bosom, and his eye resting on the leader of the smugglers.
But there was another object which was, indeed, well calculated to fill
me with horror. It was the corpse of the murdered man, stretched out on
some rough planks, resting on four casks placed on end; the face
uncovered and bloody; the eyes staring wide open, for no one had taken
the trouble to close them; and the features distorted by the wound or,
perhaps, by fear of the fate which he saw prepared for him when his
murderers appeared. The corpse was close to me, and I could not keep my
eyes from it, dreadful as it was. It seemed to possess a terrible
fascination; and every time I turned my eyes away, it attracted them
back again; so that, wild and remarkable as was the whole scene, that
horrible object is to this day the most prominent to my mental vision,
and all the rest is but an indistinct background to the picture.
I found that Jack Stretcher was close to me, on my left side, also in
custody of two smugglers. The cave itself was a complete storehouse of
goods of every description. There were arms--swords, pistols, and
muskets; and bales of silks, boxes of laces and ribbons, and casks of
spirits: indeed, everything with a high duty on it was here collected,
ready to be sent up to London or through the country, to the _highly
respectable_ shops which dealt in such things. I had not time, however,
to make many observations, when the fierce ruffian at the head of the
table commenced the proceedings by inquiring who we were and what was
our object in coming on shore that night.
"You know perfectly well who we are, and with regard to our object on
shore, you certainly are not qualified to question me," answered my
uncle, with a firm voice.
"Then I must answer for you," replied the smuggler. "You came,
instigated by a wretch whose body lies there, under the hopes of taking
me and my men in our nest. He has received his reward. The very moment
he was thinking he had got us secure, a pistol bullet went through his
head. What do you think you deserve?"
My uncle did not answer.
"Speak, and answer me!" exclaimed the ruffian, levelling a pistol at
him.
I tried to spring forward to throw myself before him, but the smugglers
held me back, though the action, instead of making them angry, seemed to
gain we more respect from them, as they held me less rudely than before,
and no longer amused themselves by twisting the handkerchief, Thug
fashion, round my gullet.
My uncle looked calmly at the smuggler and answered, "I came on shore in
pursuit of my lawful duty, to apprehend you, or any others, breaking the
revenue laws. Further than that, I have no feeling of ill-will against
you, or any of those connected with you."
"Very fine talking, Mr Lieutenant; but that won't do here. You came to
injure us; there's no doubt about that, from what you own yourself; and
you must take the consequences."
"You will suffer for it, if you injure me or any of my people!"
exclaimed my uncle, indignantly.
"We don't want to hurt any of your people; but you and that young cub of
an officer must be prepared to die this very night. Your man there we
don't intend to hurt; and he may, if he likes, join us, which he
probably will be glad enough to do; if not, we carry him away over the
water, far enough from this."
"No, that I won't, you cold-hearted scoundrels, you!" exclaimed Jack
Stretcher, vehemently. "My Commander there, I tell you, is a truer and
braver man than any one of you; and you to think of murdering him
because he is doing his duty, and that young innocent boy, his nephew--a
mere baby to any of you,--it just shows what a white-livered crew you
smugglers are; but, howsomdever, if you'll let them go without harm, you
may make a shot fast to my feet and heave me over the cliffs outside
here, or do what you like with me; you can but kill me, and I don't fear
you--so heave ahead, my hearties."
This address of Jack Stretcher created some considerable sensation among
the smugglers; but their chief seemed immovable. What surprised me most
was, that they were not in the slightest degree enraged at the abuse
showered so liberally on their heads; but, on the contrary, they
infinitely admired him for his fearlessness and fidelity to his
superior.
"What you say, my man, can't be done; those two die, for conspiring with
a traitor to betray us. We shall keep you shut up for some time, and
then carry you over to America, perhaps, or some distant part; but we
shan't take your life; so now you know what you have to expect. Take
those two off, and heave them over High-Peak Cliff. Be sharp about it,
now."
Before my uncle could speak a word or attempt to free himself, he was
dragged back and pinioned, and I was treated in the same way; our eyes
were tightly bandaged, as before; and we were forced out of the cavern
by a large body of the smugglers.
"Never fear, sir," shouted Stretcher. "They'll hang for it yet, and I
shall live to see you revenged."
Extraordinary as it may appear, I had no particular dread of the fate
which was awaiting me. Perhaps it was a presentiment that I should
escape. I cannot now explain the cause of the feeling; indeed, at the
time, I could not probably have done so. I thought much more of my
brave uncle being thus brought to an untimely end, and of the grief of
my sweet young aunt at Ryde, when she should hear of his barbarous
murder. The atrocity of the deed was increased by the cold-blooded
manner in which the wretches proceeded, by dragging us to their
pretended court, and then condemning us, with scarcely even the mockery
of a trial. Indeed the affair seemed so unusual, that I could hardly
believe in the reality. My most absorbing feeling was bitter
indignation, and a burning desire to break from my guards, and to rescue
my uncle. However, as I wriggled about helplessly in their grasp, I
must own that I was very like an unhappy cockchafer stuck through with a
pin by a cruel schoolboy, without the remotest chance of escaping. My
uncle was dragged away first, and I followed him closely, as I judged by
the voices of the villains who had him in charge. What became of
Stretcher I could not learn, though I supposed that he was detained in
the cavern. Even now, I could scarcely have believed that the smugglers
were going really to put their threat into execution, had it not been
for their acknowledgment of the murder they had committed, and the
perfect confidence with which they exhibited their cavern, and the
smuggled goods it contained; for, though taken blindfold to the place,
we could, of course, have little difficulty in finding it again; and
they must have been well aware that, if we escaped, we should do our
best to discover them and bring them to justice. They appeared to me to
be dragging us for a very long distance. We went up and down hill, and
along the seashore, and then we again mounted, it seemed, to the top of
the cliffs, and went over several miles of ground. I thought we should
never get to High-Peak Cliff. I cannot say that I was in any hurry to
get there, which is not surprising, considering the pleasant prospect
which I had before me. At length we ascended a considerable height, it
seemed; and I concluded, from what I heard some of the smugglers remark,
that we had reached the place of the intended murder. I shuddered as I
felt that I was standing at the edge of the precipice from which I was
in a few minutes to be hurled; a cold perspiration burst out over me,
and I felt an awful horror, such as I had never before experienced. I
was aware that any instant, without a moment's preparation, a shove
might send me rolling over and over down to the rocks below, where I
must instantly be dashed to pieces, as I judged that I was standing
close to the very edge of the precipice; and I even fancied that I could
hear the sound of the water breaking on the sands, many hundred feet
beneath, borne upward on the calm night air. Still, there I stood, as
yet unharmed, and I found the delay was caused by some of the party,
whose voices I could hear at a little distance, holding a consultation
in a whisper. I was hoping that they, more merciful than their leader,
were proposing not to execute his directions, when I was undeceived by
their return. One of them then addressed us.
"We give you and the youngster, Lieutenant, three minutes more to
prepare for death," said the villain, in a diabolically cold tone;
"after that, we intend to hang you over the cliff by your hands, and
when you can't gripe on any longer, you may let go. Just understand,
now, we do this in mercy to you, that you may not say we sent you out of
the world without warning. Youngster, you hear what is said, so just
make ready, for you haven't many moments of life in you."
To appeal to the mercy of the wretches was, I knew, hopeless; so I did
my best to prepare for the fate awaiting me.
"The time's up," said a voice, and I found myself urged back a few
paces, and my feet lifted over the edge of the cliff. It is impossible
to describe my sensations of horror at this moment. I was then lowered
down, every instant expecting to be let drop, till I found my hands
clutching the grass, and my nails digging into the uncertain soil which
fringed it. I judged that my uncle had been treated in the same way,
from what the smugglers said. They then left us, satisfied that we
could not release ourselves. Bad as they were, perhaps they did not
wish to witness our death, though I could hear their mocking laughter as
they quitted the spot. I was light, and I held on for dear life.
"Uncle, are you there?" I exclaimed.
"Yes, Neil, I am," he answered; "but I am afraid of using any exertion
to lift myself up, lest the earth should give way. You are light,
though; so try to drag yourself slowly up by your arms, then get your
elbows on the turf, and tear the bandage from your eyes, and come to my
assistance."
"Oh, I cannot, uncle, I cannot!" I cried, in an agony of fear; for I
found it impossible to move without almost a certainty of missing my
hold altogether. Again I tried all I could to lift myself up, but it
would not do. I shouted at the top of my voice. Every instant my
strength was failing me.
"I must let go, uncle, indeed I must," I exclaimed. "Good-bye, uncle."
"So must I, my boy," he answered. "Good-bye, if we do not succeed; but
make a final effort, and spring up. So now--"
I tried to spring up, and so did he, I conclude. Alas! the earth
crumbled beneath his hands; a deep groan escaped his bosom--not for
himself, but for his wife and children, and all he held dear in the
world. He could hold on no longer. I also failed in my attempt to
spring up. Down I went; but what was my surprise, instead of being
dashed to pieces, to find that I had reached a bottom of some sort,
rather splashy certainly, only a few feet below where I had been
hanging. An exclamation at the same moment from my uncle reached my
ears. I tore off the bandage from my eyes, and looking round, I saw him
but a short distance from me, and discovered that we were at the bottom
of a chalk-pit, with all our limbs safe and sound, instead of being both
of us mangled corpses at the foot of High-Peak Cliff. Our position was
not dignified; and certainly, though it was much less romantic and full
of horror than it would have been had the catastrophe we expected really
occurred, and had we figured in the newspapers as the subjects of a
dreadful accident, it was, I must own, far more agreeable to my
feelings.
"Uncle," I sung out, "are you hurt?"
"No, Neil, my boy; but rather wet, from a puddle I've fallen into," he
answered. "So those confounded rascals have been playing us a trick all
the time. However, it's better thus than we expected, and it proves
that they are not as bad as we thought them."
"So I was thinking," I replied, moving up to him. "But, I say, uncle,
how are we to get out of this?"
He was sitting down on a ledge of the chalk rock, endeavouring to
recover from the shock which his nervous system had received.
"Why, as I have not a notion where we are, we had better wait till
daylight, or we shall run a great chance of going over the cliffs in
reality," said he. "The sun will rise in little more than an hour
hence, I hope, and then we shall be able to ascertain whereabouts we
are."
In accordance with his advice, I sat myself down by his side, and
remained silent for some time, while I watched the stars glittering
overhead. At length I remarked, "It is very odd, uncle, that Myers did
not murder us, as he did the poor wretch we found under the cliff."
"I fully expected he would; but, after all, there are several reasons
against such an act," he answered.
"He put the spy to death, both for the sake of vengeance and that he
might not betray any more of his secrets, or show us the smugglers'
hides. Myers, however, knew that if he murdered a king's officer, the
Government authorities would not rest till they had brought him to
punishment. There is also a wild notion of justice among these outlaws;
and as they know we are but doing our duty in pursuing them, they have
not the same bitter feeling towards us as they have towards any of their
companions who turn traitors. Myers, perhaps, might have wished to
secure a friend, in case of need. The fellows who had charge of us,
however, could not resist the temptation of playing us a trick, and
trying to frighten us out of our wits. Some years ago, also, Myers was
in my custody, and I treated him, as I should any fellow-creature, with
some kindness and consideration. I spoke to him seriously, and
endeavoured to win him from his evil courses. I did not consider myself
either as his judge or executioner. Perhaps, therefore, gratitude may
have induced him to spare our lives."
"I have no doubt of it," said I. "I have to thank you, therefore,
uncle, for my life."
"I don't suppose they would have hurt you, Neil, had you been alone," he
observed, laughing.
"Do you think that we shall be able to discover the cavern?" I asked.
"I fear not," he replied. "Even if we did, it would be emptied of its
contents. Depend on it, the smugglers were prepared to carry off
everything into the interior, and all the valuable goods are by this
time a long way on their road to London. At all events, whatever were
the motives of the smugglers, let us offer our thanks to God for the
preservation of our lives, for they have been in great peril."
We knelt and prayed. I hope I did so sincerely. What other remarks he
made I do not remember, for I soon after this felt very drowsy, and
quickly fell asleep. I dreamed all the time that I was tumbling head
over heels down precipices, but never reached the ground. So I shall
end this chapter at the bottom of a chalk-pit.