"Hold fast there, Mr Terence," he said, as he squeezed through, and
springing forward locked the cabin door. "I'll tell you all about it
when we're free of the brig," he whispered.
Quick as thought he made the painter fast to an eye-bolt, used to secure
the dead-light. "Now jump into the boat, Mr Terence, and we'll be
off," he added.
As he bid me, I slid down the painter, expecting him to follow
immediately. For a few seconds he didn't come, and I feared that
something had happened to him; but he soon appeared, and slid down as I
had done, holding in his mouth a knife, with which he quickly cut the
rope.
I had taken one of the oars, he seized another, and giving a shove
against the counter, sent the boat off from the brig. We paddled away
with might and main, making, however, as little noise as we could.
Scarcely, however, had we gone half a cable's length than I heard a
gruff voice, which I recognised as Dan Hoolan's, uttering a fearful
oath, and inquiring what had become of the boat. Several others replied
in the same tones; and one of them, who had apparently run aft,
exclaimed, "Shure there she is, and that so-and-so Larry Harrigan has
gone off with her."
"Come back, come back, you villain!" shouted the men.
"It's mighty likely we'll be after doing that," Larry was on the point
of shouting out, when I told him to be silent; and there being now less
necessity for caution, we bent to our oars with all our might.
"I wonder the villains don't fire at us," I said.
"Shure the cabin door's locked, and they can't get at the muskets, or
they would be after doing the same," answered Larry.
We had ample reason to pull hard, for the water was leaking in through
every seam in the boat; but I hoped that she might keep afloat long
enough to enable us to reach the side of the frigate. Hoolan and his
companions, finding that it was of no use, had ceased hailing us. We
had gone a short way when I saw a boat coming off from the shore. "A
hundred to one the French officers are in her," I thought; "and if they
have heard the shouting from the brig, they will fancy that something
has happened, and be on the look-out. However, we are in for it." We
were at first pulling ahead of the vessels which were at anchor between
us and the frigate; but, on seeing the boat, I told Larry we would pass
under the stern of the one nearest us, and thread our way in and out
among them, so that we might be concealed from the sight of those coming
off from the shore, in case they should make chase after us. In a short
time, however, the boat was half full of water.
"We must get this out, or we shall be sinking," I said.
There was no bailer; but I had seized my hat before I had got out of the
cabin window, and putting in our oars we bailed away as hard as we
could. We had succeeded in partly freeing the boat of water, when we
heard the splash of oars coming from the direction of the brig. Once
more we gave way, the water still coming in. I very much doubted that
we should reach the frigate without having again to stop. The boat,
however, was gaining on us. Should she come up before we could get
under our own flag, we might lawfully be recaptured; the water was
already up to the thwarts, and the boat pulled heavily; our pursuers
were getting closer and closer. We were nearing the frigate.