"Ah, that lieutenant of yours is very suspicious," remarked Dubois. "We
wish to get away! What folly to think of it."
I said nothing more, but there was a twinkle in Dubois' eye, which made
me fancy he did think of it.
The shore was soon reached; providentially there was no surf, and the
men quickly landed. On this the boats at once put off to bring away the
remainder of the crew. The men bent to their oars. There was no time
to be lost, for the French frigates were approaching, and would soon be
blazing away at our ship. On they came under all sail.
"We'll have them right enough if they run ashore," cried one of the men;
"there'll then be fair play maybe."
"I wish that our captain would only just let us go back and fight them,"
exclaimed another; "we'd soon show them that the saucy _Liffy_ hasn't
done barking yet."
But the Frenchmen seemed to have no intention of running ashore if they
could help it. As we got alongside they had come almost within range of
our guns. The remainder of the crew and officers stood ready to embark.
Just at that moment I recollected that I had come away without my
grandfather's sword, which was hung up in the berth. I sprang on deck
and rushed down below to obtain it. Having got it in my hand, I was
hurrying out of the berth, when I saw the captain, accompanied by Mr
Saunders with the gunner and his crew, just coming aft. At the same
time I observed a dense smoke issuing from the fore-hold. They had
matches in their hands, with which they had lighted some trains which
had been laid leading to the after-part of the ship. I sprang back into
the boat, into which the gunner and his crew followed me, the captain's
gig still waiting alongside. Mr Saunders came down and took his seat.
The captain stood for some moments gazing along the deck, then, lifting
up his hat, he also descended. "Shove off!" I heard him cry out, in a
husky voice, just as we were pulling away.
He was the last man to leave the frigate. As he did so several shot
came crashing aboard her from the opposite side. We pulled away as fast
as we could lay our backs to the oars, for we had a good chance of being
hit. The shot dropped round us pretty thickly, but we escaped
uninjured. As we looked astern thick wreaths of smoke were issuing from
every part of our gallant frigate.
"Her fighting days are over," I observed.
"Not just yet, sir,--not just yet. Wait a minute and you'll see,"
exclaimed the coxswain.
He was right. Before we landed the flames had reached the guns, and her
whole broadside, pointed towards the Frenchmen, went off in rapid
succession.
"Hurrah! hurrah!" shouted all the men; "the old girl dies game to the
last."
What damage the guns of our ship effected on the French frigates we
could not discover, but they were seen to haul their wind and to stand
off as fast as they could from the land. We soon gained the shore,
which was as captivating in appearance as any shipwrecked mariner has
ever landed on. It seemed like a perfect garden, with churches and
planters' houses peeping out from among the trees, in the midst of the
most picturesque scenery. In the centre rose a lofty cone, surrounded
by a ruff of trees, below which all was one mass of verdure. We had
little time or inclination just then to admire the beauties of nature.
The crew having been mustered, none being missing except the poor
fellows who were known to have been killed, the wounded were placed on
litters formed of sails, and we were set off to march towards
Charlestown, the smart little capital of the island, whence Captain
Macnamara expected to be able to send intelligence of the disaster to
the admiral.
We had gone some distance, and were all feeling hungry and thirsty, when
we came in sight of the house of a planter. Our approach was perceived.
The master of the mansion came forth, and, addressing Captain
Macnamara, insisted on our halting, and taking such refreshment as he
could provide. His offer was gladly accepted. As the house wouldn't
hold us all, we youngsters stopped in the shade of of a grove of trees
close to it, the captain and gun-room officers being invited inside.
The men threw themselves on the ground, in every variety of attitude,
waiting for the expected feast. We of the midshipmen's berth formed a
group by ourselves a little way from the men, close to a fountain, which
sent up a jet of water into the quivering air. The sight of it alone
was calculated to cool us, and we needed cooling, for our march had been
hot and fatiguing. Some of the men suffering most from thirst rushed to
the fountain, and baled the water into their mouths, or lapped it up
like dogs.
"I say, Paddy, what has become of your French friends?" asked
Nettleship, looking round. "I thought La Touche would at all events
have been with us, though Dubois might have considered himself
privileged to go in with the gun-room officers."
"I haven't set eyes on them--since--since--let me see--not since we left
the shore," I answered. "I suppose they must be in the house."
Just then I saw the marine who had had charge of the prisoners. I asked
him what had become of them. He had been ordered to fall into the ranks
with his comrades, and had handed them over, he said, to the second
lieutenant,--Simon Silk,--known among us as Softy. I told Nettleship
this.
"Oh, then of course they are in the house," he remarked.
"Not so sure of that, if Softy had charge of them," said Tom.
In a short time a number of blacks came out, bringing provisions of all
sorts. Huge jugs of sangaree, baskets of pink shaddocks, bananas,
oranges, pomegranates, figs, and grapes, in addition to the more
substantial fare. How we did peg into the fruit, which we enjoyed the
more from having been lately on salt provisions. To the poor wounded
fellows the fruit was especially refreshing, and I believe the lives of
several were saved who would otherwise have succumbed.
"Well, I shouldn't mind being shipwrecked occasionally, if I could
always land in such a place as this," said Chaffey, devouring a superb
shaddock, while the rest of us were similarly employed, or sucking
oranges, or popping grapes into our mouths.
As we were at no great distance from Charlestown, our kind host advised
the captain to remain, and to pursue his march in the cool of the
evening, undertaking to send on to the authorities that quarters might
be provided for us. We were not at all sorry to hear this, as all of us
needed rest. We ate the delicious fruit till we could eat no more, and
then threw ourselves on the ground. Our host came out and invited us
into the house, but Nettleship, who considered that he might have done
so at first, declined his offer; indeed, we were far better off under
the trees than between walls, and certainly more at our ease. At length
Mr Saunders came out, and ordered us to get ready for marching; the men
were formed in ranks, and, giving a cheer for our host, we set out.
I had been looking about for Dubois and La Touche, when I saw Lieutenant
Silk. I asked him if he knew where they were.
"Bless me! why, have they not been with you all this time?" he
exclaimed. "I understood them to say that they would join you when we
arrived at Mr Ballahoo's, and I never dreamed of their not doing so."
The marine officer looked somewhat aghast on hearing that we had not
even seen the Frenchmen.
"Whether he dreamed it or not, they are off as sure as a gun," observed
Nettleship, when I told him.
Such proved to be the case; and though Softy had to march back with a
party of his men to look for them, they were nowhere to be found. I do
not think that the captain was very much put out, though I was sorry to
part from my polite friends without saying good-bye. As the enemy were
in the neighbouring island, it was probable that they would send a force
across to capture Nevis, so that we fully expected to have work to do,
as the governor was resolved to oppose them.
We arrived at Charlestown just at sunset, and were hospitably received
by the inhabitants, among whom we were billeted, the wounded being sent
to the hospital. We were expecting to have a pleasant stay in the town,
but next day a frigate appeared off the place and sent her boat ashore,
when our captain applied for a passage for himself and men to join the
admiral. We had at once, therefore, to embark on board the _Thisbe_.
Next day we stood across to Antigua, and, having passed that island, we
beat to the southward, when a large fleet was seen ahead. We approached
cautiously till we got within signalling distance, when the fleet was
found to be that of Sir Samuel Hood, steering for Antigua. We were
ordered to join it, and the next day brought up in Saint John's roads.
We here remained at anchor for some time, till we were joined by Sir
George Rodney, who had come out from England with several sail of the
line. Sir George Rodney became commander-in-chief, and now considered
himself strong enough to cope with the French and Spanish.
While the officers and crew of the _Liffy_ were together, we were merry
enough; but after we had undergone the trial for her loss, and our
captain and his subordinates had been honourably acquitted, the time
came for our separation. We were distributed among the different ships
of the fleet. Nettleship, Tom Pim, and I were ordered to join the
_Cerberus_, 74, with a portion of our men, among whom was Larry. Tom
and I agreed that we felt lost in so big a ship. We soon, however, got
accustomed to her, and became intimate with our new messmates, several
of whom were very good fellows. Tom declared that he should never like
the gun-room after our snug little berth, for, should he once fetch
away, he shouldn't bring up again until he had cracked his head against
a gun or against the ship's side. For some time we had fine weather, so
that he had no opportunity of experiencing the inconvenience he
anticipated. We heard that the very day we left Nevis the French had
thrown an overwhelming force across and taken possession of the island.
"I don't know that we should have prevented that," said Tom, "so I am
glad that we got away, or we might have been killed or made prisoners."
The fleet being strengthened as I have described, we proceeded to Saint
Lucia to complete our water. We now had to sail in search of a large
French convoy which was expected to arrive from Europe, and anticipated
a rich prize; but the French were too sharp for us, for though a
vigilant look-out was kept by the frigates, they managed, by sailing
close under Dominique and Guadaloupe, to reach Port Royal Bay
unperceived by any of our ships. When Sir Samuel Hood got information
of this unlucky event, the line-of-battle ships returned to Saint Lucia
to refit, while the frigates were employed in watching the movements of
the enemy. The object of the French and Spaniards was well known. It
was to unite their fleets, and thus, forming a powerful force, to
proceed to the conquest of Jamaica. Our object was to prevent them from
doing this. The frigates had ample work in watching their movements,
and many ran a great risk of being captured in the anxiety of their
captains to keep a vigilant watch on them. Our fleet lay ready for a
start as soon as information was brought of the enemy having put to sea.