VIII

At three bells in the afternoon the sea had begun to go down enough to

allow us to get our new topsails on her and a main-topgallantsail. The

_Pirate_ went smoking through it under the pressure, trembling with each

surge, and throwing a perfect storm of water over her catheads. The

English ship was now a mere speck to windward, almost hull down, and we

would have to beat up to her if we could.

Just how badly she needed help we of course could not tell. If she were

sinking fast, then she would have to depend upon her own boats, for the

sea was too heavy until late in the afternoon to venture out in our only

one left. We could no longer see her signals, but carried all the sail

possible, without danger of carrying away our spars, in the effort to get

close to her again.

After standing along for an hour or more we wore ship, and found that we

could just about get within hailing distance to leeward.

Trunnell had the reef tackles rigged from the main yard, and the

life-boat was slung clear of the lee rail. Then, watching a chance, she

was let go with Hans and Johnson in her to keep her clear and dropped

back to the mizzen channels, where the volunteers were ready to get

aboard her.

Four men besides myself manned her, and she was instantly let go to keep

her clear of the sea, which hove her first high on the _Pirate's_

quarter, and then down until our faces were below the copper on her

bends. By dint of quick work we shoved her clear, and started on the

pull, dead to windward.

How small the _Pirate_ looked when we were but a few fathoms distant in

that sea! Our boat rode the waves nicely without shipping much water, and

several times I turned to look back at the ship, where Trunnell stood

beside the skipper, watching us through the glasses, and waiting to pick

us up on our return. I could see the "doctor's" face above the topgallant

rail forward and that of Chips in the waist.

It was a long pull. The sea was running high and the wind was still

blowing a half gale, breaking up the heavy oily clouds into long banks

between which the sun shone at intervals. It was a good half hour's work

before we could cover the short distance between the ships.

We came slowly up under her lee quarter, and when we were quite close I

could see that she was indeed very deep, if not actually sinking. The

words "Royal Sovereign, Liverpool," were painted in gold letters on her

stern, and on the circular buoys hanging upon her quarter-rail was the

same name in black. A group of men stood near the mizzen rigging, and one

short man with a black sou'wester and blue pilot coat hailed us through a

large-mouthed trumpet, which almost hid his bearded face.

"Boat ahoy! can you come aboard?" he roared.

"We'll try to come alongside," I bawled. "Stand by to heave a line."

A man had one ready and hove it well out with a yell to catch. Long Tom,

our lean Yankee sailor, who was pulling bow oar, seized it as it fell

across and took a turn around a thwart. The oars were shipped and we fell

under the vessel's stern, riding the seas without mishap.

"We're sinking," cried the short man, who was the captain. "Can you take

some of us with you?"

"Aye, aye; get them aboard here as quick as you can," came the answer.

There was no time lost now. Men swarmed toward the taffrail, and for an

instant it looked as if there would be something of a panic. The short

skipper, however, flung them aside without ceremony, and the next instant

a female figure appeared at the rail.

"Haul easy," came the order. Hans and Tom pulled in the line slowly until

the boat's bow was leading almost directly beneath the ship's stern. A

bridle was rigged from the spanker boom and made fast to a life buoy.

Then the lady who had appeared at the taffrail was slung in it rather

uncomfortably and carefully lowered away. She was seized by one of the

men forward, and handed aft to me.

The woman was quite young. She was slightly built, and I supported her

easily until she was safely in the stern sheets. A few strands of curly

blond hair blew across my face, and gave me a most peculiar feeling as I

brushed them aside. Then she turned up her face, and I saw that she had

most beautiful eyes, soft and gentle, with a trusting look, such as one

sees in children.

"Thank you, Mr. Sailorman," she said, with a smile. "I'm all right now."

"Except, perhaps, for a little wetting, you will stay so, I hope,"

I answered.

A heavy woman was being lowered away, and Hans caught her boldly around

the body, trying to keep her from being thrown out of the tossing small

boat. She shrieked dismally.

"Don't be silly, mamma," cried the young lady aft. "You've been squeezed

tighter than that before, I am sure."

She was passed aft and took her place beside her daughter in the stern,

expostulating incoherently at the younger one's insinuations.

Then followed a little man, short and stout, who was evidently the ship's

carpenter, and he was followed by a dozen sailors.

"Haven't you any boats that will swim?" I asked of the mate, who hung

over the rail above me.

"We're getting them out now," he answered.

"Then let us go. We've got a big enough load already."

In a few moments we were on our way back to the _Pirate_, making good

headway before the wind and sea, and shipping little water.

The men explained as we went along that the _Sovereign_ had started a

butt during the gale, and she was full of water by this time. They had

kept at the pumps all day, but had given it up when they saw we were

coming for them. The ship's cargo of oil and light woods from the

peninsula had kept her from going to the bottom. She was homeward bound

to Liverpool, and it was the captain's wife and daughter we were bringing

aboard. The hurricane had caught them aback and dismasted them during the

night, and after six hours of plunging helplessly into the sea without

anything but the mainmast and stump of the foremast above the deck, she

had sprung a leak and filled rapidly. The maintopsail they had bent in

the morning after extraordinary exertion, and with this they had managed

to keep her partly under control.

"She will never go to the bottom with all the soft wood she has in her,"

said a sailor who was old and grizzled and had the bearing of a

man-of-war's man. "She can't sink for months. The water is up to her

lower deck already."

"So that's the reason you were not getting your boats out in a

hurry?" I asked.

"Sure," said he; "I'd as soon stay in her a bit longer as in many a

bleedin' craft that you sees a-goin' in this trade."

"I noticed you were one of the first to leave her," said the young girl,

with some spirit.

"Ah, mum, when you gets along in life like me, hardships is not good for

the constitootion. A sailorman, 'e gets enough o' them without huntin'

any more. Howsumever, if I see any chance o' gettin' the bleedin' craft

in port 'way out here in this Hindian Ocean, I'd be the last to leave.

Bust me, mum, if that ain't the whole truth, an' a little more besides.

You ask your pa."

Here he gave a sigh, and drew his hand across his forehead as if in pain.

His large pop eyes blinked sadly for a few moments, and his mouth dropped

down at the corners. Then his mahogany-colored face became fixed and his

gaze was upon the craft he had just deserted. What was in the old

fellow's mind? I really felt sorry for him, as he sat there gazing sadly

after his deserted home. Captain Sackett would stay aboard until the

last, his wife informed us, but as there was no necessity of any one

staying now, if their boats could live in the sea that was still running,

it was probable that they would all be aboard us before night. Jenks, the

old sailor, gave it as his opinion that they would have the boats out in

half an hour.

We came up under the lee of the _Pirate_ and then began the job of

getting our passengers aboard her.

Trunnell passed a line over the main-brace bumpkin, and held the tossing

craft away from the ship's side until a bridle could be bent and the

ladies hoisted aboard.

Mrs. Sackett trembled violently and begged that she would not be killed,

much to her daughter's amusement. Finally she was landed on deck, where

she was greeted by the third mate and escorted aft. Miss Sackett was of

different stuff. She insisted that she could grab the mizzen channel

plates and climb aboard. I begged her to desist and be hoisted on deck

properly, but she gave me such a look that I held back and refrained from

passing the line about her. As the boat lifted on a sea she made a spring

for the channel. Her hand caught it all right, but her foot slipped, and

as the boat sank into the hollow trough she was left hanging.

Trunnell instantly sprang over the side, and letting himself down upon

the channel, seized her hand and lifted her easily to a footing. The

ship rolled down until they were knee deep in the sea, but the little

mate held tight, and then, with one hand above his head, as she rose

again, he lifted his burden easily to the grasp of Jim, who reached over

the side for her.

After she was landed safely the men crowded up the best way they could,

and the boat was dropped astern with a long painter to keep her clear of

the ship's side.

Captain Thompson greeted his female passengers awkwardly. He declared in

a drawling tone that he was 'most glad that their boat was wrecked,

inasmuch as it had given him the opportunity to meet the finest ladies he

had ever set eyes on.

"May the devil grasp me in his holy embrace, madam," said he, "if I am

lying when I says that word. It is my most pious thought, says I."

Mrs. Sackett was somewhat taken aback at this candor, but managed to keep

her feelings well hidden. Her daughter came to the rescue. "We appreciate

your noble efforts, Captain Thompson. The fact is, we have heard so much

about your gallantry in saving life at sea that we are sure anything we

could say would sound weak in comparison to what you must already have

heard. If you have a spare stateroom, we would be very thankful if we

might have it for a time, as our clothes are quite wet from the sea."

The skipper was somewhat surprised at the young girl's answer, but he hid

his confusion by bawling for the steward.

When the mulatto came, he gave numerous orders in regard to bunks, linen,

drying of clothes, etc., regretting over and over again that he was a

single man, and consequently had no wife from whom he could borrow

wearing apparel while that of his guests was drying.

The third mate, also, took pains to be very civil to them, and his soft

voice could be heard in conversation with Miss Sackett long after they

had gone below.

I went forward and interviewed the men we had rescued, afterward getting

the "doctor" to serve them something hot, as their galley fire had been

out many hours and they had been eating nothing but ship's bread.

The _Pirate_ waited all the afternoon with her canvas shortened down to

her lower topsails to keep her from forging ahead too fast. But even when

it grew dark and the British ship could no longer be clearly made out,

her skipper had not gotten out his boats. It was evident that he would

try to save her if possible, and now that his family were safe he cared

little for the risk. Captain Thompson still held the _Pirate_ hove to

under easy canvas, drifting slowly with the wind, which was now no more

than a moderate breeze. The sea, also, was going down fast, and the sky

was showing well between the long lines of greasy-looking clouds which

appeared to sail slowly away to the northeast. The night fell with every

prospect of good weather coming on the following day.

I went on deck in the dog-watch and took a look around. The _Sovereign_

was a mere blur on the horizon, but her lights shone clearly.

"We'll stand by her all night," said Trunnell, "and then if the

skipper doesn't care to leave her,--which he will, however,--we'll

stand away again."

There was little to do, so the watch lounged around the deck and rested

from the exertion of the past twenty-four hours. Chips told me I had

better come forward after supper and take a smoke in his room, for they

were going to come to some conclusion about the fellow Andrews. There had

been some talk of putting him aboard the English ship, and if we could

get the captain to agree to it, it would be done.

I loafed around until I saw a light between the crack of his door and the

bulkhead. Then I slid it back, and entered.

The stuffy little box was full of men. The bos'n, a large man named

Spurgen, who had quite a swagger for a merchant sailor, was holding forth

to the quartermaster, Hans, on nautical operations.

"An' how'd ye do if ye had an anchor atween, decks widout nothin' to

hoist it out wid?" he was saying as I came in.

Hans affirmed, with many oaths, that he'd let the "bloody hancor go

bloomin' well to the bottom before he'd fool wid it." This made the bos'n

angry, and he opened with a fierce harangue, accompanied by a description

of the necessary manoeuvres. He also made some remarks relating to the

quartermaster's knowledge of things nautical.

I took occasion to look about the little room while this was going on and

my fingers warmed up some. I then seated myself on a corner of the chest

near Chips to make myself easy, during which time the bos'n had gained

sufficient ground to enforce silence upon his adversary, and relinquish

the subject of anchors. Then came a pause during which I could

distinguish the "doctor's" voice above the mutterings, and get a whiff of

my own tobacco out of the haze.

"--five fat roaches; they'll cure you every time," he was saying to

Chips. "It's old man Green's sure remedy, sah, yes, sah. I hearn him tole

his ole mate, Mr. Gantline, when he sailed in the West Coast trade."

"Faith, ye may stave me, shipmate, but that would be an all-fired tough

dish to swallow," the carpenter declared, with a wry face. "Supposen

they didn't die? They would make a most eternal disagreeable cargo

shiftin' about amongst your ribs. May the devil grab me, ye moke, if I

wouldn't rather swell up an' bust wid th' scurvy than swallow them

fellows kickin'."

"Bile 'em, white man," said the cook. "Bile 'em in er pint er water--an'

then fling 'em overboard. Who the debble would eat er roach?"

"Right ye are, shipmate," assented Chips; "'tis an aisy enough dose to

take if all ye do is to throw th' critters to lor'ard. Sink me, though,

if I sees th' benefit av a medicine ye fling to David Jones instead av

placin' it to th' credit av yer own innerds."

"Yah, yah, Mr. Chips, but you beats me. Yes, sah, you beats me, but yer

haid is thick. Yes, sah, yer haid is thick ernuff, yah, yah," laughed the

"doctor." "What would yer do but drink the water, white man? yes, sah,

drink the water for the acid in the critter. It's salt in yer blood makes

scurvy, from libbin' so long er eatin' nuffin' but salt junk. Lime juice

is good, ef the ole man gives it to yer straight, but he nebber does. No,

sah, dat he nebber do. It's too expensive. Anyways, it doan' hab no

strength like er roach, ner no sech freshness, which am de main pint

after all."

Seeing himself out of the talk, and having completely growled down the

quartermaster, the bos'n started another subject. This was a tirade

against bad skippers and crimps who stood in too thick with the shipping

commissioners, and whom he swore were in league with each other and the

devil. He was an old sailor, and his seamed face was expressive when

launching into a favorite subject. Here was Jim's chance, and he spoke

out. "Whatever became of Jameson, what was took off by Andrews?" he

asked Chipps.

"Was he doped?" I asked.

"Didn't ye niver hear tell from O'Toole an' Garnett? They was Andrews's

mates for a spell, until th' Irishman, God bless him, knocked him

overboards an' nearly killed him in a scuffle on th' India Docks."

"Cast loose; I want to hear," said the bos'n.

There was a moment's silence, and Chips looked at me as though

questioning the senior officer of his watch. Then he fixed himself

comfortably on the chest by jamming himself against the bulkhead, locking

his hands about his knees, blowing smoke in a thick cloud.

I heard the hail of Trunnell from the bridge during this pause, asking

about a t'gallant leach-line. Thinking it well to take a look out, I did

so to see if the men obeyed his orders, and found them rather slow

slacking the line. This made it necessary for me to take a hand in

matters and instil a little discipline among them, which kept me on deck

for some minutes.