PROMOTED
The lieutenant took a boat when it became dusk and rowed to the frigate,
where he handed in his report of the fight.
“I will read that later, Mr. Farrance,” the captain said. “Meanwhile, tell
me briefly what is the result? Of course I saw you returning with the
three vessels in tow.”
“We had a very sharp fight, sir, and I am sorry to say that the casualties
are heavy, twenty-eight killed and nearly forty wounded more or less
severely.”
“That is a heavy list indeed, Mr. Farrance, very heavy, and we are the
less able to bear it since we have some seventy men away on the French
prize. The rascals must have fought desperately.”
“They did, sir. I am bound to say that men could hardly have fought
better. We had very hard work with the two outside ships, and as most of
the fellows jumped overboard and swam to the other, we had an even stiffer
fight there. In fact, if we had had only one of our division of boats
available I am sure we should not have carried her.”
“What are the casualties among the officers?”
“Midshipman Howard is killed, sir, and Lieutenant Ayling and Midshipman
James very severely wounded. I myself had a very narrow escape. I slipped
upon some blood, and two Moors rushed at me and would have killed me had
not that boy Gilmore thrown himself between us. He waved his cutlass about
wildly, and, principally from good luck, I think, cut down one of them. On
this the other attacked him, and I had time to get to my feet again. As
soon as I was up I ran the Moor through, but not before he had given the
boy a very ugly wound on the arm.”
“That is a wonderful boy,” the captain said with a smile. “I think he is
too good to remain where he is, and I must put him on the quarter-deck.”
“I should feel greatly obliged if you would, sir, for there is no doubt
that he saved my life. He is certainly as well up in his work as any of
the midshipmen. The chaplain told me only yesterday that he had learnt to
use the quadrant, and can take an observation quite as accurately as most
of his pupils.”
“Such a boy as that,” said the captain, “ought to be given a chance of
rising in his profession. He is quite at home aloft, and may be fairly
called a sailor. He is certainly a favourite with the whole crew, and I
think, if promoted, will give every satisfaction. Very well, Farrance, we
may consider that as settled.”
“Thank you very much, sir! I need hardly say that it will be a pleasure to
me to fit him out.”
The next morning there was a light breeze, and the three prizes, which had
remained four miles from the frigate through the night, closed up to her.
The wounded were transhipped, and a prize crew was told off to each of the
captures, a considerable portion of the Moors being also transferred to
the frigate and sent down into the hold.
In the afternoon Will, to his surprise, received word that the captain
wished to speak to him. His jacket had been cut off and his injured arm
was in a sling, so he could only throw the garment over his shoulders
before he hurried aft. When he reached the poop he found that the crew
were mustered, and in much trepidation as to his appearance, and with a
great feeling of wonder as to why he had been sent for, he made his way to
where the captain was standing surrounded by a group of officers.
“Men,” the captain said in a loud clear voice, “I am going to take a
somewhat unusual step, and raise one of your comrades to the quarter-deck.
Still more unusual is it that such an honour should fall to a ship’s boy.
In this case, however, I am sure you will all agree with me that the boy
in question has distinguished himself not only by his activity and
keenness aloft, but by the fact that he has, under great difficulties,
educated himself, and in manner and education is perfectly fit to be a
messmate of the midshipmen of this vessel. Moreover, in the fight
yesterday he saved the life of Lieutenant Farrance when he had fallen and
was attacked by two of the Moors. One of these the lad killed, and the
other he engaged. This gave Lieutenant Farrance time to recover his feet,
and he quickly disposed of the second Moor, not, however, before the
rascal had inflicted a severe wound on the lad. Mr. William Gilmore, I
have real pleasure in nominating you a midshipman on board His Majesty’s
ship _Furious_, and inviting you to join us on the quarter-deck.”
The cheer that broke from the men showed that they heartily approved of
the honour that had fallen upon their young comrade. As to Will himself,
he was so surprised and overcome by this most unexpected distinction that
he could scarcely speak. The captain stepped forward and shook him by the
hand, an example followed by the other officers and midshipmen.
“You had better retire,” the captain said, seeing that the lad was quite
unable to speak, “and when you have recovered from your wound the ship’s
tailor will take your uniform in hand. Lieutenant Farrance has kindly
expressed his intention of providing you with it.”
Will, with the greatest difficulty, restrained his feelings till he
reached the sick berth, and then he threw himself into a hammock and burst
into tears. Presently Tom Stevens came in to see him.
“I am glad, Will,” he said, “more glad than I can possibly express. It is
splendid to think that you are really an officer.”
“It is too much altogether, Tom. I had hoped that some day I might come to
be a mate, or even a captain in a merchant ship, but to think that in less
than two months after joining I could be on the quarter-deck was beyond my
wildest dreams. Well I hope I sha’n’t get puffed up, and I am sure, Tom,
that I shall be as much your friend as ever.”
“I don’t doubt that, Will; you would not be yourself if it made any
difference in you. Dimchurch asked me to tell you how much he too was
pleased, but that he was not surprised at all, for he felt sure that in
less than a year you would be on the quarter-deck, as it would be
ridiculous that anyone who could take an observation and be at the same
time one of the smartest hands aloft should remain in the position of
ship’s boy. One of the elder sailors said that in all his experience he
had never known but three or four cases of men being promoted from the
deck except when old warrant officers were made mates and appointed to
revenue cutters.”
“Thank Dimchurch very heartily for me, Tom, and tell him that I hope we
shall sail many years together, although it may be in different parts of
the ship. Now I will lie quiet for a time, for my arm is throbbing
dreadfully. The doctor tells me that although the wound is severe it can
hardly be called serious, for with so good a constitution as I have it
will heal quickly, and in a month I shall be able to use it as well as
before.”
The agitation and excitement, however, acted injuriously, and the next day
Will was in a state of high fever, which did not abate for some days, and
left him extremely weak.
“You have had a sharp bout of it, lad,” the doctor said, “but you are safe
now, and you will soon pick up strength again. It has had one good effect;
it has kept you from fidgeting over your wound, and I have no doubt that,
now the fever has left you, you will go on nicely.”
In another three weeks Will was able to leave the sick bay, and on the
morning he was discharged from the sick list he found by his hammock two
suits of midshipman’s uniform, a full dress and a working suit, together
with a pile of shirts and underclothing of all kinds, and two or three
pairs of shoes. His other clothes had been taken away, so he dressed
himself in the working suit, and with some little trepidation made his way
to his new quarters. The midshipmen were just sitting down to breakfast,
and, rising, they all shook hands with him and congratulated him heartily
both on his promotion and his recovery.
“You are very good to welcome me so heartily,” he said. “I know that
neither by birth nor station am I your equal.”
“You are quite our equal, youngster,” said one of the midshipmen,
“whatever you may be by birth. Not one of us could have worked half so
well as you have done; the chaplain tells us that you can take an
observation as well as he can. I can assure you we are all heartily glad
to have you with us. Sit down and make yourself at home. We have not much
to offer you besides our rations; for we have been out for over a month,
and our soft tack and all other luxuries were finished long ago, so we are
reduced to ham and biscuit.”
“It could not be better,” Will said with a smile, “for I have got such an
appetite that I could eat horse with satisfaction. I feel immensely
indebted to you, Mr. Forster; for if you had not brought my request before
the first lieutenant I should not have been able to make such progress
with my books as I have done.”
“The chaplain is a first-rate fellow—but, by the way, we have no misters
here; we all call each other by our surname plain and simple. Even Peters,
who has welcomed you in our name and who is a full-fledged master’s mate,
does not claim to be addressed as mister, though he will probably do so
before long, for the wound of Lieutenant Ayling, who, it is settled, will
be invalided when we get to Malta, will give him his step. On that
occasion we will solemnly drink his health, at his own expense of course.”
“That is not the ordinary way,” the mate laughed. “I know that you fellows
will be game to shell out a bottle apiece—I don’t think I can do it—not at
least until I get three months of my new rate of pay.”
So they laughed and chaffed, and Will felt grateful to them, for he saw
that it was in no small degree due to the desire to set him at his ease.
“You will be in the starboard watch, Gilmore,” the mate said when the meal
was finished. “That was the one Ayling had. The third lieutenant, Bowden,
who is now in charge, isn’t half a bad fellow. Of course he is a little
cocky—third lieutenants on their first commission generally are, but he is
kind-hearted and likes to makes himself popular, and he will wink one eye
when you take a nap under a gun, which is no mean virtue. The boatswain,
who is in the same watch, is a much more formidable person, and busies
himself quite unnecessarily. One cannot, however, have everything, and on
the whole you will get on very comfortably. I am in the other watch,
Rodwell and Forster are with you. They are well-meaning lads; I don’t know
that I can say anything more for them, but you will find out their faults
soon enough yourself.”
Will then went up on deck with the others. It seemed strange to him to
enter upon what he had hitherto regarded as a sort of sacred ground, and
he stood shyly aside while the others fell into their duties of looking
after the men and seeing that the work was being done. Presently the first
lieutenant came on deck. Will went up to him and touched his hat.
“I cannot tell you, sir,” he said, “how indebted I feel to you for your
kindness in speaking for me to the captain, and especially in providing me
with an outfit. I can assure you, sir, that as long as I live I shall
remember your kindness.”
“My lad, these things weigh but little against the saving of my life, and
I can assure you that it was a great satisfaction to me to be able to make
this slight return. I shall watch your career with the greatest interest,
for I am convinced that it will be a brilliant one.”
Owing to the fact that two officers had gone away in their first prize,
and that three had been killed or disabled in the late fight, there was a
shortage of officers on the _Furious_. Three had left in the Moorish
prizes, and when, a week later, another Moorish vessel was captured
without much fighting, the captain had no officers to spare above the rank
of midshipmen.
“Mr. Forster,” he said, “I have selected you to go in the prize. You can
take one of the juniors with you; I cannot spare either of the seniors.
Who would you like to take?”
“I would rather have Gilmore, sir. I feel that I can trust him
thoroughly.”
“I think you have made a good choice. I cannot spare you more than thirty
men. You will go straight to Malta, hand over your prize to the agent
there, and either wait till we return, or come back again if there should
be any means of doing so.”
Will was delighted when he heard that he was to go with Forster. “Will you
pick the crew?” he asked his friend.
“No, but I could arrange without difficulty for anyone you specially
wished.”
“I should like very much to have my friend Tom Stevens and the sailor
named Dimchurch; they are both good hands in their way, and were very
friendly with me before I got promoted.”
“All right! there will no difficulty about that; we shall want a boy to
act as our servant, and one able seaman is as good as another. I have
noticed Dimchurch; he is a fine active hand, and I will appoint him
boatswain.”
Great was the pride of Will as the prize crew rowed from the _Furious_ to
the Moorish galley of which he was to be second in command, but he could
not help bursting out laughing as he went down with Forster into the
cabin.
“What are you laughing at?” Forster asked.
“I was having a bit of a laugh at the thought of the change that has come
over my position. Not that I am conceited about it, but it all seems so
strange that I should be here and second in command.”
“No doubt it does,” laughed Forster, “but you will soon get accustomed to
it. It is almost as strange for me, for it is the first time that I have
been in command. I have brought a chart on board with me. Our course is
north-north-east, and the distance is between two and three hundred miles.
In any decent part of the world we should do it in a couple of days, but
with these baffling winds we may take a week or more. Well, I don’t much
care how long we are; it will be a luxury to be one’s own master for a
bit.”
The first step was to divide the crew into two watches.
“I am entitled not to keep a watch,” Forster said, “but I shall certainly
waive the privilege. We will take a watch each.”
Tom Stevens was appointed cabin servant, and one of the men was made cook;
nine of the others were told off to each watch.
“I wish she hadn’t all those prisoners on board,” Forster said. “They will
be a constant source of anxiety. There are over fifty of them, and as
hang-dog scoundrels as one would wish to see. We shall have to keep a
sharp look-out on them, to make sure that they don’t get a ghost of a
chance of coming up on deck, for if they did they would not think twice
about cutting our throats.”
“I don’t see how they could possibly get out,” Will said.
“No; it generally does look like that, but they manage it sometimes for
all that. These fellows know that when they get to Malta they will be set
to work in the yards, and if there was an opportunity, however small, for
them to break out, you may be sure that they would take it. These Moorish
pirates are about as ruffianly scoundrels as are to be found, and if they
don’t put their prisoners to death they only spare them for what they will
fetch as slaves.”
After three days’ sailing they had made but little way, for it was only in
the morning and the evening that there was any breeze. Will had just
turned in for the middle watch, and had scarcely dropped to sleep, when he
was suddenly awakened by a loud noise. He sprang out of bed, seized his
dirk and a brace of pistols which were part of the equipment given him by
the first lieutenant. As he ran up the companion he heard a coil of rope
thrown against the door, so he leapt down again and ran with all speed to
the men’s quarters. They, too, were all on their feet, but the hatch had
been battened down above them.
“This is a bad job, sir,” Dimchurch said. “How they have got out I have no
idea. I looked at the fastenings of the two hatches when I came down
twenty minutes ago, and they looked to me all right. I am afraid they will
cut all our comrades’ throats.”
“I fear so, Dimchurch. What do you think we had better do?”
“I don’t know, sir; it will require a good deal of thinking out. I don’t
suppose they will meddle with us at present, but of course they will
sooner or later.”
“Well, Dimchurch, as a first step we will bring all the mess tables and
other portable things forward here, and make a barricade with them. We
will also obtain two or three barrels of water and a stock of food, so
that when the time comes we may at any rate be able to make a stout
resistance.”
“That is a good idea, sir. We will set to work at once.”
In a short time, with the aid of tubs of provisions, barrels of water, and
bales of goods, a barricade was built across the bow of the vessel,
forming a triangular enclosure of about fourteen feet on each side. The
arms were then collected and placed inside, and when this was done there
was a general feeling of satisfaction that they could at least sell their
lives dearly.
“Now, sir, what is the next step?” Dimchurch asked. “You have only to give
your orders and we are ready to carry them out.”
“I have thought of nothing at present,” Will said. “I fancy it will be
better to allow them to make the first move, for even with the advantage
of attacking them in the dark we could hardly hope to overcome four times
our number.”
“It would be a tough job certainly, sir; but if the worst comes to the
worst, we might try it.”
“It must come to quite the worst, Dimchurch, before we take such a step as
that.”
As evening approached, the Moors were heard descending the companion.
There was a buzz of talk, and then they came rushing forward. When they
reached the door between the fore and aft portions of the ship Will and
his men opened fire upon them, and as they poured out they were shot down.
Seven or eight fell, and then the others dashed forward. The seamen lined
the barricade and made a strenuous resistance. Cutlass clashed against
Moorish yatagan; the Moors were too crowded together to use their guns,
and as they could gather no more closely in front than the sailors stood,
they were unable to break through the barricade. At last, after many had
fallen, the rest retired. Three or four of the sailors had received more
or less severe wounds, but none were absolutely disabled. Tom Stevens had
fought pluckily among the rest, and Will was ready with his shouts of
encouragement, and a cutlass he had taken for use instead of his dirk,
wherever the pressure was most severe.
When the Moors had retired, Dimchurch and two others went outside the
barricade and piled some heavy bales against the door, after first
carrying out the dead Moors.
“They will hardly attack us that way again, sir,” he said to Will; “it
will be our turn next time.”
“Yes, six of their number are killed, and probably several badly wounded,
so we ought to have a good chance of success if we make a dash at them in
the dark.”
They waited until night had fallen. Then Will said:
“Do you think you can lift that hatchway, Dimchurch?”
“I will have a pretty hard try anyhow,” the man said. “I will roll this
tub under it; that will give me a chance of using my strength.”
Although he was able to move it slightly, his utmost efforts failed to
lift it more than an inch or two.
“They have piled too many ropes on it for me, sir; but I think that if
some others will get on tubs and join me we shall be able to move the
thing.”
“Wait a minute, Dimchurch. Let each man make sure that his musket is
loaded.”
There was a short pause, during which all firelocks were carefully
examined. When he saw that all were in good order, Will said:
“Now, lads, heave away.”
Slowly the hatchway yielded, and with a great effort it was pushed up far
enough for a man to crawl out. Pieces of wood were shoved in at each
corner so as to hold the hatch open, and the men who had lifted it stood
clear.
“Clamber out, Dimchurch, and have a look round. Are there many of them on
deck?”
“Only about a dozen, as far as I can make out, sir. They are jabbering
away among themselves disputing, I should say, as to the best way to get
at us.”
“I expect they intend to leave us alone and take us into Algiers. However,
that does not matter. You two crawl out and lie down, then give me a hand
and hoist me out. I think the others can all reach, except Tom; you had
better hoist him up after me.”
Each man, as he clambered out, lay down on the deck. When all were up,
they crawled along aft to within a few yards of the Moors, then leapt to
their feet and fired a volley. Five of the Moors fell, while the others,
panic-stricken, ran below.
“Now, pile cables over the hatchway,” Will shouted.
The sailors rushed to carry out the order. They were startled as they did
so by a shout from above.
“Hillo, below there! Have you got possession of the ship?”
“Yes. Is that you, Forster?”
“Yes.”
“Thank God for that!” Will shouted back, while the men gave a cheer. “Why
don’t you come down?”
“I am going to slide down the mast.”
“What for? Why don’t you come down by the rattlings?”
“I have cut the shrouds. When our last man fell I made a dash for them,
and directly I got to the top I cut them, and half a dozen men who were
climbing after me fell sprawling to the deck. Then I cut them on the other
side. I thought then that they would at once shoot me, but there was a
lively argument among them and shouts of laughter, and they evidently
thought that it would be a great joke to leave me up here until I chose to
slide down and be killed. Of course I heard their attack on you, and
trembled for the result; but when the noise suddenly ceased I guessed that
you had repulsed them. Well, here goes!” and half a minute later he slid
down to the deck. “How do matters stand?” he asked, when he stood among
them.
“We killed six and wounded eight or ten in the first attack upon us, and
we have shot five more now. All the rest are battened down below.”
“There they had better remain for the present. Well, Gilmore, I
congratulate you on having recaptured the ship. It has been a bad affair,
for we have lost nine men killed; but as far as you are concerned you have
done splendidly. I am afraid I shall get a pretty bad wigging for allowing
them to get out, though certainly the bolts of the hatchways were all
right when we changed the watch. Of course I see now that I ought to have
placed a man there as sentry. It is always so mighty easy to be wise after
the event. I expect the rascals pretty nearly cut the wood away round the
bolts, and after the watch was changed set to work and completed the job.
We shall not, however, be able to investigate that until we get to Malta.”
“We have blocked up the door between the fore and the after parts of the
ship,” said Will; “but I think it would be as well to place a sentry at
each hatch now, as they might turn the tables upon us again.”
“Certainly. Are you badly wounded, Dimchurch?”
“I have got a slash across the cheek, sir, but nothing to speak of.”
“Well, will you take post at the after-hatch for the present. Stevens, you
may as well go down and guard the door. You will be able to tell us, at
least, if they are up to any mischief. I should think, however, the fight
is pretty well taken out of them, and that they will resign themselves to
their fate now.”
“This is a bad job for me,” Forster said, as he and Will sat down together
on a gun.
“I am awfully sorry, Forster, but I am afraid there is no getting out of
it.”
“No, that is out of the question.”
“There is one thing, Forster. If you did not put a sentry over the
hatchway, neither did I, so I am just as much to blame for the disaster as
you are. If I had had a man there they could hardly have cut away the
woodwork without his hearing. I certainly wish you to state in your report
that you took the watch over from me just as I left it, and that no sentry
had been placed there, as ought certainly to have been done when I came on
watch at eight o’clock.”
“It is very kind of you, Gilmore, to wish to take the blame upon your own
shoulders, but the responsibility is wholly mine. I ought to have reminded
you to put a man there, there can be no question at all about that, but I
never gave the matter a thought, and the blunder has cost us nine good
seamen. I shall be lucky if I only escape with a tremendous wigging. I
must bear it as well as I can.”
While they were talking the sailors were busy splicing the shrouds. When
this was done two of the men swarmed up the mast by means of the
halliards. Then they hoisted up the shrouds, and fastened them round the
mast, making all taut by means of the lanyards. The sails were still
standing, flapping loosely in the light breeze, so the sheets were hauled
in and the vessel again began to move through the water. Two days later
they anchored in Valetta harbour.
“Here goes,” Forster said, as he stepped into the boat with his report.
“It all depends now on what sort of a man the admiral is, but I should not
be surprised if he ordered me to take court-martial.”
“Oh, I hope not!” Will exclaimed. “I do wish you would let me go with you
to share the blame.”
“It cannot be thought of,” Forster said; “the commanding officer must make
the report.”
Two hours later Forster returned.
“It is all right, Gilmore,” he said as the boat came alongside. “Of course
I got a wigging. The admiral read the report and then looked at me as
fierce as a tiger.
“ ‘How was it that no sentry was placed over the prisoners?’
“ ‘I have to admit, sir,’ I said, ‘that I entirely overlooked that. I am
quite conscious that my conduct was indefensible, but I have certainly
paid very heavily for it.’
“ ‘It was a smart trick taking to the shrouds,’ the admiral said, ‘though
one would have thought they would have shot you at once after you had cut
them.’
“ ‘That is what I expected, sir,’ said I, ‘but they seemed to think it was
a very good joke, my being a prisoner up there, and preferred to wait till
I was driven down by thirst.’
“ ‘I suppose your men sold their lives dearly?’ he asked.
“ ‘Yes, sir,’ I replied. ‘Taken by surprise as they were they certainly
accounted for more than one man each.’
“ ‘And doubtless you did the same, Mr. Forster?’
“ ‘Yes, sir, I cut down two of them, and I did not cease fighting until I
saw that all was lost.’
“ ‘Then I suppose you thought that your duty to His Majesty was to take
care of yourself,’ he said slyly.
“ ‘I am afraid, sir,’ I said, ‘at that moment I thought more of my duty
towards myself than of my duty to him.’
“He smiled grimly.
“ ‘I have no doubt that was so, Mr. Forster. Well, you committed a
blunder, and I hope it will be a lesson to you in future.’
“ ‘It will indeed, sir,’ I said.
“Then he started to question me about you.
“ ‘Your junior officer seems to have behaved very well,’ he said.
“ ‘Extremely well, sir,’ I said. ‘I only wish I had done as well.’
“ ‘His plan of forming a barricade across the bow so that his little force
were ample to defend it was excellent,’ he said. ‘Also the blocking up of
the door of communication through the bulkhead was well thought of, and
his final escape through the hatchway and sudden attack upon the enemy was
well carried out. I will make a note of his name. I suppose he is not as
old as yourself, as he is your junior?’
“ ‘No, sir, he is not yet sixteen, and he was only promoted from being a
ship’s boy to the quarter-deck three weeks ago.’
“ ‘Promoted from being a ship’s boy?’ the admiral said in surprise.
“Then I had to give a detailed account, not only of the fight that led to
your promotion, but also of your life so far as I knew it.
“When I had finished, the admiral said:
“ ‘He must be a singular lad, this Gilmore, and is likely to prove an
honour to the navy. Bring him up here at this hour to-morrow; I shall be
glad to see him. There, now, you may go, and don’t forget in future that
when you are in charge of prisoners you must always place a guard over
them.’
“So unknowingly you have done me a good turn, Gilmore, for I expect that
if the admiral had not been so interested in you he would not have let me
off so easily. You must put on your best uniform for the first time and go
up to-morrow.”
“Well, I am afraid I should have felt very shaky if I had not heard your
account of the admiral. From what you say it is evident he is a kindly
man, and after all you have told him about me he can’t have many questions
to ask.”
“Well, I feel a good deal easier in my mind, as you may guess,” Forster
said. “When I went ashore I felt like a bad boy who is in for a flogging.
I dare say I shall get it a little hotter from the captain, but it will be
just a wigging, and there will be no talk of courts-martial. By what we
saw of the goods on board this craft before this rumpus took place I fancy
the Moor had captured and plundered a well-laden merchantman. In that case
the prize-money will be worth a good round sum, and as the admiral gets a
picking out of it he will be still more inclined to look favourably on the
matter. Here comes the boat to take off the prisoners. I have no doubt
some of them will be hanged, especially as they will not be able to give
any satisfactory explanation as to the fate of the merchantman. As soon as
we have got rid of them we will overhaul a few of the bales and see what
are their contents.”
When the last of the prisoners were taken ashore Forster and Gilmore went
below and examined the cargo. This proved to consist of valuable Eastern
stuffs, broad-cloths, silks, and Turkish carpets.
“It could not be better,” Forster said; “she must be worth a lot of money,
and it will add to the nice little handful of prize-money we shall get
when we return home. They ought to give us a good round sum for the
_Proserpine_; then there were the three Moorish vessels, though I don’t
think they were worth much, for their holds were nearly empty and I fancy
they had only been cruising a short time. This fellow, however, is a rich
prize; he certainly had very hard luck, falling in with us as he did. I
fancy the ship they pillaged was a Frenchman or Italian, more likely the
latter. I don’t think there are many French merchantmen about, and it is
most likely that the cargo was intended for Genoa, whence a good part of
it might be sent to Paris. Well, it makes little difference to us what its
destination was, its proceeds are certainly destined to enrich us instead
of its original consignees.”
The next morning Will put on his best uniform for the first time, and,
landing with Forster, ascended the Nix Mangare stairs and called on the
admiral.
“Well, Mr. Gilmore,” the admiral said as he was shown in, “it gives me
great pleasure to meet so promising a young officer. Will you kindly tell
me such details of your early history as may seem fitting to you.”
Will gave him a fairly detailed account of his history up to the time he
joined the navy.
“Well, sir, you cannot be too grateful to that young lady, but at the same
time there are few who would have availed themselves so well of her
assistance. It is nothing short of astonishing that you should have
progressed so far under her care that you were able, after a few lessons
from the chaplain of your ship, to use a quadrant. As a mark of my
approbation I will present you with one. I will send it off to your ship
to-morrow morning.”
With many thanks Will took his leave, and returned with Forster to the
prize.
On the following morning the quadrant arrived. That afternoon the prize
was handed over to the prize-agents, and the crew transferred to the naval
barracks, Forster and Gilmore receiving lodging money to live on shore.
Hitherto, the only fortifications Will had seen were those of Portsmouth,
so he was greatly interested in the castle with its heavy frowning stone
batteries, the deep cut separating it from the rest of the island, and its
towering rock. Then there was the church of St. John, paved with
tombstones of the knights, and other places of interest. The costume and
appearance of the inhabitants amused and pleased him, as did the shops
with their laces, cameos, and lovely coral ornaments. Beyond the walls
there were the gardens full of orange-trees, bright with their fruit, and
the burying-place of the old monks, each body standing in a niche, dressed
in his gown and cowl as in life.
Will wished that he could get his share of prize-money at once, and
promised himself that his very first expenditure would be a suite of coral
for the lady who had done so much for him. In no way, he thought, could he
lay out money with such gratification to himself.
A fortnight later the _Furious_ came into harbour bringing another prize
with her. This had been taken without any trouble. One morning, when day
broke, she was seen only a quarter of a mile from the frigate. A gun was
at once fired across her bows, and, seeing that escape was impossible, she
hauled down her colours without resistance.
Forster and Gilmore, with the officers who had brought in the other
prizes, all went on board at once and made their reports. As Forster had
predicted, he was severely reprimanded for not having placed a sentry over
the prisoners, but in consideration of the fact that he had already been
spoken to by the admiral himself the captain was less severe on him than
he would otherwise have been. Gilmore, on the other hand, was warmly
commended.
“You managed extremely well,” the captain said, “and showed that you fully
deserved your promotion.”