AN INDEPENDENT COMMAND
Will was hit by a musket-ball in the last engagement that took place, and
was sent back with a batch of wounded to Port Royal. Three of the fingers
of his left hand had been carried away, but he bore the loss with
equanimity, as it would not compel him to leave the service. Tom, who went
with him as his servant, fretted a good deal more over it than he himself,
and was often loud in his lamentations.
“It would not have made any difference if it had been me,” he said, “but
it is awfully hard on you.”
“What ridiculous nonsense, Tom!” Will said quite angrily, after one of
these outbursts. “If it had been you it would have been really serious,
for though an officer can get on very well without some of his fingers a
sailor would be useless and would be turned adrift with some trifling
pension. I shall do very well. I have been mentioned in despatches and I
am certain to get my step as soon as I have served long enough to pass, so
after a time I shall not miss them at all.”
Tom was silenced, though not convinced. The wound healed rapidly, thanks
to Will’s abstemious habits, and in six weeks after entering the hospital
he was discharged as fit for duty. The _Hawke_ was not in harbour, so he
went to an hotel. On the following day he received an order to call upon
the admiral. When he did so that officer received him very kindly. “I am
sorry,” he said, “to learn that you have lost some fingers, Mr. Gilmore.”
“I hope it will not interfere much with my efficiency, sir?”
“I think not,” the admiral said; “I have received the surgeon’s report
this morning. In it he stated that your wound had from the first gone on
most favourably, and that they had really kept you in hospital a fortnight
longer than was absolutely necessary, lest in your anxiety to rejoin you
might do yourself harm. Three days since a cutter of about a hundred tons
was sent in by the _Sylph_. She was a pirate, and, like all vessels of
that class, very fast, and would most likely have outsailed the _Sylph_
had she not caught her up a creek. I have purchased her for the government
service, and I propose to place you in command.”
Will gave a start of surprise. At his age he could not have expected for a
moment to be given an independent command.
“I have noted your behaviour here, and have looked through the records of
your service since you joined, and I am convinced that you will do credit
to the post. I shall give you a midshipman junior to yourself from the
_Thetis_, and you will have forty hands before the mast. The _Hawke_ is
expected in in a few days, so you can pick five men from her. The rest I
will make up from the other ships. The cutter will be furnished with four
twelve-pounders, and the long sixteen as a bow gun, which she had when she
was captured. Your duty will be to police the coasts and to overhaul as
many craft as you may find committing depredations, of course avoiding a
combat with adversaries too strong for you.”
“I thank you most heartily, sir, for selecting me for this service, and
will do my best to merit your kindness.”
“That is all right, Mr. Gilmore. I have acted, as I believe, for the good
of the service, and to some extent as an incentive to other young officers
to use their wits.”
Will went out with his head in a whirl. He could hardly have hoped, within
a year of his term of service as a midshipman, to obtain a separate
command, and he could have shouted with joy at this altogether unexpected
promotion. The first thing he did was to take a boat and row off in it to
his new command. She was a handsome boat, evidently designed to be fast
and weatherly.
“These beggars know how to build boats much better than how to fight
them,” he said, when he had examined her. “Assuredly in anything like a
light wind she would run away from the _Sylph_. The admiral was right when
he said that it was only by chance that she was caught. I hope the fellow
who is going with me is a good sort. It would be awkward if we did not
pull well together. At any rate, as the admiral seems to have picked him
out for the service, he must be worth his salt. Of course I shall have
Dimchurch as my boatswain; he will take one watch and the youngster the
other. It will be hard if we don’t catch something.”
Having rowed round the cutter two or three times he returned to the shore.
As the little vessel had been taken by surprise, and had not been able to
offer any resistance to a craft so much more powerful than herself, she
was uninjured, and was in a fit state to be immediately recommissioned.
She was called _L’Agile_, a name which Will thought very suitable for her.
“Forty men will be none too strong for her,” he said, “for we shall have
to work two guns on each side and that long one in the bow.” He went to
bed that night and dreamt of fierce fights and many captures, and laughed
at himself when he awoke. “Still,” he said, “I shall always be able to
tackle any craft of our own size and carrying anything like our number of
men.”
Three days later the _Hawke_ came in. Will at once rowed off to her and
had a chat with his friends. When he mentioned his new command his news
was at first received with absolute incredulity, but when at last his
messmates came to understand that he was not joking, he was heartily
congratulated on his good fortune. Afterwards he was not a little chaffed
on the tremendous deeds he and his craft were going to perform. When at
last they became serious, Latham, the master’s mate, remarked: “But what
is your new command like?”
“She is a cutter of about a hundred tons, carrying four twelve-pounders,
and a sixteen-pounder long pivot gun at the bow. I am to have forty men
and a young midshipman from the _Thetis_.”
“A very tidy little craft, I should say, Gilmore, and you will probably
get a good deal more fun out of her than from a frigate or line-of-battle
ship. You will want a good boatswain to take charge of one of the
watches.”
“I shall have one, for I am to take five men out of the _Hawke_, and you
may be sure I shall take Dimchurch as boatswain.”
“You could not have a better man,” Latham said; “he is certainly one of
the smartest fellows on board the ship. He is very popular with all the
men, and is full of life and go, and always the first to set an example
when there is any work to be done. I suppose we shall also lose the
services of that boy Tom?”
“I think so,” Will laughed; “I should be quite lost without so faithful a
hand, and indeed, though he still ranks as a boy, he is a big powerful
fellow, and a match for many an A.B. at hauling a rope or pulling an oar.”
“You are right. He is as big round the chest as many of the men, and
though perhaps not so active, quite as powerful. When will you hoist your
pendant?”
“I have to get the crew together yet. I am to have small drafts from
several of the ships, and it may be a few days before they can be
collected.”
The next morning the _Thetis_ arrived, and the young midshipman came on
shore an hour later to report himself to Will. He looked surprised for a
moment at the age of his new commander, but gravely reported himself for
service. Will was pleased with his appearance. He was a merry-faced boy,
but with a look on his face which indicated pluck and determination.
“You are surprised at my age, no doubt, Harman,” Will said, “and I cannot
be more than a year older than yourself, but I have been fortunate enough
to be twice mentioned in despatches, indeed have had wonderful luck. I
feel sure that we shall get on well together, and I hope both do well. We
are to act as police on the coast of Cuba; it swarms with pirates, and it
will be hard if we don’t fall in with some of them. You will, of course,
keep one watch, and the boatswain, who is a thoroughly good man, will take
the other. I need hardly say that we shall have no nonsense about
commanding officer. Except when on duty, I hope we shall be good chums,
which means, of course, that when an enemy is in sight or the weather is
dirty I must be in absolute command.”
“Thank you, sir!” Harman said. “These are good terms, and I promise to
obey your commands as readily as if you were old enough to be my father.”
“That is good. Now I have dinner ordered and I hope you will share it with
me. We can then talk over matters comfortably.”
Before dinner was over, the lad was more than satisfied with his new
chief, and felt sure that at any rate the cruise would be a pleasant one.
Just as they had finished, Dimchurch and Tom came in to see Will. On
finding that he was engaged they would have withdrawn, but Will called
them in. “Sit down and join Mr. Harman and myself in a chat. This, Harman,
is Bob Dimchurch, who is going to be our boatswain, and Tom Stevens, whom
I have known since we were five years old, and although I have gone over
his head we are as good friends as ever. Dimchurch took me under his wing
when I first joined, and since then has fought by my side on several
occasions.”
“We came to wish you success in your new command, sir,” Dimchurch said,
“and should not have intruded had we known that you were not alone.”
“It is no intrusion at all, Dimchurch. There is no man whose
congratulations can be more pleasing to me. Have you seen the cutter?”
“Yes, sir. Tom and I noticed what a smart, likely craft she was when we
came in and dropped anchor. I little thought that it was you who had
command of her, but I have no fear but that you will do her full justice.
I could hardly believe my ears when I was told this afternoon, and Tom was
ready to jump out of his clothes with joy.”
“It is wonderfully good fortune, Dimchurch; I can hardly believe it myself
yet.”
“I am sure you deserve it, sir. It was you who recaptured that prize in
the Mediterranean; it was you who saved the first lieutenant’s life; and
it was you who suggested a plan by which we accounted for those three
pirates. If that didn’t deserve promotion, it is hard to say what would.”
“I owe no small portion of it, Dimchurch, to the fact that I was able to
take an observation so soon after I had joined, and that was due to the
kindness of my good friend Miss Warden.”
“Yes, sir, that goes for something, no doubt, but there is a good deal
more than that in it.” After some further talk both of the past and the
future, Dimchurch sprang to his feet, saying: “Well, sir, I wish you
success. But it is time we were off. I am told we are to remove our duds
on board the new craft to-morrow.”
“Yes, we are going to start manning her at once; I shall be on board with
Mr. Harman directly after breakfast. I have not put foot upon her yet, and
am most anxious to do so.”
The craft fully answered Will’s expectations. Her after-accommodation was
exceedingly good; the cabin was handsomely fitted, and there were two
state-rooms.
“We shall be in clover here, Harman,” he said; “no one could wish for a
better command. I must set to work to get stores shipped at once. How many
of the crew are on board?”
“Twenty-three, sir, and I believe we shall have our full complement before
night.”
As they spoke a boat laden with provisions came alongside, and all hands
were at once engaged transferring her load to the cutter. In the course of
the forenoon the remainder of the men came on board in twos and threes.
After dinner Will called the crew together and read out his commission.
Then he made his maiden speech.
“My lads,” he said, “I wish this to be a comfortable ship, and I will do
my best to make it so. I shall expect the ready obedience of all; and you
may be assured that if possible I will put you in the way of gaining
prize-money. There are plenty of prizes to be taken, and I hope
confidently that many of them will fall to our share.” The men gave three
cheers, and Will added: “I will order an extra supply of grog to be served
out this evening.”
On the following day _L’Agile_ dipped her ensign to the admiral and set
off on her voyage. Will was well pleased with the smartness the crew
displayed in getting under weigh, and more than satisfied with the pace at
which she moved through the water. For a month they cruised off the coast
of Cuba, during which time they picked up eight small prizes. These were
for the most part rowing-galleys carrying one large lateen sail. None of
them were sufficiently strong to show fight; they were not intended to
attack merchantmen, but preyed upon native craft, and were manned by from
ten to twenty desperadoes. Most of them, when overhauled, pretended to be
peaceful fishermen or traders, but a search always brought to light
concealed arms, and in some cases captured goods. The boats were burned,
and their crews, mostly mulattoes, with a sprinkling of negroes—rascals
whose countenances were sufficiently villainous to justify their being
hanged without trial,—were put ashore; for the admiral had given
instructions to Will not to burden himself with prisoners, who would have
to be closely guarded, and would therefore weaken his crew, and, if
brought to Port Royal, would take up prison accommodation.
At last one day a schooner rather bigger than themselves was sighted. Her
appearance was rakish, and there was little doubt as to her character. All
sail was at once crowded on _L’Agile_. The schooner was nearly as fast as
she was, and at the end of a six hours’ chase she was still two miles
ahead. Suddenly she headed for the shore and disappeared among the trees.
_L’Agile_ proceeded on her course until opposite the mouth of the inlet
which the pirate had entered. It was getting dark, and Will decided to
wait until morning, and then to send a boat in to reconnoitre.
“I have not forgotten,” he said to Harman, “the way in which those two
French frigates I have told you of ran into a trap, and I don’t mean to be
caught so if I can help it.”
_L’Agile_ remained hove to during the night, and in the morning lowered a
boat, with four hands, commanded by Dimchurch, who was ordered to row in
until he obtained a fair view of the enemy, and observe as far as possible
what preparation had been made for defence. He was absent for half an
hour, and then returned, saying that the schooner was lying anchored with
her sails stowed at the far end of the inlet, which was about half a mile
long and nearly as wide, with her broadside bearing on the entrance.
“If it is as large as that,” Will said, “there will be plenty of room for
us to manœuvre. Did you make out what number of guns she carried?”
“Yes, sir, she mounted four guns on each side; I should say they were for
the most part ten-pounders.”
“I think we can reckon upon taking her. Our guns are of heavier metal than
hers, and the long-tom will make up for our deficiency in numbers.”
_L’Agile_ was put under as easy sail as would suffice to give her
manœuvring powers, and then headed for the mouth of the inlet. She was
half-way through when suddenly two hidden batteries, each mounting three
guns, opened upon her.
“Drop the anchor at once,” Will shouted; “we will finish with these
gentlemen before we go farther.” The schooner at the same time opened
fire, but at half a mile range her guns did not inflict much damage upon
the cutter. Lying between the two batteries she engaged them both, her
broadside guns firing with grape, while the long-tom sent a shot into each
alternately. In a quarter of an hour their fire was silenced, three of the
guns were dismounted, and the men who had been working them fled
precipitately.
“Take a boat and spike the remaining guns, Dimchurch,” Will said; “I don’t
want any more bother with them.”
In a few minutes Dimchurch returned to the cutter, having accomplished his
mission. The anchor was then got up again, and she proceeded to attack the
schooner. _L’Agile’s_ casualties had been trifling; only one had been
killed and three wounded, all of them slightly. As she sailed up the inlet
she replied with her pivot-gun to the fire of the enemy. At every shot the
splinters were seen to fly from the schooner’s side, much to the
discomfiture of the pirate gunners, whose aim became so wild that scarcely
a shot struck _L’Agile_. When within a hundred yards of the schooner the
helm was put down, and the cutter swept round and opened fire with her two
broadside guns.
The shots had scarcely rung out when Harman touched Will on the shoulder.
“Look there, sir,” he said. Will turned and saw a vessel emerging from a
side channel, which was so closed in with trees that it had been
unperceived by anybody aboard the cutter. Her aim was evidently to get
between them and the sea. She was a cutter of about the same size as
_L’Agile_, but carried six ten-pounders.
“The schooner has enticed us in here,” Will said, “there is no doubt about
that, and now there is nothing to do but to fight it out. Take her head
round,” he said, “we will settle it with the cutter first. The schooner
cannot come to her assistance for some minutes as she has all her sails
furled.”
Accordingly he ranged up to the new-comer, and a furious contest ensued.
He engaged her with two broadside guns and the long-tom, and at the same
time kept his other two guns playing upon the schooner, the crew of which
were busy getting up sail. The long-tom was served by Dimchurch himself,
and every shot went crashing through the side of the pirate cutter, the
fire of the two broadside guns being almost equally effective.
“Keep it up, lads,” Will shouted; “we shall finish with her before the
other can come up.” As he spoke a shot from the long-tom struck the
cutter’s mainmast, which tottered for a moment and then fell over her side
towards _L’Agile_, and the sails and hamper entirely prevented the crew
from working her guns. For another five minutes the fire was kept up; then
the crew were seen to be leaping overboard, and presently a man stood up
and shouted that she surrendered. The schooner was now coming up fast.
“Don’t let her escape,” Will shouted; “she has had enough of it, and is
trying to get away. Run her aboard!” In a minute the two vessels crashed
together, and headed by Will, Harman, and Dimchurch, _L’Agile’s_ crew
sprang on board the schooner.
The pirate crew were evidently discouraged by the fate of their consort
and by the complete failure of their plan to capture _L’Agile_. The
captain, a gigantic mulatto, fought desperately, as did two or three of
his principal men. One of them charged at Will while he was engaged with
another, and would have killed him had not Tom Stevens sprung forward and
caught the blow on his own cutlass. The sword flew from the man’s hand,
and Tom at once cut him down. Dimchurch engaged in a single-handed contest
with the great mulatto captain. Strong as the sailor was he could with
difficulty parry the ruffian’s blows, but skill made up for inequality of
strength, and after a few exchanges he laid the man low with a clever
thrust. The fall of their leader completed the discomfiture of the
pirates, most of whom at once sprang overboard and made for the shore,
those who remained being cut down by the sailors.
When at last they were masters of the ship the crew gave three lusty
cheers. But Will did not permit them to waste precious time in rejoicing.
He knew that, though they had accomplished so much, there was still a
great deal to be done, for the prizes might even yet be recaptured before
they got them out to sea. Without a moment’s delay, therefore, he sent a
boat to take possession of the cutter. The sail and wreckage were cleared
away, and the boat proceeded to tow her out of the inlet. In the meantime
a warp was taken from _L’Agile_ to the schooner, the sails of the latter
were lowered, and Will sailed proudly out with his second prize in tow.
Once fairly at sea the crew began to repair damages. Five men in all had
been killed and eleven were wounded. Several of the latter, however, were
able to lend a hand. The shot-holes in _L’Agile_ were first patched with
pieces of plank, then covered with canvas, and afterwards given a coat of
paint. Then the schooner was taken in hand, and when she was got into
something like ship-shape order her sails were hoisted again, and ten men
under Harman placed on board to work her. The cutter was taken in tow,
only three men being left on board to steer.
It was late in the afternoon before all the repairs were completed. Before
sailing, a rough examination was made of the holds of the two vessels, and
to the great satisfaction of _L’Agile’s_ crew both were found to contain a
considerable amount of booty.
“It is probable that there is a storehouse somewhere,” Will said; “but as
we have under thirty available men it would be madness to try to land, for
certainly two-thirds of the scoundrels escaped by swimming, and as each
craft must have carried nearly a hundred men we should have been
altogether overmatched. Well, they had certainly a right to count upon
success; their arrangements were exceedingly good. No doubt they expected
us to leave the batteries alone, and from the position in which they were
placed they could have peppered us hotly while we were engaged with the
schooner; in which case they would probably have had an easy victory. It
was a cleverly-laid trap and ought to have succeeded.”
“And it would, sir,” Dimchurch said, “if you had not turned from the
schooner and settled with the cutter before the other could come to her
assistance.”
“The credit is largely due to you,” Will said; “that shot of yours that
took the mast out was the turning-point of the fight. It completely
crippled her, and as it luckily fell towards us it altogether prevented
them from returning our fire.”
Very proud were Will and his crew when they sailed into Port Royal with
their two prizes. Will at once rowed to the flagship, where he received a
very hearty greeting. “You have not come empty-handed, I see, Mr.
Gilmore,” the admiral said; “you were lucky indeed to take two ships of
your own size one after the other.”
“We took them at the same time, sir,” Will said, “as you will see by my
report.”
The admiral gave a look of surprise and opened the document. First he ran
his eye over it, then he read it more attentively. When he had finished he
said: “You have fought a most gallant action, Mr. Gilmore, a most gallant
action. It was indeed long odds you had against you, two vessels each
considerably over your own size and manned by far heavier crews, besides
the two batteries. It was an excellent idea to leave the vessel with which
you were first engaged and turn upon the second one. If you had tried to
fight them both at once you would almost certainly have been overcome, and
you succeeded because you were cool enough to grasp the fact that the
schooner at anchor and with her sails down would not be able to come to
her friend’s assistance for some minutes, and acted so promptly on your
conclusions. The oldest officer in the service could not have done better.
I congratulate you very heartily on your conduct. What are the contents of
the cargoes of the prizes?”
“I cannot say, sir. With three vessels on my hands I had no time to
examine them, but they certainly contain a number of bales of various
sorts. I opened one which contained British goods.”
“Then no doubt they are the pick of the cargoes they captured,” the
admiral said; “I will go off with you myself and ascertain. I have nothing
else to do this afternoon, and it will be a matter of interest to me as
well as to you. You may as well let your own gig row back and I will take
mine.”
Accordingly the gig was sent back to _L’Agile_ with orders for two boats
to be lowered and twenty of the men to be ready to go to the two prizes.
As soon as the admiral came on board the hatchways were opened, and the
men brought up a number of the bales. These were found to contain fine
cloths, material for women’s dresses, china, ironmongery, carpets, and
other goods of British manufacture. The other vessel contained sugar,
coffee, ginger, spices, and other products of the islands. “That is
enough,” said the admiral; “I don’t think we shall be far wrong if we put
down the value of those two cargoes at £10,000. The two vessels will sell
for about £1000 apiece, so that the prize-money will be altogether about
£12,000, and even after putting aside my portion you will all share to a
handsome amount in the proceeds. That is the advantage of not belonging to
a squadron. In that case your share would not be worth anything like what
it will now be. By the way, since you have been absent I have received the
account of the prize-money earned by the _Furious_ in the Mediterranean
and by the capture of the French frigates. It amounts in all to £35,000.
Of course as a midshipman your share will not be very large; probably,
indeed, it will not exceed £250, so, you see, pirate-hunting in the West
Indies, in command even of a small craft, pays enormously better than
being a midshipman on board a frigate.”
“It does indeed, sir, though £250 would be a fortune to a midshipman.”
“Well, if our calculations as to the value of the cargoes and ships are
correct, you will get more than ten times that amount now. And as there
are only the flag and one other officer to share with you, the men’s
portion will be something like £100 apiece. A few more captures like
this,” and he laughed, “and you will become a rich man.”
He then rowed away to his own ship, and Will returned to _L’Agile_ and
gladdened the hearts of Harman and the crew with the news of the value of
their captures. _L’Agile_ remained another week in harbour, during which
time all signs of the recent conflict were removed, and he received a
draft of men sufficient to bring his crew up to its former level. Then she
again set sail.
They had cruised for about a fortnight when one morning, just as Will was
getting up, Dimchurch ran down and reported that they had sighted two
sails suspiciously near each other. “One,” he said, “looks to me a
full-rigged ship, and the other a large schooner.”
“I will have a look at them,” Will said, and, putting on his clothes, he
ran on deck.
“Yes, it certainly looks suspicious,” he said, when he had examined them
through his telescope; “we will head towards them.”
“She looks to me a very large schooner, sir,” said Dimchurch.
“Yes, she is larger than these pirates generally are, but there is very
little doubt as to her character. How far are they off, do you think?”
“Ten miles, sir, I should say; but we have got the land-breeze while they
are becalmed. By the look of the water I should say we should carry the
wind with us until we are pretty close to them.”
Every sail the cutter could carry was hoisted, and she approached the two
vessels rapidly. They were some four miles from them when the sails of the
schooner filled and she began to move through the water.
“It will be a long chase now,” Will said; “but the cutter has light wings,
so we have a good chance of overhauling her.”
“The sails of the ship are all anyhow, sir,” Harman said.
“So they are, Mr. Harman; foul play has been going on there, I have not
the least doubt. The fact that the crew are not making any effort to haul
in her sheets and come to meet us is in itself a proof of it. I think it
is our duty to board her and see what has taken place. Even if we allow
the schooner to escape we shall light upon her again some day, I have no
doubt.”
“She is very low in the water,” he said, after examining the merchantman
carefully through his telescope, “and either her cargo is of no value to
the pirates, and they have allowed it to remain in her, or they have
scuttled her.”
“I am afraid it is that, sir,” Dimchurch said, “for she is certainly lower
in the water than when I first saw her.”
“You are right, Dimchurch, the scoundrels have scuttled her. Please God we
shall get to her before she founders! Oh for a stronger wind! Do you think
we could row there quicker than we sail?”
“No, sir. The gig might go as fast as the cutter, but the other boat would
not be able to keep pace with her.”
“Well, make all preparations for lowering. Heaven only knows what tragedy
may have taken place there.”
After all had been got ready, every eye on board the cutter was fixed on
the vessel. There was no doubt now that she was getting deeper in the
water every minute. When they got within a quarter of a mile of the ship
she was so low that it was evident she could not float many minutes
longer.
“To the boats, men,” Will cried, “row for your lives.”
A moment later three boats started at full speed. The gig, in which
Dimchurch and Tom were both rowing, was first to search the sinking ship.
Will leapt on board at once, and as he did so he gave an exclamation of
horror, for the deck was strewn with dead bodies. Without stopping to look
about him he ran aft to the companion and went down to the cabin, which
was already a foot deep in water. There he found some fifteen men and
women sitting securely bound on the sofas. Will drew his dirk, and running
along cut their thongs.
“Up on deck for your lives,” he cried, “and get into the boats alongside;
she will not float three minutes.”
At the farther end of the cabin a young girl was kneeling by the side of a
stout old lady, who had evidently fainted.
“Come,” Will said, going up to her, “it is a matter of life and death; we
shall have the water coming down the companion in a minute or two.”
“I can’t leave her,” the girl cried.
Will attempted to lift the old lady, but she was far too heavy for him.
“I cannot save her,” he said, and raised a shout for Dimchurch. It was
unanswered. “There,” he said, “the water is coming down; she will sink in
a minute. I cannot save her—indeed she is as good as dead already—but I
can save you,” and snatching the girl up he ran to the foot of the
companion. The water was already pouring down, but he struggled up against
it, and managed to reach the deck; but before he could cross to the side
the vessel gave a sudden lurch and went down. He was carried under with
the suck, but by desperate efforts he gained the surface just as his
breath was spent. For a moment or two he was unable to speak, but he was
none the less ready to act. Looking round he saw a hen-coop floating near,
and, swimming to it, he clung to it with one arm while he held the girl’s
head above water with the other. Then, when he had recovered his breath,
he shouted “Dimchurch!” Fortunately the gig was not far away, and his hail
was at once answered, and a moment later the boat was alongside the
hen-coop.
[Illustration: THE RESCUE]
“Take this young lady, Dimchurch, and lay her in the stern-sheets. She
can’t be dead, for she was sensible when the ship went down, and we were
not under water a minute.”
After the girl had been laid down, Will was helped in.
“Did we save them all?” he asked.
“Yes, sir; at least I think so. They all came running on deck and jumped
straight into the boats. I was busy helping them, and did not notice that
you were missing. As the last seemed to have come up, I called to the
other boats to make off, for I saw that she could only float a minute
longer, and as it was we had only just got clear when she went down.
Indeed we had a narrow escape of it, and the men had to row. I was
standing up to look for you, and had just discovered that you were not in
any of the boats, when I heard you call. It gave me a bad turn, as you may
guess, sir, and glad I was when I saw you were holding on to that
hen-coop.”
“Now, let us try and bring this young lady round,” Will said.
They turned her over first upon her face and let the water run out of her
mouth. Then they laid her flat on her back with a jersey under her head,
and rubbed her hands and feet and pressed gently at times on her chest.
After five minutes of this treatment the girl heaved a sigh, and shortly
afterwards opened her eyes and looked round in bewilderment at the faces
of the men. Then suddenly she realized where she was and remembered what
had happened.
“Oh, it was dreadful!” she murmured. “Poor Miss Morrison was lost, was she
not?”
“If that was the name of the lady you were kneeling by I regret to say
that she was. It was impossible to save her; for though I tried my best I
could not lift her. As you call her Miss Morrison I presume she is not a
close relation.”
“No, she had been my governess since I was a child, and has been a mother
to me. Oh, to think that she is dead while I am saved!”
“You must remember that it might have been worse,” Will said; “you
certainly cannot require a governess many more years, and will find others
on whom to bestow your affection. How old are you?”
“I am fourteen,” the girl said.
“Well, here is my ship, and we will all do our best to make you
comfortable.”
“Your ship!” the girl said in surprise; “do you mean to say that you are
in command of her? You do not look more than a boy.”
“I am not much more than a boy,” he said with a smile, “but for all that I
am the commander of this vessel, and this young gentleman is my second in
command.”