RONALD JOINS LORD CLAYMORE'S SHIP--THE "PALLAS" AT SEA--A CHASE--ENEMY'S
FLEET IN SIGHT--"PALLAS" CHASED BY ENEMY--LORD CLAYMORE'S MANOEUVRE--
ESCAPE OF "PALLAS."
No part of the British coast presents a harbour of beauty equal to that
of Plymouth Sound, with its lofty banks covered with trees from the
summit to the water's edge, its rocks and headlands, its numerous bays,
inlets, and other indentations, the towers and glittering white
buildings of the picturesque town at the northern end, and the lordly
castle and waving woods of Mount Edgcombe on the west.
On a bright summer morning a frigate was seen gliding slowly up the
Sound, and making her way towards Hamoaze. The French flag under that
of England proclaimed her to be a prize. She was quickly boarded by
boats from the shore, every one in them eager to be on board, for a
prize crew are supposed to have their pockets well lined with coin, and
to be ready to spend it. She was soon known to be "La Forte," captured
by the "Thisbe" in the East Indies. She at once went into dock, her
crew was paid off, and Rawson got confirmed in his rank of commander;
but Ronald Morton received no further acknowledgment of his services.
He had been paid some prize-money, and he might have remained on shore
to enjoy some relaxation after the number of years he had been employed;
but he had few even of the acquaintance young naval men usually make,
and idleness was the very last thing in which he wished just then to
indulge. Action, excitement, was what he wanted. He longed once more
for the battle and the tempest. In this mood, when the ship was paid
off, he went on shore. A tall thin young man, in a post-captain's
uniform, met him before he had walked a hundred paces, and after looking
at him hard, held out his hand, exclaiming--"Morton, old shipmate, I'm
glad to meet you."
"So am I, you, Lord Claymore," returned Ronald, happy to encounter one
he had known and liked so much.
"Well, you see, Morton, that I have got the two swabs on my shoulders,"
said the young lord, laughing. "I've worked hard for them, let me tell
you; my lords of the Admiralty don't give promotion for nothing to those
who don't happen to be born with silver spoons in their mouths; and I
was not, I know. Mine was of wood or iron. I hope that you will get
your's soon--you deserve it. I met Rawson just now, and he was speaking
of you. But, in the meantime, what do you say to taking a berth as my
first lieutenant? I've interest enough to obtain that for you. Come
along with me for a few yards. You can see the ship I have just
commissioned. She is not long off the stocks. I cannot say much for
her at present. She is small and cramped, but she carries thirty-eight
guns, and I'll make her do something one of these days."
Ronald at once accepted Lord Claymore's offer. They shortly after fell
in with Glover. Lord Claymore told him that he should apply for him as
his junior lieutenant.
In a week the two old shipmates found themselves appointed to the
"Pallas" frigate, nominally of thirty-two guns, though in reality
mounting thirty-eight. Of course Job Truefitt and Bob Doull followed
them. Ronald had been puzzled to know how to dispose of the elder Doull
and Archy Eagleshay, when the two old men applied to enter. At first he
was inclined to laugh at the notion, but when the captain saw them he
desired that they might not be refused.
"There is stuff in them yet--they will be useful."
They proved that Lord Claymore was right, and he soon rated them as
quarter-masters.
"We must be sharp in manning the frigate, Morton," said his captain.
"Promise largely. We'll redeem our word, depend on that."
Bills soon appeared, posted all over Plymouth:--"The `Pallas,' fitting
for sea, in want of a few prime hands. The fastest frigate in the
service--sure to come back in a few weeks with a full cargo of Spanish
pewter and cobs. Plenty of liberty at the end of each trip. Engaged to
make more prize-money in three weeks than any other ship in three
years."
Lord Claymore was not unknown to fame. Many men joined in consequence
of the deeds he had already done, and some, after reading the placards
or hearing them read, though they had no great faith in the promises.
Still, the ship could not be manned entirely without sending out
press-gangs.
At length the "Pallas" was ready for sea.
"I hope we may fulfil all our pledges," observed Ronald one day, after
the frigate had left the shores of England far astern.
"I am determined to do so," exclaimed the captain. "Morton, I have
lived long enough to know that a man can do nothing without money. That
is irresistible, in politics, war, or love--rather marriage; it conquers
all opposition. There is but one way by which seamen can make it. We
are on that course. We'll take good care that the opportunity does not
escape us."
Morton thought awhile. For the first time in his life, perhaps, the
idea occurred to him that money would aid his cause. "It may serve to
elucidate the mystery of my father's birth; or why can I not win my way
up to fame and fortune? I will show Colonel Armytage that the
boatswain's son may become his superior in rank, and surpass him in
wealth, just as much as the boatswain does in all the qualities which
make a man truly noble."
Ronald did not allow himself generally to give way to such feelings, but
they would arise in spite of him, when he thought of the ungrateful
conduct of Colonel Armytage towards him. Lord Claymore, who took an
interest in all serving with him, observed Morton's depressed spirits.
He, did not, however, inquire directly into the cause.
"By-the-by, Morton, you are a Shetlander, if I recollect rightly," he
exclaimed. "I have been lately among your people, and a kind-hearted,
hospitable race they are. Among other places I visited was Lunnasting
Castle, where I made the acquaintance of Sir Marcus Wardhill and his
daughter, a handsome person, though no longer young. He is a hale old
man, but somewhat eccentric, and rather morose, I suspect; has a bee in
his bonnet--that is the case with many of his family. There is a cousin
who lives there; not quite as old as Sir Marcus--a very odd fellow;
indeed, I should say decidedly mad. You may probably know something of
them?"
Ronald told him that he had been brought up in the castle.
"A relative of the family?" said the captain.
"I can scarcely be called so," said Morton humbly. "A distant one only,
on my mother's side. My father was about to take command of a
merchantman when he was pressed into the navy. He has remained in the
service ever since. He is now but a boatswain, but he is a man of whom
any son may be proud."
Ronald then told the captain all he knew of his father's early history,
and of the discovery of the two men who had carried him off.
"I understand the whole affair," exclaimed Lord Claymore, warmly. "With
all my heart I'll help you to clear it up. You will have plenty of
employment for your prize-money: the lawyers will take good care of
that; but never mind, we'll have enough for their maws, and to spare.
Sharks must be fed as well as other fish, you know. As to that Sir
Marcus Wardhill, I like him not. I should have little compunction about
sending him on his travels; but I was interested in his daughter, a
stately lady, still bearing the marks of great beauty; the Lady Hilda,
they call her."
"Yes, I used, as a boy, to think her very lovely," said Ronald, warmly.
"I may say she is so still," returned his captain. "But do you know,
Morton, there is something very strange about her; she talked to me in
the oddest way; inquired if I understood astrology, and would favour her
by working out her horoscope, and would inform her when the lost one
would return."
"She has been sorely tried," observed Ronald. "Her father and Lawrence
Brindister are but sorry companions for one so gifted; and the death of
her husband and loss of her child were blows she has never recovered."
Lord Claymore had not heard the circumstances of the case, and so Ronald
gave him the whole story as he had heard it. His captain was much
interested.
"What a delightful thread to unravel!" he exclaimed. "I should like to
aid in it; but unless you have a clue, it is not likely that her son
will be discovered."
"She lives on in hopes that he may," answered Ronald. "I pray that she
may not be disappointed. I owe her a debt of gratitude I can never
repay for all the instruction she gave me."
"Perhaps you may be able to serve her," remarked Lord Claymore. "Though
it strikes me, from what I can make out, that she was but repaying the
debt she owes you."
Ronald did not inquire what his captain meant, for they were both
summoned on deck with the pleasant information that a sail was in sight.
The frigate was at this time off the Azores.
"What does she look like?" was the question hurriedly put, as the
captain himself was buckling his telescope over his shoulder preparatory
to mounting the rigging to take a look at the stranger should the answer
be promising.
"A ship, and a big one," was the reply.
In a few seconds Lord Claymore had joined the look-out man aloft. When
the captain was thus active it was not likely that the officers and crew
would neglect their duty. Lord Claymore took a long steady look at the
stranger through his telescope, and returning on deck ordered the ship's
course to be altered a couple of points, and all sail to be made in
chase.
"Morton, I have a wonderful presentiment that yonder craft is loaded
with the pewter and cobs we have been promising our fellows," he
exclaimed, walking the deck with a quick step. "Her top-gallant-sails
and royals have a foreign cut, and the blanched hue of cotton cloth such
as the rich galleons of Spain usually carry. They are heavy sailers,
too, and the `Pallas,' as I thought she would, has shown herself light
of heel. We shall get up with the chase before any third party steps in
to snap up our prey."
Not only Ronald, but every man and boy in the ship entered fully into
the captain's eagerness. All longed for prize-money; the greater
number, probably, that they might spend it as sailors in those days got
rid of their hard-earned gains, in wild extravagance and debauchery; a
few might have thought of their old fathers, mothers, and sisters, whose
comforts they hoped to increase; or some one, more romantic than his
shipmates, might have had in view some quiet woodbine-covered cottage,
on the sunny slope of a hill, with green fields and a sparkling stream
below, a seaman's paradise, with an Eve as a companion.
Ronald Morton, in spite of his resolution to the contrary, could not
help thinking of Edda Armytage, and the possibility of yet winning her;
still, again and again he tried to overcome aspirations which appeared
so utterly hopeless. Indeed, why should he ever wish to make her his?
Had she ever attempted to assure him that she did not share her father's
feelings? Had she not, from what he had heard, been willingly receiving
the attentions of Alfonse Gerardin, a mere adventurer, at best, who must
have been guilty of the most barefaced falsehoods to have gained so
completely, as he appeared to have done, the good opinion of a person
generally so acute as Colonel Armytage? No, he did not want money for
himself; it was to place his father in the position in life to which he
was born, should it be, as he had every reason to hope, superior to that
he now occupied; still, as he thought all this, and much more, his
captain's remark, "With money you can do everything," rang in his ear.
Not a man or boy on board that ship who was not thinking at that moment
of the same thing--money; most of them were talking of it too. With
eager eyes they watched the chase as a wild beast does its prey, longing
to get possession.
The stranger at first did not seem to have understood the character of
the frigate. Her people were not keeping so good a look-out as were
Lord Claymore's crew; when they did, all sail was crowded in flight.
Away she went before the wind. A stern chase is proverbially a long
one; a tub can sail with the wind aft.
Many hours of the day had passed: evening was approaching: should the
night prove a dark one, she after all might escape. The captain was
becoming anxious, so was every one on board. The nearer they had got to
the chase the more like a Spaniard she appeared. All was done that
could be thought of to make the frigate sail; every inch of canvas she
could carry was set on her; studdingsails on either side hanging down to
the very surface of the water, which they swept as she glided proudly
on, while other light sails were placed even above the royals, till she
looked like a lofty pyramid of snow gliding over the deep. Faster she
glided--the breeze was increasing; now she rushed through the water; the
officers looked over her sides and watched with satisfaction the foam
which rose on either side and formed a long sparkling frothy line
astern.
"We shall do now, Morton," exclaimed the captain, in high glee. "Don't
you hear the dollars chinking away in her hold?"
Lord Claymore wanted the money--not that he was avaricious--far from
that; but he had numberless schemes in view, and he knew full well that
without the gold they could not be carried out.
As the chase was neared, the Spanish colours were seen flying at the
peak. Not a shot did she fire. From the squareness of her yards and
the whiteness of her canvas, as seen in the dusk of evening, as the
"Pallas" got her within range of her guns, it was not altogether certain
that she might not prove a man-of-war.
"So much the better," answered the captain, when Glover and the master
gave it as their opinion that she was so. "We shall have more honour,
though less gold. We must look out for the gold another time."
The men were sent to their quarters, and the ship was prepared for
action. The chances that the chase would escape were small indeed.
"There's many a slip between the cup and the lip," observed Mr Hardman,
the second lieutenant, who had experienced the truth of the saying in
his own person so often that he seldom failed to give expression to it
on every opportunity. Though he numbered many more years than either
the captain or first lieutenant, he had not been promoted till some time
after them. Sometimes when he foretold a slip, he was mistaken.
"Ready with a gun forward!" exclaimed the captain.
The chase was well within range.
"We don't want to injure her more than we can help," he added. "Send a
shot past her first. Fire!"
The gloom prevented the shot being seen as it flew on over the surface
just free of the chase.
The Spaniards thought that the next, might come in through the
stern-windows. Down went her helm; studdingsail booms were cracking
away on either side; royal and topgallant sheets were let fly; topsails
and courses were clewed or brailed up, and the Spaniard yielded himself
to the mercy of his captors.
The frigate brought to in a more deliberate way, taking care to be to
windward of the prize; boats were instantly lowered and manned, and
Hardman and Glover hurried off to take possession. Perhaps the captain
would have liked to have gone, but it would have been undignified.
Glover soon returned with the satisfactory information that she was the
"Carolina," a large Spanish ship, richly laden from the Havanah to
Cadiz. A prize crew was immediately put on board, and the prisoners
were removed to the "Pallas." They pulled their moustaches, lit their
cigars, and resigned themselves to their lot. By dawn the next morning
the "Carolina," in charge of her new masters, with Glover as commander,
was on her way to Plymouth.
Lord Claymore's satisfaction was not small when he discovered that the
"Carolina" formed one of a large convoy, and that it was believed the
other ships were astern. Sharper than ever was the look-out kept for a
strange sail. Day after day passed, however, and no merchantman or
other ships appeared. Hardman began to crow, though the loss was his as
well as that of the rest: it was an odd amusement, though some men will
suffer anything to prove that they are true prophets.
A week had passed.
"I told you so, Morton," he observed. "There's many a slip between the
cup and the lip. The convoy probably stole by us during the night when
some of our volunteers, who had been keeping so sharp a look-out during
the day, were nodding."
"Sail ho!" was sung out at that moment in a loud cheerful tone from the
mast-head.
"Who'll prove right now?" exclaimed Morton, as he sprang aloft with his
glass at his back.
Others were looking-out likewise. All sail was instantly made in chase.
It was some time, however, before it could be made out whether the
stranger was friend or foe, man-of-war or merchantman. At last Hardman
condescended to take a look at her.
"Those sails have a decided English cut about them," he observed, in a
tone of satisfaction. "Depend on it she's not got a dollar on board
that will ever enter our pockets."
"To my mind," observed Job Truefitt, who with Bob Doull was standing on
the fore-topgallant cross-trees, "that craft out there looks as if she
was come from the land where the gold and silver grows. He looks like a
Don, every inch of him. Mark my words, mate, we shall line our pockets
with the rhino, and have a pretty handsome sum to take home to our old
mothers or sweethearts."
"Well for those who have them, but I have neither one nor t'other,"
answered Bob. "I've made up my mind to have a jolly spree on shore, and
live like a lord till it's all gone."
"That won't be long, I suspect," said Job.
The conversation was cut short by a summons on deck. The frigate was
nearing the chase. The whole of her hull could now be seen clearly from
the deck. As to her character there was little doubt. She was a
merchantman of considerable tonnage. However, as yet she showed no
ensign at her peak by which her nation might be known. She was
pronounced to be Dutch, French, Danish, and Spanish in turn. At last
the captain thought of sending for some of the prisoners to give their
opinion on the subject. The Spaniards did not take long before they
declared their belief that she was one of the convoy to which they
belonged, and if they were not mistaken she was very richly laden.
A scarcely suppressed shout ran round the decks as the fact became
known.
"Ay, but we've not got her yet," observed Hardman.
Both captain and crew looked as if they wished they could urge on the
frigate by means more potent than the light breeze then blowing. What
plans and projects might not even then have been working in that fertile
brain! Still the chase did her best to escape.
"She has something to run for, or she would have given in before this,"
observed the captain, rapidly walking up and down the deck, and eyeing
his anticipated prize. "Her violent efforts to escape is a good sign,
at all events."
There was now no longer any doubt as to the character of the chase, for
she hoisted the Spanish flag, though she still held on. That she could
escape seemed impossible, and Lord Claymore was unwilling to fire, for
fear of damaging her, not in consequence of tenderness towards her, but
because he hoped in a short time that she would become his property.
"Perhaps she has some notion that she will haul aft her sheets and
escape to windward of us," observed the master.
"Not at all likely that she will make so hopeless an attempt," answered
Morton.
"No; but what do you say to the fellows blowing themselves up," put in
Hardman. "There's many a slip between the cup and the lip; it is the
only way by which they can disappoint us, unless they heave their cargo
overboard, which they may have done already, by-the-by."
His brother officers, as usual, laughed at Hardman's prognostications.
At length the frigate got the chase directly under her guns, when,
instead of making the slightest attempt to escape, she hauled down her
flag, and heaving-to, waited to be taken possession of. This was done
as soon as a boat could be lowered from the frigate; Morton went in her,
and Evans the mate, who spoke Spanish, accompanied him. He stepped on
board the prize. She was a handsome ship, and from her very appearance
Morton hoped that she would have a rich cargo. The captain received his
captors very politely, and at once produced his invoice.
"That is what you want, gentlemen," he observed, with a deep sigh; "your
gain is my loss, I am a ruined man."
"There are all sorts of valuable things here, sir," observed Morton's
subordinate. "I only hope they are not all shams."
"We'll go below and examine," was the wise reply.
The ship was undoubtedly laden with all sorts of West India produce.
Then some chests were come to; they were full of bars of silver.
"Pretty pickings, these," observed Evans.
Some smaller boxes were next examined.
"As I am a gentleman and a Welshman, if I ever cast my eyes on diamonds
before, these are diamonds!" he exclaimed, holding up a rough-looking
but shining stone between his fingers. They might have been pieces of
glass for what Morton could tell.
"These little boxes are worth some thousands, Morton, I can tell you,"
exclaimed Hardman, half beside himself with delight. "A magnificent
haul!" Suddenly he recollected himself,--"That is to say, if they ever
reach England in safety. But, you know, there's many a slip between the
cup and the lip."
Morton was too busy to laugh just then. He had discovered some larger
chests, containing some large gold candlesticks, which the captain
informed them, were to ornament the church of our Lady of the
Conception, in Madrid. There were just three of them, enormous and
massive articles, not less than five feet high, besides, a quantity of
rich plate of gold and silver. Morton sent back Evans to make a report
to the captain. Lord Claymore heard the account with unrestrained
delight.
"We'll have it all safe on board, without delay," he exclaimed. "It
will not do to let it fall again into the enemy's hands; in the frigate,
at all events, we shall be able to fight for it."
The men cheered as they saw the chests hoisted up the side. It was
bringing back the good old buccaneering days; such a prize had not been
made by any cruiser for a long time. A mate was sent home in charge of
her.
"Take care you don't get caught, and clapped into a French prison," said
Hardman, as he shoved off.
Scarcely were the chests of treasure stowed below, and the prize out of
sight, than another sail was descried from the mast-head--chase was
made--the prisoners confessed that she was one of their convoy, and as
the "Pallas" came up with her, they stated that she was even more richly
laden than the last. She saw that flight was useless. She was speedily
boarded, and found to contain more dollars, bars of gold and silver, and
other treasure. It took no long time to transfer the whole to the
"Pallas."
"If we go on at this rate, Morton, we shall have enough of the needful
to satisfy all the land sharks in the kingdom, and to establish your
rights, whatever they may be, against all opposition."
Morton's hopes began to rise high. The wealth they were collecting
seemed almost fabulous; though he knew that but a small share would come
to him, he thought that it would be ample to carry out his objects.
The treasure had not long been stowed away, when the wind got up with a
heavy sea, and the ship laboured considerably. Hardman, when sitting
over his wine with his messmates in the gun-room, began to talk of
planks starting, and rich argosies going suddenly to the bottom. No
one, however, paid much attention to his prognostications of evil. By
dawn the next day another sail hove in sight. Chase was made, but the
stranger showed that she had a fast pair of heels; the "Pallas,"
however, had a faster pair, and by noon had gained upon her so much that
she was seen to be an armed ship of considerable size. No sooner
however did the "Pallas" get her under her guns, than she hauled down
her flag and hove-to. Though a heavy sea was running, she was
immediately boarded and found to be a richly laden Letter of Marque.
She also had a chest of dollars; but as there would have been great
danger of losing them in transferring them to the "Pallas," they were
allowed to remain on board; Evans was sent in charge of her.
"Take care that you do not slip into a lion's mouth," said Morton, as
his brother officer took his departure.
"If I do, I hope that I shall slip out again before he has time to shut
it," was Evans's reply.
Fortune was smiling, it seemed, on the "Pallas." Four rich prizes had
already been made; it was difficult to calculate their worth. The
sanguine temperament of the captain might have over-estimated it.
"My share alone is little short of a hundred thousand pounds," he
exclaimed, showing Morton a sheet of paper on which he had been making a
rough calculation--"a splendid fortune for a man of moderate wishes. I
wish that you had a larger share. We captains get the lion's part
certainly; but perhaps it is as well as it is. What a stimulus it is to
an officer to exert himself to obtain command in time of war."
"Yes," thought Morton; "but let men exert themselves to the utmost, how
many fail to obtain the desired rank, or if they get that, the coveted
wealth!"
"Remember, however, Morton," continued Lord Claymore, "I have promised
to assist you in establishing your claims, or your father's rather,
whatever they are. He may be the son of a peasant, or noble. No one
cares less for what is called gentle blood than I do; but it is not the
estimate which we set on an article, but at which the world at large
holds it, which is its true value. I don't feel happier because I am
the possessor of a hundred thousand pounds than I did ten years ago when
I was a beggar; but depend on it, the world will esteem me much more
highly than it did."
Morton always listened with pleasure to the remarks which dropped from
his captain's lips, always full of shrewdness and good sense.
It was now time for the "Pallas" to return home. Four prizes had been
despatched to England. All were anxious to ascertain that they had
arrived there safely.
"Little chance of that," observed Hardman; "plenty of the enemy's
cruisers about, to snap them up."
Though homeward bound, as bright a look-out as ever was kept, in the
hopes that another prize might be taken.
When off the coast of Portugal, at dawn one morning, a light silvery fog
lay on the water, bright but sufficiently opaque to conceal all objects
even close at hand. The wind at dawn was light, but as the sun rose, so
did the breeze, and the royals and top-gallant sails, which had at first
been set, were, one after the other, taken off the frigate.
"This fog is, indeed, provoking. We may run by a whole convoy of the
enemy's merchantmen without seeing them," observed Morton, who had
become as eager as the most avaricious of his shipmates in the pursuit
of wealth, by the royal road opened up before them.
"Of course," answered Hardman: "very likely at this moment we are
passing within hail of some Spanish galleons, whose cargoes would make
every man on board independent for life."
The looker-out at the mast-head hailed the deck.
"A ship, sir, close to--I see her mast-heads over the fog."
"What does she look like?" asked Morton. "A large ship, sir,
line-of-battle ship, I should say."
The officers were alert in an instant. Hardman flew aloft. Scarcely
had he got there, than he shouted, "There's another! another!--three of
them--line-of-battle ships and enemies."
The last words had an electric effect. From the movements of the
line-of-battle ships, as they were seen over the fog, there was no doubt
that their look-outs had discovered the "Pallas." In an instant the
captain was on deck; Morton had already ordered the ship to be kept
away, and was again setting topgallant sails and royals; he thought the
royal masts would scarcely stand.
"Never mind, we must do everything to preserve our booty and our
liberty," answered Lord Claymore.
The breeze increased almost to a gale. The wind soon dispersed the
mist, and the three huge line-of-battles ships were seen rushing on
towards the frigate. A broadside from one of them would have sunk her.
Her top-gallant masts bent like willow wands. Every moment it appeared
that they must go. Lord Claymore stood watching them, and now and then
taking a glance at his enemies, and though cool and collected, seeming
positively to revel in the excitement of the scene. The wind was abeam;
and the frigate, which proved herself but a crank ship, heeled over till
her hammock-nettings dipped in the seething, foaming waters, which
bubbled and hissed up through the lee scuppers.
On tore the "Pallas." It was a race for liberty and the preservation of
the wealth in which they had been rejoicing.
"What will you take for your prize-money in prospect now, Morton?" asked
the pertinacious Hardman. "I told you so, old boy--there's many a slip
between the cup and the lip. It's the great truth I've learned in my
life--I shall always stick to it."
"It may apply equally to our enemies astern, though," observed the
captain, who had overheard the remark, "we will see if we cannot make it
so."
The line-of-battle ships were by this time beginning to feel the fury of
the gale, which was well nigh carrying her masts out of the frigate, or
sending her over on her beam-ends. The more, however, the Spaniards saw
her pressed, the less willing they were to shorten sail. She now kept
edging more and more away to bring the wind further astern, squaring her
yards as she did so, the Spaniards having to do the same. They did not
seem to think it worth while to spend much powder and shot on her, as
they, of course, felt sure of capturing her in the end. It was a grand
sight to see the little English frigate dauntlessly doing her utmost to
escape from her huge pursuers, the foam in dense masses flying over her,
while, with bending masts, and lee-shrouds bulging out, she dashed
through the frantic waves, her side, as she heeled over, half buried
beneath them. What hope was there of her escaping?
One huge Spaniard was on her weather, another on her lee-beam, while the
other was coming up fast astern on her weather quarter. Still Lord
Claymore did not despair. He stepped down among the crew and spoke to
them.
"My lads, never say die while there's life. Let every man and boy of
you do your best, and we'll yet give the Dons the slip. Be smart, as if
your lives depended on it. To your stations now."
Every man stood ready, watching the captain's eye. He had explained his
plan to his officers. All was ready. There was a dead silence--the
gale roared louder than ever--the frigate tore through the waves. The
Spaniards were close upon her; angry at her still holding out, they
began to fire; the shots came fast and thick, flying over and on each
side of the frigate, but hitherto none had struck her. At length the
Spaniards saw again that firing was of no use--they should only be
knocking their destined prize to pieces--like vast mountains of snow
they came rushing on. It appeared as if they were about to crush the
little frigate with their united weight.
"Ready, lads!" shouted the captain of the "Pallas."
"Clew up! Haul down!"
Those magic words put every human being on board the frigate in motion.
Tacks and sheets were let go. Some hauled away at the brails. Topsails
were clewed up, topgallant sheets were let fly, stay-sails hauled down,
and the frigate, which an instant before was under a cloud of canvas,
was now reduced to her bare poles.
The Spaniards, totally unprepared for such a manoeuvre, at first
scarcely comprehended what had happened. On the huge ships sailed in
their headlong course. It did not occur to their captains to attempt
instantly to shorten sail, but one and all turned their eyes aft to see
what their expected prize was about.
Lord Claymore watched them for a short time, but only to assure himself
that they were well to leeward of him. The frigate had not lost her way
through the water.
"Down with the helm!" cried the captain, in a cheerful tone, which gave
encouragement to all. "Hoist away! Flatten aft the sheets!"
Not an officer, or man, or boy, but put his hand to halliards sheets,
braces, or bowlines; and if the way in which she had been stripped of
her canvas had appeared like magic to her pursuers, much more must the
style in which sail was again made. Off she flew on a bowline on the
other tack, while the three line-of-battle ships were hurrying headlong
miles away to leeward.
A loud, hearty cheer burst from the throats of the British seamen as
they saw the success of their captain's skilful manoeuvre.
"What do you say now, Mr Hardman?" he said, laughing. "There's many a
slip between the cup and the lip."
"Yes, my lord; the Spaniards must confess to the truth of the saying
just now," he answered. "But we are not altogether clear of them yet."
"No, by Jove! the fellows are after us!" exclaimed the captain, pointing
to leeward, where the three ships were seen under shortened sail, slowly
coming up on a wind. "We must trust to our heels and the shades of
night. That trick won't answer twice."
Though not over-well managed, the Spanish ships sailed well, and were
once more in hot pursuit of the "Pallas." The wind had decreased a
little, which was somewhat in her favour, but still, with the pressure
of sail upon her, she heeled over as much as before. In smooth water
she might have had the advantage, but, with the heavy sea then running,
the Spaniards were evidently coming up with her. They were seen also to
be steering different courses for the purpose of cutting her off. Lord
Claymore, however retained his usual composure.
"Night will be down upon us soon, and then we will give the Dons the
slip," he observed calmly, and gave the order to have a lantern fixed on
a ballasted cask prepared.
This was for some time carried over the stern and then lowered into the
water. When this was done, the ship's course was altered, and she stood
to the north-east leaving the enemy to follow the false light. After a
little time one watch was sent below, and except that the sharpest eyes
in the ship were kept on the look-out, everything returned to its usual
routine, and many a weary form lay stretched in the hammocks.
Dawn came at last. As the first bright streaks appeared in the sky,
look-outs were aloft, and as the darkness rolled away towards the far
west, they shouted, "No sail in sight!"
The captain breathed more freely--so did Morton. He had begun to fear
that his prospects so lately brightening were again to be blighted. By
keeping a constant look-out the "Pallas" once more made the Eddystone
Lighthouse.
"Now, my lads, we'll show our friends on the shore that we have redeemed
our pledges," cried the captain. "Have on deck those chests with the
golden candlesticks, Mr Nibs," he added, turning to the purser. The
chests were got up, and tackles being made ready to each mast-head, a
golden candlestick was sent up and fixed above the truck. It was no
easy work, but sailors can do anything that is possible. Thus with bags
of dollars at the yard-arms, and rich brocades pendant from the stays,
the frigate sailed up Plymouth Sound. Great was the excitement she
caused, though she had already been looked for, as her four prizes, in
spite of Hardman's prognostications, had arrived in safety before her.
All her crew who wished it got leave on shore; there was no fear of any
running from her; their places would instantly have been filled by
hundreds of eager applicants for a berth on board. Fully did Bob Doull
carry out his intentions; and strange, though not very unusual, were the
scenes witnessed in Plymouth and its neighbourhood for several days
after the arrival of the "Pallas."
Coaches-and-four and coaches-and-six were seen driving about Plymouth,
laden inside and out with seamen and their sweethearts, decked out in
costumes of the most gaudy colours and extravagant fashion. Suppers and
dancing closed the day. There was no great variety, perhaps, in the
style of their amusements. The great object seemed to be to get rid of
their money as rapidly as possible.
Ronald Morton, for the first time in his life, found himself possessed
of what appeared to him a very large sum of money.
"It will be enough to sift this affair of my father's to the bottom, and
if claims he has, to establish them thoroughly," he observed to his
captain.
Lord Claymore laughed heartily.
"My dear fellow, you know not what amount a lawyer's maw is capable of
swallowing," he answered. "It will prove a mere soppit if the matter is
contested, as undoubtedly it will be. However, we will see about it
when we return from our next cruise. Till your father returns home, you
can do nothing."
Once more, her officers and crew having spent all their superfluous
cash, the "Golden Pallas," as she was now called, put to sea.