"DEBTOR AND CREDITOR."
For a couple of days longer, we were as busy as bees, taking in our
boats and spare spars and other gear, besides filling up our stock of
provisions and water and completing with stores of all sorts; until
Saturday arrived, the last day of our stay at Spithead, when all our
preparations were finished and all hands, likewise, paid their advance
of two months' pay, prior to our sailing for China.
No one was allowed on shore that afternoon, for fear of desertion; but,
to make amends for this stoppage of all leave, the men were granted
permission generally to receive their friends on board, so as to get rid
of all the loose cash they were debarred from spending in more
legitimate fashion on land.
The consequence of this licence was, that the ship was crowded from stem
to stern with strangers of every description, shape and sex, from
dinner-time to dusk; Jew and Gentile, kinsman and creditor, each and all
alike in turn, having a final tug at poor Jack's purse-strings, striving
to ease him of his superfluous wealth before departure.
As may readily be imagined, some queer customers came aboard; and some
curious scenes took place, both of the sentimental and comic order.
One of these latter I especially noticed; for it occurred under my very
eyes, within earshot of where I was standing by the gangway.
"Downy," as the men called him, the whilom digger of graves, who had so
puzzled Commander Nesbitt on the first day of his joining, by giving his
profession so peculiar a designation, had come on board without any sort
of an outfit for the voyage.
So, at last not being able to go ashore to buy a stock of clothes on
receiving his advance pay, the purser at that time not supplying the
men, as is the custom nowadays, with what they required, the morose
gentleman was obliged to have recourse to Poll Nash, one of the bumboat
women, who had brought off a lot of "slop" clothing for those requiring
a rig-out, and was selling the same on her own terms to all comers as
quickly as she could dispose of her stock.
To her, therefore, Master "Downy" now applied, having nothing beyond the
rather shabby suit of black in which he stood up, which was certainly
somewhat unsuitable, to say the least, for a sailor's wear, particularly
a man-o'-war's man, as the once gravedigger had been transformed into.
He had well-nigh fully invested, in this way, the entire amount he had
just received from the purser, Mr Nipper, on account of his advance pay
as an "ordinary seaman," that being his rating; when, I noticed, a
dark-faced, long-nosed gentleman come up to him and speak.
The two then got into a violent altercation that speedily attracted
everyone's attention, a small crowd gathering round the disputants just
abaft the mainmast.
"I tell you I haven't a ha'penny left," I heard "Downy" say, after a lot
of words passing between them the gist of which I could not catch. "No,
not a ha'penny left, I swear. I've paid it all to this good lady here
for clothes!"
"You haven't paid me for the monkey jacket yet," interposed Mrs Poll
Nash, the bumboat woman, who was holding up the garment in question,
waiting for the coin to be passed over before parting with it, the good
lady having in her career learnt the wisdom of caution. "That'll make
three pun' seventeen-and-six in all. Now, look sharp, my joker, or I'll
chuck the duds back into the wherry. I ain't a-going to wait all day
for my money, I tell you!"
"I'll let you have it in a minute," whined "Downy," who was apparently
afraid to show what he had in his pocket, the dark gentleman's eye being
upon him. "Can't you give a fellow time? I ain't a-going to run away."
"Ye vood, ye liar, presshus shoon if ye 'ad arf a shance, I bet, s'help
me!" shouted out the other man, who, from his speech, was evidently a
Hebrew and a creditor. "Ye're von tarn sheet, dat's vot ye vas, a
bloomin' corpse swindler, vot sheets de living, s'help me, and rops ze
dead! I shpit upon ye, I does!"
"Come, come, you fellows there, I can't allow such language on board
this ship," sang out from the poop Lieutenant Jellaby, the officer of
the watch, when matters had come to this pass. "Ship's corporal, bring
those men here!"
In obedience to this command, the two disputants were both brought aft,
Poll Nash following also, being an interested party, to get back her
clothes or the money from "Downy."
The latter was at once recognised by Lieutenant Jellaby, a jolly fellow,
in whose watch I was. He went by his Christian name of "Joe" amongst us
all, being very good-natured and always full of fun and chaff.
"Hullo!" he exclaimed. "You're the gravedigger, ain't you?"
"Yes, sir," replied "Downy" sedately, as his original profession
probably inculcated. "That were my humble calling, sir."
"Why did you give it up, eh?"
"Trade got slack, sir."
"How was that?"
"Porchmouth's too healthy a place, sir," answered the man, as grave as a
judge. "People won't die there fast enough, sir, for my trade; so I had
to turn it up, 'cause I couldn't make a decent living out of 'em."
"By burying them, I suppose?"
"Yes, sir," answered the man, seriously. "That is, when I were lucky
enough to get a job."
"Well, that's a rum start, a fellow complaining of not being able to
make a living out of the dead!" said Joe Jellaby to me, smiling; and
then, turning again to the man he continued, "now, tell me what all this
row is about?"
Here the Jew, who introduced himself as the keeper of a lodging-house in
Portsea, put in his word.
"Dis shcoundrel vas owe me five blooming pounds," he cried out
excitedly. "I vash keep him ven he vash shtarving; and now, ven he got
money, he von't shettle. He's a shvindler and a tief, s'help me; and I
shvear I'll have the law on him!"
"Why don't you pay this man if you owe him anything?" said the
lieutenant, sharply, to "Downy."
"You've received your advance money from the paymaster, have you not?"
"Yes, sir; but I'd better tell you the whole story, sir," said the
ex-gravedigger. "I acknowledge owing Mister Isaacs some money, though
he's piled it on pretty thick, I must say; for I were four weeks out of
work and had to board at his place."
"Yes, s'help me, and ate and drank of the best, too. Oh, Father Moses,
how he did eat!" interrupted his creditor. "Look you, sir, it's only a
mean shcoundrel that voud call a pound a week too much for good vittles.
I'll put it thick on him, I will!"
"Stop that, or I'll have you turned out of the ship at once," said Mr
Jellaby, as the Jew made a dart at "Downy," who dodged behind the marine
sentry on the quarter-deck; while he repeated his injunction to the
defaulter. "Pay the man his money and let him go."
"I can't, sir. I've expended all my money in buying clothes of this
good lady here," explained Downy, pointing to the fat, old bumboat
woman. "I hadn't a stitch to my back and had to get a rig-out for the
voyage, sir."
"Yes, sir, he's 'ad three shirts, as is twelve-and-six, and cheap at the
price, too, sir," corroborated Mistress Poll Nash, with a low curtsey to
the lieutenant. "Yes, sir, and two pair of trousers for thirty
shillin', besides a hoilskin and a serge jumper; and this monkey jacket
here, sir, which makes three pun' seventeen-and-six, sir."
"Well, well, I suppose the calculation is all right," said Joe, laughing
at her volubility and the queer way in which she bobbed a curtsey
between each item of her catalogue. Then, addressing poor "Downy" he
cried out curtly, "Turn out your pockets!"
The ex-gravedigger sadly produced four sovereigns.
"Is that all the money you've got?"
"Yes, sir," replied "Downy," in a still more sepulchral tone. "Every
ha'penny."
"Then, pay this woman here, for you must have a rig-out for the voyage,"
said the lieutenant. "I'm afraid, Mr Isaacs, you'll have to wait till
your debtor returns from China for the settlement of your claim. Your
friend, the gravedigger here, will then probably have lots of loot; and,
be better able to discharge his debt."
"Ach, holy Moses!" cried the Jew, refusing with spluttering indignation
the half-a-crown change "Downy" received from Polly Nash, and which he
handed to his other creditor with great gravity as an instalment of his
claim. "He vill nevaire gome back to bay me."
"Oh yes he will," said Joe Jellaby, chaffingly, "and probably, he'll
bury you, too, for joy at seeing your pleasant face again--all for love,
my man."
Mr Isaacs, however, got furious at this and used such abusive language
both to "Downy" and the lieutenant that the latter gave orders at last
for him to be shown over the side.
This order was instantly carried out by the ship's corporal, with the
assistance of the master-at-arms, who had now arrived on the scene, when
the incident terminated; but we could hear the Jew still cursing and
swearing, and calling on his patron saint, Father Moses, for a long
while after, as he was being rowed ashore.
Shortly before evening quarters, all strangers were ordered also to go
ashore; and, later on, the captain came off, bringing word that we were
to sail early the following morning.
I heard him tell Commander Nesbitt that he had better begin shortening
in cable at daylight, so that we might weigh anchor immediately after
breakfast.
"Very good, sir," the commander replied. "But who is this with you,
sir--another youngster?"
"Yes; he's Admiral Mills's son," said Captain Farmer, much to my
delight, for I had not noticed my old friend, Master Tom, who was the
very last fellow I expected to see. "I have taken him to oblige his
father, though he hasn't quite completed his time on board the
_Illustrious_."
"Oh, he won't lose anything by that," rejoined Commander Nesbitt, who
did not have a very high opinion of my old training-ship, as I have
already pointed out; and, just then, seeing me standing by, he said,
"Take this young gentleman down to the gunroom, Vernon, and make him
comfortable. I suppose you are already acquainted, both of you coming
from the same ship?"
"Oh yes, sir," I answered glibly enough, overjoyed at having little
Tommy Mills as a messmate once more. "He and I are old chums, sir."
"Indeed? Then there's no need for my introducing you," said the
commander, with his genial laugh, which it was quite a pleasure to hear
sometimes, it put one so much at one's ease. "Mind though, youngster,
not too much skylarking when you get below. We don't want any more of
that overboard business on board here, you know."
Of course I sniggered at this, understanding the allusion; but,
naturally, Tom was not in the secret, and I had a good deal to tell him
when I got him below.
The two of us took our seats on one of the lockers in a quiet corner of
the gunroom and had such a very long chat, that we were only interrupted
by Larkyns flinging a boot at us at Four Bells, calling out that it was
high time for us to turn in to our hammocks.
He wanted to go to sleep he told us; for he would have to go on deck to
take the middle watch at midnight, which was as close-handy as the boot
he had sent at our heads to remind us!
This set us both giggling, which brought the companion boot to our
corner, where it thumped against the bulkhead, grazing little Tom's nose
and making him sniff.
However, this second missile had the desired end of sending us off; and
so we left Master Larkyns to enjoy his repose undisturbed any longer by
our chatter.