Daylight increased; and as the sun, like a vast ball of fire, rose
slowly above the horizon, the mist lifted as if it had been a curtain
from off the surface of the water, rolling away in huge wreaths of
vapour before the breeze. The wind had once more hauled round to the
southward, and then away to the westward, when, beneath an arch of
clouds, we saw two vessels alongside each other. One was a schooner, a
fine, rakish-looking craft; the other a large brig. The latter had her
royals and top-gallant-sails flying loose, her topsails were on the
caps, her courses were hauled up, her yards were braced here and there;
indeed, she presented a picture of most complete confusion. Her
appearance would too plainly have told us that something wrong had taken
place, even had we not heard the cries in the night. In vain we looked
round on every side for the dinghy; she was nowhere to be seen. We
examined the vessels through a spy-glass we had with us. She was not
visible alongside either of them. Again and again we swept the horizon,
but not a speck could we discover that might be her. "What is to be
done?" exclaimed Jerry in a tone of deep grief. I too felt very sorry
for fear harm had happened to Cousin Silas; nor did I forget Ben and the
Sandwich islander. "Hallo! hallo! Look there! what is happening now?"
Jerry added. We looked. The schooner had parted a little distance from
the brig, and the latter vessel, after rolling once or twice to
starboard and port, seemed to dip her bows into the sea. We gazed
earnestly with a sickening feeling. Her bowsprit did not rise again.
Down, down she went, slowly and calmly, as if making a voluntary plunge
to the depths of the ocean. The water closed over her decks, her lower
masts disappeared, her topmasts followed, and the loose sails for a
moment floated above the spot where she had been, and then sank also,
drawn down by the halliards beneath the waters.
We felt almost stupified with horror. Combining the shrieks we had
heard and the occurrence we had just witnessed, we could have no doubt
that the schooner we saw before us was a pirate, and that her crew had,
after murdering those on board the brig, sunk her, to destroy, as they
might hope, all traces of their guilt. They had had in us, however,
witnesses of the atrocity they had committed, when they thought no human
being could be cognisant of the fact. What, however, had become of Mr
Brand, and Ben, and the native? Had they been on board, we should
probably have acted wisely in endeavouring to get away from the pirates,
as they would undoubtedly, if they could catch us, and thought that we
suspected what had occurred, treat us much in the same way that they had
treated the crew of the brig. Still, how could we think for a moment of
running away and deserting our friends--such a man, too, as Cousin
Silas, who, we felt sure, would never have deserted us while the
slightest hope remained of our being alive?
For some time after the brig had sunk, the schooner appeared to take no
notice whatever of us, while we continued to draw nearer and nearer to
her. We had an Englishman, Mr Stone, who acted as master of the
_Dove_, and two other natives. Stone was a simple-minded, honest man.
His principle was, if he received an order from a superior, to obey it.
Therefore, as Mr Brand had directed him to continue beating up to
windward till he returned on board, it never occurred to him to propose
running away from our suspiciously dangerous neighbour. The natives
held their tongues, but did not look happy. Mr McRitchie was the most
agitated. He kept walking our little deck with hurried steps. We were
drawing nearer and nearer to the big schooner. Suddenly he stopped and
looked at us, the tears starting into his eyes. "My dear lads," said
he, "it is very, very sad to think of, but there can be no doubt, I
greatly fear, that our friend and his followers have been murdered by
yonder piratical villains. If they are still alive, (and what chance is
there of it?) they will certainly not be allowed to return to us. We
are, therefore, only sacrificing our own lives by allowing ourselves to
fall into the power of the villains. While there is time, let us
escape. Captain Stone, don't you agree with me?"
"Well, sir, I cannot but say I do," answered the captain. "If you order
me, as I consider that the craft is under your charge, we'll keep away
at once, and make all sail to the northward. I feel that we ought to
have done it as soon as we made out what that craft there was."
The doctor hesitated still--a violent struggle was going on in his mind.
He passed his hand across his brow. "Yes, it must be done. Keep her
away, and make all sail," he exclaimed.
Scarcely was the helm put up, and a large square-sail of light canvas
the little schooner carried hoisted, when the stranger seemed to observe
our presence. We had not run on for ten minutes when her head came
slowly round towards us, her square-topsails were hoisted up, her
foresail was rigged out, a square-sail was set, and after us she came
like a greyhound in chase of a hare.
"What chance have we, do you think, of getting away from her, Mr
Stone?" said Jerry, pointing to the big schooner, which was coming up
hand over hand after us.
Stone, who was at the helm, looked over his shoulder at the stranger.
"Why, none whatever, Mr Frankland," he answered, after a minute's
deliberation.
"Then I do not see much use in running away," observed Jerry. "If we
are to be killed, let us be killed at once, and have it over."
"No, sir; as Mr Callard says, it's our duty to strive as long as we
can. Our lives are in the hand of God. He may find means to enable us
to escape, though we do not in our blindness see them. Perhaps it may
fall a dead calm, and we may make use of our sweeps; or a squall may
spring up and carry away the stranger's masts; or another vessel may
heave in sight, and she may think it wise to slip out of the way."
"I see that you are right, Mr Stone," answered Jerry. "But I wonder,
if they do catch us, what they will do to us all?"
"Cut the throats of every mother's son of us," he answered, quite
calmly. "I've often thought of death, and I am prepared to die, for I
trust in One who is mighty to save my soul alive. Have you the same
hope, young gentleman? I trust you have. It's my duty as a fellow man
to urge you to lay hold of it. There's nothing else will save us,
depend on that. From what I heard your officer, Mr Brand, say, I know
on what he trusted, and I hope he has not failed to speak to you about
the same matter."
"Ay, he spoke to us in a way we ought never to have forgotten, once when
we were drifting out to sea on the bottom of a boat, and we had little
chance of being saved; and then he swam off, at the still greater risk
of his own life, to save ours," answered Jerry.
"I knew that he was just the man to do that sort of thing. He was a
Christian man, too, I am certain of it. Well, it's a great comfort to
feel that of a man who you believe has just been taken out of the
world," observed the master. "I hope your man, Yool, was a trusting
believer. I know our man was, poor fellow."
Mr McRitchie had been listening, and seemed much affected at what had
been said. The master spoke so confidently of Mr Brand's death, and of
the others, that we began ourselves to realise the melancholy fact.
What, however, was likely to be our own fate? we had several times asked
ourselves. What could we expect but to be instantly murdered? We
anxiously scanned the horizon on every side. There was not a sign of a
sail of any description. The wind remained steady. There was no
prospect of a storm or a calm. The stranger was coming up after us with
fearful speed. We were within range of her guns, but she did not fire--
so we concluded that she had none on board. It was useless for us to
attempt to do anything by fighting. Jerry and I talked about it, but we
gave it up as a hopeless case. The stranger could quickly have settled
the matter by running us down.
Mr Stone showed us that he did not boast in vain. He was calm and
unmoved in spite of the dreadful danger which threatened us. Still
holding the tiller in his hand, and keeping his eye on the sails, he
knelt down and offered up an earnest prayer for our safety. We followed
his example, as did the natives; and when we arose from our knees, I,
for my part, felt that I was much better prepared than before to meet
with resignation whatever might befall us; so, I have no doubt, did my
companions.
The stranger had now got within musket-range, but still she did not
fire. Those on board, of course, expected that in a few minutes more
they would be up with us, and perhaps did not think us worth their
powder.
"What chance have we now, Mr Stone?" asked the doctor, eyeing our big
pursuer with a look of horror.
"None, sir, that I see," was the answer; "but then, as I said, there may
be means prepared which I don't see, so we'll hold on, if you please."
After a minute or two the patience of the pirates appeared to have been
exhausted. There was a report, and a musket-ball came whistling through
our sails. Jerry and I bobbed our heads, for it felt so terribly near
our ears. Jerry looked up indignantly. "I have a great mind to have a
crack at them in return," he exclaimed; and before any one saw what he
was about, he had seized his rifle from the cabin, and sent a shot back
at them in return.
"Oh, sir, there was no use doing that; you will only the more anger
those wicked men," said Captain Stone, quite calmly.
"No, no; let's die game," answered Jerry. "We may kill some of our
enemies before they kill us."
"We may kill some of our friends as likely," replied the captain. "If
we could prevent them injuring us, we might kill them; but as we cannot,
we must patiently wait the result."
The doctor seemed to agree with the captain, so Jerry refrained from
again loading his rifle. The effect, however, of his single shot was
most disastrous, for the pirates, supposing that we were about to show
fight, brought several muskets forward, and opened a hot fire on us. As
the bullets came rattling about our ears, I thought not one of us would
escape. The two poor Sandwich islanders were brought to the deck, one
directly after the other, desperately wounded. The matter was becoming
very serious. I thought that we ought to lower our sails; so did the
doctor, but Captain Stone begged us to keep all standing. "We can't
tell still, sir, but what we may escape. Hold on, hold on," he cried
out. "There is One who watches over us. If it is his will that we are
to be destroyed, his will be done." Scarcely had he uttered these words
of true piety than he suddenly lifted up his arm, letting go the tiller,
and fell to the deck. Jerry ran to the helm. I tried to lift him up,
while the doctor knelt down by his side. "Hold on, hold on, I counsel
you," he whispered, raising his head. "They have done for me. Doctor,
you cannot help me, I feel. It's all right; we were doing our duty. We
know in whom we trust. He is mighty to save our souls alive." With
these words he fell back, giving one look at our pursuer, and urging us
by a sign to hold on our course. The doctor took his hand. After
holding it for a minute, he shook his head. "He's gone," he remarked;
"as brave a man as I ever met, and as true a Christian."
Jerry meantime stood undauntedly at the helm. No sooner, however, had
the captain fallen than the pirates, seeing what had occurred, ceased
firing. They had now got so near, that, had they chosen, they might
have picked every one of us off without difficulty. At last they came
up almost abreast of us.
"Heave to, you young jackanapes, or we will sink you," sung out a man
from forward. The doctor was attending to one of the wounded natives,
so they did not observe him, perhaps. Although the command was issued
in a very uncomplimentary style, Jerry and I agreed that it would be
useless to disobey it; so going about, while he stood at the helm, I ran
forward and let fly the jib-sheet, while the foresail remained to
windward.
"Send your boat aboard us," shouted the same voice.
"We haven't got one," answered Jerry. "You know that well enough, I
should think," he added in a lower voice.
"Oh, we'll send one, then," replied the speaker.
During this time the big schooner was hove-to quite close to us.
Presently some of the crew went aft, and a long gig was lowered from the
schooner's quarter, and a set of as ugly-looking ruffians as I ever cast
eyes on got into her, and pulled towards us. From the specimen we had
witnessed of their conduct, we could only expect to be cut down and
thrown overboard as soon as they stepped on deck. The least
unattractive was a man, apparently an officer, who sat in the
stern-sheets. As he got near I could not help examining his
countenance. He was a mulatto, with handsome, regular features. I felt
certain that I had seen him before, and not long ago. He had on his
head a large broad-brimmed straw hat, a gaily-coloured handkerchief, and
a waistcoat of red silk, while his jacket was of the finest material.
He wore a sash round his waist, and a dagger and a brace of
silver-mounted pistols stuck into it. When he came alongside, he sprang
lightly on to the deck of the schooner, and looked about him.
"Now, my lads, be prepared; show no fear," said the doctor. "Remember
that the worst they can do is to kill us, and they'll gain nothing by
that; so perhaps they will let us live."
As we made not the slightest attempt at resistance, which would have
been madness, even the pirates had no excuse for injuring us. All we
did was to stand quietly at the after-part of the deck waiting what was
next going to happen.
One of the other pirates soon proceeded without ceremony into the cabin,
and the rest went forward down the fore-hatch.
The officer looked at me, and I looked at him. Old Surley, who at first
had been very much inclined to fly at the strangers, growling fiercely,
went up to him and quietly licked his hand. In spite of his
clean-shaven face, his gay clothes, and well filled-out cheeks, I
immediately recognised him as Manuel Silva, as he called himself--the
man whom we had with so much risk saved from the wreck of the Spanish
brig. "Yes, I remember you," he whispered in his broken English; "but
don't let others know that. I'm not a man to forget kindness, that's
all."
"Do you know anything of Mr Brand and the other men?" I asked eagerly.
He made no reply; and immediately afterwards, assuming an air of
authority, he ordered the doctor, Jerry, and me, to get into the boat.
The doctor entreated that he might be left to attend the two wounded
Sandwich islanders. The men, when they came on deck, laughed at his
request. "We have got wounded too, and shall want you to attend on
them," they answered; "if you are a doctor, you are welcome." Still the
doctor pleaded so hard for the poor men that at last they consented to
take one of them; the other, indeed, was already beyond all hopes of
recovery. We turned a last look at the body of poor Captain Stone.
"What is to be done with him?" asked Jerry.
"Never mind him, youngster," answered one of the men; "we'll soon
dispose of him."
Silva, leaving three men on board, ordered us to get into his boat to
return with him to the big schooner. As we were shoving off, old
Surley, who had been smelling about after the other men, gave a loud
bark, as much as to say, "Don't leave me behind," and leaped in after
us. Truly glad were we to have him, poor fellow. He might prove to us
a friend in need.
We stepped on deck; the crew, we thought, eyed us with very sinister
looks, but no one spoke to us till a man we took to be the captain
stepped up to the gangway. "Who are you, and where do you come from,
who go about prying into other people's affairs?" he exclaimed in a
gruff voice. He stamped with his feet as lift spoke, as if lashing
himself up into a rage. He was a pale, long-faced man, with a large
beard, and a very evil expression in his eye.
"We have no wish to pry into anybody's affairs," answered the doctor
quietly. "We missed a boat with some of the people belonging to this
schooner, and we thought they might be aboard your vessel."
"I know nothing of the people you talk of; but as you have seen more
than you ought, I suspect you'll remain with us. We happen to want just
such a schooner as yours, so say no more about it. You may think
yourselves fortunate in not losing your lives. There's no disguise
about us, you see."
Had we before felt any doubts on the subject, these remarks would have
revealed to us too clearly the character of the people among whom we had
fallen. I was thankful, indeed, that we were not immediately murdered.
Why the desperadoes allowed us to live was a mystery. The doctor, they
thought, would be useful to them; and perhaps, as Jerry remarked, they
did not think us worth killing. The doctor, he, and I, stood together
near the gangway, with Surley at our feet, waiting what was next to
happen. Meantime the poor wounded Sandwich islander had been handed up,
and placed on the deck forward.
The vessel on board which we found ourselves was a large, handsome
craft, of fully a hundred and eighty tons; and, from her great beam, her
taunt, raking masts, the broad white ribbon outside, and the peculiar
paint and fittings on her deck, she was evidently American. There were
a good many white men among her crew; but there were also many blacks
and mulattoes, of every shade of brown and hue of olive or copper.
Never had I seen people of so many nations and tribes brought together,
while every one of them to my eyes appeared most villainous cut-throats.
We saw the boat go back to the _Dove_ and deposit a couple of more hands
aboard her, and then both vessels hauled their wind and stood away to
the south-west. Just then some of the crew hailed the doctor:--"Here;
your patient seems to be about to slip his cable. You'd better come and
see what's the matter." We accompanied the doctor, and knelt down by
the side of the wounded man, who was evidently dying. He took the
doctor's hand. "You kind to us, but you no help me now," he whispered,
with his failing breath. "If you once more see Mr Callard--my love to
him--I die happy. I trust in Him he taught me to cling to. Once I was
poor savage. He made me rich." These were the poor Kanaka's last
words. A few years ago, and how differently would one of his countrymen
have died! The doctor closed the eyes and arranged the limbs of the
dead man, and threw a handkerchief which he took from his neck over his
face. "There," he said, "he'll not give you any more trouble." The men
said not a word, but walked about as composedly as if nothing had
happened, while we went back to our place near the gangway. Shortly
afterwards, a man, who seemed to be an officer, went forward. "Heave
that corpse overboard," he exclaimed; "why do you let it remain there
cumbering the deck?" The men looked at each other, and then, lifting up
the body of the poor Kanaka, threw it, without form or ceremony, into
the water. We looked astern. There it floated, with the arms spread
out, and the face turned towards us, for the handkerchief had fallen off
the head. Its lips seemed to move. I thought it was uttering a
well-merited curse on the hateful craft we were on board. It seemed to
be about to spring out of the water. I could not help crying out. I
shrieked, I believe. Many of the pirates looked with horror. "Is he
following us?" I cried. No. Down sunk the body from sight, as if
dragged by some force from below. "Ah, a shark has got him!" said
Silva, who had been looking on with the rest. Many of the ruffians
shuddered, for they knew full well that such might any day be their own
fate.
While this scene was enacting, a similar one was taking place on board
the _Dove_. Her captors, having time to look about them, had taken up
the bodies of poor Captain Stone and the other Kanaka, and, without
shroud or a shot to their feet, had hove them overboard. They also were
immediately attacked by the sharks. Jerry and I shuddered, as well we
might. The doctor looked on with more composure. "It matters little
whether sharks or animalculae first devour a body," he observed. "One
or other will inevitably swallow it before long, only the sharks make
greater speed with the process. Happily there is an essence which
neither one nor the other can destroy, which survives triumphant over
death; so, lads, when you mourn the loss of a friend, think of him as
living in that essence, not in the mortal frame you see torn to pieces
or mouldering in decay." A new light seemed to burst on me as the
doctor said this. The idea aided me to get over the horror I had felt
at seeing the fate of the missionary captain, and enabled me better to
bear the first remark which the pirate leader deigned to make us: "Well,
youngsters, if you don't behave yourselves, you'll come to that very
quickly, let me tell you."
"We have no wish to do otherwise than behave ourselves, sir," answered
Jerry in his politest way. "Perhaps you will tell us what you wish to
have done?"
"To hold your tongue and be hanged," answered the ruffian, turning
aside; for Jerry's coolness puzzled and enraged him.
The doctor was now summoned down below to look after some sick men, the
mate, who called him, said; but, as Jerry whispered, he suspected they
were sick from having swallowed more bullets than they liked. We two,
in the meantime, sat ourselves down on a gun, with Surley at our feet.
He put his nose between us, and looked anxiously up into our faces, as
if to learn what it all meant. We were there allowed to remain
unmolested, while the pirates went past us attending to the duty of the
ship. On seeing the guns, we wondered that the schooner had not fired
at us; but we concluded that they had coveted the _Dove_ for their own
objects, and had not wished to injure her. It was evidently from no
compassion to us that they had not knocked her to pieces. No one
interrupting us, Jerry and I began quietly to talk to each other.
"What can have become of Mr Brand, and Ben Yool, and the Kanaka?" said
I. "Is it possible that they are aboard here all this time, do you
think?"
"I am afraid not," answered Jerry, shaking his head sorrowfully. "I
think it's much more likely that a shot was hove into the dinghy if they
went alongside, and that they were sent to the bottom. My only hope is,
that they missed their way and never came near this craft. If so, they
may have been picked up by some vessel, or may find their way back to
Owhyhee."
"That last idea never occurred to me before. Oh, I hope it may be so!
I wonder what the doctor thinks?" said I.
The doctor was absent for a long time. When he came back to us, he said
that he could not give an opinion on the subject. He was very silent,
and we thought that he looked more sad and thoughtful even than at
first.
The day wore on. A black cook brought us some soup and a bowl of
farinha, which, as we were very hungry, we were glad enough to eat; and
at night, Silva told us that we three might occupy the small deck cabin
which was vacant. We were glad enough to creep in there, and to forget
our sorrows in sleep. For some time we slept as soundly as people who
have undergone a great deal of mental excitement generally sleep, though
the realities of the past mixed strangely with the visions of the night.
The most prominent was the picture of the sinking ship which we had
seen go down; but in addition I beheld the agonised countenances of the
murdered crew--some imploring mercy, others battling for life, and
others yielding hopelessly to their fate. Among them, to my greater
horror, I thought I saw Mr Brand and Ben Yool. They were bravely
struggling in the hands of the ruffians, as I am sure they would have
done. Now one was up, now the other. The pirates tried to force them
overboard, but they always again clambered up the side of the vessel.
Their boat was sunk beneath them; still they fought on, clutching hold
of ropes and the chain-plates--never for a moment losing heart. "That
is the way to fight the battle of life against all enemies, spiritual
and carnal," said a voice. It was Cousin Silas who spoke. Then the
pirates made another desperate attack on him and Ben, and they were
forced back into the deep ocean.
I awoke with a loud cry. "What's the matter? where are we?" asked
Jerry, stretching out his arms. "O Harry, what dreadful dreams I have
had! What is going to happen? Now I know. Oh dear! Oh dear! My poor
father, how miserable he will be when he fancies I am lost!" When we
told each other our dreams, we found that they had been very much of the
same nature.
Our talking awoke the doctor. He was, I daresay, not less unhappy than
we were, but he told us not to give way to unmanly fears, and scolded us
for talking about our dreams. "It is a foolish and bad practice silly
people are apt to indulge in. It makes them nervous, promotes
superstition, and, worse than all, frequently causes them to doubt God's
superintending care and watchfulness. Your dreams have just been made
up of what has occurred, and of what your imagination has conjured up.
Just set to work and think and talk of how we may escape from our
present position, and perhaps you may think and talk to good effect."
As soon as we got up, we took our place as we had done the previous day,
as much out of the way of the rest of the people as possible.
We took the doctor's advice, and did little else for some time than talk
of how we might escape. The most feasible plan which occurred to us was
to watch for an opportunity of deserting the ship whenever she might
touch at any place for water. We agreed that it would be well to try
and lull the suspicions of our captors, by pretending to be perfectly
contented with our lot, and by making ourselves as much at home as
possible.
"We'll not seem to care about going on shore ourselves," observed Jerry;
"but after a time we'll talk about old Surley not being accustomed to
remain on board so long, and we'll ask leave to take him a run on the
beach; then he'll run on, and we will run after him, till we get out of
sight of the vessel, and then won't we put our best legs foremost--
that's all. Surley will like the fun, and we will whistle him on; and
if any of the pirates meet us, we can say we are running after him; and
so we shall be, you know. We can hide away in some tree, or in a
cavern, or somewhere or other till the ship sails, and then we must
trust to what may turn up to get away from the place, wherever it may
be."
"The chances are that it may be a desert island, and one rarely or never
visited by ships. If so, perhaps we may have to live on it for years
without being able to escape from it," I observed.
"Well, no matter if that is the case," he answered; "anything is better
than living among these cut-throats."
"I agree with you," said I; "but what is to become of the doctor? We
must not leave him behind."
"Certainly not," said Jerry; "we will tell him what we propose, and I
daresay he will find means to follow us. If he cannot, perhaps he will
propose some plan which will be better than ours."
We talked till we talked ourselves very hungry, and were not sorry when
the black cook brought us a bowl of farinha for our breakfast. We
should not have objected to a slice of cold beef or a piece of fish, but
we agreed that it would be wiser to take what was offered to us, and
appear thankful. The doctor was asked in to breakfast with the captain.
He certainly would rather not have gone, but as nothing could be gained
by refusing, and something might by accepting the invitation, he went.
Tom Congo, the cook, did not forget old Surley, but, when the officers
were below at breakfast, brought him a mess, which he gobbled up with no
little satisfaction.
Silva appeared to take no notice of us; yet we could not but believe
that it was owing to his intercession our lives had been spared, and
that we were not ill-treated. It will be remembered that, after the
story we heard of the escape of the convicts from Juan Fernandez,
serious suspicions had been entertained of his character. We had now,
from finding him associated with pirates, every reason to believe that
our suspicions were correct. Still, pirate as he was, all the right
feelings of our nature had not been blunted in him. While on board the
_Triton_ he had always behaved well, and he now showed us that he was
grateful for the kindness he had received. Such was the opinion Jerry
and I formed of him.
For three or four days things went on much in the same way as at first.
We had our food brought us regularly by our friend the black cook, and
were allowed to walk the deck as long as we liked, and to creep into our
cabin at night. Nobody interfered with us. The people who acted as
officers passed us by without notice, and the seamen did not take the
trouble to exchange a word with us. At last Jerry and I agreed that it
was time to try and make ourselves more at home, or we should not be
able to carry into execution the plan we had proposed. Surley, too,
seemed to think it very dull work sitting all day long with his nose
resting on our knees. How to set about ingratiating ourselves with the
fellows, was the difficulty. We generally talked over our plans when
the doctor was away, as he was for a considerable time every day
attending to the sick. We determined first to try and win over old Tom
Congo, the black cook, as he seemed disposed to be friendly with us.
"I say, cook," exclaimed Jerry, "you give us very good food to eat, but
couldn't you add a bit of meat now and then? Surley gets some, and we,
who have been accustomed all our lives to it, would like to have it
now."
"Oh, oh, you hab some of Surley's den," answered Tom Congo, with a grin.
"You are too kind to wish to make us eat scraps and bits," said Jerry;
"we should just like a piece of beef or pork."
Congo looked pleased; and though he would not promise to bring us any
meat, we saw that he would. Now, we did not care so much about the
meat, but we thought that, by asking him a favour which he could easily
grant, we might gain his interest. It was a compliment to him, and made
him feel as if he were our superior, for the time being at all events.
The next day, at dinner time, he brought us a very nice piece of boiled
beef and some potatoes. We consulted what we could give him in return.
Our knives were too valuable to part with, but Jerry had a silver
pencil-case, which he offered to him. Old Tom asked what it was for,
and when told to write with, he grinned from ear to ear, observing that,
as he could not write even his own name, it would be of no manner of use
to him; but that he thanked us all the same.
The feeling that there were two people on board who were disposed to be
friendly with us raised our spirits. We got up and began to chase
Surley about the deck, making him run after a ball of spun-yarn till we
got tired of the game. Then we walked up and down the deck till we got
right aft, where we could catch a glance at the compass. We were
steering about south-west and by south.
"Where are we going to, my friend?" said Jerry, addressing the man at
the helm.
"Ask the captain; he's likely to tell you, youngster."
"Oh, no matter," answered Jerry, carelessly, "I only asked for
curiosity. If it's to China, or round Cape Horn, or to California, it's
all the same to me."
"You're an independent little chap, at all events," answered the man;
"if you were one of us, you'd do well, I doubt not."
"Oh, I've no objection to do well," said Jerry; "just show me the way,
and I'm your man."
"I like your spirit, and I'll say a word in your favour with the crew.
I daresay you know something about navigation, which is more than most
of the officers do; so, if you join us, it won't be long before you are
made an officer."
"Thank you for your good opinion of me," said Jerry; "but I'm not
ambitious. I just want to do what I like, and if nobody interferes with
me, I'm content."
"You're a merry little chap, at all events," observed the pirate. "I
like to see a fellow with some spirit in him, and I'll keep you out of
harm if I can."
"Thank you," said Jerry, making a dash after Surley's tail; "I thought
you looked as if you were a kind chap, and that made me speak to you."
Thus by degrees we made ourselves at home among the crew. Before the
evening we were chasing each other about the rigging. The men forward
had a monkey, and we got hold of him, and made him ride upon Surley's
back. Neither animal liked it at first, but by coaxing them we managed
to reconcile them to each other. Jacko would every now and then take it
into his head to give old Surley a sly pinch on the ear or tail, and
then the dog would turn round and endeavour to bite the monkey's leg;
but the latter was always too quick for him, and would either jump off,
or leap up on his back as if he were going to dance there, or would
catch hold of a rope overhead and swing himself up out of his way. It
really was great fun, and often we almost forgot where we were and our
sad fate. It made the pirates also think us light-hearted, merry
fellows, and they gave themselves no further concern about watching us.
Now, of course, it sounds very romantic and interesting to be on board a
pirate vessel, among desperate cut-throats, to be going one does not
know where; but the reality is very painful and trying, and, in spite of
all we did in the day to keep up our spirits, Jerry and I often lay
awake half the night, almost crying, and wondering what would become of
us. It was not till we remembered what we had heard at home, and what
Captain Frankland and Mr Brand had told us often--that in all
difficulties and troubles we should put our trust in God--that we found
any comfort. How much we now wished for a Bible, that we might read it
to each other! We now saw more clearly than we had ever before done its
inestimable value. There were several on board the _Dove_, but we were
not likely to be able to get them.
The poor doctor was more to be pitied than we were. He grew thinner and
thinner every day. Evidently he felt his captivity very much. His
prospect of escaping was much smaller than ours, because he was of far
greater use to the pirates than we were. We might have been of some
service to them as navigators, but without our books and instruments we
could do very little for them even in that respect.
Several more days went by in this way. The pirates now began to grow
fidgety, and they were constantly going to the mast-head, and spent the
day in looking out on every side round the horizon, in search of land or
a vessel, we could not tell which. At last, one forenoon, one of the
look-outs shouted from aloft, "A sail! a sail!"
"Where away?" asked the captain, who till that moment seemed to have
been half asleep on deck. He sprang to his feet, and he, with every one
on board, in an instant was full of life and animation.
"On the lee bow," answered the man. "She is a large ship, standing to
the southward." The wind was from the westward.
Several of the officers and men hurried aloft to have a look at the
stranger. When they came down they seemed highly satisfied.
"She's a merchantman from California," observed one. "She'll have
plenty of gold dust on board."
"She's the craft to suit us, then," observed a second.
"She's a heavy vessel, and the fellows aboard will fight for their
gold," remarked a third.
"Who cares? a little fighting will make the prize of more value," cried
another. "We'll show them what they'll get by resistance."
The word was now passed along to clear the decks for action, and, with
the men at their guns, we bore down on the stranger.