A blue canopy, undimmed by a single cloud, was spread over the bright,
sparkling ocean, in the midst of which the graceful corvette, her
snow-white canvas tapering upwards, glided towards the coast of Jamaica.
Ahead was seen, rising out of the green plain, range above range of
lofty blue mountains, appearing above the stratum of clouds which rolled
along their precipitous sides, their steep cliffs descending abruptly to
the ocean, while thick forests covered the more gentle slopes of the
hills. In a short time, the white buildings of Port Royal were
distinguished at the end of a narrow sandy spit overgrown with
mangroves, well known as the Palisades. At the farther end of the spit
was seen the white walls of Fort Morant, with a steep hill rising above
it. Passing between the formidable ramparts of Fort Charles on one
side, thickly studded with heavy ordnance, and of Fort Augusta, with
Rock Fort above it, capable of sinking any fleet which might have
ventured to enter, the corvette ran on towards Kingston, where she
brought up at some distance from the town.
"Well, this is a beautiful country!" exclaimed Bill, as he surveyed the
scene in which he found himself. "It beats Portsmouth Harbour hollow--
that it does, I'm sure."
"Just wait a bit till we have had yellow Jack aboard!" growled out old
Grim. "Very fine to look at, maybe, but you will find it very different
when you know it as well as I do. Once I belonged to a ship out in
these parts, when we lost the better half of our ship's company before
we got home again."
"I hope we shall be more fortunate," said Bill. "But what do you mean
by yellow Jack?"
"The yellow fever, to be sure, boy. You will see a fellow one hour
rolling along with a quid in his mouth, as happy as a prince, and the
next down with the fever, and wriggling about with pain; and in the
morning when you ask after him, if he's on shore, you will hear he is
buried already; if he's at sea, the sailmaker will be busy sewing him up
in his hammock."
When Bill went to the cabin to attend to his duties, the officers were
all talking away of what they were going to do on shore. While dinner
was going forward, Bill could not help hearing their conversation. Some
of them were talking of friends they expected to find; others were
proposing rides up the country to Rock Fort, and other places; some
talked of going over to Spanish Town, the capital of the island.
"Well, Collinson, and do you expect to find your friends the Lydalls
here?" asked Mr Barker.
"He wouldn't be looking so happy if he did not," said the master.
"I am not surprised at it," observed the surgeon. "I once saw Miss
Ellen Lydall, and if I had not happened to have a wife and small family
of my own, I should have been entering the lists with him myself."
"Colonel Lydall told me that he expected his regiment would be sent
here. The colonel's family accompanied him out, and I hope to find that
he is stationed either at Uphill Barracks or Rock Fort," answered
Lieutenant Collinson.
"But I say, Collinson, do you think the young lady will have remained
faithful all this time? Remember what numbers of soldier-officers and
rich planters there are out here ready to supplant you. Ha! Ha! Ha!"
and the purser laughed and rubbed his hands at his own joke.
Lieutenant Collinson took this bantering very coolly. "A man may take
from messmates what he certainly would not from other persons," he
answered.
Bill heard the remark, but very wisely never repeated out of the cabin
what he heard in it. He did, however, think to himself, "Mr Collinson
is a kind, good officer, and I only hope, if he likes this Miss Lydall,
that he will fall in with her, and maybe marry her one of these days."
As the ship lay some way from the town, it was too late for any of the
officers to go on shore that night. When dinner was over, and Bill had
finished his duties in the gun-room, he went on deck, but found Tommy
Rebow and some of the other lads skylarking about the fore-rigging. He
soon joined them.
"Hillo, youngster!" cried Grimshaw, as he passed him. "Take care you
don't fall overboard again. You will not come off as easily as you did
before. Look out there! What do you say to that chap?" and old Grim
pointed to a dark triangular object which was slowly gliding by the
ship. "Do you know what that is?"
"No," said Bill, "I cannot make it out."
"Then I'll tell you," said old Grim. "That's Black Tom--the biggest
shark in these seas. This harbour is his home; and he takes precious
good care that no seaman shall swim ashore from his ship. He would be
down upon him in a twinkling, if he caught him in the water. They say
the Government keeps him in its pay to act watchman, and he goes up to
the Dockyard to be fed every day."
Bill now distinguished a large black body beneath the fin, but it soon
passed ahead of the ship and was lost to sight.
The next day Mr Collinson sent for Bill, and told him to clean himself
and get ready to go with him on shore, to carry his carpet-bag. Bill
was very quickly ready, and took charge of the bag, which the
lieutenant's servant gave him. The purser, and master, and two or three
midshipmen were going on shore at the same time. "Now," thought Bill,
"I shall hear all about the young lady, for I dare say Mr Collinson is
going up to look after her."
They passed several other ships of war, for it was a busy time then in
the West Indies; for, though England had thrashed most of her enemies,
there were still a number of privateers cruising about, and doing all
the mischief they could. Captain Trevelyan expected to be employed in
looking after them. He had already gone ashore in his gig to pay his
respects to the admiral up at the Penn--as the residence of the
commander-in-chief is called--situated on an elevation about two miles
out of Kingston.
As soon as they landed, Mr Collinson, telling Bill to follow him, took
leave of his companions, they casting knowing glances after him.
"Lucky fellow!" said one of the midshipmen. "Depend upon it he is all
right, or he would not look so happy."
They soon learned that Colonel Lydall's regiment was stationed at Uphill
Barracks. As it was too far to walk, he ordered a caleche, and directed
Bill to put in his bag. Bill looked very much disappointed, thinking he
should have to go back to the boat. Great was his pleasure, therefore,
when the lieutenant said--
"Jump up behind, lad." And away they drove through the regular, broad
streets of Kingston, and were soon ascending the hill towards the
barracks.
It was a grand scene--the blue mountains rising up in a semicircle
before them, with lofty groves of palmetto, the wild cotton-tree and
fig-tree at their bases; behind them the clean-looking white town with
the vast harbour beyond; the palisades stretching away on one side, with
Port Royal at the end, separating it from the ocean; the
merchant-vessels floating in the harbour of Kingston, while farther off
were seen the lofty masts and spars of the men-of-war. It was very hot,
but Bill did not mind the heat, and only wished the drive was to be
longer. They were soon among the well-built airy barracks of Uphill
Park camp, and Bill felt very grand as the carriage drove up to the
officers' quarters.
"Now I hope I shall see this young lady Lieutenant Collinson thinks so
much about," thought Bill to himself.
The lieutenant jumped from the carriage, and eagerly went to the
hall-door. He came back, however, very soon, looking somewhat
disappointed, and told the negro driver to go on farther up the country.
Bill, however, was not sorry, as he thus had an opportunity of seeing
more of the island.
"I hope the lady is there, however," he said to himself.
They drove on along the fine road, and among curious trees such as Bill
had never seen in his life. There was the graceful bamboo, with its
long leaves waving in the breeze; and the trumpet tree, from thirty to
forty feet high, its trunk something like that of the bamboo, with a
curious fruit growing on it not unlike the strawberry. Bill was quite
delighted when he caught sight of a monkey leaping among the branches of
a tree, wild and at liberty, like a squirrel in England. Away it went,
however, as the carriage approached, stopping only now and then to have
a look at the approaching vehicle, then hiding itself among the foliage.
At length, after driving some miles, ascending higher and higher, the
carriage turned off towards a large cottage-looking building on the side
of the hill. There was a broad verandah in front, looking out over the
plain towards the sea beyond. Under the verandah, several ladies and
gentlemen were collected.
Two or three blacks came out to meet the carriage, and the lieutenant,
having exchanged a few words with them, proceeded across the garden to
the verandah. Bill could just see a young lady, who had been seated
with her back to the drive, start up as the lieutenant approached, and
put out her hand to shake his, as he came up. A fine-looking gentleman,
whom Bill took to be the colonel, advanced from the other end of the
verandah, and seemed to welcome him warmly. He then saw him bow to the
rest of the company, and finally shake hands with one or two whom he
appeared to recognise.
"It's all right," said Bill.
Bill was soon at home among the negro servants. He did not turn up his
nose at them because they were black, and was ready to laugh and joke
with them, and help them in anything they were about. He was very glad
when, after some time, the lieutenant told him to take the bag out of
the carriage, for he was going to stop there that evening.
Old Sally, the black cook, especially took a great fancy to Bill, and he
seldom had had so luxurious a dinner as she put before him.
"Dare, sailor-boy! Eat and grow fat. Dat better than salt junk dat dey
give on board ship."
Bill, in return, danced a hornpipe for the amusement of his black
friends, who stood round him grinning from ear to ear, and clapping
their hands with delight, one or two of the negro boys trying to imitate
him, though Sally and the rest declared that they could in no way come
up to his performance.
When the colonel's party went to dinner, Bill was told to go in and
help. This he was glad to do, as he thus had an opportunity of seeing
the young lady he had heard spoken about.
Lieutenant Collinson was seated by her side. He was sure that must be
she, from the way the lieutenant was speaking to her.
"Well," thought Bill, "no wonder Mr Collinson admires her. She is
indeed a sweet young lady; so fair, and such blue eyes! And I think she
seems pleased to have the lieutenant where he is."
Little, probably, did either the officer or the young lady dream of the
thoughts which were entering Bill Sunnyside's head. There were a number
of other guests present,--two or three officers of the regiment, a
planter or two, as the West Indian proprietors are called, and several
ladies. Bill, however, thought that the colonel's daughter surpassed
them all. How very happy she looked, as the lieutenant spoke to her;
her countenance varying according to the subject, often a rich glow
overspreading her face, while her eyes flashed and sparkled. Certainly,
if the lieutenant had cared for her before, he must have admired her now
more than ever. And so he did,--of that there could be little doubt;
and he would have been ready at any moment to give his life for hers,
and to fight to the last gasp to defend her from danger.