We duly dined with the commodore that night, and I was able to promise
him that he should have my complete requisition before noon the next
day, at which he expressed himself much pleased. And after dinner, when
the cloth had been drawn and the servants had retired, the dear old
gentleman gave us both a very long and serious talking-to, which did us
both a great deal of good, and for which I, at least, and Jack, too, I
believe, felt profoundly grateful. We were a pair of very sober lads
when at length we bade him good-night and made the best of our way
aboard the saucy little _Francesca_. Jack and I got to work at daylight
next morning, and by dint of really hard labour I was not only able to
keep my promise of the previous night to the commodore, but to do rather
better, for it was barely eleven o'clock when I entered his office and
handed him my requisition. He read it very carefully through from
beginning to end, asked me if I felt quite certain that it embodied the
whole of my requirements, and, upon my replying that I was, at once
signed it, bidding me to be off at once to get it executed and then to
report to him. I saw that he was very anxious for me to get away as
quickly as possible, and I therefore went straight from him to the
various people concerned, and badgered them so unmercifully that the
bulk of my requirements were alongside that same evening, while by
breakfast-time on the following morning the last boatload had come off,
and I felt myself free to go ashore, leaving Jack in charge, and report
myself ready for sea.
I was at the office even before the commodore that morning, and he
expressed himself as being much gratified at the expedition with which I
had completed my preparations. Then he unlocked his desk, and,
extracting two packets therefrom, said, as he handed them to me:
"There are your written instructions, and there are the dispatches,
which I charge you to take the utmost care of and guard with your life,
if necessary, for they are of the most vital importance. So important,
indeed, are they that I tell you frankly I should not feel justified in
entrusting them to so youthful an officer as yourself, had I anybody
else that I could send. But I have not, therefore I cannot help myself,
and I have every confidence that you will do your very utmost to carry
out my instructions in their entirety. These are, that you proceed to
sea forthwith, and make the best of your way to Kingston, in Jamaica,
carrying on night and day, and pausing for nothing--nothing, mind you,
for this is a matter in which hours, ay, and even minutes, are of
importance. If you should happen to be attacked you must of course
fight, but not otherwise, remember that! And if there should be any
prospect of your being captured, wait until the last possible moment,
until all chance of escape is gone, and then sink the packet. Remember,
it must on no account be allowed to fall into the hands of the enemy.
And upon your arrival at Kingston you are at once to make your way to
the admiral, let the hour be what it will, day or night, and place the
packet in his own hands. There, I need say no more now, for you will
find all these matters fully set out in your written instructions. And
now, good-bye, my boy, and God speed you safely to your destination! I
know not what may lie before you on the other side, or whether we shall
ever meet again in this world; but remember that in me you will always
find a friend ready to help you to the best of his ability, and who will
always be glad to hear of your welfare. Good-bye, lad, and God bless
you!" And, with a hearty grip of his honest old hand, he dismissed me.
Half an hour later we were under way and beating out to sea, showing
every rag that we could stagger under, toward the belt of calm that
separated the sea breeze from the trade wind that was blowing briskly in
the offing. And so profoundly impressed was I with the urgency of the
matter that had been entrusted to me that when at length we shot into
the calm belt, rather than lose time by waiting for the trade wind to
work its way inshore to the spot where we were lying, I ordered out the
sweeps, and, turning the little hooker's nose to the westward, swept her
out until we caught the true breeze. Then it was "out studding-sails to
windward", and away we went again at racing speed. Luckily, nothing had
been done by the Government people to spoil the little beauty's sailing
qualities; she was precisely as she had been when engaged in her
original nefarious trade, except that her slave-deck had been taken out
of her; and long before sundown we had run the African coast clean out
of sight, to the joy of all hands, fore and aft.
We had but one adventure, if indeed it could be called such, on our
passage across the Atlantic, and that occurred on our eighth day out
from Sierra Leone. Up to then we had sighted nothing, and had had a
very fine passage, the trade wind blowing fresh enough all the time to
enable us to maintain an average speed of nine knots throughout the
passage. But on the day of which I am now speaking, about six bells in
the afternoon watch, we sighted a large sail ahead, and, some ten
minutes later, another, following in the wake of the first. Both were,
of course, hull-down when we first sighted them, and broad on our port
bow, standing to the northward close-hauled on the starboard tack, but
as they were carrying on heavily, and we were travelling fast, we
rapidly rose each other, and it then became evident that the second
craft, a very fine and handsome brig, was in pursuit of the other, which
was a full-rigged ship, apparently a British West Indiaman. This
surmise of ours as to the nationality of the leading ship was soon
confirmed, for as we rushed rapidly down toward the two we hoisted our
colours, in response to which she immediately displayed the British
ensign, following it up by hoisting a series of signals to her mizzen
royal-mast-head which, when completed, read:
"Stranger astern suspected pirate."
Here was a pretty business indeed, and a very nice question for me to
decide on the spur of the moment. What was my duty, under the
circumstances? On the one hand, here was a British merchantman,
doubtless carrying a very valuable cargo, in imminent danger of being
captured and plundered, and, possibly, her crew massacred, for the brig
was overhauling the Indiaman hand over hand; while on the other were the
explicit and emphatic instructions of the commodore to pause for
nothing. It was certain that unless I interfered the Indiaman would be
captured, and every instinct within me rose up in protest against the
idea of leaving her to her fate, while the words of the commodore were:
"If you should happen to be attacked, fight, but not otherwise". I
reflected for a moment or two, and then decided upon my course of
action. If we went on as we were going we should pass very close to the
Indiaman, but if we shifted our helm about a point to the southward we
should pass quite close to the brig. I therefore determined to make
that very slight deviation from my course, and see what would happen. I
could not hope to divert the brig from her chase of so valuable a prize
as the ship, but it was just possible that I might, by opening fire on
the pursuer, be lucky enough to bring down a spar or otherwise damage
her sufficiently to afford the Indiaman a chance to escape. I therefore
ordered the helm to be shifted, and gave instructions for the crew to go
to quarters, to double-shot the broadside batteries and to open fire on
the brig with our long eighteen the moment that we should come within
range. That moment was not long deferred, and presently Thompson, the
gunner, shouted:
"I think we can about reach him now, sir."
"Then fire as soon as you are ready," replied I. "And aim at his spars.
It is far more important to shoot away a topmast than to hull the
fellow."
"Ay, ay, sir!" answered Thompson, and I saw him stoop behind the gun,
directing the gun's crew with his hands as he squinted along the sights
of the weapon. Another second or two, as the schooner rose over the
back of a swell, he fired. The aim was a splendid one, but the
elevation was scarcely sufficient, for the shot struck the craft's
weather bulwarks fair between the masts, making the splinters fly.
"Excellent!" I exclaimed. "Admirable! Don't alter your elevation,
Thompson, for we are nearing him fast. Try again, as quick as you
like."
The gun was reloaded, and again fired; but this time, whether due to
over-eagerness or some other cause, the gunner made a bad shot, the ball
striking the water astern of, and some distance beyond, the brig. Then,
while the men were reloading, nine jets of flame and smoke leapt
simultaneously from the brig's side, and nine round shot tore up the
water unpleasantly close under our bows.
"How would it do to train the guns of the port broadside forward, and
return his compliment?" asked Keene, who was standing close beside me.
"No, Jack, on no account," said I. "I am saving up those two broadsides
for a possible emergency, and if we were to fire now there would be no
time to reload before we are down upon him. But go you, my hearty, and
see that the guns of the starboard broadside are so trained as to
concentrate their fire on a point at about fifty yards' distance."
At this moment our Long Tom spoke again, and the next instant a loud
cheer broke from our lads, for the shot had taken the brig's fore-
topmast just below the sheave of the topsail-tye, and away went the
fore-topsail, topgallant-sail, and royal over to leeward, while the
flying and standing jibs and the fore-topmast staysail collapsed and
drooped into the water under her forefoot, with the result that she
instantly shot up into the wind.
"Well done, Thompson!" I cried. "That will do with the long gun. Now
stand by the starboard battery, and, as we pass under her stern, slap
the whole broadside into her."
The pirates, if such indeed they were, for the brig showed no colours,
proved themselves to be a remarkably smart crew, for the wreckage had
scarcely fallen when her fore-rigging and jib-boom were alive with men
laying out and aloft to clear away the wreck. The Indiaman was now
safe, for she would be away out of sight long before the brig could
repair damages sufficiently to resume the pursuit, and if the skipper of
the ship were as smart as he ought to be it would be his own fault if he
allowed the brig to find him again. But I wished to make assurance
doubly sure, and therefore, as we swept close past the disabled craft,
at the imminent risk of being dismasted by her broadside, which,
however, her people were too busy to fire, we slapped our starboard
broadside right into her stern, with the extremely satisfactory result
that a moment later her mainmast tottered and, with all attached, fell
over the side, while the screams of the wounded rent the air. We must
have punished her very severely indeed, for all that we got in reply was
one solitary gun fired out of her stern port, which did no damage; and a
quarter of an hour later we were out of her reach and not a ropeyarn the
worse for our encounter. But I took very particular notice of the brig
while we were near her, and although she was differently painted, having
nothing now in the way of colour to relieve her jet-black sides save a
narrow scarlet ribbon, I could almost have sworn that she was the
identical brig that had destroyed the _Dolores_.
We made the island of Barbados shortly before noon on the following day,
and passed its southern extremity, soon after four bells in the
afternoon watch, at the distance of about a mile, getting a peep into
Carlisle Bay as we swept past without calling in. There were several
men-o'-war and a whole fleet of merchantmen lying at anchor in the bay,
off Bridgetown, which led me to conjecture that a large convoy had
either just arrived from home or was mustering there for the homeward
passage. The trade wind still favouring us, and blowing a brisk breeze,
we sighted Saint Vincent that same afternoon, and passed its northern
extremity about midway through the second dog watch; and finally, on the
fourth day after passing Barbados, we made the island of Jamaica, and
anchored off Port Royal just as eight bells of the afternoon watch was
striking.
The moment that the anchor was down I jumped into the gig and, leaving
Jack in charge, pulled ashore, in the hope of finding the admiral in his
office, although I feared that the hour was rather late. By the
luckiest possible chance, however, it happened that, being exceptionally
busy just then, he had deferred his departure for Kingston, and I caught
him just as he was about to leave. The old gentleman seemed a good deal
put out at finding that he was still to be further delayed and, with a
gesture of annoyance, broke the seal of the packet containing the
dispatches and began to read the first one, standing. Before he had
read much above a dozen words, however, his look of vexation gave place
to one of astonishment, and that, in turn, to one of intense
satisfaction. "Well, I'll be shot! Most extraordinary! Aha! I begin
to see light. Yes, yes, of course... Capital! splendid! I know how to
checkmate 'em. Only just in time though, by Jove!" I heard him mutter
as he read on, at first almost inaudibly, but louder and louder as his
excitement grew, until he had completed the perusal of the principal
document. Then he turned it over again and looked at the date, looked
at it as though he could scarcely believe his eyes. Finally he turned
to me and said:
"On what date were these dispatches handed to you, young gentleman?"