A MORAL CONSPIRACY ON BOARD THE SALIHÉ
Louis Belgrave had a constitutional dislike for evil-doers, for he
inherited an utter condemnation of all wrong as a part of his being;
and he could no more help this feeling than he could help breathing.
Like his mother, he was disposed to "love the sinner while he hated the
sin." He had just passed through an exciting experience, and he was
grateful to Heaven that he and his friends had come out of the conflict
unharmed.
Still he was not at all satisfied with the situation. His party had
been beaten in the conflict with the smugglers, who were lawless
reprobates, with whom he could not have the remotest sympathy. He had
not the slightest fellow-feeling for those who believed it was quite
proper to cheat the government out of the duties levied on goods coming
into the country.
He was even so old-fashioned as to wonder how men and women who had
the reputation of being honest and upright members of society, and
sometimes in good standing in the church, could conceal dutiable goods
when they had come home from abroad, and give evasive if not lying
answers to the questions of custom-house officials.
Gray, Diego, Velazquez, and their associates, were violating the laws
of Spain. If the duties on the merchandise on board of the Golondrina,
as their schooner was called, amounted to a thousand pounds, Louis
regarded their operation as precisely the same thing as stealing this
amount of money from the Spanish government. He viewed the transaction
in exactly the same light as he would have looked upon the deed of a
bandit who robbed the passing traveller on the road of the sum named.
Louis expressed his views on this subject as a prelude to the
consideration of the question which Scott had brought up for
discussion. It seemed to him, though he had not reasoned himself into
this belief, that he and his companions were to some extent guilty if
they permitted these law-breakers, without an attempt to bring them to
justice, to go their way with their ill-gotten booty, or, as he put it,
to steal the money from the government of Spain.
It is hardly probable that all his friends took his high-toned moral
view of the subject; but without exception they were in favor of
recapturing the steamer, and making prisoners of the smugglers.
Undoubtedly such an attempt would involve an adventure; but there was
a flavor of doing one's duty connected with it which satisfied Louis
that "it was the right thing to do," if it was practicable, for even
Louis did not believe that his party were called upon to perish by the
stilettos of the ruffians for the benefit of the Spanish treasury.
"Hold on a minute," said Scott, as the gong in the engine-room sounded
to stop the boat. "They have come to the Golondrina. We had better find
out if we can how the pirates arrange their affairs on board when they
take the schooner in tow."
"That is a good idea," replied Louis, as he went to one of the cabin
windows, and raised the curtain a little so that he could see out on
the deck. "The steamer has come about, and her stern is under the
bowsprit of the schooner."
"Look out, Louis!" called Scott, as he heard voices on the deck. "They
will see that the window is open if you are not careful."
The cabin had been lighted by Chickworth when he brought the steamer
to the gangway of the Guardian-Mother. A lamp was suspended from a
deck-beam overhead; it had three brackets, and the little apartment was
illuminated like a ballroom. Louis dropped the curtain at this warning,
but he could still hear all that was said on the deck.
Captain Velazquez ordered Lucio on board of the schooner, directing him
to pass the tow-line to the steamer; and it had evidently been made
ready before the smugglers left the vessel to procure the services
of the Salihé. Louis interpreted the command of the captain to his
companions in a low tone so that he could not be heard by those on deck.
"That settles one thing," said Scott, who was proving himself to be one
of the most useful and determined of the party.
"What does it settle?" asked Louis, who had taken no particular notice
of the meaning of the order.
"It settles that no men were left in the schooner; for that reason
Lucio had to be sent on board of her to pass the tow-line on board,"
replied Scott.
"That is important," added Louis. "Possibly it proves another thing:
that the smugglers intended to take the steamer by force if necessary,
or they would have sent only two or three after her. They are hauling
the line on board."
Louis listened again, and Diego's orders indicated that the line was
made fast at the stern of the Salihé. The only names he heard used were
those of Gray, the captain, and Francisco, for Pedro appeared to be
still in charge of the engine, or rather of the engineer. Only four of
the ruffians remained on board of the steamer.
"_Todo esta pronto_" (All is ready), said Gray, who seemed to be more
impatient than his companions.
"_Todavia no_" (Not yet), added the captain.
"What are we waiting for now?" demanded Gray, vexed at any delay, and
still speaking Spanish of course.
"I have to place my men," replied Diego petulantly.
At this point of the conversation on the deck Louis was intensely
interested, for he was as desirous of knowing where each man was placed
as the captain himself. In the beginning of the discussion he had
simply hoped that something might be done to recover the steamer; but
now Scott's proposition began to look more practicable.
"I thought you had placed them," said Gray. "Francisco, who knows more
about a steamer than any of the rest of your crew, is to be at the
helm, and Pedro is to look out for the Spanish engineer, who is not
likely to give us any trouble."
"All right so far," replied the captain. "Lucio will remain on board of
the Golondrina with me."
"With you?" interrogated the Scotchman.
"Of course I shall stay on board of the _goleta_," returned Diego, as
though he had been asked a foolish question.
"I supposed you would remain on board of the steamer," added Gray.
"Have you lost your wits?" demanded Captain Velazquez, as nearly as
Louis could render his remark into English. "Our valuable cargo is on
board of the Golondrina, and do you expect me to leave it to take care
of itself?"
"But if you stay on board of the steamer you will not be far away from
it," suggested Gray, who was clearly dissatisfied with the arrangement.
"Suppose the tow-line should part and set the _goleta_ adrift: what
would become of her with no one but Lucio on board of her?"
"I have no idea that the tow-line will part."
"But it may. Suppose we are chased by a cutter from Algeciras; she
might run between the two vessels in order to break the line," argued
Diego.
"Then you would be taken by the officers, and I should be safe," added
Gray with a chuckle. "But I happen to know that they have nothing just
now but a sailing-vessel for a cutter, and there is not a breath of air
to-night."
"But there will be wind enough as soon as we get out from under the lee
of these mountains to the north of us," the captain insisted. "I never
leave my vessel when she is under way."
Louis thought the captain had the best of the argument; and whether
the Scotchman thought so or not, he made no further objection to the
plan; and a few minutes later the listener heard the voice of Diego
from a distance, which assured him that he had gone on board of the
Golondrina. This word means a swallow, not an unusual name for a fast
yacht in France and the United States; and Louis concluded that she
must be a rapid-sailing craft, built for the smuggling business.
The attentive listener next heard the footsteps of Gray, and it
must have been he, since the captain had left him alone in the
standing-room. Doubtless he was going to the pilot-house, where
Francisco had been sent before him, to get the steamer under way as
soon as Diego gave the command. Louis drew aside the curtain and looked
out; but no one was to be seen on the deck.
"There is no one near the cabin now," said he as he seated himself on
the divan, with his hands behind him, a position which circumstances
compelled all the party to assume.
"But what have you heard, Captain Belgrave?" demanded Scott. "None of
us but you know any Spanish, and we are as much in the dark as ever."
"Quite right; and I forgot to mention what I have heard;" and he
proceeded to report the conversation to which he had listened, omitting
the arguments used by Gray and the captain.
"That makes the situation look a little more jolly," said Scott. "There
goes the gong, and we are going ahead now. We had better hurry up our
cakes, or we shall be too late to do anything, for the steamer has only
five or six miles to make before the smugglers will discharge her, her
occupation gone, if they only get a breeze."
"Captain Velazquez is confident that the schooner will get a breeze as
soon as she gets out from under the lee of the hills."
"Then we had better lose no time," said Scott.
"Faix, I belayve ye's can't do much wid yo'r arrums toied behoind
ye's," interposed Felix, as he rose from his seat, and began to strain
on his bonds. "Where are ye's now, Morris, moi darlint? Sure it was you
that set us loose in the felucky out from Teneriffe."
"But my hands are tied behind me as well as yours this time," replied
Morris, as he made an attempt to draw his wrists through the line that
secured his arms behind him.
"Never mind your arms just yet," interposed Scott. "We shall have
the use of them when we have business for them. Let us look over the
situation a little before we try to do anything. I understand from
what Captain Belgrave has told us that Diego Valequizco, the captain,
and Lucio are on board of the schooner, which we are dragging very
slowly after us out of the river."
"Quite correct, Captain Scott," added Louis.
"Don't call me captain, Louis, for you are the commander in this
excursion," replied Scott, shaking his head.
"But you are five times the sailor that I am, Scott, and so is Morris;
and one of you ought to be captain if any one."
"No! no!" protested Felix. "Captain Belgrave is the proper laygind."
"But we cannot stay to haggle over such a question," added Louis
very decidedly. "You have placed two of the smugglers, Scott--Gray
is walking about the deck or in the pilot-house; Francisco is at the
wheel, and Pedro is looking after Felipe."
"Then we know where they all are, and we are ready for business,"
continued Scott. "What shall we do next, Captain Belgrave?"
"I have a sharp knife in my vest pocket, and we will use that next,"
replied Louis.
"Faix, we can't do that same very well wid our hahnds toied behoind
us," interposed Flix.
"Talk English or Spanish, Felix," said Louis rather sharply.
"I can talk English and walk Spanish. What shall I do now?"
"Back up in front of me," continued Louis, resuming his seat on the
divan. "Now put your hand into my vest pocket and take out my knife."
Felix obeyed the order, and with his fingers, for he could not move his
wrists, he extracted the knife from the pocket. Then the leader placed
himself back to back with the Milesian, and instructed him to cut his
fastenings, but not to cut him. He used great care, and the operation
required some time; but it was safely accomplished.