A Lad of Grit Part 4

During this episode the buccaneer had shown us a remarkably clean pair of heels, so that nothing short of an accident to the crowd of canvas she was carrying could ever make us hope to overhaul her.

But in spite of enquiries Captain Poynings gathered little from the rescued man.

"Me Portugee, me Portugee; me honest; me no rogue. Me see Senhor Capitan alone, den me tell him ebberything," he reiterated.

"I will not talk with you alone," replied Captain Poynings sternly. "You are a pirate or an accomplice of that rascally crew. Now, give an account of yourself, or a taste of the cat will make you speak."

At the mention of the "cat" the man's eyes glittered ominously, then, instantly relapsing into his subservient manner, he jabbered in broken English: "Me no rogue. Me Pedro Alvarez of Habana. By de Virgin me speak truth!" And holding a small wooden crucifix that hung from his neck, the man kissed it with exaggerated fervour.

"Me speak only to Senhor Capitan. Tell him ebberything. Senhor Capitan much please wid my tale."

"No!" roared Captain Poynings, knitting his brows in that manner peculiar to him when aught vexes him.

"Vell, den, me speak to Senhor Capitan an' three odder. Pedro's tale too 'portant for odders to hear."

To this the captain a.s.sented, and the Portuguese, having been deprived of his knife, and searched for any concealed weapons he might have had, was taken below to the stateroom, whither repaired the captain, two lieutenants, and the master.

For over an hour they remained, and on coming on deck we noticed that Captain Poynings and his officers looked highly pleased, though the Portuguese still wore an impa.s.sive look.

"Send the ship's company aft," said the captain. "'Tis but right that they should know."

Eagerly the men cl.u.s.tered in the waist, while from the p.o.o.p their gallant leader addressed them.

"Hearken, my men," quoth he. "It has come to our knowledge that a vast amount of treasure lieth hidden on a cay the bearing whereof is known only to this Portuguese. He is willing to guide us to the spot in consideration of a safe conduct to Europe and one-seventh of the spoil. By my commission His Majesty gives me power to engage in such enterprise, whereof one-tenth reverteth to our sovereign lord, the king. Be it understood that I will deal fairly with all men, dividing the residue into shares according to the regulations pertaining to treasure trove. For your part do your work with a will. Let no stranger learn and forestall our mission, and I warrant ye the purser shall pay in gold where heretofore ye had but silver."

Cheers greeted the announcement, and the men retired to discuss this matter amongst themselves. We, however, learned still more. Briefly, the Portuguese's tale was this:-- Less than ninety years ago a Spanish treasure-ship left Vera Cruz, richly laden with plate and specie. A few days after leaving port yellow fever decimated the crew, and the survivors, unable to handle the ship, ran her aground on a small cay in the Rosario Channel, between the Isla de Pinos and Cuba. The treasure was landed and hidden, but bickerings and disease still further reduced their number, till only one man remained. He was rescued by a galliot the owner of which was Pedro's grandfather. In grat.i.tude, the Spaniard showed his rescuer a plan of where the specie lay, the men agreeing to share the spoil. Both men were lost in an attempt to reach the island in a small craft in which they had sailed alone, so as to keep their secret, and thus all trace of the spot vanished till five years ago, when Pedro came across the rough chart and an account of the matter, which had been hidden in the rafters of his hut. Pedro himself visited the cay, saw the treasure, but was unable to carry off the stuff single-handed. He returned to Habana, entrusted six others with the secret, and fitted out a small felucca to secure the spoil.

On the voyage the little craft was seized by the buccaneers, and all his companions were murdered. Pedro alone was kept a prisoner, the pirate intending that he should pilot them when occasion served.

Never a word concerning the treasure did he say to the buccaneers, but, taking a favourable opportunity, he had left the ship under the circ.u.mstances that we had observed.

Captain Poynings eagerly examined the chart. Already the l.u.s.t for gold had entered into his soul, and he was ready to hazard everything for the sake of that which had cost the lives of hundreds of men in these seas--the quest of hidden treasure.

"Bring out a larger chart, Master Widdicombe," he exclaimed, "and let us see where this island should be."

The chart was produced, and the lat.i.tude and longitude carefully p.r.i.c.ked off, whereat Captain Poynings turned purple with rage and swore horribly.

"The villain would send us on a fool's errand," he declared, bringing his fist down on the table with tremendous force. "The position he would have us believe to be an island is in the midst of the Yucatan Pa.s.sage, with nothing less than eighty fathoms."

For the moment we were all dumbfounded Visions of untold wealth were rudely dispelled.

"Bring out that rascally Portuguese, trice him up, and give him five dozen!" cried the captain, a strain of his choleric ancestor betraying itself.

"Stay!" replied the master. "I have it! This position is shown by our longitude, whereas this rough chart is of Spanish draughtsmanship. Now, taking the longitude of Madrid as zero, we find that----"

"Good, Widdicombe, you have hit it! Yet, forsooth, 'twas but your duty. p.r.i.c.k out, then, a fresh position, and pray 'twill be better than the last!"

A few minutes' calculation enabled the master to announce that 22 4' N., 82 46' W. was the corrected position, and to the unbounded satisfaction of us all it was found that it marked a small island almost in the centre of the Rosario Channel, agreeing with the description which Pedro Alvarez had given.

As there was now no sign of the buccaneering craft, the Gannet put about and returned to Port Royal, there to wait until the return of the cruising squadron should set us free to pursue our adventure. For nearly two weeks we remained in suspense, Captain Poynings refusing leave for fear that a man's tongue might get the better of his discretion, till early one morning we perceived to our great joy the sails of our consorts approaching the port.

CHAPTER VII.

--Concerning the Treasure Island.

Hardly had the fleet anch.o.r.ed when Captain Poynings boarded the flagship and obtained, with little ado, permission to part company. We then revictualled, took in fresh powder, and weighed, steering a westerly course till Negrille Point was well abeam. Thereupon we stood nor'-westward, pa.s.sing close to Grand Cayman. Here misfortune dogged us. For days we were becalmed, the Gannet wallowing motionless in the oily sea within one hundred leagues of our destination. Then the dreaded "yellow jack" made its appearance amongst us, and forty men lay sick to death on the ballast, of whom, I grieve to relate, more than half died.

When the pestilence would have ended it would be hard to say, had not a favourable breeze sprung up, and on the eighteenth day after leaving Port Royal we brought up off the cay shown in the chart.

It was an island some three miles in extent, and about half that distance in breadth, a line of rugged hills running from east to west, terminating in low cliffs. Viewed from the north'ard, where we lay, the sh.o.r.e appeared to be flat and lined with breakers, but Pedro told us that a little creek opened out close to the western end, where a boat could make a landing in safety.

No sign of a human being could be seen, even as the Portuguese had said, yet it is pa.s.sing strange how easily even a trained seaman can be deceived.

Being late in the day when we arrived off the cay, it was decided not to land till the morrow. Nevertheless, we made preparations for the expedition, provisioning the longboat and the like.

Early on the morrow we weighed anchor, and, under the guidance of Pedro, towed the Gannet, there being no wind, through a gap in the reef, so that her new berth was within half a league of the landingplace--though there was an inner reef close insh.o.r.e, on which the sea brake, though not with such violence as on the outer reef.

In his eagerness, Captain Poynings himself took command of the landing party, though it was his duty to remain aboard. With him went the bos'n, three midshipmen, whereof Greville Drake and I were included, and twenty-five men. Between us we had but five musketoons and three pistols, the men carrying, on account of the heat, nothing but their mattocks and spades. Pedro also went as a guide, so that our party numbered thirty-one men, sufficient, indeed, to carry off the treasure--if treasure it were--in one journey.

After rowing for nearly a league, viz. a quarter of a league towards the sh.o.r.e, and the same distance parallel to it, the breakers preventing us from going nearer, we espied the mouth of the little cove or creek, and ten minutes labour at the oars sufficed to beach the boat in very sheltered water, the trees overhanging the banks and almost meeting those on the opposite side.

We landed and formed up on a small stretch of sand, the only clear s.p.a.ce that was to be seen.

"Hark ye, Dommett," said the captain. "Do you stay here with the boat, and keep her off if needs be we must embark in a hurry. 'Tis now nine o' the clock; by five we will return. If peradventure we fail to do so, signal to the ship for more men. Keep eyes and ears open, and if any man shall come upon you, push off and fire your piece. Now, Senhor Pedro, lead on."

It was an exciting moment. The Portuguese led, pressing forward with marvellous agility and with the air of a man who is following a familiar track. We followed in straggling order, for the way was rough, merely allowing two men to walk abreast. Dense foliage enclosed us on either side, and, save for the noise of the men's footsteps, and the occasional crackle of dry underwood, not a sound either of man or beast broke the stillness of the forest.

The path led gradually upwards, till we emerged into a clearing, the ground rising still steeper to the foot of a low, precipitous cliff. At the base of this cliff we halted for breath, observing that all around lay ma.s.ses of broken rock that had at some time fallen from the heights above. Looking backwards we could see over the tops of the trees to the sea, the Gannet looking like a c.o.c.kboat in the distance.

On resuming our march we had to scale the cliff, which, though steep, was jagged with projections of rock, which, with strong tendrils of tropical vegetation, afforded plenty of foothold for any ordinary climber to make use of.

"A pest on these Spaniards!" exclaimed the captain angrily. "Why did they take the treasure so far inland; eh, Pedro?"

The Portuguese shrugged his shoulders. "Qual sabe, Senhor?" he replied nonchalantly.

The men, strapping their spades on their backs, began the ascent, the Portuguese being told to remain till half the party had gained the summit.

When my turn came I leapt with all the buoyancy of youth on to the lowermost crag, grasping an overhanging tuft of reeds and gra.s.s to gain the next step; but the reeds were as sharp as a razor, and before I realized it the palm of my hand was cut to the bone, and the blood poured in a stream down my arm and over my doublet.

The sudden pain and the loss of blood caused me to slip to the foot of the cliff, and for a time everything became blank and my head swam. Someone forced my head betwixt my knees, so that in a short s.p.a.ce of time I felt better.

"You would do well to return to the boat," said Captain Poynings in a tone that meant no refusal. "Can you manage to find the path, or shall I send a man with you?"

I replied that I was well enough to go, and reluctantly I turned back.

Drake laid a hand on my shoulder. "Never heed, Aubrey," said he sympathetically. "'Tis better to return with a gashed hand like yours. But I'll tell you all when we come back."

Slowly I went till I reached the edge of the wood. Then I lingered, watching the party make the ascent, which they did speedily and without further mishap. Then I heard their footsteps die away as they plunged through the thick underwood, and I was alone.

The path, by reason of the numbers that had but recently pa.s.sed, was now well-defined, and I had no difficulty in finding it. Dommett, the boatkeeper, received me without signs of surprise, and on telling him of my misadventure, he merely e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.ed a loud "Well done", which was a favourite expression of his, no matter what caused him to make it, insomuch that on board he was dubbed by his messmates "Well done Dommett".

However, he bathed my hand in seawater, although the salt did make it smart mightily, and, tying it with a strip of wet linen, he told me to keep quiet, so as not unduly to excite my head, which was by now throbbing like to burst.

Throughout the forenoon Dommett smoked a short black pipe incessantly, though he kept his eyes shifting, looking frequently for signals from the Gannet and the island, both towards the path and along the sh.o.r.e.

There was no sign or sound till about one hour after noon, when we both heard a faint noise like a musket being fired afar off. We listened alertly, but no other sound was heard.

"'Tis one of the men who has fallen over his piece, perchance," remarked the sailor as he refilled his pipe, ramming the weed down with his little finger.

Hardly had he made the flint and steel to work when there was another noise, like the distant crashing of brushwood. The sound came nearer, so we both stood up, the boat-keeper thrusting an oar into the water so as to keep the longboat off sh.o.r.e.

Nearer came the sound, till at length a man appeared, torn and bleeding, and spent with running. It was one of the Gannet's men--the bos'n's mate,--and, throwing himself into the boat, he lay like a log.

"Pull yourself together, man," shouted Dommett, shaking the man in his anxiety. "What's amiss? What's amiss?"

"Push off for your life!" he panted. "It's all up; we are all undone!"

This was all he could say. Nevertheless we shoved off, and waited at about a boat's length from the mouth of the creek--waited for any stragglers who might appear.

Nevertheless no more of our men appeared, though a musket was fired at us from the brushwood, followed by an irregular volley. At the whiz of the bullets, though they pa.s.sed well above us, I threw myself on the bottom of the boat; but the firing had the opposite effect on the bos'n's mate, for, cursing horribly, he raised himself and seized an oar. Dommett had already done likewise, and before the volley could be repeated we were well out of range, though throughout the whole time we were under fire the man still kept his pipe firmly between his teeth.

Then they called upon me to take an oar, and feeling miserably ashamed of myself I got up, and, as well as my hand would allow, I rowed with them. By a special providence we made the gap between the reef in safety, then rowed slowly, for the longboat was an unwieldy craft, towards the Gannet.

The master, perceiving that something was amiss, sent a boat to meet us, and on going on board we were surrounded by the anxious remainder of the crew.

The bos'n's mate told his tale, how that the expedition came across a flat piece of ground surrounded by steep rocks, like a basin. Here, the Portuguese said, was the spot where the treasure was buried. The men laid aside their arms, took their spades, and began to dig. Three feet down in the hard soil they went, but there was no sign of the treasure. Suddenly they heard a mocking laugh, and, looking up, saw that Pedro had slipped away and was jeering at them from the top of the rocks, and, what was more, he spoke like an Englishman, without any of his former accent. Captain Poynings, maddened by the man's treachery, fired a pistol at him, but without effect. The seamen looked around for their arms to give pursuit, but these had been stealthily removed, and instead they found themselves surrounded by at least a hundred armed scoundrels, who demanded that they should yield themselves. The bos'n's mate, however, having separated himself from the rest, took to his heels and fled for the boat, hotly pursued by half a dozen of the villains. He gained the longboat in safety, as I have said, and the fate of Captain Poynings and his men was still a mystery.

Shouts and threats came from the crew of the Gannet when they heard that their beloved captain and their comrades had been treacherously trapped. Some proposed that all hands should form an avenging landing party, but of this our lieutenant would not hear, as the nature of the island would be against open attack.

Several plans were discussed, with no good result, till there came a seaman, who offered to track the villains and try and discover the fate of our comrades. He was of New England, having joined us at the Bermudas on our voyage hither, and was skilled in savage warfare and woodcraft, for at one time he had been a member of the trainband of Salem, in New England, which town had oft been in jeopardy from the savages.

"Let me but land after it is night," said he, "and I'll warrant ye'll see me with news of some sort by noon to-morrow. If so be I do not return by that time, let the purser mark me off the books, 'D.D.' (Discharged--dead), and send what money should be owing to me to my wife at Providence, in Rhode Island."

This man's offer being accepted, and a.s.surances given that his wishes should be carried out if he failed to return, we could do nothing but wait for nightfall.

Directly darkness set in we lowered a boat, the oars and tholes being m.u.f.fled to deaden all sound. The New Englander had stripped, and had anointed himself from head to foot with a dark, offensive-smelling grease, which, he a.s.sured us, would keep him immune from insect bites, and at the same time render him nearly invisible.

Nimbly he lowered himself into the boat, where the men were waiting with tossed oars. Silently they shoved off, and were lost in the darkness; but in a quarter of an hour the boat returned, having gone as close as possible to the inner line of breakers, so that the man could with little difficulty swim ash.o.r.e.

All night double watches were set, and the guns, double-shotted, were run out ready for instant use. Still, not a sound was heard to cause us alarm, only the dull roar of the surf both ahead and astern of us. It was a miserable, anxious night, for the disaster to our shipmates (we not knowing whether they were dead or alive) threw a gloom over the whole ship.

For my part I could not sleep, my hand paining me greatly, while I troubled deeply for my comrades, particularly my friend Greville Drake; so by choice I paced the deck the entire night, till with extraordinary suddenness day broke and the sun rose above the horizon.

The whole of the forenoon pa.s.sed without incident, but just at midday the lookout perceived a man leaping across the rocks by the tree-fringed sh.o.r.e. It was the New England seaman.

Instantly a boat was lowered, and urged by l.u.s.ty strokes headed straight for the sh.o.r.e. The man had thrown himself into the sea, and we could make out his head and shoulders as from time to time he appeared between the white ma.s.ses of foam. He was an active and powerful swimmer, and gained the boat in safety, though probably it was well that the breakers had subsided somewhat.

His tale was soon told. Fearing to follow the path from the cove, since the villain might have set a guard there, he made his way through the undergrowth directly towards the centre and highest part of the island. Over and over again he had to attempt a fresh pa.s.sage, the thickets proving too dense even for his accustomed skill. At length he came across a small stream, which he followed to its source, which afterwards proved to be not far from the spot where our men were surprised.

Here he concealed himself till daybreak, when he found himself practically overlooking the whole island. On the south side, opposite to where we were lying, he espied a cove, off which was anch.o.r.ed a craft which he declared was the same vessel as we had chased, and from which Pedro had thrown himself. Another hour's careful tracking brought him close to the creek, where he saw our comrades being escorted on board by the buccaneers in gangs, twenty-seven all told, so that they were apparently all alive and well. Then he made out a party of men coming down from the hillside, where they had been posted as rearguard, and with them was Pedro. They pa.s.sed quite close to where he lay hid, and he could swear that Pedro was no more a Portuguese than he was.

Directly this last body of men embarked the sails were shaken out, and the swift buccaneering craft stood seaward. Having made sure that they had all embarked, the man returned by the beaten path, striking the north side of the island at the cove where we had landed. Thence he skirted the sh.o.r.e till we perceived him and sent off a boat.

The officers now debated as to the best course to pursue--whether to follow the buccaneer, which, undermanned as we were, was hazardous and reckless, or to return with all haste to Port Royal, report our loss, and join with the rest of the fleet in the capture of the insolent pirates.

The latter course was decided upon, but again ill fortune looked upon us. A strong southerly wind suddenly sprang up, and, though protected by the outer reef, we were on a lee sh.o.r.e. The master would not attempt to beat out through the gap in the reef, as his knowledge of the pa.s.sage was none too good, neither could we kedge nor tow the Gannet against the wind. So we had perforce to remain weatherbound for seven long days, knowing full well that the same breeze that kept us prisoners within the reef was bearing the buccaneers away in safety.

When at length the wind veered sufficiently to enable the Gannet to sail close-hauled through the surf-encompa.s.sed pa.s.sage, all plain sail was set, and back to Port Royal we sped.

Four days later the Gannet dropped anchor in the harbour, and with despondent mien the remaining officers went ash.o.r.e to report the loss of the captain and his men. To their unbounded astonishment and delight they heard that Captain Poynings and his twenty-six companions were alive and well on board the Lizard, man-of-war, then lying off the castle.

Their adventures can best be described in the story that Drake told to me on the evening of the day that they rejoined the Gannet: "You must know, Aubrey," said he, after telling me of their capture and forced embarkation on board the buccaneer's ship, "that this Pedro was in reality a Cornishman, and second in command to the renegade Captain Lewis, then lying under sentence of death at Port Royal. The whole of this bad business had been carefully planned by the villain, and easily we fell into the trap. Three days after we left the island the Sea Wolf, for such is the name of the buccaneer's ship, hove to in sight of Port Royal, and with the greatest audacity Pedro, or Red Peter, to give him the name he is generally known by, went ash.o.r.e under a flag of truce, taking me with him as hostage. Would you believe it, he went straight to the castle and demanded to see the governor! Oddsfish! And his impudence took even the governor aback. 'I have on board,' quoth Red Peter, 'twenty-five officers and men of his Britannic Majesty's ship Gannet, not including this youngster (meaning me) and another; you have Captain Lewis and four other of our men. So, my lord, I think you'll see we hold a good balance in hand. Now, sink me! 'tis a fair exchange: give us the five and take your enterprising' (how he sneered when he said this) 'king's men unhurt, or else, for every man of ours who dances at the end of a rope, five of yours shall dangle from our yardarm. Come now, your answer?'

"What could the governor say? He gave way so easily that Red Peter spoke again. 'And, taking into consideration our great magnanimity, 'twould not be amiss to grant a free pardon to us all; then, for our part, we do agree to cease from plundering and fighting, and become honest men once more. Right glad would I be to see Falmouth once more other than with a hempen rope round my neck, or with gyves and manacles to prevent my full enjoyment of my native place. How say you, my lord?'

"After all, I verily believe the governor was content, for he had succeeded in ridding the Indies of these buccaneers, even as it was ordered, though the manner of the fulfilment thereof was hardly as he had wished. So he sent for his secretary, ordered him to write out a general pardon, which he sealed and delivered to Red Peter with an elaborate bow, whereat the rogue as courteously took his leave.

"The same day the Sea Wolf came into the harbour and landed our people, Lewis and his companions were released, and, after a general carouse on sh.o.r.e, the ship sailed to communicate the news to her consorts. All the same, the trick was neatly done, and little harm came of it."

Such was the tale that Greville told. Years later I learned that both Captain Lewis and Red Peter returned to England and were received by His Majesty, who, with the same generosity as he showed towards Captain Morgan, Colonel Blood, and other cutthroats of like nature, restored to Lewis his commission; while Red Peter, under his real name of Peter Tregaskis, became a red-hot Tory squire in his native Cornwall.

However, to resume my story, Captain Poynings rejoined the Gannet without delay, and after a year or so of comparatively uneventful sojourning in the Caribbean Sea, we received orders to proceed again to the Mediterranean.

CHAPTER VIII.

--Of an Encounter with an Algerine Corsair.

The Gannet was bowling along under easy sail some fifty miles south of Majorca. Three years of seatime had made a great difference in her appearance. Her speed was r.e.t.a.r.ded by the presence of a thick vegetable growth on her bottom, her sails had lost their pristine beauty, while her sides, though often repainted, bore signs of the effect of torrid heat and the buffeting of the waves. Her crew, too, had undergone considerable changes; wounds and disease had reduced the number of her gallant men, while those who were left were now well-seasoned and disciplined.

Of the ship's officers only three had gone to their last account--the master, who had fallen a victim to the dreaded "yellow jack", and two of the midshipmen. Thus, including myself, there were but five midshipmen on board, all of whom were as efficient as Captain Poynings could desire.

I was now nearly seventeen years of age--bronzed, hardy, and well-grown--and would easily have pa.s.sed for twenty.