In Greek Waters Part 19

Five minutes later the swimmer was alongside. He was a lad of about Horace's age.

"Are you Greek?" he asked in surprise and in some alarm, as he looked at the uniforms of the crew as Horace helped him on board.

"We are fighting for Greece," Horace said, "although we are all English. We heard that there was some trouble here, and came to see if we could save any fugitives."

"I saw the flag," the lad said, "and heard you fire twice at the village. My mother and sisters, and twenty or thirty others, are hidden in the wood there. The Mussulmans came down from the mountain villages three days ago and killed all they could find; but we were expecting it, for they had gone to the next village first, and a man from there brought the news just before they arrived. We lived on the outskirts and had time to get away, but I think my father and brothers have been killed. Do go on sh.o.r.e and take them off."

"We must go back to the ship first," Horace said. "This boat is too small to be of any use; besides, we must send a stronger crew. No doubt the Turks are watching us, and will come down if they see us landing."

The schooner had filled again and was following the boat, so that in two or three minutes they were on board. Horace lent the young Greek some of his clothes, and the schooner stood in towards the point, with a man in the chains sounding as they went.

"Ask him whereabouts they are, Horace."

"Just on the other side of the point; but they will see us coming."

"I see no signs of them yet," Tarleton said when, having got within three hundred yards of sh.o.r.e, the anchor was let go.

"It is likely enough," said Martyn, "that some of the Turks may have been coming down through the wood, and if the poor beggars heard them they would not dare show themselves. Now, Mr. Miller, you take charge of the long-boat with ten men. We will cover your landing."

The four broadside guns were loaded with grape, and their crews mustered to quarters, while the rest, armed with muskets, lined the side.

"Take the boy with you, Mr. Miller, he can lead you to where his friends are hiding. Don't stop to fire as you make for sh.o.r.e. We will dispose of any Turks there may be about."

The boat had not rowed more than fifty yards before five or six musket shots were fired from the bushes near the edge of the water.

"Give them a round with the aftermost gun," Captain Martyn said; and in a moment the water near the bushes was torn up with a shower of grape. "Give the next gun more elevation, boatswain. Send the shot well into the wood. That's it. The same with the other two guns. That will clear them all out."

There was no further firing at the boat. As soon as it touched the sh.o.r.e Miller jumped ash.o.r.e with eight of the men, while the other two pushed the boat off a few yards. Led by the Greek boy, the party ran along the sh.o.r.e and were lost to view round the point. Two more rounds were fired into the wood, but everything was quiet there, and in five minutes Miller's party made their appearance round the point with a number of fugitives. No time was lost in getting them into the boat, which at once rowed off to the schooner. There were but three men among them, the rest were women and children. Most of them were completely exhausted.

[Ill.u.s.tration: "GIVE THEM A ROUND," SAID CAPTAIN MARTYN]

Horace, after asking them a question or two, said to Zaimes: "You had better prepare some soup, Zaimes, as quickly as you can. They have had nothing to eat for three days."

While this was being done, a sip of wine and a mouthful of bread were given to each. In the meantime some sailors were rigging up a part.i.tion with sail-cloth across the main deck, and here hammocks were slung for the use of the women and children. As soon as the poor creatures had taken a basin of hot soup they revived a good deal and poured out expressions of profuse grat.i.tude to their rescuers. They had pa.s.sed a terrible three days crouching among the bushes, and expecting every moment to be discovered. A few of the women had s.n.a.t.c.hed up their jewels before taking to flight, but most of them were absolutely dest.i.tute. Mr. Beveridge and the two Greeks persuaded them to go below and take the sleep they so much needed. As soon as the deck was clear the anchor was got up, and the schooner proceeded on her way. She reached the farthest headland of the bay just as night began to fall, and Martyn decided to anchor there till morning. From the Greek lad who had first swum off, they learned that the village among the mountains still resisted.

"They say there are two or three hundred there who have taken refuge from the villages round. There are some rich men among them, and that is the reason why the Mussulmans are so anxious to take the place."

"How many men are besieging it?"

"That I don't know," the boy replied. "I should think four or five hundred."

"But you have heard nothing for the last three days? The place may have fallen since then."

"No, I went last night to the village in hopes of finding bread in some of the houses, but there were too many Turks about. I was near enough to hear them talking. Some of them were going up to-day to join in the siege."

"How far is the place from the sea?"

"It is ten miles from this north sh.o.r.e, but it is not more than four or five from the western coast."

"Is there any road?"

"Not from that side. The roads from the mountain villages all lead down to the bay."

"Is it too steep to climb from the other side?"

"Not too steep to climb on foot. Donkeys and mules could get up there."

The matter was talked over in the cabin that evening, and it was agreed that if a guide could be obtained an attempt should be made to carry off the occupants of the village. During the night a boat with twelve fugitives came off from the sh.o.r.e and as the _Misericordia_ sailed slowly along the coast on the following day several parties of from three to ten people came out from the trees and waved white handkerchiefs and scarfs. All these were brought off, and four or five boats full of people were picked up during the day. Their occupants had seen the schooner pa.s.sing on the previous day, and had at night, when the Mussulmans in the village were asleep, stolen down to the beach, launched boats, and put out to sea in the hope that the schooner would return next day. All were overwhelmed with joy at finding themselves under the Greek flag, although the greater portion of them had lost everything they possessed. The women and children were, like the first batch, provided for below, while the men and boys were told they must sleep on deck, which was no hardship in that balmy climate.

Among those in the last boat picked up near the west point of the bay was a young man who was a native of a village lying a short distance from the one that was besieged. He happened to be down in the coast village when the Turks commenced hostilities there, and hearing that the village to which he belonged had been destroyed, he had remained in hiding near the coast. Marco and his brother, who mingled with the fugitives, had learned this, and at once took the news to the cabin.

"He says he has been a goat-herd, and knows all the paths among the mountains."

"Then he is the very fellow we want to get hold of," Will Martyn said.

"We had better have him in here and question him."

The young Greek was brought in. He knew of several paths from the village down to the western sh.o.r.e.

"Now what sort of place is this village?" Captain Martyn asked.

"It stands at the top of rocky ground that slopes away all round it.

There are vineyards and gardens among the rocks. Since the trouble in Greece began, the people have been frightened, and have built a wall five or six feet high round the village, and the Christians in all the villages round decided that if there was trouble from the Mussulmans they would go there to help defend it."

"Is there high ground round the village?"

"Yes, the hills rise very high on three sides, but they are too far away for guns to do much harm; besides, the houses stand thickly together. My people will fight till the last, but I don't know how long the provisions will last. I know they all made up their minds that if they were besieged and saw no hope of succour, they would at last kill all the women and children to prevent their being made slaves by the Turks, and then they would march out to fight until the last man was slain."

"How long would it take us to get up from the sh.o.r.e to the village?"

"One can come down in an hour, but it takes three hours' hard work to get up."

"Could you after dark take us close to the point where one of these paths comes down to the sh.o.r.e?"

"Oh, yes, I could do that easily."

"Very well, that will do for the present. Now, Mr. Beveridge, it is for you to decide," Martyn said. "Of course the affair is a risky one; but it seems to me that forty well-armed English sailors ought to be able to make their way into the village without very much difficulty, for of course the Turks will be scattered about all round it. The difficulty is not in getting in, but in getting out. We should have to bring perhaps two or three hundred women and children, and cover their retreat down to the water. Of course the men would help us, but still it would be a stiff job in the face of four or five hundred of the enemy. These Turks may know nothing of soldiering, but they are mountaineers and are used to arms, and for irregular fighting like this, would be quite as formidable as the best troops. If we knew anything about the ground we should be able to give a more decided opinion. What of course we should want, if possible, would be some post, either a defile or a steep eminence that we could hold for half an hour and keep the Turks back until the women and children are well on their way down the mountain. After that we could make a bolt for it, and might get down without much loss; but if there is no place where we could make a stand anywhere along the road, we should be in an awkward fix, especially if the path is a bad one, as I expect it is. You see the whole party would have to go in single file, and if there are four or five hundred of them, it would be next to impossible to guard the flanks and keep the Turks off if they made a rush, while every shot they fired would tell on such a long line. You understand, Mr. Beveridge, I am putting the matter to you in the worst light so that we should all understand the sort of business it is likely to be."

"I see that it is a very serious affair, Martyn; but at the same time, when we know that there are so many lives at stake, I think that we must run the risk, however great."

"Very well, then, that is settled, Mr. Beveridge, and I am sure we are all glad that you have decided so. The next question is, who shall go, and who shall remain behind."

"I shall certainly go," Mr. Beveridge said. "I am not going to allow others to take risks that I do not share myself."

"We ought to be as strong a party as possible," Martyn said. "At the same time we must leave enough to sail the schooner, if not to fight her. It is probable that yesterday morning, as soon as our flag was seen, messengers were sent off at once to Limasol and Larnaca to tell them that a Greek vessel was in the bay; and if there are any Turkish vessels of war in either of these harbours, we shall be having them coming round."

"That is likely enough," Miller said. "We must certainly be ready to get up our anchor and be off at a minute's notice."

"Well, Miller, then you must remain on board with ten men. We will load all the guns before we go. Ten men are enough to get up sail and to fight the pivot-gun. You had better not waste any time in getting up the anchor, but buoy and then slip the cable. We can recover it, if we like, afterwards. If you should be driven off the coast while we are away, lower a sail under her fore-foot so as to deaden her way and encourage the Turks with the hope that they are going to catch you.

Lead them a dance for seven or eight hours, then cut the drag adrift, set every st.i.tch of sail, and run back again. You will be here in plenty of time to get us all on board before they can come up again.

Of course if we see that you are gone we shall choose some position where we can make a stout defence, and shall hold it until you come back to the anchorage."