Midnight Webs Part 19

I soon found that though they'd all doubled the Cape a good many times, there wasn't a man with navigation enough in him to tell where we were, or how to carry the ship on her course; while, though I don't believe I could have worked a reckoning right, yet, somehow or other, I fancy I could have shoved that old ship's nose into the harbour for which we were bound. Their plan seemed to be to crack on due south till we'd got high enough, and then to steer west, and get into the Pacific best way we could. I give them my bit of advice when it was asked, for I thought that the more we were in the track of ships, the more likely we were to be overhauled; but they would not have it my way; and Van giving his orders, a lot of us sprung up to make sail. When lying out on the main-royal yard, I run my eye round and quite jumped again, for, bearing down towards where the boats were crawling along, there was a bark with every st.i.tch of canvas set.

Sam saw it too, for he grunted; but I give him a kick, and down we came, our vessel feeling the breeze now, and careening over as the water began to rattle under her bows.

I felt more comfortable after that, for though I did not for a moment think that the ship I had seen would overhaul us, still I felt pretty sure that she'd pick up those poor creatures in the boats, and save them from a horrible death. There was no doubt about having seen the bark, but from the deck never a glimpse was got of it; and we went bowling along in capital style, just, in fact, as if we had been a honest ship on a good cruise.

Having nothing particular to do, I went below, and the first place I came to was the cabin that had been fitted up for Mr b.u.t.terwell's birds; and on getting to 'em, there they were, poor little things, fluttering and chirping about with their feathers all rough, for they'd got no water and seed. Quite a score of 'em were lying dead in the bottom amongst the sand; and after giving the pretty little things water, and seed, and paste, I fished out the dead ones in a quiet, methodical sort of way, turning over something in my mind that I couldn't get to fit, when I feels a hand on my shoulder.

"Going to wring their necks?" says Van, for it was him come down to watch me.

"Not I," I says. "They'll do first-rate to turn out on the island we stops at. Sing like fun."

"Look ye here, Roberts," he says, "we're playing a dangerous game, and you've joined us in it. Don't play any tricks, or--" He didn't say any more, but looked hard at me.

"Tricks!" I grumbled out; "I'm not for playing anything. I'm for real earnest, and no favour to n.o.body."

"I only said don't," says Van; and he went up again.

"A suspicious hound," I says to myself; and then I began to turn over in my own mind what I had been thinking of before; and then having, as I thought, hit upon a bright idea, I hugged it up, and began to rub it a little more shiny.

You see what I wanted to do was to get a word with Mr Ward, and how to do it was the question. I knew well enough that I should be watched pretty closely, and any attempt at speaking would be put an end to most likely with a bullet.

I rubbed that thought about no end, and next morning I goes to one particular cage where there was a linnet that I had seen Mr b.u.t.terwell play all sorts of tricks with; and instead of feeding it, I quietly took out the panting little thing, carried it on deck, got up in a corner under the bulwarks, and waited my time, watching the while to see if any one had an eye on me. Then I let the bird go; and it flitted here and flitted there with a tiny bit of paper fastened under its wing, till, as I had hoped, there came from out of the cabin skylight a particular sort of chirrup, when the bird settled on the gla.s.s for a moment, and then dropped through the opening where it had been broken.

Now, on that bit of paper I had printed what I knew wouldn't hurt me if the bird was seen by the mutineers, for I was afraid to say much the first time; and as I had written on it, "Let him go again," so sure enough up he came ten minutes after, and watching my chance, I followed him about till I caught him, and took him back to his cage, and gave him plenty of seed.

Van had taken possession of the cabin next to where his prisoners were, and the skylight being partly over his place, a word with Mr Ward was out of the question; while such a little messenger as I had found would go to his master when called, perhaps without calling, specially after him being fortunate enough to catch sight of the bird the first time I tried.

All that day matters went on as usual, a strict watch being kept over the prisoners, and more than one as I fancied having an eye to me. On and on we sailed due south, and the weather kept wonderful all the time; but there seemed no sign of starting the rest of the pa.s.sengers off in a boat, and I began to feel worried and troubled about their fate, and more anxious to get on with the plans I was contriving.

STORY TWO, CHAPTER TWELVE.

Now, not being a scholar, I had a deal of trouble over the note I got ready for the next morning, for, you see, I wanted to say very much in a very little room, and in a way that shouldn't betray me if it was to fall into the wrong hands. It was meant for Mr Ward, but I knew Tomt.i.t would get it; but that didn't matter, as they were fellow-prisoners, and what I wanted was to put the doctor on his guard, and also to let him know that all I'd done was so as to be alongside of him and Miss Bell.

So I says in the note:

"Honoured Sir,--Keep a bright look-out ahead, and haul every sheet taut.

Them as you thought was sharks a showing their teeth warn't only shams.

Take all you gets, and clap 'em under hatches, and, whatever you do, don't be deceived by false colours, nor hail ships as seems enemies."

"There," I says to myself, when I'd got that printed out careful, "if he can't make that out, he can't understand nothing;" for, I put it to you, what could I have said clearer, and yet made so as no one else could understand? It seemed to me that I'd just hit the mark, and the next thing was to get it to him.

Who'd ever have thought, I says, that that long doubling-up chap, as we all made such fun of with his little birds, would have turned in so useful; and then I got what you big people call moralising about everybody having their use on earth, without it was mutineers, whose only use seemed to me to be finding work for the hangman.

I got no chance to send my note that day, through people being about; next day, too, nothing came of it; but early the next morning, soon after daybreak, I got my little messenger out, tied the paper to his wing with a bit of worsted out of my kit, and then going on deck, I let him fly, but so as not to take the attention of the chap at the wheel, I started him from up in the main-top, where I made-believe to have gone to have a smoke.

There was a watch of three forward, but they were all half asleep; while as for him taking his trick at the wheel, he kept on nodding over his job, and letting the ship yaw about till she went anyhow.

Bless the pretty little thing! When I first opened my hand, it only sat there looking at me with its bright beady eyes, and then it was so tame, it hopped upon my shoulder, to stay a few seconds, before flitting from rope to sheet and shroud, lower and lower, till it perched upon the cabin skylight, and rattled out a few clear crisp notes, like a challenge to its master, who, I felt sure, would be asleep. My only hope was that the little thing would flit through the big hole I made, and stay in the cabin till Tomt.i.t was up.

But I was wrong, for the bird had no sooner sung its sweet note, putting one in mind of old boyish days when we used to go bird-nesting, than I saw a hand thrust up through the broken light, and after a little fluttering, the bird let itself be caught, when, knowing that my job was done, I came slowly down, and walking aft, stood and talked to the chap at the wheel.

"Hollo!" I says, all at once, "there's one o' my birds got loose;" and running forward, and making a good deal of fuss, I captured the little linnet, for it never flew far at a time, having been tamed and petted by Mr b.u.t.terwell till it was almost like a little Christian.

That day I watched my chance, and got hold of what powder I could, making a little packet of it in my silk neckercher; and when it was dark, I managed to drop that through the skylight as I went whistling along the deck. Next thing to be done was to get some weepuns, for it seemed strange to me if we six true men couldn't somehow make one chance and turn the tables on the rascals who had taken the ship. Counting them up, I found there was about seventeen--long odds enough, unless we could trap half of 'em, and fight 'em a part at a time. Then I thought the odds would be fair, for fighting with right on our side, I considered that we were quite as strong as eight of the others.

But the job was to get hold of weepuns, for they never let neither me, nor Sam, nor Bill Smith have neither cutlash nor pistol, only take our turn at the wheel, or trim sails, otherwise we were treated right enough. Some of the chaps grumbled, saying, that now Van had made hisself captain, times were as hard as they were before; but that wasn't the case, though now he'd got the ship, he didn't mean to lose her again if he could help it, and seemed to me to be always on the watch for everything. As to trusting either of we three to go down below to the prisoners with rations, that was out of the question, either he or Bra.s.sey attending to that, and more than once I heard high words, and Mr Bell talking in a threatening way when Van was below.

Now, if it had been at any other time, we should not have sailed a hundred miles without being boarded by some one; while, if a Queen's ship would only have overhauled us now, it would have been salvation for us: but no; day after day slipped by, and not a sail came near. All I had managed to drop more into the cabin was only a couple of table-knives; when one dark evening, as I lay under the bulwark, hid by a bit of sail, I saw Van come out of his cabin, go and talk to the chap at the wheel, see to the course of the ship, and then go forward. I heard him talk to the watch for a minute, and then he went below forward, when, running upon all-fours, I was at the cabin-hatch and down below in a jiffy.

As I expected, there were plenty of pistols and cutlashes there, where he had had them put for safety; and if I could have opened the big cabin door, I might have pitched half a score in before any one could have said "Jack Robinson;" but there was something to stop me, for I had crossed the cabin and had my hand on a cutlash before I knew that Bra.s.sey was in the cabin with his head down upon the table, and seemingly fast asleep.

I should think I stood there with my hand stretched out for a full minute, not daring to move, expecting every moment that Van would come back, or else that Bra.s.sey would wake up.

That minute seemed to be stretched out into quite an hour; and then, feeling that it was now or never, I shoved one after the other six pistols inside my shirt, when taking another step to reach where some cutlashes stood together in a corner, I knocked one down, when I threw myself on my hands and knees, so that, if Bra.s.sey started up, he would not see me at first. Then as I stooped there trembling with anxiety, I heard him yawn, push the lamp a little farther on the table, and a minute after, he was snoring loud.

I waited as long as I dared, and then rising lightly, I got hold of one cutlash, and then of five more, out of a good twenty as stood there; staffed as many cartridges out of the arm-chest into my pockets as they would hold; and then, after doing all this by fits and starts, expecting every moment that Bra.s.sey would hear me, I turned to go.

I'd crept across the cabin, and reached the door, when I heard a step on the deck, and drew back; but the next moment it had gone, and after waiting for a minute, with the cutlashes tightly held under my arm, I made another start, when my heart seemed to sink, for I heard a sort of husky cough I well knew, and Van had his foot upon the stairs.

There was only one way for safety, and that I s.n.a.t.c.hed at, for in another few seconds Van would have had me by the throat, and all would have been over; but, darting back, I laid hold of the lamp, dashed it down upon the sleeping man's head, and then leaped aside.

STORY TWO, CHAPTER THIRTEEN.

That trap took just as I expected. Bra.s.sey leaped up like a wounded tiger; and, cutlash in hand, Van bounded down the stairs, when the two men were locked in a sharp tussle in an instant, leaving the way clear for me to slip up, gain the mizzen shrouds, and make my way up into the top, where I laid my treasures; went hand over hand by the stay, and got down to the deck again in the dark by the main shrouds, without being seen, and joined the party that was being collected by the noise and shouting in the cabin.

"Curse you! bring a lantern. Help here, or he'll end me!" roared Van in a smothered voice; but not a man dared go down till I offered; and, making-believe to be afraid to venture without a cutlash, one of the chaps handed me one; and with the lantern in my other hand, I went cautiously down, chuckling to myself to find that Van and Bra.s.sey had been mauling one another awfully; and if it had not been for my coming, there'd no doubt have been an end of one of the scoundrels; for, woke up wild and savage from a drunken sleep, Bra.s.sey had attacked Van fiercely, and when I got to them, had him down and half-throttled.

There wasn't a man that didn't grin as Van cursed and raged at Bra.s.sey for a drunken fool, starting up and knocking the lamp over; while Bra.s.sey swore that Van struck him first, showing his bleeding head as a witness; but after such an up-and-down fight as they had had in the dark, no one took much notice of what he said, every one, themselves included, taking it for a false alarm; and we all separated, leaving Van and Bra.s.sey sore and savage as could be.

Knowing how frightened some of the prisoners would be, I says out loud to one of the chaps as we pa.s.sed the broken panes:

"Don't s'pose the captain thought there was so much muscle in old Bra.s.s."

"Hold your tongue," says the other; "he'll hear you."

And then we both laughed and walked forward, me wishing the while that those below could have known of my luck, but satisfied that they would feel that there was nothing particular the matter.

Feeling pretty sure that Van would not be on deck again that night, I waited about three hours all in a tremble, as I lay in my hammock, for fear I should go to sleep, and forget to fetch the weapons; and even then, spite of all my pains, lying there and trying to keep awake, if I did not drop off, and dream that they were missed from the cabin, and that Van was going to shoot Mr Ward for stealing them. Then I awoke with a start; and it seemed to me that I had been asleep for hours and hours; and I slipped out of my hammock to find, from the men talking on deck, that I couldn't have been more than five minutes. So I crept down again and into my hammock; and once more I dropped off, do all I would to stop it; and this time I dreamed that the wind had changed, and all hands had been piped to shorten sail, when they came across the arms in the top. Then I awoke again with a start, to find that I could hear the buzzing of voices still upon the deck. But I wouldn't risk it any more, though I feel sure I shouldn't have slept above half an hour at a stretch; and sitting down by my hammock-head, I took a bit of baccy, and sat listening to old Sam snoring, till it seemed as if it would never grow late enough to go. At last, I felt that if I meant to act, it must be at once, or there would perhaps be a change in the watch, and I might lose my chance; so I crept up on deck, taking with me a handful of lashing; and as soon as I felt the breeze, I knew that I was not a minute too soon; for with a good mate or captain, orders would have been given directly to shorten sail.

The watch were well forward, and, as usual, the one at the wheel was half asleep, or, being now much lighter, he must have seen me going up or coming down from the mizzen-top where I had left the arms; but no; I got them safe down; and then, crawling like a cat along the deck, I threaded the lanyard I had through the trigger-guards of the pistols, and lowered them one at a time, all six, and was just drawing the lanyard back after loosing one end, when I felt a warm hand from below grasp mine, and on drawing it away I was able to pa.s.s the cartridge and six cutlashes down one after the other, to have them taken from my hand.

I'd hardly done before I heard a step on the deck behind me, and, dropping flat down, I gave a half-roll over, so that I lay close under the combing, but not daring to move, for it was the watch coming to the man at the wheel.