Percival Keene Part 44

I then entered into a detail of all that had pa.s.sed between Lord de Versely and me, and also what the admiral had said to me.

"All's right, Mr Keene," replied Bob; "and let the admiral only give us something to do and I think you'll believe me when I say that the boatswain of the Firefly will back you as long as he has a pin to stand upon."

"That I'm sure of, Bob; you will ever be my right-hand man. There are two midshipmen on board, I perceive: what sort of lads may they be?"

"I haven't had time to find out; but you have a capital ship's company-- that the gunner and carpenter both say."

"And a very fine vessel, Bob."

"Yes, sir, and a regular flyer, they say, if she is well managed. You have never been in a schooner, Mr Keene, but I have, and for nearly three years, and I know how to handle one as well as most people."

"So much the better, Cross, for I know nothing about it. Come, I will ring the bell; I suppose some one will answer it." A lad made his appearance.

"Were you Mr Williams's servant?"

"Yes, sir."

"Get me out a bottle of wine and some gla.s.ses--there, that will do."

"Now, Bob, let's drink success to the Firefly."

"Here's success to the Firefly, Mr Keene, and success to the captain.

May you do well in her, and be soon out of her."

"Thank you, Bob: here's your health, and may we long sail together."

Bob and I finished the bottle, and then we parted.

The next day, I was very busy in examining my vessel and my ship's company. The schooner was a beautiful model, very broad in the beam, and very low in the water; she mounted one long bra.s.s thirty-two-pounder forward on a circular sweep, so that it could be trained in every direction; abaft, she had four bra.s.s nine-pound carronades. My ship's company consisted of sixty men and officers; that is, myself, two mids, boatswain, gunner, and carpenter. The mids were young lads of about sixteen years of age, a Mr Brown and a Mr Black, gawky tall boys, with their hands thrust too far though the sleeves of their jackets, and their legs pulled too far through their trowsers; in fact, they were growing lads, who had nothing but their pay to subsist upon, being both sons of warrant officers. They bore very good characters, and I resolved to patronise them, and the first thing which I did was, to present them each with a new suit of uniform and a few other necessaries, so as to make them look respectable; a most unheard-of piece of patronage, and which it is, therefore, my boast to record. The fact is, I was resolved that my schooner should look respectable; my ship's company were really a very fine body of men, most of them tall and stout, and I had received a very good character of them from the officer who had invalided. I had taken all his stores and furniture off his hands, for I had plenty of money, and to spare.

As soon as I had examined my ship's company, I made them a speech, the which, although they were bound to hear it, I shall not inflict upon the reader, and I then went down and examined every portion of the vessel, ascertained what there was in her and where everything was. Bob Cross accompanied me in this latter duty, which was not over till dinner-time.

The next morning my signal was made, and I went up to the admiral.

"Mr Keene," said the admiral, "here are despatches to take down to the governor of Curacao. When can you be ready?"

"Now, sir," replied I; "and if you will make the signal for the Firefly to weigh anchor, there will be so much time gained."

"Very good, Keene; tell them to make the signal. You must make all the haste you can, as they are important. Here are your orders: after you have delivered your despatches, you will be allowed to cruise down in that quarter, as I understand there are some very mischievous vessels in that direction. I hope you will give me a good account of one or two of them, if you fall in with them."

"I will do my best, sir," replied I.

"Well, I sent you on purpose. I have ordered the senior officer at Curacao to forward the return despatches by the Mosquito, that you may have a chance. I won't ask you to stay to dinner, as it is an affair that presses, so of course you will carry a press of sail. Good-bye, and I wish you success."

I took my leave of the admiral and hastened down to the town. In an hour afterwards the Firefly was driving along with a fine breeze on the quarter, and long before night the vessels in the harbour were not to be distinguished. The breeze freshened after the sun went down, and I remained on deck, carrying on to the last moment. Bob Cross once or twice ventured to say, that we had better reduce the sail; but I told Bob that the admiral was very anxious that I should make a quick pa.s.sage.

"Yes, Mr Keene, but 'turning the turtle' is not making a quick pa.s.sage, except to the other world, and the admiral does not wish his despatches to go there. She is a fine boat, sir, but there may be too much sail carried on a good vessel: the men say she never has been so pressed before."

"Well, you are right, Bob, and so we will take a little off her."

"Yes, sir; it's my watch coming on now, and I will carry all she can bear with safety, and I think she will go quite as fast as she does now.

We shall have more wind yet, sir, depend upon it."

"Well, so long as it is fair, I don't mind how much," replied I. "Send the watch aft."

We reduced the sail, and then I went down to bed.

At daylight I awoke and went on deck. The carpenter had the watch, for the watches were entrusted to the warrant officers, who were all good seamen, and accustomed to the schooner. I found that the wind had freshened, but was steady from the same quarter, and the schooner was darting through the water at a tremendous rate.

"She sails well, Mr Hayter," said I.

"Yes, sir, that she does," replied he; "and never sailed better than she does now. I was a little alarmed for my sticks, last night, until you shortened sail."

"Admiral's order to carry a press of sail, Mr Hayter."

"Well, sir, then by Jove you obey orders; you half frightened the men, although they had been so long in the vessel."

I felt, by what the carpenter had said, that I had been rash. Neither he nor Bob Cross would have ventured so much if I had not been so; and they understood the vessel better than I did, so I resolved to be guided by them until I felt able to judge for myself. Notwithstanding that sail was afterwards carried more prudently, we had a most remarkably rapid pa.s.sage; for we took the breeze with us down the whole way, not seeing a vessel during the run. I had another cause of impatience, which was, to ascertain if Mr Vanderwelt and Minnie had left the island.

On my arrival, I went first to the naval commanding officer, and then to the governor's, delivering my credentials. They complimented me on my having been so active. I accepted the governor's invitation to dinner, and then went to inquire after Mr Vanderwelt. I walked first to his house, but found it occupied by a Scotch merchant, who, however, was very polite. He stated that he was an old friend of Mr Vanderwelt, and could give me every information, as he had received letters from him very lately; and that, in those letters, Mr Vanderwelt had informed him that I had said, in my last letter to them, that I was again on the West India station, and requested him, if I came to the island, to show me every attention. "So, my dear sir," continued Mr Fraser, "I trust you will enable me to comply with my friend Mr Vanderwelt's injunctions, and consider this house as your home during your stay here."

I thanked Mr Fraser and accepted the offer. I sent for my portmanteau, and slept there that night after I had dined with the governor. At dinner I met Captain C---, who told me he had orders to send me on a cruise, and asked when I would be ready. I replied, that I should like a day or two to lift my rigging and overhaul it, as I had been very much strained in my pa.s.sage down.

"No wonder," replied he; "you must have flown--indeed, your log proves it. Well, I will send you as soon as you are ready. The Naiad sloop is out, and so is the Driver brig, both in pursuit of three vessels, which have done a great deal of mischief. One is a French brig of fourteen guns, very fast and full of men. She has her consort, a large schooner, who is also a regular clipper. The other vessel is a brigantine, a very fine vessel, built at Baltimore--of course, under French colours: she cruises alone. I don't know how many guns she carries, but I suspect that both she and the brig will be too much for you; and unless you could catch the schooner away from her consort, you will not be able to do much with the Firefly."

"I will do my best, sir," replied I. "I have a very fine set of men on board, and I think, very good officers."

"Well, at all events, if you can't fight, you have a good pair of heels to run with," replied Captain C---; "but dinner's announced."

I left early, that I might have some conversation with Mr Fraser. On my return we sat down to some sangoree and cigars; and then he told me that Mr Vanderwelt had left Curacao about nine months before, and that my last letter directed to him had been forwarded to Holland. He had often heard the history of my saving their lives on board of the pirate vessel from Mr Vanderwelt who made it a constant theme of his discourse; and, added Mr Fraser, "You do not know what a regard he has for you."

"And little Minnie, sir?" inquired I: "it is now nearly five years since I saw her."

"Little Minnie is no longer little Minnie, Mr Keene, I can a.s.sure you.

She was _fifteen_ when she left the island, and had grown a tall and very beautiful girl. All the young men here were mad about her and would have followed her not only to Holland, but to the end of the world, I believe, if they thought that they had the least chance--but from my intimacy with the family, I tell you candidly, that I think if you were to meet again, you would not have a bad one; for she talks incessantly of you when alone with her father: but I must not divulge family secrets."

"I fear there is little chance of my meeting again with her," replied I: "I have to carve my way up in my profession, and this war does not appear likely to be over soon. That I should like to see her and her father again, I grant; for I have made but few friendships during my life, and theirs was one of the most agreeable. Where is Mr Vanderwelt settled?"

"He is not in Holland--he is at Hamburg. Well there is no saying; accident may bring you together again, as it did on board of the pirate; and I hope it may."

Shortly afterwards we went to bed. I must say, his description of Minnie, which was even much more in detail than I have narrated to the reader, did prevent my going to sleep for a long while. Women, as the reader may have seen, never once troubled my thoughts! I had fed upon one sole and absorbing idea, that of being acknowledged by Captain Delmar; this was, and had been, the source and spring of every action, and was the only and daily object of reverie; it was my ambition, and ambition in any shape, in whatever direction it may be led, is so powerful as to swallow up every other pa.s.sion of the human mind; but still I had a strong affection for Minnie--that is for little Minnie, as I saw her first, with her beautiful large eyes and Madonna countenance, clinging to her father. With the exception of my own relations, who were so much my seniors, I had had nothing to bestow my affections on-- had not even made the acquaintance, I may say, of a woman, unless my casual intercourse with Bob Cross's Mary, indeed, might be so considered. A pa.s.sion for the other s.e.x was, therefore, new to me; but, although new, it was pleasing, and, perhaps, more pleasing, from being, in the present case, ideal; for I had only a description of Minnie as she was, and a recollection of what she had been. I could, therefore, between the two, fill up the image with what was, to my fancy, the ideal of perfection. I did so again and again, until the night wore away; and, tired out at last, I fell fast asleep.

The next day, after I had been on board of the schooner, and given my orders to Bob Cross, I returned to Mr Fraser, and sat down to write to Mr Vanderwelt; I also wrote to Minnie, which I had never done before.

That my night reveries had an effect on me is certain, for I wrote her a long letter; whereas, had I commenced one before my arrival at Curacao, I should have been puzzled to have made out ten lines. I told her I was sitting in the same chair, that I was sleeping in the same room, that I could not look around me without being reminded of her dear face, and the happy hours we pa.s.sed together; that Mr Fraser had told me how tall she had grown, and was no longer the little Minnie that used to kiss me.

In fact, I wrote quite romantically as well as affectionately, and when I read over my letter, wondered how it was that I had become so eloquent. I begged Mr Vanderwelt to write to me as soon as possible, and tell me all about their doings. I sealed my letter, and then threw myself back in my chair, and once more indulged in the reveries of the night before. I had a new feeling suddenly sprung up in my heart, which threatened to be a formidable rival to my ambition.

In two days the Firefly was ready, and I reported her as being so to Captain C---. He gave me my orders, which were to cruise for six weeks, and then to rejoin the admiral at Port Royal, unless circ.u.mstances should make me think it advisable to return to the island. The boats of the men-of-war were sent to tow me out of the harbour, and I was once more on the wide blue sea--the schooner darting along like a dolphin.

For a fortnight we cruised without seeing any vessel but the Naiad. I was very much afraid that the captain would have ordered me to keep company; but as he considered his vessel quite a match for the brig and schooner if he should fall in with them, and did not want the prize-money to be shared with the crew of the Firefly, he allowed me to go my own way, saying to me, laughingly, as I went over the side, "They will certainly take you if they meet you, and we shall have to recapture you."