Ronald Morton, or the Fire Ships Part 34

"Not at all likely that she will make so hopeless an attempt," answered Morton.

"No; but what do you say to the fellows blowing themselves up," put in Hardman. "There's many a slip between the cup and the lip; it is the only way by which they can disappoint us, unless they heave their cargo overboard, which they may have done already, by-the-by."

His brother officers, as usual, laughed at Hardman's prognostications.

At length the frigate got the chase directly under her guns, when, instead of making the slightest attempt to escape, she hauled down her flag, and heaving-to, waited to be taken possession of. This was done as soon as a boat could be lowered from the frigate; Morton went in her, and Evans the mate, who spoke Spanish, accompanied him. He stepped on board the prize. She was a handsome ship, and from her very appearance Morton hoped that she would have a rich cargo. The captain received his captors very politely, and at once produced his invoice.

"That is what you want, gentlemen," he observed, with a deep sigh; "your gain is my loss, I am a ruined man."

"There are all sorts of valuable things here, sir," observed Morton's subordinate. "I only hope they are not all shams."

"We'll go below and examine," was the wise reply.

The ship was undoubtedly laden with all sorts of West India produce.

Then some chests were come to; they were full of bars of silver.

"Pretty pickings, these," observed Evans.

Some smaller boxes were next examined.

"As I am a gentleman and a Welshman, if I ever cast my eyes on diamonds before, these are diamonds!" he exclaimed, holding up a rough-looking but shining stone between his fingers. They might have been pieces of gla.s.s for what Morton could tell.

"These little boxes are worth some thousands, Morton, I can tell you,"

exclaimed Hardman, half beside himself with delight. "A magnificent haul!" Suddenly he recollected himself,--"That is to say, if they ever reach England in safety. But, you know, there's many a slip between the cup and the lip."

Morton was too busy to laugh just then. He had discovered some larger chests, containing some large gold candlesticks, which the captain informed them, were to ornament the church of our Lady of the Conception, in Madrid. There were just three of them, enormous and ma.s.sive articles, not less than five feet high, besides, a quant.i.ty of rich plate of gold and silver. Morton sent back Evans to make a report to the captain. Lord Claymore heard the account with unrestrained delight.

"We'll have it all safe on board, without delay," he exclaimed. "It will not do to let it fall again into the enemy's hands; in the frigate, at all events, we shall be able to fight for it."

The men cheered as they saw the chests hoisted up the side. It was bringing back the good old buccaneering days; such a prize had not been made by any cruiser for a long time. A mate was sent home in charge of her.

"Take care you don't get caught, and clapped into a French prison," said Hardman, as he shoved off.

Scarcely were the chests of treasure stowed below, and the prize out of sight, than another sail was descried from the mast-head--chase was made--the prisoners confessed that she was one of their convoy, and as the "Pallas" came up with her, they stated that she was even more richly laden than the last. She saw that flight was useless. She was speedily boarded, and found to contain more dollars, bars of gold and silver, and other treasure. It took no long time to transfer the whole to the "Pallas."

"If we go on at this rate, Morton, we shall have enough of the needful to satisfy all the land sharks in the kingdom, and to establish your rights, whatever they may be, against all opposition."

Morton's hopes began to rise high. The wealth they were collecting seemed almost fabulous; though he knew that but a small share would come to him, he thought that it would be ample to carry out his objects.

The treasure had not long been stowed away, when the wind got up with a heavy sea, and the ship laboured considerably. Hardman, when sitting over his wine with his messmates in the gun-room, began to talk of planks starting, and rich argosies going suddenly to the bottom. No one, however, paid much attention to his prognostications of evil. By dawn the next day another sail hove in sight. Chase was made, but the stranger showed that she had a fast pair of heels; the "Pallas,"

however, had a faster pair, and by noon had gained upon her so much that she was seen to be an armed ship of considerable size. No sooner however did the "Pallas" get her under her guns, than she hauled down her flag and hove-to. Though a heavy sea was running, she was immediately boarded and found to be a richly laden Letter of Marque.

She also had a chest of dollars; but as there would have been great danger of losing them in transferring them to the "Pallas," they were allowed to remain on board; Evans was sent in charge of her.

"Take care that you do not slip into a lion's mouth," said Morton, as his brother officer took his departure.

"If I do, I hope that I shall slip out again before he has time to shut it," was Evans's reply.

Fortune was smiling, it seemed, on the "Pallas." Four rich prizes had already been made; it was difficult to calculate their worth. The sanguine temperament of the captain might have over-estimated it.

"My share alone is little short of a hundred thousand pounds," he exclaimed, showing Morton a sheet of paper on which he had been making a rough calculation--"a splendid fortune for a man of moderate wishes. I wish that you had a larger share. We captains get the lion's part certainly; but perhaps it is as well as it is. What a stimulus it is to an officer to exert himself to obtain command in time of war."

"Yes," thought Morton; "but let men exert themselves to the utmost, how many fail to obtain the desired rank, or if they get that, the coveted wealth!"

"Remember, however, Morton," continued Lord Claymore, "I have promised to a.s.sist you in establishing your claims, or your father's rather, whatever they are. He may be the son of a peasant, or n.o.ble. No one cares less for what is called gentle blood than I do; but it is not the estimate which we set on an article, but at which the world at large holds it, which is its true value. I don't feel happier because I am the possessor of a hundred thousand pounds than I did ten years ago when I was a beggar; but depend on it, the world will esteem me much more highly than it did."

Morton always listened with pleasure to the remarks which dropped from his captain's lips, always full of shrewdness and good sense.

It was now time for the "Pallas" to return home. Four prizes had been despatched to England. All were anxious to ascertain that they had arrived there safely.

"Little chance of that," observed Hardman; "plenty of the enemy's cruisers about, to snap them up."

Though homeward bound, as bright a look-out as ever was kept, in the hopes that another prize might be taken.

When off the coast of Portugal, at dawn one morning, a light silvery fog lay on the water, bright but sufficiently opaque to conceal all objects even close at hand. The wind at dawn was light, but as the sun rose, so did the breeze, and the royals and top-gallant sails, which had at first been set, were, one after the other, taken off the frigate.

"This fog is, indeed, provoking. We may run by a whole convoy of the enemy's merchantmen without seeing them," observed Morton, who had become as eager as the most avaricious of his shipmates in the pursuit of wealth, by the royal road opened up before them.

"Of course," answered Hardman: "very likely at this moment we are pa.s.sing within hail of some Spanish galleons, whose cargoes would make every man on board independent for life."

The looker-out at the mast-head hailed the deck.

"A ship, sir, close to--I see her mast-heads over the fog."

"What does she look like?" asked Morton. "A large ship, sir, line-of-battle ship, I should say."

The officers were alert in an instant. Hardman flew aloft. Scarcely had he got there, than he shouted, "There's another! another!--three of them--line-of-battle ships and enemies."

The last words had an electric effect. From the movements of the line-of-battle ships, as they were seen over the fog, there was no doubt that their look-outs had discovered the "Pallas." In an instant the captain was on deck; Morton had already ordered the ship to be kept away, and was again setting topgallant sails and royals; he thought the royal masts would scarcely stand.

"Never mind, we must do everything to preserve our booty and our liberty," answered Lord Claymore.

The breeze increased almost to a gale. The wind soon dispersed the mist, and the three huge line-of-battles ships were seen rushing on towards the frigate. A broadside from one of them would have sunk her.

Her top-gallant masts bent like willow wands. Every moment it appeared that they must go. Lord Claymore stood watching them, and now and then taking a glance at his enemies, and though cool and collected, seeming positively to revel in the excitement of the scene. The wind was abeam; and the frigate, which proved herself but a crank ship, heeled over till her hammock-nettings dipped in the seething, foaming waters, which bubbled and hissed up through the lee scuppers.

On tore the "Pallas." It was a race for liberty and the preservation of the wealth in which they had been rejoicing.

"What will you take for your prize-money in prospect now, Morton?" asked the pertinacious Hardman. "I told you so, old boy--there's many a slip between the cup and the lip. It's the great truth I've learned in my life--I shall always stick to it."

"It may apply equally to our enemies astern, though," observed the captain, who had overheard the remark, "we will see if we cannot make it so."

The line-of-battle ships were by this time beginning to feel the fury of the gale, which was well nigh carrying her masts out of the frigate, or sending her over on her beam-ends. The more, however, the Spaniards saw her pressed, the less willing they were to shorten sail. She now kept edging more and more away to bring the wind further astern, squaring her yards as she did so, the Spaniards having to do the same. They did not seem to think it worth while to spend much powder and shot on her, as they, of course, felt sure of capturing her in the end. It was a grand sight to see the little English frigate dauntlessly doing her utmost to escape from her huge pursuers, the foam in dense ma.s.ses flying over her, while, with bending masts, and lee-shrouds bulging out, she dashed through the frantic waves, her side, as she heeled over, half buried beneath them. What hope was there of her escaping?

One huge Spaniard was on her weather, another on her lee-beam, while the other was coming up fast astern on her weather quarter. Still Lord Claymore did not despair. He stepped down among the crew and spoke to them.

"My lads, never say die while there's life. Let every man and boy of you do your best, and we'll yet give the Dons the slip. Be smart, as if your lives depended on it. To your stations now."

Every man stood ready, watching the captain's eye. He had explained his plan to his officers. All was ready. There was a dead silence--the gale roared louder than ever--the frigate tore through the waves. The Spaniards were close upon her; angry at her still holding out, they began to fire; the shots came fast and thick, flying over and on each side of the frigate, but hitherto none had struck her. At length the Spaniards saw again that firing was of no use--they should only be knocking their destined prize to pieces--like vast mountains of snow they came rushing on. It appeared as if they were about to crush the little frigate with their united weight.

"Ready, lads!" shouted the captain of the "Pallas."