Salt Water Part 4

"Matter! why the breeze is freshening, to be sure," said old Growl, our acting master. "Look out for your plates, and when you go on deck it will be time enough to learn all about it."

Old Growl was in many respects not dissimilar to Hanks. He was of the same age, if not older; as fond of spirits, if not fonder; and as addicted, indeed I think more so, to grumbling. He was not a gentleman by birth, education, or manners; but he was kind of heart, and I liked him very well. I think I remarked that all the officers were very old for their standing. Growl's hair was white, and so was Scriven's, the clerk in charge. I was young enough to be the son of any of them, in fact, and was treated almost as such. Fortunately, my uncle did his best to throw responsibility on my shoulders, so that, in spite of the pains they took to spoil me, I gradually learned to think and act for myself. Dinner was over, for the best of reasons--that we had eaten up all our boiled beef and potatoes, and the greater portion of our last cheese, and I was thinking how much pleasanter it was to be sitting there quietly, and nibbling biscuit and sipping my gla.s.s of grog, than standing up to be shot at, as I had to do all the morning, when Hanks, whose watch it had been on deck, came below. His eye immediately fell on my tumbler of grog, which was, I own, stiffer than usual; and without saying a word, he emptied half the contents into another, and drinking them off, filled my gla.s.s with water. I dared not remonstrate, for I had been transgressing his orders in taking more than the quant.i.ty he allowed me.

"Neil, my child," he used to say, "drink is a bad thing; and it grows upon a fellow. If you were to take your full allowance now, by the time you grow up you would be a drunkard, so for your sake I shall swallow your grog; besides, you know, what is bad for a little chap like you, is good for an old worn-out follow like me, who wants something to keep his soul alive in his body."

I did not exactly understand his reasoning; but as, notwithstanding his peculiarities, I was fond of my old messmate, I was well content to yield him up part of my allowance, for the sake of keeping him alive.

"Well, Hanks, are we gaining on the chase?" I asked.

"No, boy; but our ill-luck has gained upon us," he replied. "The wind has taken it into its head to veer round to the south-west, and given the rascally lugger an advantage she doesn't deserve. Boy, bring me dinner."

The boy who acted as steward brought him in his portion of beef, which had been saved, and I followed Growl, whose watch it was on deck. The sea had got up considerably, and the cutter was heeling over to the rapidly increasing breeze. An exclamation from Growl made me look anxiously ahead for the lugger.

"Where is she?" he asked of the quartermaster, who had charge of the deck.

"Just slipped into that bank of clouds gathering in the southward, sir,"

was the answer.

"Can any of you see her," he inquired of the people on deck.

"No, sir, no; not a sign of her," said several voices.

"Then we shan't see her again this cruise," he exclaimed.

No more we did. We followed her, notwithstanding, for some hours, when darkness approaching and the wind increasing, we were obliged to bear up and run into Weymouth, where we anch.o.r.ed at a late hour in the night.

The next day we buried our two shipmates, and a surgeon came off to attend to the wounded ones, whom he took on sh.o.r.e with him. A gale got up, which lasted three days, during which time we remained at anchor, ready, as soon as it should moderate, to put to sea again in quest of Myers. The engagement with the smuggler made a good deal of noise, we heard. Some said that we ought to have taken her; others, that our Commander was not a man to leave undone what could have been done.

However, as no one had any doubt that Myers was in command of the lugger, a large reward was offered to whoever would give information that might lead to his apprehension, and a still larger to the person who should place him, bound, in the hands of justice. One evening, after dark, a small boat came alongside, with a single man in her. I was on deck.

"Is Lieutenant O'Flaherty on board?" asked the man.

I told him he was.

"Then," said the stranger, springing on board, "take this note to him, young gentleman, and say the bearer waits to see him."

The stranger was of a strongly-built, stout figure, and had the appearance of a rough seafaring man. I took a paper he handed me into the cabin. My uncle read it attentively two or three times over, as if puzzled to comprehend its meaning.

"I must see the rascal, and hear what he has to say," he muttered. "But I never like to trust a traitor. Show the man below, D'Arcy."

I did as I was ordered. The man bowed as he entered, and then I saw him take a chair and seat himself, without being asked to do so. I longed to hear what he had to say, so I lingered in the cabin, as if waiting for orders. The stranger looked at me hard.

"What I have to say is for your ear, Lieutenant; so I can't speak with another present, though he is but a little one," he remarked, in a tone I thought remarkably impudent.

"Neil, go on deck," said my uncle.

In about half an hour the stranger appeared on deck, and without saying a word, jumped into his boat and pulled away. I observed that he did not pull directly for the sh.o.r.e, but that he steered for a considerable distance to the northward before attempting to land, thus not allowing any one who might meet him to suspect that he had visited us. The mysterious stranger afforded considerable matter for surmise among all on board, the general opinion being that he had brought off some important information, which might lead to the capture of Myers or of some of his smuggling confederates.

CHAPTER FIVE.

EXPEDITION ON Sh.o.r.e--THE INFORMER'S FATE--THE SMUGGLERS CAVE--JACK STRETCHER--THE SMUGGLER'S REVENGE--OUR DREADFUL POSITION.

The _Serpent_ was again in West Bay, just near enough to Portland Bill to be distinguished by any one looking out for her; and she was standing with a light breeze from the north-east, as if bound across Channel. We stood on till dusk, and then tacked and worked back into the bay, till we got close in with the Dorsetshire coast. The cutter was now hove-to, and the boats were lowered and manned, all hands being well-armed.

"Mr Hanks," said my uncle, as he came on deck, "you will take charge of the ship, and keep her as near as possible to where she now is: I expect to be absent about an hour."

Hanks gave the usual "Ay, ay, sir," and then continued the duty he was about in superintending the lowering the boats. I seized the opportunity, while he was waiting for the final preparations, to go up and speak to my uncle.

"May I go, sir?" I asked. "If there is anything to be done, I should like to see it."

"We shall only find hard knocks and little glory," he replied.

"However, a midshipman should see everything. Can you spare Mr D'Arcy, Mr Hanks?"

"Oh yes, sir, if you please," said Hanks, laughing.

I had at first felt very grand at the way my uncle spoke of me; but there was something in Hanks' tone of voice which considerably lowered my pride. However, I gained my object, and jumping into the first gig with my Commander, the order was given to shove off, and away we pulled towards the sh.o.r.e.

There was no moon, but the sky was clear, and the stars overhead shone brightly forth into the calm, silent water beneath them. I never saw the water smoother; and the little wind there was came off the sh.o.r.e, gently sighing as it pa.s.sed over the dry gra.s.s and low bushes which fringed the edge of the cliffs above our heads. Not a word was spoken, and our oars were m.u.f.fled, as we pulled along sh.o.r.e, a considerable distance to the westward of where we left the cutter. There were three boats, so we all knew it was possible some considerable opposition might be expected.

After we had pulled about three or four miles, our Commander ordered two of the boats to remain off sh.o.r.e, the crews resting on their oars, till they should see a blue light burned; they were then to give way as fast as they could, and support us if necessary. We then pulled slowly in, our people being told to make as little noise as possible on beaching the boat.

"Neil," said my uncle, "we have a chance of catching that accomplished rascal, Myers, through the means of another rascal, who has offered to betray him, and who is to meet us off that point yonder, and to conduct us where Myers and his gang are to be found. If we come to blows at any time, just keep behind me, boy, and don't be after getting yourself killed or hurt, or I'll never take you to see any more fun, remember that."

It was clear, by this remark, that my uncle had not forgotten the old country; and I promised to obey his directions.

In a few minutes the bow of the boat touched the sh.o.r.e, and we, by aid of a boat-hook, jumped on the sand. Ordering two of the men to accompany him, and giving directions to the others to keep silence, and on no account to quit the boat, our commander advanced towards the foot of the cliff. We went on some little way without meeting anybody.

"It is very extraordinary," he observed, in a low voice. "I cannot have mistaken the spot or the hour. It was just here the man Langdon appointed to meet me." We halted for some minutes and listened attentively, but not a sound was to be heard except the low, soft, and musical lap of the tide as it glided by the shingly beach. Above us was the lofty cliff beetling over our heads, its dark outline well-defined against the brilliant sky.

"Something, I'm afraid, is wrong," remarked my uncle; "or can the fellow have been imposing on me?"

Having waited for some time in vain, we again advanced. We had not gone many paces when a figure was seen leaning against the cliffs. The person, apparently, from his not moving at our approach, was fast asleep.

"That must be the fellow Langdon," said my uncle. "Why, what can he be about?" On this he whistled twice, very softly, but there was no answer. We then hurried up to the spot where the figure was observed.

It was no optical illusion; there certainly was a person, but he took no notice of our presence. Our two men then went up to him, thinking to awake him; but as they took him by the arms he slipped from their grasp, and fell to the ground. An exclamation of horror made us hurry up to them. It was a corpse we saw. A dark spot on the forehead, from which a stream of blood, rapidly coagulating, oozed forth. His singed hair, and the black marks on one side of his face, showed how the deed had been done. It was evident that he had been shot by a pistol placed close to his head.

"He hasn't been dead above a quarter of an hour," observed Stretcher, one of the men, feeling his heart. "He is still warm, sir."

"Then his murderers cannot be far off," said my uncle. "I'll land our people, and we will hunt them down. The poor wretch could scarcely expect any other fate were he discovered."

"What--do you know the man, sir?" I asked. "Yes, he is the informer, Langdon; the very man who was to have conducted us to Myers' retreat,"

was the answer.

"Here, sir, is a bit of card tied round the man's neck, and close to him was this pistol and handkerchief," said Tomkins, who had placed the body on the sands, bringing him the articles.

"Very well; do you take charge of those things, Tomkins, and on no account lose them. D'Arcy, do you go back with Sims to the boat; burn a blue light close down to the water, shade it by the boat's side so that it may not be seen from the cliffs above; and then, as soon as the boats come in, order two hands to remain in each, and bring the rest up here."

"Ay, ay, sir," I replied with alacrity, for I was always proud of having any orders given me by my uncle; and away I and Sims hurried towards the boat. We had not got many paces before a shout from Jack Stretcher made us turn back, and at the same moment several men came leaping down by a narrow path in the side of the cliff.