The Rose of Paradise Part 5

The next minute Mr. Langely cried out, "My G.o.d, captain, I am shot!" His right hand fell at his side, and in an instant I beheld his shirt stained with blood that gushed out from the wound in his shoulder.

The ship beginning to fall off, I ran forward and took the wheel myself, for in a minute more, if we held our course, we would be under the pirate's stern, and in a position to rake them with our starboard broadside. I heard a dozen bullets strike into the wood-work around me; one struck the wheel, so that I felt as if my hand and my wrist were paralyzed by the jar. The next instant I felt a terrible blow upon my head; a hot red stream gushed over my face and into my eyes, and for a moment my brain reeled. Some one caught hold of me, but just as darkness settled upon me I felt the ship shake beneath me and heard the roar of our broadside. We were under the pirate's stern at last.

I could not have lain insensible for many minutes, for when I opened my eyes and saw the surgeon and my second mate bending over me, it was still with the roar of cannon in my ears.

"How is this, Mr. White?" cried I; "are we not then past the pirate?"

"Sir," said my second mate, in a very serious voice, "we are run aground."

"And the pirate?" cried I.

"She is also aground," said he, "and we rake her with every shot."

I got to my feet, in spite of the surgeon's protest, putting him impatiently aside.

It was as Mr. White said; the pirate was aground about two or three hundred yards away from us, fast stuck upon the bar, stern towards us.

She must have received more than one shot betwixt wind and water, for she was heeled over to one side, and I could see a stream of b.l.o.o.d.y water pouring continually from her scupper-holes.

But I also saw that we were stuck hard and fast, and that though our position was better than theirs, every shot that we fired drove us with the recoil more firmly aground. I at once gave orders that all firing except with muskets should be stopped; so there we lay aground for more than half an hour, answering the pirate's fire with our flintlocks.

Although this was dreadful for us to bear at the time, in the end it proved to be our salvation; for when the tide raised we floated clear fully ten minutes before the pirates, and so escaped immediate destruction.

In the mean time, whilst we lay there the sloop had floated clear, and the pirates having cut away the wreck of the main-mast, and having rigged up oars like those we had shot away, presently came to the aid of their consort. Seeing our situation, and that we were fast aground, they did not attack us directly, but made for the channel by the way which they had left it, thus entering above us and cutting off all our chance of escape. For though we had so nearly pa.s.sed the other craft, we could not hope to pa.s.s them without being boarded, for with their oars they could come as they chose, and were not dependent on the wind.

So soon as they had entered the channel they laid their course directly for us, but before they could come up with us, we also had floated clear, as before stated; and though we could not escape to the open water, we were yet enabled to enter the harbor again, which we did, followed by the fire of the pirate barque.

The wind now had almost fallen away again, so that the sloop, driven by her oars, and enabled by her light draught to cross the shoals and bars which we could not make, began to draw up with us, endeavoring with all diligence to board us. Nevertheless, we contrived to make a running fight of it for almost an hour.

At last, the other vessel having repaired her damages, and having some time since floated clear off, came down upon us in aid of her consort, for the sloop was very plainly filling rapidly, having heeled over so much to one side that her decks were greatly exposed to our fire.

For all this long time the _Greenwich_ and Ostender had been riding at about three or four miles distant, not being able to escape to open water whilst the pirates held the channel. But so far from coming to our a.s.sistance, they made no sign of help or fired so much as a single gun in our aid.

By this time more than half of my officers and men had been either killed or wounded, so that when I beheld the barque, crowded with naked, howling wretches, thirsting for our blood, come bearing down upon us, and when I beheld how little hope there was of Captain Kirby's coming to our a.s.sistance, I could see no other chance for our safety than to run the _Ca.s.sandra_ ash.o.r.e, and, if possible, to escape to the beach as best we could. Accordingly, I gave the necessary orders to Mr. White, and the _Ca.s.sandra_ laid her course for the beach, closely followed only by the pirate barque, the sloop having already been run ash.o.r.e about half a mile below to keep her from sinking.

In five minutes the _Ca.s.sandra_ struck, grounding at about fifty yards from the sh.o.r.e. The pirate drew fully four feet less water, but it pleased G.o.d that she stuck fast on higher ground, so that, after all, they were prevented from boarding us.

Here we fought, for nearly an hour, the last, and I know not whether it was not the bloodiest engagement of that whole day; nor can I sufficiently praise the behavior not only of the officers, but of the men, who even in this extremity behaved with the most extraordinary courage, though the crew of the sloop supplied the larger vessel with three boatfuls of fresh men.

Meantime the _Greenwich_ followed the lead of the Ostender and stood clear away to sea, leaving us struggling in the very jaws of death. Soon after the pirate craft floated clear off with the rising tide, and immediately fell to work fitting out warps to haul out under our stern, though still at some distance from us.

Seeing this, no hope remained for us but to leave the ship, if possible, with the pa.s.sengers and such of our men as were still alive, trusting to Providence not only to bring us safe away, but to keep us all in that desolate country amongst a strange and savage people.

IX.

As said above, it was now past six o'clock, and Mr. White and the boatswain were the only unwounded officers with whom I dared intrust the command of the boats in executing my plans for leaving the ship.[B]

[B] Mr. Richards, the third mate, had been killed by a grape bullet when we ran down upon the larger of the pirate crafts. He was a young man of great promise, of but twenty-two years of age, and my cousin's son.

The long-boat and the gig were all that remained sound and uninjured, the others having been shot or stove during the engagement. It was arranged that Mr. Jeks, the boatswain, should command the long-boat, and Mr. White the gig. The pa.s.sengers and the less seriously wounded were to go in the long-boat; Mr. White to take those who had been more dangerously hurt in the gig.

By this time the wind had died down again, and it was as calm as it had been the two days before, so that the smoke hung thick about the ship and upon the water, and did not drift away. Although, because of this thick cloud, we could not see our enemy, and so could not point our guns with any sureness of aim, it also prevented him from seeing us and what we were about, so that all our movements were concealed from him as his were from us.

Mr. Langely having come upon deck at this time, though very weak and feeble from the pain of his wound, I intrusted the clearing away and lowering of the boats to him, while I went below to advise the women of our plans, and to tell them to get together such matters as they might need in this emergency. I found them in a most pitiable state, having been sent below at the first sign of the approaching battle, and left by themselves for all this long time with no light but that of a lantern slung from the deck above, hearing the uproar of the fight and the groans of the wounded without once knowing whether matters were going for us or against us.

The two ladies sat, or rather crouched, upon a chest or box, holding one another by the hand. Mistress Ann lay huddled in a corner in a most extreme state of terror and distraction.

I may even yet see in my mind's eye how Mistress Pamela appeared when I clambered down the ladder: her face was as white as marble, and her eyes gazed out from the shadow of her brows with a most intense and burning glance. My heart bled for the poor creatures when I thought how much they must have suffered since they were sent to this dreadful place.

So soon as they saw me they fell to screaming, and clung to one another.

Nor did I wonder at their distraction when I beheld myself a few minutes later in the gla.s.s in my cabin, for my face and hands were blackened with the smoke of the powder, my shirt and waistcoat were stained with the blood which had poured out from the wound in my head, and around my brow was bound a b.l.o.o.d.y napkin which I had hastily wrapped about my head so soon as I had recovered from the first effects of my wound. But just then I knew not how I looked, nor reckoned anything of it, for in a fight such as we had pa.s.sed through one has little time to think of such matters.

"Ladies," said I, speaking as gently as I could, "be not afraid; it is I, Captain Mackra."

At this Mrs. Evans burst into a great pa.s.sion of weeping, with her face buried in her hands, while Mistress Pamela still regarded me, though with a fixed and stony stare.

"Oh G.o.d!" she cried; "and are you hurt?" And she pointed with her outstretched finger to my head.

[Ill.u.s.tration: SO SOON AS THEY SAW ME THEY FELL TO SCREAMING, AND CLUNG TO ONE ANOTHER.]

"Why, no," says I, making shift to force a laugh in spite of the anxiety with which I was consumed; "it is a mere scratch, and nothing to speak of. There is no time now to talk of such little matters as this, but only of leaving the ship, for we can defend ourselves no longer. Get together what things you need from your cabin, and make haste, for there is no time to lose."

I believe that Mistress Ann had fainted clean away when she had caught sight of me climbing down the ladder, for we found that she was in no condition to move, so I picked her up in my arms and bore her to the great cabin, the others following close behind. There I left them and went again upon deck, where I found that they were bringing the wounded up from below.

I hope I may never see such a sight again to the very last day of my life, for it is one thing to behold a man shot in the heat of an action, and another and a mightily different thing to see one of one's own shipmates carried groaning in a hammock wet and stained with his blood.

We had so grounded that we lay within fifty yards of the sh.o.r.e, and it could take but a little while for a boat to go thither and return to the ship again. Nevertheless, I deemed it necessary to give the Rose of Paradise into the keeping of some one going upon this first pa.s.sage, and upon whom I could entirely rely. The boatswain had the care of the women, which was, of course, of the first importance of all; therefore, there remained no one in whose hands I could place it with as much confidence as in those of Mr. White.

It was very necessary to keep up the show of fighting, lest the pirates should think we had surrendered, and so come aboard of us, but all hands who could be spared from the guns were engaged in lowering the wounded into the long-boat and gig.

Leaving Mr. Langely in charge of this, I took Mr. White into my cabin; there I opened the locker that I had made in my berth, and took out the box containing the jewel.

"Sir," said I, "I am about to show you a sign both of my regard and of my esteem. In this box is a jewel worth above three hundred thousand pounds; this I intrust for the present into your keeping. When you get to the sh.o.r.e you will not return with the gig, but will remain where you are, sending the boat back under some one whom you may choose among your crew. Should I perish, or should the pirates board this ship before you return (in which event I cannot hope to escape with my life), you will convey this trust to Mr. Longways, the Company's agent at the king's town. And now, sir, I wish you G.o.d's speed."

Mr. White was about to reply, but I checked him, telling him that he could best show his regard for me by leaving the ship without further words.

We quitted my cabin together, and just outside we met Captain Leach, whom I had noticed repeatedly for the last half-hour, and never very far away from me. He came directly towards Mr. White and me, but he did not so much as glance at the box that Mr. White held, but spoke to me.

"I came upon Mistress Pamela Boon's account," said he. "The women are ready to quit the ship, and Mistress Ann is yet in a dead swoon."

"I will go to them," said I; and then turning to Mr. White, I said, very seriously, "Remember!"

He did not answer, but bowed his head, and I turned and left him, Captain Leach following close behind me. He did not enter with me into the great cabin, but waited without, and when I came out a few minutes later I saw that he was gone.