The Three Lieutenants Part 23

"'We must try to frighten them, at all events,' he said. 'It won't do to let a band of ruffians come aboard and frighten Miss O'Regan, and perhaps carry off the colonel, if they have any accusation against him.'

"I told him that must depend on what the Spaniards knew about the brig.

It wasn't likely that two men-of-war could be frightened off by a merchantman, though we had four guns and might put a bold face on the matter.

"The other midshipmen now came forward, and stood with us watching the strangers. There was a chance, but only just a chance, that we should escape them. The skipper and the mates seemed to be in a great taking.

The corvette was coming up fast, and the brig of war not far astern of her, carrying all the sail they could set.

"The breeze still held, the corvette by this time was about a mile and a half away on our starboard bow; the skipper began to look as if we should do it, and I thought so too, when, just then, our sails began to hang down, and presently flapped loudly against the masts; the skipper gave a stamp with his foot on the deck, and swore a loud oath. There we lay becalmed, while the corvette and brig still felt the wind off the land.

"'It's all up with us, I'm afraid,' said I to Mr Rogers.

"'It's high time to show our teeth,' he answered.

"'Captain Crowhurst, you'll fight those fellows if they attempt to board us, won't you?' he said, going up to the skipper. 'If you will run all the guns over to starboard we can give them a broadside which ten to one will make them sheer off rather than get a further taste of our quality.'

"The skipper smiled grimly. 'But suppose they don't sheer off; depend on it they will cut the throats of every one of us when they come aboard. What do you say to that, my young gentleman?'

"'I'd run the risk rather than let the ruffians take the vessel from us,' answered Mr Rogers, turning away to speak to the colonel, who had that moment come on deck. He looked up at the canvas hanging idly down against the masts, and then at the strangers still creeping up towards us.

"The wind was leaving them as it had us, and he saw in a moment how matters stood.

"Mr Rogers told him that he and the other midshipmen were ready to fight and defend the brig to the last.

"'You're brave lads,' he answered. 'I thank you heartily. If Captain Crowhurst thinks there's a chance of beating them off we'll risk it, but otherwise, for the sake of my daughter, it would be dangerous to make the attempt.'

"'It's for her sake, sir, that we are anxious to fight,' answered Mr Rogers.

"'Captain Crowhurst, will your crew support you?' asked the colonel of the skipper, who had just gone up to him.

"'I doubt it,' he answered. 'The fellows are brave enough, but the odds are fearfully against us. I'll speak to them, and learn what humour they are in.'

"You'll understand I'd gone aft with the midshipmen. The skipper went forward, and we saw him speaking to the crew, who were cl.u.s.tered together, talking among each other.

"In my opinion the skipper himself hadn't much fighting in him, bold and bl.u.s.tering as he seemed. While he was forward the young lady came on deck. She judged by the midshipmen's countenances that something was wrong, though her father looked as stern and determined as usual.

"'I fear that you will be put to some inconvenience,' he said; 'those men-of-war I suspect are sent to overhaul the brig, and, becalmed as we are, we cannot escape them, but I am very sure that our young friends here will defend you from insult, and our enemies may be satisfied if they can get hold of the captain and me.'

"'That we will,' said all the midshipmen together.

"'Oh, my father, do not let me be separated from you. Where you go I will accompany you,' said Miss O'Regan.

"'But I hope that the colonel will not have to go anywhere,' exclaimed Mr Rogers. 'We must drive the fellows off if they attempt to board the brig.'

"'I thank you for your zeal and courage, young gentlemen,' said the colonel. 'You see, Stella, that you have brave defenders. I wish you to go below, and rest a.s.sured that we will do all that possibly can be done to secure your safety.'

"'But I am thinking about your safety, father,' said Miss O'Regan.

"'I have been too often in danger to be anxious about that,' he answered. 'Go below, and we'll let you know as soon as possible what is likely to happen.'

"Without saying another word the young lady did as the colonel told her.

I had been watching the men forward, and I soon saw by their looks that there was no fighting in them; presently three or four of them slipped below, the others, after saying a few more words to the skipper, followed, and I then knew that they had made up their minds not to fight; they had gone to put on their best clothes, and to stow their money away in their pockets, guessing that if the Spaniards boarded us they would to a certainty plunder the vessel.

"The skipper came aft, looking very downcast. 'The men won't fight, and we must make the best of a bad bargain,' he said to the colonel.

'There's no chance of a breeze, and see, the corvette and brig are lowering their boats, and we shall have the fellows aboard us in a few minutes.'

"The sloop lay becalmed close to us; her skipper, Captain Judson, came aboard, and walked about the deck like a madman.

"'Those fellows will hang every mother's son of us!' he cried out, pulling off his hat, and tearing away at his hair. 'What a fool I was to engage in this sort of work! Colonel O'Regan, can't you advise us what we are to do?'

"'You knew the risk, and you and I must take the consequences,' answered the colonel quite coolly. 'I can only advise you to act like brave men, whatever our enemies chance to do with us; don't let them have cause to treat us with contempt.'

"As neither the young gentlemen nor I had more clothes than those on our backs, we weren't troubled at what we should lose; but for the colonel and the skipper and mates, it was a very different matter. They might not only lose their property and the cargo, but their lives were in no little danger, I guessed, from what I heard them say.

"The boats came towards us, five from the corvette and three from the brig. As they got near I saw that the men were laying on their oars, as if they expected we should fight--you see we had the English flag flying at our peak, and they knew pretty well that Englishmen are not inclined to give in without striking a blow--I thought that the colonel and the skipper would have acted very differently; but they knew that they were not altogether right, and that made them knock under in the way they would not otherwise have done. When the boats came within musket-shot, the men lay on their oars as if they expected should they come nearer that we should fire on them--the officers seemed to be consulting together--and then they made up their minds to attack us, and came on altogether in a line. If our crew had consented to fight it would have been pretty tough work, I must own that, and maybe we should have got the worst of it. In a few minutes the boats were alongside, and their crews were clambering up on deck, some on our quarters and some amidships and for'ard, shouting and jabbering, and waving their cutla.s.ses as if we had been defending ourselves, whereas there was not a man among us had a weapon in his hand. I thought, in truth, they were going to cut down every one of us; so they would have done if the colonel hadn't shouted out in their own lingo, and told them if they came as friends they should be received as friends, and that we did not wish to oppose them.

"One of the officers who had been longer getting up the side than the rest (seeing that he was too fat to move quickly) now stepped up to the colonel and told him to give up his sword, and consider himself a prisoner. The colonel answered that he didn't wear a sword at sea, that he was an Englishman sailing aboard an English vessel, and that if they took him or any one else prisoners they must stand the consequence. The Spaniard stamped and swore, and looked very big, and called him a pirate, and then pointed at the midshipmen, and told him that he was bringing up young pirates, and that they should all be hung together; the colonel, instead of getting into a rage, was very polite, and said that he was mistaken, that the midshipmen belonged to a British man-of-war, had been picked up off a wreck, and that if any harm was done to them, their ships would come and punish him and all concerned.

I was told this afterwards, for though the Spanish officer spoke a little English, I didn't understand all they were talking about.

"The officer, however, didn't mind what the colonel said; but calling his men, they made a rush at him, and taking him unawares, seized him and held him fast. Others in the meantime had got hold of the skipper and mates, as you see the enemy were five to one of us, but still it's my opinion, if our men had been staunch, we could have beat them off.

They didn't touch either of the midshipmen or me, for they believed what the colonel had told them. Having got the colonel down, they lashed his arms behind him and made him sit upon the deck. He took things very calmly, and calling Mr Rogers to him, he said, 'I'll thank you now to go and look after my daughter; I know that I can trust you, my young friend. Don't alarm her more than is necessary, and beg her to remain below until you think she will be safe on deck.'

"'Ay, ay, sir,' said Mr Rogers, and he and his messmates dived into the cabin. I remained on deck for a few minutes longer to see what was likely to happen.

"The people who boarded us were of all colours, Spaniards, mulattoes, and blacks and browns of every hue, though they spoke the same lingo, and were as savage-looking villains as I ever set eyes on, with their sharp knives stuck in their belts, which they seemed only too eager to use. Finding themselves masters of the brig, they made their way below, and laid hands on everything to which they took a fancy.

"Thinking that I might help the young gentlemen, I slipped down the companion hatch and found them standing before Miss O'Regan's cabin; they had armed themselves with pistols and cutla.s.ses. 'Glad to see you, Needham,' said Mr Rogers; 'you'll find a brace of pistols in the captain's cabin, and here's a cutla.s.s; we have made up our minds to fight as long as there's fight in us, if the ruffians attempt to hurt the young lady.'

"'I'm one with you, young gentlemen,' said I, and I went and got the pistols. Miss O'Regan heard what he said and opened the door, begging them not to fight, as there would be no use in doing so. Scarcely had she spoken when down came a gang of rough-looking villains with those long knives of theirs in their hands looking very ferocious, and ready to kill any who might dare to stop them. Mr Rogers had just time to push the young lady back into the cabin, and shut the door before the fellows could see her. They didn't take much notice of the midshipmen, but set about hunting through the other cabins. At last, they came to the one in which Miss O'Regan and Polly were.

"'No! no! my fine fellows, you're not to go in there,' said Mr Rogers, standing in front of the door, and holding his pistols ready to fire.

The other midshipmen did the same, and I held a firm grip of my cutla.s.s, determined to cut down the first of the ruffians who attempted to pa.s.s, should the midshipmen's pistols miss fire.

"The Spaniards flourished their long knives and swore all sorts of strange oaths in their own lingo, but didn't like to advance a step, knowing that two or three of them would get a bullet through their heads; we had the best of it as long as we had pistols and they had only knives. Three or four fellows who had been hunting in the other cabins, now, however, came up with pistols in their belts, and drawing them swore that they would shoot us if we didn't drop our arms. It would have gone hard with us, as there were but three boys and one grown man opposed to a dozen or more of the Spaniards, when just at that moment down came the fat officer who commanded the boats. We had heard him, as I said, speak a little English to the colonel, and so Mr Rogers told him that we were only wishing to protect the young lady from insult.

"'I appeal to your honour, sir, as a Spaniard and an officer, to a.s.sist us in defending her, and I feel sure, sir, that you will do so,' said he.

"'You are not mistaken, young sir,' answered the officer. 'I will take care that the lady is not insulted if she will remain in her cabin.'

"He then turned to the men and ordered them on deck. They went after a little grumbling, each fellow laden with as much booty as he could carry. He then told Mr Rogers to inform the young lady to prepare with the rest of the pa.s.sengers to go on board the corvette, as the brig and sloop were to be sent back into the harbour.

"'Pray tell the officer, that if my father is to go I will gladly accompany him,' she answered.

"In a few minutes Miss O'Regan and her black servant-girl, Polly, had got ready and packed up a few things they thought they would be allowed to carry.

"In a short time the officer who had gone on deck returned, and, making a polite bow, said that he was sorry to inconvenience her, but that the boats were manned and about to shove off for the corvette, then turning to the midshipmen and me, ordered us to follow him on deck. We found that the colonel had already been lowered into one of the boats with the two skippers and mates; the officer handed Miss O'Regan and Polly down into the boat, and placed her alongside her father, we kept close to them; the Spanish crew, who were now in charge of the vessel, turned no very friendly glances at us, and I saw several of the villains clutch their knives as if they would like to stick them into our backs as we pa.s.sed. In a few minutes we were alongside the corvette.

"The commanding officer, who seemed to consider himself a very great man indeed, received us on the quarter-deck. He bowed politely to the young lady, but spoke roughly to the colonel and the rest of us. After hearing the account the fat officer gave of the midshipmen, he told us we might remain with Miss O'Regan if we pleased, but the rest of the party were made to sit down between the guns with a guard over them.

The boats now brought the crews of the brig and sloop on board with their arms lashed behind their backs. The men growled and grumbled as may be supposed, but the Spaniards showed them the points of their knives, and told them to keep silent.