Under the Meteor Flag Part 34

CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE.

THE ROCCA ISLETS.

The night had grown somewhat darker within the last hour, a few light clouds having come up to windward, spreading themselves over the sky and obscuring a good many of the stars; so that by the time we had been away from the ship about a quarter of an hour it was impossible to see anything of her except the light which twinkled at her gaff-end, and which might easily have been mistaken for a star.

We rounded the south-west angle of the island; and soon after, wards found ourselves pulling up a narrow channel between the island and the reefs, in perfectly smooth water, save for the slight undulations of the ground-swell. We reckoned that the strangers were now about two miles distant, so with m.u.f.fled oars, and in the strictest silence, we paddled gently on, Mr Flinn leading in the launch. After about half an hour of this work, the launch ceased pulling, the other boats following suit; and the word was pa.s.sed for the gig--in which I had been bringing up the rear--to pa.s.s ahead. We did so, and in another minute were alongside the leading boat.

"We can't be far off them now, Ralph," said Paddy in a loud whisper, "so just go aisy ahead, me darlint, and see what you can find out. And don't be a month of Sundays about it, aither, you spalpeen, for we'll soon be havin' the daylight upon us; indade it looks to me as if the sky is lightin' up to the east'ard already, so we've no time to spare."

"Never fear," said I, "I'll not be a moment longer than I can help.

Give way, gigs, and pa.s.s the word for the bow oar to lay in and keep a bright lookout ahead."

We swept silently away, the stroke oar having orders to keep his eye on the boats as long as it was possible to see them; and he was just reporting to me in a whisper that he had lost sight of them when the bow man gave the word "oars," and said he could see something broad on our port bow. The boat's head was sheered to port, and at the same moment I caught sight of the brigantine's spars showing up black and indistinct against the dark sky. She was not above fifty yards away from us, and I had just given the word to paddle quietly ahead when a voice hailed us in Spanish, ordering us to keep off or they would fire. Before we could reply, _crash_ came a volley of musketry at us, tearing up the water all round the boat, and one poor fellow dropped his oar and fell forward off his seat.

"Give way, men!" I shouted. "Dash at her and get alongside before they have time to load again. The other boats will be here to support us in a moment."

The men required no second bidding, but, bending to their oars until the stout ash bent like fishing-rods and the water flashed from the blades in luminous foam, they sent the boat like an arrow in under the main chains, dropping their oars and seizing their cutla.s.ses as we sheered alongside, and springing like grey-hounds slipped from the leash at the craft's low bulwarks.

But we had been reckoning without our hosts. Instead of finding the crew all below comfortably asleep in their hammocks, there they were at quarters, with guns loaded and run out, boarding-nettings triced up, and in fact everything ready to repel an attack, and it was only our extremely cautious approach which had saved us from a broadside or two of grape. Our people cut and slashed at the netting in a vain attempt to hew a pa.s.sage through it, and were either shot down or thrust back with boarding-pikes; those who attempted to creep in at the ports receiving similar treatment. And all the time the small-arm men were playing briskly upon us with their muskets; so that at the end of five minutes I found myself with all hands beaten back into the boat, and every one of us, fore and aft, suffering from wounds more or less severe.

"Come, lads!" I exclaimed; "take another slap at them; we _must_ get on deck somehow. You Jones, give me a hoist up on your shoulders; I think I can see a hole in the netting; here--a foot farther aft--so, that's well. Now, _heave_."

And up I went, clear above the craft's gunwale and neatly in through the hole which I had espied. I should have fallen on the deck on my head, and probably dislocated my neck had not a brawny Spaniard happened to be immediately beneath me. Taken by surprise at my abrupt appearance, he had not time to get out of my way or even to strike at me, and before he could recover himself my pistol was at his temple and he staggered backward, shot through the head. In his fall, he forced back two or three of those nearest him, creating a momentary confusion. One of the gigs was at that instant struggling to get in through the open port near me, and I bent down, seized him by the collar, and lugged him in on deck, recovering myself just in time to ward off a savage cutla.s.s-blow.

Jones--who happened to be the man I had dragged inboard--was on his feet in an instant, and, placing himself alongside me, we both pressed a little forward, so as to leave room for the rest of the gigs to follow by the same entrance while we covered them.

At the same moment a ringing cheer was heard forward; there was a rush of many feet, and Flinn with his party poured aft, having come quietly in over the bows while the crew were engaged with us aft.

"Launches to the rescue!" he shouted; "Hurroo, me bhoys! lay it on thick and heavy. Don't give them time to recover themselves; if the naygurs won't go below or throw down their arrums, just haive them overboard."

The onslaught of the three other boats' crews--which, having stolen quietly up in the confusion and slipped in over the bows without molestation, were perfectly fresh--was irresistible. The brigantine's crew were forced in a body right aft to the taffrail, when, to avoid being cut down where they stood, or driven overboard, they threw down their arms and begged for quarter.

Lights were procured; the prisoners were pa.s.sed below and secured; and we then had time to turn our attention to the other craft. Where was she? During the skirmish I had caught a momentary glimpse of her at about a cable's length on our port beam through the glancing of the pistol-flashes on her spars and rigging, but now she was nowhere to be seen.

"Matthews," said Mr Flinn, "take a blue-light from the launch into the fore-top and burn it."

In less than a minute the glare of the blue-light illumined the scene with a ghastly radiance; and there, about a quarter of a mile distant, was the ship under way, standing to the northward and westward under jib and spanker, with her topsails just let fall ready for sheeting home.

"Oh, ho! Is it that you're afther thin, me foine fellow?" exclaimed Flinn, who always dropped into his native brogue under the influence of excitement. "By the powers but we'll soon sthop that little game.

Fore-top there! That'll do with the blue-light. Jump on the topsail- yard and cast off the gaskets. Lay out and loose the jib and fore- topmast-staysail, some of you; and Mr Chester, kindly get this mainsail set at once, if you please."

"All ready with the topsail, sir," sang out the man aloft.

"Then let fall, and come down, casting loose the foresail as you do so.

Sheet home the topsail, lads; that's well! man the halliards and up with the yard. Hoist away the jib and staysail; fore-sheets over to starboard. One hand to the wheel and put it hard-a-port. Cut the cable, forward there. Round-in upon the starboard braces--ease off your mainsheet, slack it away and let the boom go well out. Now she has stern-way upon her. Capital. Now fill your topsail--smartly, lads!-- and haul aft your lee head sheets. Steady your helm. Now she draws ahead. Hard up with the helm. There she pays off! Square the fore- yard; gently with your weather-braces--don't round-in upon them too quickly. Well there; belay!"

All this had pa.s.sed almost as quickly as the description can be read, and we were now under way and steering directly after the ship, which had only succeeded in getting her topsails sheeted home and the fore- topsail partially hoisted.

"Is that gun ready forward, Mr Vining?" asked Flinn.

"All ready, sir," answered Vining.

"Then burn another blue-light and throw a shot over him."

Up flared once more the ghostly light; the ship, like a vast phantom, loomed out against the black sky directly ahead, and after a momentary pause the sharp report of the bra.s.s nine-pounder rang out forward, the flash lighting up the chase for an instant, and bringing every rope, spar, and sail into clear relief, while the sound was repeated right and left by the echoing cliffs of the island astern, and the startled sea- birds wheeled screaming all round us.

No notice was taken by the ship of our polite request that she should heave-to; on the contrary, every effort seemed to be put forth to get the canvas set as speedily as possible.

But the brigantine was slipping through the water three feet to their one, under the influence of the light baffling breeze which came down to us from over the lofty cliffs astern, and we were soon within hailing distance.

"Mr Martin, are the starboard guns loaded?" asked Mr Flinn.

"Yes, sir," was the reply. "Loaded with round and grape."

"Then elevate the muzzles of the guns as much as possible, if you please. I am going to range up alongside on the ship's port quarter, when we will pour in our broadside and board in the smoke. If we are not smart, both ships will be ash.o.r.e on the reefs. Mr Vining, kindly take charge of the brigantine, with four hands; the rest prepare to follow me on board the ship."

We were by this time close to the chase, on board which all was dark and silent as the grave.

"Stand by to heave the grapplings, fore and aft. Now port your helm, my man--Jones, isn't it? That's right, hard-a-port and run her alongside.

This way, lads, our cat-head is your best chance. Hurroo! boarders away!" shouted Flinn, and away went the whole party swarming over the ship's lofty bulwarks helter-skelter, like a parcel of school-boys at play, our entire starboard broadside going off with a rattling crash at the same instant.

And then uprose from the deck of the ship an infernal chorus of shrieks, groans, yells, and curses from those of her crew who had been mown down by our shot, mingling horribly with the cheers of our people, the oaths of those who opposed us, the popping of pistols, and the clash of steel.

There were about forty men on board, chiefly Spanish desperadoes, who fought like incarnate fiends; but they had no chance when once we were on board, and after contesting every inch of the deck until they, like the crew of their consort, had been driven aft to the taffrail, in which obstinate resistance they lost more than half their number, the survivors sullenly flung down their arms and surrendered.

The next business was to attend to the safety of both vessels, which were now perilously near the reefs ahead. Half a dozen men were sent on board the brigantine to a.s.sist those already there in working her, when the grapplings were cast off, the brigantine starboarded her helm while we ported ours, and the two ships separated, to haul up on opposite tacks.

The ship's sails were not above half set, so as soon as we had hauled her to the wind the halliards were manned and the topsail-yards got chock up to their sheaves, the courses let fall, tacks boarded, and sheets hauled aft, when we eased the helm down and threw her in stays.

Day was by this time beginning to break. The sky overhead was lighting up, the stars paling out and fading away, while surrounding objects began to loom ghost-like and indistinct in the first grey of the early dawn. The brigantine was just visible about half a mile ahead and insh.o.r.e of us, apparently hove-to. As we drew up abreast of her she filled her topsail and stood on in company, the ship by this time under every st.i.tch of canvas, up to topgallantsails, while the brigantine drew ahead of us under mainsail, topsail, and jib, and was obliged to shiver her topsail every now and then in order to avoid running away from us.

In twenty minutes more we rounded the point, and there lay the "Astarte," a couple of miles off, rolling heavily upon the ground-swell.

On reaching her, both our prizes were hove-to as close to the frigate and to each other as was consistent with safety, and Mr Flinn and I jumped into the gig and went on board to report.

"Well, Mr Flinn," said the skipper, meeting us at the gangway, "glad to see you back safe and sound; you too, Mr Chester," shaking hands with us both. "But how is this? Are you hurt, Ralph?" as on my facing to the eastward the light fell upon my face, and he saw blood upon it.

"A broken skull, sir;" I replied, "nothing _very_ serious though, I believe."

"And what's the news?" continued the skipper. "I see you have brought both vessels out with you. What are they?"

"To tell you the truth, sir," answered Flinn, "we have had no time yet to find out _what_ they are. They are both Spaniards, however, and, if I am not greatly mistaken, we shall find that the brigantine is little better than a pirate."

"Um!" said the skipper, "likely enough; she has all the look of it. And now, what about casualties? have you suffered much?"

"Rather severely, sir, I am sorry to say. Five killed, and eighteen--or rather, nineteen with Mr Chester--wounded; eight of them severely. I am afraid we shall lose little Fisher, sir."

"Lose little Fisher!" exclaimed the skipper. "Why, whoever was thoughtless enough to let that poor child go upon so dangerous an expedition?"

Flinn looked at me, and I at him; but neither of us could plead guilty, so the matter dropped for the time.