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diff --git a/16382.txt b/16382.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..1ce449e --- /dev/null +++ b/16382.txt @@ -0,0 +1,15233 @@ +The Project Gutenberg eBook, In Clive's Command, by Herbert Strang + + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + + + + +Title: In Clive's Command + A Story of the Fight for India + + +Author: Herbert Strang + + + +Release Date: July 29, 2005 [eBook #16382] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII) + + +***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK IN CLIVE'S COMMAND*** + + +E-text prepared by Martin Robb + + + +IN CLIVE'S COMMAND + +A Story of the Fight for India + +by + +HERBERT STRANG + + + + + + + +Contents + + Preface +Chapter 1: In which the Court Leet of Market Drayton entertains + Colonel Robert Clive; and our hero makes an acquaintance. +Chapter 2: In which our hero overhears a conversation; and, meeting + with the unexpected, is none the less surprised and offended. +Chapter 3: In which Mr. Marmaduke Diggle talks of the Golden East; and + our hero interrupts an interview, and dreams dreams. +Chapter 4: In which blows are exchanged; and our hero, setting forth + upon his travels, scents an adventure. +Chapter 5: In which Job Grinsell explains; and three visitors come by + night to the Four Alls. +Chapter 6: In which the reader becomes acquainted with William Bulger and + other sailor men; and our hero as a squire of dames acquits + himself with credit. +Chapter 7: In which Colonel Clive suffers an unrecorded defeat; and + our hero finds food for reflection. +Chapter 8: In which several weeks are supposed to elapse; and our hero + is discovered in the Doldrums. +Chapter 9: In which the Good Intent makes a running fight: Mr. Toley + makes a suggestion. +Chapter 10: In which our hero arrives in the Golden East, and Mr. + Diggle presents him to a native prince. +Chapter 11: In which the Babu tells the story of King Vikramaditya; and the + discerning reader may find more than appears on the surface. +Chapter 12: In which our hero is offered freedom at the price of honor; + and Mr. Diggle finds that others can quote Latin on occasion. +Chapter 13: In which Mr. Diggle illustrates his argument; and there + are strange doings in Gheria harbor. +Chapter 14: In which seven bold men light a big bonfire; and the + Pirate finds our hero a bad bargain. +Chapter 15: In which our hero weathers a storm; and prepares for squalls. +Chapter 16: In which a mutiny is quelled in a minute; and our Babu + proves himself a man of war. +Chapter 17: In which our hero finds himself among friends; and + Colonel Clive prepares to astonish Angria. +Chapter 18: In which Angria is astonished; and our hero begins to pay + off old scores. +Chapter 19: In which the scene changes; the dramatis personae + remaining the same. +Chapter 20: In which there are recognitions and explanations; and our + hero meets one Coja Solomon, of Cossimbazar. +Chapter 21: In which Coja Solomon finds dishonesty the worse policy; + and a journey down the Hugli little to his liking. +Chapter 22: In which is given a full, true, and particular account of + the Battle of the Carts. +Chapter 23: In which there are many moving events; and our hero finds + himself a cadet of John Company. +Chapter 24: In which the danger of judging by appearance is notably + exemplified. +Chapter 25: In which our hero embarks on a hazardous mission; and + Monsieur Sinfray's khansaman makes a confession. +Chapter 26: In which presence of mind is shown to be next best to + absence of body. +Chapter 27: In which an officer of the Nawab disappears; and Bulger + reappears. +Chapter 28: In which Captain Barker has cause to rue the day when he met + Mr. Diggle; and our hero continues to wipe off old scores. +Chapter 29: In which our hero does not win the Battle of Plassey: + but, where all do well, gains as much glory as the rest. +Chapter 30: In which Coja Solomon reappears: and gives our hero + valuable information. +Chapter 31: In which friends meet, and part: and our hero hints a proposal. +Chapter 32: In which the curtain falls to the sound of wedding bells: + and our hero comes to his own. + + + + + +Preface + + +I have not attempted in this story to give a full account of the career +of Lord Clive. That has been done by my old friend, Mr. Henty, in "With +Clive in India." It has always seemed to me that a single book provides +too narrow a canvas for the display of a life so full and varied as +Clive's, and that a work of fiction is bound to suffer, structurally and +in detail, from the compression of the events of a lifetime within so +restricted a space. I have therefore chosen two outstanding events in the +history of India--the capture of Gheria and the battle of Plassey--and +have made them the pivot of a personal story of adventure. The whole +action of the present work is comprised in the years from 1754 to 1757. + +But while this book is thus rather a romance with a background of history +than an historical biography with an admixture of fiction, the reader may +be assured that the information its pages contain is accurate. I have +drawn freely upon the standard authorities: Orme, Ives, Grose, the lives +of Clive by Malcolm and Colonel Malleson, and many other works; in +particular the monumental volumes by Mr. S.C. Hill recently published, +"Bengal in 1756-7," which give a very full, careful and clear account of +that notable year, with a mass of most useful and interesting documents. +The maps of Bengal, Fort William and Plassey are taken from Mr. Hill's +work by kind permission of the Secretary of State for India. I have to +thank also Mr. T. P. Marshall, of Newport, for some valuable notes on the +history and topography of Market Drayton. + +For several years I myself lived within a stone's throw of the scene of +the tragedy of the Black Hole; and though at that time I had no intention +of writing a story for boys, I hope that the impressions of Indian life, +character and scenery then gained have helped to create an atmosphere and +to give reality to my picture. History is more than a mere record of +events; and I shall be satisfied if the reader gets from these pages an +idea, however imperfect, of the conditions of life under which all empire +builders labored in India a hundred and fifty years ago. + +Herbert Strang + + + +Chapter 1: In which the Court Leet of Market Drayton entertains Colonel +Robert Clive; and our hero makes an acquaintance. + + +One fine autumn evening, in the year 1754, a country cart jogged +eastwards into Market Drayton at the heels of a thick-set, +shaggy-fetlocked and broken-winded cob. The low tilt, worn and ill +fitting, swayed widely with the motion, scarcely avoiding the hats of the +two men who sat side by side on the front seat, and who, to a person +watching their approach, would have appeared as dark figures in a +tottering archway, against a background of crimson sky. + +As the vehicle jolted through Shropshire Street, the creakings of its +unsteady wheels mingled with a deep humming, as of innumerable bees, +proceeding from the heart of the town. Turning the corner by the +butchers' bulks into the High Street, the cart came to an abrupt stop. In +front, from the corn market, a large wooden structure in the center of +the street, to the Talbot Inn, stretched a dense mass of people; partly +townfolk, as might be discerned by their dress, partly country folk who, +having come in from outlying villages to market, had presumably been kept +in the town by their curiosity or the fair weather. + +"We'n better goo round about, Measter," said the driver, to the passenger +at his side. "Summat's afoot down yander." + +"You're a wise man, to be sure. Something's afoot, as you truly say. And, +being troubled from my youth up with an inquiring nose, I'll e'en step +forward and smell out the occasion. Do you bide here, my Jehu, till I +come back." + +"Why, I will, then, Measter, but my name binna Jehu. 'Tis plain Tummus." + +"You don't say so! Now I come to think of it, it suits you better than +Jehu, for the Son of Nimshi drove furiously. Well, Tummus, I will not +keep you long; this troublesome nose of mine, I dare say, will soon be +satisfied." + +By this time he had slipped down from his seat, and was walking toward +the throng. Now that he was upon his feet, he showed himself to be more +than common tall, spare and loose jointed. His face was lean and swarthy, +his eyes black and restless; his well-cut lips even now wore the same +smile as when he mischievously misnamed his driver. Though he wore the +usual dress of the Englishman of his day--frock, knee breeches and buckle +shoes, none of them in their first youth--there was a something +outlandish about him, in the bright yellow of his neckcloth and the red +feather stuck at a jaunty angle into the ribbon of his hat; and Tummus, +as he looked curiously after his strange passenger, shook his head and +bit the straw in his mouth, and muttered: + +"Ay, it binna on'y the nose, 't binna on'y the nose, with his Jehus an' +such." + +Meanwhile the man strode rapidly along, reached the fringe of the crowd, +and appeared to make his way through its mass without difficulty, perhaps +by reason of his commanding height, possibly by the aforesaid quaintness +of his aspect, and the smile which forbade any one to regard him as an +aggressor. He went steadily on until he came opposite to the Talbot Inn. +At that moment a stillness fell upon the crowd; every voice was hushed; +every head was craned towards the open windows of the inn's assembly +room. + +Gazing with the rest, the stranger saw a long table glittering under the +soft radiance of many candles and surrounded by a numerous company--fat +and thin, old and young, red-faced and pale, gentle and simple. At the +end farthest from the street one figure stood erect--a short, round, +rubicund little man, wearing a gown of rusty black, one thumb stuck into +his vest, and a rosy benignity in the glance with which he scanned the +table. He threw back his head, cleared his tight throat sonorously, and +began, in tones perhaps best described as treacly, to address the seated +company, with an intention also towards the larger audience without. + +"Now, neebors all, we be trim and cozy in our insides, and 'tis time fur +me to say summat. I be proud, that I be, as it falls to me, bein' bailiff +o' this town, to axe ya all to drink the good health of our honored +townsman an guest. I ha' lived hereabout, boy an' man, fur a matter o' +fifty year, an' if so be I lived fifty more I couldna be a prouder man +than I bin this night. Boy an' man, says I? Ay, I knowed our guest when +he were no more'n table high. Well I mind him, that I do, comin' by this +very street to school; ay, an' he minds me too, I warrant. + +"I see him now, I do, skippin' along street fresh an' nimblelike, his +eyne chock full o' mischief lookin' round fur to see some poor soul to +play a prank on. It do feel strange-like to have him a-sittin' by my +elbow today. Many's the tale I could tell o' his doin' an' our sufferin'. +Why, I mind a poor lump of a 'prentice as I wunst had, a loon as never +could raise a keek: poor soul, he bin underground this many year. Well, +as I were sayin', this 'prentice o' mine were allers bein' baited by the +boys o' the grammar school. I done my best for him, spoke them boys fair +an' soft, but, bless ya, 'twas no good; they baited him worse'n ever. So +one day I used my stick to um. Next mornin' I was down in my bake hus, +makin' my batch ready fur oven, when, oothout a word o' warnin', up comes +my two feet behind, down I goes head fust into my flour barrel, and them +young--hem! the clergy be present--them youngsters dancin' round me like +forty mad merry andrews at a fair." + +A roar of laughter greeted the anecdote. + +"Ay, neebors," resumed the bailiff, "we can laugh now, you an' me, but +theer's many on ya could tell o' your own mishappenin's if ya had a mind +to 't. As fur me, I bided my time. One day I cotched the leader o' them +boys nigh corn market, an' I laid him across the badgerin' stone and +walloped him nineteen--twenty--hee! hee! D'ya mind that, General?" + +He turned to the guest at his right hand, who sat with but the glimmer of +a smile, crumbling one of Bailiff Malkin's rolls on the tablecloth. + +"But theer," continued the speaker, "that be nigh twenty year ago, an' +the shape o' my strap binna theer now, I warrant. Three skins ha' growed +since then--hee! hee! Who'd ha' thought, neebors, as that young limb as +plagued our very lives out 'ud ha' bin here today, a general, an' a great +man, an' a credit to his town an' country? Us all thought as he'd bring +his poor feyther's gray hairs in sorrow to the grave. An' when I heerd as +he'd bin shipped off to the Injies--well, thinks I, that bin the last +we'll hear o' Bob Clive. + +"But, bless ya! all eggs binna addled. General Clive here--'twere the +Injun sun what hatched he, an' binna he, I axe ya, a rare young fightin' +cock? Ay, and a good breed, too. A hunnerd year ago theer was a Bob Clive +as med all our grandfeythers quake in mortal fear, a terrible man o' war +was he. They wanted to put 'n into po'try an' the church sarvice. + +"'From Wem and from Wyche +An' from Clive o' the Styche, +Good Lord, deliver us.' + +"That's what they thought o' the Bob Clive o' long ago. Well, this Bob +Clive now a-sittin' at my elbow be just as desp'rate a fighter, an' +thankful let us all be, neebors, as he does his fightin' wi' the +black-faced Injuns an' the black-hearted French, an' not the peaceful +bide-at-homes o' Market Drayton." + +The little bailiff paused to moisten his lips. From his audience arose +feeling murmurs of approval. + +"Ya known what General Clive ha' done," he resumed. "'Twas all read out +o' prent by the crier in corn market. An' the grand folks in Lun'on ha' +give him a gowd sword, an' he bin hob-a-nob wi' King Jarge hisself. An' +us folks o' Market Drayton take it proud, we do, as he be come to see us +afore he goes back to his duty. + +"Theer's a example fur you boys. Theer be limbs o' mischief in Market +Drayton yet. + +"Ay, I see tha' 'Lijah Notcutt, a-hangin' on to winder theer. I know who +wringed the neck o' Widder Peplow's turkey. + +"An' I see tha' too, 'Zekiel Podmore; I know who broke the handle o' town +pump. If I cotch ya at your tricks I'll leather ya fust an' clap ya in +the stocks afterwards, sure as my name be Randle Malkin. + +"But as I wan sayin', if ya foller th' example o' General Clive, an' turn +yer young sperits into the lawful way--why, mebbe there be gowd swords +an' mints o' money somewheers fur ya too. + +"Well now, I bin talkin' long enough, an' to tell ya the truth, I be dry +as a whistle, so I'll axe ya all to lift yer glasses, neebors, an' drink +the good health o' General Clive. So theer!" + +As the worthy bailiff concluded his speech, the company primed their +glasses, rose and drank the toast with enthusiasm. Lusty cheers broke +from the drier throats outside; caps were waved, rattles whirled, kettles +beaten with a vigor that could not have been exceeded if the general +loyalty had been stirred by the presence of King George himself. + +Only one man in the crowd held his peace. The stranger remained opposite +the window, silent, motionless, looking now into the room, now round upon +the throng, with the same smile of whimsical amusement. Only once did his +manner change; the smile faded, his lips met in a straight line, and he +made a slight rearward movement, seeming at the same moment to lose +something of his height. + +It was when the guest of the evening stood up to reply: a young man, +looking somewhat older than his twenty-nine years, his powdered hair +crowning a strong face; with keen, deep-set eyes, full lips and masterful +chin. He wore a belaced purple coat; a crimson sash crossed his +embroidered vest; a diamond flashed upon his finger. Letting his eyes +range slowly over the flushed faces of the diners, he waited until the +bailiff had waved down the untiring applauders without; then, in a clear +voice, began: + +"Bailiff Malkin, my old friends--" + +But his speech was broken in upon by a sudden commotion in the street. +Loud cries of a different tenor arose at various points; the boys who had +been hanging upon the window ledge dropped to the ground; the crowd +surged this way and that, and above the mingled clamor sounded a wild and +fearful squeal that drew many of the company to their feet and several in +alarm to the window. + +Among these the bailiff, now red with anger, shook his fist at the people +and demanded the meaning of the disturbance. A small boy, his eyes round +with excitement, piped up: + +"An't please yer worship, 'tis a wild Injun come from nowheer an' doin' +all manner o' wickedness." + +"A wild Injun! Cotch him! Ring the 'larum bell! Put him in the stocks!" + +But the bailiff's commands passed unheeded. The people were thronging up +the street, elbowing each other, treading on each other's toes, yelling, +booing, forgetful of all save the strange coincidence that, on this +evening of all others, the banquet in honor of Clive, the Indian hero, +had been interrupted by the sudden appearance of a live Indian in their +very midst. + +A curious change had come over the demeanor of the stranger, who hitherto +had been so silent, so detached in manner, so unmoved. He was now to be +seen energetically forcing his way toward the outskirts of the crowd, +heaving, hurling, his long arms sweeping obstacles aside. His eyes +flashed fire upon the yokels skurrying before him, a vitriolic stream of +abuse scorched their faces as he bore them down. + +At length he stopped suddenly, caught a hulking farmer by the shoulder, +and, with a violent twist and jerk, flung him headlong among his fellows. +Released from the man's grasp, a small negro boy, his eyes starting, his +breast heaving with terror, sprang to the side of his deliverer, who +soothingly patted his woolly head, and turned at bay upon the crowd, now +again pressing near. + +"Back, you boobies!" he shouted. "'Tis my boy! If a man of you follows +me, I'll break his head for him." + +He turned and, clasping the black boy's hand close in his, strode away +towards the waiting cart. The crowd stood in hesitation, daunted by the +tall stranger's fierce mien. But one came out from among them, a slim boy +of some fifteen years, who had followed at the heels of the stranger and +had indeed assisted his progress. The rest, disappointed of their Indian +hunt, were now moving back towards the inn; but the boy hastened on. +Hearing his quick footsteps, the man swung around with a snarl. + +"I hope the boy isn't hurt," said the lad quietly. "Can I do anything for +you?" + +The stranger looked keenly at him; then, recognizing by his mien and +voice that this at least was no booby, he smiled; the truculence of his +manner vanished, and he said: + +"Your question is pat, my excellent friend, and I thank you for your +goodwill. As you perceive, my withers are not wrung." + +He waved his right hand airily, and the boy noticed that it was covered +from wrist to knuckles with what appeared to be a fingerless glove of +black velvet. + +"The boy has taken no harm. Hic niger est, as Horace somewhere hath it; +and black spells Indian to your too hasty friends yonder. Scipio is his +praenomen, bestowed on him by me to match the cognomen his already by +nature--Africanus, to wit. You take me, kind sir? But I detain you; your +ears doubtless itch for the eloquence of our condescending friend yonder; +without more ado then, good night!" + +And turning on his heel, waving his gloved hand in salutation, the +stranger went his way. The lad watched him wonderingly. For all his +shabbiness he appeared a gentleman. His speech was clean cut, his accent +pure; yet in his tone, as in his dress, there was something unusual, a +touch of the theatrical, strange to that old sleepy town. + +He hoisted the negro into the cart, then mounted to his place beside the +driver, and the vehicle rumbled away. + +Retracing his steps, the boy once more joined the crowd, and wormed his +way through its now silent ranks until he came within sight of the +assembly room. But if he had wished to hear Clive's speech of thanks, he +was too late. As he arrived, applause greeted the hero's final words, and +he resumed his seat. To the speeches that followed, no heed was paid by +the populace; words from the vicar and the local attorney had no novelty +for them. But they waited, gossiping among themselves, until the +festivity was over and the party broke up. + +More shouts arose as the great man appeared at the inn door. Horses were +there in waiting; a hundred hands were ready to hold the stirrup for +Clive; but he mounted unassisted and rode off in company with Sir Philip +Chetwode, a neighboring squire whose guest he was. When the principal +figure had gone, the throng rapidly melted away, and soon the street had +resumed its normal quiet. + +The boy was among the last to quit the scene. Walking slowly down the +road, he overtook a bent old man in the smock of a farm laborer, trudging +along alone. + +"Hey, Measter Desmond," said the old man, "I feels for tha, that I do. I +seed yer brother theer, eatin' an' drinkin' along wi' the noble general, +an' thinks I, 'tis hard on them as ha' to look on, wi' mouths a-waterin' +fur the vittles an' drink. But theer, I'd be afeard to set lips to some +o' them kickshawses as goes down into the nattlens o' high folk, an', all +said an' done, a man canna be more'n full, even so it bin wi' nowt but +turmuts an' Cheshire cheese. + +"Well, sir, 'tis fine to be an elder son, that's true, an' dunna ye take +on about it. You bin on'y a lad, after all, pardon my bold way o' +speakin', an' mebbe when you come to man's estate, why, theer'll be a +knife an' fork fur you too, though I doubt we'll never see General Clive +in these parts no moore. Here be my turnin'; good night to ya, sir." + +"Good night, Dickon." + +And Desmond Burke passed on alone, out of the silent town, into the now +darkening road that led to his home towards Cheswardine. + + + +Chapter 2: In which our hero overhears a conversation; and, meeting +with the unexpected, is none the less surprised and offended. + + +Desmond's pace became slower when, having crossed the valley, he began +the long ascent that led past the site of Tyrley Castle. But when he +again reached a stretch of level road he stepped out more briskly, for +the darkness of the autumn night was moment by moment contracting the +horizon, and he had still several miles to go on the unlighted road. Even +as the thought of his dark walk crossed his mind he caught sight of the +one light that served as a never-failing beacon to night travelers along +that highway. It came from the windows of a wayside inn, a common place +of call for farmers wending to or from Drayton Market, and one whose +curious sign Desmond had many times studied with a small boy's interest. + +The inn was named the "Four Alls": its sign, a crude painting of a table +and four seated figures, a king, a parson, a soldier, and a farmer. +Beneath the group, in a rough scrawl, were the words-- + +Rule all: Pray all: +Fight all: Pay all. + +As Desmond drew nearer to the inn, there came to him along the silent +road the sound of singing. This was somewhat unusual at such an hour, for +folk went early to bed, and the inn was too far from the town to have +attracted waifs and strays from the crowd. What was still more unusual, +the tones were not the rough, forced, vagrant tones of tipsy farmers; +they were of a single voice, light, musical, and true. Desmond's +curiosity was flicked, and he hastened his step, guessing from the +clearness of the sound that the windows were open and the singer in full +view. + +The singing ceased abruptly just as he reached the inn. But the windows +stood indeed wide open, and from the safe darkness of the road he could +see clearly, by the light of four candles on the high mantel shelf, the +whole interior of the inn parlor. It held four persons. One lay back in a +chair near the fire, his legs outstretched, his chin on his breast, his +open lips shaking as he snored. It was Tummus Biles, the tranter, who had +driven a tall stranger from Chester to the present spot, and whose +indignation at being miscalled Jehu had only been appeased by a quart of +strong ale. On the other side of the fireplace, curled up on a settle, +and also asleep, lay the black boy, Scipio Africanus. Desmond noted these +two figures in passing; his gaze fastened upon the remaining two, who sat +at a corner of the table, a tankard in front of each. + +One of the two was Job Grinsell, landlord of the inn, a man with a red +nose, loose mouth, and shifty eyes--not a pleasant fellow to look at, and +regarded vaguely as a bad character. He had once been head gamekeeper to +Sir Willoughby Stokes, the squire, whose service he had left suddenly and +in manifest disgrace. His companion was the stranger, the negro boy's +master, the man whose odd appearance and manner of talk had already set +Desmond's curiosity a-buzzing. It was clear that he must be the singer, +for Job Grinsell had a voice like a saw, and Tummus Biles knew no music +save the squeak of his cartwheels. It surprised Desmond to find the +stranger already on the most friendly, to all appearance, indeed, +confidential terms with the landlord. + +"Hale, did you say?" he heard Grinsell ask. "Ay, hale as you an' me, an' +like to last another twenty year, rot him." + +"But the gout takes him, you said--nodosa podagra, as my friend Ovid +would say?" + +"Ay, but I've knowed a man live forty year win the gout. And he dunna +believe in doctor's dosin'; he goes to Buxton to drink the weeters when +he bin madded wi' the pain, an' comes back sound fur six month." + +"Restored to his dear neighbors and friends--caris propinquis--" + +"Hang me, but I wish you'd speak plain English an' not pepper your talk +win outlandish jabber." + +"Patience, Job; why, man, you belie your name. Come, you must humor an +old friend; that's what comes of education, you see; my head is stuffed +with odds and ends that annoy my friends, while you can't read, nor +write, nor cipher beyond keeping your score. Lucky Job!" + +Desmond turned away. The two men's conversation was none of his business; +and he suspected from the stranger's manner that he had been drinking +freely. He had stepped barely a dozen paces when he heard the voice again +break into song. He halted and wheeled about; the tune was catching, and +now he distinguished some of the words-- + +Says Billy Norris, Masulipatam, +To Governor Pitt: "D'ye know who I am, +D'ye know who I am, I AM, I AM? +Sir William Norris, Masulipatam." +Says Governor Pitt, Fort George, Madras: +"I know what you are--" + +Again the song broke off; the singer addressed a question to Grinsell. +Desmond waited a moment; he felt an odd eagerness to know what Governor +Pitt was; but hearing now only the drone of talking, he once more turned +his face homeward. His curiosity was livelier than ever as to the +identity of this newcomer, who addressed the landlord as he might his own +familiar friend. + +And what had the stranger to do with Sir Willoughby Stokes? For it was +Sir Willoughby that suffered from the gout; he it was that went every +autumn and spring to Buxton; he was away at this present time, but would +shortly return to receive his Michaelmas rents. The stranger had not the +air of a husbandman; but there was a vacant farm on the estate; perhaps +he had come to offer himself as a tenant. + +And why did he wear that half glove upon his right hand? Finger stalls, +wrist straps, even mittens were common enough, useful, and necessary at +times; but the stranger's glove was not a mitten, and it had no fellow +for the left hand. Perhaps, thought Desmond, it was a freak of the +wearer's, on a par with his red feather and his vivid neckcloth. Desmond, +as he walked on, found himself hoping that the visitor at the Four Alls +would remain for a day or two. + +After passing through the sleeping hamlet of Woods Eaves, he struck into +a road on his left hand. Twenty minutes' steady plodding uphill brought +him in sight of his home--a large, ancient, rambling grange house lying +back from the road. It was now nearly ten o'clock, an hour when the +household was usually abed; but the door of Wilcote Grange stood open, +and a guarded candle in the hall threw a faint yellow light upon the +path. The gravel crunched under Desmond's boots, and, as if summoned by +the sound, a tall figure crossed the hall and stood in the entrance. At +the sight Desmond's mouth set hard; his hands clenched; his breath came +more quickly as he went forward. + +"Where have you been, sirrah?" were the angry words that greeted him. + +"Into the town, sir," returned Desmond. + +He had perforce to halt, the doorway being barred by the man's broad +form. + +"Into the town? You defy me, do you? Did I not bid you remain at home and +make up the stock book?" + +"I did that before I left." + +"You did, did you? I lay my life 'tis ill done. What did you in the town +this time o' night?" + +"I went to see General Clive." + +"Indeed! You! Hang me, what's Clive to you? Was you invited to the +regale? You was one of that stinking crowd, I suppose, that bawled in the +street. You go and herd with knaves and yokels, do you? and bring shame +upon me, and set the countryside a-chattering of Richard Burke and his +idle young oaf of a brother! By gad, sir, I'll whip you for this; I'll +give you something to remember General Clive by!" + +He caught up a riding whip that stood in the angle of the doorway, and +took Desmond by the shoulder. The boy did not flinch. + +"Whip me if you must," he said quietly, "but don't you think we'd better +go outside?" + +The elder, with an imprecation, thrust Desmond into the open, hauled him +some distance down the path, and then beat him heavily about the +shoulders. He stood a foot higher, his arm was strong, his grip firm as a +vise; resistance would have been vain; but Desmond knew better than to +resist. He bent to the cruel blows without a wince or a murmur. Only, his +face was very pale when, the bully's arm being tired and his breath +spent, he was flung away and permitted to stagger to the house. He +crawled painfully up the wainscoted staircase and into the dark corridor +leading to his bedroom. Halfway down this he paused, felt with his hand +along the wall, and, discovering by this means that a door was ajar, +stood listening. + +"Is that you, Desmond?" said a low voice within. + +"Yes, mother," he replied, commanding his voice, and quietly entering. "I +hoped you were asleep." + +"I could not sleep until you came in, dear. I heard Dick's voice. What is +the matter? Your hand is trembling, Desmond." + +"Nothing, mother, as usual." + +A mother's ears are quick; and Mrs. Burke detected the quiver that +Desmond tried to still. She tightened her clasp on his hot hand. + +"Did he strike you, dear?" + +"It was nothing, mother. I am used to that." + +"My poor boy! But what angered him? Why do you offend your brother?" + +"Offend him!" exclaimed the boy passionately, but still in a low tone. +"Everything I do offends him. I went to see General Clive; I wished to; +that is enough for Dick. Mother, I am sick of it all." + +"Never mind, dear. A little patience. Dick doesn't understand you. You +should humor him, Desmond." + +"Haven't I tried, mother? Haven't I? But what is the use? He treats me +worse than any carter on the farm. I drudge for him, and he bullies me, +miscalls me before the men, thrashes me--oh, mother! I can't endure it +any longer. Let me go away, anywhere; anything would be better than +this!" + +Desmond was quivering with pain and indignation; only with difficulty did +he keep back the tears. + +"Hush, Desmond!" said his mother. "Dick will hear you. You are tired out, +dear boy; go to bed; things will look brighter in the morning. Only have +patience. Good night, my son." + +Desmond kissed his mother and went to his room. But it was long before he +slept. His bruised body found no comfort; his head throbbed; his soul was +filled with resentment and the passionate longing for release. + +His life had not been very happy. He barely remembered his father--a big, +keen-eyed, loud-voiced old man--who died when his younger son was four +years old. Richard Burke had run away from his Irish home to sea. He +served on Admiral Rooke's flagship at the battle of La Hogue, and, rising +in the navy to the rank of warrant officer, bought a ship with the +savings of twenty years and fitted it out for unauthorized trade with the +East Indies. His daring, skill, and success attracted the attention of +the officers of the Company. He was invited to enter the Company's +service. As captain of an Indiaman he sailed backwards and forwards for +ten years; then at the age of fifty retired with a considerable fortune +and married the daughter of a Shropshire farmer. The death of his wife's +relatives led him to settle on the farm their family had tenanted for +generations, and it was at Wilcote Grange that his three children were +born. + +Fifteen years separated the elder son from the younger; between them came +a daughter, who married early and left the neighborhood. Four years after +Desmond's birth the old man died, leaving the boy to the guardianship of +his brother. + +There lay the seed of trouble. No brothers could have been more unlike +than the two sons of Captain Burke. Richard was made on a large and +powerful scale; he was hard working, methodical, grasping, wholly +unimaginative, and in temper violent and domineering. Slighter and less +robust, though not less healthy, Desmond was a boy of vivid imagination, +high strung, high spirited, his feelings easily moved, his pride easily +wounded. His brother was too dull and stolid to understand him, taking +for deliberate malice what was but boyish mischief, and regarding him as +sullen when he was only dreamily thoughtful. + +As a young boy Desmond kept as much as possible out of his brother's way. +But as he grew older he came more directly under Richard's control, with +the result that they were now in a constant state of feud. Their mother, +a woman of sweet temper but weak will, favored her younger son in secret; +she learned by experience that open intervention on his behalf did more +harm than good. + +Desmond had two habits which especially moved his brother to anger. He +was fond of roaming the country alone for hours together; he was fond of +reading. To Richard each was a waste of time. He never opened a book, +save a manual of husbandry or a ready reckoner; he could conceive of no +reason for walking, unless it were the business of the farm. Nothing +irritated him more than to see Desmond stretched at length with his nose +in Mr. Defoe's Robinson Crusoe, or a volume of Hakluyt's Voyages, or +perhaps Mr. Oldys's Life of Sir Walter Raleigh. And as he himself never +dreamed by day or by night, there was no chance of his divining the fact +that Desmond, on those long solitary walks of his, was engaged chiefly in +dreaming, not idly, for in his dreams he was always the center of +activity, greedy for doing. + +These daydreams constituted almost the sole joy of Desmond's life. When +he was only a little fellow he would sprawl on the bank near Tyrley +Castle and weave romances about the Norman barons whose home it had +been--romances in which he bore a strenuous part. He knew every +interesting spot in the neighborhood: Salisbury Hill, where the Yorkist +leader pitched his camp before the battle of Blore Heath; Audley Brow, +where Audley the Lancastrian lay watching his foe; above all Styche Hall, +whence a former Clive had ridden forth to battle against the king, and +where his namesake, the present Robert Clive, had been born. He imagined +himself each of those bold warriors in turn, and saw himself, now a +knight in mail, now a gay cavalier of Rupert's, now a bewigged Georgian +gentleman in frock and pantaloons, but always with sword in hand. + +No name sang a merrier tune in Desmond's imagination than the name of +Robert Clive. Three years before, when he was imbibing Latin, Greek, and +Hebrew under Mr. Burslem at the grammar school on the hill, the amazing +news came one day that Bob Clive, the wild boy who had terrorized the +tradespeople, plagued his master, led the school in tremendous fights +with the town boys, and suffered more birchings than any scholar of his +time--Bob Clive, the scapegrace who had been packed off to India as a +last resource, had turned out, as his father said, "not such a booby +after all"--had indeed proved himself to be a military genius. How +Desmond thrilled when the old schoolmaster read out the glorious news of +Clive's defense of Arcot with a handful of men against an overwhelming +host! How he glowed when the schoolroom rang with the cheers of the boys, +and when, a half holiday being granted, he rushed forth with the rest to +do battle in the church yard with the town boys, and helped to lick them +thoroughly in honor of Clive! + +From that moment there was for Desmond but one man in the world, and that +man was Robert Clive. In the twinkling of an eye he became the devoutest +of hero worshipers. He coaxed Mr. Burslem to let him occupy Clive's old +desk, and with his fists maintained the privilege against all comers. The +initials R. C. roughly cut in the oak never lost their fascination for +him. He walked out day after day to Styche Hall, two miles away, and +pleased himself with the thought that his feet trod the very spots once +trodden by Bob Clive. Not an inch of the route from Hall to school--the +meadow path into Longslow, the lane from Longslow to Shropshire Street, +Little Street, Church Street, the church yard--was unknown to him: Bob +Clive had known them all. He feasted on the oft-told stories of Clive's +boyish escapades: how he had bundled a watchman into the bulks and made +him prisoner there by closing down and fastening the shutters; how he had +thrown himself across the current of a torrential gutter to divert the +stream into the cellar shop of a tradesman who had offended him; above +all, that feat of his when, ascending the spiral turret stair of the +church, he had lowered himself down from the parapet, and, astride upon a +gargoyle, had worked his way along it until he could secure a stone that +lay in its mouth, the perilous and dizzy adventure watched by a +breathless throng in the churchyard below. The Bob Clive who had done +these things was now doing greater deeds in India; and Desmond Burke sat +day after day at his desk, gazing at the entrancing R. C., and doing over +again in his own person the exploits of which all Market Drayton was +proud, and he the proudest. + +But at the age of fourteen his brother took him from school, though Mr. +Burslem had pleaded that he might remain longer and afterwards proceed to +the university. He was set to do odd jobs about the farm. To farming +itself he had no objection; he was fond of animals and would willingly +have spent his life with them. But he did object to drudging for a hard +and inconsiderate taskmaster such as his brother was, and the work he was +compelled to do became loathsome to him, and bred a spirit of discontent +and rebellion. The further news of Clive's exploits in India, coming at +long intervals, set wild notions beating in Desmond's head, and made him +long passionately for a change. At times he thought of running away: his +father had run away and carved out a successful career, why should not he +do the same? But he had never quite made up his mind to cut the knot. + +Meanwhile it became known in Market Drayton that Clive had returned to +England. Rumor credited him with fabulous wealth. It was said that he +drove through London in a gold coach, and outshone the king himself in +the splendor of his attire. No report was too highly colored to find easy +credence among the simple country folk. Clive was indeed rich: he had a +taste for ornate dress, and though neither so wealthy nor so gaily +appareled as rumor said, he was for a season the lion of London society. +The directors of the East India Company toasted him as "General" Clive, +and presented him with a jeweled sword as a token of their sense of his +services on the Coromandel coast. + +No one suspected at the time that his work was of more than local +importance and would have more far-reaching consequences than the success +of a trading company. Clive had, in fact, without knowing it, laid the +foundations of a vast empire. + +At intervals during the two years, scraps of news about Clive filtered +through to his birthplace. His father had left the neighborhood, and +Styche Hall was now in the hands of a stranger, so that Desmond hardly +dared to hope that he would have an opportunity of seeing his idol. But, +information having reached the court of directors that all was not going +well in India, their eyes turned at once to Clive as the man to set +things right. They requested him to return to India as Governor of Fort +St. David, and, since a good deal of the trouble was caused by quarrels +as to precedence between the king's and the Company's officers, they +strengthened his hands by obtaining for him a lieutenant colonel's +commission from King George. + +Clive was nothing loath to take up his work again. He had been somewhat +extravagant since his arrival in England; great holes had been made in +the fortune he had brought back; and he was still a young man, full of +energy and ambition. What was Desmond's ecstasy, then, to learn that his +hero, on the eve of his departure, had accepted an invitation to the town +of his birth, there to be entertained by the court leet. From the bailiff +and the steward of the manor down to the javelin men and the ale taster, +official Market Drayton was all agog to do him honor. Desmond looked +forward eagerly to this red letter day. + +His brother, as a yeoman of standing, was invited to the banquet, and it +seemed to Desmond that Richard took a delight in taunting him, throwing +cold water on his young enthusiasm, ironically commenting on the mistake +someone had made in not including him among the guests. His crowning +stroke of cruelty was to forbid the boy to leave the house on the great +evening, so that he might not even obtain a glimpse of Clive. But this +was too much: Desmond for the first time deliberately defied his +guardian, and though he suffered the inevitable penalty, he had seen and +heard his hero, and was content. + + + +Chapter 3: In which Mr. Marmaduke Diggle talks of the Golden East; and our +hero interrupts an interview, and dreams dreams. + + +Sore from his flogging, Desmond, when he slept at last, slept heavily. +Richard Burke was a stickler for early rising, and admitted no excuses. +When his brother did not appear at the usual hour Richard went to his +room, and, smiting with his rough hand the boy's bruised shoulders, +startled him to wakefulness and pain. + +"Now, slug-a-bed," he said, "you have ten minutes for your breakfast, +then you will foot it to the Hall and see whether Sir Willoughby has +returned or is expected." + +Turning on his heel, he went out to harry his laborers. + +Desmond, when he came down stairs, felt too sick to eat. He gulped a +pitcher of milk, then set off for his two-mile walk to the Hall. He was +glad of the errand. Sir Willoughby Stokes, the lord of the manor, was an +old gentleman of near seventy years, a good landlord, a persistent +Jacobite, and a confirmed bachelor. By nature genial, he was subject to +periodical attacks of the gout, which made him terrible. At these times +he betook himself to Buxton, or Bath, or some other spa, and so timed his +return that he was always good tempered on rent day, much to the relief +of his tenants. He disliked Richard Burke as a man as much as he admired +him as a tenant; but he had taken a fancy to Desmond, lent him books from +his library, took him out shooting when the weather and Richard +permitted, and played chess with him sometimes of a rainy afternoon. His +housekeeper said that Master Desmond was the only human being whose +presence the squire could endure when the gout was on him. In short, Sir +Willoughby and Desmond were very good friends. + +Desmond had almost reached the gate of the Hall when, at a sudden turn of +the road, he came upon a man seated upon a low hillock by the roadside, +idly swishing at the long ripe grass with a cane. At the first glance +Desmond noticed the strangely-clad right hand of his overnight +acquaintance; the shabby clothes, the red feather, the flaming neckcloth. + +The man looked up at his approach; the winning smile settled upon his +swarthy face, which daylight now revealed as seamed and scarred; and, +without stirring from his seat or desisting from his occupation, he +looked in the boy's face and said softly: + +"You are early afoot, like the son of Anchises, my young friend. If I +mistake not, when Aeneas met the son of Evander they joined their right +hands. We have met; let us also join hands and bid each other a very good +morning." + +Desmond shook hands; he did not know what to make of this remarkable +fellow who must always be quoting from his school books; but there was no +harm in shaking hands. He could not in politeness ask the question that +rose to his lips--why the stranger wore a mitten on one hand; and if the +man observed his curiosity he let it pass. + +"You are on business bent, I wot," continued the stranger. "Not for the +world would I delay you. But since the handclasp is but part of the +ceremony of introduction, might we not complete it by exchanging names?" + +"My name is Desmond Burke," said the boy. + +"A good name, a pleasant name, a name that I know." + +Desmond was conscious that the man was looking keenly at him. + +"There is a gentleman of the same name--I chanced to meet him in +London--cultivating literature in the Temple; his praenomen, I bethink +me, is Edmund. And I bethink me, too, that in the course of my +peregrinations on this planet I have more than once heard the name of one +Captain Richard Burke, a notable seaman, in the service of our great +Company. I repeat, my young friend, your name is a good one; may you live +to add luster to it!" + +"Captain Burke was my father." + +"My prophetic soul!" exclaimed the stranger. "But surely you are somewhat +late in following the paternal craft; you do not learn seamanship in this +sylvan sphere." + +"True," responded Desmond, with a smile. "My father turned farmer; he +died when I was a little fellow, and I live with my mother. But you will +excuse me, sir; I have an errand to the Hall beyond us here." + +"I am rebuked. Nam garrulus idem est, as our friend Horace would say. Yet +one moment. Ere we part let us complete our interrupted ceremony. +Marmaduke Diggle, sir--plain Marmaduke Diggle, at your service." + +He swept off his hat with a smile. But as soon as Desmond had passed on, +the smile faded. Marmaduke Diggle's mouth became hard, and he looked +after the retreating form with a gaze in which curiosity, suspicion, and +dislike were blended. + +He was still seated by the roadside when Desmond returned some minutes +later. + +"A pleasant surprise, Mr. Burke," he said. "Your business is most +briefly, and let us hope happily despatched." + +"Briefly, at any rate. I only went up to the Hall to see if the squire +was returned; it is near rent day, and he is not usually so late in +returning." + +"Ah, your squires!" said Diggle, with a sigh. "A fine thing to have +lands--olive yards and vineyards, as the Scripture saith. You are +returning? The squire is not at home? Permit me to accompany you some +steps on your road. + +"Yes, it is a fine thing to be a landlord. It is a state of life much to +be envied by poor landless men like me. I confess I am poor--none the +pleasanter because 'tis my own fault. You behold in me, Mr. Burke, one of +the luckless. I sought fame and fortune years ago in the fabulous East +Indies--" + +"The Indies, sir?" + +"You are interested? In me also, when I was your age, the name stirred my +blood and haunted my imagination. Yes, 'tis nigh ten years since I first +sailed from these shores for the marvelous east. Multum et terris +jactatus et alto. Twice have I made my fortune--got me enough of the +wealth of Ormus and of Ind to buy up half your county. Twice, alas! has +an unkind Fate robbed me of my all! But, as I said, 'tis my own fault. +Nemo contentus, sir--you know the passage? I was not satisfied: I must +have a little more; and yet a little more. I put my wealth forth in +hazardous enterprises--presto! it is swept away. But I was born, sir, +after all, under a merry star. Nothing discourages me. After a brief +sojourn for recuperation in this salubrious spot, I shall return; and +this time, mark you, I shall run no risks. Five years to make my fortune; +then I shall come home, content with a round ten lakhs." + +"What is a lakh?" + +"Ah, I forgot, you are not acquainted with these phrases of the Orient. A +lakh, my friend, is a hundred thousand rupees, say twelve thousand +pounds. And I warrant you I will not squander it as a certain gentleman +we know squandered his." + +"You mean General Clive?" + +"Colonel Clive, my friend. Yes, I say Colonel Clive has squandered his +fortune. Why, he came home with thirty lakhs at the least: and what does +he do? He must ruffle it in purple and fine linen, and feed the fat in +royal entertainments; then, forsooth, he stands for a seat in Parliament, +pours out his gold like water--to what end? A petition is presented +against his return: the House holds an inquiry; and the end of the sorry +farce is, that Mr. Robert Clive's services are dispensed with. When I +think of the good money he has wasted--But then, sir, I am no politician. +Colonel Clive and I are two ruined men; 'tis a somewhat strange +coincidence that he and I are almost of an age, and that we both, before +many weeks are past, shall be crossing the ocean once more to retrieve +our fallen fortunes." + +Walking side by side during this conversation they had now come into the +road leading past Desmond's home. In the distance, approaching them, +appeared a post chaise, drawn by four galloping horses. The sight broke +the thread of the conversation. + +"'Tis the squire at last!" cried Desmond. "Sure he must have put up at +Newcastle overnight." + +But that he was intently watching the rapid progress of the chaise, he +might have noticed a curious change of expression on his companion's +face. The smile faded, the lips became set with a kind of grim +determination. But Diggle's pleasant tone had not altered when he said: + +"Our ways part here, my friend--for the present. I doubt not we shall +meet again; and if you care to hear of my adventures by field and +flood--why, 'I will a round unvarnished tale deliver,' as the Moor of +Venice says in the play. For the present, then, farewell!" + +He turned down a leafy lane, and had disappeared from view before the +chaise reached the spot. As it ran by, its only occupant, a big, +red-faced, white-wigged old gentleman, caught sight of the boy and hailed +him in a rich, jolly voice. + +"Ha, Desmond! Home again, you see! Scotched the enemy once more! Come and +see me!" + +The chaise was past before Desmond could reply. He watched it until it +vanished from sight; then, feeling somewhat cheered, went on to report to +his brother that the squire had at last returned. + +He felt no little curiosity about his new acquaintance. What had brought +him to so retired a spot as Market Drayton? He could have no friends in +the neighborhood, or he would surely not have chosen for his lodging a +place of ill repute like the Four Alls. Yet he had seemed to have some +acquaintance with Grinsell the innkeeper. He did not answer to Desmond's +idea of an adventurer. He was not rough of tongue or boisterous in +manner; his accent, indeed, was refined; his speech somewhat studied, +and, to judge by his allusions and his Latin, he had some share of polite +learning. Desmond was puzzled to fit these apparent incongruities, and +looked forward with interest to further meetings with Marmaduke Diggle. + +During the next few days they met more than once. It was always late in +the evening, always in quiet places, and Diggle was always alone. +Apparently he desired to make no acquaintances. The gossips of the +neighborhood seized upon the presence of a stranger at the Four Alls, but +they caught the barest glimpses of him; Grinsell was as a stone wall in +unresponsiveness to their inquiries; and the black boy, if perchance a +countryman met him on the road and questioned him, shook his head and +made meaningless noises in his throat, and the countryman would assure +his cronies that the boy was as dumb as a platter. + +But whenever Desmond encountered the stranger, strolling by himself in +the fields or some quiet lane, Diggle always seemed pleased to see him, +and talked to him with the same ease and freedom, ever ready with a tag +from his school books. Desmond did not like his Latin, but he found +compensation in the traveler's tales of which Diggle had an inexhaustible +store--tales of shipwreck and mutiny, of wild animals and wild men, of +Dutch traders and Portuguese adventurers, of Indian nawabs and French +bucaneers. Above all was Desmond interested in stories of India: he heard +of the immense wealth of the Indian princes, the rivalries of the +English, French, and Dutch trading companies; the keen struggle between +France and England for the preponderating influence with the natives. +Desmond was eager to hear of Clive's doings; but he found Diggle, for an +Englishman who had been in India, strangely ignorant of Clive's career; +he seemed impatient of Clive's name, and was always more ready to talk of +his French rivals, Dupleix and Bussy. The boy was impressed by the +mystery, the color, the romance of the East; and after these talks with +Diggle he went home with his mind afire, and dreamed of elephants and +tigers, treasures of gold and diamonds, and fierce battles in which +English, French, and Indians weltered in seas of blood. + +One morning Desmond set out for a long walk in the direction of Newport. +It was holiday on the farm; Richard Burke allowed his men a day off once +every half year when he paid his rent. They would almost rather not have +had it, for he made himself particularly unpleasant both before and +after. On this morning he had got up in a bad temper, and managed to find +half a dozen occasions for grumbling at Desmond before breakfast, so that +the boy was glad to get away and walk off his resentment and soreness of +heart. + +As he passed the end of the lane leading toward the Hall, he saw two men +in conversation some distance down it. One was on horseback, the other on +foot. At a second glance he saw with surprise that the mounted man was +his brother; the other, Diggle. A well-filled moneybag hung at Richard +Burke's saddle bow; he was on his way to the Hall to pay his rent. His +back was towards Desmond; but, as the latter paused, Richard threw a +rapid glance over his shoulder, and with a word to the man at his side +cantered away. + +Diggle gave Desmond a hail and came slowly up the lane, his face wearing +its usual pleasant smile. His manner was always very friendly, and had +the effect of making Desmond feel on good terms with himself. + +"Well met, my friend," said Diggle cordially. "I was longing for a chat. +Beshrew me if I have spoken more than a dozen words today, and that, to a +man of my sociable temper, not to speak of my swift and practised +tongue--lingua celer et exercitata: you remember the phrase of +Tully's--is a sore trial." + +"You seemed to be having a conversation a moment ago," said Desmond. + +"Seemed!--that is the very word. That excellent farmer--sure he hath a +prosperous look--had mistaken me. 'Tis not the apparel makes the man; my +attire is not of the best, I admit; but, I beg you tell me frankly, would +you have taken me for a husbandman, one who with relentless plowshare +turns the stubborn soil, as friend Horace somewhere puts it? Would you, +now?" + +"Decidedly not. But did my brother so mistake you?" + +"Your brother! Was that prosperous and well-mounted gentleman your +brother?" + +"Certainly. He is Richard Burke, and leases the Wilcote farm." + +"Noble pair of brothers!" exclaimed Diggle, seizing Desmond's reluctant +hand. "I congratulate you, my friend. What a brother! I stopped him to +ask the time of day. But permit me to say, friend Desmond, you appear +somewhat downcast; your countenance hath not that serenity one looks for +in a lad of your years. What is the trouble?" + +"Oh, nothing to speak of," said Desmond curtly; he was vexed that his +face still betrayed the irritation of the morning. + +"Very well," said Diggle with a shrug. "Far be it from me to probe your +sorrows. They are nothing to me, but sure a simple question from a +friend--" + +"Pardon me, Mr. Diggle," said Desmond impulsively, "I did not mean to +offend you." + +"My dear boy, a tough-hided traveler does not easily take offense. Shall +we walk? D'you know, Master Desmond, I fancy I could make a shrewd guess +at your trouble. Your brother--Richard, I think you said?--is a farmer, +he was born a farmer, he has the air of a farmer, and a well-doing farmer +to boot. But we are not all born with a love for mother earth, and you, +meseems, have dreamed of a larger life than lies within the pin folds of +a farm. To tell the truth, my lad, I have been studying you." + +They were walking now side by side along the Newport road. Desmond felt +that the stranger was becoming personal; but his manner was so suave and +sympathetic that he could not take offense. + +"Yes, I have been studying you," continued Diggle. "And what is the sum +of my discovery? You are wasting your life here. A country village is no +place for a boy of ideas and imagination, of warm blood and springing +fancy. The world is wide, my friend: why not adventure forth?" + +"I have indeed thought of it, Mr. Diggle, but--" + +"But me no buts," interrupted Diggle, with a smile. "Your age is--" + +"Near sixteen." + +"Ah, still a boy; you have a year ere you reach the bourne of young +manhood, as the Romans held it. But what matters that? Was not Scipio +Africanus--namesake of the ingenuous youth that serves me--styled boy at +twenty? Yet you are old enough to walk alone, and not in leading +strings--or waiting maybe for dead men's shoes." + +"What do you mean, sir?" Desmond flashed out, reddening with indignation. + +"Do I offend you?" said Diggle innocently. "I make apology. But I had +heard, I own, that Master Desmond Burke was in high favor with your +squire; 'tis even whispered that Master Desmond cherishes, cultivates, +cossets the old man--a bachelor, I understand, and wealthy, and lacking +kith or kin. Sure I should never have believed 'twas with any +dishonorable motive." + +"'Tis not, sir. I never thought of such a thing." + +"I was sure of it. But to come back to my starting point. 'Tis time you +broke these narrow bounds. India, now--what better sphere for a young man +bent on making his way? Look at Clive, whom you admire--as stupid a boy +as you could meet in a day's march. Why, I can remember--" + +He caught himself up, but after the slightest pause, resumed: + +"Forsan et haec ohm meminisse juvabit. Look at Clive, I was saying; a +lout, a bear, a booby--as a boy, mark you; yet now! Is there a man whose +name rings more loudly in the world's ear? And what Robert Clive is, that +Desmond Burke might be if he had the mind and the will. You are going +farther? Ah, I have not your love of ambulation. I will bid you farewell +for this time; sure it will profit you to ponder my words." + +Desmond did ponder his words. He walked for three or four hours, thinking +all the time. Who had said that he was waiting for the squire's shoes? He +glowed with indignation at the idea of such a construction being placed +upon his friendship for Sir Willoughby. + +"If they think that," he said to himself, "the sooner I go away the +better." + +And the seed planted by Diggle took root and began to germinate with +wonderful rapidity. To emulate Clive!--what would he not give for the +chance? But how was it possible? Clive had begun as a writer in the +service of the East India Company; but how could Desmond procure a +nomination? Perhaps Sir Willoughby could help him; he might have +influence with the Company's directors. But, supposing he obtained a +nomination, how could he purchase his outfit? He had but a few guineas, +and after what Diggle had said he would starve rather than ask the squire +for a penny. True, under his father's will he was to receive five +thousand pounds at the age of twenty-one. Would Richard advance part of +the sum? Knowing Richard, he hardly dared to hope for such a departure +from the letter of the law. But it was at least worth attempting. + + + +Chapter 4: In which blows are exchanged; and our hero, setting forth upon +his travels, scents an adventure. + + +That same day, at supper, seeing that Richard was apparently in good +humor, Desmond ventured to make a suggestion. + +"Dick," he said frankly, "don't you think it would be better for all of +us if I went away? You and I don't get along very well, and perhaps I was +not cut out for a farmer." + +Richard grunted, and Mrs. Burke looked apprehensively from one to the +other. + +"What's your idea?" asked Richard. + +"Well, I had thought of a writership in the East India Company's service, +or better still, a cadetship in the Company's forces." + +"Hark to him!" exclaimed Richard, with a scornful laugh. "A second Clive, +sink me! And where do you suppose the money is to come from?" + +"Couldn't you advance me a part of what is to come to me when I am +twenty-one?" + +"Not a penny, I tell you at once, not a penny. 'Tis enough to be saddled +with you all these years. You may think yourself lucky if I can scrape +together a tenth of the money that'll be due to you when you're +twenty-one. That's the dead hand, if you like; why father put that +provision in his will it passes common sense to understand. No, you'll +have to stay and earn part of it, though in truth you'll never be worth +your keep." + +"That depends on the keeper," retorted Desmond, rather warmly. + +"No insolence, now. I repeat, I will not advance one penny! Go and get +some money out of the squire, that is so precious fond of you." + +"Richard, Richard!" said his mother anxiously. + +"Mother, I'm the boy's guardian. I know what it is. He has been crammed +with nonsense by that idle knave at the Four Alls. Look'ee, my man, if I +catch you speaking to him again, I'll flay your skin for you." + +"Why shouldn't I?" replied Desmond. "I saw you speaking to him." + +"Hold your tongue, sir. The dog accosted me. I answered his question and +passed on. Heed what I say: I'm a man of my word." + +Desmond said no more. But before he fell asleep that night he had +advanced one step further towards freedom. His request had met with the +refusal he had anticipated. He could hope for no pecuniary assistance; it +remained to take the first opportunity of consulting Diggle. It was +Diggle who had suggested India as the field for his ambition; and the +suggestion would hardly have been made if there were great obstacles in +the way of its being acted on. Desmond made light of his brother's +command that he should cut Diggle's acquaintance; it seemed to him only +another act of tyranny, and his relations with Richard were such that to +forbid a thing was to provoke him to do it. + +His opportunity came next day. Late in the afternoon he met Diggle, as he +had done many times before, walking in the fields, remote from houses. +When Desmond caught sight of him, he was sauntering along, his eyes bent +upon the ground, his face troubled. But he smiled on seeing Desmond. + +"Well met, friend," he said; "leni perfruor otio--which is as much as to +say--I bask in idleness. Well, now, I perceive in your eye that you have +been meditating my counsel. 'Tis well, friend Desmond, and whereto has +your meditation arrived?" + +"I have thought over what you said. I do wish to get away from here; I +should like to go to India; indeed, I asked my brother to advance a part +of some money that is to come to me, so that I might obtain service with +the Company; but he refused." + +"And you come to me for counsel. 'Tis well done, though I trow your +brother would scarce be pleased to hear of it." + +"He forbade me to speak to you." + +"Egad, he did! Haec summa est! What has he against me?--a question to be +asked. I am a stranger in these parts: that is ill; and buffeted by +fortune: that is worse; and somewhat versed in humane letters: that, to +the rustic intelligence, is a crime. Well, my lad, you have come to the +right man at the right time. You are acquainted with my design shortly to +return to the Indies--a rare field for a lad of mettle. You shall come +with me." + +"But are you connected with the Company? None other, I believed, has a +right to trade." + +"The Company! Sure, my lad, I am no friend to the Company, a set of +stiff-necked, ignorant, grasping, paunchy peddlers who fatten at home on +the toil of better men. No, I am an adventurer, I own it; I am an +interloper; and we interlopers, despite the Company's monopoly, yet +contrive to keep body and soul together." + +"Then I should not sail to India on a Company's ship?" + +"Far from it, indeed. But let not that disturb you, there are other +vessels. And for the passage--why, sure I could find you a place as +supercargo or some such thing; you would thus keep the little money you +have and add to it, forming a nest egg which, I say it without boasting, +I could help you to hatch into a fine brood. I am not without friends in +the Indies, my dear boy; there are princes in that land whom I have +assisted to their thrones; and if, on behalf of a friend, I ask of them +some slight thing, provided it be honest--'tis the first law of +friendship, says Tully, as you will remember, to seek honest things for +our friends--if, I say, on your behalf, I proffer some slight request, +sure the nawabs will vie to pleasure me, and the foundation of your +fortune will be laid." + +Desmond had not observed that, during this eloquent passage, Diggle had +more than once glanced beyond him, as though his mind were not wholly +occupied with his oratorical efforts. It was therefore something of a +shock that he heard him say in the same level tone: + +"But I perceive your brother approaching. I am not the man to cause +differences between persons near akin; I will therefore leave you; we +will have further speech on the subject of our discourse." + +He moved away. A moment after, Richard Burke came up in a towering +passion. + +"You brave me, do you?" he cried. "Did I not forbid you to converse with +that vagabond?" + +"You have no right to dictate to me on such matters," said Desmond hotly, +facing his brother. + +"I've no right, haven't I?" shouted Richard. "I've a guardian's right to +thrash you if you disobey me, and by George! I'll keep my promise." + +He lifted the riding whip, without which he seldom went abroad, and +struck at Desmond. But the boy's blood was up. He sprang aside as the +thong fell; it missed him, and before the whip could be raised again he +had leaped towards his brother. Wrenching the stock from his grasp, +Desmond flung the whip over the hedge into a green-mantled pool, and +stood, his cheeks pale, his fists clenched, his eyes flaming, before the +astonished man. + +"Coward!" he cried, "'tis the last time you lay hands on me." + +Recovered from his amazement at Desmond's resistance, Richard, purple +with wrath, advanced to seize the boy. But Desmond, nimbly evading his +clutch, slipped his foot within his brother's, and with a dexterous +movement tripped him up, so that he fell sprawling, with many an oath, on +the miry road. Before he could regain his feet, Desmond had vaulted the +hedge and set off at a run towards home. Diggle was nowhere in sight. + +The die was now cast. Never before had Desmond actively retaliated upon +his brother, and he knew him well enough to be sure that such an affront +was unforgivable. The farm would no longer be safe for him. With +startling suddenness his vague notions of leaving home were crystallized +into a resolve. No definite plan formed itself in his mind as he raced +over the fields. He only knew that the moment for departure had come, and +he was hastening now to secure the little money he possessed and to make +a bundle of his clothes and the few things he valued before Richard could +return. + +Reaching the Grange, he slipped quietly upstairs, not daring to face his +mother, lest her grief should weaken his resolution, and in five minutes +he returned with his bundle. He stole out through the garden, skirted the +copse that bounded the farm inclosure, and ran for half a mile up the +lane until he felt that he was out of reach. Then, breathless with haste, +quivering with the shock of this sudden plunge into independence, he sat +down on the grassy bank to reflect. + +What had he done? It was no light thing for a boy of his years, ignorant +of life and the world, to cut himself adrift from old ties and voyage +into the unknown. Had he been wise? He had no trade as a standby; his +whole endowment was his youth and his wits. Would they suffice? Diggle's +talk had opened up an immense prospect, full of color and mystery and +romance, chiming well with his daydreams. Was it possible that, sailing +to India, he might find some of his dreams come true? + +Could he trust Diggle, a stranger, by his own admission an adventurer, a +man who had run through two fortunes already? He had no reason for +distrust; Diggle was well educated, a gentleman, frank, amiable. What +motive could he have for leading a boy astray? + +Mingled with Desmond's Irish impulsiveness there was a strain of caution +derived from the stolid English yeomen, his forebears on the maternal +side. He felt the need, before crossing his Rubicon, of taking counsel +with someone older and wiser--with a tried friend. Sir Willoughby Stokes, +the squire, had always been kind to him. Would it not be well to put his +case to the squire and follow his advice? But he durst not venture to the +Hall yet. His brother might suspect that he had gone there and seize him, +or intercept him on the way. He would wait. It was the squire's custom to +spend a quiet hour in his own room long after the time when other folk in +that rural neighborhood were abed. Desmond sometimes sat with him there, +reading or playing chess. If he went up to the Hall at nine o'clock he +would be sure of a welcome. + +The evening passed slowly for Desmond in his enforced idleness. At nine +o'clock, leaving his bundle in a hollow tree, he set off toward the Hall, +taking a short cut across the fields. It was a dark night, and he stopped +with a start as, on descending a stile overhung by a spreading sycamore, +he almost struck against a person who had just preceded him. + +"Who's that?" he asked quickly, stepping back a little: it was unusual to +meet anyone in the fields at so late an hour. + +"Be that you, Measter Desmond?" + +"Oh, 'tis you, Dickon. What are you doing this way at such an hour? You +ought to have been abed long ago." + +"Ay, sure, Measter Desmond; but I be goin' to see squire," said the old +man, apparently with some hesitation. + +"That's odd. So am I. We may as well walk together, then--for fear of the +ghosts, eh, Dickon?" + +"I binna afeard o' ghosts, not I. True, 'tis odd I be goin' to see +squire. I feel it so. Squire be a high man, and I ha' never dared lift up +my voice to him oothout axen. But 'tis to be. I ha' summat to tell him, +low born as I be; ay, I mun tell him, cost what it may." + +"Well, he's not a dragon. I have something to tell him too--cost what it +may." + +There was silence for a space. Then Dickon said tremulously: + +"Bin it a great matter, yourn, sir, I make bold to axe?" + +"That's as it turns out, Dickon. But what is it with you, old man? Is +aught amiss?" + +"Not wi' me, sir, not wi' me, thank the Lord above. But I seed ya, +Measter Desmond, t'other day, in speech win that--that Diggle as he do +call hisself, and--and I tell ya true, sir, I dunna like the looks on +him; no, he binna a right man; an' I were afeard as he med ha' bin +fillin' yer head wi' fine tales about the wonders o' the world an' all." + +"Is that all, Dickon? You fear my head may be turned, eh? Don't worry +about me." + +"Why, sir, ya may think me bold, but I do say this. If so be ya gets +notions in yer head--notions o' goin' out along an' seein' the world an' +all, go up an' axe squire about it. Squire he done have a wise head; +he'll advise ya for the best; an' sure I bin he'd warn ya not to have no +dealin's win that Diggle, as he do call hissen." + +"Why, does the squire know him, then?" + +"'Tis my belief squire do know everything an' everybody. Diggle he med +not know, to be sure, but if so be ya say 'tis a lean man, wi' sharp +nose, an' black eyes like live coals, an' a smilin' mouth--why, squire +knows them sort, he done, and wouldna trust him not a ell. But maybe ya'd +better go on, sir: my old shanks be slow fur one so young an' nimble." + +"No hurry, Dickon. Lucky the squire was used to London hours in his +youth, or we'd find him abed. See, there's a light in the Hall; 'tis in +the strong room next to the library; Sir Willoughby is reckoning up his +rents maybe, though 'tis late for that." + +"Ay, ya knows the Hall, true. Theer be a terrible deal o gowd an' silver +up in that room, fur sure, more 'n a aged man like me could tell in a +week." + +"The light is moving; it seems Sir Willoughby is finishing up for the +night. I hope we shall not be too late." + +But at this moment a winding of the path brought another face of the Hall +into view. + +"Why, Dickon," exclaimed Desmond, "there's another light; 'tis the +squire's own room. He cannot be in two places at once; 'tis odd at this +time of night. Come, stir your stumps, old man." + +They hurried along, scrambling through the hedge that bounded the field, +Desmond leaping, Dickon wading the brook that ran alongside the road. +Turning to the left, they came to the front entrance to the Hall, and +passed through the wicket gate into the grounds. They could see the +squire's shadow on the blind of the parlor; but the lighted window of the +strong room was now hidden from them. + +Stepping in that direction, to satisfy a strange curiosity he felt, +Desmond halted in amazement as he saw, faintly silhouetted against the +sky, a ladder placed against the wall, resting on the sill of the strong +room. His surprise at seeing lights in two rooms, in different wings of +the house, so late at night, changed to misgiving and suspicion. He +hastened back to Dickon. + +"I fear some mischief is afoot," he said. Drawing the old man into the +shade of the shrubbery, he added: "Remain here; do not stir until I come +for you, or unless you hear me call." + +Leaving Dickon in trembling perplexity and alarm, he stole forward on +tiptoe towards the house. + + + +Chapter 5: In which Job Grinsell explains; and three visitors come by night +to the Four Alls. + + +At the foot of the wall lay a flower bed, now bare and black, separated +by a gravel path from a low shrubbery of laurel. Behind this latter +Desmond stole, screened from observation by the bushes. Coming to a spot +exactly opposite the ladder, he saw that it rested on the sill of the +library window, which was open. The library itself was dark, but there +was still a dull glow in the next room. At the foot of the ladder stood a +man. + +The meaning of it all was plain. The large sum of money recently received +by Sir Willoughby as rents had tempted someone to rob him. The robber +must have learned that the money was kept in the strong room; and it +argued either considerable daring or great ignorance to have timed his +visit for an hour when anyone familiar with the squire's habits would +have known that he would not yet have retired to rest. + +Desmond was about to run round to the other side of the house and rouse +the squire, when the dim light in the strong room was suddenly +extinguished. Apparently the confederate of the man below had secured his +booty and was preparing to return. Desmond remained fixed to the spot, in +some doubt what to do. He might call to Dickon and make a rush on the man +before him, but the laborer was old and feeble, and the criminal was no +doubt armed. A disturber would probably be shot, and though the shot +would alarm the household, the burglars would have time to escape in the +darkness. Save Sir Willoughby himself, doubtless every person in the +house was by this time abed and asleep. + +It seemed best to Desmond to send Dickon for help while he himself still +mounted guard. Creeping silently as a cat along the shrubbery, he +hastened back to the laborer, told him in a hurried whisper of his +discovery, and bade him steal round to the servants' quarters, rouse them +quietly, and bring one or two to trap the man at the foot of the ladder +while others made a dash through the library upon the marauder in the +strong room. Dickon, whose wits were nimbler than his legs, understood +what he was to do and slipped away, Desmond returning to his coign of +vantage as noiselessly as he came. + +He was just in time to see that a heavy object, apparently a box, was +being lowered from the library window on to the ladder. Sliding slowly +down, it came to the hands of the waiting man; immediately afterwards the +rope by which it had been suspended was dropped from above, and the dark +figure of a man mounted the sill. + +He already had one leg over, preparing to descend, when Desmond, with a +sudden rush, dashed through the shrubs and sprang across the path. The +confederate was stooping over the booty; his back was towards the +shrubbery; at the snapping of twigs and the crunching of the gravel he +straightened himself and turned. Before he was aware of what was +happening, Desmond caught at the ladder by the lowest rung, and jerked it +violently outwards so that its top fell several feet below the +windowsill, resting on the wall out of reach of the man above. + +Desmond heard a smothered exclamation break from the fellow, but he could +pay no further attention to him, for, as he rose from stooping over the +ladder, he was set upon by a burly form. He dodged behind the ladder. The +man sprang after him, blindly, clumsily, and tripped over the box. But he +was up in a moment, and, reckless of the consequences of raising an +alarm, was fumbling for a pistol, when there fell upon his ears a shout, +the tramp of hurrying feet, and the sound of another window being thrown +open. + +With a muffled curse he swung on his heel, and made to cross the gravel +path and plunge into the shrubbery. But Desmond was too quick for him. +Springing upon his back, he caught his arms, thus preventing him from +using his pistol. He was a powerful man, and Desmond alone would have +been no match for him; but before he could wriggle himself entirely free, +three half-clad men servants came up with a rush, and in a trice he was +secured. + +In the excitement of these close-packed moments Desmond had forgotten the +other man, whom he had last seen with his leg dangling over the +windowsill. He looked up now; the window was still open; the ladder lay +exactly where he had jerked it; evidently the robber had not descended. + +"Quick!" cried Desmond. "Round to the door! The other fellow will +escape!" + +He himself sprinted round the front of the house to the door by which the +servants had issued, and met the squire hobbling along on his stick, +pistol in hand. + +"We have got one, sir!" cried Desmond. "Have you seen the other?" + +"What--why--how many villains are there?" replied the squire, who, +between amazement and wrath, was scarcely able to appreciate the +situation. + +"There was a man in the library; he did not come down the ladder; he may +be still in the house." + +"The deuce he is! Desmond, take the pistol, and shoot the knave like a +dog if you meet him." + +"I'll guard the door, Sir Willoughby. They are bringing the other man +round. Then we'll go into the house and search. He can't get out without +being seen if the other doors are locked." + +"Locked and barred. I did it myself an hour ago. I'll hang the villain." + +In a few moments the servants came up with their captive and the box, old +Dickon following. Only their figures could be seen: it was too dark to +distinguish features. + +"You scoundrel!" cried the squire, brandishing his stick. "You'll hang +for this. + +"Take him into the house. In with you all. + +"You scoundrel!" + +"An' you please, Sir Willoughby, 'tis--" began one of the servants. + +"In with you, I say," roared the squire. "I'll know how to deal with the +villain." + +The culprit was hustled into the house, and the group followed, Sir +Willoughby bringing up the rear. Inside he barred and locked the door, +and bade the men carry their prisoner to the library. The corridors and +staircase were dark, but by the time the squire had mounted on his gouty +legs, candles had been lighted, and the face of the housebreaker was for +the first time visible. Two servants held the man; the others, with +Desmond and Dickon, looked on in amazement. + +"Job Grinsell, on my soul and body!" cried the squire. "You villain! You +ungrateful knave! Is this how you repay me? I might have hanged you, you +scoundrel, when you poached my game; a word from me and Sir Philip would +have seen you whipped before he let his inn to you; but I was too kind; I +am a fool; and you--by, gad, you shall hang this time." + +The squire's face was purple with anger, and he shook his stick as though +then and there he would have wrought chastisement on the offender. +Grinsell's flabby face, however, expressed amusement rather than fear. + +"Bless my soul!" cried the squire, suddenly turning to his men, "I'd +forgotten the other villain. Off with you; search for him; bring him +here." + +Desmond had already set off to look for Grinsell's accomplice. Taper in +hand he went quickly from room to room; joined by the squire's servants, +he searched every nook and cranny of the house, examining doors and +windows, opening cupboards, poking at curtains--all in vain. At last, at +the end of a dark corridor, he came upon an open window some ten feet +above the ground. It was so narrow that a man of ordinary size must have +had some difficulty in squeezing his shoulders through; but Desmond was +forced to the conclusion that the housebreaker had sprung out here, and +by this time had made good his escape. Disappointed at his failure, he +returned with the servants to the library. + +"We can't find him, Sir Willoughby," said Desmond, as he opened the door. + +To his surprise, Grinsell and Dickon were gone; no one but the squire was +in the room, and he was sitting in a big chair, limp and listless, his +eyes fixed upon the floor. + +"We can't find him," repeated Desmond. + +The squire looked up. + +"What did you say?" he asked, as though the events of the past half-hour +were a blank. "Oh, 'tis you, Desmond, yes; what can I do for you?" + +Desmond was embarrassed. + +"I--we have--we have looked for the other villain, Sir Willoughby," he +stammered. "We can't find him." + +"Ah! 'Twas you gave the alarm. Good boy; zeal, excellent; but a little +mistake; yes, Grinsell explained; a mistake, Desmond." + +The squire spoke hurriedly, disconnectedly, with an embarrassment even +greater than Desmond's. + +"But, sir," the boy began, "I saw--" + +"Yes, yes," interrupted the old man. "I know all about it. But Grinsell's +explanation--yes, I know all about it. I am obliged to you, Desmond; but +I am satisfied with Grinsell's explanation; I shall go no further in the +matter." + +He groaned and put his hand to his head. + +"Are you ill, Sir Willoughby?" asked Desmond anxiously. + +The squire looked up; his face was an image of distress. He was silent +for a moment; then said slowly: + +"Sick at heart, Desmond, sick at heart. I am an old man--an old man." + +Desmond was uncomfortable. He had never seen the squire in such a mood, +and had a healthy boy's natural uneasiness at any display of feeling. + +"You see that portrait?" the squire went on, pointing wearily with his +stick at the head of a young man done in oils. "The son of my oldest +friend--my dear old friend Merriman. I never told you of him. Nine years +ago, Desmond--nine years ago, my old friend was as hale and hearty a man +as myself, and George was the apple of his eye. They were for the +king--God save him!-and when word came that Prince Charles was marching +south from Scotland, they arranged secretly with a party of loyal +gentlemen to join him. But I hung back; I had not their courage; I am +alive, and I lost my friend." + +His voice sank, and, leaning heavily upon his stick, he gazed vacantly +into space. Desmond was perplexed and still more ill at ease. What had +this to do with the incidents of the night? He shrank from asking the +question. + +"Yes, I lost my friend," the squire continued. "We had news of the +prince; he had left Carlisle; he was moving southwards, about to strike a +blow for his father's throne. He was approaching Derby. George Merriman +sent a message to his friends, appointing a rendezvous: gallant +gentlemen, they would join the Stuart flag! The day came, they met, and +the minions of the Hanoverian surrounded them. Betrayed!--poor, loyal +gentlemen, betrayed by one who had their confidence and abused it--one of +my own blood, Desmond--the shame of it! They were tried, hanged--hanged! +It broke my old friend's heart; he died; 'twas one of my blood that +killed him." + +Again speech failed him. Then, with a sudden change of manner, he said: + +"But 'tis late, boy; your brother keeps early hours. I am not myself +tonight; the memory of the past unnerves me. Bid me good night, boy." + +Desmond hesitated, biting his lips. What of the motive of his visit? He +had come to ask advice; could he go without having mentioned the subject +that troubled him? The old man had sunk into a reverie; his lips moved as +though he communed with himself. Desmond had not the heart to intrude his +concerns on one so bowed with grief. + +"Good night, Sir Willoughby!" he said. + +The squire paid no heed, and Desmond, vexed, bewildered, went slowly from +the room. + +At the outer door he found Dickon awaiting him. + +"The squire has let Grinsell go, Dickon," he said; "he says 'twas all a +mistake." + +"If squire says it, then 't must be," said Dickon slowly, nodding his +head. + +"We'n better be goin' home, sir." + +"But you had something to tell Sir Willoughby?" + +"Ay, sure, but he knows it--knows it better'n me." + +"Come, Dickon, what is this mystery! I am in a maze; what is it, man?" + +"Binna fur a aged, poor feller like me to say. We'n better go home, sir." + +Nothing that Desmond said prevailed upon Dickon to tell more, and the two +started homewards across the fields. + +Some minutes afterwards they heard the sound of a horse's hoofs +clattering on the road to their left, and going in the same direction. It +was an unusual sound at that late hour, and both stopped instinctively +and looked at each other. + +"A late traveler, Dickon," said Desmond. + +"Ay, maybe a king's post, Measter Desmond," replied the old man. + +Without more words they went on till they came to a lane leading to the +laborer's cottage. + +"We part here," said Desmond. "Dickon, good night!" + +"Good night to you, sir!" said the old man. He paused; then, in a grave, +earnest, quavering voice, he added: "The Lord Almighty have you in his +keeping, Measter Desmond, watch over you night and day, now and +evermore." + +And with that he hobbled down the lane. + +At nine o'clock that night Richard Burke left the Grange--an unusual +thing for him--and walked quickly to the Four Alls. The inn was closed, +and shutters darkened the windows; but, seeing a chink of light between +the folds, the farmer knocked at the door. There was no answer. He +knocked again and again, grumbling under his breath. At length, when his +patience was almost exhausted, a window above opened, and, looking up, +Mr. Burke dimly saw a head. + +"Is that you, Grinsell?" he asked. + +"No, massa." + +"Oh, you're the black boy, Mr. Diggle's servant. Is your master in?" + +"No, massa." + +"Well, come down and open the door. I'll wait for him." + +"Massa said no open door for nuffin." + +"Confound you, open at once! He knows me; I'm a friend of his; open the +door!" + +"Massa said no open door for nobody." + +The farmer pleaded, stormed, cursed, but Scipio Africanus was inflexible. +His master had given him orders, and the boy had learned, at no little +cost, that it was the wisest and safest policy to obey. Finding that +neither threats nor persuasion availed, Burke took a stride or two in the +direction of home; then he halted, pondered for a moment, changed his +mind, and began to pace up and down the road. + +His restless movements were by and by checked by the sound of footsteps +approaching. He crossed the road, stood in the shadow of an elm and +waited. The footsteps drew nearer; he heard low voices, and now discerned +two dark figures against the lighter road. They came to the inn and +stopped. One of them took a key from his pocket and inserted it in the +lock. + +"'Tis you at last," said Burke, stepping out from his place of +concealment. "That boy of yours would not let me in, hang him!" + +At the first words Diggle started and swung round, his right hand flying +to his pocket; but, recognizing the voice almost immediately, he laughed. + +"'Tis you, my friend," he said. "Multa de nocte profectus es. But you've +forgot all your Latin, Dick. What is the news, man? Come in." + +"The bird is flitting, Sim, that's all. He has not been home. His mother +was in a rare to-do. I pacified her; told her I'd sent him to Chester to +sell oats--haw, haw! He has taken some clothes and gone. But he won't go +far, I trow, without seeing you, and I look to you to carry out the +bargain." + +"Egad, Dick, I need no persuasion. He won't go without me, I promise you +that. I've a bone to pick with him myself--eh, friend Job?" + +Grinsell swore a hearty oath. At this moment the silence without was +broken by the sound of a trotting horse. + +"Is the door bolted?" whispered Burke. "I mustn't be seen here." + +"Trust me fur that," said Grinsell. "But no one will stop here at this +time o' night." + +But the three men stood silent, listening. The sound steadily grew +louder; the horse was almost abreast of the inn; it was passing--but no, +it came to a halt; they heard a man's footsteps, and the sound of the +bridle being hitched to a hook in the wall. Then there was a sharp rap at +the door. + +"Who's there?" cried Grinsell gruffly. + +"Open the door instantly," said a loud, masterful voice. + +Burke looked aghast. + +"You can't let him in," he whispered. + +The others exchanged glances. + +"Open the door," cried the voice again. "D'you hear, Grinsell? At +once!--or I ride to Drayton for the constables." + +Grinsell gave Diggle a meaning look. + +"Slip out by the back door, Mr. Burke," said the innkeeper. "I'll make a +noise with the bolts so that he cannot hear you." + +Burke hastily departed, and Grinsell, after long, loud fumbling with the +bolts, threw open the door and gave admittance to the squire. + +"Ah, you are here both," said Sir Willoughby, standing in the middle of +the floor, his riding whip in his hand. + +"Now, Mr.--Diggle, I think you call yourself, I'm a man of few words, as +you know. I have to say this, I give you till eight o'clock tomorrow +morning; if you are not gone, bag and baggage, by that time, I will issue +a warrant. Is that clear?" + +"Perfectly," said Diggle with his enigmatical smile. + +"And one word more. Show your face again in these parts and I shall have +you arrested. I have spared you twice for your mother's sake. This is my +last warning. + +"Grinsell, you hear that, too?" + +"I hear 't," growled the man. + +"Remember it, for, mark my words, you'll share his fate." + +The squire was gone. + +Grinsell scowled with malignant spite; Diggle laughed softly. + +"Quanta de spe decidi!" he said, "which in plain English, friend Job, +means that we are dished--utterly, absolutely. I must go on my travels +again. Well, such was my intention; the only difference is, that I go +with an empty purse instead of a full one. Who'd have thought the old dog +would ha' been such an unconscionable time dying!" + +"Gout or no gout, he's good for another ten year," growled the innkeeper. + +"Well, I'll give him five. And, with the boy out of the way, maybe I'll +come to my own even yet. The young puppy!" + +At this moment Diggle's face was by no means pleasant to look upon. + +"Fate has always had a grudge against me, Job. In the old days, I bethink +me, 'twas I that was always found out. You had many an escape." + +"Till the last. But I've come out of this well." He chuckled. "To think +what a fool blood makes of a man! Squire winna touch me, 'cause of you. +But it must gall him; ay, it must gall him." + +"I--list!" said Diggle suddenly. "There are footsteps again. Is it Burke +coming back? The door's open, Job." + +The innkeeper went to the door and peered into the dark. A slight figure +came up at that moment--a boy, with a bundle in his hand. + +"Is that you, Grinsell? Is Mr. Diggle in?" + +"Come in, my friend," said Diggle, hastening to the door. "We were just +talking of you. Come in; 'tis a late hour; si vespertinus subito--you +remember old Horace? True, we haven't a hen to baste with Falernian for +you, but sure friend Job can find a wedge of Cheshire and a mug of ale. +Come in." + +And Desmond went into the inn. + + + +Chapter 6: In which the reader becomes acquainted with William Bulger and +other sailor men; and our hero as a squire of dames acquits himself with +credit. + + +One warm October afternoon, some ten days after the night of his visit to +the Four Alls, Desmond was walking along the tow path of the Thames, +somewhat north of Kingston. As he came to the spot where the river bends +round towards Teddington, he met a man plodding along with a rope over +his shoulder, hauling a laden hoy. + +"Can you tell me the way to the Waterman's Rest?" asked Desmond. + +"Ay, that can I," replied the man without stopping. "'Tis about a quarter +mile behind me, right on waterside. And the best beer this side o' +Greenwich." + +Thanking him, Desmond walked on. He had not gone many yards farther +before there fell upon his ear, from some point ahead, the sound of +several rough voices raised in chorus, trolling a tune that seemed +familiar to him. As he came nearer to the singers, he distinguished the +words of the song, and remembered the occasion on which he had heard them +before: the evening of Clive's banquet at Market Drayton--the open window +of the Four Alls, the voice of Marmaduke Diggle. + +"Sir William Norris, Masulipatam"--these were the first words he caught; +and immediately afterwards the voices broke into the second verse: + +"Says Governor Pitt, Fort George, Madras, +'I know what you are: an ass, an ass, +An ass, an ass, an ASS, an ASS,' +Signed 'Governor Pitt, Fort George, Madras.'" + +And at the conclusion there was a clatter of metal upon wood, and then +one voice, loud and rotund, struck up the first verse once more--"Says +Billy Norris, Masulipatam"--The singer was in the middle of the stave +when Desmond, rounding a privet hedge, came upon the scene. A patch of +greensward, sloping up from a slipway on the riverside; a low, +cozy-looking inn of red brick covered with a crimson creeper; in front of +it a long deal table, and seated at the table a group of some eight or +ten seamen, each with a pewter tankard before him. To the left, and +somewhat in the rear of the long table, was a smaller one, at which two +seamen, by their garb a cut above the others, sat opposite each other, +intent on some game. + +Desmond's attention was drawn towards the larger table. Rough as was the +common seaman of George the Second's time, the group here collected would +have been hard to match for villainous looks. One had half his teeth +knocked out, another a broken nose; all bore scars and other marks of +battery. + +Among them, however, there was one man marked out by his general +appearance and facial expression as superior to the rest. In dress he was +no different from his mates; he wore the loose blouse, the pantaloons, +the turned-up cloth hat of the period. But he towered above them in +height; he had a very large head, with a very small squab nose, merry +eyes, and a fringe of jet-black hair round cheeks and chin. + +When he removed his hat presently he revealed a shiny pink skull, rising +from short, wiry hair as black as his whiskers. Alone of the group, he +wore no love locks or greased pigtail. In his right hand, when Desmond +first caught sight of him, he held a tankard, waving it to and fro in +time with his song. He had lost his left hand and forearm, which were +replaced by an iron hook projecting from a wooden socket, just visible in +his loose sleeve. + +He was halfway through the second stanza when he noticed Desmond standing +at the angle of the hedge a few yards away. He fixed his merry eyes on +the boy, and, beating time with his hook, went on with the song in +stentorian tones: + +"An ass, an ass, an Ass, an ASS, +Signed 'Governor Pitt, Fort George, Madras.'" + +The others took up the chorus, and finally brought their tankards down +upon the deal with a resounding whack. + +"Ahoy, Mother Wiggs, more beer!" shouted the big man. + +Desmond went forward. + +"Is this the Waterman's Rest?" + +"Ay, ay, young gen'leman, and a blamed restful place it is, too, fit for +watermen what en't naught but landlubbers, speaking by the book, but not +fit for the likes of us jack tars. Eh, mateys?" + +His companions grunted acquiescence. + +"I have a message for Mr. Toley; is he here?" + +"Ay, that he is. That's him at the table yonder. + +"Mr. Toley, sir, a young gen'leman to see you." + +Desmond advanced to the smaller table. The two men looked up from their +game of dominoes. One was a tall, lean fellow, with lined and sunken +cheeks covered with iron-gray stubble, a very sharp nose, and colorless +eyes; the expression of his features was melancholy in the extreme. The +other was a shorter man, snub-nosed, big-mouthed; one eye was blue, the +other green, and they looked in contrary directions. His hat was tilted +forward, resting on two bony prominences above his eyebrows. + +"Well?" said Mr. Toley, the man of melancholy countenance. + +"I have a message from Captain Barker," said Desmond. "I am to say that +he expects you and the men at Custom House Quay next Wednesday morning, +high tide at five o'clock." + +Mr. Toley lifted the tankard at his left hand, drained it, smacked his +lips, then said in a hollow voice: + +"Bulger, Custom House Quay, Wednesday morning, five o'clock." + +A grunt of satisfaction and relief rolled round the company, and in +response to repeated cries for more beer a stout woman in a mob cap and +dirty apron came from the inn with a huge copper can, from which she +proceeded to fill the empty tankards. + +"Is the press still hot, sir?" asked Mr. Toley. + +"Yes. Four men, I was told, were hauled out of the Good Intent +yesterday." + +"And four bad bargains for the king," put in the second man, whose cross +glances caused Desmond no little discomfort. + +At this moment Joshua Wiggs, the innkeeper, came up, carrying three +fowling pieces. + +"There be plenty o' ducks today, mister," he said. + +"Then we'll try our luck," said Mr. Toley, rising. + +"Thank 'ee, my lad," he added to Desmond. "You'll take a sup with the men +afore you go? + +"Bulger, see to the gentleman." + +"Ay, ay, sir. + +"Come aboard, matey." + +He made a place for Desmond at his side on the bench, and called to +Mother Wiggs to bring a mug for the gentleman. Meanwhile, Mr. Toley and +his companion had each taken a fowling piece and gone away with the +landlord. Bulger winked at his companions, and when the sportsmen were +out of earshot he broke into a guffaw. + +"Rare sport they'll have! I wouldn't be in Mr. Toley's shoes for +something. What's a cock-eyed man want with a gun in his hand, eh, +mateys?" + +Desmond felt somewhat out of his element in his present company; but +having reasons of his own for making himself pleasant, he said, by way of +opening a conversation: + +"You seem pleased at the idea of going to sea again, Mr. Bulger." + +"Well, we are and we en't, eh, mateys? The Waterman's Rest en't exactly +the kind of place to spend shore leave; it en't a patch on Wapping or +Rotherhithe. And to tell 'ee true, we're dead sick of it. But there's +reasons; there mostly is; and the whys and wherefores, therefores and +becauses, I dessay you know, young gen'lman, acomin' from Captain +Barker." + +"The press gang?" + +"Ay, the press is hot in these days. Cap'n sent us here to be out o' the +way, and the orficers to look arter us. Not but what 'tis safer for them +too; for if Mr. Sunman showed his cock-eyes anywhere near the Pool, he'd +be nabbed by the bailiffs, sure as he's second mate o' the Good Intent. +Goin' to sea's bad enough, but the Waterman's Rest and holdin' on the +slack here's worse, eh, mateys?" + +"Ay, you're right there, Bulger." + +"But why don't you like going to sea?" asked Desmond. + +"Why? You're a landlubber, sir--meanin' no offense--or you wouldn't axe +sich a foolish question. At sea 'tis all rope's end and salt pork, with +Irish horse for a tit-bit." + +"Irish horse?" + +"Ay. That's our name for it. 'Cos why? Explain to the gen'lman, mateys." + +With a laugh the men began to chant-- +"Salt horse, salt horse, what brought you here? +You've carried turf for many a year. +From Dublin quay to Mallyack +You've carried turf upon your back." + +"That's the why and wherefore of it," added Bulger. "Cooks call it salt +beef, same as French mounseers don't like the sound of taters an' calls +'em pummy detair; but we calls it Irish horse, which we know the flavor. +Accordingly, notwithstandin' an' for that reason, if you axe the advice +of an old salt, never you go to sea, matey." + +"That's unfortunate," said Desmond, with a smile, "because I expect to +sail next Wednesday morning, high tide at five o'clock." + +"Binks and barnacles! Be you a-goin' to sail with us?" + +"I hope so." + +"Billy come up! You've got business out East, then?" + +"Not yet, but I hope to have. I'm going out as supercargo." + +"Oh! As supercargo!" + +Bulger winked at his companions, and a hoarse titter went the round of +the table. + +"Well," continued Bulger, "the supercargo do have a better time of it +than us poor chaps. And what do Cap'n Barker say to you as supercargo, +which you are very young, sir?" + +"I don't know Captain Barker." + +"Oho! But I thought as how you brought a message from the captain?" + +"Yes, but it came through Mr. Diggle." + +"Ah! Mr. Diggle?" + +"A friend of mine--a friend of the captain. He has arranged everything." + +"I believe you, matey. He's arranged everything. Supercargo! Well, to be +sure! Never a supercargo as I ever knowed but wanted a man to look arter +him, fetch and carry for him, so to say. How would I do, if I might make +so bold?" + +"Thanks," said Desmond, smiling as he surveyed the man's huge form. "But +I think Captain Barker might object to that. You'd be of more use on +deck, in spite of--" + +He paused, but his glance at the iron hook had not escaped Bulger's +observant eye. + +"Spite of the curlin' tongs, you'd say. Bless you, spit it out; I en't +tender in my feelin's." + +"Besides," added Desmond, "I shall probably make use of the boy who has +been attending to me at the Goat and Compasses--a clever little black boy +of Mr. Diggle's." + +"Black boys be hanged! I never knowed a Sambo as was any use on board +ship. They howls when they're sick, and they're allers sick, and never +larns to tell a marlinspike from a belayin' pin." + +"But Scipio isn't one of that sort. He's never sick, Mr. Diggle says; +they've been several voyages together, and Scipio knows a ship from stem +to stern." + +"Scipio, which his name is? Uncommon name, that." + +There was a new tone in Bulger's voice, and he gave Desmond a keen and, +as it seemed, a troubled look. + +"Yes, it is strange," replied the boy, vaguely aware of the change of +manner. "But Mr. Diggle has ways of his own." + +"This Mr. Diggle, now; I may be wrong, but I should say--yes, he's short, +with bow legs and a wart on his cheek?" + +"No, no; you must be thinking of some one else. He is tall, rather a +well-looking man; he hasn't a wart, but there is a scar on his brow, +something like yours." + +"Ah, I know they sort; a fightin' sort o' feller, with a voice +like--which I say, like a nine pounder?" + +"Well, not exactly; he speaks rather quietly; he is well educated, too, +to judge by the Latin he quotes." + +"Sure now, a scholard. Myself, I never had no book larnin' to speak of; +never got no further than pothooks an' hangers!" + +He laughed as he lifted his hook. But he seemed to be disinclined for +further conversation. He buried his face in his tankard, and when he had +taken a long pull, set the vessel on the table and stared at it with a +preoccupied air. He seemed to have forgotten the presence of Desmond. The +other men were talking among themselves, and Desmond, having by this time +finished his mug of beer, rose to go on his way. + +"Goodby, Mr. Bulger," he said; "we shall meet again next Wednesday." + +"Ay, ay, sir," returned the man. + +He looked long after the boy as he walked away. + +"Supercargo!" he muttered. "Diggle! I may be wrong, but--" + +Desmond had come through Southwark and across Clapham and Wimbledon +Common, thus approaching the Waterman's Rest from the direction of +Kingston. Accustomed as he was to long tramps, he felt no fatigue, and +with a boy's natural curiosity he decided to return to the city by a +different route, following the river bank. He had not walked far before +he came to the ferry at Twickenham. The view on the other side of the +river attracted him: meadows dotted with cows and sheep, a verdant hill +with pleasant villas here and there; and, seeing the ferryman resting on +his oars, he accosted him. + +"Can I get to London if I cross here?" he asked. + +"Sure you can, sir. Up the hill past Mr. Walpole his house; then you +comes to Isleworth and Brentford, and a straight road through Hammersmith +village--a fine walk, sir, and only a penny for the ferryman." + +Desmond paid his penny and crossed. He sauntered along up Strawberry +Hill, taking a good look at the snug little house upon which Mr. Horace +Walpole was spending much money and pains. Wandering on, and preferring +bylanes to the high road, he lost his bearings, and at length, fearing +that he was going in the wrong direction, he stopped at a wayside cottage +to inquire the way. + +He was farther out than he knew. The woman who came to the door in answer +to his knock said that, having come so far, he had better proceed in the +same direction until he reached Hounslow, and then strike into the London +road and keep to it. + +Desmond was nothing loath. He had heard of Hounslow and those notorious +"Diana's foresters," Plunket and James Maclean--highwaymen who a few +years before had been the terror of night travelers across the lonely +Heath. There was a fascination about the scene of their exploits. So he +trudged on, feeling now a little tired, and hoping to get a lift in some +farmer's cart that might be going towards London. + +More than once as he walked his thoughts recurred to the scene at the +Waterman's Rest. They were a rough, villainous-looking set, these members +of the crew of the Good Intent! Of course, as supercargo he would not +come into close contact with them; and Mr. Diggle had warned him that he +would find seafaring men somewhat different from the country folk among +whom all his life hitherto had been passed. + +Diggle's frankness had pleased him. They had left the Four Alls early on +the morning after that strange incident at the squire's. Desmond had told +his friend what had happened, and Diggle, apparently surprised to learn +of Grinsell's villainy, had declared that the sooner they were out of his +company the better. They had come by easy stages to London, and were now +lodging at a small inn near the Tower: not a very savory neighborhood, +Diggle admitted, but convenient. Diggle had soon obtained for Desmond a +berth on board the Good Intent bound for the East Indies, and from what +he let drop, the boy understood that he was to sail as supercargo. + +He had not yet seen the vessel; she was painting, and would shortly be +coming up to the Pool. Nor had he seen Captain Barker, who was very much +occupied, said Diggle, and had a great deal of trouble in keeping his +crew out of the clutches of the press gang. Some of the best of them had +been sent to the Waterman's Rest in charge of the chief and second mates. +It was at Diggle's suggestion that he had been deputed to convey the +captain's message to the men. + +It was drawing towards evening when Desmond reached Hounslow Heath; a +wide, bare expanse of scrubby land intersected by a muddy road. A light +mist lay over the ground, and he was thankful that the road to London was +perfectly direct, so that there was no further risk of his losing his +way. The solitude and the dismal appearance of the country, together with +its ill repute, made him quicken his pace, though he had no fear of +molestation; having nothing to lose, he would be but poor prey for a +highwayman, and he trusted to his cudgel to protect him from the +attentions of any single footpad or tramp. + +Striding along in the gathering dusk, he came suddenly upon a curious +scene. A heavy traveling carriage was drawn half across the road, its +forewheels perilously near the ditch. Near by was a lady, standing with +arms stiff and hands clenched, stamping her foot as she addressed, in no +measured terms, two men who were rolling over one another in a desperate +tussle a few yards away on the heath. As Desmond drew nearer he perceived +that a second and younger lady stood at the horses' heads, grasping the +bridles firmly with both hands. + +His footsteps were unheard on the heavy road, and the elder lady's back +being towards him, he came up to her unawares. She started with a little +cry when she saw a stranger move towards her out of the gloom. But +perceiving at a second glance that he was only a boy, with nothing +villainous about his appearance, she turned to him impulsively and, +taking him by the sleeve, said: + +"There! You see them! The wretches! They are drunk and pay no heed to me! +Can you part them? I do not wish to be benighted on this heath. The +wretch uppermost is the coachman." + +"I might part them, perhaps," said Desmond dubiously. "Of course I will +try, ma'am." + +"Sure I wouldn't trust 'em, mamma," called the younger lady from the +horses' heads. "The man is too drunk to drive." + +"I fear 'tis so. 'Tis not our own man, sir. As we returned today from a +visit to Taplow our coachman was trampled by a horse at Slough, and my +husband stayed with him--an old and trusty servant--till he could consult +a surgeon. We found a substitute at the inn to drive us home. But the +wretch brought a bottle; he drank with the footman all along the road; +and now, as you see, they are at each other's throats in their drunken +fury. Sure we shall never get home in time for the rout we are bid to." + +"Shall I drive you to London, ma'am?" said Desmond, "'Twere best to leave +the men to settle their differences." + +"But can you drive?" + +"Oh, yes," replied Desmond, with a smile. "I am used to horses." + +"Then I beg you to oblige us. Yes, let the wretches fight themselves +sober. + +"Phyllis, this gentleman will drive us; come." + +The girl--a fair, rosy cheeked, merry-eyed damsel of fifteen or +thereabouts--left the horses' heads and entered the carriage with her +mother. Desmond made a rapid examination of the harness to see that all +was right; then he mounted the box and drove off. The noise of the +rumbling wheels penetrated the besotted intelligence of the struggling +men; they scrambled to their feet, looked wildly about them, and set off +in pursuit. But they had no command of their limbs; they staggered +clumsily this way and that, and finally found their level in the slimy +ditch that flanked the road. + +Desmond whipped up the horses in the highest spirits. He had hoped for a +lift in a farmer's cart; fortune had favored him in giving him four +roadsters to drive himself. And no boy, certainly not one of his romantic +impulses, but would feel elated at the idea of helping ladies in +distress, and on a spot known far and wide as the scene of perilous +adventure. + +The carriage was heavy; the road, though level, was thick with autumn +mud; and the horses made no great speed. Desmond, indeed, durst not urge +them too much, for the mist was thickening, making the air even darker +than the hour warranted; and as the roadway had neither hedge nor wall to +define it, but was bounded on each side by a ditch, it behooved him to go +warily. + +He had just come to a particularly heavy part of the road where the +horses were compelled to walk, when he heard the thud of hoofs some +distance behind him. The sound made him vaguely uneasy. It ceased for a +moment or two; then he heard it again, and realized that the horse was +coming at full gallop. Instinctively he whipped up the horses. The ladies +had also heard the sound; and, putting her head out of the window, the +elder implored him to drive faster. + +Could the two besotted knaves have put the horseman on his track, he +wondered. They must believe that the carriage had been run away with, and +in their tipsy rage they would seize any means of overtaking him that +offered. The horseman might be an inoffensive traveler; on the other +hand, he might not. It was best to leave nothing to chance. With a cheery +word, to give the ladies confidence, he lashed at the horses and forced +the carriage on at a pace that put its clumsy springs to a severe test. + +Fortunately the road was straight, and the horses instinctively kept to +the middle of the track. But fast as they were now going, Desmond felt +that if the horseman was indeed pursuing he would soon be overtaken. He +must be prepared for the worst. Gripping the reins hard with his left +hand, he dropped the whip for a moment and felt in the box below the seat +in the hope of finding a pistol; but it was empty. + +He whistled under his breath at the discovery: if the pursuer was a +"gentleman of the road" his predicament was indeed awkward. The carriage +was rumbling and rattling so noisily that he had long since lost the +sound of the horse's hoofs behind. He could not pause to learn if the +pursuit had ceased; his only course was to drive on. Surely he would soon +reach the edge of the heath; there would be houses; every few yards must +bring him nearer to the possibility of obtaining help. Thus thinking, he +clenched his teeth and lashed the reeking flanks of the horses, which +plunged along now at a mad gallop. + +Suddenly, above the noise of their hoofs and the rattling of the coach he +heard an angry shout. A scream came from the ladies. Heeding neither, +Desmond quickly reversed his whip, holding it halfway down the long +handle, with the heavy iron-tipped stock outward. The horseman came +galloping up on the right side, shouted to Desmond to stop, and without +waiting drew level with the box and fired point blank. + +But the rapid movement of his horse and the swaying of the carriage +forbade him to take careful aim. Desmond felt the wind of the bullet as +it whizzed past him. Next moment he leaned slightly sidewise, and, never +loosening his hold on the reins with his left hand, he brought the +weighty butt of his whip with a rapid cut, half sidewise, half downwards, +upon the horseman's head. The man with a cry swerved on the saddle; +almost before Desmond could recover his balance he was amazed to see the +horse dash suddenly to the right, spring across the ditch, and gallop at +full speed across the heath. + +But he had no time at the moment to speculate on this very easy victory. +The horses, alarmed by the pistol shot, were plunging madly, dragging the +vehicle perilously near to the ditch on the left hand. Then Desmond's +familiarity with animals, gained at so much cost to himself on his +brother's farm, bore good fruit. He spoke to the horses soothingly, +managed them with infinite tact, and coaxed them into submission. Then he +let them have their heads, and they galloped on at speed, pausing only +when they reached the turnpike going into Brentford. They were then in a +bath of foam; their flanks heaving like to burst. + +Learning from the turnpike man that he could obtain a change of horses at +the "Bull" inn, Desmond drove there, and was soon upon his way again. + +While the change was being made, he obtained from the lady the address in +Soho Square where she was staying. The new horses were fresh; the +carriage rattled through Gunnersbury, past the turnpike at Hammersmith +and through Kensington, and soon after nine o'clock Desmond had the +satisfaction of pulling up at the door of Sheriff Soames' mansion in Soho +Square. + +The door was already open, the rattle of wheels having brought lackeys +with lighted torches to welcome the belated travelers. Torches flamed in +the cressets on both sides of the entrance. The hall was filled with +servants and members of the household, and in the bustle that ensued when +the ladies in their brocades and hoops had entered the house, Desmond saw +an opportunity of slipping away. He felt that it was perhaps a little +ungracious to go without a word to the ladies; but he was tired; he was +unaccustomed to town society, and the service he had been able to render +seemed to him so slight that he was modestly eager to efface himself. +Leaving the carriage in the hands of one of the lackeys, with a few words +of explanation, he hastened on towards Holborn and the city. + + + +Chapter 7: In which Colonel Clive suffers an unrecorded defeat; and +our hero finds food for reflection. + + +It was four o'clock, and Tuesday afternoon--the day before the Good +Intent was to sail from the Pool. Desmond was kicking his heels in his +inn, longing for the morrow. Even now he had not seen the vessel on which +he was to set forth in quest of his fortune. She lay in the Pool, but +Diggle had found innumerable reasons why Desmond should not visit her +until he embarked for good and all. She was loading her cargo; he would +be in the way. Captain Barker was in a bad temper; better not see him in +his tantrums. The press gangs were active; they thought nothing of +boarding a vessel and seizing on any active young fellow who looked a +likely subject for his Majesty's navy. Such were the reasons alleged. + +And so Desmond had to swallow his impatience and fill in his time as best +he might; reading the newspapers, going to see Mr. Garrick and Mistress +Kitty Clive at Drury Lane, spending an odd evening at Ranelagh Gardens. + +On this Tuesday afternoon he had nothing to do. Diggle was out; Desmond +had read the newspapers and glanced at the last number of the World; he +had written to his mother--the third letter since his arrival in London; +he could not settle to anything. He resolved to go for a walk as far as +St. Paul's, perhaps, and take a last look at the busy streets he was not +likely to see again for many a day. + +Forth then he issued. The streets were muddy; a mist was creeping up from +the river, promising to thicken into a London fog, and the link boys were +already preparing their tow and looking for a rich harvest of coppers ere +the night was old. Desmond picked his way through the quagmires of John +Street, crossed Crutched Friars, and went up Mark Lane into Fenchurch +Street, intending to go by Leadenhall Street and Cornhill into Cheapside. + +He had just reached the lower end of Billiter Street, the narrow +thoroughfare leading into Leadenhall, when he saw Diggle's tall figure +running amain towards him, with another man close behind, apparently in +hot pursuit. Diggle caught sight of Desmond at the same moment, and his +eyes gleamed as with relief. He quickened his pace. + +"Hold this fellow behind me," he panted as he passed, and before Desmond +could put a question he was gone. + +There was no time for deliberation. Desmond had but just perceived that +the pursuer was in the garb of a gentleman and had a broad patch of +plaster stretched across his left temple, when the moment for action +arrived. Stooping low, he suddenly caught at the man's knees. Down he +came heavily, mouthing hearty abuse, and man and boy were on the ground +together. + +Desmond was up first. He now saw that a second figure was hurrying on +from the other end of the street. He was not sure what Diggle demanded of +him; whether it was sufficient to have tripped up the pursuer, or whether +he must hold him still in play. But by this time the man was also on his +feet; his hat was off, his silk breeches and brown coat with lace ruffles +were all bemired. Puffing and blowing, uttering many a round oath such as +came freely to the lips of the Englishman of King George the Second's +time, he shouted to his friend behind to come on, and, disregarding +Desmond, made to continue his pursuit. + +Desmond could but grapple with him. + +"Let go, villain!" cried the man, striving to free himself. + +Desmond clung on; there was a brief struggle, but he was no match in size +or strength for his opponent, who was thick-set and of considerable +girth. He fell backwards, overborne by the man's weight. His head struck +on the road; dazed by the blow he loosened his clutch, and lay for a +moment in semi-consciousness while the man sprang away. + +But he was not so far gone as not to hear a loud shout behind him and +near at hand, followed by the tramp of feet. + +"Avast there!" The voice was familiar: surely it was Bulger's. "Fair +play! Fourteen stone against seven en't odds. Show a leg, mateys." + +The big sailor with a dozen of his mates stood full in the path of the +irate gentleman, who, seeing himself beset, drew his rapier and prepared +to fight his way through. A moment later he was joined by his companion, +who had also drawn his rapier. Together the gentlemen stood facing the +sailors. + +"This is check, Merriman," said the last comer, as the seamen, +flourishing their hangers menacingly, pressed forward past the prostrate +body of Desmond. "The fellow has escaped you; best withdraw at +discretion." + +"Come on," shouted Bulger, waving his hook. "Bill Bulger en't the man to +sheer off from a couple of landlubbers." + +As with his mates in line he steadily advanced, the two gentlemen, their +lips set, their eyes fixed on the assailants, their rapiers pointed, +backed slowly up the street. The noise had brought clerks and merchants +to the doors; someone sprang a rattle; there were cries for the watchmen; +but no one actively interfered. + +Meanwhile Desmond had regained his senses, and, still feeling somewhat +dizzy, had sat down upon a doorstep, wondering not a little at the +pursuit and flight of Diggle and the opportune arrival of the sailors. +Everything had happened very rapidly; scarcely two minutes had elapsed +since the first onset. + +He was still resting when there was a sudden change in the quality of the +shouts up street. Hitherto they had been boisterous rallying cries; now +they were unmistakably hearty British cheers, expressing nothing but +approval and admiration. And they came not merely from the throats of the +sailors, but from the now considerable crowd that filled the street. A +few moments afterwards he saw the throng part, and through it Bulger +marching at the head of his mates, singing lustily. They came opposite to +the step on which he sat, and Bulger caught sight of him. + +"Blest if it en't our supercargo!" he cried, stopping short. + +A shout of laughter broke from the sailors. One of them struck up a song. + +"Oho! we says goodby, +But never pipes our eye, +Tho' we leaves Sue, Poll, and Kitty all behind us; +And if we drops our bones +Down along o' Davy Jones, +Why, they'll come and axe the mermaids for to find us." + +"And what took ye, Mister Supercargo, to try a fall with the fourteen +stoner?" + +"Oh, I was helping a friend." + +"Ay, an' a friend was helpin' him, an' here's a dozen of us a-helpin' of +one supercargo." + +"And I'm much obliged to you, Mr. Bulger. But what were you cheering +for?" + +"Cheerin'! Why, you wouldn't guess. 'Twas General Clive, matey." + +"General Clive!" + +"Ay, General Clive, him what chased the mounseers out o' Fort St. George +with a marlinspike. I didn't know him at fust, comin' up behind t'other +chap; but when I seed that purple coat with the gold lace and the face of +him above it I knowed him. In course there was no more fight for us then; +'twas hip-hip hurray and up with our hangers. Clive, he smiled and +touched his hat. 'Bulger,' says he, 'you en't much fatter--'" + +"Does he know you, then?" + +"Know me! In course he does. Wasn't I bo'sun's mate on board the Indiaman +as took him east twelve year ago or more? That was afore I got this here +button hook o' mine. Ay, I remember him well, a-trampin' up an' down deck +with his hands in his pockets an' his mouth set tight an' his chin on his +stock, never speakin' to a soul, in the doldrums if ever a lad was. Why, +we all thought there was no more spirit in him than in the old wooden +figurehead--leastways, all but me. + +"'I may be wrong,' says I to old Tinsley the bo'sun, 'I may be wrong,' +says I, 'but I be main sure that young sad down-in-the-mouth have got a +blazin' fire somewhere in his innards.' + +"Ay, and time showed it. There was a lot of cadets aboard as poked fun at +the quiet chap an' talked him over, a-winkin' their eyes. From talkin' it +got to doin'. One day, goin' to his bunk, he found it all topsyversy, +hair powder on his pillow, dubbin in his shavin' cup, salt pork wropt up +in his dressin' gown. Well, I seed him as he comed on deck, an' his face +were a sight to remember, pale as death, but his eyes a-blazin' like live +coals in the galley fire. Up he steps to the cadet as was ringleader; how +he knowed it I can't tell you, but he was sure of it, same as I always +am. + +"'Sir,' says he, quiet as a lamb, 'I want a word with you.' + +"'Dear me!' says the cadet, 'have Mr. Clive found his voice at last?' + +"'Yes, sir,' says Clive, 'he has, an' something else.' + +"Cook happened to be passin' with a tray; a lady what was squeamish had +been having her vittles on deck. Mr. Clive cotched up a basin o' pea soup +what was too greasy for madam, and in a twink he sets it upside down on +the cadet's head. Ay, 'twas a pretty pictur', the greasy yellow stuff +runnin' down over his powdered hair an' lace collar an' fine blue coat. +My eye! there was a rare old shindy, the cadet cursin' and splutterin', +the others laughin' fit to bust 'emselves. The cadet out with his fists, +but there, 'twas no manner o' use. Mr. Clive bowled him over like a +ninepin till he lay along deck all pea soup an' gore. There was no more +baitin' o' Mr. Clive that voyage. + +"'Bo'sun,' says I, 'what did I tell you? I may be wrong, but that young +Mr. Bob Clive'll be a handful for the factors in Fort St. George.'" + +While this narrative had been in progress, Desmond was walking with +Bulger and his mates back towards the river. + +"How was it you happened to be hereabouts so early?" asked Desmond. "I +didn't expect to see you till tomorrow." + +Bulger winked. + +"You wouldn't axe if you wasn't a landlubber, meanin' no offense," he +said. "'Tis last night ashore. We sailor men has had enough o' Waterman's +Rests an' such like. To tell you the truth, we gave Mr. Toley the slip, +and now we be goin' to have a night at the Crown an' Anchor." + +"What about the press gang?" + +"We takes our chance. They won't press me, sartin sure, 'cos o' my +tenterhook here, and I'll keep my weather eye open, trust me for that." + +Here they parted company. Desmond watched the jolly crew as they turned +into the Minories, and heard their rollicking chorus: + +"Ho! when the cargo's shipped, +An the anchor's neatly tripped, +An' the gals are weepin' bucketfuls o' sorrer, +Why, there's the decks to swab, +An' we en't a-goin' to sob, +S'pose the sharks do make a meal of us tomorrer." + +At the Goat and Compasses Diggle was awaiting him. + +"Ha! my friend, you did it as prettily as a man could wish. Solitudo +aliquid adjuvat, as Tully somewhere hath it, not foreseeing my case, +when solitude would have been my undoing. I thank thee." + +"Was the fellow attacking you?" asked Desmond. + +"That to be sure was his intention. I was in truth in the very article of +peril; I was blown; my breath was near gone, when at the critical moment +up comes a gallant youth--subvenisti homini jam perdito--and with +dexterous hand stays the enemy in his course." + +"But what was it all about? Do you know the man?" + +"Ods my life! 'twas a complete stranger, a man, I should guess, of hasty +passions and tetchy temper. By the merest accident, at a somewhat crowded +part, I unluckily elbowed the man into the kennel, and though I +apologized in the handsomest way, he must take offense and seek to cut +off my life, to extinguish me in primo aevo, as Naso would say. But +Atropos was forestalled, my thread of life still falls uncut from +Clotho's shuttle; still, still, my boy, I bear on the torch of life +unextinguished." + +Desmond felt that all this fine phrasing, this copious draft from +classical sources, was intended to quench the ardor of his curiosity. +Diggle's explanation was very lame; the fury depicted on the pursuer's +face could scarcely be due to a mere accidental jostling in the street. +And Diggle was certainly not the man to take to his heels on slight +occasion. But, after all, Diggle's quarrels were his own concern. That +his past life included secrets Desmond had long suspected, but he was not +the first man of birth and education who had fallen into misfortune, and +at all events he had always treated Desmond with kindness. So the boy put +the matter from his thoughts. + +The incident, however, left a sting of vexation behind it. In agreeing to +accompany Diggle to the East, Desmond had harbored a vague hope of +falling in with Clive and taking service, in however humble a capacity, +with him. It vexed him sorely to think that Clive, whose memory for +faces, as his recognition of Bulger after twelve years had shown, was +very good, might recognize him, should they meet, as the boy who had +played a part in what was almost a street brawl. Still, it could not be +helped. Desmond comforted himself with the hope that Clive had taken no +particular note of him, and, if they should ever encounter, would +probably meet him as a stranger. + + + +Chapter 8: In which several weeks are supposed to elapse; and our hero is +discovered in the Doldrums. + + +The Good Intent lay becalmed in the doldrums. There was not wind enough +to puff out a candle flame. The sails hung limp and idle from the masts, +yet the vessel rolled as in a storm, heaving on a tremendous swell so +violently that it would seem her masts must be shaken out of her. The air +was sweltering, the sky the color of burnished copper, out of which the +sun beat remorselessly in almost perpendicular beams. Pitch ran from +every seam of the decks, great blisters like bubbles rose upon the +woodwork; the decks were no sooner swabbed than--presto!--it was as +though they had not known the touch of water for an age. + +For three weeks she had lain thus. Sometimes the hot day would be +succeeded by a night of terrible storm, thunder crashing around, the +whole vault above lacerated by lightning, and rain pouring as it were out +of the fissures in sheets. But in a day all traces of the storm would +disappear, and if, meanwhile, a sudden breath of wind had carried the +vessel a few knots on her southward course, the hopes thus raised would +prove illusory, and once more she would lie on a sea of molten lead, or, +still worse, would be rocked on a long swell that had all the discomforts +of a gale without its compensating excitement. + +The tempers of officers and crew had gone from bad to worse. The officers +snapped and snarled at one another, and treated the men with even more +than the customary brutality of the merchant marine of those days. The +crew, lounging about half naked on the decks, seeking what shelter they +could get from the pitiless sun, with little to do and no spirit to do +anything, quarreled among themselves, growling at the unnecessary tasks +set them merely to keep them from flying at each other's throats. + +The Good Intent was a fine three-masted vessel of nearly four hundred +tons, large for those days, though the new East Indiamen approached five +hundred tons. When her keel was laid for the Honorable East India Company +some twenty years earlier, she had been looked on as one of the finest +merchant vessels afloat; but the buffeting of wind and wave in a score of +voyages to the eastern seas, and the more insidious and equally +destructive attacks of worms and dry rot, had told upon her timbers. She +had been sold off and purchased by Captain Barker, who was one of the +class known as "interlopers," men who made trading voyages to the East +Indies on their own account, running the risk of their vessels being +seized and themselves penalized for infringing the Company's monopoly. +She was now filled with a miscellaneous cargo: wine in chests, beer and +cider in bottles, hats, worsted stockings, wigs, small shot, lead, iron, +knives, glass, hubblebubbles, cochineal, sword blades, toys, coarse +cloth, woolen goods--anything that would find a market among the European +merchants, the native princes, or the trading classes of India. There was +also a large consignment of muskets and ammunition. When Desmond asked +the second mate where they were going, the reply was that if he asked no +questions he would be told no lies. + +On this sultry afternoon a group of seamen, clad in nothing but shirt and +breeches, were lolling, lying crouching on the deck forward, circled +around Bulger. Seated on an upturned tub, he was busily engaged in +baiting a hook. Tired of the "Irish horse" and salt pork that formed the +staple of the sailors' food, he was taking advantage of the calm to fish +for bonitos, a large fish over two feet long, the deadly enemy of the +beautiful flying fish that every now and then fell panting upon the deck +in their mad flight from marine foes. The bait was made to resemble the +flying fish itself, the hook being hidden by white rag stuffing, with +feathers pricked in to counterfeit spiked fins. + +As the big seaman deftly worked with iron hook and right hand, he spun +yarns for the delectation of his mates. They chewed tobacco, listened, +laughed, sneered, as their temper inclined them. Only one of the group +gave him rapt and undivided attention--a slim youth, with hollow sunburnt +cheeks, long bleached hair, and large gleaming eyes. His neck and arms +were bare, and the color of boiled lobsters; but, unlike the rest, he had +no tattoo marks pricked into his skin. His breeches were tatters, his +striped shirt covered with party-colored darns. + +"Ay, as I was saying," said Bulger, "'twas in these latitudes, on my last +voyage but three. I was in a Bristol ship a-carryin' of slaves from +Guinea to the plantations. Storms!--I never seed such storms nowhere; and +contrariwise, calms enough to make a Quaker sick. In course the water was +short, an' scurvy come aboard, an' 'twas a hammock an' round shot for one +or the other of us every livin' day. As reg'lar as the mornin' watch the +sharks came for their breakfast; we could see 'em comin' from all p'ints +o' the compass; an' sure as seven bells struck there they was, ten deep, +with jaws wide open, like Parmiter's there when there's a go of grog to +be sarved out. We was all like the livin' skellington at Bartlemy Fair, +and our teeth droppin' out that fast, they pattered like hailstones on +the deck." + +"How did you stick 'em in again?" interrupted Parmiter, anxious to get +even with Bulger for the allusion to his gaping jaw. He was a thick set, +ugly fellow, his face seamed with scars, his mouth twisted, his ears +dragged at the lobes by heavy brass rings. + +"With glue made out of albacores we caught, to be sure. Well, as I was +saying, we was so weak there wasn't a man aboard could reach the maintop, +an' the man at the wheel had two men to hold him up. Things was so, thus, +an' in such case, when, about eight hells one arternoon, the lookout at +the masthead--" + +"Thought you couldn't climb? How'd he get there?" said the same skeptic. + +"Give me time, Parmiter, and you'll know all about the hows an' whys, +notwithstandin's and sobeits. He'd been there for a week, for why? 'cos +he couldn't get down. We passed him up a quarter pint o' water and a +biscuit or two every day by a halyard. + +"Well, as I was sayin', all at once the lookout calls out, 'Land +ho!'--leastways he croaked it, 'cos what with weakness and little water +our throats was as dry as last year's biscuit. + +"'Where away?' croaks first mate, which I remember his name was Tonking. + +"And there, sure enough, we seed a small island, which it might be a +quarter-mile long. Now, mind you, we hadn't made a knot for three weeks. +How did that island come there so sudden like? In course, it must ha' +come up from the bottom o' the sea. And as we was a-lookin' at it we saw +it grow, mateys--long spits o' land shootin' out this side, that side, +and t'other side--and the whole concarn begins to move towards us, comin' +on, hand over hand, slow, dead slow, but sure and steady. Our jaws were +just a-droppin' arter our teeth when fust mate busts out in a laugh; by +thunder, I remember that there laugh today! 'twas like--well, I don't +know what 'twas like, if not the scrapin' of a handsaw; an' says he, 'By +Neptune, 'tis a darned monstrous squid!' + +"And, sure enough, that was what it was, a squid as big round as the Isle +o' Wight, with arms that ud reach from Wapping Stairs to Bugsby Marshes, +and just that curly shape. An' what was more, 'twas steerin' straight for +us. Ay, mateys, 'twas a horrible moment!" + +The seamen, even Parmiter the scoffer, were listening open mouthed, when +a hoarse voice broke the spell, cutting short Bulger's story and +dispersing the group. + +"Here you, Burke, you, up aloft and pay the topmost with grease. I'll +have no lazy lubbers aboard my ship, I tell you. I've got no use for +nobody too good for his berth. No Jimmy Duffs for me! Show a leg, or, by +heavens, I'll show you a rope's end and make my mark--mind that, my lad!" + +Captain Barker turned to the man at his side. + +"'Twas an ill turn you did me and the ship's company, Mr. Diggle, +bringing this useless lubber aboard." + +"It does appear so, captain," said Diggle sorrowfully. "But 'tis his +first voyage, sir: discipline--a little discipline!" + +Meanwhile Desmond, without a word, had moved away to obey orders. He had +long since found the uselessness of protest. Diggle had taken him on +board the Good Intent an hour before sailing. He left him to himself +until the vessel was well out in the mouth of the Thames, and then came +with a rueful countenance and explained that, after all his endeavors, +the owners had absolutely refused to accept so youthful a fellow as +supercargo. Desmond felt his cheeks go pale. + +"What am I to be, then?" he asked quietly. + +"Well, my dear boy, Captain Barker is rather short of apprentices, and he +has no objection to taking you in place of one if you will make yourself +useful. He is a first-rate seaman. You will imbibe a vast deal of useful +knowledge and gain a free passage, and when we reach the Indies I shall +be able, I doubt not, by means of my connections, to assist you in the +first steps of what, I trust, will prove a successful career." + +"Then, who is supercargo?" + +"Unluckily that greatness has been thrust upon me. Unluckily, I say; for +the office is not one that befits a former fellow of King's College at +Cambridge. Yet there is an element of good luck in it, too; for, as you +know, my fortunes were at a desperately low ebb, and the emoluments of +this office, while not great, will stand me in good stead when we reach +our destination, and enable me to set you, my dear boy--to borrow from +the vernacular--on your legs." + +"You have deceived me, then!" + +"Nay, nay, you do bear me hard, young man. To be disappointed is not the +same thing as to be deceived. True, you are not, as I hoped, supercargo, +but the conditions are not otherwise altered. You wished to go to +India--well, Zephyr's jocund breezes, as Catullus hath it, will waft you +thither: we are flying to the bright cities of the East. No fragile bark +is this, carving a dubious course through the main, as Seneca, I think, +puts it. No, 'tis an excellent vessel, with an excellent captain, who +will steer a certain course, who fears not the African blast nor the +grisly Hyades nor the fury of Notus--" + +Desmond did not await the end of Diggle's peroration. It was then too +late to repine. The vessel was already rounding the Foreland, and though +he was more than half convinced that he had been decoyed on board on +false pretenses, he could not divine any motive on Diggle's part, and +hoped that his voyage would be not much less pleasant than he had +anticipated. + +But even before the Good Intent made the Channel he was woefully +undeceived. His first interview with the captain opened his eyes. Captain +Barker was a small, thin, sandy man, with a large upper lip that met the +lower in a straight line, a lean nose, and eyes perpetually bloodshot. +His manner was that of a bully of the most brutal kind. He browbeat his +officers, cuffed and kicked his men, in his best days a martinet, in his +worst a madman. The only good point about him was that he never used the +cat, which, as Bulger said, was a mercy. + +"Humph!" he said when Desmond was presented to him. "You're him, are you? +Well, let me tell you this, my lad: the ship's boy on board this 'ere +ship have got to do what he's bid, and no mistake about it. If he don't, +I'll make him. Now, you go for'ard into the galley and scrape the slush +off the cook's pans; quick's the word." + +From that day Desmond led a dog's life. He found that as ship's boy he +was at the beck and call of the whole company. The officers, with the +exception of Mr. Toley, the melancholy first mate, took their cue from +the captain; and Mr. Toley, as a matter of policy, never took his part +openly. The men resented his superior manners and the fact that he was +socially above them. The majority of the seamen were even more ruffianly +than the specimens he had seen at the Waterman's Rest--the scum of +Wapping and Rotherhithe. His only real friend on board was Bulger, who +helped him to master the many details of a sailor's work, and often +protected him against the ill treatment of his mates; and, in spite of +his one arm, Bulger was a power to be reckoned with. + +At the best of times the life of a sailor was hard, and Desmond found it +at first almost intolerable. Irregular sleep on an uncomfortable hammock, +wedged in with the other members of the crew, bad food, and over exertion +told upon his frame. From the moment when all hands were piped to lash +hammocks to the moment when the signal was given for turning in, it was +one long round of thankless drudgery. But he proved himself to be very +quick and nimble. Before long, no one could lash his hammock with the +seven turns in a shorter time than he. After learning the work on the +mainsails and trysails he was sent to practise the more acrobatic duties +in the tops, and when two months had passed, no one excelled him in +quickness aloft. + +If his work had been confined to the ordinary seaman's duties he would +have been fairly content, for there is always a certain pleasure in +accomplishment, and the consciousness of growing skill and power was some +compensation for the hardships he had to undergo. But he had to do dirty +work for the cook, clean out the styes of the captain's pigs, swab the +lower deck, sometimes descend on errands for one or other to the nauseous +hold. + +Perhaps the badness of the food was the worst evil to a boy accustomed to +plain but good country fare. The burgoo or oatmeal gruel served at +breakfast made him sick; he knew how it had been made in the cook's dirty +pans. The "Irish horse" and salt pork for dinner soon became distasteful; +it was not in the best condition when brought aboard, and before long it +became putrid. The strong cheese for supper was even more horrible. He +lived for the most part on the tough sea biscuit of mixed wheat and pea +flour, and on the occasional duffs of flour boiled with fat, which did +duty as pudding. For drink he had nothing but small beer; the water in +the wooden casks was full of green, grassy, slimy things. But the fresh +sea air seemed to be a food itself; and though Desmond became lean and +hollow cheeked, his muscles developed and hardened. Little deserving +Captain Barker's ill-tempered abuse, he became handy in many ways on +board, and proved to be the possessor of a remarkably keen pair of eyes. + +When, in obedience to the captain's orders, he was greasing the mast, his +attention was caught by three or four specks on the horizon. + +"Sail ho!" he called to the officer of the watch. + +"Where away?" was the reply. + +"On the larboard quarter, sir; three or four sail, I think." + +The officer at once mounted the shrouds and took a long look at the +specks Desmond pointed out, while the crew below crowded to the bulwarks +and eagerly strained their eyes in the same direction. + +"What do you make of 'em, Mr. Sunman?" asked the captain. + +"Three or four sail, sir, sure enough. They are hull down; there's not a +doubt but they're bringing the wind with 'em." + +"Hurray!" shouted the men, overjoyed at the prospect of moving at last. + +In a couple of hours the strangers had become distinctly visible, and the +first faint puffs of the approaching breeze caused the sails to flap +lazily against the yards. Then the canvas filled out, and at last, after +nearly a fortnight's delay, the Good Intent began to slip through the +water at three or four knots. + +The wind freshened during the night, and next morning the Good Intent was +bowling along under single-reefed topsails. The ships sighted the night +before had disappeared, to the evident relief of Captain Barker. Whether +they were Company's vessels or privateers he had no wish to come to close +quarters with them. + +After breakfast, when the watch on deck were busy about the rigging or +the guns, or the hundred and one details of a sailor's work, the rest of +the crew had the interval till dinner pretty much to themselves. Some +slept, some reeled out yarns to their messmates, others mended their +clothes. + +It happened one day that Desmond, sitting in the forecastle among the men +of his mess, was occupied in darning a pair of breeches for Parmiter. It +was the one thing he could not do satisfactorily; and one of the men, +after quizzically observing his well meant but ludicrous attempts, at +last caught up the garment and held it aloft, calling his mates' +attention to it with a shout of laughter. + +Parmiter chanced to be coming along at the moment. Hearing the laugh, and +seeing the pitiable object of it, he flew into a rage, sprang at Desmond, +and knocked him down. + +"What do you mean, you clumsy young lubber, you," he cried, "by treating +my smalls like that? I'll brain you, sure as my name's Parmiter!" + +Desmond had already suffered not a little at Parmiter's hands. His +endurance was at an end. Springing up with flaming cheeks he leaped +towards the bully, and putting in practice the methods he had learned in +many a hard-fought mill at Mr. Burslem's school, he began to punish the +offender. His muscles were in good condition; Parmiter was too much +addicted to grog to make a steady pugilist; and though he was naturally +much the stronger man, he was totally unable to cope with his agile +antagonist. + +A few rounds settled the matter; Parmiter had to confess that he had had +enough, and Desmond, flinging his breeches to him, sat down tingling +among his mates, who greeted the close of the fight with spontaneous and +unrestrained applause. + +Next day Parmiter was in the foretop splicing the forestay. Desmond was +walking along the deck when suddenly he felt his arm clutched from +behind, and he was pulled aside so violently by Bulger's hook that he +stumbled and fell at full length. At the same moment something struck the +deck with a heavy thud. + +"By thunder! 'twas a narrow shave," said Bulger. "See that, matey?" + +Looking in the direction Bulger pointed, he saw that the foretopsail +sheet block had fallen on deck, within an inch of where he would have +been but for the intervention of Bulger's hook. Glancing aloft, he saw +Parmiter grinning down at him. + +"Hitch that block to a halyard, youngster," said the man. + +Desmond was on the point of refusing; the man, he thought, might at least +have apologized: but reflecting that a refusal would entail a complaint +to the captain, and a subsequent flogging, he bit his lips, fastened the +block, and went on his way. + +"'Tis my belief 'twas no accident," said Bulger afterwards. "I may be +wrong, but Parmiter bears a grudge against you. And he and that there Mr. +Diggle is too thick by half. I never could make out why Diggle diddled +you about that supercargo business; he don't mean you no kindness, you +may be sure; and when you see two villains like him and Parmiter puttin' +their heads together, look out for squalls, that's what I say." + +Desmond was inclined to laugh; the idea seemed preposterous. + +"Why are you so suspicious of Mr. Diggle?" he said. "He has not kept his +promise, that's true, and I am sorry enough I ever listened to him. But +that doesn't prove him to be an out-and-out villain. I've noticed that +you keep out of his way. Do you know anything of him? Speak out plainly, +man." + +"Well, I'll tell you what I knows about him." + +He settled himself against the mast, gave a final polish to his hook with +holystone, and using the hook every now and then to punctuate his +narrative, began. + +"Let me see, 'twas a matter o' three years ago. I was bo'sun on the +Swallow, a spanker she was, chartered by the Company, London to Calcutta. +There was none of the doldrums that trip, dodged 'em fair an' square; a +topsail breeze to the Cape, and then the fust of the monsoon to the +Hugli. We lay maybe a couple of months at Calcutta, when what should I do +but take aboard a full dose of the cramp, just as the Swallow was in a +manner of speakin' on the wing. Not but what it sarved me right, for what +business had I at my time of life to be wastin' shore leave by poppin' at +little dicky birds in the dirty slimy jheels, as they call 'em, round +about Calcutta! + +"Well, I was put ashore, as was on'y natural, and 'twas a marvel I pulled +through--for it en't many as take the cramp in Bengal and live to tell +it. The Company, I'll say that for 'em, was very kind; I had the best o' +nussin' and vittles; but when I found my legs again there I was, as one +might say, high and dry, for there was no Company's ship ready to sail. +So I got leave to sign on a country ship, bound for Canton; and we +dropped down the Hugli with enough opium on board to buy up the lord +mayor and a baker's dozen of aldermen. + +"Nearly half a mile astern was three small country ships, such as might +creep round the coast to Chittagong, dodgin' the pirates o' the +Sandarbands if they was lucky, and gettin' their weazands slit if they +wasn't. They drew less water than us, and was generally handier in the +river, which is uncommon full of shoals and sandbanks; but for all that I +remember they was still maybe half a mile astern when we dropped +anchor--anchors, I should say--for the night, some way below Diamond +Harbor. But to us white men the way o' these Moors is always a bag o' +mystery, and as seamen they en't anyway of much account. Well, it might +be about seven bells, and my watch below, when I was woke by a most +tremenjous bangin' and hullabaloo. We tumbles up mighty sharp, and well +we did, for there was one of these country fellows board and board with +us, and another foulin' our hawser. Their grapnels came whizzin' aboard; +but the first lot couldn't take a hold nohow, and she dropped downstream. +That gave us a chance to be ready for the other. She got a grip of us and +held on like a shark what grabs you by the legs. But pistols and pikes +had been sarved out, and when they came bundlin' over into the foc'sle, +we bundled 'em back into the Hugli, and you may be sure they wasn't +exactly seaworthy when they got there. They was a mixed lot; that we soon +found out by their manner o' swearin' as they slipped by the board, for +although there was Moors among 'em, most of 'em was Frenchies or +Dutchmen, and considerin' they wasn't Englishmen they made a good fight +of it. But over they went, until only a few was left; and we was just +about to finish 'em off, when another country ship dropped alongside, and +before we knew where we was a score of yellin' ruffians was into the +waist and rushin' us in the stern sheets, as you might say. We had to +fight then, by thunder! we did. + +"The odds was against us now, and we was catchin' it from two sides. But +our blood was up, and we knew what to expect if they beat us. 'Twas the +Hugli for every man Jack of us, and no mistake. There was no orders, +every man for himself, with just enough room and no more to see the +mounseers in front of him. Some of us--I was one of 'em--fixed the flints +of the pirates for'ard, while the rest faced round and kept the others +off. Then we went at 'em, and as they couldn't all get at us at the same +time, owing to the deck being narrow, the odds was not so bad arter all. +'Twas now hand to hand, fist to fist, one for you and one for me; you +found a Frenchman and stuck to him till you finished him off, or he +finished you, as the case might be, in a manner of speakin'. Well, I +found one lanky chap--he was number four that night--and all in ten +minutes, as it were, I jabbed a pike at him, and missed, for it was hard +to keep footin' on the wet deck, though the wet was not Hugli water; +thick as it is, this was thicker--and he fired a pistol at me by way of +thank you. I saw his figurehead in the flash, and I shan't forget it +either, for he left me this to remember him by, though I didn't know it +at the time." + +Here Bulger held up the iron hook that did duty for his left forearm. +Then glancing cautiously around, he added in a whisper: + +"'Twas Diggle--or I'm a Dutchman. That was my fust meetin' with him. Of +course, I'm in a way helpless now, being on the ship's books, and he in a +manner of speakin' an orficer; but one of these days there'll be a +reckonin', or my name en't Bulger." + +The boatswain brought down his fist with a resounding whack on the +scuttle butt, threatening to stave in the top of the barrel. + +"And how did the fight end?" asked Desmond. + +"We drove 'em back bit by bit, and fairly wore 'em down. They weren't all +sailormen, or we couldn't have done it, for they had the numbers; but an +Englishman on his own ship is worth any two furriners--aye, half a dozen +some do say, though I wouldn't go so far as that myself--and at the last +some of them turned tail and bolted back. The ship's boy, what was in the +shrouds, saw 'em on the run and set up a screech: 'Hooray! hooray!' That +was all we wanted. We hoorayed too; and went at 'em in such a slap-bang +go-to-glory way that in a brace of shakes there wasn't a Frenchman, a +Dutchman, nor a Moor on board. They cut the grapnels and floated clear, +and next mornin' we saw 'em on their beam ends on a sandbank a mile down +the river. That's how I fust come across Mr. Diggle; I may be wrong, but +I says it again: look out for squalls." + +For some days the wind held fair, and the ship being now in the main +track of the trades, all promised well for a quick run to the Cape. But +suddenly there was a change; a squall struck the vessel from the +southwest. Captain Barker, catching sight of Desmond and a seaman near at +hand, shouted: + +"Furl the top-gallant sail, you two. Now show a leg, or, by thunder, the +masts will go by the board." + +Springing up the shrouds on the weather side, Desmond was quickest aloft. +He crawled out on the yard, the wind threatening every moment to tear him +from his dizzy, rocking perch, and began with desperate energy to furl +the straining canvas. It was hard work, and but for the development of +his muscles during the past few months, and a naturally cool head, the +task would have been beyond his powers. But setting his teeth and +exerting his utmost strength, he accomplished his share of it as quickly +as the able seaman on the lee yard. + +The sail was half furled when all at once the mast swung through a huge +arc; the canvas came with tremendous force against the cross trees, and +Desmond, flung violently outwards, found himself swinging in midair, +clinging desperately to the leech of the sail. With a convulsive movement +he grasped at a loose gasket above him, and catching a grip, wound it +twice or thrice round his arm. The strain was intense; the gasket was +thin and cut deeply into the flesh; he knew that should it give way +nothing could save him. So he hung, the wind howling around him, the +yards rattling, the boisterous sea below heaving as if to clutch him and +drag him to destruction. + +A few seconds passed, every one of which seemed an eternity. Then through +the noise he heard shouts on deck. The vessel suddenly swung over, and +Desmond's body inclined towards instead of from the mast. Shooting out +his arm he caught at the yard, seized it, and held on, though it seemed +that his arm must be wrenched from the socket. In a few moments he +succeeded in clambering on to the yard, where he clung, endeavoring to +regain his breath and his senses. + +Then he completed his job, and with a sense of unutterable relief slid +down to the deck. A strange sight met his eyes. Bulger and Parmiter were +lying side by side; there was blood on the deck; and Captain Barker stood +over them with a marlinspike, his eyes blazing, his face distorted with +passion. In consternation Desmond slipped out of the way, and asked the +first man he met for an explanation. + +It appeared that Parmiter, who was at the wheel when the squall struck +the ship, had put her in stays before the sail was furled, with the +result that she heeled over and Desmond had narrowly escaped being flung +into the sea. Seeing the boy's plight, Bulger had sprung forward, and, +knocking Parmiter from the wheel, had put the vessel on the other tack, +thus giving Desmond the one chance of escape which, fortunately, he had +been able to seize. The captain had been incensed to a blind fury, first +with Parmiter for acting without orders and then with Bulger for +interfering with the man at the wheel. In a paroxysm of madness he +attacked both men with a spike; the ship was left without a helmsman, and +nothing but the promptitude of the melancholy mate, who had rushed +forward and taken the abandoned wheel himself, had saved the vessel from +the imminent risk of carrying away her masts. + +Later in the day, when the squall and the captain's rage had subsided, +the incident was talked over by a knot of seamen in the forecastle. + +"You may say what you like," said one, "but I hold to it that Parmiter +meant to knock young Burke into the sea. For why else did he put the ship +in stays? He en't a fool, en't Parmiter." + +"Ay," said another, "and arter that there business with the block, eh? +One and one make two; that's twice the youngster has nigh gone to Davy +Jones through Parmiter, and it en't in reason that sich-like things +should allers happen to the same party." + +"But what's the reason?" asked a third. "What call has Parmiter to have +such a desperate spite against Burke? He got a lickin', in course, but +what's a lickin' to a Englishman? Rot it all, the youngster en't a bad +matey. He've led a dog's life, that he have, and I've never heard a +grumble, nary one; have you?" + +"True," said the first. "And I tell you what it is. I believe Bulger's in +the right of it, and 'tis all along o' that there Diggle, hang him! He's +too perlite by half, with his smile and his fine lingo and all. And +what's he keep his hand wropt up in that there velvet mitten thing for? +I'd like to know that. There's summat mortal queer about Diggle, mark my +words, and we'll find it out if we live long enough." + +"Wasn't it Diggle brought Burke aboard?" + +"Course it was; that's what proves it, don't you see? He stuffs him up as +he's to be supercargo; call that number one. He brings him aboard and +makes him ship boy; that's number two. He looks us all up and down with +those rat's eyes of his, and thinks we're a pretty ugly lot, and Parmiter +the ugliest, how's that for number three? Then he makes hissel sweet to +Parmiter; I've seed him more'n once; that's number four. Then there's +that there block: five; and today's hanky panky: six; and it wants one +more to make seven, and that's the perfect number, I've heard tell, 'cos +o' the Seven Champions o' Christendom." + +"I guess you've reasoned that out mighty well," drawled the melancholy +voice of Mr. Toley, who had come up unseen and heard the last speech. +"Well, I'll give you number seven." + +"Thunder and blazes, sir, he en't bin and gone and done it already?" + +"No, he en't. Number seven is, be kind o' tender with young Burke. Count +them words. He's had enough kicks. That's all." + +And the melancholy man went away as silently as he had come. + + + +Chapter 9: In which the Good Intent makes a running fight: +Mr. Toley makes a suggestion. + + +Making good sailing, the Good Intent reached Saldanhas Bay, where she put +in for a few necessary repairs, then safely rounded the Cape, and after a +short stay at Johanna, one of the Comoro Islands, taking in fresh +provisions there, set sail for the Malabar coast. The wind blew steadily +from the southwest, and she ran merrily before it. + +During this part of the voyage Desmond found his position somewhat +improved. His pluck had won the rough admiration of the men; Captain +Barker was not so constantly chevying him; and Mr. Toley showed a more +active interest in him, teaching him the use of the sextant and quadrant, +how to take the altitude of the sun, and many other matters important in +navigation. + +It was the third week of April, and the monsoon having begun, Captain +Barker expected before long to sight the Indian coast. One morning, about +two bells, the lookout reported a small vessel on the larboard bow, +laboring heavily. The captain took a long look at it through his +perspective glass, and made out that it was a two-masted grab; the +mainmast was gone. + +"Odds bobs," he said to Mr. Toley, "'tis strange to meet a grab so far +out at sea. We'll run down to it." + +"What is a grab?" asked Desmond of Bulger, when the news had circulated +through the ship's company. + +"Why, that's a grab, sure enough. I en't a good hand at pictur' paintin'; +we're runnin' square for the critter, and then you'll see for yourself. +This I'll say, that you don't see 'em anywheres in partickler but off the +Malabar coast." + +Desmond was soon able to take stock of the vessel. It was broad in +proportion to its length, narrowing from the middle to the end, and +having a projecting prow like the old-fashioned galleys of which he had +seen pictures. The prow was covered with a deck, level with the main deck +of the vessel, but with a bulkhead between this and the forecastle. + +"En't she pitchin'!" remarked Bulger, standing by Desmond's side. "You +couldn't expect nothing else of a craft built that shape. Look at the +water pourin' off her; why, I may be wrong, but I'll lay my best breeches +she's a-founderin'." + +As usual, Bulger was right. When the grab was overhauled, the men on +board, dark-skinned Marathas with very scanty clothing, made signs that +they were in distress. + +"Throw her into the wind," shouted the captain. + +Mr. Toley at the wheel put the helm down, the longboat was lowered, and +with some difficulty, owing to the heavy sea, the thirty men on the grab +were taken off. As they came aboard the Good Intent, Diggle, who was +leaning over the bulwarks, suddenly straightened himself, smiled, and +moved towards the taffrail. One of the newcomers, a fine muscular fellow, +seeing Diggle approaching, stood for a moment in surprise, then salaamed. +The Englishman said something in the stranger's tongue, and grasped his +hand with the familiarity of old friendship. + +"You know the man, Mr. Diggle?" said the captain. + +"Yes, truly. The Gentoos and I are in a sense comrades in arms. His name +is Hybati; he's a Maratha." + +"What's he jabbering about?" + +The man was talking rapidly and earnestly. + +"He says, captain," returned Diggle, with a smile, "that he hopes you +will send and fetch the crew's rice on board. They won't eat our +food--afraid of losing caste." + +"I'll be hang if I launch the longboat again. The grab won't live another +five minutes in this sea, and I wouldn't risk two of my crew against a +hundred of these dirty Moors." + +"They'll starve otherwise, captain." + +"Well, let 'em starve. I won't have any nonsense aboard my ship. Beggars +mustn't be choosers, and if the heathen can't eat good honest English +vittles they don't deserve to eat at all." + +Diggle smiled and explained to Hybati that his provisions must be left to +their fate. Even as he spoke a heavy sea struck the vessel athwart, and, +amid cries from the Marathas she keeled over and sank. + +When the strangers had dried themselves, Diggle inquired of Hybati how he +came to be in his present predicament. The Maratha explained that he had +been in command of Angria's fortress of Suwarndrug, which was so strong +that he had believed it able to withstand any attacks. But one day a +number of vessels of the East India Company's fleet had appeared between +the mainland and the island on which the fortress was situated, and had +begun a bombardment which soon reduced the parapets to ruins. The chief +damage had been done by an English ship. Hybati and his men had made the +best defense they could, but the gunners were shot down by musket fire +from the round tops of the enemy, and when a shell set fire to a thatched +house within the fort, the garrison were too much alarmed to attempt to +extinguish the flames; the blaze spread, a powder magazine blew up, and +the inhabitants, with the greater part of the soldiers, fled to the +shore, and tried to make their escape in eight large boats. Hybati had +kept up the fight for some time longer, hoping to receive succor; but +under cover of the fire of the ships the English commodore landed half +his seamen, who rushed up to the gate, and cutting down the sally port +with their axes forced their way in. + +Seeing that the game was up, Hybati fled with thirty of his men, and was +lucky in pushing off in the grab, unobserved by the enemy. The winds, +however, proving contrary, the vessel had been blown northward along the +coast and then driven far out to sea. With the breaking of the monsoon a +violent squall had dismasted the grab and shattered her bulkhead; she was +continually shipping water, and, as the sahib saw, was at the point of +sinking when the English ship came up. + +Such was the Maratha's story, as by and by it became common property on +board the Good Intent. Of all the crew Desmond was perhaps the most +interested. To the others there was nothing novel in the sight of the +Indians; but to him they stood for romance, the embodiment of all the +tales he had heard and all the dreams he had dreamed of this wonderful +country in the East. He was now assured that he was actually within reach +of his desired haven; and he hoped shortly to see an end of the +disappointments and hardships, the toils and distresses, of the past +seven months. + +He was eager to learn more of these Marathas, and their fortress, and the +circumstances of the recent fight. Bulger was willing to tell all he +knew; but his information was not very exact, and Desmond did not hear +the full story till long after. + +The Malabar coast had long been the haunt of Maratha pirates, who +interfered greatly with the native trade between India and Arabia and +Persia. In defense of the interests of his Mohammedan subjects the Mogul +emperor at length, in the early part of the eighteenth century, fitted +out a fleet, under the command of an admiral known as the Sidi. But there +happened to be among the Marathas at that time a warrior of great daring +and resource, one Kunaji Angria. This man first defeated the Sidi, then, +in the insolence of victory, revolted against his own sovereign, and set +up as an independent ruler. + +By means of a well-equipped fleet of grabs and gallivats he made himself +master of place after place along the coast, including the Maratha +fortress at Suwarndrug and the Portuguese fort of Gheria. His successors, +who adopted in turn the dynastic name of Angria, followed up Kunaji's +conquest, until by the year 1750 the ruling Angria was in possession of a +strip of territory on the mainland a hundred and eighty miles long and +about forty broad, together with many small adjacent islands. + +For the defense of this little piratical state Angria's Marathas +constructed a number of forts, choosing admirable positions and +displaying no small measure of engineering skill. From these strongholds +they made depredations by sea and land, not only upon their native +neighbors, but also upon the European traders, English, Dutch, and +Portuguese; swooping down on unprotected merchant vessels and even +presuming to attack warships. Several expeditions had been directed +against them, but always in vain; and when in 1754 the chief of that +date, Tulaji Angria, known to Europeans as the Pirate, burnt two large +Dutch vessels of fifty and thirty-six guns respectively, and captured a +smaller one of eighteen guns, he boasted in his elation that he would +soon be master of the Indian seas. + +But a term was about to be put to his insolence and his depredations. On +March twenty-second, 1755, Commodore William James, commander of the East +India Company's marine force, set sail from Bombay in the Protector of +forty-four guns, with the Swallow of sixteen guns, and two bomb vessels. +With the assistance of a Maratha fleet he had attacked the island +fortress of Suwarndrug, and captured it, as Hybati had related. A few +days afterwards another of the Pirate's fortresses, the island of +Bancoote, six miles north of Suwarndrug, surrendered. The Maratha rajah, +Ramaji Punt, delighted with these successes against fortified places +which had for nearly fifty years been deemed impregnable, offered the +English commodore an immense sum of money to proceed against others of +Angria's forts; but the monsoon approaching, the commodore was recalled +to Bombay. + +The spot at which the Good Intent had fallen in with the sinking grab was +about eighty miles from the Indian coast, and Captain Barker expected to +sight land next day. No one was more delighted at the prospect than +Desmond. Leaving out of account the miseries of the long voyage, he felt +that now he was within reach of the goal of his hopes. The future was all +uncertain; he was no longer inclined to trust his fortunes to Diggle, for +though he could not believe that the man had deliberately practised +against his life, he had with good reason lost confidence in him, and +what he had learned from Bulger threw a new light on his past career. + +One thing puzzled him. If the Pirate was such a terror to unprotected +ships, and strong enough to attack several armed vessels at once, why was +Captain Barker running into the very jaws of the enemy? In her palmy days +as an East Indiaman the Good Intent had carried a dozen nine-pounders on +her upper deck and six on the quarterdeck; and Bulger had said that under +a stout captain she had once beaten off near Surat half a dozen +three-masted grabs and a score of gallivats from the pirate stronghold at +Gheria. But now she had only half a dozen guns all told, and even had she +possessed the full armament there were not men enough to work them, for +her complement of forty men was only half what it had been when she +sailed under the Company's flag. + +Desmond confided his puzzlement to Bulger. The seaman laughed. + +"Why, bless 'ee, we en't a-goin' to run into no danger. Trust Cap'n +Barker for that. You en't supercargo, to be sure; but who do you think +them guns and round shots in the hold be for? Why, the Pirate himself. +And he'll pay a good price for 'em, too." + +"Do you mean to say that English merchants supply Angria with weapons to +fight against their own countrymen?" + +"Well, blest if you en't a innocent. In course they do. The guns en't +always fust-class metal, to be sure; but what's the odds? The interlopers +ha' got to live." + +"I don't call that right. It's not patriotic." + +"Patry what?" + +"Patriotic--a right way of thinking of one's own country. An Englishman +isn't worth the name who helps England's enemies." + +Bulger looked at him in amazement. The idea of patriotism was evidently +new to him. + +"I'll have to put that there notion in my pipe and smoke it," he said. +"I'd fight any mounseer, or Dutchman, or Portuguee as soon as look at +him, 'tis on'y natural; but if a mounseer likes to give me twopence for a +thing that's worth a penny--why, I'll say thank 'ee and axe +him--leastways if there's any matey by as knows the lingo--to buy +another." + +Shortly after dawn next morning the lookout reported four vessels to +windward. From their appearance Captain Barker at once concluded that two +were Company's ships, with an escort of a couple of grabs. As he was +still scanning them he was joined by Diggle, with whom he entered into +conversation. + +"They're making for Bombay, I reckon," said the captain. + +"I take it we don't wish to come to close quarters with them, Barker?" + +"By thunder, no! But if we hold our present course we're bound to pass +within hailing distance. Better put 'em off the scent." + +He altered the vessel's course a point or two with the object of passing +to windward of the strangers, as if steering for the Portuguese port of +Goa. + +"They are running up their colors," remarked Diggle, half an hour later. + +"British, as I thought. We'll hoist Portuguese." + +A minute or two later a puff of smoke was observed to sally from the +larger of the two grabs, followed in a few seconds by the boom of a gun. + +"A call to us to heave to," said Bulger, in answer to Desmond's inquiry. +"The unbelievin' critters thinks that Portuguee rag is all my eye." + +But the Good Intent was by this time to windward of the vessels, and +Captain Barker, standing on the quarterdeck, paid no heed to the signal. +After a short interval another puff came from the deck of the grab, and a +round shot plunged into the sea a cable's length from the Good Intent's +bows, the grab at the same time hauling her wind and preparing to alter +her course in pursuit. This movement was at once copied by the other +three vessels, but being at least half a mile ahead of the grab that had +fired, they were a long distance astern when the chase--for chase it was +to be--began. + +Captain Barker watched the grab with the eyes of a lynx. The Good Intent +had run out of range while the grab was being put about; but the captain +knew very well that the pursuer could sail much closer to the wind than +his own vessel, and that his only chance was to beat off the leading boat +before the others had time to come up. + +It required very little at any time to put Captain Barker into a rage, +and his demeanor was watched now with different feelings by different +members of the crew. Diggle alone appeared unconcerned; he was smiling as +he lolled against the mast. + +"They'll fire at me, will they?" growled the captain with a curse. "And +chase me, will they? By jimmy, they shall sink me before I surrender!" + +"Degeneres animos timor arguit," quoted Diggle, smiling. + +"Argue it? I'll be hanged if I argue it! They're not king's ships to take +it on 'emselves to stop me on the high seas! If the Company wants to +prevent me from honest trading in these waters let 'em go to law, and be +hanged to 'em! Talk of arguing! Lawyer's work. Humph!" + +"You mistake, Barker. The Roman fellow whose words slipped out of my +mouth almost unawares said nothing of arguing. 'Fear is the mark of only +base minds': so it runs in English, captain; which is as much as to say +that Captain Ben Barker is not the man to haul down his colors in a +hurry." + +"You're right there. Another shot! That's their argument: well, Ben +Barker can talk that way as well as another." + +He called up the boatswain. Shortly afterwards the order was piped, "Up +all hammocks!" The men quickly stowed their bedding, secured it with +lashings, and carried it to the appointed places on the quarterdeck, +poop, or forecastle. Meanwhile the boatswain and his mates secured the +yards; the ship's carpenter brought up shot plugs for repairing any +breeches made under the waterline; and the gunners looked to the cannon +and prepared charges for them and the small arms. + +Bulger was in charge of the twelve-pounder aft, and Mr. Toley had tolled +off Desmond to assist him. They stood side by side watching the progress +of the grab, which gained steadily in spite of the plunging due to its +curious build. Presently another shot came from her; it shattered the +belfry on the forecastle of the Good Intent, and splashed into the sea a +hundred yards ahead. + +"They make good practice, for sartin," remarked Bulger. "I may be wrong, +but I'll lay my life there be old man-o'-war's men aboard. I mind me when +I was with Captain Golightly on the Minotaur--" + +But Bulger's yarn was intercepted. At that moment the boatswain piped, +"All hands to quarters!" In a surprisingly short time all timber was +cleared away, the galley fire was extinguished, the yards slung, the deck +strewn with wet sand, and sails, booms, and boats liberally drenched with +water. The gun captains, each with his crew, cast loose the lashings of +their weapons and struck open the ports. The tompions was taken out; the +sponge, rammer, crows and handspikes placed in readiness, and all awaited +eagerly the word for the action to begin. + +"'Tis about time we opened our mouths at 'em," said Bulger. "The next +bolus they send us as like as not will bring the spars a-rattlin' about +our ears. To be sure it goes against my stummick to fire on old +messmates; but it en't in Englishmen to hold their noses and swallow +pills o' that there size. We'll load up all ready, mateys." + +He stripped to the waist, and tied a handkerchief over his ears. Desmond +and the men followed his example. Then one of them sponged the bore, +another inserted the cartridge, containing three pounds of powder, by +means of a long ladle, a third shoved in a wad of rope yarn. This having +been driven home by the rammer, the round shot was inserted, and covered +like the cartridge with a wad. Then Bulger took his priming iron, an +instrument like a long thin corkscrew, and thrust it into the touch hole +to clear the vent and make an incision in the cartridge. Removing the +priming iron, he replaced it by the priming tube--a thin tapering tube +with very narrow bore. Into this he poured a quantity of fine mealed +powder; then he laid a train of the same powder in the little groove cut +in the gun from the touch hole towards the breech. With the end of his +powder horn he slightly bruised the train, and the gun only awaited a +spark from the match. + +Everything was done very quickly, and Desmond watched the seamen with +admiration. He himself had charge of the linstock, about which was wound +several matches, consisting of lengths of twisted cotton wick steeped in +lye. They had already been lighted, for they burnt so slowly that they +would last for several hours. + +"Now, we're shipshape," said Bulger. "Mind you, Burke, don't come to far +for'ard with your linstock. I don't want the train fired with no sparks +afore I'm ready. And 'ware o' the breech; she'll kick like a jumping +jackass when the shot flies out of her, an'll knock your teeth out afore +you can say Jack Robinson-- + +"Ah! there's the word at last; now, mateys, here goes!" + +He laid the gun, waited for the ship to rise from a roll, and then took +one of the matches, gently blew its smoldering end, and applied the +glowing wick to the bruised part of the priming. There was a flash, a +roar, and before Desmond could see the effect of the shot Bulger had +closed the vent, the gun was run in, and the sponger was at work cleaning +the chamber. + +As the black smoke cleared away it was apparent that the seaman had not +forgotten his cunning. The shot had struck the grab on the deck of the +prow and smashed into the forecastle. But the bow chasers were apparently +uninjured, for they replied a few seconds later. + +"Ah! There's a wunner!" said Bulger admiringly. + +A shot had carried away a yard of the gunwale of the Good Intent, +scattering splinters far and wide, which inflicted nasty wounds on the +second mate and a seaman on the quarterdeck. A jagged end of the wood +flying high struck Diggle on the left cheek. He wiped away the blood +imperturbably; it was evident that lack of courage was not among his +defects. + +Captain Barker's ire was now at white heat. Shouting an order to Bulger +and the next man to make rapid practice with the two stern chasers, he +prepared to fall off and bring the Good Intent's broadside to bear on the +enemy. + +But the next shot was decisive. Diggle had quietly strolled down to the +gun next to Bulger's. It had just been reloaded. He bade the gun captain, +in a low tone, to move aside. Then, with a glance to see that the priming +was in order, he took careful sight, and waiting until the grab's main, +mizzen and foremasts opened to view altogether, he applied the match. The +shot sped true, and a second later the grab's mainmast, with sails and +rigging, went by the board. + +A wild cheer from the crew of the Good Intent acclaimed the excellent +shot. + +"By thunder!" said Bulger to Desmond. "Diggle may be a rogue and a +vagabond, but he knows how to train a gun." + +Captain Barker signified his approval by a tremendous mouth-filling oath. +But he was not yet safe. The second grab was following hard in the wake +of the first; and it was plain that the two Indiamen were both somewhat +faster than the Good Intent; for during the running fight that had just +ended so disastrously for the grab, they had considerably lessened the +gap between them and their quarry. Captain Barker watched them with an +expression of fierce determination, but not without anxiety. If they +should come within striking distance it was impossible to withstand +successfully their heavier armament and larger crews. The firing had +ceased: each vessel had crowded on all sail; and the brisk breeze must +soon bring pursuer and pursued to a close engagement which could have +only one result. + +"I may be wrong, but seems to me we'd better say our prayers," Bulger +remarked grimly to his gun crew. + +But Desmond, gazing up at the shrouds, said suddenly: + +"The wind's dropping. Look!" + +It was true. Before the monsoon sets in in earnest it not unfrequently +happens that the wind veers fitfully; a squall is succeeded almost +instantaneously by a calm. So it was now. In less than an hour all five +vessels were becalmed; and when night fell three miles separated the Good +Intent from the second grab; the Indiamen lay a mile farther astern; and +the damaged vessel was out of sight. + +Captain Barker took counsel with his officers. He expected to be attacked +during the night by the united boats of the pursuing fleet. Under cover +of darkness they would be able to creep up close and board the vessel, +and the captain knew well that if taken he would be treated as a pirate. +His papers were made out for Philadelphia; he had hoisted Portuguese +colors, but the enemy at close quarters could easily see that the Good +Intent was British built; he had disabled one of the Company's vessels; +there would be no mercy for him. + +He saw no chance of beating off the enemy; they would outnumber him by at +least five to one. Even if the wind sprang up again there was small +likelihood of escape. One or other of the pursuing vessels would almost +certainly overhaul him, and hold him until the others came up. + +"'Tis a 'tarnal fix," he said. + +"Methinks 'tis a case of actum est de nobis," remarked Diggle pleasantly. + +"Confound you!" said the captain with a burst of anger. "What could I +expect with a gallows bird like you aboard? 'Tis enough to sink a vessel +without shot." + +Diggle's face darkened. But in a moment his smile returned. + +"You are overwrought, captain," he said; "you are unstrung. 'Twould be +ridiculous to take amiss words said in haste. In cold blood--well, you +know me, Captain Barker. I will leave you to recover from your brief +madness." + +He went below. The captain was left with Mr. Toley and the other +officers. Barker and Toley always got on well together, for the simple +reason that the mate never thwarted his superior, never resented his +abuse, but went quietly his own way. He listened now for a quarter of an +hour, with fixed sadness of expression, while Captain Barker poured the +vials of his wrath upon everything under the sun. When the captain had +come to an end, and sunk into an estate of lowering dudgeon, Mr. Toley +said quietly: + +"'Tis all you say, sir, and more. I guess I've never seen a harder case. +But while you was speaking, something you said struck a sort of idea into +my brain." + +"That don't happen often. What is it?" + +"Why, the sort of idea that came to me out o' what you was saying was +just this. How would it be to take soundings?" + +"So, that's your notion, is it? Hang me, are you a fool like the rest of +'em? You're always taking soundings! What in the name of thunder do you +want to take soundings for?" + +"Nothing particular, cap'n. That was the kind o' notion that come of what +you was saying. Of course it depends on the depths hereabouts." + +"Deep enough to sink you and your notions and all that's like to come of +'em. Darned if I ain't got the most lubberly company ever mortal man was +plagued with. Officers and men, there en't one of you as is worth your +salt, and you with your long face and your notions--why, hang me, you're +no more good than the dirtiest waister afloat." + +Mr. Toley smiled sadly, and ventured on no rejoinder. After the captain's +outburst none of the group dared to utter a word. This pleased him no +better; he cursed them all for standing mum; and spent ten minutes in +reviling them in turn. Then his passion appeared to have burnt itself +out. Turning suddenly to the melancholy mate, he said roughly: + +"Go and heave your lead, then, and be hanged to it." + +Mr. Toley walked away aft and ordered one of the men to heave the +deep-sea lead. The plummet, shaped like the frustum of a cone, and +weighing thirty pounds, was thrown out from the side in the line of the +vessel's drift. + +"By the mark sixty, less five," sang out the man when the lead touched +the bottom. + +"I guess that'll do," said the first mate, returning to the quarterdeck. + +"Well, what about your notion?" said the captain scornfully. But he +listened quietly and with an intent look upon his weatherbeaten face as +Mr. Toley explained. + +"You see, sir," he said, "while you was talking just now, I sort o' saw +that if they attack us, 'twon't be for at least two hours after dark. The +boats won't put off while there's light enough to see 'em; and won't +hurry anyhow, 'cos if they did the men 'ud have nary much strength left +to 'em. Well, they'll take our bearings, of course. Thinks I, owing to +what you said, sir, what if we could shift 'em by half a mile or so? The +boats 'ud miss us in the darkness." + +"That's so," ejaculated the captain; "and what then?" + +"Well, sir, 'tis there my idea of taking soundings comes in. The Good +Intent can't be towed, not with our handful of men; but why shouldn't she +be kedged? That's the notion, sir; and I guess you'll think it over." + +"By jimmy, Toley, you en't come out o' Salem, Massachusetts, for nothing. +'Tis a notion, a rare one; Ben Barker en't the man to bear a grudge, and +I take back them words o' mine--leastways some on 'em. + +"Bo'sun, get ready to lower the longboat." + +The longboat was lowered, out of sight of the enemy. A kedge anchor, +fastened to a stout hawser, was put on board, and as soon as it was +sufficiently dark to make so comparatively small an object as a boat +invisible to the hostile craft, she put off at right angles to the Good +Intent's previous course, the hawser attached to the kedge being paid out +as the boat drew away. When it had gone about a fifth of a mile from the +vessel the kedge was dropped, and a signal was given by hauling on the +rope. + +"Clap on, men!" cried Captain Barker. "Get a good purchase, and none of +your singsong; avast all jabber." + +The crew manned the windlass and began with a will to haul on the cable +in dead silence. The vessel was slowly warped ahead. Meanwhile the +longboat was returning; when she reached the side of the Good Intent, a +second kedge was lowered into her, and again she put off, to drop the +anchor two cables' length beyond the first, so that when the ship had +tripped that, the second was ready to be hauled on. + +When the Good Intent had been thus warped a mile from her position at +nightfall, Captain Parker ordered the operation to be stopped. To avoid +noise the boat was not hoisted in. No lights were shown, and the sky +being somewhat overcast, the boat's crew found that the ship was +invisible at the distance of a fourth of a cable's length. + +"I may be wrong," said Bulger to Desmond, "but I don't believe kedgin' +was ever done so far from harbor afore. I allers thought there was +something in that long head of Mr. Toley, though, to be sure, there en't +no call for him to pull a long face, too." + +An hour passed after the loading had been stopped. All on board the Good +Intent remained silent, speaking, if they spoke at all, in whispers. +There had been no signs of the expected attack. Desmond was leaning on +the gunwale, straining his eyes for a glimpse of the enemy. But his ears +gave him the first intimation of their approach. He heard a faint +creaking, as of oars in rowlocks, and stepped back to where Bulger was +leaning against the mast. + +"There they come," he said. + +The sound had already reached Captain Barker's ears. It was faint; +doubtless the oars were muffled. The ship was rolling lazily; save for +the creaking nothing was heard but the lapping of the ripples against the +hull. So still was the night that the slightest sound must travel far, +and the captain remarked in a whisper to Mr. Toley that he guessed the +approaching boats to be at least six cables' lengths distant. + +Officers and men listened intently. The creaking grew no louder; on the +contrary, it gradually became fainter, and at last died away. There was a +long silence, broken only by what sounded like a low hail some +considerable distance away. + +"They're musterin' the boats," said Bulger, with a chuckle. "I may be +wrong, but I'll bet my breeches they find they've overshot the mark. Now +they'll scatter and try to nose us out." + +Another hour of anxious suspense slowly passed, and still nothing had +happened. Then suddenly a blue light flashed for a few moments on the +blackness of the sea, answered almost instantaneously by a rocket from +another quarter. It was clear that the boats, having signaled that the +search had failed, had been recalled by the rocket to the fleet. + +"By thunder, Mr. Toley, you've done the trick!" said the captain. + +"I guess we don't get our living by making mistakes--not in Salem, +Massachusetts," returned the first mate with his sad smile. + +Through the night the watch was kept with more than ordinary vigilance, +but nothing occurred to give Captain Barker anxiety. With morning light +the enemy could be seen far astern. + + + +Chapter 10: In which our hero arrives in the Golden East, and Mr. Diggle +presents him to a native prince. + + +About midday a light breeze sprang up from the northwest. The two +Indiamen and the uninjured grab, being the first to catch it, gained a +full mile before the Good Intent, under topgallant sails, studding sails, +royal and driver, began to slip through the water at her best speed. But, +as the previous day's experience had proved, she was no match in sailing +capacity for the pursuers. They gained on her steadily, and the grab had +come almost within cannon range when the man at the masthead shouted: + +"Sail ho! About a dozen sail ahead, sir!" + +The captain spluttered out a round dozen oaths, and his dark face grew +still darker. So many vessels in company must surely mean the king's +ships with a convoy. The French, so far as Captain Barker knew, had no +such fleet in Indian waters, nor had the Dutch or Portuguese. If they +were indeed British men-o'-war he would be caught between two fires, for +there was not a doubt that they would support the Company's vessels. + +"We ought to be within twenty miles of the coast, Mr. Toley," said +Captain Barker. + +"Ay, sir, and somewhere in the latitude of Gheria." + +"Odds bobs, and now I come to think of it, those there vessels may be +sailing to attack Gheria, seeing as how, as these niggers told us, +they've bust up Suwarndrug." + +"Guess I'll get to the foretop myself and take a look, sir," said Mr. +Toley. + +He mounted, carrying the only perspective glass the vessel possessed. The +captain watched him anxiously as he took a long look. + +"What do you make of 'em?" he shouted. + +The mate shut up the telescope and came leisurely down. + +"I count fifteen in all, sir." + +"I don't care how many. What are they?" + +"I calculate they're grabs and gallivats, sir." + +The captain gave a hoarse chuckle. + +"By thunder, then, we'll soon turn the tables! Angria's gallivats--eh, +Mr. Toley? We'll make a haul yet." + +But Captain Barker was to be disappointed. The fleet had been descried +also by the pursuers. A few minutes later the grab threw out a signal, +hauled her wind and stood away to the northward, followed closely by the +two larger vessels. The captain growled his disappointment. Nearly a +dozen of the coast craft, as they were now clearly seen to be, went in +pursuit, but with little chance of coming up with the chase. The +remaining vessels of the newly-arrived fleet stood out to meet the Good +Intent. + +"Fetch us that Maratha fellow," cried the captain, "and hoist a white +flag." + +When the Maratha appeared, a pitiable object, emaciated for want of food, +Captain Barker bade him shout as soon as the newcomers came within +hailing distance. The white flag at the masthead, and a loud, long-drawn +hail from Hybati, apprised the grab that the Good Intent was no enemy, +and averted hostilities. And thus it was, amid a convoy of Angria's own +fleet, that Captain Barker's vessel, a few hours later, sailed peacefully +into the harbor of Gheria. + +Desmond looked with curious eyes on the famous fort and harbor. On the +right, as the Good Intent entered, he saw a long, narrow promontory, at +the end of which was a fortress, constructed, as it appeared, of solid +rock. The promontory was joined to the mainland by a narrow isthmus of +sand, beyond which lay an open town of some size. The shore was fringed +with palmyras, mangoes and other tropical trees, and behind the straw +huts and stone buildings of the town leafy groves clothed the sides of a +gentle hill. + +The harbor, which forms the mouth of a river, was studded with Angria's +vessels, large and small, and from the docks situated on the sandy +isthmus came the busy sound of shipwrights at work. The rocky walls of +the fort were fifty feet high, with round towers, long curtains, and some +fifty embrasures. The left shore of the harbor was flat, but to the south +of the fort rose a hill of the same height as the walls of rock. Such was +the headquarters of the notorious pirate Tulaji Angria, the last of the +line which had for fifty years been the terror of the Malabar coast. + +The Good Intent dropped anchor off the jetty running out from the docks +north of the fort. Captain Barker had already given orders that no shore +leave was to be allowed to the crew, and as soon as he had stepped into +the longboat, accompanied by Diggle, the men's discontent broke forth in +angry imprecations, which Mr. Toley wisely affected not to hear. + +No time was lost in unloading the portion of the cargo intended for +Angria. The goods were carried along the jetty by stalwart Marathas clad +only in loincloths, and stored in rude cabins with penthouse roofs. As +Desmond knew, the heavy chests that taxed the strength of the bearers +contained for the most part muskets and ammunition. The work went on for +the greater part of the day, and at nightfall neither the captain nor +Diggle had returned to the vessel. + +Next day a large quantity of Indian produce was taken on board. Desmond +noticed that as the bales and casks reached the deck, some of the crew +were told off to remove all marks from them. + +"What's that for?" repeated Bulger, in reply to a question of Desmond's. +"Why, 'cos if the ship came to be overhauled by a Company's vessel, it +would tell tales if the cargo had Company's marks on it. That wouldn't do +by no manner o' means." + +"But how should they get Company's marks on them?" + +Bulger winked. + +"You're raw yet, Burke," he said. "You'll know quite as much as is good +for you by the time you've made another voyage or two in the Good +Intent." + +"But I don't intend to make another voyage in her. Mr. Diggle promised to +get me employment in the country." + +"What? You still believes in that there Diggle? Well, I don't want to +hurt no feelin's, and I may be wrong, but I'll lay my bottom dollar +Diggle won't do a hand's turn for you." + +The second day passed, and in the evening Captain Barker, who had +hitherto left Mr. Toley in charge, came aboard in high humor. + +"I may be wrong," remarked Bulger, "but judgin' by cap'n's face, he've +been an' choused the Pirate--got twice the valley o' the goods he's +landed." + +"I wonder where Mr. Diggle is?" said Desmond. + +"You en't no call to mourn for him, I tell you. He's an old friend of the +Pirate, don't make no mistake; neither you nor me will be any the worse +for not seein' his grinnin' phiz no more. Thank your stars he've left you +alone for the last part of the voyage, which I wonder at, all the same." + +Next day all was bustle on board in preparation for sailing. In the +afternoon a peon {messenger} came hurrying along the jetty, boarded the +vessel, and handed a note to the captain, who read it, tore it up, and +dismissed the messenger. He went down to his cabin, and coming up a few +minutes later, cried: + +"Where's that boy Burke?" + +"Here, sir," cried Desmond, starting up from the place where, in Bulger's +company, he had been splicing a rope. + +"Idling away your time as usual, of course. Here, take this chit {note} +and run ashore. 'Tis for Mr. Diggle, as you can see if you can read." + +"But how am I to find him, sir?" + +"Hang me, that's your concern. Find him, and give the chit into his own +hand, and be back without any tomfoolery, or by thunder I'll lay a rope +across your shoulders." + +Desmond took the note, left the vessel, and hurried along the jetty. +After what Bulger had said he was not very well pleased at the prospect +of meeting Diggle again. At the shore end of the jetty he was accosted by +the peon who had brought Diggle's note on board. The man intimated by +signs that he would show the way, and Desmond, wondering why the Indian +had not himself waited to receive Captain Barker's answer, followed him +at a rapid pace on shore, past the docks, through a corner of the town +where the appearance of a white stranger attracted the curious attention +of the natives, to an open space in front of the entrance to the fort. + +Here they arrived at a low wall cut by an open gateway, at each side of +which stood a Maratha sentry armed with a matchlock. A few words were +exchanged between Desmond's guide and one of the sentries; the two +entered, crossed a compound dotted with trees, and passing through the +principal gateway came to a large, square building near the center of the +fort. The door of this was guarded by a sentry. Again a few words were +spoken. Desmond fancied he saw a slight smile curl the lips of the +natives; then the sentry called another peon who stood at hand, and sent +him into the palace. + +Desmond felt a strange sinking at heart. The smile upon these dark faces +awakened a vague uneasiness; it was so like Diggle's smile. He supposed +that the man had gone in to report that he had arrived with the captain's +answer. The note still remained with him; the Marathas apparently knew +that it was to be delivered personally; yet he was left at the door, and +his guide stood by in an attitude that suggested he was on guard. + +How long was he to be kept waiting? he wondered. Captain Barker had +ordered him to return at once; the penalty for disobedience he knew only +too well; yet the minutes passed, and lengthened into two hours without +any sign of the man who had gone in with the message. Desmond spoke to +the guide, but the man shook his head, knowing no English. Becoming more +and more uneasy, he was at length relieved to see the messenger come back +to the door and beckon him to enter. As he passed the sentries they made +him a salaam in which his anxious sensitiveness detected a shade of +mockery; but before he could define his feelings he reached a third door +guarded like the others, and was ushered in. + +He found himself in a large chamber, its walls dazzling with barbaric +decoration--figures of Ganessa, a favorite idol of the Marathas, of +monstrous elephants, and peacocks with enormously expanded tails. The +hall was so crowded that his first confusion was redoubled. A path was +made through the throng as at a signal, and at the end of the room he saw +two men apart from the rest. + +One of them, standing a little back from the other, was Diggle; the +other, a tall, powerful figure in raiment as gaudy as the painted +peacocks around him, his fingers covered with rings, a diamond blazing in +his headdress, was sitting cross-legged on a dais. Behind him, against +the wall, was an image of Ganessa, made of solid gold, with diamonds for +eyes, and blazing with jewels. At one side was his hookah, at the other a +two-edged sword and an unsheathed dagger. Below the dais on either hand +two fierce-visaged Marathas stood, their heads and shoulders covered with +a helmet, their bodies cased in a quilted vest, each holding a straight +two-edged sword. Between Angria and the idol two fan bearers lightly +swept the air above their lord's head with broad fans of palm leaves. + +Desmond walked towards the dais, feeling woefully out of place amid the +brilliant costumes of Angria's court. Scarcely two of the Marathas were +dressed alike; some were in white, some in lilac, others in purple, but +each with ornaments after his own taste. Desmond had not had time before +leaving the Good Intent to smarten himself up, and he stood there a tall, +thin, sunburnt youth in dirty, tattered garments, doing his best to face +the assembly with British courage. + +At the foot of the dais he paused and held out the captain's note. Diggle +took it in silence, his face wearing the smile that Desmond knew so well +and now so fully distrusted. Without reading it, he tore it in fragments +and threw them upon the floor, at the same time saying a few words to the +resplendent figure at his side. + +Tulaji Angria was dark, inclined to be fat, and not unpleasant in +feature. But it was with a scowling brow that he replied to Diggle. +Desmond was no coward, but he afterward confessed that as he stood there +watching the two faces, the dark, lowering face of Angria, the smiling, +scarcely less swarthy face of Diggle, he felt his knees tremble under +him. What was the Pirate saying? That he was the subject of their +conversation was plain from the glances thrown at him; that he was at a +crisis in his fate he knew by instinct; but, ignorant of the tongue they +spoke, he could but wait in fearful anxiety and mistrust. + +He learned afterwards the purport of the talk. + +"That is your man?" said Angria. 'You have deceived me. I looked for a +man of large stature and robust make, like the Englishmen I already have. +What good will this slim, starved stripling be in my barge?" + +"You must not be impatient, huzur {lord}," replied Diggle. "He is a +stripling, it is true; slim, certainly; starved--well, the work on board +ship does not tend to fatten a man. But give him time; he is but sixteen +or seventeen years old, young in my country. In a year or two, under your +regimen, he will develop; he comes of a hardy stock, and already he can +make himself useful. He was one of the quickest and handiest on board our +ship, though this was his first voyage." + +"But you yourself admit that he is not yet competent for the oar in my +barge. What is to recompense me for the food he will eat while he is +growing? No, Diggle sahib, if I take him I must have some allowance off +the price. In truth, I will not take him unless you send me from your +vessel a dozen good muskets. That is my word." + +"Still, huzur--" began Diggle, but Angria cut him short with a gesture of +impatience. + +"That is my word, I say. Shall I, Tulaji Angria, dispute with you? I will +have twenty muskets, or you may keep the boy." + +Diggle shrugged and smiled. + +"Very well, huzur. You drive a hard bargain; but it shall be as you say. +I will send a chit to the captain, and you shall have the muskets before +the ship sails." + +Angria made a sign to one of his attendants. The man approached Desmond, +took him by the sleeve, and signed for him to come away. Desmond threw a +beseeching look at Diggle, and said hurriedly: + +"Mr. Diggle, please tell me--" + +But Angria rose to his feet in wrath, and shouted to the man who had +Desmond by the sleeve. Desmond made no further resistance. His head swam +as he passed between the dusky ranks out into the courtyard. + +"What does it all mean?" he asked himself. + +His guide hurried him along until they came to a barn-like building under +the northwest angle of the fort. The Maratha unlocked the door, signed to +Desmond to enter, and locked him in. He was alone. + +He spent three miserable hours. Bitterly did he now regret having cast in +his lot with the smooth-spoken stranger who had been so sympathetic with +him in his troubles at home. He tried to guess what was to be done with +him. He was in Angria's power, a prisoner, but to what end? Had he run +from the tyranny at home merely to fall a victim to a worse tyranny at +the hands of an oriental? He knew so little of Angria, and his brain was +in such a turmoil, that he could not give definite shape to his fears. + +He paced up and down the hot, stuffy shed, awaiting, dreading, he knew +not what. Through the hole that served for a window he saw men passing to +and fro across the courtyard, but they were all swarthy, all alien; there +was no one from whom he could expect a friendly word. + +Toward evening, as he looked through the hole, he saw Diggle issue from +the door of the palace and cross towards the outer gate. + +"Mr. Diggle! Mr. Diggle!" he called. "Please! I am locked up here." + +Diggle looked round, smiled, and leisurely approached the shed. + +"Why have they shut me up here?" demanded Desmond. "Captain Barker said I +was to return at once. Do get the door unlocked." + +"You ask the impossible, my young friend," replied Diggle through the +hole. "You are here by the orders of Angria, and 'twould be treason in me +to pick his locks." + +"But why? what right has he to lock me up? and you, why did you let him? +You said you were my friend; you promised--oh, you know what you +promised." + +"I promised? Truly, I promised that, if you were bent on accompanying me +to these shores, I would use my influence to procure you employment with +one of my friends among the native princes. Well, I have kept my word; +firmavi fidem, as the Latin hath it. Angria is my friend; I have used my +influence with him; and you are now in the service of one of the most +potent of Indian princes. True, your service is but beginning. It may be +arduous at first; it may be long ab ovo usque ad mala; the egg may be +hard, and the apples, perchance, somewhat sour; but as you become inured +to your duties, you will learn resignation and patience, and--" + +"Don't!" burst out Desmond, unable to endure the smooth-flowing periods +of the man now self-confessed a villain. "What does it mean? Tell me +plainly; am I a slave?" + +"Servulus, non servus, my dear boy. What is the odds whether you serve +Dick Burke, a booby farmer, or Tulaji Angria, a prince and a man of +intelligence? Yet there is a difference, and I would give you a word of +counsel. Angria is an oriental, and a despot; it were best to serve him +with all diligence, or--" + +He finished the sentence with a meaning grimace. + +"Mr. Diggle, you can't mean it," said Desmond. "Don't leave me here! I +implore you to release me. What have I ever done to you? Don't leave me +in this awful place." + +Diggle smiled and began to move away. At the sight of his malicious smile +the prisoner's despair was swept away before a tempest of rage. + +"You scoundrel! You shameless scoundrel!" + +The words, low spoken and vibrant with contempt, reached Diggle when he +was some distance from the shed. He turned and sauntered back. + +"Heia! contumeliosae voces! 'Tis pretty abuse. My young friend, I must +withdraw my ears from such shocking language. But stay! if you have any +message for Sir Willoughby, your squire, whose affections you have so +diligently cultivated to the prejudice of his nearest and dearest, it +were well for you to give it. 'Tis your last opportunity; for those who +enter Angria's service enjoy a useful but not a long career. And before I +return to Gheria from a little journey I am about to make, you may have +joined the majority of those who have tempted fate in this insalubrious +clime. Horae momento cita mors yen it--you remember the phrase?" + +Diggle leaned against the wooden wall, watching with malicious enjoyment +the effect of his words. Desmond was very pale; all his strength seemed +to have deserted him. Finding that his taunts provoked no reply, Diggle +went on: + +"Time presses, my young friend. You will be logged a deserter from the +Good Intent. 'Tis my fervent hope you never fall into the hands of +Captain Barker; as you know, he is a terrible man when roused." + +Waving his gloved hand, he moved away. Desmond did not watch his +departure. Falling back from the window, he threw himself upon the +ground, and gave way to a long fit of black despair. + +How long he lay in this agony he knew not. But he was at last roused by +the opening of the door. It was almost dark. Rising to his feet, he saw a +number of men hustled into the shed. Ranged along one of the walls, they +squatted on the floor, and for some minutes afterwards Desmond heard the +clank of irons and the harsh grating of a key. Then a big Maratha came to +him, searched him thoroughly, clapped iron bands upon his ankles, and +locked the chains to staples in the wall. Soon the door was shut, barred, +and locked, and Desmond found himself a prisoner with eight others. + +For a little they spoke among themselves, in the low tones of men utterly +spent and dispirited. Then all was silent, and they slept. But Desmond +lay wide awake, waiting for the morning. + +The shed was terribly hot. Air came only through the one narrow opening, +and before an hour was past the atmosphere was foul, seeming the more +horrible to Desmond by contrast with the freshness of his life on the +ocean. Mosquitoes nipped him until he could scarcely endure the intense +irritation. He would have given anything for a little water; but though +he heard a sentry pacing up and down outside, he did not venture to call +to him, and could only writhe in heat and torture, longing for the dawn, +yet fearing it and what it might bring forth. + +Worn and haggard after his sleepless night, Desmond had scarcely spirit +enough to look with curiosity on his fellow prisoners when the shed was +faintly lit by the morning sun. But he saw that the eight men, all +natives, were lying on crude charpoys {mat beds} along the wall, each man +chained to a staple like his own. One of the men was awake; and, catching +Desmond's lusterless eyes fixed upon him, he sat up and returned his +gaze. + +"Your Honor is an English gentleman?" + +The words caused Desmond to start: they were so unexpected in such a +place. The Indian spoke softly and carefully, as if anxious not to awaken +his companions. + +"Yes," replied Desmond. "Who are you?" + +"My name, sir, is Surendra Nath Chuckerbutti. I was lately a clerk in the +employ of a burra {great} sahib, English factor, at Calcutta." + +"How did you get here?" + +"That, sahib, is a moving tale. While on a visit of condolence to my +respectable uncle and aunt at Chittagong, I was kidnapped by Sandarband +piratical dogs. Presto!--at that serious crisis a Dutch ship makes +apparition and rescues me; but my last state is more desperate than the +first. The Dutch vessel will not stop to replace me on mother earth; she +is for Bombay, across the kala pani {black water}, as we say. I am not a +swimmer; besides, what boots it?--we are ten miles from land, to say +nothing of sharks and crocodiles and the lordly tiger. So I perforce +remain, to the injury of my caste, which forbids navigation. But see the +issue. The Dutch ship is assaulted; grabs and gallivats galore swarm upon +the face of the waters; all is confusion worse confounded; in a brace of +shakes we are in the toils. It is now two years since this untoward +catastrophe. With the crew I am conveyed hither and eat the bitter crust +of servitude. Some of the Dutchmen are consigned to other forts in +possession of the Pirate, and three serve here in his state barge." + +Desmond glanced at the sleeping forms. + +"No, sir, they are not here," said the Babu {equivalent to Mr.; applied +by the English to the native clerk}, catching his look. "They share +another apartment with your countrymen--chained? Oh, yes! These, my +bedfellows of misfortune, are Indians, not of Bengal, like myself; two +are Biluchis hauled from a country ship; two are Mussulmans from Mysore; +one a Gujarati; two Marathas. We are a motley crew--a miscellany, no +less." + +"What do they do with you in the daytime?" + +"I, sir, adjust accounts of the Pirate's dockyard; for this I am +qualified by prolonged driving of quill in Calcutta, to expressed +satisfaction of Honorable John Company and English merchants. But my +position, sir, is of Damoclean anxiety. I am horrified by conviction that +one small error of calculation will entail direst retribution. Videlicet, +sir, this week a fellow captive is minus a finger and thumb--and all for +oversight of six annas {the anna is the 16th part of a rupee}. But I hear +the step of our jailer; I must bridle my tongue." + +The Babu had spoken throughout in a low monotonous tone that had not +disturbed the slumbers of his fellow prisoners. But they were all +awakened by the noisy opening of the door and the entrance of their +jailer. He went to each in turn, and unlocked their fetters; then they +filed out in dumb submission, to be escorted by armed sentries to the +different sheds where they fed, each caste by itself. + +When the eight had disappeared the jailer turned to Desmond, and, taking +him by the sleeve, led him across the courtyard into the palace. Here, in +a little room, he was given a meager breakfast of rice; after which he +was taken to another room where he found Angria in company with a big +Maratha, who had in his hand a long bamboo cane. The Pirate was no longer +in durbar {council, ceremonial} array, but was clad in a long yellow robe +with a lilac-colored shawl. + +Conscious that he made a very poor appearance in his tatters, Desmond +felt that the two men looked at him with contempt. A brief conversation +passed between them; then the Maratha salaamed to Angria and went from +the room, beckoning Desmond to follow him. They went out of the precincts +of the palace, and through a part of the town, until they arrived at the +docks. There the laborers, slaves and free, were already at work. Desmond +at the first glance noticed several Europeans among them, miserable +objects who scarcely lifted their heads to look at this latest newcomer +of their race. His guide called up one of the foremen shipwrights, and +instructed him to place the boy among a gang of the workmen. Then he went +away. Scarcely a minute had elapsed when Desmond heard a cry, and looking +round, saw the man brutally belaboring with his rattan the bare shoulders +of a native. He quivered; the incident seemed of ill augury. + +In a few minutes Desmond found himself among a gang of men who were +working at a new gallivat in process of construction for Angria's own +use. He received his orders in dumb show from the foreman of the gang. +Miserable as he was, he would not have been a boy if he had not been +interested in his novel surroundings; and no intelligent boy could have +failed to take an interest in the construction of a gallivat. It was a +large rowboat of from thirty to seventy tons, with two masts, the mizzen +being very slight. The mainmast bore one huge sail, triangular in form, +its peak extending to a considerable height above the mast. The smaller +gallivats were covered with a spar deck made of split bamboos, their +armament consisting of pettararoes fixed on swivels in the gunwale. But +the larger vessels had a fixed deck on which were mounted six or eight +cannon, from two to four pounders; and in addition to their sail they had +from forty to fifty oars, so that, with a stout crew, they attained a +rate of four or five miles an hour. + +One of the first things Desmond learned was that the Indian mode of ship +building differed fundamentally from the European. The timbers were +fitted in after the planks had been put together; and the planks were put +together, not with flat edges, but rabbited, the parts made to correspond +with the greatest exactness. When a plank was set up, its edge was +smeared with red lead, and the edge of the plank to come next was pressed +down upon it, the inequalities in its surface being thus shown by the +marks of the lead. These being smoothed away, if necessary several times, +and the edges fitting exactly, they were rubbed with da'ma, a sort of +glue that in course of time became as hard as iron. The planks were then +firmly riveted with pegs, and by the time the work was finished the seams +were scarcely visible, the whole forming apparently one entire piece of +timber. + +The process of building a gallivat was thus a very long and tedious one; +but the vessel when completed was so strong that it could go to sea for +many years before the hull needed repair. + +Desmond learned all this only gradually; but from the first day, making a +virtue of necessity, he threw himself into the work and became very +useful, winning the good opinion of the officers of the dockyard. His +feelings were frequently wrung by the brutal punishments inflicted by the +overseer upon defaulters. The man had absolute power over the workers. He +could flog them, starve them, even cut off their ears and noses. One of +his favorite devices was to tie a quantity of oiled cotton round each of +a man's fingers and set light to these living torches. + +Another, used with a man whom he considered lazy, was the tank. Between +the dockyard and the river, separated from the latter only by a thin +wall, was a square cavity about seven feet deep covered with boarding, in +the center of which was a circular hole. In the wall was a small orifice +through which water could be let in from the river, while in the opposite +wall was the pipe and spout of a small hand pump. The man whom the +overseer regarded as an idler was let down into the tank, the covering +replaced, and water allowed to enter from the river. This was a potent +spur to the defaulter's activity, for if he did not work the pump fast +enough the water would gradually rise in the tank, and he would drown. +Desmond learned of one case where the man, utterly worn out by his life +of alternate toil and punishment, refused to work the pump and stood in +silent indifference while the water mounted inch by inch until it covered +his head and ended his woes. + +Desmond's diligence in the dockyard pleased the overseer, whose name was +Govinda, and he was by and by employed on lighter tasks which took him +sometimes into the town. Until the novelty wore off he felt a lively +interest in the scenes that met his eye--the bazaars, crowded with +dark-skinned natives, the men mustachioed, clad for the most part in +white garments that covered them from the crown of the head to the knee, +with a touch of red sometimes in their turbans; the women with bare heads +and arms and feet, garbed in red and blue; the gosains, mendicants with +matted hair and unspeakable filth; the women who fried chapatis {small, +flat, unleavened cakes} on griddles in the streets, grinding their meal +in handmills; the sword grinders, whetting the blades of the Maratha +two-edged swords; the barbers, whose shops had a never-ending succession +of customers; the Brahmans, almost naked and shaved bald save for a small +tuft at the back of the head; the sellers of madi, a toddy extracted from +the cocoanut palm; the magicians in their shawls, with high stiff red +cap, painted all over with snakes; the humped bullocks that were employed +as beasts of burden, and when not in use roamed the streets untended; +occasionally the basawa, the sacred bull of Siva, the destroyer, and the +rath {car} carrying the sacred rat of Ganessa. But with familiarity such +scenes lost their charm; and as the months passed away Desmond felt more +and more the gnawing of care at his heart, the constant sadness of a +slave. + + + +Chapter 11: In which the Babu tells the story of King Vikramaditya; and the +discerning reader may find more than appears on the surface. + + +Day followed day in dreary sameness. Regularly every evening Desmond was +locked with his eight fellow prisoners in the shed, there to spend hours +of weariness and discomfort until morning brought release and the common +task. He had the same rations of rice and ragi {a cereal}, with +occasional doles of more substantial fare. He was carefully kept from all +communication with the other European prisoners, and as the Bengali was +the only man of his set who knew English, his only opportunities of using +his native tongue occurred in the evening before he slept. + +His fellow prisoners spoke Urdu among themselves, and Desmond found some +alleviation of the monotony of his life in learning the lingua franca of +India under the Babu's tuition. He was encouraged to persevere in the +study by the fact that the Babu proved to be an excellent storyteller, +often beguiling the tedium of wakeful hours in the shed by relating +interminable narratives from the Hindu mythology, and in particular the +exploits of the legendary hero Vikramaditya. So accomplished was he in +this very oriental art that it was not uncommon for one or other of the +sentries to listen to him through the opening in the shed wall, and the +head warder who locked the prisoners' fetters would himself sometimes +squat down at the door before leaving them at night, and remain an +interested auditor until the blast of a horn warned all in the fort and +town that the hour of sleep had come. It was some time before Desmond was +sufficiently familiar with the language to pick up more than a few words +of the stories here and there, but in three months he found himself able +to follow the narrative with ease. + +Meanwhile he was growing apace. The constant work in the open air, clad, +save during the rains, in nothing but a thin dhoti {a cloth worn round +the waist, passed between the legs and tucked in behind the back}, +developed his physique and, even in that hot climate, hardened his +muscles. The Babu one day remarked with envy that he would soon be deemed +worthy of promotion to Angria's own gallivat, whose crew consisted of +picked men of all nationalities. + +This was an honor Desmond by no means coveted. As a dockyard workman, +earning his food by the sweat of his brow, he did not come in contact +with Angria, and was indeed less hardly used than he had been on board +the Good Intent. But to become a galley slave seemed to him a different +thing, and the prospect of pulling an oar in the Pirate's gallivat served +to intensify his longing to escape. + +For, though he proved so willing and docile in the dockyard, not a day +passed but he pondered the idea of escape. He seized every opportunity of +learning the topography of the fort and town, being aided in this +unwittingly by Govinda, who employed him more and more often, as he +became familiar with the language, in conveying messages from one part of +the settlement to another. But he was forced to confess to himself that +the chances of escape were very slight. Gheria was many miles from the +nearest European settlement where he might find refuge. To escape by sea +seemed impossible; if he fled through the town and got clear of Angria's +territory he would almost certainly fall into the hands of the Peshwa's +{the prime minister and real ruler of the Maratha kingdom} people, and +although the Peshwa was nominally an ally of the Company, his subjects--a +lawless, turbulent, predatory race--were not likely to be specially +friendly to a solitary English lad. A half-felt hope that he might be +able to reach Suwarndrug, lately captured by Commodore James, was dashed +by the news that that fort had been handed over by him to the Marathas. +Moreover, such was the rivalry among the various European nations +competing for trade in India that he was by no means sure of a friendly +reception if he should succeed in gaining a Portuguese or Dutch +settlement. Dark stories were told of Portuguese dealings with +Englishmen, and the Dutch bore no good repute for their treatment of +prisoners. + +It was a matter of wonder to Desmond that none of his companions ever +hinted at escape. He could not imagine that any man could be a slave +without feeling a yearning for liberty; yet these men lived through the +unvarying round; eating, toiling, sleeping, without any apparent mental +revolt. He could only surmise that all manliness and spirit had been +crushed out of them, and from motives of prudence he forbore to speak of +freedom. + +But one evening, a sultry August evening when the shed was like an oven, +and, bathed in sweat, he felt utterly limp and depressed, he asked the +Babu in English whether anyone had ever escaped out of Angria's clutches. +Surendra Nath Chuckerbutti glanced anxiously around, as if fearful that +the others might understand. But they lay listless on their charpoys; +they knew no English, and there was nothing in Desmond's tone to quicken +their hopelessness. + +"No, sahib," said the Bengali; "such escapade, if successful, is beyond +my ken. There have been attempts; cui bono? Nobody is an anna the better. +Nay, the last state of such misguided men is even worse; they die +suffering very ingenious torture." + +Desmond had been amazed at the Babu's command of English until he learned +that the man was an omnivorous reader, and in his leisure at Calcutta had +spent many an hour in poring over such literature as his master's scanty +library afforded, the works of Mr. Samuel Johnson and Mr. Henry Fielding +in particular. + +At this moment Desmond said no more, but in the dead of night, when all +were asleep, he leaned over to the Babu's charpoy and gently nudged him. + +"Surendra Nath!" he whispered. + +"Who calls?" returned the Babu. + +"Listen. Have you yourself ever thought of escaping?" + +"Peace and quietness, sir. He will hear." + +"Who?" + +"The Gujarati, sir--Fuzl Khan." + +"But he doesn't understand. And if he did, what then?" + +"He was the single man, positively unique, who was spared among six +attempting escape last rains." + +"They did make an attempt, then. Why was he spared?" + +"That, sir, deponent knoweth not. The plot was carried to Angria." + +"How?" + +"That also is dark as pitch. But Fuzl Khan was spared, that we know. No +man can trust his vis-a-vis. No man is now so bold to discuss such +matters." + +"Is that why we are all chained up at night?" + +"That, sir, is the case. It is since then our limbs are shackled." + +Desmond thought over this piece of information. He had noticed that the +Gujarati was left much alone by the others. They were outwardly civil +enough, but they rarely spoke to him of their own accord, and sometimes +they would break off in a conversation if he appeared interested. Desmond +had put this down to the man's temper; he was a sullen fellow, with a +perpetually hangdog look, occasionally breaking out in paroxysms of +violence which cost him many a scourging from the overseer's merciless +rattan. But the attitude of his fellow prisoner was more easily explained +if the Babu's hint was well founded. They feared him. + +Yet, if he had indeed betrayed his comrades, he had gained little by his +treachery. He was no favorite with the officers of the yard. They kept +him hard at work, and seemed to take a delight in harrying him. More than +once, unjustly, as it appeared to Desmond, he had made acquaintance with +the punishment tank. In his dealings with his fellows he was morose and +offensive. A man of great physical strength, he was a match for any two +of his shed companions save the Biluchis, who, though individually +weaker, retained something of the spirit of their race and made common +cause against him. The rest he bullied, and none more than the Bengali, +whose weaklier constitution spared him the hard manual work of the yard, +but whose timidity invited aggression. + +Now that the subject which constantly occupied his thoughts had been +mooted, Desmond found himself more eagerly striving to find a solution of +the problem presented by the idea of escape. At all hours of the day, and +often when he lay in sleepless discomfort at night, his active mind +recurred to the one absorbing matter: how to regain his freedom. He had +already canvassed the possibilities of escape by land, only to dismiss +the idea as utterly impracticable; for even could he elude the vigilance +of the sentries he could not pass as a native, and the perils besetting +an Englishman were not confined to Angria's territory. + +But how stood the chances of escape by sea? Could he stow himself on +board a grab or gallivat, and try to swim ashore when near some friendly +port? He put the suggestion from him as absurd. Supposing he succeeded in +stowing himself on an outgoing vessel, how could he know when he was near +a friendly port without risking almost certain discovery? Besides, except +in such rare cases as the visit of an interloper like the Good Intent, +the Pirate did little trade. His vessels were employed mainly in dashing +out on insufficiently-convoyed merchantmen. + +But the train of thought once started could not but be followed out. What +if he could seize a grab or gallivat in the harbor? To navigate such a +vessel required a party, men having some knowledge of the sea. How stood +his fellow prisoners in that respect? The Biluchis, tall wiry men, were +traders, and had several times, he knew, made the voyage from the Persian +Gulf to Surat. It was on one of these journeys that they had fallen into +Angria's hands. They might have picked up something of the simpler +details of navigation. The Mysoreans, being up-country men and +agriculturists, were not likely even to have seen the sea until they +became slaves of Angria. The Marathas would be loath to embark; they +belonged to a warrior race which had for centuries lived by raiding its +neighbors; but being forbidden by their religion to eat or drink at sea +they would never make good seamen. The Babu was a native of Bengal, and +the Bengalis were physically the weakest of the Indian peoples, +constitutionally timid, and unenterprising in matters demanding physical +courage. Desmond smiled as he thought of how his friend Surendra Nath +might comport himself in a storm. + +There remained the Gujarati, and of his nautical capacity Desmond knew +nothing. But, mentioning the matter of seamanship casually to the Babu +one day, he learned that Fuzl Khan was a khalasi {sailor} from Cutch. He +had in him a strain of negro blood, derived probably from some Zanzibari +ancestor brought to Cutch as a slave. The men of the coast of Cutch were +the best sailors in India; and Fuzl Khan himself had spent a considerable +portion of his life at sea. + +Thus reflecting on the qualities of his fellow captives, Desmond had +ruefully to acknowledge that they would make a poor crew to navigate a +grab or gallivat. Yet he could find no other, for Angria's system of +mixing the nationalities was cunningly devised to prevent any concerted +schemes. If the attempt was to be made at all, it must be made with the +men whom he knew intimately and with whom he had opportunities of +discussing a plan. + +But he was at once faced by the question of the Gujarati's +trustworthiness. If there was any truth in Surendra Nath's suspicions, he +would be quite ready to betray his fellows; and if looks and manner were +any criterion, the suspicions were amply justified. True, the man had +gained nothing by his former treachery, but that might not prevent him +from repeating it, in the hope that a second betrayal would compel +reward. + +While Desmond was still pondering and puzzling, it happened one +unfortunate day that Govinda the overseer was carried off within a few +hours by what the Babu called the cramp--a disease now known as cholera. +His place was immediately filled. But his successor was a very different +man. He was not so capable as Govinda, and endeavored to make up for his +incapacity by greater brutality and violence. The work of the yard fell +off; he tried to mend matters by harrying the men. The whip and rattan +were in constant use, but the result was less efficiency than ever, and +he sought for the cause everywhere but in himself. The lives of the +captives, bad enough before, became a continual torment. + +Desmond fared no better than the rest. He lost the trifling privileges he +had formerly enjoyed. The new overseer seemed to take a delight in +bullying him. Many a night, when he returned to the shed, his back was +raw where the lash had cut a livid streak through his thin dhoti. His +companions suffered in common with him, Fuzl Khan more than any. For days +at a time the man was incapacitated from work by the treatment meted out +to him. Desmond felt that if the Gujarati had indeed purchased his life +by betraying his comrades, he had made a dear bargain. + +One night, when his eight companions were all asleep, and nothing could +be heard but the regular calls of the sentries, the beating of tom toms +in the town, and the howls of jackals prowling in the outskirts, Desmond +gently woke the Babu. + +"My friend, listen," he whispered, "I have something to say to you." + +Surendra Nath turned over in his charpoy. + +"Speak soft, I pray," he said. + +"My head is on fire," continued Desmond. "I cannot sleep. I have been +thinking. What is life worth to us? Can anything be worse than our +present lot? Do you ever think of escape?" + +"What good, sir? I have said so before. We are fettered; what can we do? +There is but one thing that all men in our plight desire; that is death." + +"Nonsense! I do not desire death. This life is hateful, but while we live +there is something to hope for, and I for one am not content to endure +lifelong misery. I mean to escape." + +"It is easy to say, but the doing--that is impossible." + +"How can we tell that unless we try? The men who tried to escape did not +think it impossible. They might have succeeded--who can say?--if Fuzl +Khan had not betrayed them." + +"And he is still with us. He would betray us again." + +"I am not sure of that. See what he has suffered! Today his whole body +must have writhed with pain. But for the majum {a preparation of hemp} he +has smoked and the plentiful ghi {clarified butter} we rubbed him with, +he would be moaning now. I think he will be with us if we can only find +out a way. You have been here longer than I; can not you help me to form +a plan?" + +"No, sahib; my brain is like running water. Besides, I am afraid. If we +could get rid of our fetters and escape we might have to fight. I cannot +fight; I am not a man of war; I am commercial." + +"But you will help me if I can think of a plan?" + +"I cannot persuade myself to promise, sahib. It is impossible. Death is +the only deliverer." + +Desmond was impatient of the man's lack of spirit. But he suffered no +sign of his feeling to escape him. He had grown to have a liking for the +Babu. + +"Well, I shall not give up the idea," he said. "Perhaps I shall speak of +it to you again." + +Two nights later, in the dark and silent hours, Desmond reopened the +matter. This time the conversation lasted much longer, and in the course +of it the Babu became so much interested and indeed excited that he +forgot his usual caution, and spoke in a high-pitched tone that woke the +Biluchi on the other side. The man hurled abuse at the disturber of his +repose, and Surendra Nath regained his caution and relapsed into his +usual soft murmur. Desmond and he were still talking when the light of +dawn stole into the shed; but though neither had slept, they went about +their work during the day with unusual briskness and lightness of heart. + +That evening, after the prisoners had eaten their supper in their +respective eating rooms, they squatted against the outer wall of the shed +for a brief rest before being locked up for the night. The Babu had +promised to tell a story. The approaches to the yard were all guarded by +the usual sentries, and in the distance could be heard the clanking of +the warder's keys as he went from shed to shed performing his nightly +office. + +"The story! the story!" said one of the Marathas impatiently. "Why dost +thou tarry, Babu?" + +"I have eaten, Gousla, and when the belly is full the brain is sluggish. +But the balance is adjusting itself, and in a little I will begin." + +Through the farther gate came the warder. Desmond and his companions were +the last with whom he had to deal. His keys jangling, he advanced slowly +between two Marathas armed with matchlocks and two-edged swords. + +The Babu had his back against the shed, the others were grouped about +him, and at his left there was a vacant space. It was growing dusk. + +"Hai, worthy jailer!" said Surendra Nath pleasantly, "I was about to tell +the marvelous story of King Bhoya's golden throne. But I will even now +check the stream at the source. Your time is precious. My comrades must +wait until we get inside." + +"Not so, Babu," said the warder gruffly. "Tell thy tale. Barik Allah, you +nine are the last of my round. I will myself wait and hear, for thou hast +a ready tongue, and the learning of a pundit {learned man, teacher}, +Babu, and thy stories, after the day's work, are they not as honey poured +on rice?" + +"You honor me beyond my deserts. If you will deign to be seated!" + +The warder marched to the vacant spot at the Babu's side, and squatted +down, crossing his legs, his heavy bunch of keys lying on the skirt of +his dhoti. The armed Marathas stood at a little distance, leaning on +their matchlocks, within hearing of the Babu, and at spots where they +could see anyone approaching from either end of the yard. It would not do +for the warder to be found thus by the officer of the watch. + +"It happened during the reign of the illustrious King Bhoya," began the +Babu; then he caught his breath, looking strangely nervous. + +"It is the heat, good jailer," he said hurriedly; "--of the illustrious +King Bhoya, I said, that a poor ryot {peasant} named Yajnadatta, digging +one day in his field, found there buried the divine throne of the +incomparable King Vikramaditya. When his eyes were somewhat recovered +from the dazzling vision, and he could gaze unblinking at the wondrous +throne, he beheld that it was resplendent with thirty-two graven images, +and adorned with a multitude of jewels: rubies and diamonds, pearls and +jasper, crystal and coral and sapphires. + +"Now the news of this wondrous discovery coming to the ears of King +Bhoya, he incontinently caused the throne to be conveyed to his palace, +and had it set in the midst of his hall of counsel that rose on columns +of gold and silver, of coral and crystal. Then the desire came upon him +to sit on this throne, and calling his wise men, he bade them choose a +moment of good augury, and gave order to his servitors to make all things +ready for his coronation. Whereupon his people brought curded milk, +sandalwood, flowers, saffron, umbrellas, parasols, divers tails--tails of +oxen, tails of peacocks; arrows, weapons of war, mirrors and other +objects proper to be held by wedded women--all things, indeed, meet for a +solemn festival, with a well-striped tiger skin to represent the seven +continents of the earth; nothing was wanting of all the matters +prescribed in the Shastras {holy books} for the solemn crowning of kings; +and having thus fulfilled their duty, the servitors humbly acquainted his +Majesty therewith. Then when the Guru {religious teacher}, the Purohita +{hereditary priest of the royal house}, the Brahmans, the wise men, the +councilors, the officers, the soldiers, the chief captain, had entered, +the august King Bhoya drew near the throne, to the end that he might be +anointed. + +"But lo! the first of the carven figures that surrounded the throne thus +spake and said: 'Harken, O King. That prince who is endowed with +sovereign qualities; who shines before all others in wealth, in +liberality, in mercy; who excels in heroism and in goodness; who is drawn +by his nature to deeds of piety; who is full of might and majesty; that +prince alone is worthy to sit upon this throne--no other, no meaner +sovereign, is worthy. Harken, O King, to the story of the throne.'" + +"Go on, Babu," said the jailer, as the narrator paused; "what said the +graven image?" + +"'There once lived,'" continued the Babu, "'in the city of Avanti, a +king, Bartrihari by name. Having come to recognize the vanity of earthly +things, this king one day left his throne and went as a jogi {ascetic} +afar into the desert. His kingdom, being then without a head--for he had +no sons, and his younger brother, the illustrious Vikramaditya, was +traveling in far lands--fell into sore disorder, so that thieves and +evildoers increased from day to day. + +"'The wise men in their trouble sought diligently for a child having the +signs of royalty, and in due time, having found one, Xatrya by name, they +gave the kingdom into his charge. But in that land there dwelt a mighty +jin {evil spirit}, Vetala Agni {spirit of fire}, who, when he heard of +what the wise men had done, came forth on the night of the same day the +young king had been enthroned and slew him and departed. And it befell +that each time the councilors found a new king, lo, the Vetala Agni came +forth and slew him. + +"'Now upon a certain day, when the wise men, in sore trouble of heart, +were met in council, there appeared among them the illustrious +Vikramaditya, newly returned from long travel, who, when he had heard +what was toward, said: + +"'"O ye wise men and faithful, make me king without ado." + +"'And the wise men, seeing that Vikramaditya was worthy of that dignity +thus spake: + +"'"From this day, O excellency, thou art king of the realm of Avanti." + +"'Having in this fashion become king of Avanti, Vikramaditya busied +himself all that day with the affairs of his kingdom, tasting the sweets +of power; and at the fall of night he prepared, against the visit of the +Vetala Agni, great store of heady liquors, all kinds of meat, fish, +bread, confections, rice boiled with milk and honey, sauces, curded milk, +butter refined, sandalwood, bouquets and garlands, divers sorts of +sweet-scented things; and all these he kept in his palace, and himself +remained therein, reclining in full wakefulness upon his fairest bed. + +"'Then into this palace came the Vetala Agni, sword in hand, and went +about to slay the august Vikramaditya. But the king said: + +"'"Harken, O Vetala Agni; seeing that thy Excellency has come for to +cause me to perish, it is not doubtful that thou wilt succeed in thy +purpose; albeit, all these viands thou dost here behold have been brought +together for thy behoof; eat, then, whatsoever thou dost find worthy; +afterwards thou shalt work thy will." + +"'And the Vetala Agni, having heard these words, filled himself with this +great store of food, and, marvelously content with the king, said unto +him: + +"'"Truly I am content, and well disposed towards thee, and I give thee +the realm of Avanti; sit thou in the highest place and taste its joys; +but take heed of one thing: every day shalt thou prepare for me a repast +like unto this." + +"'With these words, the Vetala Agni departed from that spot and betook +him into his own place. + +"'Then for a long space did Vikramaditya diligently fulfill that command; +but by and by, growing aweary of feeding the Vetala Agni, he sought +counsel of the jogi Trilokanatha, who had his dwelling on the mount of +Kanahakrita. The jogi, perceiving the manifold merits of the incomparable +Vikramaditya, was moved with compassion towards him, and when he had long +meditated and recited sundry mantras {hymns and prayers}, he thus spake +and said: + +"'"Harken, O King. From the sacred tank of Shakravatar spring alleys four +times seven, as it were branches from one trunk, to wit, seven to the +north, seven to the east, seven to the west, and seven to the south. Of +the seven alleys springing to the north do you choose the seventh, and in +the seventh alley the seventh tree from the sacred tank, and on the +seventh branch of the seventh tree thou shalt find the nest of a bulbul. +Within that nest thou shalt discover a golden key."'" + +The Babu was now speaking very slowly, and an observer watching Desmond +would have perceived that his eyes were fixed with a strange look of +mingled eagerness and anxiety upon the storyteller. But no one observed +this; every man in the group was intent upon the story, hanging upon the +lips of the eloquent Babu. + +"'Having obtained the golden key,'" continued the narrator, "'thou shalt +return forthwith to thy palace, and the same night, when the Vetala Angi +has eaten and drunk his fill, thou shalt in his presence lay the key upon +the palm of thy left hand, thus--'" (here the Babu quietly took up a key +hanging from the bunch attached to the warder's girdle, and laid it upon +his left palm). "'Then shalt thou say to the Vetala: + +"'"O illustrious Vetala, tell me, I pray thee, what doth this golden key +unlock?" + +"'Then if the aspect of the Vetala be fierce, fear not, for he must needs +reply: such is the virtue of the key; and by his words thou shalt direct +thy course. Verily it is for such a trial that the gods have endowed thee +with wisdom beyond the common lot of men. + +"'Vikramaditya performed in all points the jogi's bidding; and having in +the presence of the Vetala laid the golden key upon the palm of his hand, +a voice within bade him ask the question: + +"'"O Vetala, what art thou apt to do? What knowest thou?" + +"'And the Vetala answered: + +"'"All that I have in my mind, that I am apt to perform. I know all +things." + +"'And the king said: + +"'"Speak, then; what is the number of my years?" + +"'And the Vetala answered: + +"'"The years of thy life are a hundred." + +"'Then said the king: + +"'"I am troubled because in the tale of my years there are two gaps; +grant me, then, one year in excess of a hundred, or from the hundred take +one." + +"'And the Vetala answered: + +"'"O King, thou art in the highest degree good, liberal, merciful, just, +lord of thyself, and honored of gods and of Brahmans; the measure of joys +that are ordained to fill thy life is full; to add anything thereto, to +take anything therefrom, are alike impossible." + +"'Having heard these words, the king was satisfied, and the Vetala +departed unto his own place. + +"'Upon the night following the king prepared no feast against the coming +of the Vetala, but girt himself for fight. The Vetala came, and seeing +nothing in readiness for the repast, but, on the contrary, all things +requisite to a combat, he waxed wroth and said: + +"'"O wicked and perverse king, why hast thou made ready nothing for my +pleasure this night?" + +"'And the king answered: "Since thou canst neither add to my length of +years, nor take anything therefrom, why should I make ready a repast for +thee continually and without profit?" + +"'The Vetala made answer: + +"'"Ho--'tis thus that thou speakest! Now, truly, come fight with me; this +night will I devour thee." + +"'At these words the king rose up in wrath to smite the Vetala, and held +him in swift and dexterous combat for a brief space. And the Vetala, +having thus made proof of the might and heroism of the king, and being +satisfied, spake and said: + +"'"O King, thou art mighty indeed; I am content with thy valor; now, +then, ask me what thou wilt." + +"'And the king answered: + +"'"Seeing that thou art well-disposed towards me, grant me this grace, +that when I call thee, thou wilt in that same instant stand at my side." + +"'And the Vetala, having granted this grace to the king, departed unto +his own place.'" + +The Babu waved his hands as a sign that the story was ended. He was damp +with perspiration, and in his glance at Desmond there was a kind of +furtive appeal for approval. + +"Thou speakest well, Babu," said the warder. "But what befell King Bhoya +when the graven image had thus ended his saying?" + +"That, good jailer, is another story, and if you please to hear it +another night, I will do my poor best to satisfy you." + +"Well, the hour is late." + +The warder rose to his feet and resumed his official gruffness. + +"Come, rise; it is time I locked your fetters; and, in good sooth, mine +is no golden key." + +He chuckled as he watched the prisoners file one by one into the shed. +Following them, he quickly locked each in turn to his staple in the wall +and went out, bolting and double-locking the door behind him. + +"You did well, my friend," whispered Desmond in English to the Babu. + +"My heart flutters like the wing of a bulbul," answered the Babu; "but I +am content, sahib." + +"But say, Surendra Nath," remarked one of the Maratha captives, "last +time you told us that story you said nothing of the golden key." + +"Ah!" replied the Babu, "you are thinking of the story told by the second +graven image in King Vikramaditya's throne. I will tell you that +tomorrow." + + + +Chapter 12: In which our hero is offered freedom at the price of honor; and +Mr. Diggle finds that others can quote Latin on occasion. + + +Next morning, when Desmond left the shed with his fellow prisoners, he +took with him, secreted in a fold of his dhoti, a small piece of clay. It +had been given him overnight by the Babu. An hour or two later, happening +to be for a moment alone in the tool shop, he took out the clay and +examined it carefully. It was a moment for which he had waited and longed +with feverish impatience. The clay was a thin strip, oval in shape, and +slightly curved. In the middle of it was the impression, faint but clear, +of a key. A footstep approaching, he concealed the clay again in his +garment, and, when a workman entered, was busily plying a chisel upon a +deal plank. + +Before he left the tool shop, he secreted with the clay a scrap of steel +and a small file. That day, and for several days after, whenever chance +gave him a minute or two apart from his fellow workmen, he employed the +precious moments in diligently filing the steel to the pattern on the +clay. It was slow work: all too tedious for his eager thought. But he +worked at his secret task with unfailing patience, and at the week's end +had filed the steel to the likeness of the wards of a key. + +That night, when his "co-mates in exile" were asleep, he gently inserted +the steel in the lock of his ankle band. He tried to turn it. It stuck +fast; the wards did not fit. He was not surprised. Before he made the +experiment he had felt that it would fail; the key was indeed a clumsy, +ill-shapen instrument. But next day he began to work on another piece of +steel, and on this he spent every spare minute he could snatch. This time +he found himself able to work faster. Night and morning he looked +searchingly at the key on the warder's bunch, and afterward tried to cut +the steel to the pattern that was now, as it were, stamped upon his +brain. + +He wished he could test his second model in the morning light before the +warder came, and correct it then. But to do so would involve discovery by +his fellow captives; the time to take them into his confidence was not +yet. He had perforce to wait till dead of night before he could tell +whether the changes, more and more delicate and minute, made upon his key +during the day were effective. And the Babu was fretful; having done his +part admirably, as Desmond told him, in working the key into his story, +he seemed to expect that the rest would be easy, and did not make account +of the long labor of the file. + +At length a night came when, inserting the key in the lock, Desmond felt +it turn easily. Success at last! As he heard the click, he felt an +extraordinary sense of elation. Quietly unclasping the fetter, he removed +it from his ankle, and stood free. If it could be called free--to be shut +up in a locked and barred shed in the heart of one of the strongest +fortresses in Hindostan! But at least his limbs were at liberty. What a +world of difference there was between that and his former state! + +Should he inform the Babu? He felt tempted to do so, for it was to +Surendra Nath's ingenuity in interpolating the incident of the key into a +well-known story that he owed the clay pattern of the warder's key. But +Surendra Nath was excitable; he was quite capable of uttering a yell of +delight that would waken the other men and force a premature disclosure. +Desmond decided to wait for a quiet moment next day before telling the +Babu of his success. So he replaced his ankle band, locked the catch, and +lay down to the soundest and most refreshing sleep he had enjoyed for +many a night. + +He had only just reached the workshop next morning when a peon came with +a message that Angria Rho {a chief or prince} required his instant +attendance at the palace. He began to quake in spite of himself. Could +the prince have discovered already that the lock of his fetters had been +tampered with? Desmond could scarcely believe it. He had made his first +test in complete darkness; nothing had broken the silence save the one +momentary click; and the warder, when he unloosed him, had not examined +the lock. What if he were searched and the precious key were found upon +him? It was carefully hidden in a fold of his dhoti. There was no +opportunity of finding another hiding place for it; he must go as he was +and trust that suspicion had not been aroused. But it was with a +galloping pulse that he followed the peon out of the dockyard, within the +walls of the fort, and into the hall where he had had his first interview +with the Pirate. + +His uneasiness was hardly allayed when he saw that Angria was in company +with Diggle. Both were squatting on the carpeted dais; no other person +was in the room. Having ushered him in, the peon withdrew, and Desmond +was alone with the two men he had most cause to fear. Diggle was smiling, +Angria's eyes were gleaming, his mobile lips working as with impatience, +if not anxiety. + +The Pirate spoke quickly, imperiously. + +"You have learnt our tongue, Firangi {originally applied by the natives +to the Portuguese, then to any European} boy?" he said. + +"I have done my best, huzur," replied Desmond in Urdu. + +"That is well. Now harken to what I say. You have pleased me; my jamadar +{head servant} speaks well of you; but you are my slave, and, if I will +it, you will always be my slave. You would earn your freedom?" + +"I am in your august hands, huzur," said Desmond diplomatically. + +"You may earn your freedom in one way," continued Angria in the same +rapid, impatient tone. "My scouts report that an English fleet has passed +up the coast towards Bombay. My spies tell me that in Bombay a large +force is collected under the command of that sur ka batcha {son of a pig} +Clive. But I cannot learn the purpose of this armament. The dogs may +think, having taken my fortress of Suwarndrug, to come and attack me +here. Or they may intend to proceed against the French at Hyderabad. It +is not convenient for me to remain in this uncertainty. You will go to +Bombay and learn these things of which I am in ignorance and come again +and tell me. I will then set you free." + +"I cannot do it, huzur." + +Desmond's reply came without a moment's hesitation. To act as a spy upon +his own countrymen--how could Angria imagine that an English boy would +ever consent to win his freedom on such terms? + +His simple words roused the Maratha to fury. He sprang to his feet and +angrily addressed Diggle, who had also risen, and stood at his side, +still smiling. Diggle replied to his vehement words in a tone too low for +Desmond to catch what he said. Angria turned to the boy again. + +"I will not only set you free; I will give you half a lakh of rupees; you +shall have a place at my court, or, if you please, I will recommend you +to another prince in whose service you may rise to wealth and honor. If +you refuse, I shall kill you; no, I shall not kill you, for death is +sweet to a slave; I shall inflict on you the tortures I reserve for those +who provoke my anger; you shall lose your ears, your nose, and--" + +Diggle again interposed. + +"Pardon me, bhai {brother}," Desmond heard him say, "that is hardly the +way to deal with a boy of my nation. If you will deign to leave him to +me, I think that in a little I shall find means to overcome his +hesitation." + +"But even then, how can I trust the boy? He may give his word to escape +me; then betray me to his countrymen. I have no faith in the Firangi." + +"Believe me, if he gives his word he will keep it. That is the way with +us." + +"It is not your way." + +"I am no longer of them," said Diggle with consummate aplomb. "Dismiss +him now; I shall do my best with him." + +"Then you must hasten. I give you three days: if within that time he has +not consented, I shall do to him all that I have said, and more also." + +"I do not require three days to make up my mind," said Desmond quietly. +"I cannot do what--" + +"Hush, you young fool!" cried Diggle angrily in English. + +Turning to the Pirate he added: "The boy is as stiff-necked as a pig; but +even a pig can be led if you ring his snout. I beg you leave him to me." + +"Take him away!" exclaimed Angria, clapping his hands. + +Two attendants came in answer to his summons, and Desmond was led off and +escorted by them to his workshop. + +Angry and disgusted as he was with both the Maratha and Diggle, he was +still more anxious at this unexpected turn in his affairs. He had but +three days! If he had not escaped before the fourth day dawned, his fate +would be the most terrible that could befall a living creature. The +tender mercies of the wicked are cruel! He had seen, among the prisoners, +some of the victims of Angria's cruelty; they had suffered tortures too +terrible to be named, and dragged out a life of unutterable degradation +and misery, longing for death as a blissful end. With his quick +imagination he already felt the hands of the torturers upon him; and for +all the self control which his life in Gheria had induced, he was for +some moments so wholly possessed by terror that he could scarcely endure +the consciousness of existence. + +But when the first tremors were past, and he began to go about his usual +tasks, and was able to think calmly, not for an instant did he waver in +his resolve. Betray his countrymen! It was not to be thought of. Give his +word to Angria and then forswear himself! Ah! even Diggle knew that he +would not do that. Freedom, wealth, a high place in some prince's court! +He would buy none of them at the price of his honor. Diggle was false, +unspeakably base; let him do Angria's work if he would; Desmond Burke +would never stoop to it. + +He scarcely argued the matter explicitly with himself: it was settled in +Angria's presence by his instinctive repulsion. But it was not in a boy +like Desmond, young, strong, high spirited, tamely to fold his hands +before adverse fate. He had three days: it would go hard with him if he +did not make good use of them. He felt a glow of thankfulness that the +first step, and that a difficult one, had been taken, providentially, as +it seemed, the very night before this crisis in his fate. His future plan +had already outlined itself; it was necessary first to gain over his +companions in captivity; that done, he hoped within the short period +allowed him to break prison and turn his back forever on this place of +horror. + +It seemed to his eager impatience that that day would never end. It was +November, and the beginning of the cold season, and the work of the +dockyard, being urgent, was carried on all day without the usual break +during the hot middle hours, so that he found no opportunity of +consulting his fellows. Further, the foremen of the yard were specially +active. The Pirate had been for some time fearful lest the capture of +Suwarndrug should prove to be the prelude to an assault upon his stronger +fort and headquarters at Gheria, and to meet the danger he had had nine +new vessels laid down. Three of them had been finished, but the work had +been much interrupted by the rains, and the delay in the completion of +the remaining six had irritated him. He had visited his displeasure upon +the foremen. After his interview with Desmond he summoned them to his +presence and threatened them with such dire punishment if the work was +not more rapidly pushed on, that they had used the lash more furiously +and with even less discrimination than ever. Consequently when Desmond +met his companions in the shed at night he found them all in desperate +indignation and rage. He had seen nothing more of Diggle; he must strike +while the iron was hot. + +When they were locked in, and all was quiet outside, the prisoners gave +vent, each in his own way, to their feelings. For a time Desmond +listened, taking no part in their lamentation and cursing. But when the +tide of impotent fury ebbed, and there was a lull, he said quietly: + +"Are my brothers dogs that, suffering these things, they merely whine?" + +The quiet level tones, so strangely contrasting with the tones of +fierceness and hate that were still ringing in the ears of the unhappy +prisoners, had an extraordinary effect. There was dead silence in the +shed: it seemed that every man was afraid to speak. Then one of the +Marathas said in a whisper: + +"What do you mean, sahib?" + +"What do I mean? Surely it must be clear to any man. Have we not sat long +enough on the carpet of patience?" + +Again the silence remained for a space unbroken. + +"You, Gulam Mahomed," continued Desmond, addressing one of the Biluchis +whom he considered the boldest--"have you never thought of escape?" + +"Allah knows!" said the man in an undertone. "But He knows that I +remember what happened a year ago. Fuzl Khan can tell the sahib something +about that." + +A fierce cry broke from the Gujarati, who had been moaning under his +charpoy in anguish from the lashings he had undergone that day. Desmond +heard him spring up; but if he had meant to attack the Biluchi, the +clashing of his fetters reminded him of his helplessness. He cursed the +man, demanding what he meant. + +"Nothing," returned Gulam Mahomed. "But you were the only man, Allah +knows, who escaped the executioner." + +"Pig, and son of a pig!" cried Fuzl Khan, "I knew nothing of the plot. If +any man says I did he lies. They did it without me; some evil jin must +have heard their whisperings. They failed. They were swine of Canarese." + +"Do not let us quarrel," said Desmond. "We are all brothers in +misfortune; we ought to be as close knit as the strands of a rope. Here +is our brother Fuzl Khan, the only man of his gang who did not try to +escape, and see how he is treated! Could he be worse misused? Would not +death be a boon? + +"Is it not so, Fuzl Khan?" + +The Gujarati assented with a passionate cry. + +"As for the rest of us, it is only a matter of time. I am the youngest of +you, and not the hardest worked, yet I feel that the strain of our toil +is wearing me out. What must it be with you? You are dying slowly. If we +make an attempt to escape and fail we shall die quickly, that is all the +difference. What is to be is written, is it not so, Shaik Abdullah?" + +"Even so, sahib," replied the second Biluchi, "it is written. Who can +escape his fate?" + +"And what do you say, Surendra Nath?" + +"The key, sahib," whispered the Babu in English; "what of the key?" + +"Speak in Urdu, Babu," said Desmond quickly. "Don't agree at once." + +Surendra Nath was quick witted; he perceived that Desmond did not wish +the others to suspect that there had been any confidences between them. + +"I am a coward, the sahib knows," he said in Urdu. "I could not give +blows; I should die. It was told us today that the English are about to +attack this fort. They will set us free; we need run no risks." + +"Wah!" exclaimed one of the Mysoreans. "If the Firangi get into the fort, +we shall all be murdered." + +"That is truth," said a Maratha. "The Rho would have our throats cut at +once." + +The Babu groaned. + +"You see, Surendra Nath, it is useless to wait in the hope of help from +my countrymen," said Desmond. "If there is fighting to be done, we can do +all that is needed: is it not so, my brothers? As for you, Babu, if you +would sooner die without--well, there is nothing to prevent you." + +"If the sahib does not wish me to fight, it is well. But has the sahib a +plan?" + +"Yes, I have a plan." + +He paused; there was sound of hard breathing. + +"Tell it us," said the Gujarati eagerly. + +"You are one of us, Fuzl Khan?" + +"The plan! the plan! Is not my back mangled? Have I not endured the tank? +Is not freedom sweet to me as to another? The plan, sahib! I swear, I +Fuzl Khan, to be true to you and all; only tell me the plan." + +"You shall have the plan in good time. First I have a thing to say. When +a battle is to be fought, no soldier fights only for himself, doing that +which seems good to him alone. He looks to the captain for orders. +Otherwise mistakes would be made, and all effort would be wasted. We must +have a captain: who is he to be?" + +"Yourself, sahib," said the Gujarati at once. "You have spoken; you have +the plan; we take you as leader." + +"You hear what Fuzl Khan says. Do you all agree?" + +The others assented eagerly. Then Desmond told his wondering hearers the +secret of the key, and during several hours of that quiet night he +discussed with them in whispers the details of the scheme which he had +worked out. At intervals the sentry passed and flashed his light through +the opening in the wall; but at these moments every man was lying +motionless upon his charpoy, and not a sound was audible save a snore. + +Next day when Desmond, having finished his midday meal of rice and +mangoes, had returned to his workshop, Diggle sauntered in. + +"Ah, my young friend," he said in his quiet voice and with his usual +smile, "doubtless you have expected a visit from me. Night brings +counsel. I did not visit you yesterday, thinking that after sleeping over +the amiable and generous proposition made to you by my friend Angria you +would view it in another light. I trust that during the nocturnal hours +you have come to perceive the advantages of choosing the discreet part. +Let us reason together." + +There were several natives with them in the workshop, but none of them +understood English, and the two Englishmen could talk at ease. + +"Reason!" said Desmond in reply to Diggle's last sentence. "If you are +going to talk of what your pirate friend spoke of yesterday, it is mere +waste of time. I shall never agree." + +"Words, my young friend, mere words! You will be one of us yet. You will +never have such a chance again. Why, in a few years you will be able to +return to England, if you will, a rich man, a very nawab {governor}. My +friend Angria has his faults; nemo est sine culpa: but he is at least +generous. An instance! The man who took the chief part in the capture of +the Dutchman two years ago--what is he now? A naib {deputy governor}, a +man of wealth, of high repute at the Nizam's court. There is no reason +why you should not follow so worthy an example; cut out an Indiaman or +two, and Desmond Burke may, if he will, convey a shipload of precious +things to the shores of Albion, and enjoy his leisured dignity on a +landed estate of his own. He shall drive a coach while his oaf of a +brother perspires behind a plow." + +Desmond was silent. Diggle watched him keenly, and after a slight pause +continued: + +"This is no great thing that is asked of you. You sail on one of Angria's +grabs; you are set upon the shore; you enter Bombay with a likely story +of escape from the fortress of the Pirate; you are a hero, the boon +fellow of the men, the pet of the ladies--for there are ladies in Bombay, +forma praestante puellae. In a week you know everything, all the purposes +that Angria's spies have failed to discover. One day you disappear; the +ladies wail and tear their hair; a tiger has eaten you; in a week you +will be forgotten. But you are back in Angria's fortress, no longer a +slave, downtrodden and despised; but a free man, a rich man, a potentate +to be. Is it not worth thinking of, my young friend, especially when you +remember the other side of the picture? It is a dark side; an unpleasant +side; even, let me confess, horrible: I prefer to keep it to the wall." + +He waved his gloved hand, deprecatingly, watching Desmond with the same +intentness. The boy was dumb: he might also have been deaf. Diggle drew +from his fob an elaborately chased snuffbox and took a pinch of fine +rappee, Desmond mechanically noticing that the box bore ornamentation of +Dutch design. + +"If I were not your friend," continued Diggle, "I might say that your +attitude is one of sheer obstinacy. Why not trust us? You see we trust +you. I stand pledged for you with Angria; but I flatter myself I know a +man when I see one: si fractus illabitur orbis--you have already shown +your mettle. Of course I understand your scruples; I was young myself +once; I know the generous impulses that rule the hearts of youth. But +this is a matter that must be decided, not by feeling, but by hard fact +and cold reason. Who benefits by your scruples? A set of hard-living +money grubbers in Bombay who fatten on the oppression of the ryot, who +tithe mint and anise and cumin, who hoard up treasure which they will +take back with their jaundiced livers to England, there to become pests +to society with their splenetic and domineering tempers. What's the +Company to you, or you to the Company? Why, Governor Pitt was an +interloper; and your own father: yes, he was an interloper, and an +interloper of the best." + +"But not a pirate," said Desmond hotly, his scornful silence yielding at +last. + +"True, true," said Diggle suavely; "but in the Indies, you see, we don't +draw fine distinctions. We are all bucaneers in a sense; some with the +sword, others the ledger. Throw in your lot frankly with me; I will stand +your friend." + +"You are wasting your breath and your eloquence," interrupted Desmond +firmly, "and even if I were tempted to agree, as I never could be, I +should remember who is talking to me." + +Then he added with a whimsical smile, "Come, Mr. Diggle, you are fond of +quotations; I am not; but there's one I remember--'I fear the Greeks, +though'--" + +"You young hound!" cried Diggle, his sallow face becoming purple. His +anger, it seemed to Desmond afterwards reflecting on it, was out of +proportion to the cause of offense. "You talk of my eloquence. By heaven, +when I see you again I shall use it otherwise. You shall hear something +of how Angria wreaks his vengeance; you shall have a foretaste of the +sweets in store for an obstinate, recalcitrant pig-headed fool!" + +He strode away, leaving Desmond a prey to the gloomiest anticipations. + +That evening, when the prisoners were squatting outside the shed for the +usual hour of talk before being locked up for the night, a new feature +was added to the entertainment. One of the Marathas had somehow possessed +himself of a tom tom, and proved himself an excellent performer on that +weird instrument. While he tapped its sides, his fellow Maratha, in a +strange hard tuneless voice, chanted a song, repeating its single stanza +again and again without apparently wearying his hearers, and clapping his +hand to mark the time. + +It was a song about a banya {merchant} with a beautiful young +daughter-in-law, whom he appointed to deal out the daily handful of flour +expected as alms by every beggar who passed his door. Her hands being +much smaller than his own, he pleased himself with the idea that, without +losing his reputation for charity, he would give away through her much +less grain than if he himself performed the charitable office. But it +turned out bad thrift, for so beautiful was she that she attracted to the +door not only the genuine beggars, but also many, both young and old, who +had disguised themselves in mendicant rags for the mere pleasure of +beholding her and getting from her a smile and a gentle word. + +It was a popular song, and the warder himself was tempted to stay and +listen until, the hour for locking up being past, he at last recollected +his duty and bundled the prisoners into the shed. + +"Sing inside if you must," he said, "but not too loud, lest the overseer +come with the bamboo." + +Inside the shed, reclining on their charpoys, the men continued their +performance, changing their song, though not, as it seemed to Desmond, +the tune. He, however, was perhaps not sufficiently attentive to the +monotonous strains; for, as soon as the warder had left the yard, he had +unlocked his fetters and begun to work in the darkness. Poised on one of +the rafters, he held on with one hand to a joist, and with the other +plied a small saw, well greased with ghi. The sound of the slow careful +movements of the tool was completely drowned by the singing and the +hollow rat-a-pan of the tom tom. Beneath him stood the Babu, extending +his dhoti like an apron, and catching in it the falling shower of +sawdust. + +Suddenly the figure on the rafter gave a low whistle. Through the window +he had seen the dim form of the sentry outside approach the space lighted +by the rays from the lantern, which he had laid down at a corner of the +shed. Before the soldier had time to lift it and throw a beam into the +shed (which he did as much from curiosity to see the untiring performers +as in the exercise of his duty) Desmond had swung down from his perch and +stretched himself upon the nearest charpoy. The Babu meanwhile had darted +with his folded dhoti to the darkest corner. When the sentry peered in, +the two performing Marathas were sitting up; the rest were lying prone, +to all appearance soothed to sleep. + +"Verily thou wilt rap a hole in the tom tom," said the sentry with a +grin. "Better save a little of it for tomorrow." + +"Sleep is far from my eyes," replied the man. "My comrades are all at +rest; if it does not offend thee--" + +"No. Tap till it burst, for me. But without sleep the work will be hard +in the morning." + +He went away. Instantly the two figures were again upon their feet, and +the sawing recommenced. For three hours the work continued, interrupted +at intervals by the visits of the sentry. Midnight was past before +Desmond, with cramped limbs and aching head, gave the word for the song +and accompaniment to cease, and the shed was in silence. + + + +Chapter 13: In which Mr. Diggle illustrates his argument; and there are +strange doings in Gheria harbor. + + +The morning of the third day dawned--the last of the three allowed +Desmond for making up his mind. When the other prisoners were loosed from +their fetters and marched off under guard to their usual work, he alone +was left. Evidently he was to be kept in confinement with a view to +quickening his resolution. Some hours passed. About midday he heard +footsteps approaching the shed. The door was opened, and in the entrance +Diggle appeared. + +"You will excuse me," he said with a sniff, "if I remain on the threshold +of your apartment. It is, I fear, but imperfectly aired." + +He pulled a charpoy to the door, and sat down upon it, as much outside as +within. Taking out his snuffbox, he tapped it, took a pinch, savored it, +and added: + +"You will find the apartment prepared for you in my friend Angria's +palace somewhat sweeter than this your present abode--somewhat more +commodious also." + +Desmond, reclining at a distance, looked his enemy calmly and steadily in +the face. + +"If you have come, Mr. Diggle," he said, "merely to repeat what you said +yesterday, let me say at once that it is a waste of breath. I have not +changed my mind." + +"No, not to repeat, my young friend. Crambe repetita--you know the +phrase? Yesterday I appealed, in what I had to say, to your reason; +either my appeal, or your reason, was at fault. Today I have another +purpose. 'Tis pity to come down to a lower plane; to appeal to the more +ignoble part of man; but since you have not yet cut your wisdom teeth I +must e'en accommodate myself. Angria is my friend; but there are moments, +look you, when the bonds of our friendship are put to a heavy strain. At +those moments Angria is perhaps most himself, and I, perhaps, am most +myself; which might prove to a philosopher that there is a radical +antagonism between the oriental and the occidental character. Since my +picture of the brighter side has failed to impress you, I propose to show +you the other side--such is the sincerity of my desire for your welfare. +And 'tis no empty picture--inanis imago, as Ovid might say--no, 'tis +sheer reality, speaking, terrible." + +He turned and beckoned. In a moment Desmond heard the clank of chains, +and by and by, at the entrance of the shed, stood a figure at sight of +whom his blood ran cold. It was the bent, thin, broken figure of a Hindu, +his thin bare legs weighted with heavy irons. Ears, nose, upper lip were +gone; his eyes were lit with the glare of madness; the parched skin of +his hollow cheeks was drawn back, disclosing a grinning mouth and yellow +teeth. His arms and legs were like sticks; both hands had lost their +thumbs, his feet were twisted, straggling wisps of gray hair escaped from +his turban. Standing there beside Diggle, he began to mop and mow, +uttering incomprehensible gibberish. + +Diggle waved him away. + +"That, my dear boy, illustrates the darker side of Angria's +character--the side which forbids me to call Angria unreservedly my +friend. A year ago that man was as straight as you; he had all his organs +and dimensions; he was rich, and of importance in his little world. +Today--but you have seen him: it boots not to attempt in words to say +what the living image has already said. + +"And within twenty-four hours, unless you come to a better mind, even as +that man is, so will you be." + +He rose slowly to his feet, bending upon Desmond a look of mournful +interest and compassion. Desmond had stood all but transfixed with +horror. But as Diggle now prepared to leave him, the boy flushed hot; his +fists clenched; his eyes flashed with indignation. + +"You fiend!" was all he said. + +Diggle smiled, and sauntered carelessly away. + +That night, when the prisoners were brought as usual to the shed, and +warder and sentries were out of earshot, Desmond told them what he had +seen. + +"It must be tonight, my brothers," he said in conclusion. "We have no +longer time. Before sunrise tomorrow we must be out of this evil place. +We must work, work, for life and liberty." + +This night again the singer sang untiringly, the tom tom accompanying him +with its weird hollow notes. And in the blackness, Desmond worked as he +had never worked before, plying his saw hour after hour, never forgetting +his caution, running no risks when he had warning of the sentry's +approach. And hour after hour the shower of sawdust fell noiselessly into +Babu's outspread dhoti. Then suddenly the beating of the tom tom ceased, +the singer's voice died away on a lingering wail, and the silence of the +night was unbroken save by the melancholy howl of a distant jackal, and +the call of sentry to sentry as at intervals they went their rounds. + +At midnight the guard was relieved. The newcomer--a tall, thin, lanky +Maratha--arriving at Desmond's shed, put his head in at the little window +space, and flashed his lantern from left to right more carefully than the +man whom he had just replaced. The nine forms lay flat or curled up on +their charpoys--all was well. + +Coming back an hour later, he fancied he heard a slight sound within the +shed. He went to the window and peered in, flashing his lantern before +him from left to right. But as he did so, he felt upon his throat a grip +as of steel. He struggled to free himself; his cry was stifled ere it was +uttered; his matchlock fell with a clatter to the ground. He was like a +child in the hands of his captor, and when the Gujarati in a fierce low +whisper said to him: "Yield, hound, or I choke you!" his struggle ceased +and he stood trembling in sweat. + +But now came the sentries' call, passed from man to man around the +circuit of the fort. + +"Answer the call!" whispered the Gujarati, with a significant squeeze of +the man's windpipe. + +When his turn arrived, the sentry took up the word, but it was a thin +quavering call that barely reached the next man a hundred yards away. + +While this brief struggle had been going on, a light figure within the +shed had mounted to the rafters and, gently feeling for and twisting +round a couple of wooden pins, handed down to his companions below a +section of the roof some two feet square, which had been kept in its +place only by these temporary supports. The wood was placed silently on +the floor. Then the figure above crawled out upon the roof, and let +himself down by the aid of a rope held by the two Biluchis within. + +It was a pitch-dark night; nothing broke the blackness save the scattered +points of light from the sentries' lanterns. Stepping to the side of the +half-garroted Maratha, who was leaning passively against the shed, the +sinewy hand of the Gujarati still pressing upon his windpipe, Desmond +thrust a gag into his mouth and with quick deft movements bound his +hands. Now he had cause to thank the destiny that had made him Bulger's +shipmate; he had learned from Bulger how to tie a sailor's knot. + +Scarcely had he bound the sentry's hands when he was joined by one of his +fellow prisoners, and soon seven of them stood with him in the shadow of +the shed. The last man, the Gujarati, had held the rope while the Babu +descended. There was no one left to hold the rope for him, but he swung +himself up to the roof and climbed down on the shoulders of one of the +Biluchis. Meanwhile the sentry, whose lantern had been extinguished and +from the folds of whose garments its flint and tinderbox had been taken, +had now been completely trussed up, and lay helpless and perforce silent +against the wall of the shed. From the time when the hapless man first +felt the grip of the Gujarati upon his throat scarcely five minutes had +elapsed. + +Now the party of nine moved in single file, swiftly and silently on their +bare feet, under the wall of the fort toward the northeast bastion, +gliding like phantoms in the gloom. Each man bore his burden: the Babu +carried the dark lantern; one of the Marathas the coil of rope; the other +the sentry's matchlock and ammunition; several had small bundles +containing food, secreted during the past three days from their rations. + +Suddenly the leader stopped. They had reached the foot of the narrow +flight of steps leading up into the bastion. Just above them was a +sentinel. The pause was but for a moment. The plan of action had been +thought out and discussed. On hands and knees the Gujarati crept up the +steps; at his heels followed Desmond in equal stealth and silence. At the +top, hardly distinguishable from the blackness of the sky, the sentinel +was leaning against the parapet, looking out to sea. Many a night had he +held that post, and seen the stars, and listened to the rustle of the +surf; many a night he had heard the call of the sentry next below, and +passed it to the man on the bastion beyond; but never a night had he seen +anything but the stars and the dim forms of vessels in the harbor, heard +anything but the hourly call of his mates and the eternal voice of the +sea. + +He was listless, bemused. What was it, then, that made him suddenly +spring erect? What gave him that strange uneasiness? He had heard +nothing, seen nothing, yet he faced round, and stood at the head of the +steps with his back to the sea. The figures prone below him felt that he +was looking toward them. They held their breath. Both were on the topmost +step but one; only a narrow space separated them from the sentinel; they +could hear the movement of his jaws as he chewed a betel {nut of the +areca palm wrapped in the leaf of the betel plant}. + +Thus a few moments passed. Desmond's pulse beat in a fever of impatience; +every second was precious. Then the sentinel moved; his uneasiness seemed +to be allayed; he began to hum a Maratha camp song, and, half turning, +glanced once more out to the sea. + +The moment was come. Silently Fuzl Khan rose to his feet; he sprang +forward with the lightness, the speed, the deadly certainty of a Thug +{name of a class of hereditary stranglers}, his hand was on the man's +throat. Desmond, close behind, had a gag ready, but there was no need to +use it. In the open the Gujarati could exert his strength more freely +than through the narrow windows of the shed. Almost before Desmond +reached his side the sentinel was dead. + +In that desperate situation there was no time to expostulate. While the +Gujarati laid the hapless man gently beside the gun that peeped through +the embrasure of the parapet, Desmond picked up the sentinel's matchlock, +ran softly back, and summoned his companions. They came silently up the +steps. To fasten the rope securely to the gun carriage was the work of a +few instants; then the Gujarati mounted the parapet, and, swarming down +the rope, sank into the darkness. One by one the men followed; it came to +the Babu's turn. Trembling with excitement and fear he shrank back. + +"I am afraid, sahib," he said. + +Without hesitation Desmond drew up the rope and looped the end. + +"Get into the loop," he whispered. + +The Babu trembled but obeyed, and, assisting him to climb the parapet, +Desmond lowered him slowly to the foot of the wall. Then he himself +descended last of all, and on the rocks below the little group was +complete. + +They were free. But the most difficult part of their enterprise was yet +to come. Behind them was the curtain of the fort; before them a short, +shelving rocky beach and the open sea. + +No time was wasted. Walking two by two for mutual support over the rough +ground, the party set off toward the jetty. They kept as close as +possible to the wall, so that they would not be seen if a sentinel should +happen to look over the parapet; and being barefooted, the slight sound +they might make would be inaudible through the never-ceasing swish of the +surf. Their feet were cut by the sharp edges of the rocks; many a bruise +they got; but they kept on their silent way without a murmur. + +Reaching the angle of the wall, they had now perforce to leave its +shelter, for their course led past the outskirts of the native town +across a comparatively open space. Fortunately the night was very dark, +and here and there on the shore were boats and small huts which afforded +some cover. The tide was on the ebb; and, when they at length struck the +jetty, it was at a point some twenty yards from its shoreward end. +Groping beneath it they halted for a moment, then the two Marathas +separated themselves from the rest and, with a whispered word of +farewell, disappeared like shadows into the blackness. The sea was not +for them, they would take their chance on land. + +From a point some distance beyond the end of the jetty shone a faint +glimmer of light. Desmond silently drew the Gujarati's attention to it. + +"They are gambling," whispered the man. + +"So much the better for our chances," thought Desmond. + +Turning to the Babu he whispered: "Now, Surendra Nath, you know what to +do?" + +"Yes, sahib." + +Placing their bundles in the woodwork supporting the jetty, five members +of the party--the Biluchis, the Mysoreans, and the Babu--stole away in +the darkness. Desmond and the Gujarati were left alone. The Babu placed +himself near the end of the jetty to keep guard. The two Mysoreans struck +off thence obliquely for a few yards until they came to a rude open shed +in which the Pirate's carpenters were wont to work during the rains. From +a heap of shavings they drew a small but heavy barrel. Carrying this +between them they made their way with some difficulty back towards the +jetty, where they rejoined the Babu. + +Meanwhile the Biluchis had returned some distance along the path by which +they had come from the fort, then turned off to the left, and came to a +place where a number of small boats were drawn up just above high water. +The boats were the ordinary tonis {small boats cut out of the solid tree, +used for passing between the shore and larger vessels} of the coast, each +propelled by short scull paddles. Moving quickly but with great caution +the Biluchis collected the paddles from all these boats save one, carried +them noiselessly down to the water's edge, waded a few yards into the +surf, and, setting down their burdens, pushed them gently seawards. They +then returned to the one boat which they had not robbed of its paddle, +and lay down beside it, apparently waiting. + +By and by they were joined by the Mysoreans. The four men lifted the +toni, and carrying it down to the jetty, quietly launched it under the +shadow of the woodwork. A few yards away the Babu sat upon the barrel. +This was lifted on board, and one of the men, tearing a long strip from +his dhoti, muffled the single paddle. Then all five men squatted at the +waterside, awaiting with true oriental patience the signal for further +action. + +Not one of them but was aware that the plight of the two sentries they +had left behind them in the fort might at any moment be discovered. The +hourly call must be nearly due. When no response came from the sentry +whose beat ended at their shed the alarm would at once be given, and in a +few seconds the silent form of the sentinel on the bastion would be +found, and the whole garrison would be sped to their pursuit. + +But at this moment of suspense only the Babu was agitated. His natural +timidity, and the tincture of European ways of thought he had gained +during his service in Calcutta, rendered him less subject than his +Mohammedan companions to the fatalism which rules the oriental mind. To +the Mohammedan what must be must be. Allah has appointed to every man his +lot; man is but as a cork on the stream of fate. Not even when a low, +half-strangled cry came to them across the water, out of the blackness +that brooded upon the harbor, did any of the four give sign of +excitement. The Babu started, and rose to his feet shivering; the others +still squatted, mute and motionless as statues of ebony, neither by +gesture nor murmur betraying their consciousness that at any moment, by +tocsin from the fort, a thousand fierce and relentless warriors might be +launched like sleuth hounds upon their track. + +Meanwhile, what of Desmond and the Gujarati? + +During the months Desmond had spent in Gheria he had made himself +familiar, as far as his opportunities allowed, with the construction of +the harbor and the manner of mooring the vessels there. He knew that the +gallivats of the Pirate's fleet, lashed together, lay about eighty yards +from the head of the jetty under the shelter of the fortress rock, which +protected them from the worst fury of the southwest monsoon. The grabs +lay on the other side of the jetty, some hundred and twenty yards towards +the river--except three vessels which were held constantly ready for sea +somewhat nearer the harbor mouth. + +He had learned, moreover, by cautious and apparently casual inquiries, +that the gallivats were under a guard of ten men, the grabs of twenty. +These men were only relieved at intervals of three days; they slept on +board when the vessels were in harbor and the crews dispersed ashore. + +In thinking over the difficult problem of escape, Desmond had found +himself in a state of perplexity somewhat similar to that of the man who +had to convey a fox and a goose and a bag of corn across a river in a +boat that would take but one at a time. He could not, with his small +party, man a gallivat, which required fifty oarsmen to propel it at +speed; while if he seized one of the lighter grabs, he would have no +chance whatever of outrunning the gallivats that would be immediately +launched in pursuit. It was this problem that had occupied him the whole +day during which Diggle had fondly imagined he was meditating on Angria's +offer of freedom. + +A few moments after their five companions had left them, Desmond and the +Gujarati climbed with the agility of seamen along the ties of the +framework supporting the jetty, until they reached a spot a yard or two +from the end. There, quite invisible from sea or land, they gently +lowered themselves into the water. Guided by the dim light which he had +noticed, and which he knew must proceed from one of the moored gallivats, +Desmond struck out towards the farther end of the line of vessels, +swimming a noiseless breast stroke. Fuzl Khan followed him in equal +silence a length behind. + +The water was warm, and a few minutes' steady swimming brought them +within twenty or thirty yards of the light. The hulls of the gallivats +and their tall raking spars could now be seen looming up out of the +blackness. Desmond perceived that the light was on the outermost of the +line, and, treading water for a moment, he caught the low hum of voices +coming from the after part of the gallivat. Striking out to the left, +still followed by the Gujarati, he swam along past the sterns of the +lashed vessels until he came under the side of the one nearest the shore. +He caught at the hempen cable, swarmed up it, and, the gallivat having +but little freeboard, soon reached the bulwark. + +There he paused to recover his breath and to listen. Hearing nothing, he +quietly slipped over the side and lay on the main deck. In a few seconds +he was joined by his companion. In the shadow of the bulwarks the two +groped their way cautiously along the deck. Presently Desmond, who was in +front, struck his foot against some object invisible to him. There was a +grunt beneath him. + +The two paused, Fuzl Khan nervously fingering the knife he had taken from +the sentinel on the bastion. The grunt was repeated; but the intruders +remained still as death, and with a sleepy grumble the man who had been +disturbed turned over on his charpoy, placed transversely across the +deck, and fell asleep. + +All was quiet. Once more the two moved forward. They came to the ropes by +which the vessel was lashed to the next in the line. For a moment Desmond +stood irresolute; then he led the way swiftly and silently to the deck of +the adjacent gallivat, crossed it without mishap, and so across the +third. Fortunately both were sailors, accustomed to finding their way on +shipboard in the night, as much by sense of touch as by sight. Being +barefooted, only the sharpest ears, deliberately on the alert, could have +detected them. + +They had now reached the fourth of the line of vessels. It was by far the +largest of the fleet, and for this reason Desmond had guessed that it +would have been chosen for his quarters by the serang {head of a crew} in +charge of the watch. If he could secure this man he felt that his +hazardous enterprise would be half accomplished. This was indeed the +pivot on which the whole scheme turned, for in no other way would it be +possible to seize the ten men on board the gallivats without raising such +an alarm as must shock fort, city, and harbor to instant activity. And it +was necessary to Desmond's plan, not only to secure the serang, but to +secure him alive. + +The gallivat was Angria's own vessel, used in his visits up river to his +country house, and, during calm weather, in occasional excursions to +Suwarndrug and the other forts on the sea coast. As Desmond was aware, it +boasted a large state cabin aft, and he thought it very probable that the +serang had appropriated this for his watch below. + +Pausing a moment as they reached the vessel to make sure that no one was +stirring, Desmond and Fuzl Khan crept on to its deck and threw themselves +down, again listening intently. From the last vessel of the line came the +sound of low voices, accompanied at intervals by the click of the oblong +bone dice with which the men were gambling. This was a boon, for when the +Indian, a born gambler, is engaged in one of his games of chance, he is +oblivious of all else around him. But on Angria's gallivat there was no +sound. Rising to a crouching position, so that his form could not be seen +if any of the gamblers chanced to look in his direction, Desmond slowly +crept aft, halting at every few steps to listen. Still there was no +sound. + +But all at once he caught sight of a faint glow ahead; what was it? For a +few seconds he was puzzled. As he approached, the glow took shape; he saw +that it was the entrance to the cabin, the sliding door being half open. +Creeping to the darker side, careful not to come within the radius of the +light, he stood erect, and again listened. From within came the snores of +a sleeper. Now he felt sure that his guess had been correct, for none but +the serang would dare to occupy the cabin, and even he would no doubt +have cause to tremble if his presumption should come to the Pirate's +ears. + +Keeping his body as much in the shadow as possible, Desmond craned his +head forward and peeped into the cabin. He could see little or nothing; +the light came from a small oil lantern with its face turned to the wall. +Made of some vegetable substance, the oil gave off a pungent smell. The +lantern was no doubt carried by the serang in his rounds of inspection; +probably he kept it within reach at night; he must be sleeping in the +black shadow cast by it. To locate a sound is always difficult; but, as +far as Desmond could judge, the snores came from the neighborhood of the +lantern and as from the floor. + +He stepped back again into complete darkness. The Gujarati was at his +elbow. + +"Wait, Fuzl Khan," said Desmond in the lowest of whispers. "I must go in +and see where the man is and how the cabin is arranged." + +The Gujarati crouched in the shadow of the bulwarks. Desmond, dropping on +hands and knees, crawled slowly forward into the cabin towards the light. +It was slightly above him, probably on a raised divan--the most likely +place for the serang to choose as his bed. In a few moments Desmond's +outstretched fingers touched the edge of the little platform; the light +was still nearly two yards away. Still he was unable to see the sleeper, +though by the sound of his breathing he must be very near. + +Desmond feared that every moment might bring him into contact with the +man. Whatever the risk, it was necessary to obtain a little more light. +Slightly raising himself he found that, without actually mounting the +platform, he could just reach the lamp with outstretched fingers. Very +slowly he pushed it round, so that the light fell more directly into the +room. Then he was able to see, about four feet away, curled up on the +divan, with his arms under his head, the form of a man. There was no +other in the cabin. Having discovered all that he wished to know, Desmond +crawled backward as carefully as he had come. + +At the moment of discovery he had felt the eager boy's impulse to spring +upon the sleeper at once, but although his muscles had been hardened by a +year of toil he doubted whether he had sufficient physical strength to +make absolutely sure of his man; a single cry, the sound of a scuffle, +might be fatal. The Gujarati, on the other hand, a man of great bulk, +could be trusted to overpower the victim by sheer weight, and with his +iron clutch to insure that no sound came from him. Desmond's only fear +indeed was that the man, as in the case of the sentinel on the bastion, +might overdo his part and give him all too thorough a quietus. + +He came to the entrance of the cabin. His appearance brought the Gujarati +to his side. + +"Remember, Fuzl Khan," he whispered, "we must keep the serang alive; not +even stun him. You understand?" + +"I know, sahib." + +Drawing him silently into the apartment and to the edge of the platform, +Desmond again crept to the lantern, and now turned it gradually still +farther inwards until the form of the sleeper could be distinctly seen. +The light was still dim; but it occurred to Desmond that the glow, +increased now that the lantern was turned round, might attract the +attention of the gamblers on the gallivat at the end of the line. So, +while the Gujarati stood at the platform, ready to pounce on the sleeper +as a cat on a mouse if he made the least movement, Desmond tiptoed to the +door and began to close the sliding panel. It gave a slight creak; the +sleeper stirred; Desmond quickly pushed the panel home, and as he did so +the serang sat up, rubbing his eyes and looking in sleepy suspicion +towards the lantern. + +While his knuckles were still at his eyes Fuzl Khan was upon him. A brief +scuffle, almost noiseless, on the linen covering of the divan; a heavy +panting for breath; then silence. The Gujarati relaxed his grip on the +man's throat; he made another attempt to cry out; but the firm fingers +tightened their pressure and the incipient cry was choked in a feeble +gurgle. Once more the hapless serang tried to rise; Fuzl Khan pressed him +down and shook him vigorously. He saw that it was useless to resist, and +lay limp and half throttled in his captor's hands. + +By this time Desmond had turned the lantern full upon the scene. Coming +to the man's head, while the Gujarati still held him by the throat, he +said, in low, rapid, but determined tones: + +"Obey, and your life will be spared. But if you attempt to raise an alarm +you will be lost. Answer my questions. Where is there some loose rope on +board?" + +The man hesitated to reply, but a squeeze from the Gujarati decided him. + +"There is a coil near the mainmast," he said. + +Desmond slipped out, and in a few seconds returned with several yards of +thin coir, a strong rope made of cocoanut fiber. Soon the serang lay +bound hand and foot. + +"What are the names of the men on the furthest vessel?" + +"They are Rama, Sukharam, Ganu, Ganpat, Hari." + +"Call Rama, gently; bid him come here. Do not raise your voice." + +The man obeyed. The clicking of the dice ceased, and in a few moments a +Maratha appeared at the doorway and entered blinking. No sooner had he +set foot within the cabin than he was seized by the Gujarata and gagged, +and then, with a rapidity only possible to the practised sailor, he was +roped and laid helpless on the floor. + +"Call Sukharam," said Desmond. + +The second man answered the summons, only to suffer the same fate. A +third was dealt with in the same fashion; then the fourth and fifth came +together, wondering why the serang was so brutally interfering with their +game. By the time they reached the door Desmond had turned the lantern to +the wall, so that they saw only a dim shape within the cabin. Ganpat was +secured before the last man became aware of what was happening. Hari +hesitated at the threshold, hearing the sound of a slight scuffle caused +by the seizure of his companion. + +"Tell him to come in," whispered Desmond in the serang's ear, emphasizing +the order by laying the cold blade of a knife against his collarbone. + +Fuzl Khan had not yet finished trussing the other; as the last man +entered Desmond threw himself upon him. He could not prevent a low +startled cry; and struggling together, the two rolled upon the floor. The +Maratha, not recognizing his assailant, apparently thought that the +serang had suddenly gone mad, for he merely tried to disengage himself, +speaking in a tone half angry, half soothing. But finding that the man +grasping him had a determined purpose, he became furious with alarm, and +plucking a knife from his girdle struck viciously at the form above him. + +Desmond, with his back to the light, saw the blow coming. He caught the +man's wrist, and in another moment the Gujarati came to his assistance. +Thus the last of the watchmen was secured and laid beside his comrades. + +Six of the men on board the gallivats had been disposed of. But there +still remained five, asleep until their turn for watching and dicing +came. So quietly had the capture of the six been effected that not one of +the sleepers had been disturbed. + +To deal with them was an easier matter. Leaving the bound men in the +cabin, and led by the serang, whose feet had been released, Desmond and +Fuzl Khan visited each of the gallivats in turn. The sleeping men awoke +at their approach, but they were reassured by the voice of the serang, +who in terror for his life spoke to them at Desmond's bidding; and before +they realized what was happening they were in the toils, helpless like +the rest. + +When the last of the watchmen was thus secured, Desmond crept to the +vessel nearest the shore and, making a bell of his hands, sent a low hail +across the surface of the water in the direction of the jetty. He waited +anxiously, peering into the darkness, straining his ears. Five minutes +passed, fraught with the pain of uncertainty and suspense. Then he caught +the faint sound of ripples: he fancied he descried a dark form on the +water; it drew nearer, became more definite. + +"Is that you, sahib?" said a low voice. + +"Yes." + +He gave a great sigh of relief. The toni drew alongside, and soon five +men, with bundles, muskets, and the small heavy barrel, stood with +Desmond and the Gujarati on the deck of the gallivat. + + + +Chapter 14: In which seven bold men light a big bonfire; and the Pirate +finds our hero a bad bargain. + + +Desmond's strongest feeling, as his companions stepped on board, was +wonder--wonder at the silence of the fort, the darkness that covered the +whole face of the country, the safety of himself and the men so lately +prisoners. What time had passed since they had left the shed he was +unable to guess; the moments had been so crowded that any reckoning was +impossible. But when, as he waited for the coming of the boat, his mind +ran over the incidents of the flight--the trussing of the sentry, the +wary approach to the bastion, the tragic fate of the sentinel there, the +stealthy creeping along the shore, the swim to the gallivats and all that +had happened since: as he recalled these things, he could not but wonder +that the alarm he dreaded had not already been given. But it was clear +that all was as yet undiscovered; and the plot had worked out so exactly +as planned that he hoped still for a breathing space to carry out his +enterprise to the end. + +There was not a moment to be wasted. The instant the men were aboard +Desmond rapidly gave his orders. Fuzl Khan and one of the Mysoreans he +sent to carry the barrel to Angria's gallivat. It contained da'ma. They +were to break it open, tear down the hangings in the cabin, smear them +plentifully, and set light to them from the lantern. Meanwhile Desmond +himself, with the rest of the men, set about preparing the gallivat in +which he was about to make his next move. + +The lightest of the line of vessels was the one in which the watchmen had +been gambling. It happened that this, with the gallivat next to it, had +come into harbor late in the evening from a short scouting cruise, and +the sweeps used by their crews had not been carried on shore, as the +custom was. The larger vessel had fifty of these sweeps, the smaller +thirty. If pursuit was to be checked it was essential that none of them +should be left in the enemy's hands, and the work of carrying the fifty +from the larger to the smaller vessel took some time. + +There was no longer the same need for quietness of movement. So long as +any great noise and bustle was avoided, the sentinels on the walls of the +fort would only suppose, if sounds reached their ears, that the watch on +board were securing the gallivats at their moorings. + +When the sweeps had all been transferred Desmond ordered the prisoners to +be brought from Angria's cabin to the smaller vessel. The lashings of +their feet were cut in turn; each man was carefully searched, deprived of +all weapons, and escorted from the one vessel to the other, his feet +being then securely bound as before. + +On board the smallest gallivat were now Desmond, five of his companions, +and eleven helpless Marathas. He had just directed one of the Biluchis to +cast loose the lashings between the vessels, and was already +congratulating himself that the main difficulties of his venture were +past, when he suddenly heard shouts from the direction of the fort. +Immediately afterwards the deep notes of the huge gong kept in Angria's +courtyard boomed and reverberated across the harbor, echoed at brief +intervals by the strident clanging of several smaller gongs in the town. + +Barely had the first sound reached his ears when he saw a light flash +forth from the outermost bastion; to the left of it appeared a second; +and soon, along the whole face of the fort, in the dockyard, in the town, +innumerable lights dotted the blackness, some stationary, others moving +this way and that. Now cries were heard from all sides, growing in volume +until the sound was as of some gigantic hornet's nest awakened into angry +activity. To the clangor of gongs was added the blare of trumpets, and +from the walls of the fort and palace, from the hill beyond, from every +cliff along the shore, echoed and re-echoed an immense and furious din. + +For a few seconds Desmond stood as if fascinated, watching the +transformation which the hundreds of twinkling lights had caused. Then he +pulled himself together, and with a word to the Biluchi who had loosed +the lashings, bidding him hold on to the next gallivat, he sprang to the +side of this vessel, and hurried towards Angria's. Fuzl Khan had not +returned; Desmond almost feared that some mishap had befallen the man. + +Reaching the center vessel, he peered down the hatchway, but started back +as a gust of acrid smoke struck him from below. He called to the +Gujarati. There was no response. For an instant he stood in hesitation; +had the man been overcome by the suffocating fumes filling the hold? But +just as, with the instinct of rescue, he was about to lower himself into +the depths, he heard a low hail from the vessel at the end of the line +nearest the shore. A moment afterwards Fuzl Khan came stumbling towards +him. + +"I have fired another gallivat, sahib," he said, his voice ringing with +fierce exultation. + +"Well done, Fuzl Khan," said Desmond. "Now we must be off. See, there are +torches coming down towards the jetty." + +The two sprang across the intervening vessel, a dense cloud of smoke +following them from the hatchway of Angria's gallivat. Reaching the +outermost of the line, Desmond gave the word, the anchor was slipped, the +two Biluchis pressed with all their force against the adjacent vessel, +and the gallivat moved slowly out. Desmond ran to the helm, and the +Gujarati with his five companions seizing each upon one of the long +sweeps, they dropped their blades into the water and began to pull. + +Desmond was all a-tingle with excitement and determination. The shouts +from the shore were nearer; the lights were brighter; for all he knew, +the whole garrison and population were gathering. They had guessed that +an escape was being attempted by sea. Even now perhaps boats were setting +off, bringing rowers to man the gallivats, and oars to send them in +pursuit. + +If they should reach the vessels before the middle one had burst into +flame, he felt that his chances of getting away were small indeed. When +would the flame appear? It might check the pursuers, throw them into +consternation, confuse and delay the pursuit. Would the longed-for blaze +never show itself? And how slowly his gallivat was moving! The rowers +were bending to their work with a will, but six men are but a poor crew +for a vessel of a hundred tons, and the slow progress it was making was +in fact due more to the still ebbing tide than to the frantic efforts of +the oarsmen. The wind was contrary; it would be useless to hoist the +sail. At this rate they would be half an hour or more in reaching the +three grabs anchored nearer the mouth of the harbor. The willing rowers +on their benches could not know how slowly the vessel was moving, but it +was painfully clear to Desmond at the helm; relative to the lights on +shore the gallivat seemed scarcely to move at all. + +He called to Fuzl Khan, who left his oar and hurried aft. + +"We must make more speed, Fuzl Khan. Release the prisoners' hands; keep +their feet tied, and place them among our party. Don't take an oar +yourself: stand over them ready to strike down any man who mutinies." + +The Gujarati grunted and hurried away. Assisted by Surendra Nath, who, +being his companion on the rowing bench, had perforce dropped his oar, he +soon had the prisoners in position. Urging them with terrible threats and +fierce imprecations, he forced them to ply their oars with long steady +strokes. The way on the gallivat increased. There was not a great +distance now to be covered, it was unnecessary to husband their strength, +and with still more furious menaces Fuzl Khan got out of the sturdy +Marathas all the energy of which they were capable. The escaped prisoners +needed no spur; they were working with might and main, for dear life. + +Desmond had to steer by guesswork and such landmarks as were afforded by +the lights on shore. He peered anxiously ahead, hoping to see the dim +shapes of the three grabs; but this was at present impossible, since they +lay between him and the seaward extremity of the fort, where lights had +not yet appeared. Looking back he saw a number of torches flitting along +the shore; and now two or three dark objects, no doubt boats, were moving +from the farther side of the jetty towards the gallivats. At the same +moment he caught sight of these he saw at last, rising from the +gallivats, the thin tongue of flame he had so long expected. + +But now that it had come at last, showing that the work on board had been +thorough, he almost regretted it, for it was instantly seen from the +shore and greeted by a babel of yells caught up in different parts of the +town and fort. As at a signal the torches no longer flickered hither and +thither aimlessly, but all took the same direction towards the jetty. The +hunt was up! + +Glancing round, Desmond suddenly gave the order to cease rowing, and +putting the helm hard down just avoided crashing into a dark object +ahead. The sweeps grated against the side of what proved to be one of the +grabs for which he had been looking. A voice from its deck hailed him. + +"Take care! Where are you going? Who are you?" + +Desmond called up the serang. He dare not reply himself, lest his accent +should betray him. + +"Tell him all is well. We have a message from the fort to the Tremukji," +he said in a whisper. + +The serang repeated the words aloud. + +"Well, huzur. But what is the meaning of the noise and the torches and +the blaze on the sea?" + +"Tell him we have no time to waste. Ask him where the Tremukji lies." + +The man on the grab replied that she lay outside, a dozen boat lengths. +Desmond knew that this vessel, which had been launched during his +captivity, and in whose construction he had had a humble part, had proved +the swiftest in the fleet, although much smaller than the majority of the +Pirate's. Once on board her, and beyond reach of the guns of the fort, he +might fairly hope to get clear away in spite of his miscellaneous crew. +Giving to the Gujarati the order to go ahead, he questioned the serang. + +"What is the name of the serang in charge of the Tremukji?" + +"Pandu, sahib." + +"How many men are on board her?" + +"Three, sahib." + +"Then, when we come alongside and I give the word, you will tell him to +come aboard at once; we have a message from the fort for him." + +Owing to the trend of the shore, the gallivat had been slowly nearing the +walls of the fort, and at this moment could not be more than a hundred +and fifty yards distant from them. But for the shouting on shore the +noise of the sweeps must by this time have been heard. In the glow of the +blazing vessels in mid channel the moving gallivat had almost certainly +been seen. Desmond grew more and more anxious. + +"Hail the grab," he said to the serang as the vessel loomed up ahead. + +"Hai, hai, Tremukji!" cried the man. + +There came an answering hail. Then the serang hesitated; he was evidently +wondering whether even now he might not defy this foreigner who was +bearding his terrible master. But his hesitation was short. At a sign +from Desmond, Gulam the Biluchi, who had brought the serang forward, +applied the point of his knife to the back of the unfortunate man's neck. + +"I have a message from Angria Rho," he cried quickly. "Come aboard at +once." + +The rowers at a word from Fuzl Khan shipped their oars, and the two +vessels came together with a sharp thud. The serang in charge of the grab +vaulted across the bulwarks and fell into the waiting arms of Fuzl Khan, +who squeezed his throat, muttered a few fierce words in his ear, and +handed him over to Gulam, who bundled him below. Then, shouting the order +to make fast, the Gujarati flung a hawser across to the grab. The two men +on board her obeyed without question; but they were still at the work +when Desmond and Fuzl Khan, followed by the two Mysoreans, leaped upon +them from the deck of the gallivat. There was a short sharp scrimmage; +then these guardians of the grab were hauled on to the gallivat and sent +to join the rowers on the main deck. + +Desmond and his six companions now had fourteen prisoners on their hands, +and in ordinary circumstances the disproportion would have been fatal. +But the captives, besides having been deprived of all means of offense, +had no exact knowledge of the exact number of men who had trapped them. +Their fears and the darkness had a magnifying effect, and, like Falstaff, +they would have sworn that their enemies were ten times as many as they +actually were. + +So deeply engrossed had Desmond been in the capture of the grab that he +had forgotten the one serious danger that threatened to turn the tide of +accident, hitherto so favorable, completely against him. He had forgotten +the burning gallivats. But now his attention was recalled to them in a +very unpleasant and forcible way. There was a deafening report, as it +seemed from a few yards' distance, followed immediately by a splash in +the water just ahead. The glare of the burning vessels was dimly lighting +up almost the whole harbor mouth, and the runaway gallivat, now clearly +seen from the fort, had become a target for its guns. The gunners had +been specially exercised of late in anticipation of an attack from +Bombay, and Desmond knew that in his slow-going vessel he could not hope +to draw out of range in time to escape a battering. + +But his gallivat was among the grabs. At this moment it must be +impossible for the gunners to distinguish between the runaway and the +loyal vessels. If he could only cause them to hold their fire for a time! +Knowing that the Gujarati had a stentorian voice, and that a shout would +carry upwards from the water to the parapet, in a flash Desmond saw the +possibility of a ruse. He spoke to Fuzl Khan. The man at once turned to +the fort, and with the full force of his lungs shouted: + +"Comrades, do not fire. We have caught them!" + +Answering shouts came from the walls; the words were indistinguishable, +but the trick had succeeded, at any rate for the moment. No second shot +was at this time fired. + +Desmond made full use of this period of grace. He recognized that the +gallivat, while short-handed, was too slow to make good the escape; the +grab, with the wind contrary, could never be got out of the harbor; the +only course open to him was to make use of the one to tow the other until +they reached the open sea. As soon as a hawser could be bent the grab was +taken in tow: its crew was impressed with the other prisoners as rowers, +under the charge of the Biluchis; and with Desmond at the helm of the +grab and the Gujarati steering the gallivat, the two vessels crept slowly +seawards. They went at a snail's pace, for it was nearly slack tide; and +slow as the progress of the gallivat had been before, it was much slower +now that the men had to move two vessels instead of one. + +To Desmond, turning every now and again to watch the increasing glare +from the burning gallivats, it seemed that he scarcely advanced at all. +The town and the townward part of the fort were minute by minute becoming +more brightly illuminated; every detail around the blazing vessels could +be distinctly seen; and mingled with the myriad noises from the shore was +now the crackle of the flames, and the hiss of burning spars and rigging +as they fell into the water. + +The gallivats had separated into two groups; either they had been cut +apart, or, more probably, the lashings had been burned through. Around +one of the groups Desmond saw a number of small boats. They appeared to +be trying to cut out the middle of the three gallivats, which seemed to +be as yet uninjured, while the vessels on either side were in full blaze. +Owing to the intense heat the men's task was a difficult and dangerous +one, and Desmond had good hope that they would not succeed until the +gallivat was too much damaged to be of use for pursuit. He wondered, +indeed, at the attempt being made at all; for it kept all the available +boats engaged when they might have dashed upon the grab in tow and made +short work of it. + +The true explanation of their blunder did not at the moment occur to +Desmond. The fact was that the men trying so earnestly to save the +gallivat knew nothing of what had happened to the grab. They were aware +that a gallivat had been cut loose and was standing out to sea; but the +glare of the fire blinded them to all that was happening beyond a narrow +circle, and as yet they had had no information from shore of what was +actually occurring. When they did learn that two vessels were on their +way to the sea, they would no doubt set out to recapture the fugitives +instead of wasting their efforts in a futile attempt to save the +unsavable. + +Desmond was still speculating on the point when another shot from the +fort aroused him to the imminent danger. The dark shapes of the two +vessels must now certainly be visible from the walls. The shot flew wide. +Although the grab was well within range it was doubtless difficult to +take aim, the distance being deceptive and the sights useless in the +dark. But this shot was followed at intervals of a few seconds by another +and another; it was clear that the fugitives were running the gauntlet of +the whole armament on this side of the fort. The guns were being fired as +fast as they could be loaded; the gunners were becoming accustomed to the +darkness, and when Desmond heard the shots plumping into the water, +nearer to him, it seemed, every time, he could not but recognize that +success or failure hung upon a hair. + +Crash! A round shot struck the grab within a few feet of the wheel. A +shower of splinters flew in all directions. Desmond felt a stinging blow +on the forehead; he put up his hand; when he took it away it was wet. He +could not leave the wheel to see what damage had been done to the ship, +still less to examine his own injury. + +He was alone on board. Every other man was straining at his oar in the +gallivat. He felt the blood trickling down his face; from time to time he +wiped it away with the loose end of his dhoti. Then he forgot his wound, +for two more shots within a few seconds of each other struck the grab +forward. Clearly the gunners were aiming at his vessel, which, being +larger than the gallivat, and higher in the water, presented an easier +mark. Where had she been hit? If below the waterline, before many minutes +were past she would be sinking under him. + +Yet he could do nothing. He dared not order the men in the gallivat to +cease rowing; he dared not leave the helm of the grab; he could but wait +and hold his post. It would not be long before he knew whether the vessel +had been seriously hit: if it was so, then would be the time to cast off +the tow rope. + +The gallivat, at any rate, appeared not to have suffered. Desmond was +beginning to think he was out of the wood when he heard a crash in front, +followed by a still more ominous sound. The motion of the gallivat at +once ceased, and, the grab slowly creeping up to her, Desmond had to put +his helm hard up to avoid a collision. He could hear the Gujarati raging +and storming on deck, and cries as of men in pain; then, as the grab came +abreast of the smaller vessel, he became aware of what had happened. The +mainmast of the gallivat had been struck by a shot and had gone by the +board. + +Desmond hailed the Gujarati and told him to get three or four men to cut +away the wreckage. + +"Keep an eye on the prisoners," he added, feeling that this was perhaps +the most serious element in a serious situation; for with round shot +flying about the vessel it might well have seemed to the unhappy men on +the rowing benches that mutiny was the lesser of two risks. But the +rowers were cowed by the presence of the two Biluchis armed with their +terrible knives, and they crowded in dumb helplessness while the tangled +rigging was cut away. + +"Is any one hurt?" asked Desmond. + +"One of the rowers has a broken arm, sahib," replied Shaik Abdullah. + +"And I have a contusion of the nose," said the Babu lugubriously. + +It was impossible to do anything for the sufferers at the moment. It was +still touch-and-go with the whole party. The shots from the fort were now +beginning to fall short, but, for all Desmond knew, boats might have been +launched in pursuit, and if he was overtaken it meant lingering torture +and a fearful death. He was in a fever of impatience until at length, the +tangled shrouds having been cut away, the rowing was resumed and the two +vessels began again to creep slowly seaward. + +Gradually they drew out of range of the guns. Steering straight out to +sea, Desmond had a clear view of the whole of the harbor and a long +stretch of the river. The scene was brightly lit up, and he saw that two +of the gallivats had been towed away from the burning vessels, from which +the flames were now shooting high into the air. But even on the two that +had been cut loose there were spurts of flame; and Desmond hoped that +they had sustained enough damage to make them unseaworthy. + +Suddenly there were two loud explosions, in quick succession. A column of +fire rose toward the sky from the gallivats that were blazing most +brightly. The fire had at length reached the ammunition. The red sparks +sprang upwards like a fountain, casting a ruddy glow for many yards +around; then they fell back into the sea, and all was darkness, except +for the lesser lights from the burning vessels whose magazines had as yet +escaped. The explosions could hardly have occurred at a more opportune +moment, for the darkness was now all the more intense, and favored the +fugitives. + +There was a brisk breeze from the southwest outside the harbor, and when +the two vessels lost the shelter of the headland they crept along even +more slowly than before. Desmond had learned enough of seamanship on +board the Good Intent to know that he must have sea room before he cast +off the gallivat and made sail northwards; otherwise he would inevitably +be driven on shore. It was this fact that had prompted his operations in +the harbor. He knew that the grabs could not put to sea unless they were +towed, and the gallivats being rendered useless, towing was impossible. + +The sea was choppy, and the rowers had much ado to control the sweeps. +Only their dread of the Biluchis' knives kept them at their work. But the +progress, though slow, was steady; gradually the glow in the sky behind +the headland grew dimmer; though it was as yet impossible to judge with +certainty how much offing had been made. Desmond, resolving to give away +no chances, and being unacquainted with the trend of the coast, kept the +rowers at work, with short intervals of rest, until dawn. By this means +he hoped to avoid all risk of being driven on a lee shore, and to throw +Angria off the scent, for it would naturally be supposed that the +fugitives would head at once for Bombay, and pursuit, if attempted, would +be made in that direction. + +When day broke over the hills, Desmond guessed that the coast must be now +five miles off. As far as he could see, it ran north by east. He had now +plenty of sea room; there was no pursuer in sight; the wind was in his +favor, and if it held, no vessel in Angria's harbor could now catch him. +He called to the Gujarati, who shouted an order to the Biluchis; the +worn-out men on the benches ceased rowing, except four who pulled a few +strokes every now and then to prevent the two vessels from colliding. + +Desmond had thought at first of stopping the rowing altogether and +running the grab alongside the gallivat; but that course, while safe +enough in the still water of the harbor, would have its dangers in the +open sea. So, lashing the helm of the grab, he dropped into a small boat +which had been bumping throughout the night against the vessel's side, +and in a few minutes was on board the gallivat. + +He first inquired after the men who had been wounded in the night. One +had a broken arm, which no one on board knew how to set. The Babu had +certainly a much discolored nose, the contusion having been caused no +doubt by a splinter of wood thrown up by the shot. Two or three of the +rowers had slight bruises and abrasions, but none had been killed and +none dangerously hurt. + +Then Desmond had a short and earnest talk with the Gujarati, who alone of +the men had sufficient seamanship to make him of any value in deciding +upon the next move. + +"What is to be done with the gallivat?" asked Desmond. + +"Scuttle her, sahib, and hoist sail on the grab." + +"But the rowers?" + +"Fasten them to the benches and let them drown. They could not help our +enemies then, and it would make up for what you and I and all of us have +suffered in Gheria." + +"No, I can't do that," said Desmond. + +"It must be as I say, sahib. There is nothing else to do. We have killed +no one yet, except the sentinel on the parapet; I did that neatly, the +sahib will agree; I would have a life for every lash of the whip upon my +back." + +"No," said Desmond decisively, "I shall not drown the men. We will take +on board the grab three or four, who must be sailors; let us ask who will +volunteer. We will promise them good pay; we haven't any money, to be +sure, but the grab can be sold when we reach Bombay, and though we stole +her I think everybody would admit that she is our lawful prize. I should +think they'll be ready enough to volunteer, for they won't care to return +to Gheria and face Angria's rage. At the same time we can't take more +than three or four, because in the daylight they can now see how few we +are, and they might take a fancy to recapture the grab. What do you think +of that plan?" + +The Gujarati sullenly assented. He did not understand mercy to an enemy. + +"There is no need to pay them, sahib," he said. "You can promise pay; a +promise is enough." + +Desmond was unwilling to start an argument and said nothing. Once in +Bombay he could insure that any pledges given would be strictly kept. + +As he expected, there was no difficulty in obtaining volunteers. Twice +the number required offered their services. They had not found their work +with the Pirate so easy or so well rewarded as to have any great +objection to a change of masters. Moreover, they no doubt feared the +reception they would get from Angria if they returned. And it appeared +afterwards that during the night the Biluchis had recounted many fabulous +incidents, all tending to show that the sahib was a very important as +well as a very ingenious Firangi, so that this reputation, coupled with +an offer of good pay, overcame any scruples the men might retain. + +Among those who volunteered and whose services were accepted was the +serang of Angria's gallivat. Unknown to Desmond, while he was holding +this conversation with the Gujarati, the serang, crouching in apparent +apathy on his bench, had really strained his ears to catch what was being +said. He, with the three other men selected, was released from his bonds, +and ordered to lower the longboat of the gallivat and stow in it all the +ammunition for the guns that was to be found in the ship's magazine. This +was then taken on board the grab, and Desmond ordered one of the +Mysoreans to load the grab's stern chasers, telling the Marathas whom he +intended to leave on the gallivat that, at the first sign of any attempt +to pursue, their vessel would be sunk. + +Then in two parties the fugitives went on board the grab. Desmond was the +last to leave the gallivat, releasing one of the captive rowers, who in +his turn could release the rest. + +As soon as Desmond stepped on board the grab, the hawser connecting the +two vessels was cast off, the mainsail was run up, and the grab, sailing +large, stood up the coast. Fuzl Khan, swarming up to the masthead, +reported two or three sail far behind, apparently at the mouth of Gheria +harbor. But Desmond, knowing that if they were in pursuit they had a long +beat to windward before them, felt no anxiety on that score. Besides, the +grab he was on had been selected precisely because it was the fastest +vessel in Angria's fleet. + +Having got fairly under way, he felt that he had leisure to inspect the +damage done to the grab by the shots from the fort which had given him so +much concern in the darkness. That she had suffered no serious injury was +clear from the ease with which she answered the helm and the rapidity of +her sailing. He found that a hole or two had been made in the forepart of +the deck, and a couple of yards of the bulwarks carried away. There was +nothing to cause alarm or to demand repair. + +It was a bright cool morning, and Desmond, after the excitements and the +strain of the last few days, felt an extraordinary lightness of spirit as +the vessel cut through the water. For the first time in his life he knew +the meaning of the word freedom; none but a man who has suffered +captivity or duress can know such joy as now filled his soul. The long +stress of his menial life on board the Good Intent, the weary months of +toil, difficulty and danger as Angria's prisoner, were past; and it was +with whole-hearted joyousness he realized that he was now on his way to +Bombay, where Clive was--Clive, the hero who was as a fixed star in his +mental firmament. + +The gallivat, lying all but motionless on the water, a forlorn object +with the jagged stump of her mainmast, grew smaller and smaller in the +distance, and was soon hull down. Desmond, turning away from a last look +in her direction, awoke from his reverie to the consciousness that he was +ravenously hungry. + + + +Chapter 15: In which our hero weathers a storm; and prepares for squalls. + + +Hungry as he was, however, Desmond would not eat while he was, so to +speak, still in touch with Gheria. He ran up the sail on the mizzen, and +the grab was soon cutting her way through the water at a spanking rate. +He had closely studied the chart on board the Good Intent when that +vessel was approaching the Indian coast--not with any fixed purpose, but +in the curiosity which invested all things Indian with interest for him. +From his recollection he believed that Gheria was somewhat more than a +hundred miles from Bombay. If the grab continued to make such good +sailing she might hope to cover this distance by midnight. But she could +hardly run into harbor until the following day. There was, of course, no +chart, not even a compass, on board; the only apparatus he possessed was +a water clock; naturally he could not venture far out to sea, but neither +dared he hug the shore too closely. He knew not what reefs there might be +lying in wait for his untaught keel. Besides, he might be sighted from +one or other of the coast strongholds still remaining in Angria's hands, +and it was not impossible that swift messengers had already been sent +along the shore from Gheria, prescribing a keen lookout and the chase of +any solitary grab making northward. + +But if he kept too far out he might run past Bombay, though when he +mentioned this to his fellow fugitives he was assured by the Biluchis and +Fuzl Khan that they would unfailingly recognize the landmarks, having +more than once in the course of their trading and pirate voyages touched +at that port. + +On the whole he thought it best to keep the largest possible offing that +would still leave the coast within sight. Putting the helm down he ran +out some eight or ten miles, until the coast was visible only from the +masthead as a purple line on the horizon, with occasional glimpses of +high ghats {mountains} behind. + +Meanwhile the Gujarati and some of the others had breakfasted from their +bundles. Leaving the former in charge of the wheel, Desmond took his +well-earned meal of rice and chapatis, stale, but sweet with the +sweetness of freedom. + +In his ignorance of the coast he felt that he must not venture to run +into Bombay in the darkness, and resolved to heave-to during the night. +At the dawn he would creep in towards the shore without anxiety, for +there was little chance of falling in with hostile vessels in the +immediate neighborhood of Bombay. Knowing that a considerable British +fleet lay there, the Pirate would not allow his vessels to cruise far +from his own strongholds. But as there was a prospect of spending at +least one night at sea, it was necessary to establish some system of +watches. The task of steering had to be shared between Desmond and Fuzl +Khan; and the majority of the men being wholly inexperienced, it was not +safe to leave fewer than six of them on duty at a time. The only danger +likely to arise was from the weather. So far it was good; the sea was +calm, the sky was clear; but Desmond was enough of a seaman to know that, +being near the coast, the grab might at any moment, almost without +warning, be struck by a squall. He had to consider how best to divide up +his crew. + +Including himself there were eleven men on board. Four of them were +strangers of whom he knew nothing; the six who had escaped with him were +known only as fellow prisoners. + +To minimize any risk, he divided the crew into three watches. One +consisted of the Babu, the serang, and one of the Marathas from the +gallivat. Each of the others comprised a Mysorean, a Biluchi, and a +Maratha. Thus the strangers were separated as much as possible, and the +number of Marathas on duty was never in excess of the number of +fugitives; the steersman, Desmond or the Gujarati, as the case might be, +turned the balance. + +The watch was set by means of the water clock found in the cabin. Desmond +arranged that he and Fuzl Khan should take alternate periods of eight +hours on and four off. The two matchlocks taken from the sentinels of the +fort and brought on board were loaded and placed on deck near the wheel. +None of the crew was armed save the Biluchis, who retained their knives. + +Towards midday the wind dropped almost to a dead calm. This was +disappointing, for Desmond suspected that he was still within the area of +Angria's piratical operations--if not from Gheria, at any rate from some +of the more northerly strongholds not yet captured by the East India +Company or the Peshwa. But he had a good offing: scanning the horizon all +around he failed to sight a single sail; and he hoped that the breeze +would freshen as suddenly as it had dropped. + +Now that excitement and suspense were over, and there was nothing that +called for activity, Desmond felt the natural reaction from the strain he +had undergone. By midday he was so tired and sleepy that he found himself +beginning to doze at the wheel. The Gujarati had been sleeping for some +hours, and, as the vessel now required scarcely any attention Desmond +thought it a good opportunity for snatching a rest. Calling to Fuzl Khan +to take his place and bidding him keep the vessel's head, as far as he +could, due north, he went below. About six bells, as time would have been +reckoned on the Good Intent, he was wakened by the Babu, with a message +from the Gujarati desiring him to come on deck. + +"Is anything wrong, Babu?" he asked, springing up. + +"Not so far as I am aware, sahib. Only it is much hotter since I began my +watch." + +Desmond had hardly stepped on deck before he understood the reason for +the summons. Overhead all was clear; but towards the land a dense bank of +black cloud was rising, and approaching the vessel with great rapidity. +It was as though some vast blanket were being thrown seawards. The air +was oppressively hot, and the sea lay like lead. Desmond knew the signs; +the Gujarati knew them too; and they set to work with a will to meet the +storm. + +Fortunately Desmond, recognizing the unhandiness of his crew, had taken +care to set no more sail than could be shortened at the briefest notice. +He had not been called a moment too soon. A flash lit the black sky; a +peal of thunder rattled like artillery far off; and then a squall struck +the grab with terrific force, and the sea, suddenly lashed into fury, +advanced like a cluster of green liquid mountains to overwhelm the +vessel. She heeled bulwarks under, and was instantly wrapped in a dense +mist, rain pouring in blinding sheets. The main topsail was blown away +with a report like a gun shot; and then, under a reefed foresail, the +grab ran before the wind, which was apparently blowing from the +southeast. + +Furious seas broke over the deck; the wind bellowed through the rigging; +the vessel staggered and plunged under the shocks of sea and wind. Fuzl +Khan clung to the helm with all his strength, but his arms were almost +torn from their sockets, and he called aloud for Desmond to come to his +assistance. + +It was fortunate that little was required of the crew, for in a few +minutes all of them save the four Marathas from the gallivat were +prostrated with seasickness. The Babu had run below, and occasionally, +between two gusts, Desmond could hear the shrieks and groans of the +terrified man. But he had no time to sympathize; his whole energies were +bent on preventing the grab from being pooped. He felt no alarm; indeed, +the storm exhilarated him; danger is bracing to a courageous spirit, and +his blood leaped to this contest with the elements. He thrilled with a +sense of personal triumph as he realized that the grab was a magnificent +sea boat. There was no fear but that the hull would stand the strain; +Desmond knew the pains that had been expended in her building: the +careful selection of the timbers, the niceness with which the planks had +been fitted. No European vessel could have proved her superior in +seaworthiness. + +But she was fast drifting out into the Indian Ocean, far away from the +haven Desmond desired to make. How long was this going to last? Whither +was he being carried? Without chart or compass he could take no bearings, +set no true course. It was a dismal prospect, and Desmond, glowing as he +was with the excitement of the fight, yet felt some anxiety. Luckily, +besides the provisions brought in their bundles by the fugitives, there +was a fair supply of food and water on board; for although every portable +article of value had been taken on shore when the grab anchored in +Gheria, it had not been thought necessary to remove the bulkier articles. +Thus, if at the worst the vessel were driven far out to sea, there was no +danger of starvation, even if she could not make port for several days. + +But Desmond hoped that things would not come to this pass. Towards +nightfall, surely, the squall would blow itself out. Yet the wind +appeared to be gaining rather than losing strength; hour after hour +passed, and he still could not venture to quit the wheel. He was drenched +through and through with the rain; his muscles ached with the stress; and +he could barely manage to eat the food and water brought him staggeringly +by the serang in the intervals of the wilder gusts. + +The storm had lasted for nearly ten hours before it showed signs of +abatement. Another two hours passed before it was safe to leave the helm. +The wind had by this time fallen to a steady breeze; the rain had ceased; +the sky was clear and starlit; but the sea was still running high. At +length the serang offered to steer while the others got a little rest; +and intrusting the wheel to him Desmond and Fuzl Khan threw themselves +down as they were, on the deck near the wheel, and were soon fast asleep. + +At dawn Desmond awoke to find the grab laboring in a heavy sea, with just +steering way on. The wind had dropped to a light breeze. The Gujarati was +soon up and relieved the serang at the wheel; the rest of the crew, +haggard melancholy objects, were set to work to make things shipshape. +Only the Babu remained below; he lay huddled in the cabin, bruised, +prostrate, unable to realize that the bitterness of death was past, +unable to believe that life had any further interest for him. + +Desmond's position was perplexing. Where was he? Perforce he had lost his +bearings. He scanned the whole circumference of the horizon, and saw +nothing but the vast dark ocean plain and its immense blue dome--never a +yard of land, never a stitch of canvas. He had no means of ascertaining +his latitude. During the twelve hours of the storm the grab had been +driven at a furious rate; if the wind had blown all the time from the +southeast, the quarter from which it had struck the vessel, she must now +be at least fifty miles from the coast, possibly more, and north of +Bombay. In the inky blackness of the night, amid the blinding rain, it +had been impossible to read anything from the stars. All was uncertain, +save the golden sheen of sunlight in the east. + +Desmond's only course was to put the vessel about and steer by the sun. +She must thus come sooner or later in sight of the coast, and then one or +the other of the men on board might recognize a landmark--a hill, a +promontory, a town. The danger was that they might make the coast in the +neighborhood of one of the Pirate's strongholds; but that must be risked. + +For the rest of the day there were light variable winds, such as, +according to Fuzl Khan, might be expected at that season of the year. The +northeast monsoon was already overdue. Its coming was usually heralded by +fitful and uncertain winds, varied by such squalls or storms as they had +just experienced. + +The sea moderated early in the morning, and became continually smoother +until, as the sun went down, there was scarce a ripple on the surface. +The wind meanwhile had gradually veered to the southwest, and later to +the west, and the grab began to make more headway. But with the fall of +night it dropped to a dead calm, a circumstance from which the Gujarati +inferred that they were still a long way from the coast. When the stars +appeared, however, and Desmond was able to get a better idea of the +course to set, a slight breeze sprang up again from the west, and the +grab crept along at a speed of perhaps four knots. + +It had been a lazy day on board. The crew had recovered from their +sickness, but there was nothing for them to do, and as orientals they +were quite content to do nothing. Only the Babu remained off duty, in +addition to the watch below. Desmond visited him, and persuaded him to +take some food; but nothing would induce him to come on deck; the mere +sight of the sea, he said, would externalize his interior. + +It was Desmond's trick at the wheel between eight and midnight. Gulam +Abdullah was on the lookout; the rest of the crew were forward squatting +on the deck in a circle around Fuzl Khan. Desmond, thinking of other +things, heard dully, as from a great distance, the drone of the +Gujarati's voice. He was talking more freely and continuously than was +usual with him; ordinarily his manner was morose; he was a man of few +words, and those not too carefully chosen. So prolonged was the +monotonous murmur, however, that Desmond by and by found himself +wondering what was the subject of his lengthy discourse; he even strained +his ears to catch, if it might be, some fragments of it; but nothing came +into distinctness out of the low-pitched tone. + +Occasionally it was broken by the voice of one of the others; now and +again there was a brief interval of silence; then the Gujarati began +again. Desmond's thoughts were once more diverted to his own strange +fate. Little more than a year before, he had been a boy, with no more +experience than was to be gained within the narrow circuit of a country +farm. What a gamut of adventure he had run through since then! He smiled +as he thought that none of the folks at Market Drayton would recognize, +in the muscular, strapping, suntanned seaman, the slim boy of Wilcote +Grange. His imagination had woven many a chain of incident, and set him +in many a strange place; but never had it presented a picture of himself +in command of as mixed a crew as was ever thrown together, navigating +unknown waters without chart or compass, a fugitive from the chains of an +Eastern despot. + +His quick fancy was busy even now. He felt that it was not for nothing he +had been brought into his present plight; and at the back of his mind was +the belief, founded on his strong wish and hope, that the magnetism of +Clive's personality, which he had felt so strongly at Market Drayton, was +still influencing his career. + +At midnight Fuzl Khan relieved him at the wheel, and he turned in. His +sleep was troubled. It was a warm night--unusually warm for the time of +year. There were swarms of cockroaches and rats on board; the cockroaches +huge beasts, three times the size of those that overran the kitchen at +home; the rats seeming as large as the rabbits he had been wont to shoot +on the farm. They scurried about with their little restless noises, which +usually would have had no power to break his sleep; but now they worried +him. He scared them into silence for a moment by striking upon the floor; +but the rustle and clipper clapper immediately began again. + +After vain efforts to regain his sleep, he at length rose and went on +deck. He did not move with intentional quietness, but he was barefoot, +and his steps made no sound. It was a black night, a warm haze almost +shutting out the stars. As he reached the deck he heard low murmurs from +a point somewhere aft. He had no idea what the time was: Shaik Mahomet +had the water clock, with which he timed the watches; and Desmond's could +not yet be due. Avoiding the spot where the conversation was in progress, +he leaned over the bulwarks, and gazed idly at the phosphorescent glow +upon the water. + +Then he suddenly became aware that the sounds of talking came from near +the wheel, and Fuzl Khan was among the talkers. What made the man so +uncommonly talkative? Seemingly he was taking up the thread where it had +been dropped earlier in the night; what was it about? + +Desmond asked himself the question without much interest, and was again +allowing his thoughts to rove when he caught the word "sahib," and then +the word "Firangi" somewhat loudly spoken. Immediately afterwards there +was a low hiss from the Gujarati, as of one warning another to speak +lower. The experiences of the past year had quickened Desmond's wits; +with reason he had become more suspicious than of yore, and the necessity +to be constantly on his guard had made him alert, alive to the least +suggestion. + +Why had the speaker been hushed--and by Fuzl Khan? He remembered the ugly +rumors--the veiled hints he had heard about the man in Gheria. If they +were true, he had sold his comrades who trusted him. They might not be +true; the man himself had always indignantly denied them. Desmond had +nothing against him. So far he had acted loyally enough; but then he had +nothing to gain by playing his fellow fugitives false, and it was with +this knowledge that Desmond had decided to make him privy to the escape. + +But now they were clear of Gheria. Fuzl Khan was free like the rest; he +had no longer the same inducement to play straight if his interest seemed +to him to clash with the general. Yet it was not easy to see how such a +clashing could occur. Like the others he was lost at sea; until land was +reached, at any rate, he could have no motive for opposition or mutiny. + +While these, thoughts were passing through Desmond's mind he heard a man +rise from the group aft and come forward. Instinctively he moved from the +side of the vessel towards the mainmast, and as the man drew near Desmond +stood so that the stout tree trunk was between them. The man went rapidly +towards the bows, and in a low tone hailed the lookout, whispering him a +summons to join the Gujarati at the helm. The lookout, one of the +Marathas, left his post; he came aft with the messenger, and both passing +on the same side of the vessel, Desmond by dodging round the mast escaped +their notice. + +At the best, the action of Fuzl Khan was a dereliction of duty; at the +worst!--Desmond could not put his suspicions into words. It was clear +that something was afoot, and he resolved to find out what it was. Very +cautiously he followed the two men. Bending low, and keeping under the +shadow of the bulwarks, he crept to within a few feet of the almost +invisible group. A friendly coil of rope near the taffrail gave him +additional cover; but the night was so dark that he ran little risk of +being perceived so long as the men remained stationary. He himself could +barely see the tall form of the Gujarati dimly outlined against the sky. + + + +Chapter 16: In which a mutiny is quelled in a minute; and our Babu proves +himself a man of war. + + +Crouching low, Desmond waited. When the Maratha joined the groups Fuzl +Khan addressed him directly in a low firm tone. + +"We are all agreed, Nanna," he said. "You are the only man wanting to our +purpose. This is the fastest grab on the coast. I know a port where we +can get arms and ammunition; with a few good men (and I know where they +can be found), we can make a strong band, and grow rich upon our spoils." + +"But what about the sahib?" + +"Wah! We know what these Firangi are like--at least the Angrezi +{English}. They have the heads of pigs: there is no moving them. It would +be vain to ask the young sahib to join us; his mind is set on getting to +Bombay and telling all his troubles to the Company. What a folly! And +what an injustice to us! It would destroy our chance of making our +fortunes, for what would happen? The grab would be sold; the sahib would +take the most of the price; we should get a small share, not enough to +help us to become rovers of the sea and our own masters." + +"The sahib will refuse, then. So be it! But what then shall we do with +him?" + +"He will not get the chance of refusing. He will not be told." + +"But he is taking us to Bombay. How then can we work our will?" + +"He thinks he is sailing to Bombay: he will really take us to Cutch." + +"How that, brother?" + +"Does he know Bombay? Of a truth no. He is a boy, he has never sailed +these seas. He depends on us. Suppose we come in sight of Bombay, who +will tell him? Nobody. If he asks, we will say it is some other place: +how can he tell? We will run past Bombay until we are within sight of +Cutch: then truly I will do the rest." + +The Maratha did not reply. The momentary silence was broken by Fuzl Khan +again. + +"See! Put the one thing in the balance against the other: how does it +turn? On the one side the twenty rupees--a pitiful sum--promised by the +sahib: and who knows he will keep his promise? On the other, a tenth +share for each of you in the grab and whatsoever prey falls to it." + +"Then the Babu is to have a share? Of a truth he is a small man, a hare +in spirit; does he merit an equal share with us? We are elephants to +him." + +"No. He will have no share. He will go overboard." + +"Why, then, what of the tenth share?" + +"It will be mine. I shall be your leader and take two." + +Desmond had heard enough. The Gujarati was showing himself in his true +colors. His greed was roused, and the chance of setting up as a pirate on +his own account, and making himself a copy of the man whose prisoner he +had been, had prompted this pretty little scheme. Desmond crept +noiselessly away and returned to his quarters. Not to sleep; he spent the +remainder of his watch below in thinking out his position--in trying to +devise some means of meeting this new and unexpected difficulty. He had +not heard what Fuzl Khan proposed ultimately to do with him. He might +share the Babu's fate: at the best it would appear that he had shaken off +one captivity to fall into the toils of another. + +He had heard grim tales of the pirates of the Cambay Gulf; they were not +likely to prove more pleasant masters than the Marathas farther south, +even if they did not prefer to put him summarily out of the way. His +presence among them might prove irksome, and what would the death of a +single English youth matter? He was out of reach of all of his friends; +on the Good Intent none but Bulger and the New Englander had any real +kindness for him, and if Bulger were to mention at any port that a young +English lad was in captivity with the Pirate, what could be done? Should +the projected expedition against Gheria prove successful, and he not be +found among the European prisoners, it would be assumed that he was no +longer living; and even if the news of his escape became known, it was +absurd to suppose that all India would be searched for him. + +The outlook, from any point of view, was gloomy. The Gujarati had +evidently won over the whole ship's company. Were they acting from the +inclination for a rover's life, coupled with the hope of gain, or had +they been jockeyed into mutiny by Fuzl Khan? Desmond could not tell, nor +could he find out without betraying a knowledge of the plot. + +Then he remembered the Babu. He alone had been excepted; the other men +held him in contempt; but despite his weaknesses, for which he was indeed +hardly accountable, Desmond had a real liking for him; and it was an +unpleasant thought that, whatever happened to himself, if the plot +succeeded, Surendra Nath was doomed. + +But thinking of this, Desmond saw one ray of hope. He had not been for +long the companion of men of different castes without picking up a few +notions of what caste meant. The Babu was a Brahman; as a Bengali he had +no claim on the sympathies of the others; but as a Brahman his person to +other Hindus was inviolable. The Marathas were Hindus, and they at least +would not willingly raise their hand against him. Yet Desmond could not +be certain on this point. During his short residence in Gheria he had +found that, in the East as too often in the West, the precepts of +religion were apt to be kept rather in the letter than in the spirit. He +had seen the sacred cow, which no good Hindu would venture to kill for +untold gold, atrociously overworked, and, when too decrepit to be of +further service, left to perish miserably of neglect and starvation. It +might be that although the Marathas would not themselves lay hands on the +Babu, they would be quite content to look calmly on while a Mohammedan +did the work. + +At the best, it was Desmond and the Babu against the crew--hopeless odds, +for if it came to a fight the latter would be worse than useless. Not +that Desmond held the man in such scorn as the men of his own color. +Surendra Nath was certainly timid and slack, physically weak, +temperamentally a coward: yet he had shown gleams of spirit during the +escape, and it seemed to Desmond that he was a man who, having once been +induced to enter upon a course, might prove both constant and loyal. The +difficulty now was that, prostrated by his illness during the storm, he +was not at his best; certainly in no condition to face a difficulty +either mental or physical. + +So Desmond resolved not to tell him of the danger impending. He feared +the effect upon his shaken nerves. He would not intentionally do anything +against Desmond's interest, but he could scarcely fail to betray his +anxiety to the conspirators. Feeling that there was nobody to confide in, +Desmond decided that his only course was to feign ignorance of what was +going on, and await events with what composure he might. Not that he +would relax his watchfulness; on the contrary he was alert and keen, +ready to seize with manful grip the skirts of chance. + +Perhaps, he thought, the grab might fall in with a British ship. But what +would that avail? The grab with her extraordinary sailing powers could +show a clean pair of heels to any Indiaman, however fast, even if he +could find an opportunity of signaling for help. Fuzl Khan, without +doubt, would take care that he never had such a chance. + +Turning things over in his mind, and seeing no way out of his difficulty, +he was at length summoned to relieve the Gujarati at the wheel. It was, +he supposed, about four in the morning, and still pitch dark. When he +came to the helm Fuzl Khan was alone: there was nothing to betray the +fact that the plotters had, but little before, been gathered around him. +The lookout, who had left his post to join the group, had returned +forward, and was now being relieved, like the Gujarati himself. + +Desmond exchanged a word or two with the man, and was left alone at the +wheel. His mind was still set on the problem how to frustrate the scheme +of the mutineers. He was convinced that if the grab once touched shore at +any point save Bombay his plight would be hopeless. But how could he +guard against the danger? Even if he could keep the navigation of the +grab entirely in his own hands by remaining continuously at the helm, he +was dependent on the plotters for information about the coast; to mislead +him would be the easiest thing in the world. But it suddenly occurred to +him that he might gain time by altering the course of the vessel. If he +kept out of sight of land he might increase the chance of some diversion +occurring. + +Accordingly he so contrived that the grab lost rather than gained in her +tacks against the light northwest wind now blowing. None of the men, +except possibly the Gujarati, had sufficient seamanship to detect this +manoeuver; he had gone below, and when he came on deck again he could not +tell what progress had been made during his absence. Only the mainsail, +foresail, and one topsail were set: these were quite enough for the +untrained crew to trim in the darkness--likely to prove too much, indeed, +in the event of a sudden squall. Thus the process of going about was a +long and laborious one, and at the best much way was lost. + +Not long after he had begun to act on this idea he was somewhat concerned +to see the serang, who was in charge of the deck watch, come aft and hang +about near the wheel, as though his curiosity had been aroused. Had he +any suspicions? Desmond resolved to address the man and see what he could +infer from the manner of his reply. + +"Is all well, serang?" + +"All well, sahib," answered the man. He stopped, and seemed to hesitate +whether to say more; but after a moment or two he moved slowly away. + +Desmond watched him. Had he discovered the trick? Would he go below and +waken Fuzl Khan? Desmond could not still a momentary tremor. But the +serang did not rejoin his mess mates, nor go below. He walked up and down +the deck alone. Apparently he suspected nothing. + +Desmond felt relieved; but though he was gaining time, he could but +recognize that it seemed likely to profit him little. A criminal going to +execution may step never so slowly across the prison yard; there is the +inexorable gallows at the end, and certain doom. + +Could he not force matters, Desmond wondered? It was evidently to be a +contest, whether of wits or physical strength, between himself and the +Gujarati. Without one or other the vessel could not be safely navigated; +if he could in some way overcome the ringleader, he felt pretty sure that +the crew would accept the result and all difficulty would be at an end. +But how could he gain so unmistakable an ascendancy? In physical strength +Fuzl Khan was more than his match: there was no doubt of the issue of a +struggle if it were a matter of sheer muscular power. + +For a moment he thought of attempting to enlist the Marathas on his side. +They were Hindus; the Gujarati was a Muslim; and they must surely feel +that, once he was among his co-religionists in Cutch, in some pirate +stronghold, they would run a very poor chance of getting fair treatment. +But he soon dismissed the idea. The Gujarati must seem to them much more +formidable than the stripling against whom he was plotting. The Hindu, +even more than the average human being elsewhere, is inclined to attach +importance to might and bulk--even to mere fat. If he sounded the +Marathas, and, their fear of the Gujarati outweighing their inevitable +distrust of him as a Firangi, they betrayed him to curry a little favor, +there was no doubt that the fate both of himself and the Babu would +instantly be decided. He must trust to himself alone. + +While he was still anxiously debating the matter with himself his eye +caught the two muskets lashed to the wooden framework supporting the +wheel. He must leave no hostages to fortune. Taking advantage of a lull +in the wind he steadied the wheel with his body, and with some difficulty +drew the charges and dropped them into the sea. If it came to a tussle +the enemy would certainly seize the muskets; it would be worth something +to Desmond to know that they were not loaded. It was, in truth, but a +slight lessening of the odds against him; and as he restored the weapons +to their place he felt once more how hopeless his position remained. + +Thus pondering and puzzling, with no satisfaction, he spent the full +period of his term of duty. At the appointed time Fuzl Khan came to +relieve him. It was now full daylight; but, scanning the horizon with a +restless eye, Desmond saw no sign of land, nor the sail of any vessel. + +"No land yet, sahib?" said the Gujarati, apparently in surprise. + +"No, as you see." + +"But you set the course by the stars, sahib?" + +"Oh, yes; the grab must have been going slower than we imagined." + +"The wind has not shifted?" + +"Very little. I have had to tack several times." + +The man grunted, and looked at Desmond, frowning suspiciously, but +Desmond met his glance boldly, and said, as he left to go below: + +"Be sure and have me called the moment you sight land." + +He went below, threw himself into his hammock, and being dead tired, was +soon fast asleep. + +Some hours later he was called by the Babu. + +"Sahib, they say land is in sight at last. I am indeed thankful. To the +landlubber the swell of waves causes nauseating upheaval." + +"'Tis good news indeed," said Desmond, smiling. "Come on deck with me." + +They went up together. The vessel was bowling along under a brisk +southwester, which he found had been blowing steadily almost from the +moment he had left the helm. The land was as yet but a dim line on the +horizon; it was necessary to stand in much closer if any of the landmarks +were to be recognized. He took the wheel; the shade on the sea line +gradually became more definite; and in the course of an hour they opened +up a fort somewhat similar in appearance to that of Gheria. All the +ship's company were now on deck, looking eagerly shorewards. + +"Do you know the place?" asked Desmond of the Gujarati unconcernedly. + +The man gazed at it intently for a minute or so. + +"Yes, sahib; it is Suwarndrug," he said. "Is it not, Nanna?" + +"Yes, of a truth; it is Suwarndrug; I was there a month ago," replied the +Maratha. + +"What do you say, Gulam?" he continued, turning to one of the Biluchis +standing near. + +"It is Suwarndrug. I have seen it scores of times. No one can mistake +Suwarndrug. See, there is the hill; and there is the mango grove. Oh, +yes, certainly it is Suwarndrug." + +At this moment four grabs were seen beating out of the harbor. Fuzl Khan +uttered an exclamation; then, turning to Desmond, he said with a note of +anxiety: + +"It is best to put about at once, sahib. See the grabs! They may be +enemies." + +Desmond's heart gave a jump; his pulse beat more quickly under the stress +of a sudden inspiration. He felt convinced that the fortress was not +Suwarndrug; the Gujarati's anxiety to pile up testimony to the contrary +was almost sufficient in itself to prove that. If not Suwarndrug, it was +probably one of Angria's strongholds, possibly Kulaba. In that case the +grabs now beating out were certainly the Pirate's, and the men knew it. + +Here was an opportunity, probably the only one that would occur, of +grappling with the mutiny. The crew would be torn by conflicting +emotions; with the prospect of recapture by Angria their action would be +paralyzed; if he could take advantage of their indecision he might yet +gain the upper hand. It was a risky venture; but the occasion was +desperate. He could afford for the present to neglect the distant grabs, +for none of the vessels on the coast could match the Tremukji in speed, +and bend all his energies upon the more serious danger on board. + +"Surely it can not be Suwarndrug?" he said, with an appearance of +composure that he was far from feeling. "Suwarndrug, you remember, has +been captured. The last news at Gheria was that it was in the Company's +hands, though there was a rumor that it might be handed over to the +Peshwa. We should not now see Angria's grabs coming out of Suwarndrug. +But if it is Suwarndrug, Fuzl Khan, why put about? As fugitives from +Gheria we should be assured of a welcome at Suwarndrug. We should be as +safe there as at Bombay." + +The Gujarati was none too quick witted. He was patently taken aback, and +hesitated for a reply. The grab was standing steadily on her course +shorewards. Desmond was to all appearance unconcerned; but the crew were +looking at one another uneasily, and the Gujarati's brow was darkening; +his fidgetiness increasing. Surendra Nath was the only man among the +natives who showed no anxiety. He was leaning on the taffrail, gazing +almost gloatingly at the land, and paying no heed to the strange +situation around him. + +Desmond was watching the Gujarati keenly. The man's manner fully +confirmed his suspicions, and even in the tenseness of the moment he felt +a passing amusement at the big fellow's puzzle-headed attempts to invent +an explanation that would square with the facts. Failing to hit upon a +plausible argument, he began to bluster. + +"You, Firangi, heed what I say. It is not for us to run risks: the hind +does not walk open eyed into the tiger's mouth. The grab must be put +about immediately." + +"Who is in command?" asked Desmond quietly; "you or I?" + +"We share it. I can navigate as well as you." + +"You forget our arrangement in Gheria. You agreed that I should command." + +"Yes, but at the pleasure of the rest. We are ten; we will have our way; +the grab must be put about, at once. + +"Not by me." + +Desmond felt what was coming and braced himself to meet it. + +Then things happened with startling rapidity. The Gujarati, with a yell +of rage, made a rush towards the wheel. Knowing what to expect, Desmond +slipped behind it and with a few light steps gained the deck forward. +Fuzl Khan shouted to the serang to take the helm and steer the vessel out +to sea; then set off in headlong pursuit of Desmond, who had now turned +and stood awaiting the attack. + +The Gujarati did not even trouble to draw his knife. He plunged at him +like a bull, shouting that he would deal with the pig of a Firangi as he +had dealt with the sentinel at Gheria. + +But it was not for nothing that Desmond had fought a dozen battles for +the possession of Clive's desk at school, and a dozen more for the honor +of the school against the town; that his muscles had been developed by +months of hard work at sea and harder work in the dockyard at Gheria. +Deftly dodging the man's blind rush, he planted his bare feet firmly and +threw his whole weight into a terrific body blow that sent the bigger man +with a thud to the deck. Panting, breathless, trembling with fury, Fuzl +Khan sprang to his feet, caught sight of the muskets, and tearing one +from its fastenings raised it to his shoulder. + +Desmond seized the moment with a quickness that spoke volumes for his +will's absolute mastery of his body. As the man pulled the harmless +trigger, Desmond leaped at him; a crashing blow between the eyes sent him +staggering against the wheel; a second while he tottered brought him limp +and almost stunned to the deck. + +Meanwhile the crew had looked on for a few breathless moments in +amazement at this sudden turn of affairs. But as the Gujarati fell +Desmond heard a noise behind him. Half turning, he saw Shaik Abdullah +rushing towards him with a marlinspike. The man had him at a +disadvantage, for he was breathless from his tussle with Fuzl Khan; but +at that moment a dark object hurtled through the air, striking this new +antagonist at the back of the head, and hurling him a lifeless lump into +the scuppers. + +Desmond looked round in wonderment: who among the crew had thus +befriended him so opportunely? His wonder was not lessened when he saw +the Babu, trembling like a leaf, his eyes blazing, his dusky face +indescribably changed. At the sight of Desmond's peril the Bengali, +forgetting his weakness, exalted above his timidity, had caught up with +both hands a round nine-pounder shot that lay on deck, and in a sudden +strength of fury had hurled it at the Biluchi. His aim was fatally true; +the man was killed on the spot. + +With his eyes Desmond thanked the Babu; there was no time for words. The +hostile grabs were undoubtedly making chase. They had separated, with the +intention of bearing down upon and overhauling the Tremukji in whatever +direction she might flee. Fuzl Khan still lay helpless upon the deck. + +"Secure that man," said Desmond to two of the crew. + +He spoke curtly and sternly, with the air of one who expected his orders +to be executed without question; though he felt a touch of anxiety lest +the men should still defy him. But they went about their task instantly +without a word: Desmond's bold stand, and the swift overthrow of the big +Gujarati, had turned the tide in his favor, and he thrilled with relief +and keen pleasure that he was master of the situation. + +While the ringleader of the mutineers was being firmly bound, Desmond +turned to Nanna and said: + +"Now, answer me at once. What is that place?" + +"It is Kulaba, sahib." + +"Where is Kulaba?" + +"A few miles south of Bombay, sahib." + +"Good. Run up the fore-topsail." + +He went to the wheel. + +"Thank you, serang. I will relieve you. Go forward and see that the men +crowd on all sail." + +The mutiny had been snuffed out; the men went about their work quietly, +with the look of whipped dogs; and barring accidents Desmond knew that +before long he would make Bombay and be safe. With every stitch of canvas +set, the vessel soon showed that she had the heels of her pursuers. +Before she could draw clear, two of them came within range with their bow +chasers, and their shot whistled around somewhat too close to be +comfortable. But she steadily drew ahead, and ere long it was seen that +the four grabs were being hopelessly outpaced. They kept up the chase for +the best part of an hour, but as they neared the British port they +recognized that they were running into danger and had the discretion to +draw off. + +Now that the pursuit was over, Desmond ventured to steer due northeast, +and the coastline became more distinctly visible. It was about two +o'clock in the afternoon, judging by the height of the sun, when the +serang, pointing shorewards, said: + +"There is Bombay, sahib." + +"You are sure?" + +"Yes; I know it by the cluster of palmyra trees. No one can mistake +them." + +Moment by moment the town and harbor came more clearly into view. Desmond +saw an extensive castle, a flag flying on its pinnacled roof, set amid a +green mass of jungle and cocoanut forest, with a few Portuguese-built +houses dotted here and there. In front a narrow jungle-clad island, +called, as he afterwards learned, Old Woman Island, stretched like a spit +into the sea. To the left of the fort, at the head of a small bay, was +the Bunder pier, with the warehouses at the shore end. Still farther to +the left were the docks and the marine yards, and; at the extremity of +the island on which Bombay stands, a frowning bastion. + +Feeling that he had now nothing more to fear, Desmond ordered Fuzl Khan +to be cast loose and brought to him. The man wore a look of sullen +surprise, which Desmond cheerfully ignored. + +"Now, Fuzl Khan," he said, "we are running into Bombay harbor. You know +the channel?" + +The man grunted a surly affirmative. + +"Well, you will take the helm, and steer us in to the most convenient +moorings." + +He turned away, smiling at the look of utter consternation on the +Gujarati's face. To be trusted after his treacherous conduct was +evidently more than the man could understand. The easy unconcern with +which Desmond walked away had its effect on the crew. When orders were +given to take in sail they carried them out with promptitude, and Desmond +chuckled as he saw them talking to one another in low tones and +discussing him, as he guessed by their glances in his direction. + +The Gujarati performed his work at the helm skilfully, and about five +o'clock, when the sun was setting, casting a romantic glow over the long +straggling settlement, the Tremukji ran to her anchorage among a host of +small craft, within a few cable lengths of the vessels of Admiral +Watson's squadron, which had arrived from Madras a few weeks before. + + + +Chapter 17: In which our hero finds himself among friends; +and Colonel Clive prepares to astonish Angria. + + +The entrance of a strange grab had not passed unnoticed. Before the +anchor had been dropped, the harbor master put off in a toni. + +"What grab is that?" he shouted in Urdu, as he came alongside. + +"The Tremukji, sir," replied Desmond in English. + +"Eh! what! who in the name of Jupiter are you?" + +"You'd better come aboard, sir, and I'll explain," said Desmond with a +smile. + +The harbor master mounted the side, rapping out sundry exclamations of +astonishment that amused Desmond not a little. + +"Don't talk like a native! H'm! Queer! Turn him inside out! No nonsense!" + +"Well, here I am," he added, stepping up to Desmond. "My name's Johnson, +and I'm harbor master. Now then, explain; no nonsense." + +Desmond liked the look of the little man. He was short and stout, with a +very large red face, a broad turn-up nose, and childlike blue eyes that +bespoke confidence at once. + +"My name is Desmond Burke, sir, and I've run away from Gheria in this +grab." + +"The deuce you have!" + +"Yes, sir. I've been a prisoner there for six months and more, and we got +off a few nights ago in the darkness." + +"H'm! Any more Irishmen aboard?" + +"Not that I'm aware of, sir." + +"And you got away from Gheria, did you? You're the first that ever I +heard did so. Nothing to do with Commodore James, eh?" + +"No, sir. I don't know what you mean." + +"Why, Commodore James started t'other day to take a good sea-look at +Gheria. There's an expedition getting ready to draw that rascally +Pirate's teeth. You saw nothing of the squadron? No nonsense, now." + +"Not a thing, sir. We were blown out to sea, and I suppose the commodore +passed us in the night." + +"H'm! Very likely. And you weathered that storm, did you? Learned your +seamanship, eh?" + +"Picked up a little on board the Good Intent, sir. I was ship's boy +aboard." + +"Mighty queer ship's boy!" said Mr. Johnson in an audible aside. "The +Good Intent's a villainous interloper; how came you aboard of her?" + +"I was in a sense tricked into it, sir, and when we got to Gheria Captain +Barker and Mr. Diggle, the supercargo, sold me to Angria." + +"Sold you to the Pirate?" + +"Yes, sir." + +"And where do you hail from, then?" + +"Shropshire, sir; my father was Captain Richard Burke in the Company's +service." + +"Jupiter! You're Dick Burke's son! Gad, sir, give me your hand; I knew +Dick Burke; many's the sneaker of Bombay punch we've tossed off together. +No nonsense about Dick; give me your fist. + +"And so you sneaked out of Gheria and sailed this grab, eh? Well, you're +a chip of the old block, and a credit to your old dad. I want to hear all +about this. And you'll have to come ashore and see the governor." + +"It's very kind of you, Mr. Johnson, but really I can't appear before the +governor in this rig." + +He glanced ruefully at his bare legs and feet and tattered garments. + +"True, you en't very shipshape, but we'll soon alter that. Ever use a +razor?" + +"Not yet, sir," replied Desmond with a smile. + +"Thought not. Plenty of native barbers. You must get shaved. And I'll rig +you up in a suit of some sort. You must see the governor at once, and no +nonsense." + +"What about the grab, sir?" + +"Leave that to me. You've got a pretty mixed crew, I see. All escaped +prisoners, too?" + +"All but four." + +"And not one of 'em to be trusted, I'll swear. Well, I'll put a crew +aboard to take charge. Come along; there's no time to lose. Colonel Clive +goes to bed early." + +"Colonel Clive! Is he here?" + +"Yes; arrived from home two days ago. Ah! that reminds me; you're a +Shropshire lad; so's he; do you know him?" + +"No, sir; I've seen him; I--I--" + +Desmond stammered, remembering his unfortunate encounter with Clive in +Billiter Street. + +"Well, well," said the harbor master, with a quizzical look; "you'll see +him again. Come along." + +Desmond accompanied Mr. Johnson on shore. A crowd had gathered. There +were Sepoys in turban, cabay {cloak}, and baggy drawers; bearded Arabs; +Parsis in their square caps; and a various assortment of habitues of the +shore--crimps, landsharks, badmashes {bad characters}, bunder {port} +gangs. Seeing Desmond hold his nose at the all-prevailing stench of fish, +Mr. Johnson laughed. + +"You'll soon get used to that," he said. "'Tis all fish oil and bummaloes +{small fish the size of smelt, known when dried as 'Bombay duck'} in +Bombay." + +Having sent a trustworthy crew on board the Tremukji, the harbor master +led Desmond to his house near the docks. Here, while a native barber +plied his dexterous razor on Desmond's cheeks and chin, Mr. Johnson +searched through a miscellaneous hoard of clothes in one of his capacious +presses for an outfit. He found garments that proved a reasonable fit, +and Desmond, while dressing, gave a rapid sketch of his adventures since +he left the prison shed in Gheria. + +"My wigs, but you've had a time of it. Mutiny and all! Dash my buttons, +here's a tale for the ladies! Let me look at you. Yes, you'll do now, and +faith you're a pretty fellow. And Dick Burke's son! You've got his nose +to a T; no nonsense about that. Now you're ready to make your bow to Mr. +Bourchier. He's been a coursing match with Colonel Clive and Mr. Watson +{it was customary to use the title Mr. in speaking to or of both naval +and military officers} up Malabar Hill, and we'll catch him before he +sits down to supper. + +"How do you feel inside, by the way? Ready for a decent meal after the +Pirate's pig's wash, eh?" + +"I'm quite comfortable inside," said Desmond, smiling, "but, to tell you +the truth, Mr. Johnson, I feel mighty uneasy outside. After six months of +the dhoti these breeches and things seem just like bandages." + +"It en't the first time you've been swaddled, if you had a mother. Well +now, if you're ready. What! That rascal gashed you! Tuts! 'tis a scratch. +Can't wait to doctor that. Come on." + +The two made their way into the fort inclosure, and walked rapidly to the +Government House in the center. In answer to Mr. Johnson the darwan +{doorkeeper} at the door said that the governor would not return that +night. After the coursing match he was giving a supper party at his +country house at Parell. + +"That's a nuisance. But we can't have any nonsense. The governor's a bit +of an autocrat; too much starch in his shirt, I say; but we'll go out to +Parell and beard him, by Jove! 'Tis only five miles out, and we'll drive +there in under an hour." + +Turning away he hurried out past the tank house on to the Green, and by +good luck found an empty shigram {carriage like a palanquin on wheels} +waiting to be hired. Desmond mounted the vehicle with no little +curiosity. These great beasts with their strange humps would surely not +cover five miles in less than an hour. But he was undeceived when they +started. The two sturdy oxen trotted along at a good pace in obedience to +the driver's goad, and the shigram rattled across Bombay Green, past the +church and the whitewashed houses of the English merchants, their +oyster-shell windows already lit up; and in some forty-five minutes +entered a long avenue leading to Mr. Bourchier's country house. Twice +during the course of the journey Desmond was interested to see the +shigramwallah {wallah is a personal affix, denoting a close connection +between the person and the thing described by the main word. +Shigramwallah thus is carriage driver} pull his team up, dismount, and, +going to their heads, insert his hand in their mouths. + +"What does he do that for?" he asked. + +"To clear their throats, to be sure. When the beasts go at this pace they +make a terrible lot of foam, and if he didn't swab it out they'd choke, +and no nonsense. + +"Well, here we are. Dash my wig, won't his Excellency open his eyes!" + +Since their departure from the fort the sky had become quite dark. At the +end of the avenue they could see the lights of Governor Bourchier's +bungalow, and by and by caught sight of figures sitting on the veranda. +Desmond's heart beat high; he made no doubt that one of them was Clive; +the moment to which he had looked forward so eagerly was at last at hand. +He was in no dream land; but his dream had come true. He felt a little +nervous at the prospect of meeting men so famous, so immeasurably above +him, as Clive and Admiral Watson; but with Clive he felt a bond of union +in his birthplace, and it was with recovered confidence that he sprang +out of the cart and accompanied Mr. Johnson to the bungalow. He was +further reassured by a jolly laugh that rang out just as he reached the +steps leading up to the veranda. + +"Hullo, Johnson," said a voice, "what does this mean?" + +"I've come to see the governor, Captain." + +"Then you couldn't have come at a worse time. The supper's half an hour +late, and you know what that means to the governor." + +Mr. Johnson smiled. + +"He'll forget his supper when he has heard my news. 'Tis about the +Pirate." + +"What's that?" said another voice. "News of the Pirate?" + +"Yes, Mr. Watson. This young gentleman--" + +But he was interrupted by the khansaman {butler}, who came out at this +moment and with a salaam announced that supper was served. + +"You'd better come in, Johnson," said the first speaker. "Any news of the +Pirate will be sauce to Mr. Bourchier's goose." + +The gentlemen rose from their seats, and went into the house, followed by +Desmond and the harbor master. In a moment Desmond found himself in a +large room brilliantly lighted with candles. In the center was a round +table, and Mr. Bourchier, the governor, was placing his guests. He did +not look very pleasant, and when he saw Mr. Johnson he said: + +"You come at a somewhat unseasonable hour, sir. Can not your business +wait till the morning?" + +"I made bold to come, your Excellency, because 'tis a piece of news the +like of which no one in Bombay has ever heard before. This young +gentleman, Mr. Desmond Burke, son of Captain Burke, whom you'll remember, +sir, has escaped from Gheria." + +The governor and his guests were by this time seated, and instantly all +eyes were focused on Desmond, and exclamations of astonishment broke from +their lips. + +"Indeed! Bring chairs, Hossain." + +One of the native attendants left the room noiselessly, and returning +with chairs placed them at the table. + +"Sit down, gentlemen. This is amazing news, as you say, Mr. Johnson. +Perhaps Mr. Burke will relate his adventure as we eat." + +Desmond took the chair set for him. The guests were five. Two of them +wore the laced coats of admirals; the taller, a man of handsome presence, +with a round chubby face, large eyes, small full lips, his head crowned +by a neat curled wig, was Charles Watson, in command of the British +fleet; the other was his second, Rear Admiral Pocock. A third was Richard +King, captain of an Indiaman, in a blue coat with velvet lappets and gold +embroidery, buff waistcoat and breeches. Next him sat a jolly red-faced +gentleman in plain attire, and between him and the governor was Clive +himself, whose striking face--the lawyer's brow, the warrior's nose and +chin, the dreamer's mouth--would have marked him out in any company. + +Desmond began his story. The barefooted attendants moved quietly about +with the dishes, but the food was almost neglected as the six gentlemen +listened to the clear low voice telling of the escape from the fort, the +capture of the grab, and the eventful voyage to Bombay harbor. + +"By George! 'tis a famous adventure," exclaimed Admiral Watson, when the +story was ended. "What about this Pirate's den? Gheria fort is said to be +impregnable; what are the chances if we attack, eh? The approaches to the +harbor, now; do you know the depth of the water?" + +"Vessels can stand in to three fathoms water, sir. Seven fathoms is +within point-blank shot of the fort. The walls are about fifty feet high; +there are twenty-seven bastions, and they mount more than two hundred +guns." + +"And the opposite shore?" + +"A flat tableland, within distance for bombarding. A diversion might be +made from there while the principal attack could be carried on in the +harbor, or from a hill south of the fort." + +"Is the landing easy?" + +"Yes, sir. There are three sandy bays under the hill, without any surf to +make landing difficult. One is out of the line of fire from the fort." + +"And what about the land side? There's a town, is there not?" + +"On a neck of land, sir. There's a wall, but nothing to keep out a +considerable force. If an attack were made from that side the people +would, I think, flock into the fort." + +"And is that as strong as rumor says?" + +"'Tis pretty strong, sir; there are double walls, and thick ones; they'd +stand a good battering." + +"It seems to me, Admiral," said the red-faced gentleman with a laugh, +"that you've learned all you sent Commodore James to find out. + +"What do you say, Mr. Clive?" + +"It seems so, Mr. Merriman. But I think, Mr. Watson, in our eagerness to +learn something of Gheria, we must seem somewhat cavalier to this lad, +whose interest in our plans cannot be equal to our own. + +"You have shown, sir," he added, addressing Desmond, "great spirit and +courage, not less ingenuity, in your daring escape from the Pirate. But I +want to go farther back. How came you to fall into the Pirate's hands? +You have told us only part of your story." + +"Yes, indeed," said Mr. Bourchier. "If you are not tired, we shall be +vastly pleased to hear more, Mr. Burke." + +"Your name is Burke?" interrupted Clive. "I had not before caught it. May +I ask what part of Ireland you come from, sir? Pardon me, but your accent +smacks more of Shropshire than of County Dublin." + +"'Tis Shropshire, sir; I come from Market Drayton." + +("Like yourself!" his glowing cheeks and flashing eyes seemed to say. +This was the proudest moment in Desmond's life as yet.) + +"I was not mistaken," said Clive. "I remember a schoolfellow of mine of +your name; let me see--" + +"Richard Burke, sir, my brother; my father was Captain Burke in the +Company's service." + +"Sure I have it now. I remember him: a tall, fine old sea dog whom I saw +at times in Market Drayton when I was a child. I had a great awe of +Captain Burke--i'faith, the only man I was afraid of. And you are his +son!--But come, I am interrupting your story." + +Desmond spoke of his longing for adventure, which had led him to leave +home in search of fortune. He glossed over his brother's ill treatment. +He told how he had been inveigled on board the Good Intent, and handed +over to Angria when the vessel arrived at Gheria. He mentioned no names +except that of Captain Barker, though he could not have explained his +motive in keeping silence about Diggle. + +"Barker is a villain, ripe for the gallows," said Captain King. "But, Mr. +Burke, I don't understand how you came to be so hoodwinked in London. +Sure you must have known that a boy without an ounce of experience would +never be made supercargo. Had you any enemies in London?" + +"I didn't know that I had, sir, till the Good Intent had sailed. I was +deceived, but the man who promised me the berth was very friendly, and I +didn't suspect him." + +"It was not Barker, then?" + +"No, sir; it was a man I met at Market Drayton." + +"At Market Drayton?" said Clive. "That's odd. What was his name?" + +"His name was Diggle, and--" + +"A stranger? I remember no one of that name," said Clive. + +"I thought he was a stranger, sir; but of late I have begun to suspect he +was not such a stranger as he seemed." + +"How did you meet him?" + +"Accidentally, sir, the night of your banquet in Market Drayton." + +"Indeed! 'Tis all vastly curious. Was he lodging in the town?" + +"He came in from Chester that night and lodged at the Four Alls." + +"With that disreputable sot Grinsell!" Clive paused. "Did he tell you +anything about himself?" + +"Very little, sir, except that he'd been unlucky. I think he mentioned +once that he was a fellow at a Cambridge college, but he spoke to me most +about India." + +As he put his questions Clive leaned forward, and seemed to become more +keenly interested with every answer. He now turned and gave a hard look +at the bluff man whom he had called Mr. Merriman. The rest of the company +were silent. + +"Do you happen to know whether he went up to the Hall?" asked Clive. + +"Sir Willoughby's? I met him several times walking in that neighborhood, +but I don't think he went to the Hall. He did not appear to know Sir +Willoughby.--And yet, sir, I remember now that I heard Diggle and +Grinsell talking about the squire the night I first saw them together at +the Four Alls." + +"And you were with this--Diggle, in London, Mr. Burke?" + +"Yes, sir." + +Desmond began to feel uncomfortable. Clive had evidently not recognized +him before, and he was hoping that the unfortunate incident in Billiter +Street would not be recalled. Clive's next words made him wish to sink +into the floor. + +"Do you remember, Mr. Burke, in London, throwing yourself in the way of a +gentleman that was in pursuit of your friend Mr. Diggle, and bringing him +to the ground?" + +"Yes, sir, I did, and I am sorry for it." + +Desmond did not like the grim tone of Clive's voice; he wished he would +address him as "my lad" instead of "Mr. Burke." + +"That was a bad start, let me say, Mr. Burke--an uncommonly bad start." + +"Oh come, Mr. Clive!" broke in Mr. Merriman, "say no more about that. The +boy was in bad company: 'twas not his fault. In truth, 'twas my own +fault: I am impetuous; the sight of that scoundrel was too much for me. + +"I bear you no grudge, my lad, though I had a bump on my head for a week +afterwards. Had you not tripped me I should have run my rapier through +the villain, and there would like have been an end of me." + +"Shall I tell the boy, Mr. Merriman?" said Clive. + +"Not now, not now," said Merriman quickly. + +The other gentlemen, during this dialogue, had been discussing the +information they had gained about Gheria fort. + +"Well," said Clive, "you are lucky, let me tell you, Mr. Burke, to be out +of this Diggle's clutches. By the way, have you seen him since he sold +you to the Pirate?" + +"He came a few days before I escaped, and wanted me to come here as a +spy. Angria promised me my freedom and a large sum of money." + +"What's that?" cried Merriman. "Wanted you to come as a spy?" + +"Yes, sir." + +"And what did you say?" + +"I told him he might do it himself." + +"A palpable hit!" said Merriman with a grim laugh, "and a very proper +answer. But he'll have more respect for his skin." + +"Gentlemen," said Mr. Bourchier, "we have kept Mr. Burke talking so much +that he hasn't had a mouthful of food. I think we might go out on the +veranda and smoke our cigars while he takes some supper. + +"Mr. Johnson, you've done most justice to my viands, I think. Perhaps you +will join us." + +The harbor master became purple in the face. He had in fact been eating +and drinking with great gusto, taking advantage of the preoccupation of +the company to insure that the excellent fare should not be wasted. He +rose hurriedly and, with a sheepish look that scarcely fitted his +cheerful features, followed his sarcastic host to the veranda. All the +guests save Mr. Merriman accompanied Mr. Bourchier. + +"They all want to talk shop; this expedition against the Pirate," said +Mr. Merriman. "You and I can have a little chat." + +Desmond was attracted by the open face of his new acquaintance, slightly +disfigured, as he noticed, by a long scar on the left temple. + +"You're plucky and lucky," continued Merriman, "and in spite of what Mr. +Clive calls your bad start in bowling me over, you'll do well." + +His face clouded as he went on. + +"That man Diggle: why should he have sold you to the Pirate: what had he +against you?" + +"I can not imagine, sir." + +"You are lucky to have escaped him, as Mr. Clive said. I think--yes, I +will tell you about him. His name is not Diggle; it is Simon Peloti. He +is a nephew of Sir Willoughby's. His mother married a Greek, against her +brother's wish; the man died when the child was a year old. As a boy +Peloti was as charming a little fellow as one could wish: handsome, high +spirited, clever. He did well at school, and afterwards at Cambridge: won +a fellowship there. Then he went to the dogs--not all at once; men never +do. He was absolutely without principle, and thought of nothing but his +own ease and success. One thing led to another; at last, in the +forty-five--" + +He paused. After a moment he went on: + +"I had a brother, my lad--" + +He stopped again, his face expressing poignant grief. + +"I know, sir," said Desmond. "Sir Willoughby told me." + +"He told you! He did not mention Peloti?" + +"No, sir; but I see it all now. It was Diggle--Peloti, I mean--who +betrayed your brother. I understand now why the squire took no steps +against Grinsell. His accomplice was Diggle." + +He related the incident of the house breakers. + +"Yes," said Merriman, "that throws a light on things. Peloti, I imagine, +had previously seen the squire, and tried to get money from him. Sir +Willoughby refused: he gave him a thousand pounds ten years ago on +condition he left the country and did not return. So the villain resolved +to rob him. 'Twas fortunate indeed you appeared in time. That is the +reason for his hating you." + +"There was another, sir," said Desmond with some hesitation. "He thought +I was hankering after the squire's property--aiming at becoming his heir. +'Twas ridiculous, sir; such an idea never entered my head." + +"I see. Peloti came to India and got employment in the Company's service +at Madras. But he behaved so badly that he had to be turned out--he said +Mr. Clive hounded him out. What became of him after that I don't know. +But let us leave the miserable subject. Tell me, what are your ideas? +What are you going to do, now that you are a free man once more? Get +another berth as supercargo?" + +His eyes twinkled as he said this. + +"No, thank you, sir; once bit twice shy. I haven't really thought of +anything definite, but what I should like best of all would be a +cadetship under Colonel Clive." + +"Soho! You're a fighter, are you? But of course you are; I have reason to +know that. Well, we'll see what my friend Mr. Clive says. You've no +money, I suppose?" + +"Not a half penny, sir; but if the governor will admit that the grab is +my lawful prize, I thought of selling her; that will bring me a few +pounds." + +"Capital idea. Punctilio won't stand in the way of that, I should think. +Well now, I'll speak to Mr. Clive for you, but don't build too much on +it. He cannot give you a commission, I fear, without the authority of the +governor of Madras; and though no doubt a word from him would be +effectual, he's a very particular man, and you'll have to prove you're +fit for a soldier's life. + +"Meanwhile, what do you say to this? I've taken a fancy to you. I'm a +merchant; trade pays better than soldiering, in general. I've got ships +of my own, and I dare say I could find a berth for you on one of them. +You seem to know something of navigation?" + +"Very little, sir; just what I picked up on the Good Intent." + +"Well, that's a beginning. I've no doubt that Admiral Watson will wish +you to go to Gheria with him: your knowledge of the place will be useful. +He won't start for a month or two: why not occupy the time in improving +your navigation, so that if there are difficulties about a cadetship +you'll be competent for a mate's berth? Nothing like having two strings +to your bow. What do you say to that?" + +"'Tis very good of you, sir; I accept with pleasure." + +"That's right. Now when you've finished that curry we'll go out on the +veranda. Before you came they were talking of nothing but their dogs; but +I wager 'tis nothing but the Pirate now." + +They soon rejoined the other gentlemen. + +"Come, Mr. Burke," said Admiral Watson, "we've been talking over the +information you've given us. You've nothing to do, I suppose?" + +"I've just suggested that he should read up navigation, Mr. Watson," said +Merriman. + +"You're a wizard, Mr. Merriman. I was proposing to engage Mr. Burke to +accompany us on our expedition against the Pirate. He can make himself +useful when we get to Gheria. We'll see how James' information tallies +with his. + +"You won't object to serve his Majesty, Mr. Burke?" + +"'Tis what I should like best in the world, sir." + +"Very well. Meanwhile learn all you can; Captain King here will take +charge of you, I've no doubt." + +"Certainly, Mr. Watson." + +"You will give Mr. Burke quarters for the present, Mr. Johnson?" said +Merriman. + +"To be sure. And as 'tis late we'd better be going. + +"Good night, your Excellency; good night, gentlemen." + +Early next day Admiral Watson himself rode down to the harbor to inspect +the grab. He was so much pleased with her that he offered to buy her for +the service. Before the day was out Desmond found himself in possession +of seven thousand rupees. After paying the Marathas the wages agreed +upon, he proceeded to divide the balance. He retained two shares for +himself, and gave each of the men who had escaped with him an equal part. + +No one was more surprised than Fuzl Khan when he received his share in +full. He had expected to get the punishment he knew he well deserved. But +Desmond, against the advice of the harbor master, determined to overlook +the man's misconduct. He went further. At his request Admiral Watson gave +him a place on the grab. The Gujarati seemed overwhelmed by this +generosity on the part of a man he had wronged, and for the nonce +breaking through his usual morose reserve, he thanked Desmond, awkwardly +indeed, but with manifest sincerity. + +The other men were no less delighted with their good fortune. The sums +they received made them rich men for life. None was more elated than +Surendra Nath. It happened that Mr. Merriman came on board to see the +grab at the moment when Desmond was distributing the prize money. Desmond +noticed a curious expression on the Babu's face, and he was compelled to +laugh when the man, after a moment's hesitation, walked up to Mr. +Merriman, and with a strange mixture of humility and importance said: + +"I wish you a very good morning, your Honor." + +"Good gad!--Surendra Nath Chuckerbutti! I'm uncommonly glad to see you." + +He shook hands warmly, a mark of condescension which made the Babu beam +with gratification. + +"Why," continued Merriman, "we'd given you up for dead long ago. So +you're the plucky and ingenious fellow who did so much to help Mr. Burke +in the famous escape! + +"Surendra Nath was one of my best clerks, Mr. Burke. His father is my +head clerk for Company's business. + +"He hasn't been the same man since you disappeared. You must tell me your +story. Come up to Mr. Bowman's house on the Green tonight; I am staying +there." + +"I shall be most glad to return to my desk in Calcutta, your Honor," said +the Babu. "But I do not like the sea. It has no sympathy with me. I think +of accomplishing the journey by land." + +"Good heavens, man! it would take you a year at the least, if you weren't +swallowed by a tiger or strangled by a Thug on the way. You'll have to go +by water, as you came." + +The Babu's face fell. + +"That is the fly in the ointment, your Honor. But I will chew majum and +bestow myself in the cabin; thus perhaps I may avoid squeamishness. By +the kindness of Burke Sahib I have a modicum of money, now a small +capital; and I hope, with your Honor's permission, to do trifling trade +for myself." + +"Certainly," said Merriman with a laugh. "You'll be a rich man yet, +Surendra Nath. Well, don't forget; you'll find me at Mr. Bowman's on the +Green at eight o'clock." + + + +Chapter 18: In which Angria is astonished; and our hero begins to pay off +old scores. + + +Time sped quickly. Desmond made the best use of his opportunities of +learning navigation under Captain King and the harbor master, and before +two months had expired was pronounced fit to act as mate on the finest +East Indiaman afloat. He took this with a grain of salt. The fact was +that his adventures, the modesty with which he deprecated all allusions +to his part in the escape from Gheria, and the industry with which he +worked, won him the goodwill of all; he was a general favorite with the +little European community of Bombay. + +Apart from his study, he found plenty to interest him in his spare +moments. The strange mixture of people, the temples and pagodas, the +towers of silence on which the Parsees exposed their dead, the burning +pyres of the Hindus on the beach, the gaunt filthy fakirs {religious +mendicant (Mohammedan)} and jogis who whined and told fortunes in the +streets for alms, the exercising of the troops, the refitting and +careening of Admiral Watson's ships--all this provided endless matter for +curiosity and amusement. + +One thing disappointed him. Not once during the two months did he come in +contact with Clive. Mr. Merriman remained in Bombay, awaiting the arrival +of a vessel of his from Muscat; but Desmond was loath to ask him whether +he had sounded Clive about a cadetship. As a matter of fact Mr. Merriman +had mentioned the matter at once. + +"Patience, Merriman," was Clive's reply. "I have my eye on the +youngster." + +And with that the merchant, knowing his friend, was very well content; +but he kept his own counsel. + +At length, one day in the first week of February, 1756, Desmond received +a summons to visit the admiral. His interview was brief. He was directed +to place himself under the orders of Captain Latham on the Tyger; the +fleet was about to sail. + +It was a bright, cool February morning; cool, that is, for Bombay, when +the vessels weighed anchor and sailed slowly out of the harbor. All +Bombay lined the shores: natives of every hue and every mode of attire; +English merchants; ladies fluttering white handkerchiefs. Such an +expedition had never been undertaken against the noted Pirate before, and +the report of Commodore James, confirming the information brought by +Desmond, had given the authorities good hope that this pest of the +Malabar coast was at last to be destroyed. + +It was an inspiriting sight as the vessels, rounding the point, made +under full sail to the south. There were six line-of-battle ships, six +Company's vessels, five bomb ketches, four Maratha grabs--one of them +Angria's own grab, the Tremukji, on which Desmond had escaped--and forty +gallivats. The Tyger led the van. Admiral Watson's flag was hoisted on +the Kent, Admiral Pocock's on the Cumberland. On board the fleet were two +hundred European soldiers, three hundred Sepoys, and three hundred +Topasses--mainly half-caste Portuguese in the service of the Company, +owing their name to the topi {hat} they wore. To cooperate with this +force a land army of twelve thousand Marathas, horse and foot, under the +command of Ramaji Punt, one of the Peshwa's generals, had been for some +time investing the town of Gheria. + +At this time of year the winds were so slight and variable that it was +nearly a week before the fleet arrived off Gheria. When the bastions of +the fort hove into sight Desmond could not help contrasting his feelings +with those of two months before. + +"Like the look of your cage, Mr. Burke?" asked Captain Latham at his +elbow. + +"I was just thinking of it, sir," said Desmond. "It makes a very great +difference when you're outside the bars." + +"And we'll break those bars before we're much older, or I'm a Dutchman." + +But at this moment the signal to heave-to was seen flying at the masthead +of the Kent. Before the vessels had anchored one of the grabs left the +main fleet and ran into the harbor. It bore a message from Admiral Watson +to Tulaji Angria, summoning him to surrender. The answer returned was +that if the admiral desired to be master of the fort he must take it by +force, as Angria was resolved to defend it to the last extremity. + +The ships remained at anchor outside the harbor during the night. Next +morning a boat put off from the town end of the fort conveying several of +Angria's relatives and some officers of Ramaji Punt's army. It by and by +became known that Tulaji Angria, leaving his brother in charge of the +fort, had given himself up to Ramaji Punt, and was now a prisoner in his +camp. The visitors had come ostensibly to view the squadron, but really +to discover what were Admiral Watson's intentions in regard to the +disposal of the fort, supposing it fell into his hands. The admiral saw +through the device, which was no doubt to hand the fort over to the +Peshwa's general, and so balk the British of their legitimate prize. + +Admiral Watson made short work of the visitors. He told them that if +Angria would surrender his fort peaceably he and his family would be +protected; but that the fort he must have. They pleaded for a few days' +grace, but the admiral declined to wait a single day. If the fort was not +immediately given up he would sail in and attack it. + +It was evident that hostilities could not be avoided. About one in the +afternoon Captain Henry Smith of the Kingfisher sloop was ordered to lead +the way, and Desmond was sent to join him. + +"What is the depth under the walls, Mr. Burke?" the captain asked him. + +"Three and a half fathoms, sir--deep enough to float the biggest of us." + +The sloop weighed anchor, and stood in before the afternoon breeze. It +was an imposing sight as the fleet formed in two divisions and came +slowly in their wake. Each ship covered a bomb ketch, protecting the +smaller vessels from the enemy's fire. Desmond himself was kept very +busy, going from ship to ship as ordered by signals from the Kent, and +assisting each captain in turn to navigate the unfamiliar harbor. + +It was just two o'clock when the engagement began with a shot from the +fort at the Kingfisher. The shot was returned, and a quarter of an hour +later, while the fleet was under full sail, the Kent flew the signal for +a general action. One by one the vessels anchored at various points +opposite the fortifications, and soon a hundred and fifty guns were +blazing away at the massive bastions and curtains, answered vigorously by +Angria's two hundred and fifty. + +Desmond was all excitement. The deafening roar of the guns, the huge +columns of smoke that floated heavily over the fort, and sometimes +enveloped the vessels, the bray of trumpets, the beating of tom toms, the +shouts of men, set his blood tingling: and though he afterwards witnessed +other stirring scenes, he never forgot the vivid impression of the fight +at Gheria. + +About three o'clock a shell set fire to one of the Pirate's grabs--one +that had formerly been taken by him from the Company. Leaving its +moorings, it drifted among the main pirate fleet of grabs which still lay +lashed together where Desmond had last seen them by the blaze of the +burning gallivats. They were soon alight. The fire spread rapidly to the +dockyard, caught the unfinished grabs on the stocks, and before long the +whole of Angria's shipping was a mass of flame. + +Meanwhile the bombardment had made little impression on the +fortifications, and it appeared to the admiral that time was being +wasted. Accordingly he gave orders to elevate the guns and fire over the +walls into the interior of the fort. A shell from one of the bomb ketches +fell plump into one of the outhouses of the palace and set it on fire. +Fanned by the west wind, the flames spread to the arsenal and the +storehouse, licking up the sheds and smaller buildings until they reached +the outskirts of the city. The crackling of flames was now mingled with +the din of artillery, and as dusk drew on, the sky was lit up over a +large space with the red glow of burning. By half-past six the guns on +the bastions had been silenced, and the admiral gave the signal to cease +fire. + +Some time before this a message reached Captain Smith ordering him to +send Desmond at once on board the Kent. When he stepped on deck he found +Admiral Watson in consultation with Clive. It appeared that during the +afternoon a cloud of horsemen had been observed hovering on a hill +eastward of the city, and being by no means sure of the loyalty of the +Maratha allies, Clive had come to the conclusion that it was time to land +his troops. But it was important that the shore and the neck of land east +of the fort should be reconnoitered before the landing was attempted. The +groves might, for all he knew, be occupied by the Pirate's troops or by +those of Ramaji Punt, and Clive had had enough experience of native +treachery to be well on his guard. + +"I am going to send you on a somewhat delicate mission, Mr. Burke," he +said. "You know the ground. I want you to go quickly on shore and see +first of all whether there is safe landing for us, and then whether the +ground between the town and the fort is occupied. Be quick and secret; I +need waste no words. Mr. Watson has a boat's crew ready." + +"I think, sir," said Desmond, "that it will hardly be necessary, perhaps +not advisable, to take a boat's crew from this ship. If I might have a +couple of natives, there would be a good deal less risk in getting +ashore." + +"Certainly. But there is no time to spare; indeed, if you are not back in +a couple of hours I shall land at once. But I should like to know what we +have to expect. You had better get a couple of men from the nearest +grab." + +"The Tremukji is only a few cable lengths away, sir, and there's a man on +board who knows the harbor. I will take him, with your permission." + +"Very well. Good luck go with you." + +Desmond saluted, and stepping into the boat which had rowed him to the +Kent, he was quickly conveyed to the grab. In a few minutes he left this +in a skiff accompanied only by Fuzl Khan and a lascar. Not till then did +he explain what he required of them. The Gujarati seemed overcome by the +selection of himself for this mission. + +"You are kind to me, sahib," he said. "I do not deserve it; but I will +serve you to my life's end." + +There was in the man's tone a fervency which touched Desmond at the time, +and which he had good cause afterwards to remember. + +A quarter of an hour after Desmond quitted the deck of the Kent, he was +put ashore at a sandy bay at the farther extremity of the isthmus, hidden +from the fort by a small clump of mango trees. + +"Now, Fuzl Khan," he said, "you will wait here for a few minutes till it +is quite dark, then you will row quickly along the shore till you come to +within a short distance of the jetty. I am going across the sand up +toward the fort, and will come round to you." + +He stepped over the soft sand towards the trees and was lost to sight. +The bombardment had now ceased, and though he heard a confused noise from +the direction of the fort, there was no sound from the town, and he +concluded that the people had fled either into the fort or away into the +country. It appeared at present that the whole stretch of land between +the town and the fort was deserted. + +He had not walked far when he was startled by hearing, as he fancied, a +stealthy footstep following him. Gripping in his right hand the pistol he +had brought as a precaution, and with the left loosening his sword in its +scabbard, he faced round with his back to the wall of a shed in which +Angria's ropes were made, and waited, listening intently. But the sound, +slight as it was, had ceased. Possibly it had been made by some animal, +though that seemed scarcely likely: the noise and the glare from the +burning buildings must surely have scared away all the animals in the +neighborhood. Finding that the sound was not repeated, he went on again. +Some minutes later, his ears on the stretch, he fancied he caught the +same soft furtive tread: but when he stopped and listened and heard +nothing, he believed that he must have been mistaken, and set it down as +an echo of his own excitement. + +Stepping warily, he picked his way through the darkness, faintly +illuminated by the distant glow of the conflagration. He skirted the +dockyard, and drew nearer to the walls of the courtyard surrounding the +fort, remembering how, nearly twelve months before, he had come almost +the same way from the jetty with the decoy message from Captain Barker. +Then he had been a source of amusement to crowds of natives as he passed +on his way to the palace; now the spot was deserted, and but for the +noises that reached him from distant quarters he might have thought +himself the sole living creature in that once populous settlement. + +He had now reached the outer wall, which was separated from the fort only +by the wide compound dotted here and there with palm trees. It was clear +that no force, whether of the Pirate's men or of Ramaji Punt's, held the +ground between the shore and the fort. All the fighting men had without +doubt been withdrawn within the walls. His mission was accomplished. + +It had been his intention to make his way back by a shorter cut along the +outer wall, by the west side of the dockyard, until he reached the shore +near the jetty. But standing for a moment under the shade of a palm tree, +he hesitated to carry out his plan, for the path he meant to follow must +be lit up along its whole course by a double glare: from the blazing +buildings inside the fort, and from the burning gallivats in the dockyard +and harbor. + +He was on the point of retracing his steps when, looking over the low +wall towards the fort, he saw two dark figures approaching, moving +swiftly from tree to tree, as if wishing to escape observation. It was +too late to move now; if he left the shelter of the palm tree he would +come distinctly into view of the two men, and it would be unwise to risk +anything that would delay his return to Clive. Accordingly he kept well +in the shadow and waited. The stealthy movements of the men suggested +that they were fugitives, eager to get away with whole skins before the +fort was stormed. + +They came to the last of the palm trees within the wall, and paused there +for a brief space. A few yards of open ground separated them from the +gate. Desmond watched curiously, then with some anxiety, for it suddenly +struck him that the men were making for him, and that he had actually +been shadowed from his landing place by someone acting, strange as it +seemed, in collusion with them. On all accounts it was necessary to keep +close. + +Suddenly he saw the men leave the shelter of their tree and run rapidly +across the ground to the gate. Having reached it, they turned aside into +the shadow of the wall and stood as if to recover breath. Desmond had +kept his eyes upon them all the time. Previously, in the shade of the +trees, their faces had not been clearly distinguishable; but while now +invisible from the fort, they were lit up by the glow from the harbor. It +was with a shock of surprise that he recognized in the fugitives the +overseer of the dockyard, whose cruelties he had so good reason to +remember, and Marmaduke Diggle, as he still must call him. + +The sight of the latter set his nerves tingling; his fingers itched to +take some toll for the miseries he had endured through Diggle's villainy. +But he checked his impulse to rush forward and confront the man. +Single-handed he could not cope with both the fugitives; and though, if +he had been free, he might have cast all prudence from him in his longing +to bring the man to book, he recollected his duty to Clive and remained +in silent rage beneath the tree. + +All at once he heard a rustle behind him, a low growl like that of an +animal enraged; and almost before he was aware of what was happening a +dark figure sprang past him, leaped over the ground with the rapidity of +a panther, and threw himself upon the overseer just as with Diggle he was +beginning to move towards the town. There was a cry from each man, and +the red light falling upon the face of the assailant, Desmond saw with +amazement that it was the Gujarati, whom he had supposed to be rowing +along the shore to meet him. + +He had hardly recognized the man before he saw that he was at deadly +grips with the overseer, both snarling like wild beasts. There was no +time for thought, for Diggle, momentarily taken aback by the sudden +onslaught, had recovered himself and was making with drawn sword toward +the two combatants, who in their struggle had moved away from him. + +Desmond no longer stayed to weigh possibilities or count risks. It was +clear that Fuzl Khan's first onslaught had failed; had he got home, the +overseer, powerful as he was, must have been killed on the spot. In the +darkness the Gujarati's knife had probably missed its aim. He had now two +enemies to deal with, and but for intervention he must soon be overcome +and slain. + +Drawing his sword, Desmond sprang from the tree and dashed across the +open, reaching the scene of the struggle just in the nick of time to +strike up Diggle's weapon ere it sheathed itself in the Gujarati's side. +Diggle turned with a startled oath, and seeing who his assailant was, he +left his companion to take care of himself, and faced Desmond, a smile of +anticipated triumph wreathing his lips. + +No word was spoken. Diggle lunged, and Desmond at that moment knew that +he was at a perilous crisis of his life. The movements of the practised +swordsman could not be mistaken; he himself had little experience; all +that he could rely on was his quick eye and the toughness of his muscles. +He gave back, parrying the lunge, tempted to use his pistol upon his +adversary. But now that the cannonading had ceased the shot might be +heard by some of the Pirate's men, and before he could escape he might be +beset by a crowd of ruffians against whom he would have no chance at all. +He could but defend himself with his sword and hope that Diggle might +overreach himself in his fury and give him an opportunity to get home a +blow. + +Steel struck upon steel; the sparks flew; and the evil smile upon +Diggle's face became fixed as he saw that Desmond was no match for him in +swordsmanship. But it changed when he found that though his young +opponent's science was at fault, his strength and dexterity, his wariness +in avoiding a close attack, served him in good stead. Impatient to finish +the fight, he took a step forward, and lunged so rapidly that Desmond +could hardly have escaped his blade but for an accident. There was a +choking sob to his right, and just as Diggle's sword was flashing towards +him a heavy form fell against the blade and upon Desmond. In the course +of their deadly struggle the Gujarati and the overseer had shifted their +ground, and at this moment, fortunately for Desmond, Fuzl Khan had driven +his knife into his old oppressor's heart. + +But the same accident that saved Desmond's life gave Diggle an +opportunity of which he was quick to avail himself. Before Desmond could +recover his footing, Diggle shortened his arm and was about to drive his +sword through the lad's heart. The Gujarati saw the movement. Springing +in with uplifted knife, he attempted to turn the blade. He succeeded; he +struck it upwards; but the force with which he had thrown himself between +the two swordsmen was his undoing. Unable to check his rush, he received +the point of Diggle's sword in his throat. With a terrible cry he raised +his hands to clutch his assailant; but his strength failed him; he +swayed, tottered, and fell gasping at Desmond's feet, beside the lifeless +overseer. + +Desmond saw that the turn of fortune had given the opportunity to him. He +sprang forward as Diggle tried to recover his sword; Diggle gave way: and +before he could lift his dripping weapon to parry the stroke, Desmond's +blade was through his forearm. Panting with rage, he sought with his left +hand to draw his pistol; but Desmond was beforehand with him. He caught +his arm, wrenched the pistol from him, and, breathless with his +exertions, said: + +"You are my prisoner." + +"'Tis fate, my young friend," said Diggle, with all his old blandness; +Desmond never ceased to be amazed at the self command of this +extraordinary man. "I have let some blood, I perceive; my sword arm is +for the time disabled; but my great regret at this moment--you will +understand the feeling--is that this gallant friend of yours lies low +with the wound intended for another. So Antores received in his flank the +lance hurled at Lausus: infelix alieno volnere." + +"I dare say, Mr. Diggle," interrupted Desmond, "but I have no time to +construe Latin." + +Covering Diggle with his pistol, Desmond stooped over Fuzl Khan's +prostrate body and discovered in a moment that the poor fellow's heart +had ceased to beat. He rose, and added: "I must trouble you to come with +me; and quickly, for you perceive you are at my mercy." + +"Where do you propose to take me, my friend?" + +"We will go this way, and please step out." + +Diggle scowled, and stood as though meditating resistance. + +"Come, come, Mr. Diggle, you have no choice. I do not wish to have to +drag you; it might cause you pain." + +"Surely you will spare a moment to an old friend! I fear you are entirely +mistaken. 'Tis pity that with the natural ebullition of your youthful +spirit you should have set upon a man whom--" + +"You can talk as we go, Mr. Diggle, if you talk low enough. Must I repeat +it?" + +"But where are we going? Really, Mr. Burke, respect for my years should +prompt a more considerate treatment." + +"You see yonder point?" said Desmond impatiently; "yonder on the shore. +You will come with me there." + +Diggle looked around as if hoping that even now something might happen in +his favor. But no one was in sight; Desmond stood over him with sword +still drawn; and recognizing his helplessness the man at length turned +towards the shore and began to walk slowly along, Desmond a foot or so in +the rear. + +"'Twas a most strange chance, surely," he said, "that brought you to this +spot at the very moment when I was shaking the dust of Gheria from my +feet. How impossible it is to escape the penalty of one's wrongdoing! Old +Horace knew it: Raro antecedentem scelestum--you remember the rest. Mr. +Burslem drubbed our Latin into us, Mr. Burke. I am a fellow townsman of +yours, though you did not know it: aye, a boy in your old school, +switched by your old master. I have treated you badly. I admit it; but +what could I do? Your brother slandered you; I see now how he deceived +me; he wished you out of his way. Here I acted under pressure of Angria; +he was bent on sending you to Bombay; I could not defy him. I was wrong; +what you said when I saw you last made a deep impression on me; I +repented, and, as Tully, I think, put it, 'a change of plan is the best +harbor to a penitent man.' I was indeed seeking that refuge of the +repentant, and altering my whole plan of life; and if you will but tarry +a moment--" + +"Keep on, Mr. Diggle," said Desmond, as the man, who had been talking +over his shoulder, half stopped; "my point is sharp." + +"I was leaving the fort, as you saw. Not from any fear; you will acquit +me of that, and as you know, the fort is impregnable, and I might have +remained there in perfect safety. No, I was quitting it because I was +wearied, disgusted with Angria and his ways. 'Twas under a +misapprehension I for a time consorted with him; I am disabused, and it +is by the mere malignity of Fate that at this turning point of my career +I encounter one whom, I acknowledge, I have wronged. I am beaten; I do +not blink that; and by a better man. But youth is generous; and you, Mr. +Burke, are not the man to press your advantage against one who all his +life has been the sport of evil circumstance. I was bound for farther +India; I know a little port to the south where I should have taken ship, +with strong hope of getting useful and honorable employment when my +voyage was ended. Perchance you have heard of Alivirdi Khan; if you would +but pause a moment--" + +"Go on, Mr. Diggle," said Desmond inexorably; "and it will be well to +mend your pace." + +"Alivirdi Khan," resumed Diggle, speaking more rapidly; the waters of the +harbor, glowing red, were in sight: "Alivirdi Khan is sick unto death. He +is wealthy beyond all imaginings. His likeliest heir, Sirajuddaula, soon +to be Subah {viceroy} of Bengal, is well known to me, and indeed beholden +to me for services rendered in the past. Mr. Burke, I make you a +proposition--it is worth considering. Why not come with me? Wipe off old +scores, throw in your lot with mine. Together, what could we not do--I +with my experience, you with your youthful vigor! See, here is an earnest +of my sincerity." + +He took from his fob a large diamond which flashed in the red light of +the conflagration. + +"Accept this; in the treasuries of Alivirdi there are thousands like it, +each worth a king's ransom. Come with me, and I promise you that within +two years you shall be rich beyond your wildest dreams." + +"Put up your diamond, Mr. Peloti. You may repeat your offer when we reach +Colonel Clive." + +Diggle stopped as if shot. He looked with startled eyes at the boy, who +had known him only as Diggle. + +"You are going to Colonel Clive!" he exclaimed. The smoothness of his +manner was gone; his tone expressed mortal anxiety. "But--but--he is a +personal enemy; he will--I beseech you think again; I--" + +He broke off, and with a suddenness that took Desmond by surprise he +sprang away, making towards the grove of mangoes that stood between him +and the shore. Desmond was instantly in pursuit. If Diggle gained the +shelter of the trees he might escape in the darkness. But the race was +short. Weak from fear and loss of blood, the elder was no match in speed +for the younger. In less than a hundred yards he was overtaken, and stood +panting, quivering, unnerved. Desmond gripped his uninjured arm, and with +quickened footsteps hurried him towards the shore. There was the boat, +the lascar resting motionless on his oar. Ten minutes later Diggle was +assisted up the side of the Kent, and handed over to the officer of the +watch. Then Desmond made his report to Clive. + +"All the enemy are withdrawn within the fort, sir. The whole ground +between the fort and the shore is clear. There is nothing to obstruct +your landing." + +"I thank you. You have exceeded your time by ten minutes. Who is that man +who came aboard with you?" + +"It was he who delayed me, sir. It is Mr. Diggle, or Peloti, I should +say." + +"The deuce he is!" + +"He was stealing out of the fort; it came to a scuffle, and he was +wounded--so I brought him along." + +"Mr. Speke," said Clive, turning to the captain, "may I ask you to see +this man safe bestowed? I will deal with him when our business here is +concluded. + +"Mr. Burke, you will come with me." + +By nine o'clock Clive had landed his troops. They bivouacked on the +shore, in expectation of storming the fort next day. At daybreak an +officer was sent into the fort with a flag of truce to demand its +surrender. This being refused, the admiral ordered his ships to warp +within a cable's length of the walls in three fathoms and a quarter +water, and the attack was renewed by sea and land, Clive gradually +advancing and worrying the enemy with his cannon. At two o'clock a +magazine in the fort blew up, and not long after, just as Clive was about +to give the order to storm, a white flag was seen fluttering at one of +the bastions. + +A messenger was sent to the governor to arrange the capitulation, but +when he was met by prevarication and pleas for delay the bombardment was +once more resumed. A few minutes of this sufficed to bring the defenders +to reason, and by five o'clock the English flag flew upon the walls. + +Clive postponed his entry until dawn on the following morning. + +"By Jove, Mr. Burke," he said to Desmond, who showed him the way to the +palace, "if we had been within these walls I think we could have held out +till doomsday." + +All the English officers were impressed by the strength of the +fortifications. Besides Angria's two hundred and fifty cannon, an immense +quantity of stores and ammunition fell into the hands of the captors. In +the vaults of the palace were found silver rupees to the value of one +hundred thousand pounds, and treasure worth thirty thousand pounds more. +The capture had been effected with the loss of only twenty killed and +wounded. + +Desmond took the earliest opportunity of seeking the body of Fuzl Khan. +Fortunately the fires and the noises of the night had preserved it from +mangling by wild beasts. The poor man lay where he had fallen, near the +body of the overseer. + +"Poor fellow!" thought Desmond, looking at the strong, fierce face and +the gigantic frame now stiff and cold. "Little he knew, when he said he'd +serve me to his life's end, that the end was so near." + +He had the body carried into the town, and reverently buried according to +Mohammedan rites. From the lascar he had learned all that he ever knew of +the motives of the Gujarati's action. Desmond had hardly left the boat +when the man sprang quickly after him, saying briefly: + +"I go to guard the sahib." + +It was like the instinctive impulse of a faithful dog; and Desmond often +regretted the loss of the man who had shown himself so capable of +devotion. + +That evening Clive summoned Desmond to attend him in the palace. When he +entered the durbar hall he saw, seated on the dais, a small group +consisting of Clive, Admiral Watson, and two or three subordinate +officers. Standing in front of them was Diggle, in the charge of two +marines. + +"How many European prisoners have been released, Mr. Ward?" the admiral +was saying. + +"Thirteen, sir; ten English and three Dutch." + +"Is that correct, Mr. Burke? Was that the number when you were here?" + +"Yes, sir, that is correct." + +"Then you may go, Mr. Ward, and see that the poor fellows are taken on +board the Tyger and well looked after." + +As the officer saluted and withdrew the admiral turned to Clive. + +"Now for this white pirate," he said: "a most unpleasant matter, truly." + +Signing to the marines to bring forward their prisoner, he threw himself +back upon the divan, leaving the matter in Clive's hands. Clive was +gazing hard at Diggle, who had lost the look of terror he had worn two +nights before, and stood before them in his usual attitude of careless +ease. + +"You captured this man," said Clive, turning to Desmond, "within the +precincts of the fort?" + +His hard level tone contrasted strongly with the urbaner manner of the +admiral. + +"Yes, sir," replied Desmond. + +"He is the same man who inveigled you on board the interloper Good Intent +and delivered you to the Pirate?" + +"And he was to your knowledge associated with the Pirate, and offered you +inducements to spy upon his Majesty's forces in Bombay?" + +"Yes, sir." + +"Have you anything to say for yourself, Mr. Peloti?" + +"Pardon me, Mr. Clive; Diggle--Marmaduke Diggle." + +"Diggle, if you like," said Clive with a shrug. "You will hang as well in +that name as another." + +One of the officers smiled at the grim jest, but there was no smile on +Clive's stern set face. + +"You asked me if I had anything to say for myself," said Diggle quietly. +"Assuredly; but it seems your Honors have condemned me already. Why +should I waste your time, and my breath? I bethink me 'twas not even in +Rome the custom to judge a matter before learning the facts--prius rem +dijudicare--but it is a long time, Mr. Clive, since we conned our +Terence together." + +Desmond could not but admire the superb insouciance and the easy smile +with which Diggle played his card. Seeing that Clive for an instant +hesitated, the intrepid prisoner continued: + +"But there, Mr. Clive, you never excelled in the Latin. 'Twas a sore +point with poor Mr. Burslem." + +"Come, come," cried Clive, visibly nettled, "this is no time for quips. +You fail to appreciate your position. You are caught red handed. If you +have no defense to make you will meet the fate of other pirates before +you. Have you anything to say?" + +"Yes. You accuse me of piracy; I have a complete answer to that charge; +but as an Englishman I claim an Englishman's right--a fair trial before a +jury of my countrymen. In any case, Mr. Clive, it would be invidious to +give me worse treatment than Monaji Angria and his officers. As for the +rest, it depends on the evidence of this single witness." + +Here Admiral Watson bent forward and said to Clive in an undertone, +inaudible to the others: + +"I think we had better defer this. If, as you suppose, the fellow has +knowledge of the French plans, it would be only politic to give Mr. +Bourchier an opportunity of inquiring into the matter. No doubt he richly +deserves hanging, but dead men tell no tales." + +Clive frowned, and, drumming upon the divan impatiently with his fingers, +seemed for the moment to be lost in thought. Then he said: + +"Yes, Mr. Watson, I think you are right." + +"Take the prisoner back to your ship," said the admiral, "and put him +under double guard. + +"Thank you, Mr. Burke; we shall require your evidence in Bombay. One word +before you go. I am vastly indebted to you for your services; you have +been of the greatest use to myself and my captains. Your name will +frequently appear in our ships' logs, and I shall take care to show your +work in the proper light when I make my report. Meanwhile, when the +division of prize money is made, you will receive a lieutenant's share. +Good night, sir." + +And Desmond's face, as he left the room, bore a flush of happiness and +pride. + + + +Chapter 19: In which the scene changes; the dramatis personae remaining the +same. + + +A few days after the capture, the Tyger left Gheria, having on board the +men wounded in the attack and the European prisoners who had been +rescued. Desmond also sailed in it, with an official report from Admiral +Watson to Governor Bourchier. + +The arrival of the Tyger at Bombay, with the first news of the success of +the expedition and the fall of the fortress so long deemed impregnable, +was the occasion of a great demonstration of rejoicing. The trading +community, whether European or native, was enthusiastic over the ruin of +the notorious Pirate; and Desmond, as one who had had a share in the +operations, came in for a good deal of congratulation which he laughingly +protested ought to have been reserved for better men. + +Mr. Merriman was among the crowd that welcomed the Tyger, and as soon as +Desmond had delivered his report to Mr. Bourchier, the genial merchant +carried him off to the house on the Green where he was staying and +insisted on having a full account of his experiences. When he learned +that Diggle had been captured and would shortly reach Bombay as a +prisoner, his jolly face assumed as intense a look of vindictive +satisfaction as it was capable of expressing. + +"By thunder! that's the best of your news for me. The villain will get +his deserts at last. I'm only sorry that I shall not be here to serve on +the jury." + +"Are you leaving Bombay then?" + +"Yes, and I wanted you to come with me. My ship the Hormuzzeer came to +port two days ago, and I had to dismiss the second mate, who was +continually at odds with the lascars. I hoped you would accept his berth, +and sail with me. I want to get back to Calcutta. We had advices the +other day that things are not looking well in Bengal. Alivirdi Khan is +dying; and there is sure to be some bother about the succession. All +Bengal may be aflame. My wife and daughter are in Calcutta, and I don't +care about being away from them if danger is threatening. I want to get +away as soon as possible, and thought of taking passage in an Indiaman; +but the Hormuzzeer being here I'll sail in that; she'll make direct for +the Hugli; an Indiaman would put in at Madras, and goodness knows how +long I might be delayed." + +"'Tis a pity," said Desmond. "I should have liked of all things to accept +your offer, but I'm bound to stay for Diggle's trial, and that can't be +held until the fleet return." + +"How long will that be?" + +"I heard the admiral say he expected it would take a month to settle +everything at Gheria. He wants to keep the place in our hands, but Ramaji +Punt claims it for the Peshwa, and Captain Speke of the Kent told me that +it'll be very lucky if they come to an arrangement within a month." + +"It's uncommonly vexatious. I can't wait a month. It'll take a week or +more to clean the Hormuzzeer's hull, and another to load her; in a +fortnight at the outside I hope to be on my way. Well, it can't be +helped. What will you do when the trial is over?" + +"I don't know." + +"Did Mr. Clive say anything about a cadetship?" + +"Not a word. He only said that I should get a share of the Gheria prize +money." + +"That's something to the good. Use it wisely. I came out to Calcutta +twenty years ago with next to nothing, and I've done well. There's no +reason why you should not make your fortune, too, if your health will +stand the climate. We'll have a talk over things before I sail." + +A week later the Bridgewater arrived from Gheria, with Diggle on board. +He was imprisoned in the fort, being allotted far too comfortable +quarters to please Mr. Merriman. But Merriman's indignation at what he +considered the governor's leniency was changed to hot rage three days +later when it became known that the prisoner had disappeared. Not a trace +of him could be discovered. He had been locked in as usual one night, and +next morning his room was empty. Imprisonment was much less stringent in +those days than now; the prisoner was allowed to see visitors and to live +more or less at ease. The only clue to Diggle's escape was afforded by +the discovery that, at the same time that he disappeared, there vanished +also a black boy, who had been brought among the prisoners from Gheria +and was employed in doing odd jobs about the harbor. + +Desmond had no doubt that this was Diggle's boy Scipio Africanus. And +when he mentioned the connection between the two, it was supposed that +the negro had acted as go-between for his master with the friends in the +town by whose aid the escape had been arranged. Among the large native +population of Bombay there were many who were suspected of being secret +agents of the French, and as Diggle was well provided with funds it was +not at all unlikely that his jailer had been tampered with. + +Merriman's wrath was very bitter. He had been waiting for years, as he +told Desmond, for the punishment of Peloti. It was gall and wormwood to +him that the villain should have cheated the gallows. + +Diggle's escape, however, gave Merriman an opportunity to secure +Desmond's services. The culprit being gone, the evidence was no longer +required. Finding that Desmond was still ready to accept the position of +mate on the Hormuzzeer, Merriman consulted Mr. Bourchier, who admitted +that he saw no reason for detaining the lad. Accordingly, the first week +in March, when the vessel stood out of Bombay harbor, Desmond sailed with +her. + +The weather was calm, but the winds not wholly favorable, and the +Hormuzzeer made a somewhat slow passage. Mr. Merriman was impatient to +reach Calcutta, and Desmond was surprised at his increasing uneasiness. +He had believed that the French and Dutch were the only people in Bengal +who gave the Company trouble, and as England was at peace with both +France and the Netherlands, there was nothing, he thought, to fear from +them. + +"You are mistaken," said Mr. Merriman, in the course of a conversation +one day. "The natives are a terrible thorn in our side. At best we are in +Bengal on sufferance; we are a very small community--only a hundred or +two Europeans in Calcutta: and since the Marathas overran the country +some years ago we have felt as though sitting on the brink of a volcano. +Alivirdi wants to keep us down; he has forbidden us to fight the French +even if war does break out between us at home; and though the Mogul has +granted us charters--they call them firmans here--Alivirdi doesn't care a +rap for such things, and must have us under his heel. Only his trading +profits and his fear of the Mogul keep him civil." + +"But you said he was dying." + +"So he is, and that makes matters worse, for his grandson, Sirajuddaula, +who'll probably succeed him, is no better than a tiger. He lives at +Murshidabad, about one hundred miles up the river. He's a vain, peacocky, +empty-headed youth, and as soon as the breath is out of his granddad's +body he'll want to try his wings and take a peck or two at us. He may do +it slyly, or go so far as to attack us openly." + +"But if he did that, sure Calcutta is defended; and, as Mr. Clive said to +me in Gheria, British soldiers behind walls might hold out forever." + +"Clive doesn't know Calcutta then! That's the mischief! At the Maratha +invasion the Bengalis on our territory took fright, and at their own +expense began a great ditch round Calcutta--we call it the Maratha ditch; +but the Nawab bought the Marathas off, the work was stopped, the walls of +the fort are now crumbling to ruins, and the cannon lie about unmounted +and useless. Worst of all, our governor, Mr. Drake, is a quiet soul, an +excellent worthy man, who wouldn't hurt a fly. We call him the Quaker. +Quakers are all very well at home, where they can 'thee' and 'thou' and +get rich and pocket affronts without any harm; but they won't do in +India. Might is right with the natives; they don't understand anything +else; and as sure as they see any sign of weakness in us they'll take +advantage of it and send us all to kingdom come. + +"And I'm thinking of the womenfolk: India's no place for them at the +best; and I did all I could to persuade my wife and daughter to remain at +home. But they would come out with me when I returned last year; and glad +as I am to have them with me I sometimes get very anxious; I can't bear +them out of my sight, and that's a fact." + +Mr. Merriman showed his relief when, on the thirtieth of April, he +noticed the yellow tinge in the water, which indicated that the vessel +was approaching the mouth of the Hugli. Next day the vessel arrived at +Balasore, where a pilot was taken on board, and entered the river. Mr. +Merriman pointed out to Desmond the island of Sagar, whither in the late +autumn the jogis came down in crowds to purify themselves in the salt +water, "and provide a meal for the tiger," he added. At Kalpi a large +barge, rowed by a number of men dressed in white, with pink sashes, came +to meet the Hormuzzeer. + +"That's my budgero," said Merriman. "We'll get into it and row up to +Calcutta in half the time it would take the ship. Each of us merchants +has his own budgero, and instead of putting our men in buttons with our +arms and all that nonsense, we give them colored sashes--and don't our +women squabble about the colors, my boy, just don't they!" + +In the budgero they passed the Dutch factory at Fulta, and the Subah's +forts at Budge Budge and Tanna. At Gobindpur's reach, Merriman pointed +out the pyramid of stone that marked the limit of the Company's +jurisdiction. Soon the gardens of the British merchants came in sight, +then the Company's docks, and at last the town of Calcutta, where the +Company's landing stage was thronged with people awaiting the arrival of +the budgero in the hope of getting news from home. + +"There's Surendra Nath and his father," said Mr. Merriman, as they came +near the steps. + +His jolly face beamed when he stepped on to the ghat {landing stage}. + +"Hullo, Babu!" he said, "glad to see you again." + +He shook hands with both the men; the elder was much like his son, a +slightly-built Bengali, with white hair and very bright eyes. Both were +clad in dhotis of pure white; their legs were bare from the knee, their +feet shod with sandals. When the greeting had passed between them and +their master, the old man moved towards Desmond, put his hands together, +and made a deep salaam. + +"I have heard what the sahib did for my son. I thank the sahib," he said. + +"Yes, 'twas excellent good fortune for Surendra Nath," said Mr. Merriman. +"I knew you would be overjoyed to see your son again. But how is the bibi +{lady}, and the chota {young} bibi?" + +"They were well, sahib, when last I heard. They are on a visit to Watts +Sahib, at Cossimbazar." + +Merriman's face fell, but he had no time to say more, for he was accosted +by a friend. + +"Glad to see you back, Mr. Merriman. I've wanted your voice on the +Council for some time past." + +"Is anything wrong, Mr. Holwell?" asked Merriman anxiously. + +"Everything is wrong. Alivirdi died a fortnight ago; Sirajuddaula has +stepped into his shoes; and Drake has made a mess of everything, with +Manningham's and Frankland's assistance. I want you to come and dine with +me this evening; we must have a serious talk; I've asked two or three men +of our sort in anticipation of your consent." + +"Very well. Let me present my friend, Mr. Burke. He escaped from Gheria; +you've heard that Colonel Clive captured the place?" + +"Yes; we had despatches from Admiral Watson some days ago. I had heard of +Mr. Burke's adventures-- + +"Your servant, sir; I am delighted to meet you-- + +"Well, Merriman, three o'clock; I will not detain you now; you'll want to +get home." + +Mr. Merriman's bearers were at hand with his palanquin; he got into it; +the men set off at a swinging pace, warning the bystanders with their cry +of "Tok! Tok!" and Desmond walked by the side of the chair, amused to +watch the self-important airs of the peon who went in front. They passed +the fort and the Company's house, and arrived at length at a two-story +flat-roofed house with a veranda, the windows filled, not with oyster +shells as at Bombay, but with thin screens of reeds. + +"Here we are," said Merriman with a sigh of relief. + +"Now I'll hand you over to the baniya {factotum}; he'll show you to your +room. I'm vexed that my wife is not here; of course she didn't know when +to expect me; and Mrs. Watts is an old friend of hers. 'Tis a relief in +one way; for Mr. Watts is a shrewd fellow--he's head of our factory at +Cossimbazar, and senior member of Council here--and he would have sent +the ladies away if he scented danger. Sorry I shall have to leave you; I +must dine with Mr. Holwell; he's our zamindar--judge of the Cutcheri +court and collector of taxes: a fine fellow, the most cool-headed man on +the Council. But the khansaman will give you something to eat: and I'll +be back as soon as I can. You can take it easy on the veranda, and you'll +find a hookah if you care to try it." + +"No, thanks," said Desmond with a smile; "I've no fancy that way." + +Shortly afterwards Mr. Merriman left the house in his palanquin, wearing +the short white calico jacket that was then de rigueur at dinner parties. +It was late before he returned. There was an anxious and worried look on +his face, but he said cheerily: + +"Well, how have you been getting on?" + +"I've been reading, sir: I found a volume of Mr. Fielding's Amelia, and +'twas a change to read after eighteen months without setting eyes on a +book. I hope you had a good dinner." + +"'Pon my soul, I don't know. None of us knows, I warrant. We had too much +to talk about to think about our appetites. Two or three members of +Council were there, and Captain Minchin, the military commandant. Things +are looking black, Desmond. Alivirdi is dead, and, as I expected, his +scoundrel of a grandson, Sirajuddaula, is the new Subah. He has +imprisoned one of his rivals, his aunt, and is marching against another, +his cousin Shaukat Jung; and 'tis the common talk that our turn will come +next." + +"But why should he be at odds with us?" + +"Why, to begin with, he's a native and hates us; thinks we're too rich, +and though he's rich enough he would like to get what we have and turn us +out. Then our president Mr. Drake has acted in the weakest possible way; +the very way to encourage the Subah. Instead of siding with Sirajuddaula +from the first, as he might well have done, because the rivals never had +the ghost of a chance, he shilly shallied. Then he offended him by giving +shelter to a fellow named Krishna Das, who came in a month ago with fifty +sacks of treasure from Murshidabad; it really belonged to the Subah's +aunt, but the Subah had an eye on it and he's furious at losing it. That +wasn't enough. Mr. Watts at Cossimbazar had warned the Council here of +the new Subah's unfriendliness; they talk at Murshidabad of our weak +defenses and how easy it would be to overcome us. He advised Mr. Drake to +keep on good terms with the Subah; but what must he do but turn out of +the place a man named Narayan Das, the brother of the new Nawab's chief +spy." + +"Sure you don't allow the enemy's spies to live in Calcutta?" + +"Sure we can't help ourselves. The place is full of them--spies of the +Subah, and of the French too. We can't do anything. We may suspect, but +if we raised a hand we should stir up a hornets' nest, as indeed Mr. +Drake appears to be doing. + +"But that isn't all. The Company's ship Delaware came in a fortnight ago +with the news that a French fleet is fitting out under Count Lally, at +Brest; 'tis supposed war will break out again and the fleet is intended +to attack us here. So that we may have the Subah making common cause with +the French to crush us. He'll turn against the French then, but that +won't save us. On top of that comes a fakir from Murshidabad demanding in +the Subah's name that we should stop work on our fortifications; the +insolence of the wretch passes all bounds. Mr. Drake properly refused the +demand; he said we were repairing our defenses in case we needed 'em +against the French; but he undertook not to start any new works, which +was a mistake. + +"Altogether, Desmond, things are in a pretty mess. I'm afraid Mr. Drake +is not the man to cope with a grave situation; but he has the majority of +the Council with him, and we can't alter it. Now I think we had better +turn in; perhaps I shall feel better after a good sleep; I am certainly +far from easy in mind." + +Desmond slept like a top on his light mattress, enveloped in his mosquito +curtains. In the morning he accompanied Mr. Merriman to his daftarkhanah +{office}, where he found a large staff under the superintendence of the +muhri {chief clerk}, Surendra Nath's father. He returned to the house for +tiffin, spent the afternoon indoors over his novel, and after the three +o'clock dinner accompanied his host in a walk through the English +quarter. + +As they returned, Mr. Merriman suggested that they should walk down to +Mr. Watts' house near the river to see if any news had arrived from +Cossimbazar. On the way they passed a large pakka {substantial} house, +surrounded by a compound and a low wall. + +"We were talking yesterday about spies," said Merriman. "In that house +lives a man who in my belief is a spy, and a treacherous +scoundrel--actually living next door to Mr. Lyre, the keeper of our +military stores. He's a Sikh named Omichand, and the richest merchant in +the city. He owns half of it; he's my landlord, confound him! For forty +years he was the contractor for supplying the Company with cloth, but we +found out that he was cheating us right and left, and dismissed him. Yet +he's very friendly to us, which is a bad sign. 'Twas he who brought +Krishna Das with his treasure into the place, and my belief is, he did it +merely to embroil us with the Subah. Mr. Drake is disposed to pooh-pooh +the idea, but I incline to Mr. Holwell's opinion, that Omichand's a +schemer and a villain, ready to betray us to French, Dutch, or Gentoos as +it suits him." + +"Why don't you turn him out, then?" asked Desmond. + +"My dear boy, he's far too powerful. And we'd rather keep him in sight. +While he's here we can tell something of what is going on; his house is +pretty well watched; but if he were away he might try all manner of +tricks and we should never learn anything about them. Our policy is to be +very sweet to him--to make friends of the mammon of unrighteousness, as +Mr. Bellamy, our padre, puts it. You're bound to see him one of these +days, the hoary-headed old villain." + +Though Mr. Merriman fully relied on Mr. Watts' discretion to send his +visitors back to Calcutta if there were the least sign of danger, he was +so anxious to have his wife and daughter with him that next day he sent a +special messenger up the river asking them to return as soon as they +could. He could not fetch them, public affairs not allowing him to leave +Calcutta at once, but he promised to meet them somewhere on the way. + +He spent the day in making himself acquainted with the business that had +been done during his absence. A valuable consignment of silks, muslins, +and taffeties was expected from Cossimbazar, he learned, and as soon as +it arrived the Hormuzzeer would be able to sail for Penang. + +"A private venture," he said to Desmond, "nothing to do with the +Company." + +Desmond expressed his surprise that the Company's officials were at +liberty to engage in private trading. + +"Why, bless you, how could we live otherwise? Do you imagine I got rich +on the Company? What do you suppose my salary is as member of Council? +'Tis just forty pounds. The factors get fifteen and the writers five: +Colonel Clive began at five pounds a year: so you may guess that we have +to do something to keep flesh on our bones. + +"And that reminds me of a proposal I wished to make to you. You have a +little money from the sale of the Pirate's grab, and you'll have more by +and by when the Gheria prize money is distributed. Why not put some of it +into the Hormuzzeer? Let me buy some goods for you, and send 'em to +Penang: they'll fetch top prices there, especially in the present state +of trade. 'Twill be an excellent investment." + +"Thank you, sir, I'll be glad to follow your advice." + +"That's right. I'll see about it at once, and the sooner these things +come from Cossimbazar the better. The delay is vexing, and I fear I'll +have to change my agent there." + +Mr. Merriman being so much occupied with business and public affairs, +Desmond had much time to himself. He soon made friends among the junior +merchants and factors, and in their company went about Calcutta. + +Fort William was built near the river, the factory house in the center of +the inclosure. Around it on three sides were the houses of individual +merchants and officers. A wide avenue known as the Lal Bazar led from the +ravelin of the fort past the courthouse to the native part of the town. +On one side of the avenue was the Park or Lal Bagh, with a great tank by +which a band played in the evening. Around the town was the incomplete +Maratha ditch. + +Desmond became the object of much kindly attention from the Company's +servants and their families. Everyone was eager to hear from his own lips +the story of his adventures, and invitations to dinners and routs and +card parties poured upon him. He accepted one or two and politely excused +himself from the rest, not from any want of sociability, but from motives +of prudence. His kind host had already given him a friendly warning; some +of the writers and younger servants of the Company were wild spirits, and +spent more time than was good for them in cards and revels. + +On the evening of the third day after his arrival he went down to the +river to watch the arrival of some country vessels. There was the usual +crowd at the ghat, and as Desmond gradually worked his way through it he +suddenly saw, just in front of him, two men whose backs were very +familiar. They were in the dress of seamen: one was tall and thin, the +other broad and brawny, and Desmond did not need his glimpse of the iron +hook to be sure that the men were none other than his old friend Bulger +and Mr. Toley, the melancholy mate. They were standing side by side +watching in silence the arrival of the boats. + +Desmond edged his way to them until he was within arm's length of +Bulger's hook. He stood for a moment looking at them, imagining their +surprise when they saw him, wondering if their pleasure would be as keen +as his own. Both appeared rather battered; Mr. Toley's expression was +never merry, and he was neither more nor less melancholy than usual; but +Bulger's habitual cheerfulness seemed to have left him; his air was moody +and downcast. + +How came they here? The Good Intent being an interloper, it was not at +all likely that she had ventured to put in at Calcutta. + +By and by Bulger seemed to become aware that someone was gazing at him, +for he turned round slowly. Desmond could not but smile at his +extraordinary change of expression. His first look of blank amazement +quickly gave place to one of almost boyish delight, and taking an eager +step forward he exclaimed: + +"By thunder, 'tis Mr. Burke or his ghost! Bless my heart! Ho! shake +hands, matey; this is a sight for bad eyes!" + +"Glad to see you, Bulger," said Desmond quietly; "and you, too, Mr. +Toley." + +Mr. Toley had shown no surprise; but then, nothing ever surprised Mr. +Toley. + +"Sure I'm rejoiced," he said. "We had given you up for lost." + +His hearty hand grip was more convincing than his words, though, indeed, +Desmond had good reason to know the real kindliness that always lay +behind his outward solemnity of manner. + +"You're better in togs than when I seed you last, sir," said Bulger, +gripping his hand again. "Which you look quite the gentleman; got a berth +as supercargo, sir?" + +"Not yet, Bulger," replied Desmond, laughing. "How's Captain Barker?" + +Bulger spat out a quid of tobacco and hitched up his breeches. + +"I don't know how Captain Barker is, and what's more, I don't care," he +said. "Me and Barker en't friends: leastways, not on speakin' terms; +which I will say, hang Captain Barker, topsy versy, any way you like; and +I don't care who hears me." + +"What has happened?" + +"Happened! Why, sir, Mr. Toley'll tell you what happened. He knows the +thus, therefore, and whereupon of it." + +The good fellow was itching to tell, but as in duty bound deferred to his +superior officer. + +"Go on, Bulger," said the American, "you've got a looser tongue than me." + +"Which I don't deny, sir. Two days ago--'twas at Chandernagore, where the +Good Intent's been laid up for a matter a' weeks--the captain he went an' +forgot hisself, sir; clean forgot hisself, an' lifted his hand to Mr. +Toley; ay, hit him, sir. Wunst it was, sir, on'y wunst; then 'twas Mr. +Toley his turn. Ah, an' I warrant Captain Barker's in his bunk today. +Never did I see sich a sight all the years I've been afloat, an' that's +saying something. There was captain spread out on deck, sir, with his +eyes bunged up an' a tooth or two that had lost their bearin's, and all +his bones wonderin' if they was ever goin' to get joined again. + +"That's the why and wherefore of it, sir. Well, in course, 'twas no +kiss-an'-be-friends arter that; so, bein' in a mounseer's place, Mr. +Toley took French leave, which I did the same, and here we are a-lookin' +for a job. + +"But Lor' bless me! what's happened to you, Mr. Burke? When you didn't +come aboard at that there Gheria, Captain Barker he says, 'Log that there +knave Burke a deserter,' says he. But I says to Mr. Toley, 'I may be +wrong, sir,' says I, 'but I lay my whiskers that Diggle has been an' sold +him to the Pirate, an' that's the last we shall ever see of as nice a +young fellow as ever hauled on a hawser.' How did you get out of the +Pirate's den, sir?" + +"That's a long story, Bulger. I'll tell you all in good time. You're +looking for a job, are you? Well, I happen to know of a skipper here--a +good man: maybe he'll have a berth for a seasoned salt like you. I'll +present you to him, and I know he'll do what he can for you." + +Before he left the men, Desmond took Mr. Toley aside. + +"Mr. Toley," he said, "my friend Mr. Merriman wants a mate for one of his +vessels, as I happen to know. You would be willing to sign on?" + +"I would, sir. I'm a man of few words." + +"Very well; come up to Mr. Merriman's house by the Rope Walk and we'll +see what he says." + +That same day Mr. Merriman invited the American to dinner, and engaged +him, to Desmond's surprise, as first mate for the Hormuzzeer, with Bulger +as bo'sun. + +"Don't look so blue," he said to Desmond when Mr. Toley had gone. "He +will, of course, take your place. The fact is, I've taken a fancy to you, +and I think you can do better than by serving as mate on a coasting +vessel. Look in at the daftarkhanah sometimes, and get Surendra Nath to +explain something of our business methods." + +He said no more at that time, and Desmond felt no little curiosity about +his host's intentions. + +One evening Desmond was sitting alone on the veranda, reading, awaiting +Mr. Merriman's return from a meeting of the Council to which he had been +hastily summoned. Hearing a footstep, he looked up, and was surprised to +see, instead of Mr. Merriman, as he expected, Bulger hastening up with an +air of excitement. + +"Mr. Burke, sir, what d'you think I've seed? I could hardly believe my +own eyes. I was walkin' down towards the fort when I seed two men goin' +into a big house. They was Englishmen, leastways white men, and I may be +wrong, but I bet my boots one on 'em was that there soft-speakin' villain +Diggle." + +"Diggle!" exclaimed Desmond, springing up. "You must be mistaken, +Bulger." + +"I may be wrong, sir, but I never remembers any time when I was." + +"What house did he go into?" + +"That I can't tell you, sir, not bein' sure o' my bearin's." + +"But you could point it out?" + +"'Course I could. Rather. Just so." + +"Then I'll came along with you, and you can show me. If it is Diggle, we +must have him arrested." + +"True, an' I'll knot the rope for his neck." + +"How long ago was this?" + +"Not a quarter of an hour, sir. I comed up at once." + +The two set off together. They quickly reached the house; Desmond +recognized it as Omichand's. The evening was closing in, but no lights +were visible through the chiks {hanging screens made of thin strips of +bamboo} that covered the windows. While Desmond was considering, two +figures stepped down from the veranda and walked rapidly across the +compound towards the gate in the wall. + +At the first glance Desmond saw that Bulger had not been mistaken. The +taller of the two figures was disguised, but it was impossible to mistake +the gloved right hand. It was Diggle to a certainty. + +"Are you game to capture them?" said Desmond. + +Bulger grunted and gave a twist to his hook. + +"I'll take Diggle," added Desmond: "you go for the other man." + +They waited in the shadow of the wall. The gate opened, the two men came +out, and in an instant Desmond and his companion dashed forward. Taken by +surprise, the men had no time to defend themselves. With his left hand +Desmond caught at Diggle's sword arm, and, pointing his rapier at his +heart, said: + +"You are my prisoner, Mr. Diggle." + +At the same moment Bulger had caught the second man by the throat, and +raising his formidable hook, cried: + +"Heave to, matey, or I'll spoil your mug for you." + +The man uttered an exclamation in French, which ended in a wheeze as +Bulger's strong fingers clutched his windpipe. + +But the next moment an unlooked-for diversion occurred. Attracted by the +sound of the rapid scuffle, a number of natives armed with lathis +{bludgeons} rushed across the compound into the street, and came swiftly +to the rescue. Desmond and his companion had perforce to release their +prisoners and turn to defend themselves. With their backs against the +wall they met the assailants, Desmond with his rapier, Bulger with his +hook, each dexterously warding off the furious blows of the excited +natives. Diggle and the Frenchman took instant advantage of the +opportunity to slip away, and the Englishmen had already got home more +than one shrewd blow, provoking yells of pain from the attackers, when +the onslaught suddenly ceased, and the natives stood rigid, as if under a +spell. Looking round, Desmond saw at the gate a bent old figure with +dusky, wrinkled face and prominent eyes. He wore a turban in which a +jewel sparkled, and his white garment was girt with a yellow sash. + +"What is this, sahib?" he said severely in careful English, addressing +Desmond. + +"'Tis pretty plain what it is," said Desmond somewhat hotly; "we have +been set upon by these six ruffians." + +The newcomer motioned with his hand, and the men slunk away. + +"I regret, sahib. The men are badmashes; Calcutta is unhappily in a +disturbed state." + +"Badmashes or not, they came from your house--if this is your house." + +"It is my house, sahib. My name is Omichand. I must inquire how the +badmashes came to be in my compound. I fear my darwan {doorkeeper} is at +fault." + +"And what about the two men?" + +"The two men, sahib?" + +"Yes, the two Europeans who came first from the house, and were protected +by these ruffians?" + +"You must be mistaken, sahib. English sahibs do not visit at the houses +of Indian gentlemen. If the sahib had been longer in Calcutta he would +know that." + +A smile flickered on the Indian's face, but it was gone instantly. +Desmond was nonplussed. It was useless to contradict the merchant; he was +clearly not disposed to give any information; Diggle was gone. All he +could do was to return and report the matter to Mr. Merriman. + +"Come along, Bulger," he said, with an unceremonious gesture to Omichand. +"We can do no good here." + +"The old Ananias!" growled Bulger, as they walked away. "What in thunder +is Diggle's game here? I'd give a year's 'baccy to have a chanst o' usin' +my hook on him." + +Mr. Merriman looked grave when he heard what had happened. + +"To think of that villain once more escaping our clutches! The other +fellow was a Frenchman, you say? There's mischief brewing. Sure if I was +president I'd be tempted to arrest that wily old Omichand. Not that it +would be of much use, probably. Peloti is a bold fellow to venture here. +You are sure 'twas he?" + +"Absolutely. His disguise was good: he has altered his face in some way, +and his dress is altogether changed; but I couldn't mistake the covered +hand." + +"'Tis an odd thing, that mitten. Probably it conceals some defect; the +man's as vain as a peacock. The mitten is a thing by which he may be +traced, and I'll send my peons to start inquiries tomorrow. But I've +something to say to you: something to propose. The Hormuzzeer is ready to +sail, save for that consignment at Cossimbazar I mentioned. My agent +there is an Armenian named Coja Solomon; I've employed him for some +years, and found him trustworthy; but I can't get delivery of these +goods. I've sent two or three messengers to him, asking him to hurry, but +he replies that there is some difficulty about the dastaks--papers +authorizing the despatch of goods free from customs duty. + +"Now, will you go up the river and see what is causing the delay? I'll +give you an introduction to Mr. Watts; he will do all he can for you, +though no doubt his hands are full. You can take Surendra Nath with you +to interpret; and you had better have some armed peons as an escort, and +perhaps a number of men we can trust to work the boat if you can release +the goods. Are you willing?" + +"I will gladly do anything I can, sir. Indeed, I wished for an +opportunity to see something of the country." + +"You may see too much! I'd say beware of tigers, but Surendra Nath is so +desperately timid that you can depend on him not to lead you into +danger." + +"The Hormuzzeer will not sail until I return?" + +"Not till the goods arrive. Why do you ask?" + +"I should like to take Bulger with me. He's a good companion, with a +shrewd head." + +"And a useful hook. I have no objection. You will be ready to start +tomorrow, then. You must be up early: traveling will be impossible in the +heat of the day." + +"At dawn, sir." + + + +Chapter 20: In which there are recognitions and explanations; and our hero +meets one Coja Solomon, of Cossimbazar. + + +At sunrise next morning Desmond found his party awaiting him at the +Causeway beyond the Maratha ditch. The natives salaamed when he came up +in company with Mr. Merriman, and Bulger pulled his forelock. + +"Mornin', sir; mornin'; I may be wrong, but 'tis my belief we're goin' to +have a bilin' hot day, and I've come accordin'." + +He was clad in nothing but shirt and breeches, with his coat strapped to +his back, and a hat apparently improvised out of cabbage leaves. The +natives were all in white, with their employer's pink ribbons. Some were +armed with matchlocks and pikes; others carried light cooking utensils; +others, groceries for the Englishmen's use; for their own food they +depended on the villages through which they would pass. + +"Well, I wish you a good journey," said Mr. Merriman, who appeared to be +in better spirits than for many a day. "I'm glad to tell you, Burke, that +I got a letter from Mr. Watts this morning, saying that my wife and +daughter are on their way down the river with Mrs. Watts and her +children. They've got Mr. Warren Hastings to escort them: trust 'em to +find a handsome man! The road follows the river, and if you look out I +dare say you will see them. You'll recognize our livery. Introduce +yourself if you meet 'em. You have your letter from Mr. Watts? That's all +right. Goodby, and good luck to you." + +The party set off. The old road by which they were to travel ran at a +short distance from the left bank of the Hugli, passing through an +undulating country, interspersed with patches of low wood and scattered +trees. The scenery was full of charm for Desmond: the rich vegetation; +antelopes darting among the trees; flamingoes and pelicans standing +motionless at the edge of the slow-gliding river; white-clad figures +coming down the broad steps of the riverside ghats to bathe; occasionally +the dusky corpse of some devotee consigned by his relations to the bosom +of the holy river. + +The first halt was called at Barrackpur, where, amid a luxuriant grove of +palms and bamboos, stood some beautiful pagodas, built of the unburnt +brick of the country, and faced with a fine stucco that gleamed in the +sunlight like polished marble. Here, under the shade of the palms, +Desmond lay through the hot afternoon, watching the boats of all shapes +and sizes that floated lazily down the broad-bosomed stream. In the +evening the march was resumed; the party crossed the river by a ford at +Pulta Ghat, and following the road on the other bank came at sundown to +the outskirts of the French settlement at Chandernagore. There they +camped for the night. Desmond was for some time tormented by the doleful +yells of packs of jackals roaming abroad in search of food. Their cries +so much resembled those of human beings in dire agony that he shivered on +his mattress; but falling asleep at length, he slept soundly and woke +with the dawn. + +He started again soon after sunrise. Just beyond Chandernagore Bulger +pointed out the stripped spars of the Good Intent, lying far up a narrow +creek. + +"Wouldn't I just like to cut her out?" said Bulger. "But 'spose we can't +stop for that, sir?" + +"Certainly not. And you'd have the French about our ears." + +Passing the Dutch settlement at Chinsura, he came into a country of rice +fields, now bare, broken by numerous nullahs worn by the torrents in the +rainy season, but now nearly dry. Here and there the party had to ford a +jhil--an extensive shallow lake formed by the rains. Desmond tried a shot +or two at the flights of teal that floated on these ponds; but they were +so wild that he could never approach within range. Towards evening, after +passing the little village of Amboa, they came to a grove of peepuls +filled with green parrots and monkeys screaming and jabbering as though +engaged in a competition. A few miles farther on they arrived at the +larger village of Khulna, where they tied up for the night. + +Next morning Desmond was wakened by Surendra Nath. + +"Sahib," he said, "the bibi and the chota bibi are here." + +"Mrs. Merriman?" + +"Yes. They arrived last night by boat, and are pursuing their journey +today." + +"I should like to see them before they go. But I'm afraid I am hardly +presentable." + +"Believe me, sahib, you will not offend the bibi's punctilio." + +"Well, send one of the peons to say that I shall have the pleasure of +waiting on Mrs. Merriman in half an hour, if she will permit me." + +Having shaved and bathed, and donned a change of clothes, Desmond set off +accompanied by Surendra Nath to visit the ladies. He found them on a long +shallow boat, in a cabin constructed of laths and mats filling one end of +the light craft. The Babu made the introduction, then effaced himself. + +A lady, whose voice seemed to waken an echo in Desmond's memory, said: + +"How do you do, Mr. Burke? I have heard of you in my husband's letters. +Is the dear man well?" + +"He is in good health, ma'am, but somewhat anxious to have you back +again." + +"Dear man! What is he anxious about? Mr. Watts seemed anxious also to get +rid of us. He was vexed that Mrs. Watts is too much indisposed to +accompany us. And Mr. Warren Hastings, who was to escort us, was quite +angry because he had to go to one of the out-factories instead. I do not +understand why these gentlemen are so much disturbed." + +Desmond saw that Mrs. Merriman had been deliberately kept in ignorance of +the grounds of the Englishmen's anxiety, and was seeking on the spur of +the moment for a means to divert her from the subject, when he was spared +the necessity. Miss Merriman had been looking at him curiously, and she +now turned to her mother and said something in a tone inaudible to +Desmond. + +"La! you don't say so, my dear," exclaimed the lady. + +"Why. Mr. Burke, my daughter tells me that we have met you before." + +His vague recollection of Mrs. Merriman's voice being thus so suddenly +confirmed, he recalled, as from a far distant past, a scene upon Hounslow +Heath; a coach that stood perilously near the ditch, a girl at the +horses' heads, a lady stamping her foot at two servants wrestling in +drunken stupidity on the ground. + +"You never gave us an opportunity of thanking you," continued Mrs. +Merriman. "'Twas not kind of you, Mr. Burke, to slip away thus without a +word after doing two poor lone women such a service." + +"Indeed, ma'am, 'twas with no discourteous intention, but seeing you were +safe with your friends I--I--in short, ma'am--" + +Desmond stopped in confusion, at a loss for a satisfactory explanation. +The ladies were smiling. + +"You thought to flee our acknowledgments," said Mrs. Merriman. "La, la, I +know; I have a young brother of my own. But you shall not escape them +now, and what is more, I shall see that Merriman, poor man, adds his, for +I am sure he has forgiven you your exploit." + +The younger lady laughed outright, while Desmond looked from one to the +other. What did they mean? + +"Indeed, ma'am," he said, "I had no idea--" + +"That there was need for forgiveness?" said the lady, taking him up. "But +indeed there was-eh, Phyllis? + +"Mr. Burke," she added, with a sudden solemnity, "a few minutes after you +left us at Soho Square Merriman rode up, and I assure you I nearly +swooned, poor man! and hardly had strength to send for the surgeon. It +needed three stitches--and he such a handsome man, too." + +A horrid suspicion flashed through Desmond's mind. He remembered the scar +on Mr. Merriman's brow, and that it was a scarcely healed wound when he +met him with Clive on that unfortunate occasion in Billiter Street. + +"Surely, ma'am, you don't mean--the highwayman?" + +"Indeed I do. That is just it. Your highwayman was--Mr. Merriman. Fancy +the hurt to his feelings, to say nothing of his good looks. Fie, fie, Mr. +Burke!" + +For a moment Desmond did not know whether embarrassment or amazement was +uppermost with him. It was bad enough to have tripped Mr. Merriman up in +the muddy street; but to have also dealt him a blow of which he would +retain the mark to his dying day--"This is terrible!" he thought. Still +there was an element of absurdity in the adventure that appealed to his +sense of the ridiculous. But he felt the propriety of being apologetic, +and was about to express his regret for his mistake when Mrs. Merriman +interrupted him with a smile: + +"But there, Mr. Burke, he bears you no grudge, I am sure. He is the +essence of good temper. It was a mistake; he saw that when I explained; +and when he had vented his spleen on the coachman next day he owned that +it was a plucky deed in you to take charge of us, and indeed he said that +you was a mighty good whip; although," she added laughing, "you was a +trifle heavy in hand." + +Desmond felt bound to make a full confession. He related the incident of +his encounter with Merriman in London--how he had toppled him over in the +mud--wondering how the ladies would take it. He was relieved when they +received his story with a peal of laughter. + +"Oh, mamma; and it was his new frock!" said Phyllis. + +"La, so it was, just fresh from Mr. Small's in Wigmore Street--forty +guineas and no less!" + +"Well, ma'am, I'm already forgiven for that; I trust that with your good +favor my earlier indiscretion will be forgiven." + +"Indeed it shall be, Mr. Burke, I promise you. Now tell me: what brings +you here?" + +Desmond explained his errand in a few words. The ladies wished him a +prosperous journey, and said they would hope to see him in a few days on +his return. He left them, feeling that he had gained friends, and with a +new motive, of which he was only vaguely conscious, to a speedy +accomplishment of his business. + +On the evening of the sixth day after leaving Calcutta there came into +sight a church of considerable size, which Surendra Nath explained was +the temple of the Armenian colony of Cossimbazar. Passing this, and +leaving a maze of native dwellings and the French factory on the left, +the travelers reached the Dutch factory, and beyond this the English +settlement and fort. + +Leaving the Babu to arrange quarters for the peons in the native part of +the town, Desmond hastened on past the stables and the hospital to the +factory. It was a rough oblong in shape, defended at each corner by a +bastion mounted with ten guns, the bastions being connected by massive +curtains. In the south curtain, windowed for the greater part of its +length, was the gateway. Desmond was admitted by a native servant, and in +a few minutes found himself in the presence of the chief, Mr. William +Watts. + +Mr. Watts was a tall man of near forty years--of striking presence, with +firm chin, pleasant mouth, and eyes of peculiar depth and brilliance. He +was clad in a long purple-laced coat, with ruffles at the wrists and a +high stock, and wore the short curled wig of the period. He welcomed +Desmond with great cordiality, and, glancing over Mr. Merriman's letter, +said: + +"My friend Mr. Merriman needlessly disturbs himself, I think. I apprehend +no immediate difficulty with the new Subah, although 'tis true there have +been little vexations. As to the goods, they are in Coja Solomon's +godown; they were delivered some time ago and paid for; what the reason +of the delay is I cannot tell. One thing I may mention--it appears that +Mr. Merriman is ignorant of it: Coja Solomon has lately become the agent +of Omichand, whose peons have been seen to visit him, then passing on to +Murshidabad. I happen to know also that he has communicated with Coja +Wajid: do you know anything of him?" + +"No, sir; I have never heard his name." + +"He's a rich Armenian trader in Hugli, and acts as agent between the +Nawab and the French and Dutch. We suspect him of encouraging +Sirajuddaula against us; but of course we can't prove anything. My advice +to you is, be wary and be quick; don't trust any of these fellows further +than you can see them. But you can't do anything tonight. You will allow +me to give you a bed: in the morning you can make a call on Coja Solomon. +What has become of your peons?" + +"A Babu I brought with me is looking after them. But I have an English +seaman also: can you tell me what to do with him?" + +"Sure he can lodge with Sergeant Bowler close by--near the southeast +bastion. The sergeant will be glad of the company of a fellow countryman; +your man will be a change after the Dutchmen and topasses he has to do +with." + +Early next morning Desmond, accompanied by Surendra Nath, went to find +Coja Solomon. He lived in a house not far from the Armenian church, +between it and the river. The Armenian was at home. He received Desmond +with great politeness, assuring him with much volubility that he had but +one interest in life, and that was the business of his honorable +employer, Mr. Merriman. He invited Desmond to accompany him to the godown +near the river where the goods were stored--muslins of Dacca, both plain +and flowered, Bengal raw silk, and taffeties manufactured in Cossimbazar. + +"You have not been long in the country, sir," said Coja Solomon, with a +shrewd look at Desmond, "and therefore you will find it hard to believe, +perhaps, that these goods, so insignificant in bulk, are worth over two +lakhs of rupees. A precious load indeed, sir. This delay is naturally a +cause of vexation to my distinguished superior, but it is not due to any +idleness or inattention on my part. It is caused by the surprising +difficulty of getting the dastaks countersigned by the Faujdar {officer +in command of troops, and also a magistrate}--Without his signature, as +you know, the goods can not be removed. I dare not venture." + +"But why didn't the Faujdar sign the papers?" + +"That I cannot tell. I send messengers to him: they come back: the +Faujdar is much occupied with the Nawab's business, but he will attend to +this little matter as soon as he has leisure. He calls it a little +matter; and so it is, perhaps, if we remember that the Nawab's wealth is +reckoned by millions; but it is not a little matter to Mr. Merriman, and +I deeply deplore the unfortunate delay." + +"Well, be good enough to send another message at once. Represent to the +Faujdar that Mr. Merriman's ship is prevented from sailing until the +goods reach Calcutta, and that this causes great inconvenience and loss." + +Here the Babu whispered in his ear. + +"Yes, and add--you will know how to put it--that if the dastaks are sent +off immediately, the Faujdar will receive from Mr. Merriman a suitable +gratification." + +The Armenian rubbed his hands and smilingly assented; but Desmond, who +had had some practice in reading faces since he left Market Drayton +eighteen months before, felt an uneasy suspicion that Coja Solomon was a +scamp. Returning to the factory, he acquainted Mr. Watts with the result +of his interview and his opinion of the agent. The chief's eye twinkled. + +"You haven't been long reckoning him up, Mr. Burke. I'm afraid you're +right. I'll see what I can do for you." + +Calling "Qui hai {'Is there any one?'--used as a summons}!" he ordered +the peon who appeared in answer to his summons to go to the black +merchants' houses, a row of two-story buildings some forty yards from the +southwest bastion, and bring back with him Babu Joti Lal Chatterji. + +In less than ten minutes the man returned with an intelligent-looking +young Bengali. Mr. Watts addressed the latter in Hindustani, bidding him +hasten to Murshidabad and find out quietly what the Faujdar was doing +with the dastaks. When he had gone, Mr. Watts showed Desmond over the +fort, introduced him to his wife, and then took him round the English +settlement. + +Next day Joti Lal Chatterji returned from Murshidabad with the news that +the dastaks, duly signed by the Faujdar, had been delivered to Coja +Solomon a fortnight before. + +"'Tis rather worse than I expected," said Mr. Watts gravely. "There is +something in this that I do not understand. We will send for Coja +Solomon." + +No one could have seemed more genuinely surprised than the Armenian when +informed of what had been learned. He had received no dastaks, he +declared; either a mistake had been made, or the papers had been +intercepted, possibly by some enemy who had a grudge against him and +wished to embroil him with his employer. It was annoying, he agreed; and +he offered to go to Murshidabad himself and, if necessary, get other +dastaks signed. + +"Very well," said Mr. Watts, from whose manner no one could have guessed +that he suspected his visitor. "We shall look for you tomorrow." + +The man departed. Nothing was heard of him for two days. Then a letter +arrived, saying that he remained in Murshidabad, awaiting the return of +the Faujdar, who had been summoned to Rajmahal by the Nawab Sirajuddaula. +Three more days slipped by, and nothing further was heard from Coja +Solomon. + +Desmond became more and more impatient. Bulger suggested that they should +break into the godown and remove the goods without any ceremony--a course +that Desmond himself was not disinclined to adopt; but when he hinted at +it to Mr. Watts that gentleman's look of horror could not have been more +expressive if his consent had been asked to commit a crime. + +"Why, Mr. Burke, if we acted in that impetuous way we'd have all Bengal +at our throats. Trade must pass through the usual channels; to convey +goods from here to Calcutta without a dastak would be a grave +misdemeanor, if not high treason; and it would get us into very hot water +with the Nawab. I can only advise patience." + +One morning, Desmond had just finished breakfast with Mr. Watts and his +wife, when Lieutenant Elliott, in command of the garrison, came +unceremoniously into the room. + +"Mr. Watts," he said, "the fat's in the fire. A lot of the Nawab's +Persian cavalry have come into the town during the night. They have +surrounded the French and Dutch factories and are coming on here." + +"Don't be alarmed, my dear," said the chief, as his wife started up in a +state of panic; "'tis only one of the Nawab's tricks. He has used that +means of extorting money before. We'll buy them off, never fear." + +But it was soon seen that the troops had come with a more serious +purpose. They completely invested the factory, and next day withdrew the +guards that had been placed around the French and Dutch forts, and +confined their whole attention to the British. Mr. Watts withdrew all the +garrison and officials behind the bastioned walls of the fort, and +fearing that an attack in force would be made upon him, despatched a +kasid {courier} to Calcutta with an urgent request for reinforcements. + +While waiting anxiously for the reply, he took stock of his position. His +garrison numbered only fifty men all told, half of them being Dutch +deserters and the remainder half-caste topasses, with only two English +officers, Lieutenant Elliott and Sergeant Bowler. The guns of the fort +were old; and within a few yards of the walls were houses that would +afford excellent cover to the enemy. Without help resistance for any +length of time was impossible, and to resist at all meant a declaration +of war against the Nawab, and would entail serious consequences--possibly +involve the total ruin of the Company in Bengal. In this difficult +position Mr. Watts hoped that an opportunity of making an arrangement +with the besiegers would offer itself. Meanwhile, pending the arrival of +instructions from Calcutta, he gave orders that any attempt to force an +entrance to the fort was to be repelled. + +But no letters came from Calcutta. Though several were despatched, none +of them reached Cossimbazar. On June first Ridurlabh, in command of the +besiegers, received orders from the Nawab, now at Murshidabad, to take +the fort. He came to the gate and tried to force an entrance, but +hurriedly withdrew when he met Sergeant Bowler's gleaming bayonet and saw +the gunners standing by with lighted matches in their hands. + +By and by he sent a messenger asking Mr. Watts to come out and parley. +and offering a betel, the usual native pledge of safe conduct. Against +the advice of Lieutenant Elliott, Mr. Watts decided to leave the fort and +visit the Nawab himself. Next day, therefore, with Mr. Forth, the +surgeon, and two servants, he departed, cheerfully declaring that he +would make all right with Sirajuddaula. Mr. Forth returned a day later +with the news that on reaching the Nawab's tent both he and Mr. Watts had +had their arms bound behind their backs and been led as prisoners into +Sirajuddaula's presence. The Nawab had demanded their signatures to a +document binding the English at Calcutta to demolish their +fortifications. Mr. Watts explained that the signatures of two other +members of his Council were required, hoping that the delay would allow +time for help to reach him from Calcutta. After some hesitation two +gentlemen left the fort with the surgeon. + +The same evening Mr. Forth once more returned to inform the garrison that +the members of Council had likewise been imprisoned, and that Mr. Watts +recommended Lieutenant Elliott to deliver up the fort and ammunition. + +The merchants in the factory were aghast; Lieutenant Elliott fumed with +indignation; but they saw that they had no alternative. Their chief had +been removed by treachery; to resist was hopeless; and though such +submission to a native was galling they could but recognize their +helplessness and make the best of a bad situation. Desmond, besides +sharing in their anger, had a further cause for concern in the almost +certain loss of Mr. Merriman's goods. But the fort would not be given up +till next day, and before he retired to rest he received a message that +turned his thoughts into another channel and made him set his wits to +work. + +During the siege natives had been allowed to go freely in and out between +the fort and the settlement; Ridurlabh was confident in his superior +numbers and could afford to regard with indifference the despatch of +messages to Calcutta. A messenger came to Desmond in the evening from +Surendra Nath, to say that Coja Solomon had returned to Cossimbazar, and +was now loading up Mr. Merriman's goods in petalas {cargo boats}, their +destination being Murshidabad. Desmond saw at once that the Armenian was +taking advantage of the disturbance to make away with the goods for his +own behoof. He could always pretend afterwards that his godown had been +plundered. It was pretty clear, too, that his long detention of the goods +must be due to his having had a hint of the Nawab's plans. + +This news reached Desmond just after Mr. Forth had brought orders for the +surrender of the fort. He kept his own counsel. After his experience at +Gheria he was resolved not to be made a prisoner again; but he would not +be content with merely saving his own skin. Mr. Merriman's goods were +valuable; it touched Desmond's self esteem to think he should be bested +by a rascally Armenian. If there had been any prospect of a fight in +defense of the fort he would have stayed to take his part in it; but as +the factory was to be given up without a struggle he saw no reason for +considering anything except the interests of Mr. Merriman and himself. + +Only one thing gave him a slight qualm. The equities of the case were +perfectly clear; but he had some doubt as to the issue if it should +become known that he had forcibly made off with the goods. The relations +between the Nawab and the Company were so strained, and the circumstances +of the moment so dangerous, that such action on his part might prove the +spark to a train of gunpowder. But he could not help thinking that the +Nawab was in any case bent on picking a quarrel with the Company; +anything that Desmond might do would be but one petty incident in a +possible campaign; meanwhile the goods were worth two lakhs of rupees, a +serious loss to Mr. Merriman if Coja Solomon's plans succeeded; an effort +to save them was surely worth the risk, and they could only be saved if +he could secure them before the Armenian's boats had started for +Murshidabad. + +He did not take long to decide upon a plan. Calling the native who had +attended him in the fort, he sent him out to Surendra Nath with +instructions to prepare his peons for instant action. Bulger was with +them; he had been absent from Bowler's house when the order came to +retire to the fort, and only just succeeded in joining Surendra Nath +before the investment began. + +From Joti Lal Chatterji, the man whom Mr. Watts had employed to make +inquiries in Murshidabad, the servant was to get a dress such as would be +worn by a khitmatgar {table servant}, and some material for staining the +skin. In the darkness Desmond hoped that he might pass without question +for a native so long as disguise was necessary. Within an hour the man +returned, bringing the articles required. + + + +Chapter 21: In which Coja Solomon finds dishonesty the worse policy; and a +journey down the Hugli little to his liking. + + +The short twilight was thickening into darkness when Desmond, with face, +legs, and arms stained brown, slipped out of the fort in native dress and +walked slowly towards the houses of the native merchants. In his hand he +carried a small bundle. Reaching the house where his party was staying, +kept by one Abdul Kader, he almost betrayed himself by forgetting to slip +off his sandals as he entered. But he bethought himself in time and was +admitted without question. + +He found that he was not a moment too soon. Bulger had taken up his +quarters there with a very bad grace, the arrival of the Nawab's army +having aroused in him the fighting spirit of the sturdy British tar. But +when the news ran through the settlement that the fort was to be given up +his feelings overcame him, and it was only with the greatest difficulty +that Surendra Nath had persuaded him to wait patiently for orders from +Desmond. Then the Babu himself had quitted the house, and Bulger was left +without the restraint of anyone who could speak English. He was on the +point of casting off all prudence and stalking out, like Achilles from +his tent, when Desmond arrived. + +"By thunder, sir!" he said, when he had recovered from his astonishment +at seeing Desmond in native dress, "I en't a-goin' to surrender to no +Moors, sure as my name's Bulger. 'Tis a downright scandalous shame; +that's what I call it." + +"Well, you can tell Mr. Watts so if ever you see him. At present we have +no time to waste in talk. Where is Surendra Nath?" + +"Gone to keep his weather eye on the codger's godown, sir." + +"Which shows he's a man of sense. Are all the men here?" + +"So far as I know, sir. I may be wrong." + +"Well, they'll make their way in small parties down to the river. 'Tis +dark enough now; they will not be noticed, and they can steal along the +bank under the trees until they come near Coja Solomon's ghat. You must +come with me." + +"Very good, sir," replied Bulger, hitching up his breeches and drawing +his hanger. + +"But not like that. You'll have to get those black whiskers of yours +shaved, my man. If they grew all over you'd pass perhaps for a Moor; but +not with a fringe like that. And you must stain your face; I have the +stuff in this bundle; and we'll borrow a dhoti and sandals from Abdul +Kader. We'll dress you up between us." + +Bulger looked aghast. + +"Dash my buttons, sir, I'll look like a November guy! What would my mates +say, a-seein' me dressed up like a stuffed Moor at Smithfield fair--a +penny a shy, sir?" + +"Your mates are not here to see you, and if you hold your tongue they'll +never know it." + +"But what about this little corkscrew o' mine, sir? I don't see any ways +o' dressin' that up." + +"You can stick it into your dhoti. Now here are soap and a razor; I give +you ten minutes to shave and get your face stained; Abdul Kader will +help. Quick's the word, man." + +A quarter of an hour later Desmond left the house with Bulger, the +latter, in spite of the darkness, looking very much ashamed of himself. +The other members of the party had already gone towards the river. +Walking very slowly until they had safely cleared the lines of the +investing troops, the two hurried their pace and about half-past eight +reached the Armenian godown. The three boats containing Mr. Merriman's +goods were moored at the ghat. A number of men were on board, and bales +were still being carried down by the light of torches. It appeared that +Coja Solomon had no intention of leaving until the factory was actually +in Rai Durlabh's hands. + +Desmond had already decided that, to legalize his position, he must gain +possession of the dastaks. Not that they would help him much if, as was +only too probable, Coja Solomon should be backed up by the Nawab. As soon +as it was discovered that the goods had been carried off, kasids would +undoubtedly be sent along the banks, possibly swift boats would set off +down the river in pursuit, and, dastaks or no dastaks, the goods would be +impounded at Khulna or Hugli and himself arrested. It was therefore of +the first importance that the loss of the boats should not be discovered +until he was well on his way, and to insure this he must secure the +person of Coja Solomon. If that could be done there was a chance of +delaying the pursuit, or preventing it altogether. + +Desmond kept well in the shelter of the palm trees as he made his +observation of the ghat. He wondered where Surendra Nath was, but could +not waste time in looking for him. Retracing his steps with Bulger for a +little distance, he came to a spot on the river bank where the rest of +his party were waiting in a boat, moored to an overhanging tree. He +ordered the men to land; then, leaving Bulger in charge of them, he +selected three of the armed peons and with them made his way across paddy +{rice} fields toward the Armenian's house, a hundred yards or so from the +bank. + +Light came through the reed-screened window. Bidding the men remain +outside and rush in if he called them, he left the shelter of the trees +and, approaching the door, stumbled over the darwan lying across the +threshold. + +"Hai, darwan!" he said, with the bluntness of servant addressing servant; +"sleeping again! Go and tell your master I'm here to see him: a +khitmatgar from the fort." + +The man rose sleepily and preceded him into the house. He made the +announcement, salaamed and retired. Desmond went in. + +In a little room on the ground floor Coja Solomon reclined on a divan, +smoking his hubblebubble. A small oil lamp burnt on a bracket above his +head. He looked up as Desmond entered; if he thought that his visitor was +somewhat better set-up than the average khitmatgar, he did not suspect +any disguise. The light was dim, and Coja Solomon was old. + +"Good evening, Khwaja," said Desmond quietly. + +The man jumped as if shot. + +"No, don't get up, and don't make a noise. My business with you will not +take long. I will ask you to hand over Mr. Merriman's dastaks. I know +that they are in your possession. I have come to get them, and to take +away the goods--Mr. Merriman's goods." + +The Armenian had meanwhile removed the mouthpiece of his hubblebubble, +and was bending over as if to replace it by one of several that lay on a +shelf at his right hand. But Desmond noticed that beneath the shelf stood +a small gong. He whipped out a pistol, and pointed it full at the +merchant. + +"Don't touch that," he said curtly. "I have not come unprepared, as you +see. Your plans are known to me. If you value your life you will do as I +wish, without delay or disturbance. My men are outside; a word from me +will bring them swarming in. Now, the dastaks!" + +Coja Solomon was an Armenian and a merchant; in neither capacity a +fighting man. In a contest of wits he could be as cool and as ready as +any man in Bengal; but he had no skill in arms and no physical courage. +There was an air of determination about his visitor that impressed him; +and he felt by no means comfortable within point-blank range of the +pistol covering him so completely. If his thoughts had been read, they +would have run somewhat thus: "Pistols have been known to go off +accidentally. What will the goods profit me if such an accident happen +now? Besides, even if I yield there may still be a chance of saving them. +It is a long way to Calcutta: the river is low: God be praised the rains +have not begun! There are shallows and rocks along its course: the boats +must go slowly: and the Nawab's horsemen can soon outstrip them on the +banks. The dog of an Englishman thinks he has outwitted me: we shall see. +And he is only a youth: let us see if Coja Solomon is not a match for +him." + +Rising to his feet, he smiled and shrugged, and spread out his hands +deprecatingly. + +"It is true the dastaks are here," he said suavely, "but they only +reached me yesterday, and indeed, as soon as I received them, I had the +goods put on board the boats for transit to Calcutta." + +"That is very fortunate," said Desmond. "It will save my time. As Mr. +Merriman's representative I will take over the goods--with the dastaks." + +"If you will excuse me, I will fetch them." + +"Stay!" said Desmond, as the man moved toward the door. He had not +lowered the pistol. "Where are they?" + +"They are in my office beside the godown." + +"Very well. It would be a pity to trouble you to bring them here. I will +go with you. Will you lead the way?" + +He knew it was a lie. Valuable papers would not be left in a hut of an +office, and he had already noticed a curiously wrought almara {cabinet} +at one end of the room--just the place to keep documents. + +There was the shadow of a scowl on the Armenian's face. The man +hesitated; then walked towards the door: stopped as if at a sudden +recollection; and turned to Desmond with a bland smile. + +"I was forgetting," he said, "I brought the papers here for safety's +sake." + +He went to the almara, searched for a moment, and handed two papers to +Desmond. + +"There, sir," he said, with a quite paternal smile; "you take the +responsibility. In these unfortunate circumstances"--he waved his hand in +the direction of the factory--"it is, believe me, a relief to me to see +the last of these papers. + +"That is well." + +But Desmond, as he took the papers, felt himself in a quandary. Though he +could speak, he could not read Hindustani! The papers might not be the +dastaks after all. What was he to do? + +The peons were not likely to be able to read. He scanned the papers. +There was the name Merriman in English characters, but all the rest was +in native script. The smile hovering on the Armenian's face annoyed +Desmond, and he was still undecided what to do when a voice at his elbow +gave him welcome relief. + +"Babu Surendra Nath Chuckerbutti," announced the darwan. + +The Babu entered. + +"Come and tell me if these are our dastaks," said Desmond. + +The Babu ran his eyes over the papers, and declared: + +"Yes, sir, they are the identical papers, and I perceive the signature of +the Faujdar is dated three weeks ago." + +"Thank you," said Desmond. + +"Now, Coja Solomon, I must ask you to come with me." + +"Why, sir--" began the Armenian, no longer smiling. + +"I will explain to you by and by.-- + +"What is it, Surendra Nath?" + +The Babu whispered a word or two in his ear. + +"A happy thought!" said Desmond. "Surendra Nath suggests that I should +borrow that excellent robe I see yonder, Khwaja; and your turban also. +They will become me better than this khitmatgar's garb, I doubt not." + +Coja Solomon looked on helplessly as Desmond exchanged his meaner +garments for the richer clothes of his unwilling host. + +"Now we will go. You will tell the darwan that you have gone down to the +ghat, so that if a question is asked he will be at no loss for an +answer." + +In the faint light of the rising moon the barrel of the pistol gleamed as +they came into the open. The Armenian marched between Desmond and the +Babu. Behind came the three peons, moving as silently as ghosts. + +"The Khwaja," said Desmond to them in the Armenian's hearing, as they +reached the ghat, "is coming a little way with us down the river. + +"You, Kristodas Das, will go and tell Bulger Sahib that I wish him to +follow the Khwaja's boats at a few yards' distance, and to be prepared to +board at any moment. + +"You," turning to the other two peons, "will come with me. The Khwaja +will send word to his durwan that he is going to Murshidabad by river and +will not return tonight; his house is to be locked up. The Khwaja will, I +am sure, give these orders correctly, for Surendra Nath will understand +better than I what he says." + +With the Babu, the two peons, and Coja Solomon, who was now obviously ill +at ease, Desmond went down the ghat to the place where the crews of the +petalas were assigned to him. The man dared not depart by a jot from the +words put into his mouth. One of his coolies left with the message, the +rest followed their employer on board with Desmond and his companions, +and in a few minutes the three boats were cast off and stood upstream. As +they started Desmond saw the boat containing Bulger and his men slip from +the shade of the trees and begin to creep after them. + +The boats had not gone more than a couple of hundred yards upstream when +Coja Solomon, at Desmond's orders, bade the men row toward the opposite +shore and turn the boats' heads round, explaining that he had decided +after all to convey the goods to Hugli. There was some grumbling among +the crew, who had expected to go to Murshidabad, and did not relish the +prospect of the longer voyage. But the Armenian, knowing that every word +was overheard by Desmond's men, made haste to pacify the boatmen. + +It was by no means easy work getting down the river. The boats were flat +bottomed and drew very little water; but the stream being very low, they +stuck fast time after time in the shallows. By day the boatmen might have +picked their way more carefully, but the moon was new and shed too little +light for river navigation. More than once they had to leap overboard +and, wading, shove and haul until the boats came off the mud banks into +practicable water again. They rowed hard when the course was clear, +encouraged by promises of liberal bakshish made by their employer at +Desmond's prompting. But the interruptions were so frequent that the dawn +found the boats only some thirty miles from their starting-point. The +river being here a little deeper, Desmond could afford to let the rowers +take a much-needed rest, while the boats floated down with the stream. + +But as the day wore on the river again played them false, and progress +was at times reduced to scarcely more than two miles an hour. Things had +been uncomfortable in the night, but the discomforts were increased +tenfold in the day. It was the hottest season of the year; out of the +clear sky the sun's rays beat down with pitiless ferocity; the whole +landscape was a-quiver with heat; all things seemed to swoon under the +oppression. The petalas, being cargo boats, were not provided with any +accommodation or conveniences for passengers; and Desmond's thoughts as +he lay panting on his mat, haggard from want of sleep, faint from want of +food--for though there was rice on board, and the men ate freely, he had +no appetite for that--reverted to the worst period of his imprisonment in +Gheria, and he recalled the sufferings he had endured there. + +Here at least he was free. His journey had so far been unmolested, and he +hoped that the happy chance that had favored him at Cossimbazar would not +fail him now. + +He was in a fever of impatience; yet the men were doing their best. They +passed the mud walls of Cutwa; another stage of the journey was safely +completed; but twelve miles lower down there was a post at Path; and with +every mile the danger grew. + +Desmond talked over the situation with the Babu. Surendra Nath agreed +that by nightfall, if no unforeseen delay occurred, they might hope to be +in the neighborhood of Khulna, and arrive there before any messenger +carrying news of the escape. + +But there was little or no chance of the same good fortune at Hugli. The +prize was so valuable that every effort would certainly be made to stop +them. A whole day or more might pass before the reason of Coja Solomon's +absence was discovered. But when the discovery was made fast runners +would be sent to Khulna and Hugli, and by relays the distance between +Cossimbazar and Hugli could be covered in twenty-four hours. Supposing +such a messenger started at nightfall on June fifth, nearly twenty-four +hours after Coja Solomon's disappearance, he might well get to Hugli long +before the fugitive boats, even if they were rowed all night without +cessation; and the men were already so much fatigued that such continuous +exertion could hardly be expected of them. + +There was a further danger. If the news of the capture of Cossimbazar +Fort had preceded him, he might be stopped at any of the riverside places +without any reference to Coja Solomon's abduction, pending orders from +the Nawab. Desmond's anxiety would have been largely increased had he +known that Sirajuddaula, before his men had actually marched into the +fort, had already started with the bulk of his forces on his fateful +march to Calcutta. + +Desmond was still in conversation with the Babu when the little flotilla +came in sight of Patli. Its approach was observed. A boat put off from +the ghat, and awaited the arrival of Desmond's boat in midstream. As it +came alongside an official ordered the men to cease rowing and demanded +to know who was the owner of the goods on board and to see the dastaks. +The Babu, to whom Desmond had intrusted the papers, showed them to the +man; he scanned them, said that he was satisfied, and rowed back to the +ghat. + +Evidently he had no suspicions. During the short colloquy Desmond kept +close beside the Armenian, who was well known to the riverside official; +but Coja Solomon was thoroughly scared, and had not the presence of mind +to do anything more than to acknowledge the customary salaam. + +Desmond breathed freely once more now that Path was passed. But +two-thirds of the journey still remained to be completed, and he dare not +hope that at his slow rate of progress he would be able always to keep +ahead of information from Cossimbazar. Seeing that he could not hasten +his journey, he wondered whether it was possible to put pursuers off the +scent. After thinking for a while he said to the Babu, out of hearing of +the Armenian: + +"I have an idea, Surendra Nath: tell me what you think of it. Did you not +tell me as we came up that there is a gumashta {agent} of the Company at +Santipur?" + +"Certainly I did, sir." + +"Well, as we are, I fear, sure to be cut off by water, may we not take to +the land? Could not the gumashta get us a dozen hackeris {bullock carts}? +We could transfer the goods to them and elude our pursuers perhaps long +enough for help to arrive from Calcutta." + +"That is good counsel, sir; why should we not do so?" + +Accordingly, when they came to the spot where the high road crossed the +river by a ford, Desmond ordered his men to row in to the left bank. +Selecting two men who knew the country, he bade them land and make the +best speed in carrying out instructions which he proceeded to give them. + +"You, Mohun Lal," he said, "will go to Santipur, quickly, avoiding +observation, and request the gumashta in Merriman Sahib's name to have +twelve hackeris, or as many as he can collect, ready to receive loads two +or three hours before tomorrow's dawn. He must get them from the +villages, not from Khulna or Amboa, and he must not tell anyone why he +requires the carts. + +"You, Ishan, will go on to Calcutta, find Merriman Sahib, and ask him to +send a body of armed men along the Barrakpur road towards Santipur. You +will tell him what we have done, and also that Cossimbazar Fort is in the +hands of the Nawab, and Watts Sahib a prisoner. He may know this already. +You both understand?" + +The men salaamed and started on their journey. + + + +Chapter 22: In which is given a full, true, and particular account of the +Battle of the Carts. + + +Desmond expected that Mohun Lal would reach Santipur shortly after +nightfall. He himself might hope to arrive there, if not intercepted at +Khulna or Amboa, at any time between midnight and three o'clock, +according to the state of the river. + +It was approaching dusk when he drew near to Khulna. The boats having +been tied up to the bank, as the custom was, Desmond sent the Babu to +find out from the Company's gumashta there whether news of the capture of +Cossimbazar Fort had reached the bazar, and if any runner had come in +from the north. In an hour the Babu returned. He said that there was +great excitement in the bazar: no official messenger had arrived, but +everybody was saying that the Nawab had captured the English factory at +Cossimbazar, and was going to drive all the Firangi out of Bengal. + +Desmond decided to take a bold course. Official news not having arrived, +he might seize the moment to present his dastaks and get away before the +customs officers found any pretext for stopping him. Everything happened +as he hoped. He met with no more difficulty than at Path, and informing +the official who examined the dastaks that he would drop down to Amboa +before tying up for the night, he drew out again into the stream. + +He spent some time in consultation with the serang. In a rather desolate +reach of the Hugli, he learned that in the middle of the stream there was +a small island, uninhabited save by teal and other waterfowl, and not +known to be the haunt of tigers or other beasts of prey. Reaching this +islet about ten o'clock at night, when all river traffic had ceased, he +rowed in, and landed the Armenian with his crews. + +"I thank you for your company, Coja Solomon," he said blandly. 'We must +here part, to my regret, for I should like to have the pleasure of +witnessing your meeting with Mr. Merriman. The nights are warm, and you +will, I am sure, be quite comfortable till the morning, when no doubt a +passing boat will take you off and convey you back to your business at +Cossimbazar." + +"I will not stay here," protested the Armenian, his face livid with +anger. + +"Believe me, you have no choice. Let me remind you that had you behaved +honestly there would have been no reason for putting you to the +inconvenience of this tiring journey. You have brought it on yourself." + +Coja Solomon sullenly went up the shore. Desmond then paid the men +handsomely: they had indeed worked well, and they were abundantly +satisfied with the hire they received. + +Leaving Coja Solomon to his bitter reflections, Desmond dropped down to +Santipur, arriving there about two o'clock in the morning. Just before +dawn ten hackeris, each yoked with two oxen, drew up near the Company's +ghat. They were accompanied by a crowd of the inhabitants, lively with +curiosity about the engagement of so many vehicles. The gumashta came up +with the first cart, his face clouded with anxiety. He recognized the +Babu at once, and said that while he had fulfilled the order he had +received on Mr. Merriman's behalf, he had done it in fear and trembling. +The whole country knew that Cossimbazar Fort was in possession of the +Nawab, and, more than that, the Nawab had on the previous day set out +with an immense army for Calcutta. Santipur was not on the high road, and +the Company was respected there; yet the gumashta feared the people would +make an attack on the party if they suspected that they carried goods +belonging to an Englishman. + +Hitherto Desmond had kept himself in the background. But now he had an +idea inspired by confidence in his costume. Introducing himself to the +gumashta, he asked him to give out that the party was in command of a +Firangi in the service of the Nawab, and was conveying part of the +Nawab's private equipage in advance to Baraset, a few miles north of +Calcutta, there to await the arrival of the main army. To make the +imposition more effective, he called for the lambadar of the village and +ordered him in the Nawab's name to despatch a flotilla of twenty-five +wollacks {barges} to Cutwa to convey the official baggage. + +The trick proved effective. Desmond found himself regarded as a person of +importance; the natives humbly salaamed to him; and, taking matters with +a high hand, he impressed a score of the village idlers into the work of +transferring his precious bales from the boats to the hackeris. The work +was accomplished in half an hour. + +"Bulger," said Desmond, when the loading was done, "you will consider +yourself in charge of this convoy. The Babu will interpret for you. You +will hurry on as fast as possible toward Calcutta. I shall overtake you +by and by. The people here believe that I am a Frenchman, so you had +better pass as that, too, for of course your disguise will deceive no +native in the daylight." + +"Well I knows it." said Bulger. "They've been starin' at me like as if I +was a prize pig this half hour and more, and lookin' most uncommon +curious at my little button hook. But, sir, I don't see any call for me +to make out I'm a mounseer. 'T'ud make me uneasy inside, sir, the very +thought of eatin' what the mounseers eat." + +"My good man, there's no need to carry it too far. Do as you please, only +take care of the goods." + +Except Desmond and four men whom he retained, the whole party moved off +with the hackeris towards Calcutta. The road was an unmade track, heavy +with dust, rough, execrably bad; and at the gumashta's suggestion Desmond +had arranged for three extra teams of oxen to accompany the carts, to +extricate them in case of necessity from holes or soft places. +Fortunately the weather was dry: had the rains begun--and they were +overdue--the road would have been a slough of mud and ooze, and the +journey would have been impossible. + +When the convoy had set off, Desmond with three men, including the +serang, returned to the empty boats. The lookers-on stared to see the +craft put off and drop down the river with a crew of one man each: +Desmond in the first, and the smaller boat that had contained Bulger and +his party trailing behind. Floating down some four or five miles with the +stream, Desmond gave the order to scuttle the three petalas, and rowed +ashore in the smaller boat. On reaching land he got the serang to knock a +hole in the bottom of the boat, and shoved it off towards midstream, +where it rapidly filled and sank. + +It was full daylight when Desmond and his party of three struck off +inland in a direction that would bring them upon the track of the carts. +He had a presentiment that his difficulties were only beginning. By this +time, no doubt, the news of his escapade had been carried through the +country by the swift kasids of the Nawab. His passing at Khulna and Amboa +would be reported, and a watch would be kept for him at Hugli. If +perchance a kasid or a chance traveler entered Santipur, the trick he had +practised there would be immediately discovered; but if the messenger +only touched at the places on the direct route on the other bank, he +might hope that some time would elapse before the authorities there +suspected that he had left the river. They must soon learn that three +petalas lay wrecked in the stream below Amboa; but they could not satisfy +themselves without examination that these were the vessels of which they +were in search. + +Tramping across two miles of fields newly sown with maize and sorghum, he +at length descried the trail of his convoy and soon came up with it. If +pursuers were indeed upon his track, only by the greatest good fortune +could he escape them. The carts creaked along with painful slowness; the +wheels halfway to the axles in dust; now stopping altogether, now rocking +like ships in a stormy sea. + +With his arrival and the promise of liberal bakshish the hackeriwallahs +urged the laboring oxen with their cruel goads till Desmond, always +tender with animals, could hardly endure the sight. By nine o'clock the +morning had become stiflingly hot. There was little or no breeze, and +Desmond, unused of late to active exercise, found the heat terribly +trying. But Bulger suffered still more. A stout, florid man, he toiled +along, panting, streaming with sweat, in difficulties so manifest, that +Desmond, eying him anxiously, feared lest a stroke of apoplexy should +bring him to an untimely end. + +The country was so flat that a string of carts could not fail to be seen +from a long distance. If noticed from the towers of Hugli across the +river, curiosity, if not suspicion, would be aroused, and it would not +take long to send over by a ford a force sufficient to arrest and capture +the party. To escape observation it was necessary to make wide detours. +At several small hamlets on the route Desmond managed to get fresh oxen, +but not enough for complete changes of team. + +So, through all the broiling heat of the day, at hours when no other +Europeans in all Bengal were out of doors, the convoy struggled on, +making its own road, crossing the dry beds of pools, skirting or laboring +over rugged nullahs. + +At nightfall Desmond learned from one of the drivers that they were still +six miles short of being opposite to Hugli. The patient Bengalis could +endure no more; the oxen were done up, the men refused to go farther +without a rest. Halting at a hamlet some five miles from the river, they +rested and fed till midnight, then set off again. It was not so +insufferably hot at night, but on the other hand they were less able to +avoid obstructions: and the rest had not been long enough to make up for +the terrible exertions of the day. + +By daybreak they were some distance past Hugli, still keeping about five +miles from the river. Desmond was beginning to congratulate himself that +the worst was over; Barrackpur was only about twelve miles away. But a +little after dawn he caught sight of a European on horseback crossing +their track towards the river. He was going at a walking pace, attended +by two syces {grooms}. Attracted, apparently, by the sight, unusual at +this time of year, of a string of hackeris, he wheeled his horse and +cantered towards the tail of the convoy, which was under Bulger's charge. + +"Hai, hackeriwallah," he said in Urdu to the rearmost driver, "to whom do +these hackeris belong?" + +"To the great Company, huzur. The sahib will tell you." + +"The sahib--what sahib?" asked the rider in astonishment. + +"The sahib yonder," replied the man, pointing to Bulger. + +Bulger had been staring at the horseman, and growing more and more red in +the face. Catching the rider's surprised look, he could contain himself +no longer. + +"By thunder! 'tis that villain Diggle!" he shouted, and rushed forward to +drag him from his horse. + +But Diggle was not taken unawares. Setting spurs to his steed, he caused +it to spring away. Bulger raised his musket, but ere he could fire Diggle +was out of range. Keeping a careful distance he rode leisurely along the +whole convoy, and a smile of malignant pleasure shone upon his face as he +took stock of its contents. + +Meanwhile Bulger, already repenting of his hasty action, hurried forward +to acquaint Desmond with what had happened. Diggle's smile broadened; he +halted and took a long look at the tall figure in native dress to whom +Bulger was so excitedly speaking. Then, turning his horse in the +direction of the river, he spoke over his shoulder to his syces and +galloped away, followed by them at a run. + +"You were a fool, Bulger," said Desmond testily. "This may lead to no end +of trouble." + +Bulger looked penitent, and wrathful, and overwhelmed. + +"We must try to hurry," added Desmond to Surendra Nath. "Promise the men +more bakshish: don't stint." + +For two hours longer they pushed on with all the speed of which the jaded +beasts were capable. Every now and again Desmond looked anxiously back, +hoping against hope that they would not be pursued. But he knew that +Diggle had recognized him, and being prepared for the worst, he began to +rack his brains for some means of defense. + +Misfortune seemed to dog him. Two of the oxen collapsed. It was necessary +to distribute the loads of their hackeris among the others. The march was +delayed, and when the convoy was again under way, its progress was slower +than ever. + +It had, indeed, barely started, when in the distance Desmond spied a +horseman cantering towards them. A few minutes revealed him as Diggle. He +rode up almost within musket shot, then turned and trotted back. + +What was the meaning of his action? Desmond, from his position near the +foremost hackeri, could see nothing more. But, a few yards ahead of him, +to the right of the track, there was a low artificial mound, possibly the +site of an ancient temple, standing at the edge of a nullah, its top some +ten or twelve feet above the surrounding plain. Hastening to this he +gained the summit, and, looking back, saw a numerous body of men on foot +advancing rapidly from the direction in which the horseman had come. In +twenty minutes they would have come up with the convoy. He must turn at +bay. + +He glanced anxiously around. He was in the midst of an almost bare +sun-baked plain, the new-sown fields awaiting the rains to spring into +verdure. Here and there were clumps of trees--the towering palmyra with +its fan-shaped foliage, the bamboo with its feathery branches, the +plantain, throwing its immense leaves of vivid green into every fantastic +form. There was no safety on the plain. + +But below him was the nullah, thirty feet deep, eighty yards wide, soon +to be a swollen torrent dashing towards the Hugli, but now dry. Its sides +were in parts steep, and unscalable in face of determined resistance. In +a moment Desmond saw the utmost of possibility. + +Running back to the convoy, he turned its head towards the mound, and, +calling every man to the help of the oxen, he dragged the carts one by +one to the top. There he caused the beasts to be unyoked, and placed the +hackeris, their poles interlocked, so as to form a rough semicircular +breastwork around the summit of the mound. For a moment he hesitated in +deciding what to do with the cattle. Should he keep them within his +little intrenchment? If they took fright they might stampede and do +mischief; in any case they would be in the way, and he resolved to send +them all off under charge of such of the drivers as were too timid to +remain. He noticed that the Babu was quivering with alarm. + +"Surendra Nath," he said, "this is no place for you. Slip away quietly; +go towards Calcutta; and if you meet Mr. Merriman coming in response to +my message, tell him the plight we are in and ask him to hasten to our +help." + +"I do not like to show the white feather, sir," said the Babu. + +"Not at all, Babu, we must have a trustworthy messenger: you are the man. +Now get away as fast as you can." + +The Babu departed on his errand with the speed of gladness and relief. + +The ground sloped sharply outward from the carts, and the rear of the +position was formed by the nullah. The last two hackeris were being +placed in position when the vanguard of the pursuers, with Diggle at +their head, came to a point just out of range. The party was larger than +Desmond had estimated it to be at his first hasty glance. There were some +twenty men armed with matchlocks, and forty with swords and lathis. All +were natives. + +His heart sank as he measured the odds against him. What was his dismay +when he saw, half a mile off, another body following up. And these were +white men! Was Diggle bringing the French of Chandernagore into the fray? + +Desmond posted his twelve armed peons behind the hackeris. He gave them +strict orders to fire only at the word of command, and as they had +undergone some discipline in Calcutta he hoped that, if only in self +preservation, they would maintain a certain steadiness. Behind them he +placed twelve sturdy boatmen armed with half pikes, instructing them to +take the place of the peons when they had fired. Bulger stood at the +midpoint of the semicircle; his rough square face was a deep purple with +a rim of black; his dhoti had become loosened, leaving his great +shoulders and brawny chest bare; his turban was awry; his eyes, bloodshot +with the heat, were as the eyes of Mars himself, burning with the fire of +battle. + +The pursuers had halted. Diggle came forward, trotting his horse up to +the base of the mound. The peons fingered their matchlocks and looked +expectant; Bulger growled; but Desmond gazed calmly at his enemy. + +"Your disguise is excellent," said Diggle in his smoothest tones; "but I +believe I speak to Mr. Desmond Burke." + +"Yes, Mr. Diggle," said Desmond, stepping forward. + +"I am glad to have overtaken you. Sure you have encamped early. I have a +message from my friend the Faujdar of Hugli. By some mistake a +consignment of merchandise has been illegally removed from Cossimbazar, +and the Faujdar, understanding that the goods are contained in these +carts, bids me ask you to deliver them up to his men, whom you see here +with me." + +Desmond was anxious to gain time. He thought out his plan of action while +Diggle was speaking. His impulsiveness prompted a flat defiance in few +words; policy counseled a formality of utterance equal to Diggle's. + +"These carts certainly contain merchandise, Mr. Diggle," he said. "It is +the property of Mr. Edward Merriman, of Calcutta; I think you know him? +It was removed from Cossimbazar; but not, I assure you, illegally. I have +the dastaks authorizing its removal to Calcutta; they are signed by the +Faujdar of Murshidabad. Has the Faujdar of--where did you say?" + +"Of Hugli." + +"Has the Faujdar of Hugli power to countermand what the Faujdar of the +capital has done?" + +"Why discuss that point?" said Diggle with a smile. "The Faujdar of Hugli +is an officer of the Nawab; hoc sat est tibi--blunt language, but the +phrase is Tully's." + +"Well, I waive that. But I am not satisfied that you, an Englishman, have +authority to act for the Faujdar of Hugli. The crowd I see before me--a +rabble of lathiwallahs--clearly cannot be the Faujdar's men." + +At this point he heard an exclamation from Bulger. The second body of men +had come up and ranked themselves behind the first. + +"And may I ask," added Desmond, with a slight gesture to Bulger to +restrain himself--he too had recognized the newcomers--"since when the +Nawab has taken into his service the crew of an interloping English +merchantman?" + +"I shall give you full information, Mr. Burke," said Diggle suavely, +"when we stand together before my friend the Faujdar. In the meantime you +will, if I may venture to advise, consult your interest best in yielding +to superior numbers and delivering up the goods." + +"And what about myself, Mr. Diggle?" + +"You, of course, will accompany me to the Faujdar. He will be incensed, I +make no doubt, at your temerity, and not unjustly; but I will intercede +for you, and you will be treated with the most delicate attentions." + +"You speak fair, Mr. Diggle," said Desmond, still bent upon gaining time; +"but that is your way. What assurance have I that you will, this time, +keep your word?" + +"You persist in misjudging me," said Diggle regretfully. "As Cicero says +in the play, you construe things after your fashion, clean from the +purpose of the things themselves. My interest in you is undiminished; nay +rather, it is increased and mixed with admiration. My offers still hold +good: join hands with me, and I promise you that you shall soon be a +persona grata at the court of Murshidabad, with wealth and honors in your +grasp." + +"Your offer is tempting, Mr. Diggle, to a poor adventurer like me, and if +only my own interests were involved, I might strike a bargain with you. I +have had such excellent reasons to trust you in the past! But the goods +are not mine; they are Mr. Merriman's; and the utmost I can do at present +is to ask you to draw your men off and wait while I send a messenger to +Calcutta. When he returns with Mr. Merriman's consent to the delivery of +the goods, then--" + +The sentence remained unfinished. Diggle's expression had been becoming +blacker and blacker as Desmond spoke, and seeing with fury that he was +being played with he suddenly wheeled round, and, cantering back to his +men, gave the order to fire. At the same moment Desmond called to his men +to lie flat on the ground and aim at the enemy from behind the solid +wooden wheels of the hackeris. Being on the flat top of the mound, they +were to some extent below the line of fire from the plain, and when the +first volley was delivered no harm was done to them save for a few +scratches made by flying splinters struck from the carts. + +But the crack of the matchlocks struck terror into the pale hearts of +some of the hackeriwallahs. Several sprang over the breastwork and +scuttled away like scared rabbits. The remainder stood firm, grasping +their lathis in a manner that showed the fighting instinct to be strong, +even in the Bengali. + +Many anxious looks were bent upon Desmond, his men expecting the order to +fire. But he bade them remain still, and through the interval between two +carts he watched for the rush that was coming. The crew of the Good +Intent, headed by Sunman, the cross-eyed mate, and Parmiter, had come up +behind the natives. These, having emptied their matchlocks, were now +retiring to reload. Diggle had dismounted, and was talking earnestly with +the mate. They walked together to the edge of the nullah, and looked up +and down it, doubtless canvassing the chances of an attack in the rear; +but the sides were steep; there was no hope of success in this direction; +and they rejoined the main body. + +Evidently they had decided on making a vigorous direct attack over the +carts. Dividing his troop into two portions, Diggle put himself at the +head of the one, Sunman at the head of the other. Arranged in a +semicircle concentric with the breastwork, at the word of command all the +men with firearms discharged their pieces; then, with shrill cries from +the natives, and a hoarse cheer from the crew of the Good Intent, they +charged in a close line up the slope. + +Behind the barricade the men's impatience had only been curbed by the +quiet imperturbable manner of their young leader. But their self +restraint was on the point of breaking down when, short, sharp and clear, +the long-awaited command was given. Their matchlocks flashed; the volley +told with deadly effect at the short range of thirty paces; four or five +men dropped; as many more staggered down the slope; the rest halted +indecisively, in doubt whether to push forward or turn tail. + +"Blockheads! cowards!" shouted Diggle in a fury. "Push on, you dogs; we +are four to one!" + +He was now a very different Diggle from the man Desmond had known +hitherto. His smile was gone; all languor and indolence was lost; his +eyes flashed, his lips met in a hard cruel line; his voice rang out +strong and metallic. That he was no coward Desmond already knew. He put +himself in the forefront of the line, and, as always happens, a brave +leader never lacks followers. + +The whole of the seamen and many of the Bengalis surged forward after +him. Behind the breastwork all the men were now mixed up--musketeers with +pikemen and lathiwallahs. Upon these came the swarming enemy, some +clambering over the carts, others wriggling between the wheels. There was +a babel of cries; the exultant bellow of the born fighter, British or +native; a few pistol shots; the scream of the men mortally hit; the "Wah! +wah!" of the Bengalis applauding their own prowess. + +As Diggle had said, the odds were four to one. But the defenders had the +advantage of position, and for a few moments they held the yelling mob at +bay. The half pikes of the boatmen were terrible weapons at close +quarters, more formidable than the cutlasses of the seamen balked by the +breastwork, or the loaded bamboo clubs of the lathiwallahs. + +Sunman, the mate, was one of the first victims; he fell to a shot from +Bulger. But Parmiter and Diggle, followed by half a dozen of the sailors, +and a score of the more determined lathiwallahs and musketeers with +clubbed muskets, succeeded in clambering to the top of the carts and +prepared to jump down among the defenders, most of whom were busily +engaged in jabbing at the men swarming in between the wheels. Desmond saw +that if his barricade was once broken through the issue of the fight must +be decided by mere weight of numbers. + +"Bulger, here!" he cried, "and you, Hossain." + +The men sprang to him, and, following his example, leaped on to the cart +next to that occupied by Diggle and Parmiter. Desmond's intention was to +take them in flank. Jumping over the bales of silk, he swung over his +head a matchlock he had seized from one of his peons, and brought it down +with a horizontal sweep. Two of the Bengalis among the crowd of +lathiwallahs, who were hanging back out of reach of the boatmen's pikes, +were swept off the cart. But the violence of his blow disturbed Desmond's +own balance; he fell on one knee; his matchlock was seized and jerked out +of his hand; and in a second three men were upon him. Bulger and the +serang, although a little late, owing to want of agility in scaling the +cart, were close behind. + +"Belay there!" roared Bulger, as he flung himself upon the combatants. + +The bullet head of one sturdy badmash cracked like an eggshell under the +butt of the bold tar's musket; a second received the terrible hook square +in the teeth; and a third, no other than Parmiter himself, was caught +round the neck at the next lunge of the hook, and flung, with a mighty +heave, full into the midst of the defenders. Bulger drew a long breath. + +At the same moment Diggle, attacked by the serang, was thrown from his +perch on the hackeri and fell among his followers outside the barricade. +There was a moment's lull while both parties recovered their wind. Firing +had ceased; to load a matchlock was a long affair, and though the +attackers might have divided and come forward in relays with loaded +weapons, they would have run the risk of hitting their own friends. + +It was to be again a hand-to-hand fight. Diggle was not to be denied. +Desmond, who had jumped down inside the barricade when the pressure was +relieved by Bulger, could not but admire the spirit and determination of +his old enemy, though it boded ill for his own chance of escape. He was +weary; worn out by want of rest and food; almost prostrated by the +terrible heat. Looking round his little fort, he felt a tremor as he saw +that five out of his twenty-four men were more or less disabled. True, +there were now more than a dozen of the enemy in the same or a worse +plight; but they could afford their losses, and Desmond indeed wondered +why Diggle did not sacrifice a few men in one fierce overwhelming +onslaught. + +"A hundred rupees to the man who kills the young sahib, two hundred to +the man who takes him alive!" cried Diggle to his dusky followers, as +though in answer to Desmond's thought. + +Then, turning to the discomfited crew of the Good intent, he said: "Sure, +my men, you will not be beaten by a boy and a one-armed man. There's a +fortune for all of you in those carts. At them again, my men; I'll show +you the way." + +He was as good as his word. He snatched a long lathi from one of the +Bengalis and rushed up the slope to the hackeri nearest the nullah. +Finding a purchase for one end of his club in the woodwork of the wagon, +he put forth all his strength in the effort to push it over the edge. +Owing to the length of the lathi he was out of reach of the half pikes in +the hands of the boatmen, who had to lunge either over or under the +carts. + +His unaided strength would have been unequal to the task of moving the +hackeri, heavily laden as it was, resting on soft soil, and interlocked +with the next. But as soon as his followers saw the aim of his movements, +and especially when they found that the defenders could not touch him +without exposing themselves, he gained as many eager helpers as could +bring their lathis to bear upon the two carts. + +Meanwhile the defense at this spot was weak, for the men of the Good +Intent had swarmed up to the adjoining carts and were threatening at any +moment to force a way over the barricade. They were more formidable +enemies than the Bengalis. + +Slowly the two hackeris began to move, till the wheels of one hung over +the edge of the nullah. One more united heave, and it rolled over, +dragging the other cart with it and splitting itself into a hundred +fragments on the rocky bottom. Through the gap thus formed in the +barricade sprang Diggle, with half a dozen men of the Good Intent and a +score of Bengalis. + +Desmond gathered his little band into a knot in the center of the +inclosure. Then the brazen sun looked down upon a Homeric struggle. +Bulger, brawny warrior of the iron hook, swung his musket like a flail, +every now and again shooting forth his more sinister weapon with terrible +effect. Desmond, slim and athletic, dashed in upon the enemy with his +half pike as they recoiled before Bulger's whirling musket. The rest, now +a bare dozen, Bengalis though they were, presented still an undaunted +front to the swarm that surged into the narrow space. The hot air grew +hotter with the fight. + +To avoid being surrounded, the little band instinctively backed towards +the edge of the nullah. Diggle exulted as they were pressed remorselessly +to the rear. Not a man dreamed of surrender; the temper of the assailants +was indeed so savage that nothing but the annihilation of their victims +would now satisfy them. Yet Diggle once again bethought himself that +Desmond might be worth to him more alive than dead, and in the midst of +the clamor Desmond heard him repeat his offer of reward to the man who +should capture him. + +Diggle himself resolved to make the attempt. Venturing too near, he +received an ugly gash from Desmond's pike, promising a permanent mark +from brow to chin. This was too much for him. Beside himself with fury, +he yelled a command to his men to sweep the pigs over the brink, and, one +side of his face livid with rage, the other streaming with blood, he +dashed forward at Bulger, who had come up panting to engage him. + +He had well timed his rush, for Bulger's musket was at the far end of its +pendulum swing, but the old seaman saw his danger in time. With a +movement of extraordinary agility in a man of his bulk, he swung on his +heel, presenting his side to the rapier that flashed in Diggle's hand. +Parrying the thrust with his hook, he shortened his stump and lunged at +Diggle below the belt. His enemy collapsed as if shot; but his followers +swept forward over his prostrate body, and it seemed as if, in one brief +half minute, the knot of defenders would be hurled to the bottom of the +nullah. + +But, at this critical moment, assailants and defenders were stricken into +quietude by a tumultuous cheer, the cheer of Europeans, from the +direction of the gap in the barricade. Weapons remained poised in mid +air; every man stood motionless, wondering whether the interruption came +from friend or foe. The question was answered on the instant. + +"Now, men, have at them!" + +With a thrill Desmond recognized the voice. It was the voice of Silas +Toley. There was nothing of melancholy in it, nor in the expression of +the New Englander as he sprang, cutlass in hand, through the gap. Slow to +take fire, when Toley's anger was kindled it blazed with a devouring +flame. The crowd of assailants dissolved as if by magic. Before the last +of the crew of the Hormuzzeer, lascars and Europeans, had passed into the +inclosure, the men of the Good Intent and their Bengali allies were +streaming over and under the carts toward the open. + +Diggle at the first shock had staggered to his feet and stumbled toward +the barricade. As he reached it, a black boy, springing as it were out of +the earth, hastened to him and helped him to crawl between the wheels of +a cart and down the slope. On the boy's arm he limped toward his horse, +tethered to a tree. A wounded wretch was clumsily attempting to mount. +Him Diggle felled; then he crawled painfully into the saddle and galloped +away, Scipio Africanus leaping up behind. + +By this time his followers were dispersing in all directions--all but +eight luckless men who would never more wield cutlass or lathi, and a +dozen who lay on one side or other of the barricade, too hard hit to +move. + + + +Chapter 23: In which there are many moving events; and our hero finds +himself a cadet of John Company. + + +Diggle's escape passed unnoticed until it was too late to pursue him. At +the sight of Toley and his messmates of the Hormuzzeer, Bulger had let +fall his musket and dropped to the ground, where he sat mopping his face +and crying, "Go it, mateys!" Desmond felt a strange faintness, and leaned +dizzily against one of the hackeris. But, revived by a draft from Mr. +Toley's flask, he thanked the mate warmly, and wanted to hear how he had +contrived to come up in time. + +When Desmond's messenger arrived in Calcutta, Mr. Merriman was away up +the river, engaged in very serious business. The messenger had applied to +the governor, to members of the Council, to Captain Minchin and other +officers, and the reply of one and all was the same: they could do +nothing; it was more important that every man should be employed in +strengthening the defenses of Calcutta than in going upcountry on what +might prove a vain and useless errand. But Toley happened to be in the +town, and learning of the difficulties and perils of his friend Burke, +with the captain's consent he had hastily collected the crew of the +Hormuzzeer, that still lay off the fort, and led them, under the guidance +of the messenger, to support him. Meeting Surendra Nath, and learning +from him that a fight was imminent, he had pushed on with all speed, the +Babu leading the way. + +"It was well done," said Desmond warmly. "We owe our lives to you, and +Mr. Merriman his goods. But what was the business that took Mr. Merriman +from Calcutta at this time of trouble?" + +"Trouble of his own, Burke," said Mr. Toley. "I guess he'd better have +let the Nawab keep his goods and sent you to look after his womenfolk." + +"What do you mean? I left the ladies at Khulna; what has happened to +them?" + +"'Tis what Mr. Merriman would fain know. They've disappeared, gone clean +out of sight." + +"But the peons?" + +"Gone, too. Nothing heard or seen of them." + +This serious news came as a shock to Desmond. If he had only known! How +willingly he would have let Coja Solomon do what he pleased with the +goods, and hastened to the help of the wife and daughter Mr. Merriman +held so dear! While in Cossimbazar, he had heard from Mr. Watts terrible +stories of the Nawab's villainy, which no respect of persons held in +check. He feared that if Mrs. Merriman and Phyllis had indeed fallen into +Sirajuddaula's hands, they were lost to their family and friends forever. + +But, eager as he was to get back to Calcutta and join Mr. Merriman in +searching for them, he had a strange certainty that it was not to be. The +faintness that he had already felt returned. His head was burning and +throbbing; his ears buzzed; his limbs ached; his whole frame was seized +at moments with paroxysms of shivering which no effort could control. +Unknown to himself the seeds of malarial fever had found a lodgment in +his system. While listening to Toley's story, he had reclined on the +ground. When he tried to rise, he was overcome by giddiness and nausea. + +"I am done up," he continued. "Mr. Toley, you must take charge and get +these goods conveyed to Calcutta. Lose no time." + +Surendra Nath recognized the symptoms of the disease, and immediately had +a litter improvised for Desmond out of the linen covering of one of the +carts and a couple of muskets. Mr. Toley at once made preparations for +moving on with the convoy. The hackeriwallahs who had driven off the +cattle had not gone far; they had waited in the hope of getting the +bakshish promised them--if not from the young sahib, at least from the +leader of the attacking party, which from its numbers they believed would +gain the day. + +The oxen were soon yoked up. Mr. Toley would not wait to recover the +loads of the carts that had toppled into the nullah, nor would he leave +men for that purpose, lest another attack should be made on them from +Hugli. He set off as soon as the teams were ready. Half an hour after +they started, Bulger, walking beside the litter, saw to his dismay that +Desmond had lost consciousness. + +It was nearly a fortnight later when Desmond came to himself in his old +bunk on board the Hormuzzeer. He was alone. Lying on his back, feebly +trying to adjust his thoughts to his surroundings, he heard the faint +boom of guns. What was happening? He tried to rise, but all power was +gone from him; he could hardly lift an arm. Even the slight effort was +too much for him, and he swooned again. + +When he once more recovered consciousness, he saw a figure by his side. +It was Mr. Toley. Again the distant thunder of artillery fell upon his +ears. + +"What is happening?" he asked feebly. + +"Almighty be praised!" said Toley fervently, "you're coming safe to port. +Hush! Lie you still. You'll want nussin' like a babby. Never you heed the +popguns; I'll tell you all about them when you're stronger. Food, sleep, +and air; that's my catechism, larned from the surgeon. Bless you, Burke, +I feared you was a done man." + +With this Desmond had to be for the time content. But every day he heard +firing, and every day, as he slowly regained strength, he became more and +more anxious to know what it meant. Toley seemed to have left the ship; +Desmond was tended only by natives. + +From them he learned that the Nawab was attacking Calcutta. How were the +defenders faring? They could not tell. He knew how small was the +garrison, how weak the fortifications; but, with an English lad's +unconquerable faith in his countrymen's valor, he could not believe that +they could fail to hold their own. + +One day, however, he heard no more firing. In the afternoon Mr. Toley +came to his bunk, bringing with him Mr. Merriman himself. The merchant +had his head bound up, and wore his left arm in a sling. He was pale, +haggard, the shadow of his former self. + +"What has happened, sir?" cried Desmond the instant he saw him. "Are the +ladies safe?" + +"God pity us, Desmond! I shall never see them again. My poor Dora! my +sweet Phyllis! They are lost! All is lost! The Nawab has taken the fort. +We are beaten, shamed, ruined!" + +"How did it happen? I heard the firing. Tell me; it can not be so bad as +that. Sure something can be done!" + +"Nothing, nothing; we did all we could. 'Twas little; would that Drake +had heeded our advice! But I am rejoiced to see you on the road to +recovery, dear boy; 'twould have been another nail in my coffin to know +that you had lost your life in doing a service for me. I thank God for +that, from the bottom of my heart." + +He pressed Desmond's hand affectionately. + +"But tell me, sir; I want to know what has happened. How came you to be +wounded? Sure I am strong enough to hear now; it will do me no harm." + +"It cuts me to the heart, Desmond, but you shall know. I was absent when +you were carried to my house--searching for my dear ones. But Dr. Gray +tended you; alas! the good man is now a prisoner. I returned three days +after, driven back from up the river by the advance of the Nawab's army. +I was worn out, distraught; not a trace had I found of my dear wife; she +had vanished; nor of my daughter; nor even of my peons; all had gone. + +"And there was trouble enough in Calcutta for me and for all. 'Twas the +very day I returned that the news came of Sirajuddaula's approach. And a +letter from his chief spy was intercepted, addressed to Omichand, bidding +him escape while there was yet time and join the Subah. That seemed to +Mr. Drake clear proof that Omichand was in league with our enemies, and +he had him arrested and thrown into the fort prison. But Mr. Drake never +acts till 'tis too late. He gave orders next to arrest Krishna Das. The +man barricaded himself in his house and beat our peons off, till +Lieutenant Blagg and thirty Europeans drove in his gates. They found a +vast quantity of arms collected there. They stormed Omichand's house +also, where three hundred armed domestics made a stout fight against 'em. +When our men got in--'tis a horrid story--the head jamadar with his own +hands stabbed all his master's women and children, to prevent em falling +into our hands, and then set fire to the place. + +"Our men had already been driven out of Tanna fort by Manik Chand, who +had come up with two thousand men and a couple of field pieces. Then came +up Mir Jafar, the Nawab's bakshi {commander in chief}, and began firing +from the Chitpur gate. We got all our women into the fort; the poor +creatures left all they had but their clothes and their bedding. You may +guess the confusion. The natives were flocking out of the town; most of +our servants fled with them; all our cooks were gone, so that though we +had a great stock of food we were like to starve in the midst of plenty. + +"But we filled their places with some of the Portuguese who came crowding +into the fort. Two thousand of 'em, men, women, and children, filled the +courtyard, sitting among their bundles of goods, so that we could scarce +move for 'em. The enemy was in the town; they had set light to the Great +Bazaar, and were burning and plundering in the native parts. We fired the +bastis to the east and south, to deprive 'em of cover; and you may +imagine the scene, Desmond--the blazing sky, the tears and screams of the +women, the din of guns. We wrote to the French at Chandernagore begging +'em to lend us some ammunition, for the most of ours was useless; but +they sent us a genteel reply saying they'd no more than sufficient for +their own needs; yet the wretches made the Nawab a present of two hundred +chests of powder, 'tis said. + +"Next day we were besieged in earnest. The Nawab had, we learned, nigh +fifty thousand men, with one hundred and fifty elephants and camels, and +two hundred and fifty Frenchmen working his artillery. Against 'em we had +about five hundred in all, only half of 'em Europeans. What could so few +do against so many? Our officers were all brave enough, but they've had a +slack time, and few of 'em are fit for the work. Ensign Picard, sure, did +wonders, and Lieutenant Smyth defended the north battery with exceeding +skill; but we had not men enough to hold our positions, and step by step +we were driven back. + +"'Twas clear we could not hold out long, and on Friday night we held a +council of war, and decided to send the women on board the ships in the +river, to get 'em out of harm's way. Then by heaven! Desmond, two of the +Council shamed 'emselves for ever. Mr. Manningham and Mr. Frankland, +special friends of Mr. Drake, attended the ladies to the ship--'twas the +Dodalay, of which they are owners--and they stayed on board with 'em--the +cowards, to set such an infamous example! And well 'twas followed. 'Tis +scarce credible, but Captain Minchin, our gallant commander, and Mr. +Drake, our noble president, went down to the ghat and had 'emselves rowed +off to the shipping and deserted us: good God! do they deserve the name +of Englishmen? One of our gentlemen standing on the steps was so enraged +that he sent a bullet after the cravens; others did the same, and I would +to heaven that one of their shots had took effect on the wretches! We +made Mr. Holwell governor in the Quaker's place; and I tell you, Desmond, +had we done so before, there would have been a different story to tell +this day. + +"Mr. Holwell saw 'twas impossible to withstand the Nawab's hordes much +longer, and spoke for an orderly retreat; but he was overrid by some of +the military officers; and besides, retreat was cut off, for the ships +that had lain in the river moved away, and though we hung out signals +from the fort asking 'em to come back and take us off, they paid no heed; +nay, they stood farther off, leaving us to our fate. What could we do? +Mr. Holwell sent to Omichand in his prison and offered to release him if +he would treat with the Nawab for us. But the Gentoo refused. All he +would do was to write a letter to Manik Chand asking him to intercede for +us. Mr. Holwell threw the letter over the wall among the enemy, and by +heaven! Desmond, never did I suppose Englishmen would be reduced to such +a point of humiliation. + +"But 'twas of no effect. The enemy came on with the more determination, +and brought bamboos to scale the walls. We drove 'em off again, but with +frightful loss; twenty-five of our bravest men were killed outright and +sixty wounded. 'Twas there I got my wounds, and 'twould have been all +over with me but for that fine fellow Bulger; he turned aside with his +hook a slashing blow from a scimitar and gave my assailant his quietus. +Bulger fought like a hero, and the very look of him, black with powder +and stained with blood, seemed to drive all the fight out of the Moors +that came his way. + +"All this time the shots of the Nawab's cannon annoyed us, not to much +harm, for they were most villainously served; their fire arrows did us +more mischief, flying into the thick of the crowds of screaming women and +children. It made my heart sick to think of the poor innocent people +suffering through the weakness and incompetence and the guilty neglect of +our Council. The heat and the glare, the want of food, the uproar and +commotion--may I never see or hear the like again! + +"Yesterday there was a lull in the fighting about midday. The enemy were +still outside the fort, though they had possession of all the houses +around. They showed a flag of truce, whereupon Mr. Holwell writ a letter +asking 'em for terms. But 'twas a trick to deceive us. While we were +resting, waiting the result of the parley, the Moors poured out of their +hiding places and swarmed upon the eastern gate of the fort and the +pallisadoes on the southwest. In the interval many of our common men had +fallen asleep; some, alas! were drunk, so that we had no force to resist +the invaders, who scaled the roof of the godowns on the north wall with +the aid of their bamboos and swept over into the fort. + +"Most of us Europeans who were left collected in the veranda in front of +the barracks--you know, between the great gate and the southeast bastion. +Scarce a man of us but was wounded. There we were unmolested, for the +enemy, as soon as they burst into our private rooms, made busy with their +spoil; and, as it appeared, the Nawab had given orders that we were to be +spared. + +"At five o'clock he came into the fort in a gay litter and held a durbar +in our Council room, Mir Jafar salaaming before him and making fulsome +compliments on his great victory. Then the wretch sent for Mr. Holwell. +We bade him farewell; sure we thought we should never see him more. But +he returned to us presently, and told us the Nawab was vastly enraged at +the smallness of the treasure he had found; the stories of the French had +led him to expect untold wealth. Omichand and Krishna Das had been took +out of prison, and treated with great affability, and presented by the +Nawab with siropas--robes of honor, a precious token of his favor. But +the Nawab. Mr. Holwell told us, had promised no harm should befall us. A +guard of five hundred gunmen was set over us with matches lighted, and +the sun being now nigh setting, men came with torches, though sure they +were not needed, a great part of the factory being in flames, so that +indeed we feared we should be suffocated. But we were shortly afterwards +told to go into the barracks, nigh the veranda where we stood. + +"Then it was that I, by the mercy of God, was enabled to escape. I was at +the end of the veranda, farthest from the barracks. Just as I was about +to move off after the rest, one of the guards came in front of me, and +whispered me to hide behind the last of the thick pillars till he came +for me. I recognized the man: 'twas an old peon of mine. Thank God for a +faithful servant! More dead than alive I did what he said. For hours I +lay there, fearing I know not what, not daring to stir lest some eye +should see me, and suffering agonies from my untended wounds. At last the +man came to me. + +"'Sahib,' he said, 'you were good to me. I shall save you. Come, +quickly.' + +"I got up and stumbled after him. He led me by dark ways out of the fort, +past the new godown, across the burying ground, down to Chandpal ghat. +There I found Mr. Toley awaiting me with a boat, and 'tis thanks to my +old peon and him I now find myself safe." + +"And do you know what became of Bulger?" asked Desmond. + +"He is with the rest, sorely battered, poor man." + +"What will happen to the prisoners? How many are there?" + +"There are nigh a hundred and fifty. The Nawab has promised they shall +suffer no harm, and after a night in barracks I suppose he will let 'em +go. We shall drop down the river till we reach the other vessels at +Surman's, and then, by heaven! I shall see what I can do to bring Mr. +Drake to a sense of his duty, and persuade him to come back and take off +the Europeans. + +"Sure this action of Sirajuddaula's will not go unavenged. We have +already sent letters to Madras, and within two months, I hope, succor +will reach us from thence, and we shall chastise this insolent young +Nawab." + +"Do you think he will keep his word?--I mean, to do the prisoners no +harm." + +"I think so. He has done no harm to Mr. Watts, whom he brought with him +from Cossimbazar; and our people will be more valuable to him alive than +dead. Yes; by this time tomorrow I trust Mr. Holwell and the others will +be safe on board the ships, and I do not envy Mr. Drake his bitter +experience when the men he has deserted confront him." + +While Mr. Merriman was telling his story, the Hormuzzeer was slowly +drifting down the river. At Surman's garden, about five miles south of +Calcutta, it joined the other vessels belonging to British owners, and +dropped anchor. Several gentlemen came on board, eager to learn what had +been the last scene in the tragic drama. Mr. Merriman told them all he +knew, and every one drew a long breath of relief when they learned that +though prisoners, Mr. Holwell and the gallant few who had stuck to their +posts had been assured of good treatment. During the day the vessel +dropped still lower down the river to Budge Budge, running the gauntlet +of a brisk but ineffective fire from Tanna Fort, now in the hands of the +Nawab's troops. + +When the Hormuzzeer lay at anchor at Budge Budge, Mr. Merriman explained +to Desmond the plans he had formed for him. The vessel now had her full +cargo, and would sail immediately for Penang. Mr. Merriman proposed that +Desmond should make the voyage. In his weak state the climate of Fulta, +where the Europeans intended to stay until help reached them from Madras, +might prove fatal to him; while the sea air would complete his cure. + +His share of the sale price of the Tremukji, together with the Gheria +prize money, amounted to more than a thousand pounds, and this had been +invested for him by his friend. + +"For myself," added Merriman, "I shall remain. My wounds are not severe; +I am accustomed to the climate; and though India is now odious to me, I +shall not leave Indian soil until I find traces of my dear wife and +daughter. God grant that by the time you return I shall have some news of +them." + +Desmond would have liked to remain with the merchant, but he knew that in +his weakness he could do him no service, and he acquiesced in the +arrangement. + +That same evening the fugitives received news that made their blood run +cold. Two Englishmen, Messrs. Cooke and Lushington, who had remained +staunchly by Mr. Holwell's side, came from the shore in a small boat and +boarded the Dodalay. Their appearance struck every one with amazement and +horror. Mr. Cooke was a merchant, aged thirty-one; Mr. Lushington a +writer in the Company's service, his age eighteen; but the events of one +night had altered them almost beyond recognition. They said that when the +order had been given to confine them in the barracks, the prisoners had +all expected to pass the night in comparative comfort. What was their +amazement when they were escorted to the Black Hole, a little chamber no +more than eighteen feet square, which was only used as a rule for the +confinement of one or two unruly prisoners. In vain they protested; their +brutal guards forced them, a hundred and forty-six in number, into the +narrow space, and locked the door upon them. It was one of the hottest +nights of the year; there was but one small opening in the wall, and +before long the want of air and the intense heat drove the poor people to +fury. They trampled each other down in their mad attempts to get near the +opening for air and the water which one of their jailers, less brutal +than the rest, handed in to them. + +The horror of the scenes that passed in that small room baffles +description. Men and women in the agonies of thirst and suffocation +fought like tigers. Many prayed their guards to shoot them and end their +sufferings, only to meet with jeers and laughter. Some of the native +officers took pity on them and would have opened the door, but none durst +move without the Nawab's permission, or brave his fury if they roused him +from his sleep. From seven in the evening till six in the morning the +agony continued, and when at length the order came for their release, +only twenty-three of the hundred and forty-six tottered forth, the +ghastliest wrecks of human beings. + +Mr. Holwell and three others were then conveyed as prisoners in a bullock +cart to Omichand's garden, and thence to Murshidabad; the rest were +bidden to go where they pleased. + +The news was kept from Desmond. It was not till weeks after that he heard +of the terrible tragedy. Then, with the horror and pity he felt, there +was mingled a fear that Bulger had been among those who perished. The +seaman, he knew, had taken a stout part in the defense of the fort; Mr. +Merriman had not mentioned him as being among the prisoners; it was +possible that he had escaped; but the thought that the brave fellow had +perhaps died in that awful hole made Desmond sick at heart. + +Though the season was now at its hottest, the fresh sea air proved a +wonderful tonic to him, and he rapidly regained his strength. The voyage +was slow. The Hormuzzeer beat down the Bay of Bengal against the monsoon +now beginning, and it was nearly two months before she made Penang. She +unloaded there: her cargo was sold at great profit, she being the only +vessel that had for some time left the Hugli; and Desmond found his +capital increased by nearly a hundred per cent. She then took on a cargo +for Madras, where she arrived in the first week of September. + +Desmond took the earliest opportunity of going on shore. The roads were +studded with Admiral Watson's fleet, and he learned that Clive was in the +town preparing an expedition to avenge the wrong suffered by the English +in Calcutta. He hastened to obtain an interview with the colonel. + +"'Tis no conventional speech when I say I am glad to see you alive and +well, Mr. Burke," said Clive. "Have you come direct from Calcutta?" + +"No, sir. I left there some ten weeks ago for Penang." + +"Then I have later news of my friend Merriman than you. Poor fellow! He +is distraught at the loss of his wife and girl. I have received several +letters from him. He spoke of you; told me of what you had done at +Cossimbazar. Gad, sir, you did right well in defending his goods; and I +promise myself if ever I lay hands on that villain Peloti he shall smart +for that piece of rascaldom and many more. Are you still minded to take +service with me?" + +"I should like nothing better, sir, but I doubt whether I can think of it +until I see Mr. Merriman." + +"Tut, man, that is unnecessary. 'Twas arranged between Mr. Merriman and +me in Bombay that he would release you as soon as a vacancy occurred in +the Company's military establishment. There are several such vacancies +now, and I shall be glad to have a Shropshire man as a lieutenant. I trow +you are not averse to taking a hand in this expedition?" + +"No one who knows what happened in Calcutta can be that, sir." + +"That is settled, then. I appoint you a cadet in the Company's service." + +"Thank you indeed, sir," said Desmond, flushing with pleasure. "I have +longed all my life to serve under you." + +"You may find me a hard taskmaster," said Clive, setting his lips in the +grim way that so many had cause to fear. + +"When do we start, sir?" + +"That I can't say. 'Tis not by my wish we have delayed so long. I will +let you know when I require your services. Meanwhile, make yourself +acquainted with the officers." + +Desmond learned from his new comrades that there was some disagreement +among the Madras Council about the command of the expedition. Clive had +volunteered to lead it as soon as the news of the fall of Calcutta +arrived; but he was inferior in rank to Colonel Adlercron of the +Thirty-ninth Regiment, and that officer was a great stickler for military +etiquette. The Council had some reason for anxiety. They were expecting +to hear, from outcoming ships, of the outbreak of war between France and +England; and as the French were strong in Southern India, it required +much moral courage to weaken the force disposable for the defense of +Madras. + +One day, before the matter of the command had been definitely settled, +Desmond received a summons from Clive. He found the great soldier alone. + +"You have heard of the discussions in the Council, Mr. Burke," began +Clive without ceremony. "I tell you this: I and no other will command +this expedition. In that confidence I have sent for you. What I have +heard of you speaks well for your readiness and resource, and I think you +could be more useful to me in the Hugli than waiting here until our +respected Council can make up their minds. The men here are not +acquainted with Bengal. You are: you know the country from Calcutta to +Murshidabad, at all events, and you speak Hindustani with some fluency. +You can serve me best by picking up any information you can get regarding +the enemy's movements. You are willing, I take it, to run some risks?" + +"I'll do anything you wish, sir." + +"As I expected. Well, you will go at once to Fulta. Not to Mr. Drake: +I've no confidence in him and the other old women who are conducting the +Company's affairs in Bengal. Major Killpatrick, an excellent officer, +left here in June with a small reinforcement. He is now at Fulta. You +will join him. I shall ask him to give you a free hand in going and +coming and collecting information. You understand that in a sense you are +on secret service. I want you to keep an eye particularly on the +movements of the French. 'Tis reported that they are in league with +Sirajuddaula: find out whether that's the case: and gad, sir, if it is, +I'll not be satisfied till I've turned 'em neck and crop out of Bengal. +You'll want money: here are five thousand rupees; if you want more, ask +Major Killpatrick. Now, when can you start?" + +"The Hormuzzeer is sailing in ballast tomorrow, sir. She'll go light, and +aboard her I should get to Fulta as quickly as on any other vessel." + +"Very well. I trust you: much depends on your work; go on as you have +begun and I promise you Robert Clive won't forget it. Goodby. + +"By the way, your duties will take you through the parts where Mrs. +Merriman disappeared. Your first duty is to me, and through me to your +king and country, remember that. But if you can get any news of the +missing ladies, so much the better. Mrs. Merriman is a cousin of my +wife's, and I am deeply concerned about her fate." + +Next day the Hormuzzeer sailed, and by the middle of September Desmond +had reached Fulta, and reported himself both to Major Killpatrick and to +Mr. Merriman there. + + + +Chapter 24: In which the danger of judging by appearance is notably +exemplified. + + +"Sure 'tis a most pleasant engaging young man," said Mrs. Merriman, as +her boat dropped down the river towards Chandernagore. "Don't you think +so, Phyllis?" + +"Why, mamma, it does seem so. But 'tis too soon to make up my mind in ten +minutes." + +"Indeed, miss! Let me tell you I made up my mind about your father in +five. La, how Merriman will laugh when he hears 'twas Mr. Burke gave him +that scar-- + +"What is the matter, Munnoo Khan?" + +The boat had stopped with a jerk, and the boatmen were looking at one +another with some anxiety. The serang explained that ill luck had caused +the boat to strike a snag in the river, and she was taking in water. + +"You clumsy man! The Sahib will be angry with you. Make haste, then; row +harder." + +"Mamma, 'tis impossible!" cried Phyllis in alarm. "See, the water is +coming in fast; we shall be swamped in a few minutes!" + +"Mercy me. 'Tis as you say! Munnoo Khan, row to the nearest ghat; you see +it there! Sure 'tis a private ghat, belonging to the house of one of the +French merchants. He will lend us a boat. 'Twill be vastly annoying if we +do not reach home before dark." + +The men just succeeded in reaching the ghat, on the left bank of the +river about a mile below Chandernagore, before the boat sank. When the +party had landed, Mrs. Merriman sent her jamadar up to the house to ask +for the loan of a boat, or for shelter while one was being obtained from +Chandernagore. + +"Tell the Sahib 'tis the bibi of an English sahib," she said. "He will +not refuse to do English ladies a service." + +The jamadar shortly returned, followed by a tall dark-featured European +in white clothes. He bowed and smiled pleasantly when he came down to the +ghat, and addressed Mrs. Merriman in French. + +"I am happy to be of service, Madam. Alas! I have no boat at hand, but I +shall send instantly to Chandernagore for one. Meanwhile, if you will +have the goodness to come to my house, my wife will be proud to offer you +refreshments, and we shall do our best to entertain you until the boat +arrives. + +"Permit me, Madam." + +He offered his left hand to assist the lady up the steps. + +"I had the mischance to injure my right hand the other day," he +explained. "It is needful to keep it from the air." + +It was thrust into the pocket of his coat. + +"The Frenchman is vastly polite," said Mrs. Merriman to her daughter, as +they preceded him up the path to the house. "But there, that is the way +with their nation." + +"Hush, mamma!" said Phyllis, "he may understand English. + +"I do not like his smile," she added in a whisper. + +"La, my dear, it means nothing; it comes natural to a Frenchman. He looks +quite genteel, you must confess; I should not be surprised if he were a +somebody in his own land." + +As if in response to the implied question, the man moved to her side, +and, in a manner of great deference, said: + +"Your jamadar named you to me, Madam; I feel that I ought to explain who +I am. My name is Jacques de Bonnefon--a name, I may say it without +boasting, once even better known at the court of his Majesty, King Louis +the Fifteenth, than in Chandernagore. Alas, Madam fortune is a fickle +jade. Here I am now, in Bengal, slowly retrieving by honest commerce a +patrimony of which my lamented father was not too careful." + +"There! What did I say?" whispered Mrs. Merriman to her daughter as +Monsieur de Bonnefon went forward to meet them on the threshold of his +veranda. "A noble in misfortune! I only hope his wife is presentable." + +They entered the house and were shown into a room opening on the veranda. + +"You will pardon my leaving you for a few moments, Mesdames," said their +obliging host. "I shall bring my wife to welcome you, and send to +Chandernagore for a boat." + +With a bow he left them, closing the door behind him. + +"Madame de Bonnefon was taken by surprise, I suppose," said Mrs. +Merriman, "and is making her toilet. The vanity of these French people, +my dear!" + +Minutes passed. Evening was coming on apace; little light filtered +through the chiks. The ladies sat, wondering why their hostess did not +appear. + +"Madame takes a long time, my dear," said Mrs. Merriman. + +"I don't like it, mamma. I wish we hadn't come into the stranger's +house." + +"Why, my love, what nonsense! The man is not a savage. The French are not +at war with us, and if they were, they do not war on women. Something has +happened to delay Monsieur de Bonnefon." + +"I can't help it, mamma; I don't like his looks; I fear something, I +don't know what. Oh, I wish father were here!" + +She got up and walked to and fro restlessly. Then, as by a sudden +impulse, she went quickly to the door and turned the handle, She gave a +low cry under her breath, and sprang round. + +"Mamma! Mamma!" she cried. "I knew it! The door is locked." + +Mrs. Merriman rose immediately. + +"Nonsense, my dear! He would not dare do such a thing!" + +But the door did not yield to her hand, though she pulled and shook it +violently. + +"The insolent villain!" she exclaimed. + +She had plenty of courage, and if her voice shook, it was with anger, not +fear. She went to the window opening on the veranda, loosed the bars, and +looked out. + +"We can get out here," she said. "We will walk instantly to +Chandernagore, and demand assistance from the governor." + +But the next moment she shrank back into the room. Two armed peons stood +in the veranda, one on each side of the window. Recovering herself, Mrs. +Merriman went to the window again. + +"They will not dare to stop us," she said. + +"Let me pass, you men; I will not be kept here." + +But the natives did not budge from their post. Only, as the angry lady +flung open one of the folding doors, they closed together and barred the +way with their pikes. Accustomed to absolute subservience from her own +peons, Mrs. Merriman saw at once that insistence was useless. If these +men did not obey instantly they would not obey at all. + +"I cannot fight them," she said, again turning back. "The wretches! If +only your father were here!" + +"Or Mr. Burke," said Phyllis. "Oh, how I wish he had come with us!" + +"Wishing is no use, my dear. I vow the Frenchman shall pay dearly for +this insolence. We must make the best of it." + +Meanwhile Monsieur de Bonnefon had gone down to the ghat. But he did not +send a messenger to Chandernagore as he had promised. He told the +jamadar, in Urdu, that his mistress and the chota bibi would remain at +his house for the night. They feared another accident if they should +proceed in the darkness. He bade the man bring his party to the house, +where they would all find accommodation until the morning. + +In the small hours of that night there was a short sharp scuffle in the +servants' quarters. The Merriman boatmen and peons were set upon by a +score of sturdy men who promptly roped them together, and, hauling them +down to the ghat and into a boat, rowed them up to Hugli. There they were +thrown into the common prison. + +In the morning a charge of dacoity {gang robbery} was laid against them. +The story was that they had been apprehended in the act of breaking into +the house of Monsieur Sinfray. Plenty of witnesses were forthcoming to +give evidence against them; such can be purchased outside any cutcherry +in India for a few rupees. The men were convicted. Some were given a +choice between execution and service in the Nawab's army; others were +sentenced offhand to a term of imprisonment, and these considered +themselves lucky in escaping with their lives. In vain they protested +their innocence and pleaded that a messenger might be sent to Calcutta; +the Nawab was known to be so much incensed against the English that the +fact of their being Company's servants would probably avail them nothing. + +About the same time that the men were being condemned, a two-ox hackeri, +such as was used for the conveyance of pardarnishin {literally, sitting +behind screens} women, left the house of Monsieur de Bonnefon and drove +inland for some five miles. The curtains were closely drawn, and the +people who met it on the road wondered from what zenana the ladies thus +screened from the public gaze had come. The team halted at a lonely house +surrounded by a high wall, once the residence of a zamindar, now owned by +Coja Solomon of Cossimbazar, and leased to a fellow Armenian of +Chandernagore. It had been hired more than once by Monsieur Sinfray, the +secretary to the Council at Chandernagore and a persona grata with the +Nawab, for al fresco entertainments got up in imitation of the fetes at +Versailles. But of late Monsieur Sinfray had had too much important +business on hand to spare time for such delights. He was believed to be +with Sirajuddaula at Murshidabad, and the house had remained untenanted. + +The hackeri pulled up at the gate in the wall. The curtains were drawn +aside; a group of peons surrounded the cart to fend off prying eyes; and +the passengers descended--two ladies clad in long white saris {garment in +one piece, covering the body from head to foot} and closely veiled. A +sleek Bengali had already got out from a palanquin which had accompanied +the hackeri; in a second palanquin sat Monsieur de Bonnefon, who did not +take the trouble to alight. + +With many salaams the Bengali led the ladies through the gate and across +the compound towards the house. They both walked proudly erect, with a +gait very different from that of the native ladies who time and again had +followed the same path. They entered the house; the heavy door was shut; +and from behind the screens of the room to which they were led they heard +the hackeri rumbling away. + +Monsieur de Bonnefon, as his palanquin was borne off, soliloquized, +ticking off imaginary accounts on the fingers of his left hand; the right +hand was partly hidden by a black velvet mitten. His reckoning ran +somewhat as follows: + +"In account with Edward Merriman: + +"Credit--to the hounding out of the Company by his friend Clive: nominal: +I made more outside; to scurrilous abuse in public and private: mere +words; say fifty rupees; to threat to hang me: mere words again: say +fifty rupees. Total credit, say a hundred rupees. + +"Debit--to ransom for wife and daughter: two lakhs. + +"Balance in my favor, say a hundred and ninety-nine thousand nine hundred +rupees. + +"In a few weeks, Mr. Edward Merriman, I shall trouble you for a +settlement." + + + +Chapter 25: In which our hero embarks on a hazardous mission; and Monsieur +Sinfray's khansaman makes a confession. + + +On arriving at Fulta, Desmond found that the European fugitives from +Calcutta were living for the most part on board the country ships in the +river, while the military were cantoned in huts ashore, on a plain +eastward of the town. The avenues leading to their camp were occupied by +Sepoys. Desmond lost no time in making his way to Major Killpatrick's hut +and presenting his credentials. + +"Very glad to make your acquaintance," said the major heartily. "Oh yes, +I know all about you. Mr. Merriman has told me of the way you brought his +cargo through from Cossimbazar, and the plucky stand you made against +odds. By Jove, sir, 'twas an amazing good piece of work. You deserved a +commission if any youngster ever did, and I'm glad Mr. Clive has done the +right thing. Let me tell you, Mr. Clive don't make mistakes--in military +matters, that is to say. And Gheria, now: egad, sir, you must have a head +on your shoulders; and that en't flattery; we soldiers en't in the habit +of laying on the butter. + +"You did well; and sure you'll be of the greatest use to us here. We need +a few men as are able to keep their heads in a warm place: and, begad, if +they'd such men in Bengal these last months we wouldn't be rotting here +in this fever-haunted place. Why, I've lost thirty-two officers and men +in less than a couple of months, and I'll be lucky if I've fifty fit for +service by the time Mr. Clive arrives. When may we expect him, sir?" + +"He couldn't tell me, sir. The Madras Council can't make up their minds +who is to command the expedition, and they're waiting for ships from +home." + +Major Killpatrick laughed. + +"Why, I know how that will end. With Mr. Stringer Lawrence laid up there +is only one man fit to do this job, and that's Mr. Clive, and the sooner +the gentlemen on their office stools at Madras see that, the better in +the end for everybody. + +"Now you're strong again, eh? Got rid of that touch of fever?" + +"Yes, sir; I'm as well as ever." + +"And want to be doing something, I'll be bound. Well, 'twill need some +thinking, what you've to do. We're badly served with news. We've got +spies, of course; but I don't set much store by native spies in this +country. We've information by the bushel, but when you come to sift it +out there's precious little of it you can trust. And the enemy has got +spies, too--hundreds of 'em. I'll bet my boots there's a regular system +of kasids for carrying news of us to Manik Chand and from him to the +Nawab. If the truth was known, I dare say that rascal knows how many +hairs I have on my bald crown under my wig--if that's any interest to +him. + +"Well, I suppose you'll join Mr. Merriman on board one of the ships. +Better chance of escaping the fever there. I'll turn over a thing or two +I have in my mind and send for you when I've done turning." + +On the way back to the shore Desmond met the serang who had accompanied +him down the river from Cossimbazar. The man explained that after the +capture of Calcutta his brother Hubbo, the Company's syr serang {head +boatman}, had been impressed into the service of the Nawab, and he +himself had been sent by Hubbo to Fulta to assist the Council and +merchants of the Company. He had there met Mr. Merriman, whom in common +with many others he had believed to be dead. Mr. Merriman, having no +immediate need for his services, had willingly permitted him to take his +brother's place in the employment of the Company. + +Mr. Merriman welcomed Desmond with quite fatherly affection, and +congratulated him heartily on his appointment. The Hormuzzeer being +unlikely, owing to the complete cessation of trade, to make another +voyage for some months to come, he decided to take up his quarters on +board, and Desmond lived with him as a matter of course. + +Desmond was shocked to see the change wrought on his friend by the loss +of his wife and daughter. All his gay spirits had left him; he had +thinned perceptibly, and his eyes had that strained look which only a +great sorrow can cause. + +"I have been thinking it over, Desmond," he said as they sat in the +cabin, "and I can only conclude that this is one more of Peloti's +villainies. Good God! had he not done me and mine harm enough? Who else +would be so dead to all sense of right, of decency, as to seize upon two +helpless women? My brother was hanged, Desmond; hanging is too good for +that scoundrel; but we cannot touch him; he laughs at us; and I am +helpless--helpless!" + +"Like you, sir, I have come to believe that you owe this terrible sorrow +to Diggle--I must always call him that. Don't give up heart, sir. What +his motive is, if he has indeed captured the ladies, I cannot tell. It +may be to use them as hostages in case he gets into trouble with us; it +is impossible to see into the black depths of his mind. But I believe the +ladies are safe, and, please God, I shall learn something about them and +maybe bring them back to you." + +Desmond waited a couple of days in the hope of receiving a definite task +from Major Killpatrick. But that officer, while an excellent soldier, was +not fertile in expedients. The process of "turning things over in his +mind" did not furnish him with an inspiration. + +He came on board the Hormuzzeer one afternoon, and confessed that he +didn't see how Desmond could possibly get up and down the river. Mr. +Merriman reminded him that in the early days of the stay at Fulta, Mr. +Robert Gregory had gone up with requests to the French and Dutch for +assistance. Under cover of a storm he passed Tanna and Calcutta unnoticed +by the Nawab's men. + +"The French were very polite, but wouldn't move a finger for us," added +Mr. Merriman. "The Dutch were more neighborly, and sent us some +provisions--badly needed, I assure you. Mr. Gregory is still with them at +Chinsura." + +"If he got through, why shouldn't I?" asked Desmond. + +"My dear boy," said Killpatrick, "the river is narrowly watched. The +Moors know that Gregory outwitted them; sure no other Englishman could +repeat the trick. And if you were caught, there's no saying how Manik +Chand might serve you. He seems disposed to be friendly, to be sure: he's +made governor of Calcutta now, and wants to feel his feet. But he's a +weak man, by all accounts; and weak men, when they are afraid, are always +cruel. If he caught an Englishman spying out the land he'd most probably +treat him after oriental methods. + +"In fact, the situation between him and us is such," concluded the major +with a laugh, "that he'd be quite justified in stringing you up." + +Major Killpatrick left without offering any suggestion. When he had gone +Desmond spent an hour or two in "turning things over in his mind." He +felt that the major was well disposed and would probably jump at any +reasonable scheme that was put before him. + +After a period of quiet reflection he sought out Hossain, the serang, and +had a long talk with him. At the conclusion of the interview he went to +see Mr. Merriman. He explained that Hossain wished to return to the +service of a former employer, a native grain merchant in Calcutta, who +did a large trade along the Hugli from the Sandarbands to Murshidabad. +The consent of the Council was required, and Desmond wished Mr. Merriman +to arrange the matter without giving any explanation. + +The merchant was naturally anxious to know why Desmond interested himself +in the man, and what he learned drew from him an instant promise to +obtain the Council's consent without delay. Then Desmond made his way to +Major Killpatrick's hut, and remained closeted with that genial officer +till a late hour. + +Six weeks later a heavily-laden petala, with a dinghy trailing behind, +was dropping down the river above Hugli. Its crew numbered four. One was +Hossain, the serang, who had left Fulta with Desmond on the day after his +interview with Major Killpatrick. Two were dark-skinned boatmen, Bengalis +somewhat stupid in appearance. The fourth, who was steering, was rather +lighter in hue, as well as more alert and energetic in mien: a lascar, as +Hossain explained in answer to inquiries along the river. He had lately +been employed on one of the Company's vessels, but it had been sunk in +the Hugli during the siege of Calcutta. He was a handy man in a boat, and +very glad to earn a few pice in this time of stagnant trade. Things were +not looking bright for boatmen on the Hugli; as only a few vessels had +left the river from Chandernagore and Chinsura since the troubles began +there was little or no opening for men of the shipwrecked crew. + +The petala made fast for the night near the bank, at a spot a little +below Hugli, between that place and Chinsura. When the two Bengalis had +eaten their evening rice, Hossain told them that they might, if they +pleased, take the dinghy and attend a tamasha {entertainment} that was +being held in Chinsura that night in honor of the wedding of one of the +Dutch Company's principal gumashtas. The Bengalis, always ready for an +entertainment of this kind, slipped overboard and were soon rowing down +to Chinsura. Their orders were to be back immediately after the second +watch of the night. Only the lascar and Hossain were left in the boat. + +Ten minutes after the men had disappeared from view, the serang lit a +small oil lamp in the tiny cabin. He then made his way to the helm, +whispered a word in the lascar's ear, and took his place. The latter +nodded and went into the cabin. Drawing the curtains, he squatted on a +mattress, took from a hiding place in the cabin a few sheets of paper and +a pencil, and, resting the paper on the back of a tray, began to write. + +As he did so he frequently consulted a scrap of paper he kept at his left +hand; it was closely covered with letters and figures, these latter not +Hindustani characters, but the Arabic figures employed by Europeans. + +The first line of what he wrote himself ran thus: + +29 19 28 19 36 38 32 20 21 39 23 34 19 29 29 35 32 38 24 38 23 32 +{constructed from the cipher actually used by Mr. Watts at Murshidabad}. + +The letter or message upon which he was engaged was not a lengthy one, +but it took a long time to compose. When it was finished the lascar went +over it line by line, comparing it with the paper at his left hand. Then +he folded it very small, sealed it with a wafer, and, returning to the +serang, said a few words. Whereupon Hossain made a trumpet of his hands, +and, looking toward the left bank, sounded a few notes in imitation of a +bird's warble. The shore was fringed here with low bushes. As if in +answer to the call a small boat darted out from the shelter of a bush; a +few strokes brought it alongside of the petala; and the serang, bending +over, handed the folded paper to the boatman, and whispered a few words +in his ear. The man pushed off, and the lascar watched the boat float +silently down the stream until it was lost to sight. + +Dawn was hardly breaking when Major Killpatrick, awakened by his servant, +received from his hands a folded paper which by the aid of a candle he +began to pore over, laboriously comparing it with a small code similar to +that used by the lascar. One by one he penciled on a scrap of paper +certain letters, every now and then whistling between his teeth as he +spelt out the words they made. The result appeared thus: + +Magazines for ammunition and stores of grain being prepared Tribeni and +Hugli. Bazaar rumor Nawab about to march with army to Calcutta. Orders +issued Hugli traffic to be strictly watched. Dutch phataks {gate or +barrier} closed. Forth unable leave Chinsura. Tanna Fort 9 guns; opposite +Tanna 6 guns; Holwell's garden 5 guns; 4 each Surman's and Ganj; 2 each +Mr. Watts' house, Seth's ghat, Maryas ghat, carpenter's yard. + +"Egad!" he exclaimed, on a second reading of the message, "the boy's a +conjurer. This is important enough to send to Mr. Clive at once. But I'll +make a copy of it first in case of accident." + +Having made his copy and sealed the original and his first transcription, +he summoned his servant and bade him send for the kasid. To him he +intrusted the papers, directing him to convey them without loss of time +to Clive Sahib, whom he might expect to find at Kalpi. + +It was December thirteenth. Two months before, the fleet containing +Colonel Clive and the troops destined for the Bengal expedition had +sailed from Madras. The force consisted of two hundred and seventy-six +king's troops, six hundred and seventy-six of the Company's, about a +thousand Sepoys, and two hundred and sixty lascars. They were embarked on +five of the king's ships, with Admiral Watson in the Kent, and as many +Company's vessels. + +Baffling winds, various mishaps, and the calms usual at this time of the +year had protracted the voyage, so seriously that the men had to be put +on a two-thirds allowance of rations. Many of the European soldiers were +down with scurvy, many of the Sepoys actually died of starvation, having +consumed all their rice, and refusing to touch the meat provided for the +British soldiers, for fear of losing caste. When the admiral at length +arrived at Fulta, he had only six of the ten ships with which he started, +two that had parted company arriving some ten days later, and two being +forced to put back to Madras, under stress of weather. + +While the Kent lay at Kalpi Clive received the message sent him by Major +Killpatrick, and was visited by Mr. Drake and other members of the +Council, from whom he heard of the sickness among the troops. On arriving +at Fulta he at once went on shore and visited the major. + +"Sorry to hear of your sad case, Mr. Killpatrick," he said. "We're very +little better off. But we must make the best of it. I got your note. +'Twas an excellent greeting. Young Burke is a capital fellow; I have not +mistook his capacity." + +"Faith, 'twas what I told him, sir. I said Colonel Clive never mistook +his men." + +"Well, if that's true, what you said won't make him vain. This +information is valuable: you see that. Have you heard anything more from +the lad?" + +"Nothing, sir." + +"And you can't communicate with him?" + +"No, 'twas a part of his scheme never to let me know his whereabouts, in +case the messages miscarried." + +"So; 'twas his scheme, not yours?" + +"Egad, sir, I've no head for that sort of thing," said Killpatrick with a +laugh. "Give me a company, and a wall to scale or a regiment to charge, +and--" + +"My dear fellow," interrupted Clive, "we all know the king has no better +officer. Credit where credit is due, major, and you're not the man to +grudge this youngster his full credit for an uncommonly daring and clever +scheme. Did you see him in his disguise?" + +"I did, sir, and at a distance he took in both Mr. Merriman and myself." + +"Well, he's a boy to keep an eye on, and I only hope that tigers or +dacoits or the Nawab's Moors won't get hold of him; he's the kind of lad +we can't spare. Now, let me know the state of your troops." + +When he had sent off his note to Major Killpatrick, Desmond enjoyed a +short spell on deck preparatory to turning in. Hossain was placidly +smoking his hubblebubble; from the far bank of the Hugli came the mingled +sounds of tom toms and other instruments; near the boat all was quiet, +the wavelets of the stream lapping idly against the sides, the stillness +broken only by the occasional howl of a jackal prowling near the bank in +quest of the corpses of pious Hindus consigned to the sacred waters of +the Ganges. + +Desmond was half dozing when he was startled into wakefulness by a sudden +clamor from the native town. He heard shots, loud cries, the hideous +blare of the Bengal trumpets. For half an hour the shouts continued +intermittently; then they gradually died away. + +Wondering whether the tamasha had ended in a tumult, Desmond was about to +seek his couch, when, just beneath him, as it seemed, he heard a voice--a +feeble cry for help. He sprang up and looked over the side. Soon a dark +head appeared on the water. With a cry to the serang to cast loose and +row after him, Desmond took a header into the stream, and with a few +strokes gained the drowning man's side. + +He was clearly exhausted. Supporting him with one arm, Desmond struck out +with the other, and being a strong swimmer he reached the stern of the +boat even before the serang had slipped his moorings. With Hossain's aid +he lifted the man into the boat, and carried him to the cabin. He was all +but unconscious. + +A mouthful of arrack {fermented liquor made from rice or the juice of the +palm} from the serang's jar revived him. No sooner was he in command of +his breath than he implored his rescuers for their help and protection. +He had escaped, he said, from Hugli Fort, not without a gunshot wound +behind his shoulder. He spoke in Bengali. Seeing that he was too much +exhausted and agitated to tell his story that night, Desmond bade the +serang assure him of his safety. Then they made shift to tend his wound, +and, comforting him with food and drink, left him to sleep and recover. + +The two Bengalis who had been to Chinsura returned before they were +expected. They had been alarmed by the uproar. As soon as they were +aboard Desmond decided to drop a mile or two farther down the river. The +boat coming to a ghat below Chandernagore, the serang ordered the men to +pull in, and tied up for the night. + +In the morning the Bengalis were despatched on some errand along the +bank, and the coast being clear Desmond went with the serang to the +wounded man to learn particulars of the escape. The Bengali had now +almost wholly recovered, and was very voluble in his gratitude for his +rescue. Happening to glance towards the bank, he suddenly uttered an +exclamation of fear, and begged the serang with frantic waving of the +hands to leave the spot at once. + +"Why, O brother, this fear?" asked Hossain. + +"I will tell you. It is a great fear. Just before the coming of the rains +I was at Khulna. There I was hired by the head serang of a lady traveling +to Calcutta. She was the wife of a burra sahib of the great Company, and +with her was her daughter. All went well until we came near +Chandernagore; we struck a snag; the boat sprang a leak; we feared the +bibis would be drowned. We rowed to this very ghat; a sahib welcomed the +ladies; they went into his house yonder. Presently he sent for us; we +lodged with his servants; but in the night we were set upon, bound, and +carried to Hugli. False witnesses accused us of being dacoits; we were +condemned; and I was confined with others in the prison. + +"Always since then have I looked for a chance of escape. It came at last. +Some of the jailers went last night to the tamasha at Chinsura. I stole +out and got away. A sentry fired upon me, and hit me; but I am a good +swimmer and I plunged into the river. You know all that happened then, O +serang, and I beseech you leave this place; it is a dreadful place; some +harm will come to us all." + +Desmond's knowledge of Bengali was as yet slight, and he caught only +portions of the man's narrative. But he understood enough to convince him +that he was at last on the track of the missing ladies; and when, shortly +afterwards, Hossain gave him in Urdu the whole of the story, he +determined at once to act on the information. + +On the return of the two Bengalis, he arranged with the serang to set +them at work on some imaginary repairs to the boat: that pretext for +delay was as good as another. Then, Hossain having reassured the +fugitive, he himself landed and made his way up to the house. + +It was closed. There was no sign of its being inhabited. But about a +hundred yards from the gate Desmond saw a basti {block of native huts}, +and from one of the huts smoke was issuing. He sauntered up. Before the +door, lolling in unstudied dishabille, squatted a bearded, turbaned +Mohammedan, whom from his rotundity Desmond guessed to be the khansaman +of the big house. + +"Salaam aleikam {peace be with you!}, khansaman!" said Desmond suavely. +"Pardon the curiosity of an ignorant sailor from Gujarat. What nawab owns +the great house yonder?" + +The khansaman, beaming in acknowledgment of the implied compliment to his +own importance, replied: + +"To Sinfray Sahib, worthy khalasi." + +"The great Sinfray Sahib of Chandernagore? Surely that is a strange +thing!" + +"Strange! What is strange? That Sinfray Sahib should own so fine a house? +You should see his other house in Chandernagore: then indeed you might +lift your eyes in wonder." + +"Nay, indeed, I marveled not at that, for Sinfray Sahib is indeed a great +man. We who dwell upon the kala pani know well his name. Is it not known +in the bazaars in Pondicheri and Surat? But I marvel at this, khansaman: +that on one day, this day of my speaking to you, I should meet the +sahib's most trusty servant, as I doubt not you are, and also the man who +has sworn revenge upon the owner of this house--ay, and on all the +household." + +"Bismillah! {'in the name of Allah!'--a common exclamation}" exclaimed +the khansaman, spitting out his betel. He was thoroughly interested, but +as yet unconcerned. "What do you mean, khalasi?" + +"I parted but now, on the river, from a fellow boatman who of late has +lain in prison at Hugli, put there, they say, by order of Sinfray Sahib. +He is not a dacoit; no man less so; but false witnesses rose up against +him. And, I bethink me, he said that the sahib's khansaman was one of +these men with lying lips. + +"Surely he was in error; for your face, O khansaman, is open as the sun, +your lips are fragrant with the very attar of truth. But he is filled +with rage and fury; in his madness he will not tarry to inquire. If he +should meet you--well, it is the will of Allah: no man can escape his +fate." + +The khansaman, as Desmond spoke, looked more and more distressed; and at +the last words his face was livid. + +"It is not true," he said. "But I know the blind fury of revenge. Do thou +entreat him for me. I will pay thee well. I have saved a few pice {coin, +value one-eighth of a penny}. It will be worth five rupees to thee; and +to make amends to the madman, I will give him fifty rupees, even if it +strips me of all I have. Allah knows it was not my doing; it was forced +upon me." + +"How could that be, khansaman?" said Desmond, letting pass the man's +contradictory statements. + +"It is not necessary to explain; my word is my word." + +"No doubt; but so enraged is the khalasi I speak of that unless I can +explain to him fully he will not heed me. Never shall I dissuade him from +his purpose." + +"It is the will of Allah!" said the khansaman resignedly. "I will tell +you. It was not Sinfray Sahib at all. He was at the Nawab's court at +Murshidabad. He had lent his house to a friend while he was absent. The +friend had a spite against Merriman Sahib, the merchant at Calcutta; and +when the bibi and the chota bibi came down the river he seized them. +Sinfray Sahib believes there was an attack by dacoits; but the bibi's +peons were carried away by the sahib's friend: it was he that brought the +evidence against them. The Angrezi Sahib induced me to swear falsely by +avouching that Sinfray Sahib was also an enemy of Merriman Sahib; but +when the judge had said his word the sahib bade me keep silence with my +master, for he was ignorant of it all. The Angrezi Sahib is a terrible +man: what could I do? I was afraid to speak." + +"And what was the name of the Angrezi Sahib?" + +"His name?--It was Higli--no, Digli Sahib--accursed be the day I first +saw him." + +Desmond drew a long breath. + +"And what became of the bibi and the chota bibi?" + +"They were taken away." + +"Whither?" + +"I do not know." + +The answer was glib; Desmond thought a little too glib. + +"Why then, khansaman," he said, "I fear it would be vain for me to reason +with the man I spoke of. He has eaten the salt of Merriman Sahib; his +lord's injury is his also. But you acted for the best. Allah hafiz! that +will be a morsel of comfort even if this man's knife should find its way +between your ribs. Not every dying man has such consolation. Live in +peace, good khansaman." + +Desmond, who had been squatting in the oriental manner--an accomplishment +he had learned with some pains at Gheria--rose to leave. The khansaman's +florid cheeks again put on a sickly hue, and when the seeming lascar had +gone a few paces he called him back. + +"Ahi, excellent khalasi. I think--I remember--I am almost sure I can +discover where the two bibis are concealed." + +"Inshallah! {'please God!'--a common exclamation} That is indeed +fortunate," said Desmond, turning back. "There lies the best chance of +averting the wrath of this much-wronged man." + +"Wait but a little till I have clad myself duly; I will then go to a +friend yonder and inquire." + +He went into his hut and soon returned clothed in the garments that +befitted his position. Walking to a hut at the end of the block, he made +pretense, Desmond suspected, of inquiring. He was soon back. + +"Allah is good!" he said. "The khitmatgar yonder tells me they were taken +to a house three coss {the coss is nearly two miles} distant, belonging +to the great faujdar Manik Chand. It is rented from him by Digli Sahib, +who is a great friend of his Excellency." + +"Well, khansaman, you will show me the way to the house." + +But the khansaman appeared to have donned, with his clothes, a sense of +his own importance. The authoritative tone of the lascar offended his +dignity. + +"Who are you, scum of the sea, that you tell a khansaman of Bengal what +he shall do? Hold your tongue, piece of seaweed, or by the beard of the +Prophet--" + +The threat was never completed, for Desmond, stepping up close to the +man, caught him by the back of the neck and shook him till his teeth +rattled in his head. + +"Quick! Lead the way! Foolish khansaman, do you want your fat body shaken +to a jelly? That is the way with us khalasis from Gujarat. Quick, I say!" + +"Hold, khalasi!" panted the khansaman; "I will do what you wish. Believe +me, you are the first khalasi from Gujarat I have seen--" + +"Or you would not have delayed so long. Quick, man!" + +With a downcast air the man set off. The sun was getting high; being fat +and soft, the khansaman was soon in distress. But Desmond allowed him no +respite. In about two hours they arrived at the house he had mentioned. +The gate was ajar; the door broken open. Hastily entering, Desmond knew +instinctively by the appearance of the place that it was deserted. + +He went through the house from bottom to top. Not a living person was to +be seen. But in one of the rooms his quick eye caught sight of a small +hairpin such as only a European woman would use. He picked it up. In +another room a cooking pot had been left, and it was evident that it had +but lately been used. The simple furniture was in some disorder. + +The khansaman had with much labor managed to mount the stairs. + +"Allah is Allah!" he said. "They are gone!" + + + +Chapter 26: In which presence of mind is shown to be next best +to absence of body. + + +The khansaman's surprise was clearly genuine, and Desmond refrained from +visiting on him his disappointment. Bitter as that was, his alarm was +still more keen. What had become of the ladies! With all his old +impulsiveness he had come to rescue them, never pausing to think of what +risks he himself might run. And now they were gone! Could Diggle have +suspected that his carefully-hidden tracks were being followed up, and +have removed the prisoners to some spot remoter from the river? It was +idle to speculate; they were gone; and there was no obvious clue to their +whereabouts. + +The khansaman, limp and damp after his unwonted exercise, had squatted on +the floor and was fanning himself, groaning deeply. Desmond went to the +window of the room and looked out over the country; wondering, longing, +fearing. As he gazed disconsolately before him, he caught sight of a +party of horsemen rapidly approaching. Bidding the khansaman stifle his +groans, he watched them eagerly through the chiks of the window. Soon a +dozen native horsemen cantered up to the front gate and drew rein. + +One of them, clad in turban of gold tissue, short blue jacket lavishly +decorated with gold, and crimson trousers, bade the rest dismount. He was +a tall man, a handsome figure in his fine array. He wore a sword with +hilt inlaid with gold, the scabbard covered with crimson velvet; and in +his girdle was stuck a knife with agate handle, and a small Moorish +dagger ornamented with gold and silver. + +He stood for a time gazing as in perplexity at the broken gateway. His +face was concealed by his turban from Desmond, looking from above. But +when he directed his glance upward, Desmond, peering through the chiks, +could scarcely believe his eyes. The features were those of Marmaduke +Diggle. His heart thumped against his ribs. Never, perhaps, in the whole +course of his adventures, had he been in such deadly peril. The +appearance of the party had been so sudden, and he had been so deeply +engrossed with his musings, that he had not had time to think of his own +situation. + +"Come, son of a pig," said Diggle at length, throwing himself from his +horse and beckoning to his syce, "we will search the place. There must be +something to show who the dacoits were." + +He strode into the compound, followed by his trembling servant. + +"Indeed, huzur," said the man in shrill tones of excuse, "we did our +best. But they were many: our livers were as water." + +"Chup {shut up}, pig! Wait till you are spoken to," exclaimed Diggle, +turning angrily upon him. + +"Achha, sahib! bahut achha, sahib {good, sahib--very good, sahib}!" + +A vicious kick cut short his protestations, and the two passed out of +hearing of the two watchers above, the khansaman having brought his +quivering flabbiness to Desmond's side. Diggle passed into the entrance +hall, the native horsemen waiting like statues at the gate. + +"It is the sahib!" whispered the shaking khansaman to Desmond: "Digli +Sahib. He will kill me. He is a tiger." + +"Silence, fool!" said Desmond sternly: "there must be a way out. + +"Jeldi jao {go quickly}! we shall be too late." + +The man seemed glued to the spot with fear. The footsteps of Diggle could +be heard in the rooms below. In a few minutes he would reach the upper +story; then it would indeed be too late to flee. If they could gain the +back staircase they might slip down and hide in the garden. But fright +appeared to have bereft the khansaman of all power of movement. + +Yet Desmond, for more than one reason, was unwilling to leave him. He +knew what Diggle's tender mercies were; but he also knew that the +khansaman, if discovered, would certainly try to purchase his safety by +betraying his companion. So, without more ado, seizing him by the neck, +Desmond shook him vigorously. + +"Come!" he said in a fierce whisper, "or I shall leave you to face the +sahib alone." + +This summary treatment shocked the man from his stupor. Stepping on +tiptoe he darted across the room, through the door communicating with a +room beyond, into a narrow passageway at the rear of the house. Here was +a second staircase leading downwards to the servants' quarters. + +"Wait there," said Desmond when they were halfway down. "If you hear any +one coming up, rejoin me above." + +He himself crept noiselessly back to the upper floor. No sooner had he +reached the top than he heard Diggle moving in the room he had recently +left. He darted to a khashkas {a fragrant plant whose roots are used for +making screens} curtain, through the meshes of which he could see into +the two intercommunicating rooms. Diggle was carefully searching the +apartment; he clearly knew it was the one lately occupied by the ladies. + +As he stooped to pick up a cushion that lay on the floor beside a divan, +his eye was caught by a scrap of crumpled paper. He snatched at it like a +hawk and with quick fingers straightened it out--the fingers of the +mittened hand that Desmond knew so well. On the paper was writing; the +characters were English, but Diggle appeared to have some difficulty in +making them out. + +"'Your servant Surendra Nath Chuckerbutti,'" he said slowly, aloud. + +"Who is Surendra Nath Chuckerbutti?" he asked his man, standing behind. + +"Truly, huzur, I know not. It is a common name in Bengal--a vile Hindu; +an unbeliever--" + +"How did this paper come here?" cried Diggle impatiently. + +"How should I know, sahib? I am a poor man, an ignorant man; I do not +read--" + +"Come with me and search the back of the house," said Diggle, turning +away with an oath. + +Desmond stepped noiselessly across the floor and joined the khansaman. +They made their way out stealthily down the stairs, through the garden at +the back, into a mango grove. There they remained hidden until Diggle, +finding his search fruitless, remounted with his men and galloped away. + +Desmond felt in a maze of bewilderment. It was clear that Diggle was +ignorant of the whereabouts of the ladies; where had they been spirited +to, and by whom? Apparently there had been an attack on the house, and +they had been carried away: was it by friends or foes? What was the +meaning of the paper found by Diggle? Had the Babu had any hand in the +latest disappearance, or was it his letter that had put someone else on +their track? Desmond had heard nothing of Surendra Nath or his father +since the sack of Calcutta. + +There was no clue to the solution of the problem. Meanwhile it was +necessary to get back to Calcutta. The journey had been delayed too long +already, and Hossain's employer, the grain merchant, would have good +reason for complaint if he felt that his business was being neglected. + +"We must go, khansaman," said Desmond in sudden determination. + +The man was nothing loath. They returned by the way they had come. +Desmond left the man some distance short of Sinfray's house, promising, +in return for his assistance, to use his best offices with the irate +manjhi {steersman} on his behalf. Then he struck off for the point lower +down the river where his boat was moored. As soon as he arrived they got +under way, and late that evening reached Tanna Fort, where they had to +deliver their cargo of rice for the use of the Nawab's garrison. + +In the dead of night they were surprised by a visit from Hubbo, the +serang's brother. He had seen them as they passed from one of the sloops +that lay in the river opposite the fort. Though chief in command of the +Nawab's vessels at that point, he was still secretly loyal to the +Company, and was anxious to serve their interests to the best of his +power. + +He had now brought important news. The three sloops and two brigantines +that lay off the fort were, he said, filled with earth. On the approach +of Admiral Watson's fleet they were to be scuttled and sunk in the +fairway. A subahdar {equivalent to colonel of infantry} of Manik Chand's +force was at present on board one of the sloops, to superintend the work +of scuttling. The signal would be given by the subahdar himself from his +sloop. + +"Very well, Hubbo," said Desmond, "that signal must not be given." + +"But how prevent it, sahib? I wish well to the Company; have I not eaten +their salt? But what can one man do against many? The subahdar is a very +fierce man; very zabburdasti {masterful}. When he gives the word it will +be death to disobey." + +Desmond sat for some time with his chin in his hands, thinking. Then he +asked: + +"Do you know where the British fleet is at present?" + +"Yes, sahib. I was in the bazaar today; it was said that this morning the +ships were still at Fulta. The sepoys are recovering from the privations +of the voyage." + +"We shall drop down the river tomorrow as soon as we have unloaded our +cargo. You may expect us back ahead of the fleet, so keep a good lookout +for us. I shall take care that Mr. Drake is informed of your fidelity, +and you will certainly be well rewarded." + +Early in the morning the cargo was unloaded; then, under pretense of +taking in goods at Mayapur, the petala dropped down the river and gained +Fulta under cover of night. + +Next morning Desmond, having resumed his ordinary attire, sought an +interview with Clive. + +"The very man I wished to see," said Clive, shaking hands. "Your scouting +is the one ray of light in the darkness that covers the enemy's +arrangements. You have done remarkably well, and I take it you would not +be here unless you had something to tell me." + +Desmond gave briefly the information he had learned from Hubbo. + +"That's the game, is it?" said Clive. "A pretty scheme, egad! 'Twill be +fatal to us if carried out. 'Twould put a spoke in the admiral's wheel +and throw all the work on the land force. That's weak enough, what with +Mr. Killpatrick's men dying off every day--he has only thirty left--and +my own Sepoys mostly skeletons. And we haven't proved ourselves against +the Nawab's troops; I suppose they outnumber us thirty to one, and after +their success at Calcutta they'll be very cock-a-hoop. Yet 'tis so easy +to sink a few ships, especially if preparations have been made long in +advance, as appears to be the case." + +"I think, sir, it might be prevented." + +Clive, who had been pacing up and down in some perturbation of mind, his +head bent, his hands clasped behind him, halted, looked up sharply, and +said: + +"Indeed! How?" + +"If we could get hold of the subahdar." + +"By bribing him? He might not be open to bribery. Most of these native +officials are, but there are some honest men among them, and he may be +one. He wouldn't have been selected for his job unless Manik Chand +thought him trustworthy. Besides, how are we going to get into +communication with him? And even if we did, and filled him to the brim +with rupees, how are we to know he wouldn't sell us in turn to the +enemy?" + +"But there are other ways, sir. We can depend on Hubbo, and if I might +suggest, it would pay to promise him a rich reward if he managed to keep +the passage clear." + +"Yes, I agree. What reward would be most effective?" + +"A few hundred rupees and the post of syr serang in the Company's service +when Calcutta is retaken." + +"Not too extravagant! Well, I shall see Mr. Drake; the offer had better +come from him and reach Hubbo through his brother." + +"And then, sir, it ought not to be impossible to secure the subahdar +himself when the moment arrives." + +Clive looked at the bright eager countenance of the boy before him. + +"Upon my word, my lad," he said, "I believe you can do it. How, I don't +know; but you have shown so much resource already that you may be able to +help us in this fix--for fix it is, and a bad one. 'Tis the will that +counts; if one is only determined enough no difficulty is insuperable--a +lesson that our friends from Calcutta might take to heart. But have you a +plan?" + +"Not at present, sir. I should like to think it over; and if I can hit on +anything that seems feasible I should be glad of your leave to try." + +"By all means, my lad. If you fail--well, no one will be more sorry than +I, for your sake. If you succeed, you will find that I shall not forget. + +"There's one thing I want to ask you before you go. Have you heard +anything of my friend Merriman's ladies?" + +"Yes, sir; and, as I suspected, Diggle is at the bottom of their +disappearance." + +He related the series of incidents up the river. + +"Dressed like a native, was he? And looked like a risaldar {officer +commanding a troop of horse}? There's no end to that fellow's villainy. +But his day of reckoning will come; I am sure of it, and the world will +be none the worse for the loss of so vile a creature. If you take my +advice you'll say nothing to Mr. Merriman of this discovery. 'Twould only +unsettle the poor man. He had better know nothing until we can either +restore the ladies to him or tell him that there is no hope." + +"I don't give up hope, sir. They're alive, at any rate; and Diggle has +lost them. I feel sure we shall find them." + +"God grant it, my lad." + + + +Chapter 27: In which an officer of the Nawab disappears; and Bulger +reappears. + + +"This will be my last trip, sahib, for my present master. He says I waste +too much time on the river. He also complains that I go to places without +leave and without reason. He heard we were at Mayapur, and wanted to know +why. I made excuses, sahib; I said whatever came into my head; but he was +not satisfied, and I leave his service in a week." + +"That is a pity, Hossain. Unless we are in the service of some well-known +banya we cannot go up and down the river without exciting suspicion. +However, let us hope that before the week is out the fleet will be here." + +Desmond looked a little anxious. The success of his project for +preventing the fouling of the passage at Tanna Fort was more than ever +doubtful. The petala was moored opposite the Crane ghat at Calcutta, +taking in a cargo of jawar {millet} for Chandernagore. The work of +loading had been protracted to the utmost by the serang; for Desmond did +not wish to leave the neighborhood of Calcutta at the present juncture, +when everything turned upon their being on the spot at the critical +moment. + +While they were talking, a man who had every appearance of a respectable +banya approached the plank over which the coolies were carrying the jawer +on board. He stood idly watching the work, then moved away, and squatted +on a low pile of bags which had been emptied of their contents. For a +time the serang paid no apparent heed to him; but presently, while the +coolies were still busy, he sauntered across the plank and strolling to +the onlooker exchanged a salaam and squatted beside him. Passers by might +have caught a word or two about the grain market; the high prices; the +difficulties of transit; the deplorable slackness of trade; the infamous +duplicity of the Greek merchants. At last the banya rose, salaamed, and +walked away. + +As he did so the serang carelessly lifted the bag upon which the banya +had been sitting, and, making sure that he was not observed, picked up a +tiny ball of paper scarcely bigger than a pea. Waiting a few moments, he +rose and sauntered back on board. A minute or two later the lascar in the +after part of the boat was unobtrusively examining the scrap of paper. It +contained three words and an initial: + +Tomorrow about ten.--C. + +A change had been made in the composition of Hossain's crew since the +incident at Sinfray's house. One day Desmond had found one of the +Bengalis rummaging in the corner of the cabin where he was accustomed to +keep his few personal belongings. Hossain had dismissed the man on the +spot. The man saved from the river had been kept on the boat and proved a +good worker, eager, and willing to be of use. He was an excellent +boatman, a handy man generally, and, for a Bengali, possessed of +exceptional physical strength. At Desmond's suggestion Hossain offered +him the vacant place, and he at once accepted it. + +Since his rescue he had shown much gratitude to Desmond. He was quick +witted, and had not been long on board before he felt that the khalasi +was not quite what he appeared to be. His suspicion was strengthened by +the deference, slight but unmistakable, paid by the serang to the lascar; +for though Desmond had warned Hossain to be on his guard, the man had +been unable to preserve thoroughly the attitude of a superior to an +inferior. + +On receiving the short message from Clive, Desmond had a consultation +with Hossain. The coolies had finished their work and received their pay, +and there was nothing unusual in the sight of the boatmen squatting on +deck before loosing their craft from its moorings. + +"If we are to do what we wish to do, Hossain," said Desmond, "we shall +require a third man to help us. Shall we take Karim into our confidence?" + +"That is as you please, sahib. He is a good man, and will, I think, be +faithful." + +"Well, send the other fellow on shore; I shall speak to the man." + +The serang gave the second of the two Bengalis who had formed his +original crew an errand on shore. Desmond beckoned up the new man. + +"Are you willing to undertake a service of risk, for a big reward, +Karim?" he asked. + +The man hesitated. + +"It will be worth a hundred rupees to you." + +Karim's eyes sparkled; a hundred rupees represented a fortune to a man of +his class; but he still hesitated. + +"Am I to be alone?" he asked at length. + +"No," said Desmond; "we shall be with you." + +"Hai! If the sahib"--the word slipped out unawares--"is to be there it is +fixed. He is my father and mother: did he not save me from the river? I +would serve him without reward." + +"That is very well. All the same the reward shall be yours--to be paid to +you if we succeed, to your family if we fail. For if we fail it will be +our last day: they will certainly shoot us. There is time to draw back." + +"If the sahib is to be there I am not afraid." + +"Good. You can go aft. We shall tell you later what is to be done. And +remember, on this boat I am no sahib. I am a khalasi from Gujarat." + +"I shall remember--sahib." + +Desmond told the serang that the help of the man was assured, and +discussed with him the enterprise upon which he was bent. He had given +his word to Clive that the blocking of the river should be prevented, and +though the task bade fair to be difficult he was resolved not to fail. +The vessels that were to be sunk in the fairway were moored opposite the +fort at a distance of about a ship's length from one another. The +subahdar was on the sloop farthest down the river, Hubbo on the next. +With the subahdar there were three men. The signal for the scuttling of +the vessels was to be the waving of a green flag by the subahdar; this +was to be repeated by Hubbo, then by the serang on the sloop above him, +and so on to the end. The vessels were in echelon, the one highest up the +river lying well over to the left bank and nearest to the fort, the rest +studding the fairway so that if they sank at their moorings it would be +impossible for a ship of any size to thread its way between them. It did +not appear that anything had been done to insure their sinking broadside +to the current, the reason being probably that, whatever might be +attempted with this design, the river would have its will with the +vessels as soon as they sank. + +"Our only chance," said Desmond, "is to get hold of the subahdar. If we +can only capture him the rest should be easy--especially as Hubbo is on +the next sloop, which screens the subahdar's from the rest. It is out of +speaking distance from the fort, too--another piece of luck for us. I +shall think things over in the night, Hossain; be sure to wake me, if I +am not awake, at least a gharri {half an hour} before dawn." + +It was the first of January, 1757. At half-past seven in the morning a +heavily-laden petala was making its way slowly against the tide down the +Hugli. Four men were on board; two were rowing, one was at the helm, the +fourth stood looking intently before him. The boat had passed several +vessels lying opposite Tanna Fort, at various distances from the bank, +and came abreast of the last but one. There the rowers ceased pulling at +an order from the man standing, who put his hand to his mouth and hailed +the sloop. + +An answer came from a man on deck inviting the caller to come on board. +With a few strokes of the oars the petala was run alongside, and Hossain +joined his brother. + +"Is it well, brother?" he said. + +"It is well," replied Hubbo. + +Desmond at the helm of the petala looked eagerly ahead at the last sloop +of the line. He could see the subahdar on deck, a somewhat portly figure +in resplendent costume. A small dinghy was passing between his vessel and +the shore. It contained a number of servants, who had brought him his +breakfast from the fort. The crews of the other vessels had prepared +their food on board. + +After a time a dinghy was let down from Hubbo's sloop. Hubbo himself +stepped into it with one of his crew, and was rowed to the subahdar's +vessel. Desmond, watching him narrowly, saw him salaam deeply as he went +on board. + +"Salaam, huzur!" said Hubbo. "Your Excellency will pardon me, but +bismillah! I have just discovered a matter of importance. Our task, +huzur, has lain much on my mind; we have never done anything of the sort +before, and seeing on yonder petala a man I know well, who has spent many +years on the kala pani, I ventured to ask if he knew what time would be +needed to sink a ship with several holes drilled in the hull." + +"That depends on the size of the holes, fool!" said the subahdar with a +snort. + +"True, huzur; that is what the serang said. But he went on to tell me of +a case like your Excellency's. His ship was once captured by the pirates +of the Sandarbands. They drilled several holes in the hull, and rowed +away, leaving my friend and several of the crew to sink with the vessel. +But the holes were not big enough. When the pirate had disappeared, the +men on the ship, using all their strength, managed to run her ashore, +filled up the holes at low tide, and floated her off when the tide came +in again." + +A look of concern crept over the subahdar's face as he listened. He was a +man without experience of ships, and became uneasy at the suggestion that +anything might mar the execution of his task. Manik Chand would not +lightly overlook a failure. + +"Hearing this, huzur," Hubbo continued, "I venture to mention the matter +to your Excellency, especially as it seemed to me, from what the serang +said, that the holes drilled by the pirates were even larger than those +made by the mistris {head workmen} sent from the fort." + +The subahdar looked still more concerned. + +"Hai!" he exclaimed, "it is very disturbing. And there is no time to do +anything; the Firangi's ships are reported to be on their way up the +river; the dogs of Kafirs {unbelievers} may be here soon." + +He bit his fingers, frowned, looked anxiously down the river, then across +to the brick fort at Tanna, then to the new mud fort at Aligarh on the +other bank, as if wondering whether he should send or signal a message to +one or the other. Hubbo was silent for a moment, then he said: + +"Have I the huzur's leave to speak?" + +"By the twelve imams {high priests descending from Ali, the son-in-law of +Mahomet}, yes! but quickly." + +"There is a mistri on board the serang's boat who is used to working in +ships--a khalasi from Gujarat. He might do something on board your +Excellency's ship. If this vessel sank, according to the plan, the +Firangi would not be able to get aboard the others, and they would have +time to sink slowly." + +"Barik allah {bravo!}! It is a good idea. Bid the mistri come aboard at +once." + +Hubbo sent a long hail over the water. The serang cast off the rope by +which he had made fast to the sloop, and the petala came slowly down +until it was abreast of the subahdar's vessel. Hossain, Desmond, and +Karim stepped aboard, the last carrying a small box of tools. Only the +Bengali was left in the boat. All salaamed low to the subahdar. + +"This, huzur, is my friend," said Hubbo, presenting his brother. "This is +the mistri, and this his assistant." + +"Good!" said the subahdar. "Go down into the hold, mistri: look to the +holes; if they are not large enough make them larger, and as quickly as +you can." + +Desmond with Karim dived down into the hold. It was filled with earth, +except where a gangway shored up with balks of timber had been left to +give access to the holes that had been drilled and temporarily stopped. +After a few words from the subahdar, Hubbo and his brother followed +Desmond below. + +Half an hour later, Hubbo climbed up through the hatchway and approached +the subahdar, who was pacing the deck, giving many an anxious glance down +the river. + +"The mistri has bored another hole, huzur. He said the more holes the +better. Perhaps your Excellency will deign to see whether you regard it +as sufficient." + +"Nay, I should defile my clothes," said the subahdar, not relishing the +thought of descending into the malodorous depths. + +"As your Excellency pleases," said Hubbo, salaaming. + +Then the gravity of his charge appeared to overcome the subahdar's +scruples. Gathering his robes close about him, he stepped to the hatchway +and lowered himself into the hold. + +"We must hasten," he said. "The ships of the Firangi may appear at any +moment, and I must be on the lookout. + +"Meantime," he added to Hubbo, "you keep watch." + +For a man of his build he was fairly active. Dropping on to the loose +earth, he scrambled over it towards the oil lamp by whose light the +mistri and his assistant were working. + +"This, huzur," said Hossain, pointing to a circular cut in the planking +of the vessel, "is the new hole. It is not yet driven through, but if +your Excellency thinks it sufficient--" + +The subahdar craned forward to examine it. "Khubber dar {look out}!" said +Desmond in a low voice. + +Hossain had only waited for this signal. He threw himself on the stooping +subahdar and bore him to the floor, at the same time stuffing a gag +between his teeth. In a couple of minutes he was lying bound and +helpless. His ornate garment was but little sullied. It had been stripped +from him by the mistri, who hastily donned it over his own scanty +raiment, together with the subahdar's turban. + +"How will that do, Hossain?" asked Desmond with a smile. + +The serang held up the oil lamp to inspect him. With his other hand he +slightly altered the set of the turban and rearranged the folds of the +robe. + +"That is excellent, sahib," he said. "A little more girth would perhaps +have been better, but in the distance no one will notice." + +Then calling to Hubbo, he said that all was ready. Hossain clambered +through the hatchway, leaving Desmond concealed behind a large timber +upright, supporting the deck. As soon as the serang had reached his side, +Hubbo called to the men on watch and said: + +"Hai, Ali, Chedi, come here!" + +"Jo hukm {as ordered}!" replied one of the men. Two of the three hurried +aft, and at Hubbo's bidding, swung down into the hold. The serang ordered +them to go towards the lamp. They groped their way in that direction; +Desmond sprang up through the hatchway; it was clapped down and firmly +secured, and the subahdar with two-thirds of his crew was a prisoner in +the hold. The third man at the far end of the boat had not seen or heard +anything of what had happened. + +So far the plot had succeeded admirably. Whatever order might reach the +waiting vessels, it would not be given by the subahdar. The question now +was, how to prevent the men in charge of the vessels and the authorities +in Tanna Fort from becoming suspicious. The latter would not be +difficult. Manik Chand would gain nothing by blocking the fairway unless +it were absolutely necessary to do so, and, in common with other of the +Nawab's lieutenants, he had an overweening confidence in the power of the +forts to repel an attack from the English ships. For this reason it was +advisable to make the minds of the other men easy, and Desmond soon hit +on a plan. + +"You had better return to your sloop, Hubbo," he said. "Send a message to +the men on the other vessels that I--the subahdar, you know--have made up +my mind to allow one of the enemy's ships to pass me before giving the +signal. I shall thus capture one at least, and it may be the admiral's." + +Hubbo set off, and when he reached his own vessel he sent a boat with a +message to each of the ships in turn. Meanwhile, thinking the appearance +of a petala alongside of the subahdar's sloop might awaken suspicion or +at least curiosity in the fort, Desmond decided to send it down the river +in charge of Hossain. He was thus left alone on deck with the subahdar's +third man. + +For a time the man, standing far forward, was unaware of the striking +change in the personality garbed in the subahdar's clothes. But glancing +back at length, he started, looked a second time, and after a moment's +hesitation walked down the deck. + +"Go back to your post," said Desmond sternly, "and see that you keep a +good lookout for the Firangi's ships." + +The man salaamed and returned to the prow in manifest bewilderment. More +than once he looked back as he heard strange knockings from below. +Desmond only smiled. If the sound was heard from the forts, it would be +regarded merely as a sign that the preparations for sinking the vessel +were not yet completed. + +Time passed on, and ever and anon Desmond looked eagerly down the river +for a sign of the oncoming fleet. At last, somewhere about midday, he +observed signs of excitement in Tanna Fort, and almost simultaneously saw +a puff of smoke and heard a report from one of its guns. + +Shortly afterwards he observed the spars of a British-built ship slowly +approaching upstream. In full confidence that the scheme for blocking the +river was now frustrated, he awaited with patience the oncoming of the +fleet, wondering whether the forts would make a determined resistance. + +Slowly the vessel drew nearer. Another shot was fired from the fort, with +what result Desmond could not tell. But immediately afterwards he heard +the distant report of a heavy gun, followed by a crash near at hand, and +a babel of yells. A shot from the British ship had plumped right in the +center of Tanna Fort. At the same moment Desmond recognized the +figurehead. + +"'Tis the Tyger!" he said to himself with a smile. "Won't Captain Latham +grin when he sees me in this rig!" + +Then he laughed aloud, for the valiant defenders of Tanna Fort had not +waited for a second shot. They were swarming helter skelter out of harm's +way, rushing at the top of their speed up the river and leaving their +fortress to its fate. On the other bank the garrison of Aligarh Fort had +also taken flight, and were streaming along with excited cries in the +direction of Calcutta. + +The man in the bows of the sloop looked amazedly at the new subahdar. Why +did he laugh? Why did he not wave the green flag that lay at his hand? +When were the men who had gone below going to knock out the stoppings of +the holes and take to the boat with himself and their commander? But the +subahdar still stood laughing. + +All at once Desmond, remembering the real subahdar below, asked himself: +what if he drove out the bungs and scuttled the vessel? But the question +brought a smile to his lips. He could not conceive of the Bengali's +playing such a heroic part, and he possessed his soul in peace. + +Now the Tyger was in full sight, and behind her Desmond saw the +well-remembered Kent, Admiral Watson's flagship. The stampede from the +forts had evidently been observed on board, for firing had ceased, and +boats were already being lowered and filled with men. + +Desmond waited. The Tyger's boats, he saw, were making for Tanna Fort: +the Kent's for Aligarh. But one of the latter was heading straight for +the sloop. Desmond could not resist the temptation to a joke. Making +himself look as important as he could, he stood by the gunwale watching +with an air of dignity the oncoming of the boat. It was in command of a +young lieutenant. The men bent to their oars with a will, and Desmond +could soon hear the voice of the officer as he called to his crew. + +But his amusement was mingled with amazement and delight when, in the big +form sitting in the bow of the boat, he recognized no other than his old +messmate, his old comrade in the Fight of the Carts--William Bulger. The +joke would be even better than he had expected. + +The boat drew closer: it was level with the nose of the sloop; and the +lieutenant sang out the command, "Ship oars!" It came alongside. + +"Bulger," cried the lieutenant, "skip aboard and announce us to that old +peacock up on deck." + +"Ay, ay, sir," replied Bulger, "which his feathers will be plucked, or my +name en't Bulger." + +At the side of the sloop lay the dinghy intended to convey the subahdar +and his men ashore when the work of sinking had been started. It was made +fast to the vessel by a rope. Bulger sprang into the dinghy and then +began an ascent so clever, and at the same time so comical, that Desmond +had much ado not to spoil his joke by a premature explosion of laughter. +The burly seaman swarmed up the rope like a monkey, clasping it with his +legs as he took each upward grip. But the comedy of his actions was +provided by his hook. Having only one arm--an arm, it is true, with the +biceps of a giant--he could not clutch the rope in the ordinary way. But +at each successive spring he dug his hook into the side of the vessel, +and mounted with amazing rapidity, talking to himself all the time. + +"Avast, there!" he shouted, as with a final heave upon the hook dug into +the gunwale he hoisted himself on deck. "Haul down your colors, matey, +which they make a pretty pictur', they do." + +He came overpoweringly towards Desmond, his arm and stump spread wide as +if to embrace him. + +"I may be wrong," said Desmond, "but have I not the pleasure of +addressing Mr. William Bulger?" + +Bulger started as if shot. His broad face spelled first blank amazement, +then incredulity, then surprised belief. Spreading his legs wide and +bending his knees, he rested his hand on one and his hook on the other, +shut one eye, and stuck his tongue out at the corner of his mouth. + +"By the Dutchman!" he exclaimed, "if it don't beat cock fighting! Sure, +'tis Mr. Burke himself! Anna Maria! But for why did you go for to make +yourself sich a Guy Faux guy, sir?" + +"How are you, old fellow?" said Desmond heartily. "I am a bit of a +scarecrow, no doubt, but we've won the trick, man. The real guy is down +below, dead from fright by this time, I expect. + +"Sorry to give you the trouble of boarding, sir," he added, as the +lieutenant came over the side. "If you'll take me into your boat I'll be +glad to report to the admiral or to Colonel Clive." + +"By jimmy, Mr. Burke!" said the lieutenant, laughing, "you've got a way +of your own of popping up at odd times and in odd places. Come with me, +by all means--just as you are, if you please. The admiral wouldn't miss +the look of you for anything. By George! 'tis a rare bit of play acting. +Did I hear you say you've got some natives under hatchways?" + +"Yes; the owner of this finery is below with two of his men. You can hear +him now." + +There was a violent and sustained knocking below deck. + +"I'll send my man to release him. The fleet are all coming up, sir?" + +"Yes; the Bridgewater and Kingfisher are close in our wake. Come along; +we'll catch the admiral before he goes ashore." + + + +Chapter 28: In which Captain Barker has cause to rue the day when +he met Mr. Diggle; and our hero continues to wipe off old scores. + + +Desmond received a warm welcome both from Admiral Watson and Colonel +Clive. His account of the manner in which he had defeated Manik Chand's +scheme for blocking the river was received with shouts of laughter, while +his ingenuity and courage were warmly commended by both officers. Indeed, +the admiral, always more impulsive than Clive, offered him on the spot a +lieutenancy in the fleet, and was not very well pleased when Desmond +politely declined the honor. He caught a gleam of approval in Clive's +eyes, and later in the day, when he saw his hero alone, he felt well +rewarded. + +"A naval lieutenant ranks higher than a lieutenant in the army--I suppose +you know that, Burke?" said Clive. + +"Yes, sir." + +"And you're only a cadet. From today you are a lieutenant, my lad. I am +pleased with you, and whatever his enemies say of Bob Clive, no one ever +said of him that he forgot a friend." + +The forces proceeded to Calcutta next day, and retook the town with +surprising ease. Manik Chand was so much alarmed by seeing the effect of +the big guns of the fleet that he abandoned the place almost without +striking a blow, and when the British troops entered they were too late +even to make any prisoners save a few of the ragtag and bobtail in the +rear. + +Mr. Merriman returned to Calcutta a few days later. Desmond was grieved +to observe how rapidly he was aging. In spite of Clive's recommendation +to keep silence he could not refrain from telling his friend what he had +discovered about the missing ladies; and he did not regret it, for the +knowledge that they were alive and, when last heard of, out of Peloti's +clutches, acted like a tonic. Merriman was all eagerness to set off and +search for them himself; but Desmond pointed out the danger of such a +course, and he reluctantly agreed to wait a little longer, and see +whether any news could be obtained during the operations which Clive was +planning against the Nawab. + +Meanwhile, Desmond learned from Bulger what had happened to him since the +fall of Calcutta. He was one of the hundred and forty-six thrown into the +Black Hole. + +"'Tis only by the mercy of the Almighty I'm here today," he said +solemnly. "I saw what 'twould be as soon as the door of that Black Hole +was locked, and me and some others tried to force it. 'Tweren't no good. +Mr. Holwell--he's a brave man, an' no mistake--begged an' prayed of us +all to be quiet; but Lor' bless you, he might ha' saved his breath. 'Twas +a hot night; we soon began to sweat most horrible an' feel a ragin' +thirst. We took off most of our clothes, an' waved our hats to set the +air a-movin'; which 'twas hard enough work, 'cos we was packed so tight. +I en't a-goin' to tell you all the horrors o' that night, sir; I'd like +uncommon to forget 'em, though I don't believe I never shall. 'Twas so +awful that many a poor wretch begged of the Moors outside to fire on 'em. +Worst was when the old jamadar put skins o' water in at the window. My +God! them about me fought like demons, which if I hadn't flattened myself +against the wall I should ha' been crushed or trodden to death, like most +on 'em. For me, I couldn't get near the water; I sucked my shirt sleeves, +an' 'tis my belief 'twas on'y that saved me from goin' mad. A man what +was next me took out his knife an' slit a vein, 'cos he couldn't bear the +agony no longer. Soon arter, I fell in a dead faint, an' knowed no more +till I found myself on my back outside, with a Moor chuckin' water at me. +They let me go, along with some others; and a rotten old hulk I was, +there en't no mistake about that. Why, bless you, my skin come out all +boils as thick as barnacles on a hull arter a six months' voyage, all +'cos o' being in sich bad air without water. And then the fever came +aboard, an' somehow or other I got shipped to the mounseers' hospital at +Chandernagore, which they was very kind to me, sir; there en't no denyin' +that. I may be wrong, but I could take my oath, haffidavy, an' solemn +will an' testament that a mounseer's got a heart inside of his body arter +all, which makes him all the better chap to have a slap at if you come to +think of the why an' wherefore of it." + +"But how came you on board the Tyger?" + +"Well, when my boils was gone an' the fever slung overboard, I got down +to Fulta an' held on the slack there; an' when the ships come up, they +sent for me, 'cos havin' sailed up an' down the river many a time, they +thought as how I could do a bit o' pilotin', there not bein' enough Dutch +pilots to go round. An' I ha' had some fun, too, which I wonder I can +laugh arter that Black Hole and all. By thunder! 'tis a merry sight to +see the Moors run. The very look of a cutlass a'most turns 'un white, and +they well-nigh drops down dead if they see a sailor man. Why, t'other day +at Budge Budge--they ought to call it Fudge Fudge now, seems to me--the +Jack tars went ashore about nightfall to help the lobsters storm the fort +in the dark. But Colonel Clive he was dog tired, an' went to his bed, +sayin' as how he'd lead a boardin' party in the mornin'. That warn't +exactly beans an' bacon; nary a man but would ha' took a big dose o' +fever if they'd laid out on the fields all night. + +"Anyways, somewhere about eleven, an' pitch dark, a Jack which his name +is Strahan--a Scotchman, by what they say--went off all alone by himself, +to have a sort of private peep at that there fort. He was pretty well +filled up wi' grog, or pr'aps he wouldn't ha' been quite so venturesome. +Well, he waded up to his chin in a ditch o' mud what goes round the fort, +with his pistols above his head. When he gets over, bang goes one pistol, +an' he sets up a shout: 'One and all, my boys! one and all, +hurray!'--a-dreamin' I s'pose as he was captain of a boardin' party an a +crew o' swabs behind him. Up he goes, up the bastion; bang goes t'other +pistol; then he outs with his cutlass, a-roarin' hurray with a voice like +a twelve pounder; down goes three o' them Moors; another breaks Jack's +cutlass with his simitar; bless you, what's he care? don't care a straw, +which his name is Strahan; he've got a fist, he have, an' he dashes it in +the Moor's face, collars his simitar, cuts his throat and sings out, 'Ho, +mateys! this 'ere fort's mine!' + +"Up comes three or four of his mates what heard his voice; they swings +round the cannon on the bastion an' turns it on the enemy; bang! bang! +and bless your heart, the Moors cut and run, an' the fort was ourn." + +At the moment Desmond thought that Bulger was drawing the long bow. But +meeting Captain Speke of the Kent a little later, he asked how much truth +there was in the story. + +"'Tis all true," said the captain, laughing, "but not the whole truth. +The day after Strahan's mad performance the admiral sends for him: +discipline must be maintained, you know. 'What's this I hear about you?' +says Mr. Watson, with a face of thunder. Strahan bobbed, and scratched +his head, and twirled his hat in his hand, and says: 'Why to be sure, +sir, 'twas I took the fort, and I hope there ain't no harm in it!' By +George! 'twas as much as the admiral could do to keep a straight face. He +got the fellow to tell us about it: we had our faces in our handkerchiefs +all the time. Then Mr. Watson gave him a pretty rough wigging, and wound +up by saying that he'd consult me as to the number of lashes to be laid +on. + +"You should have seen the fellow's face! As he went out of the cabin I +heard him mutter: 'Well, if I'm to be flogged for this 'ere haction, be +hanged if I ever take another fort alone by myself as long as I live!'" + +"Surely he wasn't flogged?" said Desmond, laughing heartily. + +"Oh, no! Mr. Watson told us as a matter of form to put in a plea for the +fellow, and then condescended to let him off. Pity he's such a loose +fish!" + +For two months Desmond remained with Clive. He was with him at the +capture of Hugli, and in that brisk fight at Calcutta on the fifth of +February, which gave the Nawab his first taste of British quality. +Sirajuddaula was encamped to the northeast of the town with a huge army. +In a heavy fog, about daybreak, Clive came up at the head of a mixed +force of king's troops, sepoys and sailors, some two thousand men in all. +Hordes of Persian cavalry charged him through the mist, but they were +beaten off, and Clive forced his way through the enemy's camp until he +came near the Nawab's own tents, pitched in Omichand's garden. +Sirajuddaula himself was within an ace of being captured. His troops made +but a poor stand against the British, and by midday the battle was over. + +Scared by this defeat, the Nawab was ready to conclude with the Company +the treaty which long negotiations had failed to effect. By this treaty +the trading privileges granted to the Company by the emperor of Delhi +were confirmed; the Nawab agreed to pay full compensation for the losses +sustained by the Company and its servants; and the right to fortify +Calcutta was conceded. The longstanding grievances of the Company were +thus, on paper, redressed. + +A day or two after the battle a ship arrived with the news that war had +been declared in Europe between England and France. Efforts to maintain +neutrality between the English and French in Bengal having failed, Clive +wished the Nawab to join him in an attack on the French settlements in +Bengal. This the Nawab refused to do, though he wrote, promising that he +would hold as enemies all who were enemies of Clive--a promise that bore +bitter fruit before many months had passed. + +The French were keen rivals of the Company in the trade of India, and +constantly took advantage of native troubles to score a point in the +game. Clive had come to Bengal with the full intention of making the +Company, whose servant he was, supreme; and having secured the treaty +with Sirajuddaula he resolved to turn his arms against the French. They +were suspected of helping the Nawab in his expedition against Calcutta: +it was known that the Nawab, treating his engagements with reckless +levity and faithlessness, was trying to persuade Bussy, the French +commander in the Dekkan, to help him to expel the British from Bengal. +There was excuse enough for an attack on Chandernagore. + +But before Clive could open hostilities, he was required, by an old +arrangement with the Mogul, to obtain permission from the Nawab. This +permission was at length got from him by Omichand. The sack of Calcutta +by the Nawab had caused Omichand great loss, and, hoping in part to +retrieve it, he made his peace with Clive and the Council, and was then +selected to accompany Mr. Watts when he went as British representative to +Murshidabad. The wily Sikh, working always for his own ends, contrived to +make the unstable young despot believe that the French were tricking him, +and in a fit of passion he sealed a letter allowing Admiral Watson to +make war upon them. He repented of it immediately, but the letter was +gone. + +On the day after it reached the admiral, March twelfth, 1757, Clive sent +a summons to Monsieur Renault, the governor of Chandernagore, to +surrender the fort. No reply was received that day, and Clive resolved, +failing a satisfactory answer within twenty-four hours, to read King +George's declaration of war and attack the French. + +Desmond was breakfasting among a number of his fellow officers next +morning when up came Hossain, the serang who had accompanied him on his +eventful journeys up and down the Hugli. Lately he had been employed, on +Desmond's recommendation, in bringing supplies up the river for the +troops. The man salaamed and said that he wished to say a few words +privately to the sahib. Desmond rose, and went apart with him. + +At sunrise, said the man, a vessel flying Dutch colors had dropped down +the river past the English fleet. Her name was Dutch, and her destination +Rotterdam; but Hossain was certain that she was really the Good Intent, +which Desmond had pointed out to him as they passed Chandernagore, and +which they had more than once seen since in the course of their journeys. +Her appearance had attracted some attention on the fleet; and the Tyger +had sent a shot after her, ordering her to heave to; but having a strong +northeast wind behind her, she took no notice of the signal and held on +her course. + +Desmond thanked Hossain for the information, and, leaving his breakfast +unfinished, went off at once to see Clive, whom he was to join that +morning on a tour of inspection of the northwest part of the French +settlement. + +"Well, I don't see what we can do," said Clive, when Desmond repeated the +news to him. "Mr. Watson no doubt suspected her when it was too late. +Nothing but a regular chase could have captured her after she had passed. +Ships can't be spared for that; they've much more important work on +hand." + +"Still, 'tis a pity, sir," said Desmond. "'Tis not only that Captain +Barker is an interloper; he has been in league with pirates, and his +being at Chandernagore all these months means no good." + +"It means, at any rate, that he hasn't been able to get a cargo. Trade's +at a standstill. Well, I'd give something to lay Mr. Barker and his crew +by the heels--on behalf of the Company, Burke, for don't forget, as some +of our friends of the Calcutta Council do, that I am here to save the +Company, not their private property. 'Tis too late to stop the vessel +now." + +"I'd like to try, sir." + +"I dare say you would. You're as ready to take risks as I am," he added, +with his characteristic pursing of the lips; "and 'pon my word, you're +just as lucky! For I'm lucky, Burke; there's no doubt of it. That affair +at Calcutta might have done for us but for the morning mist. I'd like to +try myself. It would punish a set of rogues, and discourage interloping, +to the benefit of the Company. But I can't spare men for the job. Barker +has no doubt a large crew; they'll be on the lookout for attack; no, I +can't touch it." + +Desmond hesitated for a moment. He did not wish to lose the fighting at +Chandernagore, but he had the strongest personal reasons for desiring the +arrest of the Good Intent. + +"Do you think, sir, we shall capture this place tomorrow?" he asked +suddenly. + +"Scarcely, my boy," said Clive, smiling; "nor by tomorrow week, unless +the French have forgotten how to fight. Why do you ask?" + +"Because if you'd give me leave I'd like to have a shot at the Good +Intent--provided I got back in time to be with you in the fighting line, +sir." + +"Well, I can't keep things waiting for you. And it seems a wild-goose +chase--rather a hazardous one." + +"I'd risk that, sir. I could get together some men in Calcutta, and I'd +hope to be back here in a couple of days." + +"Well, well, Burke, you'd wheedle the Mogul himself. Anyone could tell +you're an Irishman. Get along, then; do your best, and if you don't come +back I'll try to take Chandernagore without you." + +He smiled as he slapped Desmond on the shoulder. Well pleased with his +ready consent, Desmond hurried away, got a horse, and riding hard reached +Calcutta by eight o'clock and went straight to Mr. Merriman. Explaining +what was afoot, he asked for the loan of the men of the Hormuzzeer. +Merriman at once agreed; Captain Barker was a friend of Peloti's; and he +needed no stronger inducement. + +Desmond hurried down to the river; the Hormuzzeer was lying off +Cruttenden Ghat; and Mr. Toley for once broke through his settled sadness +of demeanor when he learned of the expedition proposed. + +While Toley collected the crew and made his preparations, Desmond +consulted a pilot. The Good Intent had passed Calcutta an hour before; +but the man said that, though favored by the wind, she would scarcely get +past the bar at Mayapur on the evening tide. She might do so if +exceptionally lucky; in that case there would be very little chance of +overtaking her. + +Less than two hours after Desmond reached Calcutta two budgeros left +Cruttenden Ghat. Each was provided with a double complement of men, and +although the sails filled with a strong following wind, their oars were +kept constantly in play. The passengers on board were for the most part +unaccustomed to this luxurious mode of traveling. There were a dozen +lascars; Hossain the serang; Karim, the man saved by Desmond at +Chandernagore; Bulger and the second mate of the Hormuzzeer, and Mr. +Toley, who, like Desmond and the serang, was clothed, much to Bulger's +amusement, as a fairly well-to-do ryot. + +For some hours the tide was contrary; but when it turned, the budgeros, +under the combined impulses of sail, oar and current, made swift +progress, arousing some curiosity among the crews of riverside craft, +little accustomed to the sight of budgeros moving so rapidly. + +Approaching Mayapur, Desmond descried the spars of the Good Intent a long +way ahead. Was there enough water to allow her to pass the bar? he +wondered. Apparently there was, for she kept straight on her course under +full sail. Desmond bit his lips with vexation, and had almost given up +hope, though he did not permit any slackening of speed, when to his joy +he saw the vessel strike her topsails, then the rest of her canvas. + +He at once ran his boats to the shore at Mayapur. There were a number of +river craft at the place, so that the movements of his budgeros, if +observed from the Good Intent, were not likely to awaken suspicion. On +landing he went to the house of a native merchant, Babu Aghor Nath Bose, +to whom he had a letter from Mr. Merriman. + +"Can you arrange for us," he said, when civilities had been exchanged, +"tonight, the loan of two shabby old country boats?" + +The native considered. + +"I think I can, sahib," he said at length. "I would do much for Merriman +Sahib. A man I frequently employ is now anchored off my ghat. No doubt, +for fair pay, he and another might be persuaded to lend their craft." + +"Very well, be good enough to arrange it. I only require the boats for a +few hours tomorrow morning. Do you think twenty rupees would suffice?" + +The native opened his eyes. He himself would not have offered so much. +But he said: + +"Doubtless that will suffice, sahib. The matter is settled." + +"I shall meet you in an hour. Thank you." + +Returning to the budgeros, Desmond instructed Hossain to go into the +bazaar and buy up all the fresh fruit he could find. The sales for the +day were over; but Hossain hunted up the fruit sellers and bargained so +successfully that when he returned he was accompanied by a whole gang of +coolies, bearing what seemed to Desmond an appalling quantity of melons, +all for thirty rupees. + +Before this, however, Aghor Nath Bose had reported that the hire of the +two boats was duly arranged. They were open boats, little more than +barges, with a small cabin or shelter aft. Their crews had been dismissed +and had taken their belongings ashore; both were empty of cargo. Desmond +went with Bulger on board and arranged a number of bamboos crosswise on +the boats, covering up the empty spaces which would usually be occupied +by merchandise. Over the bamboos he placed a layer of thin matting, and +on this, when Hossain returned, he ordered the coolies to put the melons. +To a casual observer it would have appeared that the boats were laden +with a particularly heavy cargo of the golden fruit. + +An hour before dawn, the lascars and others from the Hormuzzeer slipped +quietly from the budgeros on board the country boats, and bestowed +themselves as best they could under the bamboo deck supporting the +melons. It was cool in the early morning, although the hot season was +approaching; but Desmond did not envy the men their close quarters. They +were so much excited, however, at the adventure before them, and so eager +to earn the liberal reward promised them if it succeeded, that not a man +murmured. The Europeans had cooler quarters in the rude cabins, where +they were hidden from prying eyes under miscellaneous native wraps. + +Desmond had learned from the pilot that it would be nearly eight o'clock +before the depth of water over the bar was sufficient to allow a ship +like the Good Intent to proceed with safety. A little before daybreak the +two boats crept out from the ghat. It was well to avoid curiosity before +Mayapur woke up. Desmond steered the first, Hossain the second; and +besides the steersmen there were two men visible on the deck of each. + +The tide was running up, but the wind still held from the northeast, and +though moderated in force since the evening it was strong enough to take +them slowly down toward the Good Intent. The sky was lightening, but a +slight mist hung over the river. Desmond kept a close lookout ahead, and +after about half an hour he caught sight of the hull of the Good Intent, +looming before him out of the mist. Allowing the second boat to come +alongside, he turned and spoke to the serang. + +"Now, Hossain, there she is. Hail her." + +"Hai, hai!" shouted the man. "Do the sahibs want to buy any fresh fruit?" + +An oath floated down from the stern. Captain Barker was there, peering +intently through the mist up the river. + +"Good melons, sahib, all fresh, and not too ripe. Cheap as ragi, sahib." + +The mate had joined the captain; the Dutch pilot stood by, smoking a +pipe. The fruit boats had by this time come under the stern of the +vessel, and Desmond heard the mate say: + +"We came away in such a hurry, sir, that we hadn't time to take in a +supply of vegetables. Melons'll keep, sir, if they en't overripe." + +Barker growled, then bent over and called to the serang. "How much?" + +"Very cheap, sahib, very cheap. I will come aboard." + +"Then be quick about it: we're going to trip the anchor, melons or no +melons. D'ye hear?" + +Hossain ran down the sail and clambered up the chains; which the other +boatmen made fast to a rope thrown from the deck. Desmond also lowered +his sail, steering so as to approach the port quarter of the Good Intent, +the serang's boat being on the starboard. No rope was thrown to him, but +he found that the tide was now only strong enough to neutralize the wind, +and a stroke every now and again with the paddle at the stern kept his +boat stationary. + +Meanwhile there came from the deck the singsong of men heaving up the +anchor. When the serang stepped on board the greater part of the crew of +the Good Intent were forward. Little time was spent in haggling. A melon +was thrown up as a sample, and the price asked was so extraordinarily low +that Captain Barker evidently thought he had got a bargain. + +"Heave 'em up," he said, "and if they en't all up to sample--" + +He broke off, no doubt believing that his fierce scowl was sufficient to +point his threat. + +The serang hailed Desmond to come alongside. A few sweeps of the paddle +brought the boat close underneath the Good Intent's side, and a second +rope enabled him to make fast. + +He swarmed up the rope, followed by one of the boatmen. The other, on the +boat, began to fill a basket with melons, as if preparing to send them on +board. At the same time Karim joined Hossain from the other side, so that +there were now four of the party on deck. + +At a sign from Desmond, the two natives, carrying out instructions +previously given, strolled toward the companionway. Hossain had started a +conversation with the captain and mate, telling them about the British +fleet he had passed as he came down the river. The Dutch pilot looked on, +stolidly puffing his pipe. + +Desmond stepped to the side of the vessel as though to hoist the basket +with the running tackle. Making a sign to the men below, he called in a +loud voice: + +"Tano!" + +Instantly the men swarmed up the rope. At the signal, misleading to the +crew of the Good Intent, man after man crawled from beneath the matting +on the boat below, and clambered up the ropes, led by Bulger on one side +and Mr. Toley on the other. They made little noise, and that was drowned +by the singsong of the sailors and the grinding of the cables; the pilot +with his back to the bulwarks saw nothing, and before Captain Barker knew +that anything unusual was occurring both Bulger and Toley were tumbling +over the sides. + +The captain stood almost petrified with amazement as he saw Bulger's red +face rising like the morning sun. He stepped back apace. + +"What the--" + +The exclamation was never completed. Desmond stepped up to him and in a +low voice said: + +"In the name of his Majesty, King George, I call upon you, Captain +Barker, to surrender this ship." + +He had a leveled pistol in his hand. Bulger with a cutlass sprang to one +side, and Toley ranged himself on the other. Hossain had joined the two +boatmen at the companionway; all had brought out pistols from the folds +of their clothing, and the companionway commanded access to the ship's +armory. + +Barker, who had grown purple at the sight of Bulger, now turned a sickly +white. The mate dashed forward, calling to the crew, who, seeing that +something was amiss, came along with a rush, arming themselves with +belaying pins and any other weapons that came handy. Toley, however, +leaving the cowed and speechless captain to Desmond, stepped toward the +men. They recognized him at once and paused doubtfully. + +"You know me," he said. "I'm a man of few words. You won't go further +this voyage. Captain Barker has surrendered the ship. You'll drop those +desperate things in your hands and go for'ard. Show a leg, now!" + +The men looked from one to another, then at the captain, who was at that +moment handing over his sword to Desmond. If Captain Barker was too badly +beaten to swear he was in poor case indeed. The crew's hesitation was but +momentary; under Toley's sad gaze they sullenly flung down their weapons +and went forward. + +Only then did the captain find speech. But it was to utter a fearful +curse, ending with the name: + +"Diggle." + + + +Chapter 29: In which our hero does not win the Battle of Plassey: +but, where all do well, gains as much glory as the rest. + + +Leaving Mr. Toley to bring the Good Intent up to Calcutta, Desmond +hurried back in advance and remained in the town just long enough to +inform Mr. Merriman of the happy result of his adventure and to change +into his own clothes, and then returned to Chandernagore on horseback, as +he had come. He found Clive encamped two miles to the west of the fort. +No reply having reached him from Monsieur Renault, Clive had read the +declaration of war as he had threatened, and opened hostilities by an +attack on an outpost. + +"You've no need to tell me you've succeeded, Burke," he said when Desmond +presented himself. "I see it in your eyes. But I've no time to hear your +story now. It must wait until we have seen the result of the day's +fighting. Not that I expect much of it in this quarter. We can't take the +place with the land force only, and I won't throw away life till the +admiral has tried the effect of his guns." + +The French in Chandernagore were not well prepared to stand a determined +siege. The governor, Monsieur Renault, had none of the military genius of +a Dupleix or a Bussy. With him were only some eight hundred fighting men, +of whom perhaps half were Europeans. Instead of concentrating his defense +on the fort, he scattered his men about the town, leaving the weakest +part of his defenses, the eastern curtain, insufficiently manned. + +He believed that Admiral Watson would find it impossible to bring his +biggest ships within gunshot, and fancied that by sinking some vessels at +the narrowest part of the river he would keep the whole British fleet +unemployed--a mistake that was to cost him dear. + +By the night of March fourteenth Clive had driven in the outposts. The +immediate effect of this was the desertion of two thousand Moors sent to +Renault's assistance by Nandkumar the faujdar of Hugli. A continuous +bombardment was kept up until the nineteenth, when Admiral Watson arrived +from Calcutta with the Kent, the Tyger, and the Salisbury. + +Next morning an officer was despatched in a boat to summon Renault once +more to surrender. Rowing between the sunken vessels, whose masts showed +above water, he took soundings and found that with careful handling the +men-o'-war might safely pass. Once more Renault refused to surrender. His +offer to ransom the fort was declined by the admiral, who the same night +sent the master of the Kent to buoy the channel. Two nights later, in +pitch darkness, several English boats were rowed with muffled oars to the +sunken vessels. Their crews fixed lanterns to the masts of these in such +a way that the light, while guiding the warships, would be invisible from +the fort. + +Early next morning Clive captured the battery commanding the river +passage, and the three British ships ran up with the tide. The Kent and +Tyger opened fire on the southeast and northeast bastions, and these two +vessels bore the brunt of a tremendous cannonade from the fort. The +French artillery was well served, doing fearful damage on board the +British vessels. On the Kent, save the admiral himself and one +lieutenant, every officer was killed or wounded. One shot struck down +Captain Speke and shattered the leg of his son, a brave boy of sixteen, +who refused to allow his wound to be examined until his father had been +attended to, and then bore the pain of the rough amputation of those days +without a murmur. + +Meanwhile Clive's men had climbed to the roofs of houses near the fort, +which commanded the French batteries; and his musketeers poured in a +galling fire and shot down the gunners at their work. As the walls of the +barracks and fort were shattered by the guns from the ships, the Sepoys +crept closer and closer, awaiting the word to storm. + +The morning drew on. Admiral Watson began to fear that when the tide fell +his big guns would be at too low a level to do further execution. There +was always considerable rivalry between himself and Clive, fed by the +stupid jealousy of some of the Calcutta Council. While Clive, foreseeing +even more serious work later, was anxious to spare his men, Watson was +equally eager to reap all possible credit for a victory over the French. + +As it happened, neither had to go to the last extremity, for about +half-past nine a white flag was seen flying from the fort. Lieutenant +Brereton of the Kent and Captain Eyre Coote from the land force were sent +to arrange the surrender, and a little later the articles of capitulation +were signed by Admirals Watson and Pocock, and by Clive. + +Desmond was by no means satisfied with the part he played in the fight. +In command of a company of Sepoys he was one of the first to rush the +shore battery and take post under the walls of the barracks in readiness +to lead a storming party. But, as he complained afterward to his friend +Captain Latham of the Tyger, the fleet had the honors of the day. + +"After all, you're better off than I am," grumbled the captain. "How +would you like to have your laurels snatched away? Admiral Pocock ought +to have remained on the Cumberland down the river and left the Tyger to +me. But he didn't see the fun of being out of the fighting; and up he +came posthaste and hoisted his flag on my ship, putting my nose badly out +of joint, I can tell you. Still, one oughtn't to grumble. It doesn't +matter much who gets the credit so long as we've done our job. 'Tis all +in the day's work." + +The victory at Chandernagore destroyed the French power in Bengal. But it +turned out to be only the prelude to a greater event--an event which must +be reckoned as the foundation stone of the British Empire in India. It +sprang from the character of Sirajuddaula. That prince was a cruel +despot, but weak-willed, vacillating, and totally unable to keep a +friend. One day he would strut in some vainglorious semblance of dignity; +the next he would engage in drunken revels with the meanest and most +dissolute of his subjects. He insulted his commander-in-chief, Mir Jafar: +he offended the Seths, wealthy bankers of Murshidabad who had helped him +to his throne: he played fast and loose with everyone with whom he had +dealings. His own people were weary of him, and at length a plot was +hatched to dethrone him and set Mir Jafar in his place. + +Mr. Watts, the British agent in Murshidabad, communicated this design to +Clive and the Council of Calcutta, suggesting that they should cooperate +in deposing the vicious Nawab. They agreed, on the grounds that his +dishonesty and insolence showed that he had no real intention of abiding +by the terms of his treaty, and that he was constantly interfering with +the French. A treaty was accordingly drawn up with Mir Jafar, in which +the prospective Subah agreed to all the terms formerly agreed to by +Sirajuddaula. But Omichand, who was on bad terms with Mir Jafar and the +Seths, threatened to reveal the whole plot to the Nawab and have Mr. +Watts put to death, unless he were guaranteed in the treaty the payment +of a sum of money equivalent to nearly four hundred thousand pounds. + +Clive was so much disgusted with Omichand's double dealing that, though +he was ready to make him fair compensation for his losses in Calcutta, he +was not inclined to accede to his impudent demand. Yet it would be +dangerous to refuse him point blank. He therefore descended to a trick +which, whatever may be urged in its defense--the proved treachery of +Omichand, the customs of the country, the utter want of scruple shown by +the natives in their dealings--must ever remain a blot on a great man's +fame. + +Two treaties with Mir Jafar were drawn up; one on red paper, known as lal +kagaz, containing a clause embodying Omichand's demand; the other on +white, containing no such clause. Admiral Watson, with bluff honesty, +refused to have anything to do with the sham treaty; it was dishonorable, +he said, and to ask his signature was an affront. But his signature was +necessary to satisfy Omichand. At Clive's request, it was forged by Mr. +Lushington, a young writer of the Company's. The red treaty was shown to +Omichand; it bought his silence; he suspected nothing. + +The plot was now ripe. Omichand left Murshidabad; Mr. Watts slipped away; +and the Nawab, on being informed of his flight, wrote to Clive and +Watson, upbraiding them with breaking their treaty with him, and set out +to join his army. + +Clive left Chandernagore on June thirteenth, his guns, stores and +European soldiers being towed up the river in two hundred boats, the +Sepoys marching along the highway parallel with the right bank. Palti and +Katwa were successively occupied by his advance guard under Eyre Coote. +But a terrible rain storm on the eighteenth delayed his march, and next +day he received from Mir Jafar a letter that gave him no little +uneasiness. + +Mir Jafar announced that he had pretended to patch up his quarrel with +the Nawab and sworn to be loyal to him; but he added that the measures +arranged with Clive were still to be carried out. This strange message +suggested that Mir Jafar was playing off one against the other, or at +best sitting on the fence until he was sure of the victor. It was serious +enough to give pause to Clive. He was one hundred and fifty miles from +his base at Calcutta; before him was an unfordable river watched by a +vast hostile force. If Mir Jafar should elect to remain faithful to his +master the English army would in all likelihood be annihilated. In these +circumstances Clive wrote to the Committee of Council in Calcutta that he +would not cross the river until he was definitely assured that Mir Jafar +would join him. + +His decision seemed to be justified next day when he received a letter +from Mr. Watts at Khulna. On the day he left Murshidabad, said Mr. Watts, +Mir Jafar had denounced him as a spy and sworn to repel any attempt of +the English to cross the river. On receipt of this news Clive adopted a +course unusual with him. He called a Council of War, for the first and +last time in his career. Desmond was in Major Killpatrick's tent when the +summons to attend the Council reached that officer. + +"Burke, my boy," he said, "'tis a mighty odd thing. Mr. Clive is not +partial to Councils; has had enough of 'em at Madras first, and lately at +Calcutta. D'you know, I don't understand Mr. Clive; I don't believe any +one does. In the field he is as bold as a lion, fearless, quick to see +what to do at the moment, never losing a chance. Yet more than once I've +noticed, beforehand, a strange hesitation. He gets fits of the dumps, +broods, wonders whether he is doing the right thing, and is as touchy as +a bear with a sore head. Well, 'tis almost noon; I must be off; we'll see +what the Council has to say." + +Desmond watched the major almost with envy as he went off to this +momentous meeting. How he wished he was a little older, a little higher +in rank, so that he too might have the right to attend! He lay back in +the tent wondering what the result of the Council would be. + +"If they asked for my vote," he thought, "I'd say fight;" and then he +laughed at himself for venturing to have an opinion. + +By and by Major Killpatrick returned. + +"Well, my boy," he said, "we've carried our point, twelve against seven." + +"For fighting?" + +"No, my young firebrand; against fighting. You needn't look so chop +fallen. There'll be a fight before long; but we're going to run no risks. +We'll wait till the monsoon is over and we can collect enough men to +smash the Subah." + +"Was that Colonel Clive's decision?" + +"'Twas, indeed. But let me tell you, there was a comical thing to start +with. Lieutenant Hayter, one of Watson's men, was bid to the Council, but +the nincompoop was huffed because he wasn't allowed precedence of the +Company's captains. These naval men's airs are vastly amusing. He took +himself off. Then Mr. Clive put the case; fight at once, or wait. Against +the custom, he himself voted first--against immediate action. Then he +asked me and Grant in turn; we voted with him. 'Twas Eyre Coote's turn +next; he voted t'other way, and gave his reasons--uncommonly well, I must +admit. He said our men were in good spirits, and had been damped enough +by the rains. The Frenchman Law might come up and join the Nawab, and +then every froggy who entered our service after Chandernagore would +desert and fight against us. We're so far from Calcutta 'twould be +difficult to protect our communications. These were his reasons. I +watched Clive while Coote was speaking; he stuck his lips together and +stared at him; and, have you noticed? he squints a trifle when he looks +hard. Well, the voting went on, and ended as I said--twelve against +immediate action, seven for." + +"How did the Bengal men vote?" + +"I'm bound to say, for--except Le Beaume. 'Twas the Madras men who +outvoted 'em." + +"Well, with all respect, sir, I think the opinion of the Bengal men, who +know the people and the country, ought to have outweighed the opinion of +strangers. Still, it would be difficult to oppose Colonel Clive." + +Further conversation was cut short by the arrival of a messenger +summoning Desmond to attend the colonel. + +"Where is he?" he asked. + +"Under a clump of trees beyond the camp, sir. He's been there by himself +an hour or more." + +Desmond hurried off. On the way he met Major Coote. + +"Hullo, Burke," cried the major; "you've heard the news?" + +"Yes, and I'm sorry for it." + +"All smoke, my dear boy, all smoke. Colonel Clive has been thinking it +over, and has decided to disregard the decision of the Council and cross +the river at sunrise tomorrow." + +Desmond could not refrain from flinging up his hat and performing other +antics expressive of delight; he was caught in the act by Clive himself, +who was returning to his tent. + +"You're a madcap, Burke," he said. "Come to my tent." + +He employed Desmond during the next hour in writing orders to the +officers of his force. This consisted of about nine hundred Europeans, +two hundred Topasses, a few lascars, and some two thousand Sepoys. Eight +six-pounders and two howitzers formed the whole of the artillery. Among +the Europeans were about fifty sailors, some from the king's ships, some +from merchantmen. Among the latter were Mr. Toley and Bulger, whose +excellent service in capturing the Good Intent had enforced their request +to be allowed to accompany the little army. + +Shortly before dawn on June twenty-second Clive's men began to cross the +river. The passage being made in safety, they rested during the hot +hours, and resumed their march in the evening amid a heavy storm of rain, +often having to wade waist-high the flooded fields. Soon after midnight +the men, drenched to the skin, reached a mango grove somewhat north of +the village of Plassey: and there, as they lay down in discomfort to +snatch a brief sleep before dawn, they heard the sound of tom toms and +trumpets from the Nawab's camp three miles away. + +"'Tis a real comfort, that there noise," remarked Bulger as he stirred +his campfire with his hook. Desmond had come to bid him good night. "Ay, +true comfort to a sea-goin' man like me. For why? 'Cos it makes me feel +at home. Why, I don't sleep easy if there en't some sort o' +hullabaloo--wind or wave, or, if ashore, cats a-caterwaulin'. No, Mr. +Subah, Nawab, or whatsomdever you call yourself, you won't frighten Bill +Bulger with your tum-tum-tumin'. I may be wrong, Mr. Burke, which I never +am, but there'll be tum-tum-tum of another sort tomorrer." + +The grove held by Clive's troops was known as the Laksha Bagh--the grove +of a hundred thousand trees. It was nearly half a mile long and three +hundred yards broad. A high embankment ran all round it, and beyond this +a weedy ditch formed an additional protection against assault. A little +north of the grove, on the bank of the river Cossimbazar, stood a stone +hunting box belonging to Sirajuddaula. Still farther north, near the +river, was a quadrangular tank, and beyond this a redoubt and a mound of +earth. The river there makes a loop somewhat like a horseshoe in shape, +and in the neck of land between the curves of the stream the Nawab had +placed his intrenched camp. + +His army numbered nearly seventy thousand men, of whom fifty thousand +were infantry, armed with matchlocks, bows and arrows, pikes and swords. +He had in all fifty-three guns, mounted on platforms drawn by elephants +and oxen. The most efficient part of his artillery was commanded by +Monsieur Sinfray, who had under him some fifty Frenchmen from +Chandernagore. The Nawab's vanguard consisted of fifteen thousand men +under his most trusty lieutenants, including Manik Chand and Mir Madan. +Rai Durlabh, the captor of Cossimbazar, and two other officers commanded +separate divisions. + +Dawn had hardly broken on June twenty-third, King George's birthday, when +Mir Madan with a body of picked troops, seven thousand foot, five +thousand horse, and Sinfray's artillery, moved out to the attack with +great clamor of trumpets and drums. The remainder of the Nawab's army +formed a wide arc about the north and east of the English position. +Nearest to the grove was Mir Jafar's detachment. + +The English were arranged in four divisions, under Majors Killpatrick, +Grant and Coote, and Captain Gaupp. These had taken position in front of +the embankment, the guns on the left, the Europeans in the center, the +Sepoys on the right. Sinfray's gunners occupied an eminence near the tank +about two hundred yards in advance of the grove, and made such good play +that Clive, directing operations from the Nawab's hunting box, deemed it +prudent to withdraw his men into the grove, where they were sheltered +from the enemy's fire. The Nawab's troops hailed this movement with loud +shouts of exultation, and, throwing their guns forward, opened a still +more vigorous cannonade, which, however, did little damage. + +If Mir Madan had had the courage and dash to order a combined assault, +there is very little doubt that he must have overwhelmed Clive's army by +sheer weight of numbers. But he let the opportunity slip. Meanwhile Clive +had sent forward his two howitzers and two large guns to check Sinfray's +fire. + +Midday came, and save for the cannonading no fighting had taken place. +Clive left the hunting box, called his officers together, and gave orders +that they were to hold their positions during the rest of the day and +prepare to storm the Nawab's camp at midnight. He was still talking to +them when a heavy shower descended, the rain falling in torrents for an +hour. Wet through, Clive hastened to the hunting lodge to change his +clothes. + +Scarcely had he departed when the enemy's fire slackened. Their +ammunition, having been left exposed, had been rendered almost entirely +useless by the rain. Fancying that the English gunners had been equally +careless, Mir Madan ordered his horse to charge; but the Englishmen had +kept their powder dry and received the cavalry with a deadly fire that +sent them headlong back. At this moment Mir Madan himself was killed by a +cannonball, and his followers, dismayed at his loss, began a precipitate +retreat to their intrenchments. + +Clive was still absent. The sight of the enemy retreating was too much +for Major Killpatrick. Forgetting the order to maintain his position, he +thought the moment opportune for a general advance. He turned to Desmond, +who had remained at his side all the morning, and said: + +"Burke, run off to Mr. Clive, and tell him the Moors are retreating, and +I am following up." + +Desmond hurried away, and reached the hunting box just as Clive had +completed his change of clothes. He delivered his message. Then for the +first time he saw Clive's temper at full blaze. With a passionate +imprecation he rushed from the lodge, and came upon the gallant major +just as he was about to lead his men to the assault. + +"What the deuce do you mean, sir, by disobeying my orders? Take your men +back to the grove, and be quick about it." + +His tone stung like a whip. But Killpatrick had the courage of his +opinions, and Desmond admired the frank manner in which he replied. + +"I beg a thousand pardons, Mr. Clive, for my breach of orders, but I +thought 'twas what you yourself, sir, would have done, had you been on +the spot. If we can drive the Frenchmen from that eminence yonder we +command the field, sir, and--" + +"You're right, sir," said Clive, his rage subsiding as easily as it had +arisen. "You're too far forward to retire now. I'll lead your companies. +Bring up the rest of the men from the grove." + +Placing himself at the head of two companies of grenadiers he continued +the advance. Sinfray did not await the assault. He hastily evacuated his +position, retiring on the redoubt near the Nawab's intrenchments. It was +apparent to Clive that the main body of the enemy was by this time much +demoralized, and he was eager to make a vigorous attack upon them while +in this state. But two circumstances gave him pause. To advance upon the +intrenchments would bring him under a crossfire from the redoubt, and he +had sufficient respect for the Frenchmen to hesitate to risk losses among +his small body of men. Further, the movements of the enemy's detachments +on his right caused him some uneasiness. He suspected that they were the +troops of Mir Jafar and Rai Durlabh, but he had no certain information on +that point, nor had he received a message from them. He knew that Mir +Jafar was untrustworthy, therefore he was unwilling to risk a general +assault until assured that the troops on his flank were not hostile to +him. + +The doubt was suddenly resolved when he saw them check their movement, +retire, and draw apart from the remainder of the Nawab's army. Giving the +word at once to advance, he led his men to storm the redoubt and the +mound on its right. For a short time Sinfray and his gallant Frenchmen +showed a bold front; but the vigorous onslaught of the English struck +fear into the hearts of his native allies; the news that the Nawab had +fled completed their panic; and then began a wild and disorderly flight; +horsemen galloping from the field; infantry scampering this way and that; +elephants trumpeting; camels screaming, as they charged through the +rabble. With British cheers and native yells Clive's men poured into the +Nawab's camp, some dashing on in pursuit of the enemy, others delaying to +plunder the baggage and stores, of which immense quantities lay open to +their hand. + +By half-past five on that memorable twenty-third of June the battle was +over--the battle that gave Britain immediately the wealthiest province of +India and, indirectly, the mastery of the whole of that vast Empire. The +loss to the British was only twenty-three killed and fifty wounded. + +Clive rested for a while in Sirajuddaula's tent, where he found on his +inkstand a list of thirteen courtiers whom, even in that moment of dire +extremity, he had condemned to death. From a prisoner it was learned that +the Nawab had escaped on a camel with two thousand horsemen, fleeing +toward Murshidabad. All day he had been in a state of terror and +agitation. Deprived of his bravest officer Mir Madan, betrayed by his own +relatives, the wretched youth had not waited for the critical moment. +Himself carried to his capital the news of his defeat. + +Orders were given to push on that night to Daudpur, six miles north of +Plassey. But some time was occupied by Clive's commissariat in replacing +their exhausted bullocks with teams captured in the Nawab's camp. +Meanwhile Clive sent Eyre Coote forward with a small detachment to keep +the enemy on the run. Among those who accompanied him was Desmond, with +Bulger and Mr. Toley. Desmond hoped that he might overtake and capture +Monsieur Sinfray, from whom he thought it likely he might wrest +information about Mrs. Merriman and her daughter. Diggle had made use of +Sinfray's house; it was not improbable that the Frenchmen knew something +about the ladies. As for the seamen, they were so much disgusted at the +tameness of the enemy's resistance that they were eager for anything that +promised activity and adventure. Their eagerness was no whit diminished +when Desmond mentioned what he had in his mind. + +"By thunder, sir," said Bulger, "give me the chanst and I'll learn the +mounseer the why and wherefore of it. And as for Diggle--well, I may be +wrong, but I'll lay my share o' the prize money out o' the Good Intent +that he's hatchin' mischief, and not far off neither. Show a leg, +mateys." + + + +Chapter 30: In which Coja Solomon reappears: and gives our hero valuable +information. + + +Before Major Coote reached Daudpur he was overtaken by a horseman bearing +a message from Clive. + +"A job for you, Burke," said the major, after reading the note. "Mr. +Clive is annoyed at the Nawab's escape and thinks he may give us trouble +yet if he can join hands with Law and his Frenchmen. I am to send you +ahead to reconnoiter. You've been to Murshidabad, I think?" + +"No, only to Cossimbazar, but that is not far off." + +"Well, you know the best part of the road, at any rate. The colonel wants +you to go with a small party to Murshidabad and find out whether the +Frenchmen have come within reach. You'll have to go on foot: take care +you don't get into trouble. Pick your own men, of course. You must have a +rest first." + +"Two or three hours will be enough for me. If we start soon we shall +reach Murshidabad before dawn, and with little risk. I'm to come back and +report, sir?" + +"Of course. No doubt you will meet us on the way." + +On reaching Daudpur Desmond selected twenty Sepoys who knew the country +and ordered them to be ready to start with him at midnight. Bulger and +Mr. Toley he had already informed of his mission, and he found them more +than eager to share in it. Just after midnight the little party set out. +A march of some four hours brought them to the outskirts of Murshidabad. +Desmond called a halt, encamped for the remainder of the night in a grove +of palmyras, and at dawn sent forward one of the Sepoys, disguised as a +ryot, to make inquiries as to what was happening in the town. + +It was near midday when the man returned. He reported that the Nawab had +gone to his palace, while the chiefs who had accompanied or followed him +from the field of battle had shown their recognition that his cause was +lost by deserting him and going to their own houses. He had heard nothing +of the French. The Nawab, in order to ingratiate himself with the people, +had thrown open his treasury, from which all and sundry were carrying off +what they pleased. The city was in such a disturbed state that it would +be exceedingly unsafe for any stranger to enter. + +Desmond decided to remain where he was until nightfall, and then to skirt +the city and move northwards in the hope of learning something definite +of the movements of the French. Meanwhile he sent the man back to learn +if anything happened during the day. + +In the evening the man returned again. This time he reported that Mir +Jafar had arrived with a large force and taken possession of the Nawab's +palace of Mansurganj. Immediately after the traitor's arrival +Sirajuddaula had collected all the gold and jewels on which he could lay +hands and fled with his women. Suspecting that the luckless Nawab was +making for Rajmahal in the hope of meeting Law there, Desmond made up his +mind to follow. He struck his camp, marched all night, and soon after +daybreak reached a village near the river some miles south of Rajmahal. + +He was surprised to find the village deserted. But passing a small house, +he heard cries of distress, and going in he found the place full of smoke +from some straw that had been kindled, and a man tied by his thumbs to a +staple in the wall. He recognized the man in a moment. It was Coja +Solomon, Mr. Merriman's rascally agent of Cossimbazar. He was half dead +with pain and fright. Desmond cut him loose and hurried him out of the +stifling room into the open, where Bulger revived him with copious douses +of water until he was sufficiently recovered to explain his unhappy +plight. + +"God be praised!" exclaimed the Armenian fervently. "You were in time, +sir. I was seeking safety. The Faujdar of Murshidabad villainously +ill-used me. He owes me much, but there is no gratitude in him. I saw +that neither my life nor my goods were safe, so I packed up what +valuables I could and left with my servants, intending to go to Patna, +where I have a house. I had just reached this village when I saw a band +of some fifty horsemen approaching from the other end, and fearing that I +might be set upon and plundered I hastily concealed my goods at the edge +of the tank hard by. Alas! it availed me nothing. My servants were +dispersed, and the risaldar of the horsemen, a European, seized me and +thrust me into this house, abandoned like all the rest, for the people +fled before his approach, fearing he would burn and destroy. Then I was +tied up as you saw, until I confessed where my valuables were hidden; one +of my servants must have betrayed me. The risaldar promised to release me +as soon as I should confess: but instead of that he set fire to the straw +out of pure villainy, for what could I do to him? I have been a good +friend to the English. Sir, pursue that man: he must be a Frenchman. I +will give you a quarter, nay, a third of my goods, if you recover them." + +"That is impossible, Khwaja. I've only twenty men on foot: what is the +use of pursuing fifty on horseback? Your friendship for the British has +come, I fear, a little too late." + +The Armenian wrung his hands in despair, whining that he was a ruined +man. Then his tone changed; was there not still a chance? He explained +that, a few hours before his capture, he had met a man who had recognized +him as the agent for Mr. Merriman. The man said that he was a servant of +Surendra Nath Chuckerbutti and was on his way to meet Clive Sahib, +carrying a letter to him from his master. But he was worn out, having +come on foot a day and a night without rest. Coja Solomon unblushingly +confessed that, while the man slept at midday, he had taken the letter +from him and read it. + +"Why did you do that?" + +"I thought it would be safer with me, for every one knows--" + +"Yes, that'll do, Khwaja; go on with your story." + +"The letter was written at Malda, a village on the other side of the +river, and the writer, Surendra Nath, informed Mr. Clive that the wife +and daughter of Mr. Merriman were in his house there, and asked him to +send a party to bring them away. Naturally, sir, I was pleased to find--" + +"Go on with your story," cried Desmond impatiently, all excitement at +coming upon the track of the ladies at last. + +"It was while I was reading the letter that the horsemen came up. The +risaldar took it from me, read it, and questioned me. His face changed. +He smiled evilly, and from the questions he asked me, and from what I +heard him say to his followers, he has gone to Malda, with a design to +take these ladies." + +"Stay, Khwaja, what was he like?" + +"He was a tall man, with scars on his face, and on his right hand he wore +a black glove." + +"The scoundrel!" exclaimed Desmond. + +His look of trouble and anxiety did not escape the Armenian. + +"It is but a little since he left me," he said. "If you make your way to +the village--it is three coss on the other side of the river--you may +capture him, sir, as well as regain my property, a third of which is +yours." + +"But how--how, man?" cried Desmond impatiently. "How can we overtake him +on foot?" + +"He will have to ride near to Rajmahal to find a ford, sir. He will cross +there, and ride back down the river some five coss before he comes to +Malda." + +"But could he not swim the river?" + +"He could, sir, but it is a feat he is not likely to attempt, seeing that +there is no need for haste. I implore you, sir, start at once. Otherwise +I am a ruined man; my old age will be spent in poverty and distress." + +"If he can not cross, how can I?" said Desmond. + +"There is sure to be a boat on the bank, sir, unless they have all been +seized by the Nawab, who, rumor says, is coming from Bhagwangola by river +to Rajmahal." + +Desmond felt uneasy and perplexed. He doubted whether his duty to Clive +did not forbid him to go in search of the ladies, and there was no +possibility of communicating in time with either Clive or Coote. Then it +suddenly occurred to him that pursuit of Diggle might well come within +his duty. Diggle was in the service of the Nawab; it was possible that he +was even leading an advance guard of Law's Frenchmen. + +"Were there any other Europeans besides the risaldar among the horsemen?" +he asked. + +"Two, sahib, and they were French. I suspect they were from the force of +Law, sahib; he was, I know, at Patna a few days ago." + +Desmond hesitated no longer. His affection for Mr. Merriman prompted an +attempt to save the ladies: his mission from Clive was to discover the +movements of the French. If he set off on Diggle's track he might succeed +in both. It was a risky adventure--to pursue fifty men under such a +leader as Diggle, with only a score. But twice before he had tried +conclusions with Diggle and come off best: why should fortune fail him +again? + +Hurriedly explaining the situation to Mr. Toley and Bulger, he hastened +with his men down to the river. There was no boat at the village ghat. He +looked anxiously up and down. On the opposite side he saw a long +riverboat moored in a narrow backwater. He could only get it by swimming, +and here the current ran so swiftly that to swim would be dangerous. Yet +on the spur of the moment he was preparing to take to the water himself +when one of his men, a slim and active Sepoy, volunteered to go. + +"Good! I will give you ten rupees if you bring the boat across. You are a +good swimmer?" + +"The sahib will see," replied the man, with a salaam and a smile. + +He took a kedgeree pot, an earthen vessel used for cooking, and firmly +tied to it a stout bamboo some six feet long, so that the thicker end of +the pole was even with the mouth of the vessel. The boat was slightly +down the stream. The man ran a little way upstream to a point where a +spit of land jutted out into the river, his companions following quickly +with the pot. This they placed mouth downwards in the water. Then the +Sepoy mounted on top, launched himself on this novel buoy, and, holding +on to the pole, floated breast high in the water down with the current, +dexterously steering himself with his legs to the point where the boat +was moored. Soon he reached the spot. He clambered into the boat and with +rapid movements of the stern oar brought it to the other side, viewing +with beaming face the promised reward. + +While this was going on the sky had been darkening. A northwester was +coming up, and after his experience on the eve of Plassey, Desmond knew +what that meant. He hastily embarked his men, and the boat started: but +it had scarcely covered a third of the distance across the river when the +wind struck it. Fortunately the sail was not up: as it was, the +flat-bottomed boat was nearly swamped. Drenching rain began to fall. The +river was lashed to fury: for three crowded minutes it seemed to Desmond +a miracle that the boat was still afloat. The waves dashed over its +sides; the men, blinded by the rain, were too much cowed to attempt to +bail out. + +Desmond was at the helm; Bulger and Toley had an oar each; although only +a few yards distant, Desmond could scarcely see them through the pelting +rain. Then the wind moderated somewhat: he peremptorily ordered the men +to use their brass lotis {drinking vessel} to bale out the boat, and +determined to turn the storm to account. + +With great difficulty he got the sail hoisted; and then the vessel ran +down the river at racing speed. The distance to Malda, as the Armenian +had told him, was six miles--four by river, two by land. By Diggle's +route it was ten miles. The horsemen had had such a start of him that he +feared he could not overtake them in time. Still, the storm that now +helped him would hinder them. If he survived the perils of the river +passage he might even yet succeed. + +He was alive to the risks he ran. More than once, as the wind changed a +point, it seemed that the cranky craft must turn turtle. But she escaped +again and again, plunging on her headlong course. The Sepoys were sturdy +enough fellows, but being unused to the water they cowered in the bottom +of the boat, except when Desmond's stern command set them frantically +bailing. + +Almost before it seemed possible they came in sight of a bend in the +river which one of the men, who knew the district, had described to +Desmond as the nearest point to the village he sought. So rapid had the +passage been that Desmond felt that, if they could only land in safety, +they might have gained considerably on Diggle's horsemen. The latter must +have felt the full effect of the gale: it was likely that they had taken +shelter for a time. Desmond and his men were wet to the skin, but, +profiting by the recollection of what had happened at Plassey, they had +kept their ammunition dry. + +At the bend the river presented a shelving beach, being at least twice as +wide at this point during the rainy season as at other periods. Without +hesitation Desmond ran the nose of the boat straight at the beach: she +came to with a violent bump; the men tumbled out waist deep into the +water, and with shrill cries of relief scrambled ashore. + +No time was lost. Waiting only to inspect their muskets, Desmond at once +began the march, the band being led by the man who knew the country. +Another man, a noted runner, formerly a kasid in the employment of the +Nawab of the Deccan, was sent in advance to find Surendra Nath's house, +give him warning of Desmond's coming, and instruct him to have someone on +the lookout for the approach of the enemy, if Diggle were not, indeed, +already in possession of the village. The rest pushed on with all speed. +The storm had cleared the air: the rain had ceased, and though it was +unpleasant walking over the soppy ground, the march was much cooler than +it would otherwise have been. + +Desmond longed for a hill from which to get a view of the country. But, +as almost everywhere in the valley of the Ganges, it was dead flat. The +party was within a quarter of a mile of the village when the kasid came +running back. He had found the Babu's house. From its flat roof a body of +horse had been seen in the distance, nearly a coss away. Desmond at once +ordered his men to double, and as they dashed into the village among the +wondering people, the kasid pointed out Surendra Nath's house at the far +end--a small two-storied building, surrounded by a wall and approached +through a rickety iron gateway. It was the first house to which the +approaching horsemen would come. + +A man in native dress was standing at the gate. At first Desmond did not +recognize him, but as he drew nearer he saw that it was Surendra Nath +himself, looking years older--weak, thin, sunken-eyed, little like the +sleek, well-fed Babu Desmond had last seen in Calcutta. + +"Are the ladies safe?" asked Desmond, yards ahead of his men. + +"Yes, sir, quite safe," replied Surendra Nath, trembling. + +"Thank God for that! Go in, Babu: tell them we are here to protect them." + +While speaking he had eagerly scanned the surroundings. On each side of +the sodden track that did duty for a road there was a mango grove. +Desmond directed Toley to take four men to one side, and Bulger four men +to the other, and place themselves among the trees. When the first three +files of the horsemen should have passed through, the seamen were to give +the word to fire; then, taking advantage of the inevitable confusion, to +rush with their men to the house. Desmond himself meanwhile, with the +remaining twelve, set to work to strengthen the defenses. These +proceedings were watched with amazement by the villagers, who, men, +women, and children, stood in groups, discussing in shrill tones the +movements of these energetic strangers. + +There was a small veranda to the house. This was wrenched away by main +force. The posts and other parts of the woodwork were carried to the +gateway and piled up as rapidly as possible to form a rough barricade. +Scarcely was this task half accomplished when the clanking of weapons was +heard in the distance, soon accompanied by the swashing of horses' hoofs +on the drenched soil. + +Desmond coolly ordered his men to proceed with the work. A minute later +there was a sharp discharge of musketry, followed by cries, shouts, and +the sound of galloping horses. The villagers scuttled away shrieking. +Immediately afterward Bulger and Toley with their eight men sprang from +cover and made a dash for the wall. + +"Muskets first!" shouted Desmond. + +The muskets were pitched over: then the men scrambled up, Desmond and his +Sepoys assisting them to get across. Almost the first to drop down into +the compound was Bulger, whose hook had proved, not for the first time, +of more service than a sound left arm. Once over himself, he used his +hook to haul the Sepoys after him, with many a vigorous "Yo, heave ho!" + +"All aboard, sir," he cried, when the last of the men was within the +wall. "I may be wrong, but I lay my button hook 'tis now all hands to +repel boarders; and only two cutlasses among us--mine and Mr. Toley's. +What ho, mateys! who cares--" + +Desmond ordered four of his men to post themselves at the barricaded +gateway: the rest he divided into two parties, and stationed behind the +wall at each side. The wall was six feet high--too high to fire over; but +as it was in a somewhat dilapidated condition there was no difficulty in +knocking away several loose bricks at intervals, so as to make a rough +and ready battlement. Desmond instructed the men to fire alternately +through the embrasures thus made. As soon as one had fired he was to fall +back and reload as fast as possible while another man took his place. By +this device, Desmond hoped to deceive the enemy for a time as to the +number of the defenders in the compound. + +But it was not to be expected that the enemy could long be kept out, and +in the last resort it would be necessary to retreat to the house. In view +of the presence of the ladies this was a step to be avoided if possible. +It might indeed be the wiser course to surrender, for their sakes. As the +thought struck Desmond he called to the Babu, who was keeping watch on +the roof. + +"Babu," he said, "ask the ladies to occupy the least exposed room. Tell +them that if the enemy get over the wall I will try to make an +arrangement with them, rather than provoke an attack on the house." + +The Babu disappeared. But a few moments later Phyllis Merriman, wearing +the costume of a native lady, came running out. + +"Mother bids me say, Mr. Burke," she said, "on no account let such +considerations weigh with you. She says, fight to the last. We will risk +anything rather than go back to captivity. You will beat them, Mr. Burke, +won't you?" + +"I shall do my best, Miss Merriman," replied Desmond. "But pray go back: +they may be here at any moment. I need not say how glad I am to find you +well. Pray tell Mrs. Merriman that we shall all do our best for her and +you." + +"I know you will. And my father?" + +"He is distressed, of course, but clings to hope. Do, Miss Merriman, +retire at once. I see the enemy coming from the grove." + +"Phyllis! Phyllis!" cried Mrs. Merriman from the house; "come in at once! + +"Mr. Burke, send her in. Have no mercy on the wretches, I implore you." + +The girl walked back reluctantly. Unknown to Desmond, she went no farther +than the doorway, where, just hidden from sight, she watched all that +followed. + +The enemy had clearly been nonplussed by their sudden check. There were +no British troops, as far as they knew, for many miles round, and +concerted resistance from the natives was unlikely. But they were now +emerging from the mango grove, a hundred yards away. They came on foot, +leaving their horses out of musket range. + +Desmond's heart sank as he counted them. There were even more than he had +supposed. They numbered fifty-four and several had no doubt been left in +charge of the horses. Still, he felt that he had two advantages. The +first was his position behind the wall; the second, the fact that the +enemy, unless they had obtained information from the villagers, could not +know what force they had to deal with. Their ignorance, of course, must +be only temporary: if one of them should succeed in mounting the wall the +weakness of the defense must immediately be seen. + +As the enemy, tall men in the costume of native cavalry, assembled by +twos and threes at the edge of the grove, Desmond noticed three Europeans +leave the main body and advance some way into the open. It was with a +flush of indignation and a fierce resolve to bring him at last to book +that Desmond recognized one of them as Diggle. With his companions he +walked at a safe distance completely round the building. + +For some time they halted at the back, carefully scanning the position. +Here the wall approached the house much more closely than in the front, +and no one could mount it without being fully exposed to fire from the +upper windows. After his examination, Diggle returned with the two men, +whom from their appearance Desmond judged to be Frenchmen, to the main +body, and sent off half a dozen men toward the other end of the village. +While they were gone one of the Frenchmen seemed to Desmond to be +expostulating with Diggle: but the latter only laughed and waved his +gloved hand in the direction of the house. + +The messengers soon returned, dragging with them three of the villagers. +These Diggle took aside separately and questioned: it was clear to +Desmond that he was ascertaining the strength of the garrison. Apparently +satisfied, he divided his force into three parts; the largest, consisting +of some forty men, remained at the edge of the grove; the two smaller +proceeded to the right and left of the back of the house. One was in +command of a Frenchman, but the Frenchman who had expostulated with +Diggle had apparently refused to have anything to do with the affair: he +held himself aloof, and by and by disappeared into the grove. + +Diggle's evident intention was to weaken the garrison by forcing Desmond +to divide his already too small force. He had to detach eight of his +men--three to the windows and five to the wall--leaving only fourteen, +including Bulger and Toley, to meet the rush in front. + +It was not long in coming. Diggle did not wait to parley. Taking a musket +from one of his men he raised it to his shoulder and fired at a Sepoy, +whose head just showed above the gate. The man raised his hand to his +brow and fell back with a sharp cry--a bullet had plowed a furrow through +his scalp. Desmond checked his men as they were about to fire in reply: +but when, in the rush that followed, the enemy came within thirty yards, +he gave the word, and seven muskets flashed forth across the barricade. + +The attacking party were coming forward in close order, and five of the +men fell. But the rest sprang forward with shrill yells, Diggle, who was +untouched, urging them on. Even the fire of Desmond's second rank failed +to check them. Two or three dropped; others were soon swarming up the +wall; and though the defenders with clubbed muskets struck savagely at +their heads and hands as they appeared above the coping, if one drew +back, another took his place: and the wall was so long that at several +points there were gaps between Desmond's Sepoys where the enemy could +mount unmolested. + +Desmond, having discharged his two pistols, disposing of one of the +assailants with each shot, was in the act of reloading when Diggle leaped +into the compound, followed by two of his men. Shouting to Bulger, +Desmond threw the pistols and rammer on the ground behind him, and, +drawing his sword, dashed at the three intruders, who were slightly +winded by the charge and their exertions in scaling the wall. + +Desmond could never afterward remember the details of the crowded moments +that followed. There were cries all around him: behind, the strident +voice of Mr. Toley was cheering his men to repel the assault at the back +of the house: at his side Bulger was bellowing like a bull of Bashan. But +all this was confused noise to him, for his attention was wholly occupied +with his old enemy. His first lunge at Diggle was neatly parried, and the +two, oblivious of all that was happening around them, looked full into +each other's eyes, read grim determination there, and fought with a cold +fury that meant death to the first that gave an opening to his opponent's +sword. + +If motive counted, if the right cause could always win, the issue +admitted of no doubt. Desmond had a heavy score to pay off. From the time +when he had met Diggle in the street at Market Drayton to his last +encounter with him at the Battle of the Carts, he had been the mark of +his enmity, malice, spite, trickery. But Desmond thought less of his own +wrongs than of the sorrow of his friend, Mr. Merriman, and the harrowing +wretchedness which must have been the lot of the ladies while they were +in Diggle's power. The man had brought misery into so many lives that it +would be a good deed if, in the fortune of war, Desmond's sword could rid +the world of him. + +And Diggle, on his side, was nerved by the power of hate. Baseless as +were his suspicions of Desmond's friendship with Sir Willoughby Stokes, +he felt that this boy was an obstacle. Ever since their paths had crossed +he had been conscious that he had to do with a finer, nobler nature than +his own: and Desmond's courage and skill had already frustrated him. As +he faced him now, it was with the feeling that, if this boy were killed, +a bar would be removed from his career. + +Thus, on either side, it was war to the death. What Desmond lacked in +skill and experience he made up for by youth and strength. The two +combatants were thus equally matched: a grain in the scale might decide +the issue. But the longer the fight lasted the better were Desmond's +chances. He had youth in his favor. He had led a hard life: his muscles +were like iron. The older man by and by began to flag: more than once his +guard was nearly beaten down: nothing but his great skill in +swordsmanship, and the coolness that never deserted him, saved him from +the sharp edge of Desmond's blade. + +But when he seemed almost at the end of his strength, fortune suddenly +befriended him. Bulger, with his clubbed musket and terrible iron hook, +had disposed of the two men who leaped with Diggle into the compound; but +there were others behind them; three men dropped to the ground close by, +and, making a simultaneous rush, bore Bulger back against Desmond, +hampering his sword arm. + +One of Desmond's Sepoys sprang to the rescue, but he was too late to stem +the tide. A blow from a musket stock disabled Bulger's right arm; he lost +his footing; as he fell, his hook, still active, caught Diggle's leg and +brought him to the ground, just as, taking advantage of the diversion, he +was making exultantly what he intended for a final lunge at Desmond. He +fell headlong, rolling over Bulger, who was already on the ground. + +How the end came Desmond did not clearly see. He knew that he was beset +by three of Diggle's men, and, falling back before them, he heard the +voice of Phyllis Merriman close by, and felt his pistols thrust into his +hands. She had slipped out of the doorway, picked up the weapons as they +lay where Desmond had flung them, completed the loading, and advanced +fearlessly into the thick of the fray. At one and the same moment Desmond +fired upon his enemies and implored the brave girl to go back. + +Then suddenly there was a lull in the uproar. Bulger was upon his feet. +Diggle's men paused to gaze at their prostrate leader. Then every man of +them was scrambling pell mell over the wall, yelling as the stocks of the +Sepoys' muskets sped them on their flight. + +"What is it?" asked Desmond. + +Bulger pointed to Diggle, among the fallen. + +"He've gone to his account, sir, which I may be wrong, but the Almighty +have got a long black score agen him." + +"How did it happen?" + +Bulger lifted his hook. + +"'Twas that there Diggle as was the why and wherefore o' this little +ornament, sir, and 'twas only right he should be paid for what he done. +We fell down, him and me; I was under. He hoisted himself on his hands to +get free, and I lifted my hook, sir, and caught him a blow under the +chin. If it didn't break his neck, sir, my name en't Bill Bulger, which +I'm sorry for his poor wicked soul all the same." + +Phyllis had her hands clasped about Desmond's arm. + +"Is he dead?" she asked in a voice of awe. + +"Come away," said Desmond quietly, leading her toward the house. "Let us +find your mother." + + + +Chapter 31: In which friends meet, and part: and our hero hints a proposal. + + +The fight was over. It was Diggle's quarrel; neither the Frenchmen nor +the natives had any concern in it, and when their leader was dead they +had no more interest in continuing the struggle. They drew off; the weary +defenders collected the dead and attended to the wounded; and Desmond +went into the house. + +"God bless you, Mr. Burke!" said Mrs. Merriman, tears streaming from her +eyes as she met him and clasped his hands. "You are not hurt?" + +"Just a scratch or two, ma'am: nothing to trouble about." + +But the ladies insisted on bathing the two slight wounds on head and arm +which in the heat of the fight he had not noticed. And then Mrs. Merriman +told him all that had happened since the day he left them in such merry +spirits at Khulna. How they had been trapped by Diggle, pretending to be +a Monsieur de Bonnefon: how he had conveyed them to the house of his +friend Sinfray: how after many months their whereabouts had been revealed +to Surendra Nath by one of his numerous relatives, a man who had a +distant cousin among Sinfray's servants: how the Babu, displaying +unwonted energy, had come with a number of friends and fallen unawares +upon their captors, afterward taking them to a house of his father's in +this village: how the old man and his son had both been stricken with +jungle fever, and the father died, and when the Babu lay helpless and +unconscious on his sickbed they had found no means of communicating with +their friends. + +Mrs. Merriman shuddered as she spoke of the terrors of their captivity. +They had been well treated, indeed; Monsieur de Bonnefon, or Diggle, as +she afterward learned to call him, had visited them several times and +seen that their wants were supplied. But their enforced seclusion and +inactivity, their dread of the unknown, their uncertainty as to what +might have befallen Mr. Merriman, had told heavily upon their health and +spirits. Rumor brought news of the tragedy of the Black Hole: they heard +that the few survivors were prisoners of the Nawab; and they feared the +worst. From Surendra Nath they learned that they need not despair; and +since then they had lived on in the hope that, when the Babu had +recovered from his illness, he would find some means of restoring them to +the husband and father from whom they had so long been parted. + +"Surendra Nath has a heart of gold, Mr. Burke," said Mrs. Merriman in +concluding her story. "Poor man! he has been very ill. We must do +something to show our gratitude for his devotion when we get back to +Calcutta." + +Desmond then in his turn told them all that had happened since their +disappearance. When they learned of the result of the Battle of Plassey, +and that Clive was marching toward Murshidabad, they were eager to set +off at once. + +"Yes, ma'am," said Desmond, "we shall start as soon as possible. I shall +leave you to make your preparations. It may not be possible to start +before night, the country being so disturbed, so that if you can sleep +through the day you will be fitter for the journey." + +He left them, and going into the compound, found Bulger and Toley looking +with curiosity at the body of Diggle. + +"Hi, sir!" said Bulger as Desmond came up to them: "this here bit o' +velvet is explained at last. Mr. Toley, he slit it with his cutlass, sir, +and never did I see a man so down in the mouth when he knowed what was +under it. 'T'ent nothing at all, sir; just three letters; and what for he +went and burnt them three letters into the back of his hand 'twould beat +a Daniel to explain. + +"'F u r,' sir, that's what they spells; but whether 'tis rabbit skin or +fox I can't say, though 'tis most likely fox, knowing the man." + +Desmond stooped and looked at the unclad right hand. The letters F U R +were branded livid below the knuckles. + +"He was always quoting Latin, Bulger," he said. "'Fur' is a Latin word: +it means 'thief.'" + +"Which I might have knowed it, sir, only I think as how the man that did +the stampin' might have done it in plain English. I don't hold with these +foreign lingos, sir; there allers seems something sly and deceivin' about +em. No right man 'ud ever think 'fur' meant 'thief'! Thief an' all, sir, +he's dead. Mr. Toley and me'll put him away decent like: and it won't do +him no harm if we just says 'Our Father' over the grave." + +Desmond was turning away when three of his men came into the compound, +two grasping a Frenchman by the arms, the third a black boy. The former +Desmond recognized as the man whom he had seen expostulating with Diggle; +the latter was Scipio Africanus, looking scared and miserable. + +The men explained that, pursuing the fugitives, they had captured their +prisoners in the grove. The Frenchman at once addressed Desmond in broken +English. He said that he had tried in vain to dissuade Diggle from his +attempt to capture the ladies. The party had been sent in advance by +Monsieur Law to announce his coming. He was at Patna with a considerable +body of French corps designed for the support of the Nawab. As he was +speaking the Frenchman caught sight of Diggle's exposed hand. He started, +with an exclamation of surprise. Then in answer to Desmond's question he +revealed the secret that had so long perplexed him. + +Seven years before, he said, in December, 1750, there was a brilliant +foreigner named Peloti among the officers of Major de la Touche, a young +soldier who had been singled out by Dupleix, the French Governor of +Pondicherry, as a military genius of the first order. Peloti was with the +French army when, less than four thousand in number, it fell upon the +vast hordes of Nadir Jang near Gingi and won the battle that set Muzaffar +Jang on the throne of the Deccan and marked the zenith of Dupleix's +success. The new Nawab, in gratitude to the French for the services +rendered him, sent to Dupleix a present of a million rupees, and a casket +of jewels worth half as much again. This casket was given to Peloti to +deliver: he had abused his trust by abstracting the gem of the +collection, a beautiful diamond; and the theft being accidentally +discovered, Dupleix in his rage ordered the thief to be branded on the +right hand with the word 'fur,' and drummed him out of the French +service. + +The identity of Peloti with Diggle was not suspected by the French, and +when Diggle a few months back offered his services to Bussy, their +commander, they were eagerly accepted, for his evident knowledge of +Clive's movements and of affairs in Calcutta promised to be exceedingly +valuable. None of the French then in the Deccan knew him: and though they +remarked his curious habit of wearing a fingerless glove on his right +hand, no one connected it with the half-forgotten story of the stolen +diamond. + +Desmond thanked the Frenchman for his information. + +"I am sorry to keep you a prisoner, Monsieur," he said; "but I must +trouble you to return with me to Murshidabad. I can promise you good +treatment from Colonel Clive." + +The Frenchman smiled, shrugged, and exclaimed: "Eh bien! La guerre est la +guerre!" + +Remembering Coja Solomon, Desmond asked Toley to search Diggle's body +before burying it. But nothing was found, except a little money. The +Armenian's property had evidently been left under guard in the grove, and +was doubtless, by this time, far away, in the possession of one or other +of Diggle's runagate followers. + +At nightfall the party set off. Closed chairs had been provided for the +ladies, and these were carried in the midst, Bulger on one side, Toley on +the other, and Desmond behind. One person whom Desmond had expected to +take with him was absent: Scipio Africanus, on seeing the dead body of +his master, had uttered one heartrending howl and fled. Desmond never saw +him again. He reflected that, villainous as Diggle had proved to be, he +had at least been able to win the affection of his servant. + +On the way they met Coja Solomon, who, on learning of the disappearance +of his valuables, heaped abuse upon Desmond and went away wringing his +hands. Traveling slowly, by easy stages, and only by night, it took the +party three days to reach Murshidabad. Desmond found that Clive had +entered the city two days before and taken up his abode at the Murda +Bagh. Mir Jafar had been accepted as Nawab, and nothing had been heard of +Sirajuddaula. + +Desmond first sought out Major Coote. + +"By George, Burke!" said that officer, "Colonel Clive is in a towering +rage at your long absence; he expected your return long ago. And you +ought to know that Colonel Clive in a rage is not quite as mild as milk." + +"I'm afraid I must brave his anger," said Desmond. "I've found Mr. +Merriman's ladies." + +"You have?" + +"Yes, and brought them back with me. And Peloti will trouble us no more: +we had to fight for the ladies, and Bulger killed him. Won't Mr. Clive +forgive me?" + +"I can't answer for Mr. Clive; no one can say what he will do. But I tell +you one thing: you'll put Warren Hastings' nose out of joint. You know he +was sweet on Merriman's daughter." + +"No, I didn't know it. I don't see what that has to do with me." + +"Don't you, egad!" said Coote with a laugh. "Sure, my boy, you'll see it +before long. Well, I won't keep you to hear your story. Go to Mr. Clive +at once; and let me know what happens." + +Desmond found Clive in company with Mr. Watts, and Rai Durlabh, Mr. +Scrafton and Omichand. He had some difficulty in obtaining admittance; +only his representation that he bore important news prevailed with the +darwan. He learned afterwards that the great bankers, the Seths, had just +left the meeting, after it had been decided that, owing to the depletion +of the treasury, only one-half of the immense sums promised to Clive and +the English in Mir Jafar's treaty could be paid at once, the remainder to +follow in three years. + +Desmond entered the room just in time to hear Clive say to Scrafton: + +"It is now time to undeceive Omichand." + +Mr. Scrafton went up to the Sikh, and said quietly in Hindustani: + +"Omichand, the red paper is a trick: you are to have nothing." + +Omichand stood for a moment dazed: then he fell back in a faint and was +carried by his attendants from the room. The shock had unhinged the poor +man's reason: he lingered insane for eighteen months and died. + +At the time Desmond knew nothing of the deceit that had been practised on +him; but in the light of his after knowledge he understood the strange +expression that clouded Clive's face as the old man was carried away: a +look of pity mingled with contempt. Catching sight of Desmond, the great +soldier flashed out: + +"What do you mean, sir, by absenting yourself so long? I sent you in +advance because I thought you would be speedy. A snail would have gone +more quickly." + +"I am sorry, sir," said Desmond; "I was unexpectedly delayed. I had got +nearly as far as Rajmahal when I learned the whereabouts of Mrs. +Merriman. She was in hiding with Surendra Nath, one of Mr. Merriman's +men. I heard that Diggle--Peloti, sir--was about to attempt her +recapture, and I felt that you yourself, had you been in my place, would +have tried to save the ladies." + +Clive grunted. + +"Go on, sir," he said. + +"We found the place just in time, sir. Diggle came up with a couple of +Frenchmen and a troop of native horse. We beat them off, and I have +brought the ladies here." + +"And forgotten your instructions?" + +"No, sir. Monsieur Law was advancing from Patna: Diggle was coming ahead +to inform the Nawab of his approach. But the whole country knows of your +victory, and I fancy Monsieur Law will come no further." + +"And Diggle?" + +"He was killed in the fight, sir." + +"Indeed! And how many did his men muster?" + +"Nearly sixty, sir." + +"And yours?" + +"A score of Sepoys, sir; but I had two seamen with me: Bulger, whom you +know; and Mr. Toley, an American, mate of one of Mr. Merriman's ships. +They were worth a dozen others." + +Clive grunted again. + +"Well, go and tell Mrs. Merriman I shall be glad to wait on her. And look +here, Burke: you may consider yourself a captain in the Company's service +from this day. Come now, I'm very busy: go and give Mrs. Merriman my +message, and take care that next time you are sent on special service you +are not drawn off on any such mad expedition. Come to me tomorrow." + +Desmond trod on air as he left the house. Clive's impulsiveness had never +before seemed to him such an admirable quality. + +As he went into the street he became aware, from the excited state of the +crowd, that something had happened. Meeting a Sepoy he inquired, and +learned that Sirajuddaula had just been brought into the city. The +luckless Nawab had arrived in his boat close to Rajmahal, and with the +recklessness that characterized him, he had gone ashore while his +servants prepared a meal. Though disguised in mean clothes he had been +recognized by a fakir, who happened to be at the very spot where he +landed. The man had a grudge against him; his ears and nose had been cut +off some time before at the Nawab's order. Hastening into Rajmahal he had +informed the governor, who sent a guard at once to seize the unhappy +prince and bring him to Murshidabad. + +Before the next morning dawned Sirajuddaula was dead. Mir Jafar handed +him to his son Miran with strict orders to guard him. Acting on a mocking +suggestion of Miran, a courtier named Muhammad Beg took a band of armed +men to the Nawab's room, and hacked him to death. Next morning his +mutilated body was borne on an elephant's back through the streets, and +it was known to his former subjects that the prince who had ruled them so +evilly was no more. Such was the piteous end, in his twenty-sixth year, +of Sirajuddaula. + +Immediately on arriving in Murshidabad, Desmond had sent a kasid to +Calcutta to inform Mr. Merriman that his wife and daughter had been found +and were safe. The merchant set off at once on horseback and arrived in +the midst of preparations for the return of the army to Calcutta. Desmond +was present at his meeting with the ladies; the scene brought a lump into +his throat; and his embarrassment was complete when one and all +overwhelmed him with praise and thanks. + +A few days later a long procession of three hundred boats, laden with the +money, plate and jewels that had been handed over to the British, set off +with colors flying, amid strains of martial music, down the river to +Calcutta. Every man who had taken part in the expedition had a share of +the vast treasure. Desmond found himself richer by three thousand pounds. + +Calcutta was en fete when the expedition returned. Desmond was surprised +to see how much had already been done to repair the ruin wrought by the +Nawab. A new city was rising from the ruins. Congratulations were poured +on the victors; and though now, as always, Clive had to contend with the +jealousies of lesser men, there was none but had to admit that he was a +great man who deserved well of his country. + +Mr. Merriman at once completed the winding up of his business, begun +months before. His recent troubles had much aged him; India was to him +now a hateful country, and he decided to return to England immediately +with his wife and daughter. He tried to persuade Desmond to accompany +him, but in vain. + +"'Tis very good of you, sir," said Desmond warmly; "you have done so much +for me. But Mr. Clive has made me a captain: his work is not yet done; +and I do not feel that I can leave him until I have done something to +justify his confidence in me." + +"Well, boys will be boys. I have made a fortune here: I suppose you want +to do the same. 'Tis natural. But don't stay in India as long as I have. +I don't want to lose sight of you. You have done me the best service man +ever did: you have avenged my brother and restored to me all that I held +dearest in the world. I love you as a son, Desmond; I wish you were my +son, indeed, my boy." + +Desmond looked a little uncomfortable. + +"May I venture--" he began hesitatingly; "do you think, in some years' +time, if I get on here, I might--" + +"Well?" + +"Do you think I might--in short, that I might have a chance of becoming +your son, sir?" + +"Eh? Is that it? Mr. Warren Hastings asked me the same question the other +day, Desmond. You can't both have her, you know. What does Phyllis say?" + +"I--I haven't asked her, sir." + +"Quite right. You're only a boy. Well, Hastings is to remain as assistant +to Mr. Scrafton, our new agent at Murshidabad. You remain as +assistant--or is it rival, eh--to Mr. Clive. You're both out of the way. +Phyllis may prefer Bulger." + +"Bulger?" + +"Yes. Didn't you know? Phyllis has taken a fancy to him; that hook of his +appears to be a most fascinating feature; and he will accompany us home." + +Desmond laughed a little awkwardly. + +"I hope--" he began. + +"He won't hook her? But there, I mustn't make sport of such a serious +matter. Go on as you have begun, my dear lad, and I promise you, when you +come home, that if Phyllis hasn't found someone already to her liking, +you shall have all the influence I can exert with the minx." + +"Thank you, sir: I couldn't ask for more. There's another thing: do you +think you could do anything for Mr. Toley? He's a capital fellow." + +"I know it. I have anticipated you. Toley is appointed captain of the +Jane, an Indiaman that arrived the other day; her captain died of scurvy +on the way out. She'll sail for England next week; we go with her; and so +does that villain Barker, who'll get his deserts when he reaches London. +The Good Intent is broken up; her interloping is over for good and all. + +"But come, my boy, sure 'tis time we dressed: Admiral Watson likes +punctuality, and I promise you he'll give us a capital dinner. A word in +your ear: Phyllis is to sit between you and Hastings. You can't eat him, +at any rate." + +A week later Desmond went down to the Company's ghat to see the Jane +sail. Mr. Toley in his brand new uniform looked more melancholy than +ever, and Phyllis Merriman made a little grimace when she saw for the +first time the captain under whose charge she was to sail for home. + +"Don't be alarmed," said Desmond, laughing. "The sadder he looks, I +believe the happier he is. Silas Toley is a fine seaman and a true +gentleman.-- + +"I wonder if we shall ever meet again, Miss Merriman?" + +"I wonder, Mr. Burke." + +"I shall hear about you, I hope." + +"Dear me; it is very unlikely. Father hates putting pen to paper. 'Tis +far more likely I shall hear of you, Mr. Burke, doing terrible things +among these poor Indians--and tigers: I am sure you must want to shoot a +tiger." + +"You shall have my first skin--if I may send it." + +"Mamma will be charmed, I am sure; though indeed she may have too many of +them, for we have the same promise from--let me see--Mr. Lushington, and +Mr. Picard, and Mr. Hastings, and--" + +"All aboard!" sang out a voice from the deck of the vessel. + +Phyllis gave Desmond her hand, and looked at last into his eyes. What he +read in hers filled him with contentment. She ran across the plank and +joined her father and mother, to whom Desmond had already said his +adieux. At the last moment Bulger came up puffing, a miscellaneous +collection of curiosities dangling from his hook. + +"Goodby, sir," he said, giving Desmond a hearty grip. Then he shut one +eye and jerked his head in the direction of the vessel. "Never you fear, +sir: I'll keep my weather eye open. Missy have taken an uncommon fancy to +this here little fishhook o' mine, and 'tis my belief I'll keep her +hanging on to it, sir, nevertheless and notwithstandin' and all that, +till you comes home covered with gore and glory. I may be wrong." + +He tumbled on deck. Then amid cheers, with flags flying and handkerchiefs +waving, the good ship moved from the ghat into the swelling river. + + + +Chapter 32: In which the curtain falls to the sound of wedding bells: and +our hero comes to his own. + + +It was a mellow day in October 1760, a little more than six years since +the day when Market Drayton gave rein to its enthusiasm in honor of +Clive. From a flagstaff newly erected on the roof of the Four Alls on the +Newport Road, a square of bunting flapped in the breeze. Inside the inn +the innkeeper was drawing a pint of ale for his one solitary customer, a +shambling countryman with a shock of very red hair, and eyes of innocent +blue. + +"There, that makes a quart, Tummus Biles, and 'tis as much as your turnip +head can safely carry." + +He passed the can across the bar on a hook that projected from a wooden +socket in his sleeve. + +"Why, now, Mr. Bulger," said Tummus, the tranter, "what fur do you go fur +to miscall me like other fowk? I've been miscalled ever since that day I +drove a stranger into Market Drayton six year ago. I mind me he had a red +feather in his cap, and not knowing my name was plain Tummus, he called +me Jehu, he did, and I never forgot it. Ay, and I tell ya what, Mr. +Bulger: it took me two year to find out why he give me such an uncommon +name. I mind I was sittin' by a hayrick of Mr. Burke's--that was long +afore he was lamed by that terrible horse o' his--and ponderin' on that +heathen name, when all at once it comed to me like a flash o' lightnin'. + +"'Jehu!' says I to myself. 'I've got ya at last.' Ya see, when that +stranger saw me, I were drivin' a horse. Well, I says to my horse, +'Gee-ho!' says I. Not knowing my true chrisom name, the stranger takes up +my words an' fits 'em to me. 'Gee-ho!' says I; 'Gee-ho!' says he; only +bein' a kind o' furriner he turns it into 'Jehu'; an' the name fits me +uncommon. Hee hee!" + +"I may be wrong," said Bulger, "but 'tis my belief 'Hee haw!' would fit +you a big sight better. But hark! en't them the bells a-ringin'?" + +The two hastened to the door, and stood looking down the road toward +Market Drayton. From the distance came the faint sounds of a merry peal. +By and by a four-horsed open carriage with outriders appeared on the +crest of the hill. Amid the dust it raised another could be seen, and +behind this a long line of vehicles. Every coachman's whip was decorated +with a wedding favor. The cavalcade approached rapidly. As the first +carriage drew nearer Bulger became more and more excited, and when it +dashed past the inn he raised his hook and shouted "Hurray! hurray!" with +the full force of his lungs. + +"Give 'em a cheer, Tummus," he cried. "Hee haw will do if you knows no +better. Hurray for Major Desmond Burke and his madam--the purtiest gal I +ever did see, east or west. Hurray for her father and mother: there they +are, with old squire an' the major's mother. And there's Mr. Clive, all +alone by himself 'cos his leg's stiff wi' rheumatics; but he would come +to see the deed done, which I may be wrong, but the new King George'll +make him a live lord afore he's much older. + +"Open your mouth, Tummus, an' if you hee haw loud enough, I'll draw you +another pint for nothing." + +Desmond, now a major, had returned home in company with Clive. During the +three years that had passed since he witnessed the sailing of the Jane he +had seen much service. He had been with Colonel Forde when that fine +soldier expelled the French from the northern Sirkars. He was with the +same officer when he thrashed the Dutch at Biderra. He had been in close +touch with Clive when these successful operations were planned, and the +nearer he saw him, the more he admired the great man's courage in taking +risks, promptitude in dealing with sudden emergencies, sagacity in seeing +to the heart of a difficult situation. Thus, during those three years, he +gained much knowledge of the science of war, and much experience in +dealing with men. He became rich also, not by questionable means, but by +reaping the legitimate rewards of good and faithful service. + +Before leaving India, Desmond learned of changes that had happened at +home. His brother had been thrown by a young and mettlesome horse, and so +badly trampled that he must remain a helpless invalid for the rest of his +life. Sir Willoughby Stokes, even before he heard of the death of his +nephew Peloti, had made Desmond his heir. Mr. Merriman had bought an +estate near his father's old friend, and settled down to the life of a +country gentleman. A year after his return, Job Grinsell, the landlord of +the Four Alls, had been sentenced to a long term of imprisonment for +poaching, and Mr. Merriman had no difficulty in persuading Sir Philip +Chetwode to let his inn to Bulger. + +After an interview with Mr. Merriman, Desmond found the courage to put to +Phyllis the question which he had not ventured to ask before she left +India. What the answer was may be inferred from the fact that Sir +Willoughby insisted on the wedding taking place at once. It was time for +the return of his old enemy the gout, he said; he was going to Buxton to +end his days, and wished to see the Hall in the hands of his heir before +he left. + +Mr. Burslem, Desmond's old schoolmaster, performed the ceremony, and +Clive, though suffering from rheumatism, came down for the occasion. The +only familiar form that Desmond missed was that of old Dickon, who had +died a few months after Desmond's departure from home. + +Desmond settled down for a time at the Hall, cheering his mother's +declining years, repaying good for ill to his invalid brother, and +winning golden opinions from all his neighbors high and low. He eagerly +watched the further career of his old hero, now Lord Clive; learned to +admire him as statesman as well as soldier; sympathized with him through +all the attacks made upon him; and mourned him sincerely when, in 1774, +the great man, preyed upon by an insidious disease, died by his own hand. + +Five years later he felt the East calling, bought a commission, and +sailed with General Sir Eyre Coote, to take part in the "frantic military +exploits," as some one called them, of Warren Hastings against Haidar Ali +and Tippu in Mysore. He came home a colonel, and was made a baronet for +his services in the war. Finally retiring from public life, he lived for +thirty years longer on his estate, happy in the careers of his two sons, +who became soldiers like himself. He died, an old man, in the year after +Waterloo, at which his eldest grandson, a lieutenant in the guards, +behaved with a gallantry that attracted the notice of the Iron Duke. + +Visitors to Sir Desmond Burke's house were amused and interested to see a +battered wooden stump with an iron hook hanging in a conspicuous place in +the hall amid tigers' heads, Indian weapons, and other trophies from the +East. + +"That?" Sir Desmond would say, in answer to their question. "That +belonged to one of the best friends I ever had, a fine old salt named +William Bulger. I met him when I was sixteen, and buried him when I was +forty: and my wife and I have felt ever since a blank in our lives. If +you can put up with an old man's stories, I'll tell you something of what +Bulger and I went through together, when I was a youngster with Clive in +India." + + + +***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK IN CLIVE'S COMMAND*** + + +******* This file should be named 16382.txt or 16382.zip ******* + + +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: +https://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/1/6/3/8/16382 + + + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, +set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to +copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to +protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. 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