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diff --git a/40689.txt b/40689.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 09f6271..0000000 --- a/40689.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,3981 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Off to Sea, by W.H.G. Kingston - -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: Off to Sea - The Adventures of Jovial Jack Junker on his Road to Fame - -Author: W.H.G. Kingston - -Release Date: September 6, 2012 [EBook #40689] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ASCII - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK OFF TO SEA *** - - - - -Produced by Nick Hodson of London, England - - - - -Off to Sea, by WHG Kingston. - -________________________________________________________________________ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -________________________________________________________________________ -OFF TO SEA, BY WHG KINGSTON. - -CHAPTER ONE. - -MY BIRTH AND EDUCATION. - -From my earliest days I have been known as Jovial Jack Junker. I got -the name, I believe, from always being in good humour, and seeing the -bright side of things. Whatever I ate did me good, and I never had had -an hour's sickness in my life; while if things happened to go wrong one -day, I knew they would go right the next. People said I was of a happy -disposition; I suppose I was. I always felt inclined to be singing or -whistling, and when I did not, it was because I knew I ought to keep -silence--in church, for instance, or in the presence of my elders, who -happened to be engaged in conversation. Still, I was not born, as the -saying is, with a silver spoon in my mouth, nor did I possess any great -worldly advantages. I did not trouble myself much about the future, I -must confess that. If I got what I wanted, I was contented; if not, I -expected to get it the next day or the day after. I could wait; I -always found something to amuse me in the meantime. My father was a -marine--a man well known to fame, though not the celebrated "Cheeks." -He was known as Sergeant Junker. He had several small sons and -daughters--young Junkers--and when I was about twelve years of age, he -was left an inconsolable widower by the untimely death of our -inestimable mother. She was an excellent woman, and had brought us up, -to the best of her ability, in a way to make us good and useful members -of society. She was indeed a greater loss to us than to our poor -father; for, as my elder brother Simon observed, as he rubbed his eyes, -moist with tears, with the back of his hand-- - -"You see, Jack, father can go and get another wife, as many do; but we -can't get another mother like her that is gone, that we can't, nohow." - -No more thorough testimony could have been given to the virtues of our -mother. She was a superior woman in many respects, and she was of a -very respectable family, and had a nice little fortune of her own; but -she had the common weakness of her sex, and fell in love with the -handsome face of our honest, worthy father, Ben Junker the marine, at -the time a private in that noble corps. She did not like his name, but -she loved him, and overcame her prejudice. He could, at the period I -speak of, scarcely read or write; but she set to work to educate him, -and so far succeeded, that, being a very steady man, he rose in due -course to be a sergeant. She had the ambition of hoping to see him -obtain a commission; but he used to declare that, if he did, nothing -would make him more unhappy, as he should feel exactly like a fish out -of water. He was thus, at the time of which I am speaking, still a -sergeant. Our mother, in consequence of the income she enjoyed, was -able to give her children a much better education than we should -otherwise probably have obtained. At the time of her death, it would -have been difficult to find in our rank of life a more happy, contented, -and better-conducted family. Our father, as I have said, was at first -inconsolable; but he was of a happy, contented disposition, as it is -very necessary that marines, as well as other people, should be--a -disposition which I fortunately inherited from him. He took the rough -with the smooth in life, as a matter of course. A favourite song of -his, which he used to hum, was-- - - "What's the use of sighing, - While time is on the wing? - Oh! what's the use of crying? - Then merrily, merrily sing - Fa! la!" - -Consequently, as Simon said he knew he would, he began in a short time -to look out for another wife; and, unhappily for us, fixed on a widow -with a family. She was, however, a very amiable woman; in fact, her -great fault was, that she was too amiable, too soft and yielding. She -could not manage to rule her own family, and a most uproarious, mutinous -set they were. From the time they came to the house there was no peace -or quiet for anyone else. They, indeed, soon took to try and rule over -us with a high hand. Her girls used to come it over our girls, and her -boys over our boys. Brother Simon, who was bigger and stronger than her -eldest, more than once threatened that he would thrash them all round, -if they had any more nonsense, and that invariably made our poor -stepmother burst into tears, and plead so hard for her rebellious -offspring, that the good, honest fellow had not the heart to put his -threat into execution. At last some of us could stand it no longer. As -Simon was old enough, he went one day, without saying anything to -anybody, and enlisted in the marines. Bill, our second brother, got our -father to apprentice him to a ship-carpenter; and, after no little -trouble and coaxing, he promised to let me go on board a man-of-war. He -did so, however, very unwillingly. - -"You don't know the sort of life that you will have to lead aboard ship, -Jack," he observed. "Boys afloat are not the happy-go-lucky sort of -chaps they seem on shore, let me tell you; but, to be sure, they have -got discipline there, which is more than I can say there is to be found -in a certain place that you know of." And my father uttered a deep -sigh. - -We were walking, one evening after tea, up and down our bit of a garden, -while he smoked his pipe. He was allowed to live out of barracks, and -we had a small cottage a little way off. - -"I don't know, Jack, but what I should not be sorry, if my company was -ordered on service afloat," he observed, confidentially, after a -minute's silence. "Your new mother is a good woman--a very good woman; -about her I made no mistake, though she is not equal, by a long chalk, -to her that's gone; but oh! Jack," and he sighed again, "I did not take -into account those young cubs of hers. They will not rest till they -have driven your sisters out of the house, as they have driven the boys; -and then--and then--why, I suppose, they will drive me away too!" - -My poor father! I sighed at the thoughts of his domestic happiness -being so completely destroyed, in consequence of the advice of King -Solomon not having been followed--the rod having been spared, and the -children spoiled. - -The following day, my father being sent on duty to Portsea, took me with -him. Soon after we landed, I met, just on the inner end of the Common -Hard, an old friend of mine, Dick Lee, a waterman. - -"Father," I said, "if Dick will let me, I'll stop, and have a pull in -his wherry. As I am going to sea, I should like to learn to row better -than I now do." - -My father, glad to keep me out of harm's way, told me that, if Dick -wished it, I might remain with him. Well pleased, I ran down the Hard, -and jumped into old Dick's wherry. Dick intended that I should sit in -his boat, and just practise with the oars, but I had no notion of that -sort; so, casting off the painter, I shoved away from the shore. I kept -pulling up and down for some time, and round and round, till my arms -ached; when, determining to take a longer voyage, I turned the boat's -head out into the harbour. The tide was running out: I went on very -swimmingly, I did not think of that. I had not, however, got very far, -when I heard old Dick's voice shouting to me-- - -"Come back, Jack, come back, you young jackanapes!" - -Dick was in a rage, no doubt about that. I pulled round, and in spite -of all my efforts could make no headway. Dick shouted, and swore, but -to no purpose. I might have cracked my sinews with pulling, but still -the boat would keep drifting down and down, running a great risk of -getting athwart-hawse of some of the vessels moored a dozen yards below -me. At last, Dick did what he might as well have done at first--stepped -into another boat with his mate, and came after me. He soon brought me -back as a prize. His temper was in no way soothed, though I cried out, -again and again, I could not help it. - -"Jump ashore now, lad," he said, as we touched the Hard. "Next time -you'll do what I tell you you may do. I never said you might go and run -the chance of getting the boat stove in, and yourself drownded. I keeps -my family in order, whatever other people may do." - -Obeying old Dick, I stood disconsolately on the Hard, while he took his -fare on board, and pulled away across to Gosport, without deigning to -waste another word on me. However, I soon recovered my spirits, and -amused myself making an excursion over the huge logs of timber that -occupy a considerable space in that nook of the harbour. - -I was running along on the more steady pieces of timber which formed the -boundary of the pond, when I saw a boy in a boat, placed very much in -the position from which I had just escaped. In vain he attempted to -stem the tide. He was evidently not accustomed to a boat. He looked -round, and saw that the boat was drifting towards the cable of a vessel -moored off the Hard. I shouted out to him to pull hard with his -starboard oar; but, instead of so doing, he jumped up, and caught hold -of the cable, across which the boat had just then come, letting go at -the same time one of his oars, which fell overboard. He now clung to -the chain, and the current swept the boat away from under his feet. - -"Hold on! hold on, for your life!" I shouted out; but, instead of so -doing, he let go, expecting to regain his boat. He tried to swim, but -he was evidently a bad swimmer. I looked round. No boat was near. I -saw there was every chance of his being drowned. I was a capital -swimmer; so, hoping to save the lad, I plunged in, and followed him. -Just as I was taking the leap, I caught sight of old Dick, coming across -the harbour. I shouted at the very top of my voice, pointing to the -place where the boy was floating away. This gave me some hopes that we -should be picked up. I soon saw that I had miscalculated the distance, -for the boy seemed a very, very long way off. I had very little hopes -of helping him, and thought it very likely I should get drowned myself, -when I saw a hawser, somewhat slack, stretched across the course down -which the boy was drifting. "If he has got any sense, he will catch -hold of it," I thought. How thankful I felt when I saw him grasp it! -As I got near, he cried out-- - -"Help! help! I can hold on no longer!" - -"Hold on, whatever you do?" I cried out. "Oh dear! oh dear!" he -shouted again, "what will become of the boat? what will become of the -boat?" - -He was evidently getting somewhat stupid and confused. I redoubled my -efforts, and grasping the hawser with one hand, caught hold of his -jacket with the other, just as he was relaxing his grasp. - -"Now, stupid!" I cried out, "just catch hold of this rope again, and -hold on! You don't want to get drowned, do you?" - -"No, I don't; but you had no business to call me stupid," he exclaimed, -in an indignant tone. - -"If you go and get drowned when there's no need of it, you are stupid," -I answered; "but if you will hold on tight, till Dick comes and takes us -off, I will say something for you." - -My arguments had some effect, for hold on tight he did, I helping him by -the collar of his jacket. I had enough to do, however, to keep him and -myself afloat, as well as to hold on at the same time. It seemed to me -that old Dick was a long time coming. At last I shouted out. - -"Ay, ay!" answered his well-known voice, and at last I saw the bow of -his boat coming round from under the stern of a vessel above us. - -No one was on the decks of any of the vessels round us, which was the -reason, I suppose, that we were allowed to hang on there so long by -ourselves. - -"Well, what mischief have you been after?" asked old Dick, as he hauled -the other boy and me afterwards out of the water. "Well, you do look -like two drownded rats?" - -"He has been after no mischief at all!" exclaimed the other boy, who, in -spite of his recent alarm, had not lost his spirits. - -"He jumped into the water to save my life, and he has saved it; and I am -sure my papa and mamma will not think it was any mischief, but will be -ready to thank him very heartily, as I do." - -"And who are you, young gentleman?" asked old Dick. "What business had -you to be tumbling into the water?" - -He had begun to pull up the harbour, I should say, placing us in the -stern sheets while he was asking these questions. - -"Who am I? you want to know who I am?" said the young gentleman, who was -employed in squeezing the wet out of his clothes; "I am Richard Alfred -Chesterton Plumb," answered the boy, standing up and assuming an air of -dignity; "and I did not tumble into the water, but my boat got away from -me, and I tried to get after it; and that reminds me that she is -floating down the harbour; and so, old gentleman, I will just trouble -you to go in chace of her and try to bring her back." - -"Ho! ho! ho!" exclaimed old Dick; "some young bantams do crow loud. -Howsomdever, there is spirit in the lad, no doubt about that!" - -"Well, old man," again asked the young gentleman, "are you going after -my boat?" - -Old Dick did not deign an answer; but, looking away down the harbour, -espied the boat, and, pulling round, made chase after her. We were soon -up to her, and Master Richard, as he called himself, wanted to be put -aboard again. - -"I can row about till I am dry," he observed. "What's the odds?" - -However, as there was only one oar remaining, this was an impossibility. - -"You will only go and get yourself drownded again," said the old man, -"and catch your death of cold sitting in your wet things into the -bargain. So you just come up to my missus, and she will give you a hot -cup of tea and dry your duds, and then Jack here and I will see you safe -home to your friends." - -I have a notion that old Dick was afraid the young master might forget -all about the service which had been rendered him, and having an eye to -the main chance, he was resolved that I should receive a reward--he -himself hoping probably to obtain some remuneration also for his -trouble. On our way back young Master Richard, who was in no way -disconcerted, espied the missing oar, which had been caught in an eddy, -and drifted in towards the shore. We got hold of it, and he now seemed -perfectly happy. We both looked very foolish, I thought, as dripping -wet we followed old Dick up to his house. The old woman had our clothes -very soon off us, and tumbled us both into their bed. The young -gentleman whispered to me that it was not very nice, but I was in no way -particular. - -"It will not do to be ungrateful. I would bear anything, rather than -show I did not like it," he added, still whispering. - -He at last got rather impatient, and singing out, asked Dick if he would -go and buy him a new suit at Selby's, the tailor's in High Street. - -The old man laughed. - -"I've got no credit there, young gentleman," he answered. "Maybe, too, -your friends would not be quite pleased. Your clothes will be dry -enough in time; and, there now, the water's boiling, and you shall have -a bowl of tea hot enough to take the skin off your mouths." - -The steaming liquid was soon brought to us, and after drinking it, -Master Richard said he felt as warm and comfortable as he had ever done -in his life. He was only anxious to be off. At length, however, the -warmth and closeness of the room sent us both off into a sound sleep. -We were awoke by old Dick's voice. - -"Well, lads," he said, "are you ready to put on your clothes, and come -along to young master's friends? I have seen your father, Jack. He -knows all about them, and says it is all right. He tells me, Jack," he -whispered, "they're no end of grand people, so I hope you have stepped -into the right boat this time." - -I could not exactly understand the meaning of my old friend's remarks, -but I saw that he was well pleased. Old Mrs. Lee pressed some more tea -and bread and butter on us, and had a sausage frying in the pan. I was -not sorry to get it; but, after taking a few mouthfuls, the young -gentleman said he was very grateful, but that he had had enough, and -that he expected to find dinner when he got home. - -"I could not have eaten another mouthful, even if the old woman had -threatened to throw me into the frying-pan," he observed, as we left the -house, "but I did not like to hurt her feelings." - -I had eaten up the remainder of the sausage, so I benefited by Master -Richard's delicacy of stomach. - -CHAPTER TWO. - -MY FIRST START. - -We crossed the water to Gosport, and took our way along the road which -led past the small row in which we lived. I inquired on my way of old -Dick, if he knew who the young gentleman's father was. - -"They say he's a nabob," answered old Dick, "but what a nabob is, I'm -sure I don't know, except that he's a yellow-faced gentleman, with lots -of money, and always complaining of his liver." - -Having received this lucid explanation to my question, I rejoined my -young companion. I thought I might learn more about the matter from -him. - -"They say your father is a nabob; is he?" I asked. - -"A nabob? No," he answered. "He is a great deal more important -person--he is a brigadier; at least he was in India, and mamma always -speaks of him as the Brigadier, and people always talk of her as Mrs. -Brigadier." - -"Then I suppose you are the young Brigadier?" I said, very naturally. - -"No, indeed, I am not," he answered. "But there is the house. And, I -say, I am very much obliged to you, remember, for what you have done for -me. I see you are up to joking; but let me advise you not to come any -of your jokes over my father, or mamma either. Indeed, you had better -rather try it with him than with her. You would think twice before you -ever made the attempt again." - -Passing through an iron gateway, we proceeded up to the house, which was -some little way from the road. It was low, with a broad verandah round -it, and I found was known as Chuttawunga Bungalow. I saw the name on -the side-post of the gateway. A tall, dark-skinned man, dressed in -white, a broad-rimmed cap on his head, came to the door. He seemed -rather doubtful as to admitting old Dick and me. - -"Here, Chetta, let us in at once!" exclaimed the young gentleman in an -authoritative tone. "These are my friends. They have rendered me an -essential service. The boy saved my life when I was drowning, and the -old man pulled us both out of the water, when we could not hold on much -longer. Where is my papa? And, I say, Chetta, do not go and tell Mrs. -Brigadier just yet. I would rather have the matter over with one of -them first." - -I felt rather awe-struck at having to go into the presence of so great a -man, for I had pictured him as a tall, ferocious-looking personage, with -a huge moustache and a military air and manner. Great was my -astonishment when I saw, seated in an arm-chair, cross-legged, with one -foot resting on a foot-stool, a small man with yellow hair, thin cheeks, -and habited in a silk dressing-gown and nankeen trousers. - -"Why, Richard Alfred Chesterton!" he exclaimed in a sharp, querulous -tone, "where have you been all this time? It is as well your mother had -to go out, or she would have been thrown into a state of great alarm; -and something else, I suspect, too," he said, in a lower tone. - -"Well, papa," answered Richard, when the brigadier had ceased speaking, -"you would not address me harshly, if you knew how very nearly you were -having the misery of losing me altogether. It is a long story, so I -will not now enter into details. It will be sufficient for you to know -that I was in a boat, and that out of that boat I fell into the -dangerous current of the harbour; and had it not been for the bravery -and gallantry of this young lad whom I have brought with me, I should -have been at this moment food for the fish in the Solent sea, or a fit -subject for a coroner's inquest, had my body been discovered." - -The brigadier opened his grey eyes wider and wider, as the boy continued -speaking. - -"And, papa, we must not forget this old boatman, too, who pulled the boy -and me--what's your name? Ay; Jack Junker--out of the water." Thus -Master Dicky ran on. - -"Well, my boy, I am thankful to see you safe, and I wish to express my -gratitude to the brave lad, Jack Junker, who saved your life, and to the -old man who pulled you out of the water. My friends, I must consult -Mrs. Brigadier Plumb, how I can best show you my gratitude. I always do -consult her on all important matters. Till then I hope you will remain -in this house. I am too great an invalid to talk much to you, but my -son will do his best to make amends for my deficiencies." - -On this Master Richard went up and whispered something in his father's -ear. - -"Will one or two do?" I heard the brigadier ask. - -"No, no, father, do it handsomely. To be sure, he ran no risk, but it -was the way he did it; and I rather think he looks for some -remuneration." - -On this the brigadier shuffled off his chair, and opening his -writing-desk, took out a bank note. - -"Here, my friend," he said to old Dick, "I should like to pay you for -the loss of time, and the expense you have been put to, for this -youngster, so accept these few pounds. I hope to show my sense of what -you have done, more heartily by-and-by." - -I saw old Dick's eyes sparkle. He had probably expected a sovereign at -the outside. - -"Jack," he whispered to me, as we left the room, "you are in luck; for, -if he pays me five pounds for just picking that young shrimp out of the -water, he will certainly do a good deal more for you who saved his -life." - -Master Richard soon overtook us, and then insisted on showing us over -the house--into the drawing-room, and dining-room, and -breakfast-parlour, and into several of the bedrooms, then down into the -servants' hall. I had never been in such a fine house in my life -before. And then he took us out into the garden, and walked us all -round, showing us the fruit-trees in blossom, and the beautiful flowers. - -"My mamma will be home soon," he observed, "and my two sisters. I want -her to see the brigadier first, because, you see, although it was a very -fine thing in you to pick me out of the water, I had no business to -tumble into it, or, indeed, to be in a boat at all. The brigadier did -not see that, but she will. She keeps us all precious strict, I can -tell you. I have several brothers--the eldest is in the army, and two -are away at school. I have not quite settled what I am going to be. I -should not object to go into the navy, but then I should like to be made -an admiral or a post-captain at once. I have no particular taste for -the army, and as for the law, or several other things, I would as soon -dig potatoes, or go shrimping; and thus, you see, the navy is the only -profession likely to suit me, or I am likely to suit." - -Old Dick cocked his eye, as he heard young master's remarks. - -"I rather think he must be changed a bit before he is suited to the -navy, however much he may think the navy will suit him; and there I have -an idea he will be pretty considerably mistaken," he whispered to me. - -The young gentleman had evidently caught the habit of a pompous style of -speaking from Mrs. Brigadier, as I afterwards discovered. It sounded -somewhat ridiculous, especially from the mouth of so small a chap. I -had reason to suspect that he now and then, too, made curious mistakes; -though of course, not very well able to detect them myself. - -At last an open carriage drove up to the door, with a curly-wigged -coachman on the box, and two dark-skinned servants standing behind, -dressed like the one who had opened the door. Inside was a very tall -lady, sitting bolt upright, with two considerably smaller young ladies -opposite to her. Young master told old Dick and me not to make any -noise, lest she should see us, as we were watching their arrival through -the shrubbery. She got out with a dignified air, resting on one of the -black servants, and strode into the house. The two young ladies -followed demurely in her wake. She was exactly what I should have -expected the brigadier to be, only she wore petticoats, and a bonnet -instead of a cocked hat. In a short time the servant appeared, and -summoned young master into the house. He quickly appeared, and beckoned -us from a window to come in. I did not see the meeting of the mother -and son, but I know when I entered she stretched out her arms, and gave -me a kiss on the brow. - -"You have rendered me an essential service, young lad," she exclaimed, -in a voice well calculated to hail the maintop in a gale at sea, or to -shout "Advance!" at the head of a regiment in action. "I wish to show -my gratitude, but how can I do so?" - -"And you--" and she looked towards old Dick, who drew back; and I really -heard him say-- - -"Oh, don't!" - -He thought she was going to salute him as she had me. - -"You took them into your boat; you preserved them from catching cold: I -am grateful--very grateful!" and I saw her fumble in the deep recesses -of a side-pocket. - -"My dear," whispered the brigadier, "I have already bestowed a pecuniary -recompense." - -"You have!" she said turning round sharply, "without consulting me?" - -This was said in an intended low voice, but I heard it. - -"Well," she said, "money cannot repay you for the service you have -performed. But you have found your way to this house. Come again -to-morrow, and by that time I will have considered how I can best show -my gratitude." - -"Thank you, marm!" answered old Dick, evidently very glad to get away. -"Shall I take Jack with me? he lives over on this side, and I can drop -him at his home as I go back to Gosport." - -"If you so think fit, my friend," answered Mrs. Brigadier; "and if the -boy--by-the-by, what is your name?" she asked. - -"Jack Junker," I replied; and I told her that my father was a sergeant. - -"Jack Junker? Yes, if you wish to go, Jack," she answered. "I also -then shall have time to consider how I can best express my gratitude. -Farewell?" - -She put out her hand, and shook old Dick's; but I thought, as she spoke -to me, her manner was considerably colder than it had been at first. -Old Dick and I left the room, and the door was closed behind us. - -"I doubt her," whispered old Dick to me. "I am glad the old gentleman, -however, gave me the five pounds. It was handsome in him. But Jack, my -boy, I suspect you will have to rest satisfied with having saved the -life of a fellow-creature; though, as you were the means of my gaining -this, I think I must hand over half to you, as your share." - -To this, of course, I would not consent; and somewhat disappointed, -perhaps, I accompanied my old friend through the hall, having the honour -of being salaamed to most profoundly by the dark-skinned domestics. We -walked slowly, and had not got very far, when I heard footsteps coming -behind us. Turning round, I saw Master Richard running with all his -might. - -"Here, Jack?" he said, "the Brigadier gave me this, and told me to hand -it over to you. My mother was out of the room at the time, so do not -say anything about it to her. She will show you her gratitude in some -other way. I do not mean to say it is as much as I should like to have -offered you; but here, be quick I put it into your pocket, or we may be -seen from the house." - -"Don't be a fool, Jack!" said old Dick, seeing I hesitated. "It's -justly yours, boy, and let them settle the matter as they think best." - -"Good-bye, Jack!" said young master, shaking me by the hand. -"Good-bye!" he added, taking old Dick's rough paw. "We are a curious -set; but I say, do not refuse anything you can get. If you want any -interest exerted, then boldly ask my mother. She will do that in a way -which overcomes all difficulties. If she wanted to make me Archbishop -of Canterbury, she would work away till she had done it, if she happened -to live long enough." - -Old Dick dropped me at my home. There was a tremendous noise going on, -created by my stepmother's children. She was crying out and imploring -them to be quiet, and they were squabbling and crying and abusing each -other. The big ones had appropriated the little ones' toys, or other -property, and all the poor woman could do they would not restore the -articles, while the young ones were crying to get them back, every now -and then making a rush at their bigger brothers and sisters, and getting -a box on the ear in return. My appearance rather increased than quelled -the commotion. Tommy, the biggest, asked me in a threatening way where -I had been, and of course I was not going to answer him; so he doubled -his fist, and, had I not stood on my guard, he would certainly have hit -me, but he thought better of it. Just at that moment my father returned -off duty, full of my performances, of which old Dick had told him all -particulars. He was very indignant with Tom. - -"Is this the way, you young ruffian, you treat a brave lad who has been -saving the life of a fellow-creature, and that fellow-creature the son -of a brigadier? Do you know what a brigadier is, you young jackanapes, -eh?" he exclaimed, giving way for once to anger, of which he was very -seldom guilty. His remarks silenced all the party, who, of course, were -then eager enough to learn what I had done and what had happened. My -poor stepmother embraced me warmly, and tears fell from her eyes as she -glanced round on her own disorderly offspring. For the rest of the -evening they behaved better. - -My father was well pleased on hearing of the brigadier's gift, for the -purse contained ten sovereigns. - -"It's very liberal," he said; "for though I suppose he thinks his son's -life worth more than that, yet, from what you tell me, no doubt it is as -much as he dared to give; yet I can tell you, from what I have heard, -that that shrivelled-up yellow-faced old fellow was as plucky an officer -as ever saw service." - -My father would not let me go back to the Bungalow. - -"You have done your duty, Jack, and you have received a present, which -you must lay by for a rainy day; and if the brigadier's lady wants to -show her maternal gratitude, it's her business to find you out." - -I thought probably that young master would take care to see something -more of me. I liked his manner; for although there was a good deal of -seeming bombast and pretension about him, I had an idea he was sterling -at bottom--a plucky little chap, just as his father had been. This -circumstance had in no way put aside my wish to go to sea. I kept -talking about it whenever I had an opportunity. - -"I see how it is," sighed my father; "you are right, Jack. The way Tom -stood up to you just now showed me that your old home is not as pleasant -as it should be." - -"Then you will let me go, will you not, father?" I said. - -The fact was, it was a very different thing for him to talk about -letting me go, and to ship me off. He hummed and hesitated, and said he -thought I had better wait till I was a year older, or till he himself -was sent to sea. - -"Oh, but that may not be for a long time, father; and what should I do -with myself till then?" I exclaimed. - -"I am not quite so sure that it will be a long time, Jack," he answered, -with a sigh. - -"Once upon a time my only wish was to remain on shore, but times are -changed. I don't want to say a word against my present wife. She is a -good woman; an excellent woman; but somehow or other she does not manage -to keep the house as quiet as it might be; and those children of hers -are terribly unlicked cubs." - -I agreed with him there. "They want to be under the management of Mrs. -Brigadier for a few months," I observed; "I rather think that she would -not be long in bringing them into order." - -"You are right, Jack. But I have seen her, and with all her -perfections, I would not swop my present wife with her on any account." -My father gave a shudder. "Well, Jack," he said, "there's an old friend -of mine--Sergeant Turbot--whose company has been appointed to the -_Roarer_, fitting out for the East India Station, alongside the Topaze -sheer hulk." - -"Well, father," I said, "though I should like to go with you, yet I -fancy that `a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush;' and, if you -will let me, I'll go with Sergeant Turbot. He will look after me and -keep me out of mischief, and stand my friend, if I want one. I should -not like to lose the opportunity." - -"Well, well, I see how it is, home is too hot for you," sighed my poor -father. "To-morrow morning, please Heaven! I will take you on board, -and see what Turbot has to say to the matter. If he's agreeable, why -there won't be much difficulty in getting you rated as one of the boys -aboard." - -My father was as good as his word, and at an early hour the next morning -we embarked in a wherry, and pulled alongside the _Roarer_. When I got -on board, and while standing with my father waiting for Sergeant Turbot, -who was on duty, it seemed to me as if every man and boy in the ship had -gone stark staring mad, rushing and rolling about, tumbling over each -other, shouting and bawling at the top of their voices. Presently I -heard a ferocious-looking hairy monster of a man growl out, in a voice -loud enough to wake a dozen midshipmen, however fast asleep they might -have been, "Up all steerage hammocks?" the shrill sound of his whistle -piercing through my head. I had been on board men-of-war before when -there was no duty going on, and all was quiet and in order. If I had -not had hold of my father's hand, I think I should have gone down the -side again into the wherry. In reality, however, it was only Ned -Rawlings performing an ordinary piece of morning duty--as gentle and -tender-hearted a fellow as ever stepped, in spite of his gruff voice and -hairy face, and the "cat" he had sometimes to wield. I have a notion, -that every time he laid on that cat, he felt it as acutely as the -culprit on whom it was deservedly inflicted. I still felt something -like a fish in a tub, trying to escape the dangers I supposed surrounded -me, when Sergeant Turbot came along the main deck. He laughed heartily, -till his fat sides shook again, when he saw my affrighted countenance, -and my father told him I could not make out the cause of all the uproar. - -"Why, the men are pretty quiet," he observed; "they're pretty much like -this at all times, except when they're sleeping, or at mess, or at -quarters." - -My father told him our object. - -"That I will, Junker," he observed at once. "I am sure you would look -after a boy of mine if I had one, and I will look after yours. I cannot -teach him much seamanship, but I'll give a hint to those who can, and -I'll look after him, and see that he gets into no mischief, as long as I -am in the ship. We are going out to a somewhat trying climate though, -and men of my figure are apt to suffer, I am told." - -He cast a momentary glance over himself. It was fortunate for Sergeant -Turbot that he was a marine, and still more that he had not to go aloft. -On board ship he could do his duty admirably, but on shore his figure -was decidedly against him. He was very stout. It was lucky for me that -he was so, for I could always find him when I wanted him. At first, I -thought that I could run away from him, if desirable; but in that -respect I was mistaken, for he could send after me, and have me back -pretty quickly. All being arranged, the sergeant undertook to speak to -the first-lieutenant; and he had me and my father up, and asking him a -few questions, told him to fill up different papers, which he did -forthwith, and I was regularly entered as a boy on board the _Roarer_. - -CHAPTER THREE. - -LIFE ON THE ROARER. - -I went back with my father, and the remainder of the day was spent by my -stepmother in getting my outfit ready. It was an unusually good one, in -consequence of the brigadier's gift. - -"I don't expect to hear much more about that," observed my father. -"There is a good deal of talk about those sort of people; though, to be -sure, the old man and the young one have some feeling; still I don't see -what good they could do you, Jack, even if they wished it. I should not -wish you put above your station; though, to be sure, your poor dear -mother was a lady herself, that she was, every inch of her, and too good -for me. However, Jack, there's one thing I have got to counsel you: do -your duty, tell the truth, and never mind the sneers or laughter of -those who try to lead you astray. There is One in heaven who will hear -your prayers, and don't you go and forget to tell Him your wants, and -ask Him to do what is best for you. And now, my boy, you have my -blessing; and I am sure, that good mother of yours--she who's gone I -mean--will be looking down from wherever she is, and watching over you, -and praying for you, if so be she has the power; but of that matter, I -must own, I have no certain knowledge, only I do think it's the work she -would like to be employed in, anyhow." - -The next morning I took an affectionate farewell of my brothers and -sisters, and very far from an affectionate one of the children of my -poor stepmother. She herself, however, wept bitterly, as I went out of -the house; my father, and a marine he had got from the barracks, -carrying my chest. It was not a very big one, as may be supposed. We -had got some distance from the house, when who should I see, scampering -after us, and well out of breath, than the young Master Richard. - -"Oh, Jack!" he exclaimed, "where are you going? I wanted to come -yesterday, but could not, because my mother took me to see the -Port-Admiral, and all sorts of other naval authorities. I wanted, as I -told you, to go to sea, and she seems to think it's a very good place -for me to go to. She says that as I have been so nearly drowned once, I -am not likely to be drowned again; that it's much less expensive than -being in the dragoons, and, in fact, she made up her mind that to sea I -was to go. Somehow or other she and the naval big-wigs have settled it, -and I am to go on board the old _Roarer_, which is to sail, in a short -time, for the East Indies." - -"That's the very ship I have joined," I answered. - -"Is it? How jolly! but are you to be a midshipman?" - -"No," I answered, "I am only rated as a boy on board." - -"Oh! I suppose there is no great difference. I do not know much about -a ship, or the ways of a ship. I am to have a fine new uniform, and a -dirk, and a chest full of no end of things. Well, we shall know more -about it by-and-by; but I was forgetting what I came for. I wanted you -to come up to the house. My father wants to talk to you, and my sisters -want to see you; to make much of you, I fancy, but that might be a bore. -But, I say, let those two soldiers take your chest aboard, and present -your compliments to the captain, and say you will come by-and-by." - -My father and his companion, on hearing this, burst out laughing. - -"I have a notion, young master," said my father, "that that would not do -for Jack. Much obliged to you all the same; but you are likely to be in -one station, and he in another, so I am afraid the kindness you intend -him will not do him any good. I promised to take him on board the -_Roarer_ this morning, and I shall have to go on duty again very soon; -so once more I have to thank you, and wish you good morning!" - -Master Plumb seemed rather astonished at this answer. - -"Rather a proud chap that soldier," he said to me. "I should have taken -him for an officer, if he had not been carrying the box. Who is it?" - -"My father," I answered. - -"Oh, that's it," he observed. "Well, Jack, I wish you could come, but -if you cannot, I must take your excuses; though I am sure the captain -would not be angry, if you sent him a polite message." - -"My father knows better than I do," I answered; "and I have not seen the -captain, so I must go. I am very sorry, for I should like to have come -with you." - -Master Richard wrung my hand very warmly, and most unwillingly went back -towards his home. How Sergeant Turbot did laugh when we got on board, -and my father told him what had happened. He advised me not to give -Master Richard's message. My father, having left me under charge of the -sergeant, took his departure. He came on board, however, several times -in old Dick's wherry. - -"I don't ask you to come home, my boy," he said, "for I have not got the -heart to go through that parting business again. Besides, Jack, the -home is not as comfortable as it should be. Perhaps, however, when you -come back, four or five years hence, things will have mended. And you -will not forget your father, Jack, and I'm sure you won't her that's -gone." - -These remarks were made the last time I saw my worthy father before the -ship went out of harbour. I, in time, got accustomed to the ways of a -ship, or, rather, to the ways of the men. It was rather curious, at -first, to see a number of big fellows standing round a tub or basin, all -washing themselves in the same water; one toothbrush, if they were -particular enough to have such a thing, and one comb, serving for the -whole party. Only a few, however, of the cleanest men used the former -article. Still, things were somewhat trying to a young chap. When the -ship appeared to have got a little quiet, suddenly, as I was seated near -Sergeant Turbot, I heard a sharp whistle and a ferocious growl, which -made me jump off the bench. "All hands on deck?" or some such cry, were -the words which followed the whistle. - -"Who is that growling out?" I asked of the sergeant. - -"That is one of our licensed growlers," was the answer. "It's his -business to growl; he is paid for it. Seamen are fond enough of -growling generally, but they get nothing when they do, though they growl -till they are hoarse." - -Now, as I said, I had been aboard all sorts of ships in ordinary, or in -the dockyard, but never before on board one fitting-out. When, -therefore, I stepped on deck after the men, I was perfectly confounded; -and the scene of confusion around me--such piping, and swearing, and -bawling, and shouting, swaying up yards, getting in guns and stores, and -pulling and hauling in all directions. Still, I made the best of it; -and, having my eyes about me, kept out of harm's way, and stood ready to -try and do anything I was told to do. This went on till the men knocked -off work again, and the hubbub was concentrated on the main and lower -decks, especially round the galley-fire, where the cooks were busy -serving out dinners to the different messes. "It smells fine, at all -events," I thought to myself, and would have made me hungry, if I had -not been so already. Then a marine struck a bell four times double, -which made eight bells, and the officer of the watch roared out, "Pipe -to dinner!" Didn't the whistle of the boatswain and his men sound -shrilly then! The dishes being arranged on the mess-tables, which were -placed in rows along the decks, all hands fell to with a will; and I, -among the number, ate my first dinner aboard ship. In about an hour -there was another pipe, and the word "Grog!" was bawled out. Each man -went to receive his quantum of rum and water. The sergeant said that -rum was a bad thing for little boys, and drank mine for me. I now think -that he was right. I had as yet seen nothing of Master Plumb, and I -began to think that he was not coming after all. This did not concern -me, I own, very much; for, as he would be at one end of the ship and I -at the other, we should not exchange words very often, and I knew pretty -well, from what I had already seen, that he would soon get into the ways -of his messmates, and look down upon me, and swear and abuse me, as some -of the other young gentlemen were apt to do. - -At last all stores were on board, the sails were bent, and, casting off -from the old hulk, we hauled out into the stream. The _Roarer_ -certainly looked to greater advantage than she had hitherto done. The -next day decks were cleared, the men put on clean shirts and trousers, -the officers appeared in full fig, and the long-expected captain came up -the side. - -"Butter won't melt in his mouth," I heard one of the seamen near me -observe. - -"You think so?" remarked Ned Rawlings. "Now do you just get near, and -have a look at his eye, and you will sing a different song. It's not -always the rough-and-ready looking chaps, like you and I, Tom, as are -the best men for work!" - -Our captain certainly did look more fit for a ball-room, or a naval -officer in love on the stage, than for the deck of a man-of-war. He was -the most polished article about his whole ship. His whiskers were -curled; his cheeks were pink; the gold lace on his coat shone with -undimmed lustre, not a particle of dust rested on the fine cloth of -which it was made, while it fitted with perfection to his well-formed -figure. Kid gloves covered his hands, and a fine cambric handkerchief -appeared from his breast-pocket. He bowed to the flag, and he bowed to -the officers, as he cast a scrutinising glance round the deck. Some of -the older officers pulled rather long faces when they saw him. In a -short time, he ordered all hands to come aft, and then, in a clear, -somewhat soft voice, made a long speech. The sum total of it was, that -he was determined to have a crack ship, and a crack crew, and that he -did not like to use the lash, but that he did not always do what he -liked; still, that he always would have done what he wanted done. The -men could not quite make him out, nor could I; but I came to the -conclusion, that he was not just the sort of man to whom I should like -to carry such a message as Master Plumb had requested me to give. - -Next day we went out to Spithead. No signs of my friend. I told -Sergeant Turbot that I thought Master Richard Plumb would not come after -all. - -"Perhaps not," he answered; "Mrs. Brigadier does not like to part from -him, or maybe they are washing and combing him, and making him fit to -come aboard, which I suppose occupied the time of a certain person who -should be nameless, and prevented him joining us till yesterday. Maybe, -young master has thought better of the matter, and would rather go for a -parson, or one of those chaps as goes to foreign courts to bamboozle the -people." - -I, at all events, made up my mind that I should see no more of Master -Richard. However, scarcely had I come to this conclusion, than a large -wherry came alongside, and a card was sent up for the captain. - -"Certainly," he answered. - -The boatswain's mate whistled; the side boys were called away, I being -one of them, and we hastened to our posts on the accommodation-ladder. -There, in a boat, sat Mrs. Brigadier, with the Brigadier on one side and -Master Richard on the other, and the two young ladies I had before seen. -Mrs. Brigadier, putting her hand on the shoulder of one of the men who -was holding on the bow stepped up the accommodation-ladder with a -dignified air, followed humbly by the Brigadier. Then came the young -ladies. Young master followed his sisters in a spick-and-span new -uniform, looking especially well pleased at himself. As he came up he -espied me. That there was no pride in him, he showed by an inclination -to shake hands with me. But against this there were two reasons: first, -I should have fallen from my perch, and then it would have been -decidedly against nautical etiquette. - -"Why, Jack, shall I have to do this sort of work?" he asked, as he -passed me. - -"I think not, sir," I answered, for I had learned to say "sir" to a -uniform. "I am a side boy, you are a midshipman." - -"Oh, ay, that makes a difference," he observed, following up his -sisters; and I do believe he gave the last a pinch in the ankles, as he -pretended to keep down her petticoats, for she kicked out behind, -missing his nose, though, narrowly. The whole party were soon on deck, -where the captain stood to receive them, bowing with formal politeness -to Mrs. Brigadier and to the Brigadier, as well as to the young ladies. -He cast a very different sort of glance at young master, who came up, no -way disconcerted, by the side of his father. - -"We were anxious to see the last of our boy," said Mrs. Brigadier, for -the Brigadier seldom spoke much in her presence. "We wished also -properly to introduce him to you and to his brother officers. He is not -our only son, but he is our youngest son, and as such we naturally prize -him greatly. These are our two girls--Leonora and Euphemia. They are -not likely to leave us, unless at any time they should be destined to -make the home of some worthy man happy; but boys, Captain Sharpe, must -go out into the world, and Richard Alfred Chesterton does not find -himself an exception to the general rule. He desired to enter your -noble profession, and I am sure, Captain Sharpe, that you will watch -over him with paternal care; I trust by-and-by because you appreciate -his merits, but at present, as he is unknown to you, for my sake--for -the sake of a fond, doting mother." - -"I always do look after my midshipmen, madam," answered the captain; "I -wish them to learn their duty, and I make them do it. If your son -behaves himself, he will get on as well as the rest; but if not, he will -probably find himself spending a considerable portion of his time up -aloft there," and the captain glanced at the mast-head. - -I saw young master screw up his mouth at this. However, Mrs. Brigadier -said nothing. She had unburdened her maternal bosom, and done her duty, -as she considered it. - -The captain now invited the Brigadier and his family down to luncheon, -and Master Richard followed, his air of confidence somewhat abated. He -had taken the captain's measure, and the captain had taken his, but they -were not likely to get on the worse for that. I saw many glances of -admiration cast at the young ladies by the lieutenants and midshipmen, -for really they were very pretty, nice girls, according to my notion-- -not a bit like their mamma. - -At last the party came out of the cabin again, and the side boys were -once more called away. The old Brigadier took a hearty affectionate -farewell of his boy, and his sisters kissed him--all very right and -proper--and then came Mrs. Brigadier. I saw that poor Master Richard -was rather uncomfortable, when, quite regardless of where they were, she -took him up in her long arms, and kissed his cheeks, and his forehead, -and his lips, just as if he had been a baby, and a big tear did start -into her eye. "Well, she is human, at all events," I thought, "in spite -of her appearance." - -Though some of the midshipmen might have laughed, the captain looked as -grave as a judge, and so did the other officers. Master Richard went -down the ladder, and saw his party off: then he again came up the side, -and walked about the deck by himself, evidently not knowing exactly what -to do. At last, the first-lieutenant, Mr. Blunt, went up to him. - -"Have you ever been to sea before, Mr. Plumb?" he asked. - -"No, indeed, I have not," was the answer, "and I am rather doubtful--" - -"Well, well," broke in Mr. Blunt, "remember, I speak to you as a friend. -You should say, `Sir!' when you address a superior officer." - -"Certainly," answered Master Dicky, "but I did not know you were my -superior officer." - -The lieutenant laughed. - -"You will have a good deal to learn, I suspect, Mr. Plumb. Remember, I -am the first-lieutenant of the ship, and you must obey with promptitude -any orders which I, or any of the other lieutenants give, or the master, -or the warrant-officers, or, indeed, any officers on duty, may issue. -You have a great many people above you on board this ship, Mr. Plumb." - -"So it seems, sir," said Richard, "but if they all try to teach me my -duty, so much the better; I shall learn the faster." - -"You will," said Mr. Blunt, "only there is one thing you must never -pretend to be, and that is--stupid. The captain believes you to be one -of the sharpest lads who ever came to sea; and, let me tell you, he is -not the man to allow anybody to gainsay his opinion." - -CHAPTER FOUR. - -FIRST EXPERIENCES OF SAILING. - -We ran down Channel at a rattling rate, the wind off shore, the sea -smooth, the sun shining brightly. Young Master Richard soon got the -name from his messmates of Dicky Plumb--a name which, of course, stuck -to him. In spite of his airs of dignity, he soon showed that he was a -plucky little fellow; and he was at once for going aloft with the other -midshipmen and boys. The first time, he ran up the main rigging pretty -smartly, till he got to the futtock-shrouds; go higher he could not, and -go through the lubber's hole he would not. He kept looking up, till at -length he determined to go round by the futtock-shrouds into the top. -He clambered along; I was aft, cleaning some brass-work, and could not -help looking up, and watching him. Round into the top he could not get. -More than once I thought he would lose his hold. The captain, who came -on deck, thought so too. He made as if he would go aloft himself, when -Ned Rawlings caught his eye. - -"Go and look after the boy," he said. - -Ned sprang aloft, and in a twinkling had his arms round Dicky's waist. - -"Don't struggle," he said, "and I'll have you down safe." - -In a few seconds, Dicky was all right on the deck. He was not -contented, however; aloft he would go again, immediately. - -"I will try once more, sir," he said, turning to the captain--for he had -learned to say "sir," by this time, to everybody--and after three or -four attempts--Ned Rawlings taking care to be in the top beforehand-- -round the shrouds he got, and safe into the top. He was not going to -stop there, though; and up the top-mast rigging he went, and down again -on the other side. - -"If that boy does not break his neck, he will do well in the service," I -heard the captain observe. "The little fellow has got pluck and -coolness." - -"They say in the berth, sir, that he is a most impudent little chap," -observed Mr. Blunt. - -"Very likely," remarked the captain; "it takes some time to rub that -sort of material out of a boy." - -Dicky often came forward to have a talk with me, and though he could be -uppish enough with his equals and superiors, he was as kind and gentle -to me as any one could be. - -"I am very glad I came to sea, Jack," he observed. "I am learning more -about my work every day; and then the weather is so different to what I -thought it was at sea. I always fancied we were tumbling and tossing -about, except when the ship was in harbour; but here we have been -gliding on for the last fortnight with the water as smooth as a -mill-pond." - -I, in reply, said I was glad I came; but from what I heard, we must -expect ups and downs at sea--sometimes smooth, and sometimes blowing -hard. - -"It is all the same to me," I observed. "When I came to sea, I made up -my mind to take the rough and the smooth together." - -"Jack, were you ever sea-sick?" asked Dicky. - -"Not that I remember. Were you?" - -"No; and I don't intend to be," he answered, drawing himself up somewhat -proudly. "I am not going to be made the sport of my inside." - -"More likely of your messmates," I answered. - -We soon found, however, that this easy sort of life was not going to -last for ever. One night we had to tumble out of our hammocks, in the -middle watch, pretty fast, at the cry of--"All hands shorten sail!" The -men were out of bed in a twinkling. It was wonderful how soon they -slipped into their clothes. The sea was roaring, the wind howling and -whistling, and the officers shouting--"Clew up! Haul down! Close reef -topsails!" and similar cries. I was very glad not to have to go aloft -just then, right up into the darkness, amid the slashing of ropes, and -the flapping of sails, and the fierce whistling of the blast as it -rushed through the rigging. So, I have an idea, was Dicky Plumb, though -he had been boasting so boldly the previous afternoon. I remember being -ordered aft with other boys, to man the mizen-topsail clew-line, which -we did, and pulled, and hauled away, till we were ordered to belay. -This is the only piece of service I recollect rendering to my country -that night. When the ship was got under snug sail, the crew were piped -down; and I, with the watch below, turned in. I was, however, by this -time, feeling rather curious. I had hitherto been very well, and -remarkably jolly; and was sure I was going to make a first-rate sailor. -The ship, however, began to roll, and went on rolling more and more. -Not only I, but most of the other boys, and many of the men, too, were -looking very queer. I had a friend I have not mentioned before--Tommy -Punchon by name--a fine little chap. He had never seen a ship before he -came on board the _Roarer_; but he had read of ships, and foreign lands, -and that made him come to sea, he told me. Now he had heard there was -such a thing as sea-sickness, but he was not going to knock under to -it--not he. I met Tommy coming along the lower deck (I am speaking now -of the next morning), looking very green and yellow; indeed, all sorts -of colours; perhaps I looked the same, I rather think I did. I asked -him how he felt. "Very jolly, eh?" - -"Oh, don't! don't!" he answered, with the corners of his mouth curling -down. "It's an awful reality; I must confess it." Just then, I caught -sight of Dicky Plumb, who had been sent along the deck on some duty, -which he had evidently a difficulty in performing. I doubt if his -mother would have owned him, so crest-fallen he looked. I dared not -speak to him. He, indeed, cast an imploring look at me, as much as to -say, "Don't!" On he went, trying to reach the midshipmen's berth, but -overcome by his feelings--miserable I know they were, from experience-- -he stopped, and if Sergeant Turbot had not caught him in his arms, he -would have sunk down on the deck. The sergeant, however, helped him -along, till he got him stowed safely away in the berth, where there were -probably several other young gentlemen in a like prostrate condition. -Meantime, I grew worse and worse. Tommy and I were soon joined by other -boys--a most miserable crew--and we all together went and stowed -ourselves away in the fore part of the ship, thinking that no one would -be troubled about such wretched creatures as we were. My grand idea was -a hope that some one would come and throw me overboard. We lay thus for -some time unnoticed, and began to hope that we should not be discovered. -Still, I must say, I did not care what happened to us. I asked Tommy -how he felt. - -"Oh, Jack! Jack?" he groaned out, "Do take me by the head and heels, -and heave me overboard, there's a good fellow!" - -"That's just what I was going to ask you to do for me," I answered, in -the same dolorous tone, though I have an idea, that if any one had -actually taken us at our word, the cold water would soon have restored -us to health, and we should have wished ourselves on board again. -Suddenly, we were all aroused by a gruff voice sounding in our ears, -and, looking up, who should we see, but that hard-hearted individual, -Bryan Knowles, the ship's corporal, standing over us, cane in hand. - -"What are all you boys idling here for?" he growled out. "Rouse up, -every one of you; rouse up, you young villains, and go to your duty?" - -Poor little wretches that we were; as if we could possibly do anything -but just crawl from one place to another, and lie down, wishing to die. -But it was not only the boys who were ill, but great hulking fellows, -some seamen, but mostly marines; fully fifty of them, lying and rolling -about the decks like logs of wood. I need not further describe the -scene, or enter into too minute particulars. - -At length, old Futtock, the boatswain--a friend of Sergeant Turbot's-- -gave me leave to go and lie down in his cabin till I should get better. -The very feeling that I had some one to care for me did me good. - -In most ships there is a dirty Jem; we had one, a miserable fellow, with -a skin which no amount of washing could cleanse. Now it happened that a -party of tall marines had stolen down the fore cock-pit, and having -found their way into the cable tier, had snugly stowed themselves on -some spare sails and hawsers. There they lay, groaning and moaning, and -making other noises significant of what was going on, when Mr. -Maconochie, a big, burly Scotchman, mate of the orlop deck, coming -forward, heard them, and very soon began to peer about with his large -goggle eyes into the recesses of the tier. I dreaded the consequences, -as, slipping out of the cabin where I had been, I looked out to see what -he was about. - -"What are you sodgers doing there?" he roared out, in a furious passion -at seeing what they had been about. - -One of them, with a wicked leer, at once pointed to Dirty Jem, who lay -fast asleep not far off. Now, whether Mr. Maconochie thought he could -not punish the marines, and was glad to get hold of some other -individual on whom to vent his rage, I do not know; but, be that as it -may, he roused up the poor boy, and having boxed his ears, ordered him -to take one of the steerage, that is, a midshipman's hammock--which had -been left by the marine who ought to have lashed it up--and to carry it -up and stow it in the poop nettings. Poor Jem poked his fingers into -one of the turns, and began to drag the big hammock along, but so weak -was he that he could scarcely move. I do not think he could ever have -got up, even to the lower deck. Fortunately for Dirty Jem, Mr. Blunt, -who would allow no one but himself to bully, and that he never did, -happened to come down, and inquiring why he was dragging the hammock, -ordered him to put it down, and hauled Mr. Maconochie pretty severely -over the coals for his barbarity. The marines had meantime sneaked off, -and thus escaped the mate's rage. I had got nearly well by this time, -and thought, as the ship was still tumbling about, that I was going to -enjoy myself. The captain, however, having ascertained that we had got -our sea legs and sea stomachs into order, ordered the ship's corporal to -turn us out of our hammocks at four o'clock next morning to muster at -the lee gangway. We there had to answer to our number, and then came -the pipe-- - -"Watch and idlers, holystone decks?" - -We were sent on to the poop, and were employed for some time amidst the -slashing and dashing of water, working away on our bare knees on the -sanded decks, grinding them with the holystones. Then we had to scrub -with hard brushes, while the captain of the mizen-top kept dashing -buckets full of water round us, often sending one right into our faces. -There were generally one or two of the midshipmen there, who had to -paddle about, with their trousers tucked up and their feet and legs -bare; however, as the first-lieutenant set them the example, they had no -cause to complain. - -For a whole day I had seen nothing of Dicky Plumb. At length, one -morning, who should appear on deck but the young gentleman himself. He -looked doubtingly at first at what was going forward, then off he -slipped his shoes and socks, rolled up his trousers, and began like the -others running here and there, seeing that all hands worked away with a -will. We had to muster for numerous purposes--to see that we were -clean, and that our hammocks were lashed up properly. The latter was -severe work; for, the hammocks being heavy and we little, when the ship -was rolling it was as much as we could do, and sometimes more than we -could do, to hold on to them, and keep ourselves from rolling away -across the deck. Poor Jem (Dirty Jem, I mean) was often in trouble. -The lieutenant made us tuck up our shirt-sleeves and trousers, and then -lift our arms and legs to see that they were properly washed. Dirty Jem -had really got his arms clean up to his elbows, and legs up to the -knees. - -"Turn up your shirt-sleeves higher, boy, and your trousers too," said -the lieutenant. - -A dark rim of dirt was seen at each place. - -"Corporal, give this boy twelve finnams!" exclaimed the lieutenant. - -"Please, sir, I didn't know that we were to muster there," spluttered -out Dirty Jem. - -The excuse, however, did not save him. He got the finnams, and had to -clean himself into the bargain. To the latter operation he objected -even more than the first, and seemed to think it a very hard case of -cruelty. However, I shall have no space for our adventures in the far -East, if I go spinning my yarn in this style. We touched at Madeira, -the chief object, I fancy, being to procure a cask or two of wine for -the captain and the admiral on the station. Hearing one day that we -were nearing the line, I, with Tommy Punchon and several other boys, -were very anxious to know what that could mean. I promised to ask -Sergeant Turbot. I did so. He looked very wise, and replied--"Why, you -understand, Jack, that the line is what you don't see, but it's there, -and runs right round the world, from east to west, or west to east, it's -all the same. And then it's very hot there, because the sun is right -overhead, and for the same cause it's always summer, and the days are -neither very long nor very short, and there are mostly calms. For this -reason, and because he could not pick out a more comfortable part of the -whole watery-world, the king of the ocean, Daddy Neptune, as we call -him, once on a time used to live there. He does not now, that I know -of, because I have heard say that all the heathen gods and goddesses -have given up living at all on the earth; though, to be sure, I don't -say but what he and they may visit it now and then. Now, Jack, you -understand all about the matter, or as much as I, a sergeant of the -Royal Marines, do, and that surely must be quite enough for a -second-class boy on board ship." - -Full of the lucid information I had received, I returned to my -messmates, who told me that, in spite of what the sergeant had said, -they heard, positively, that Neptune and all his court were coming on -board, either the next day or the following. Sure enough, Daddy did -come on board, in right fashion, when the opportunity was taken of -giving Dirty Jem a thorough washing, and punishing three or four other -individuals in a rather unpleasant way, by cramming their mouths full of -grease and pitch, under the pretence of lathering them, before being -shaved by Neptune's barber. I should say, that a lower studding-sail -had been fastened up, in the form of a long bag, in the main deck, on -the starboard side, and filled with water. The skid gratings had been -taken off, so that, looking down from the starboard gangway, nothing but -water was to be seen. Neptune and his wife made their appearance from -forward, sitting on what they said was their chariot, but which looked -like a gun-carriage. They had two infants, who put me wonderfully in -mind of two small boys in our mess, while his wife had very much the -appearance of Ned Rawlings; and I thought, too, I recognised the -features of his secretary, his coachman, and barber. They were followed -by a number of courtiers, and twenty-four bears, and as many constables. -The chief business of the latter was to catch the fellows who were to -be shaved and ducked. We boys were tossed about from side to side of -the tank by the bears, they crying out, "He's none of my child!" and -very fortunate we thought ourselves when we got out again. The side -being smooth and steep as an earthen pan, we were very much like rats -caught in one. Besides Dirty Jem, the smaller, we had a big, hulking -fellow--Michael Clack, by name. He was a dirty, lazy, lubberly fellow, -disliked and despised by all the ship's company. He had, from the -first, I doubt not, a pretty good notion that he would receive no very -delicate treatment from Neptune's ministers, so he went and hid himself -away, thinking that he might, perhaps, escape notice. He had been -marked, however, from the first. - -"Michael Clack! Michael Clack!" was soon called out by the secretary, -and "Michael Clack! Michael Clack!" resounded along the decks. The -constables searched for him everywhere, along each deck, behind every -chest, and each store-room, and in each corner into which he could -possibly have crept. At last, it was believed that he must have gone -overboard. Still, as he had been seen by more than one of the boys -scudding along the decks faster than he had ever been known to move -before, the fact that he had gone overboard was doubted by a great many. -At length, the constables instituted another search along the orlop -deck, and in the cable tier. A shout proclaimed that Clack was found. -He was stowed away in the coil of a cable, and a piece of canvas drawn -neatly over him. He was dragged up, and placed on the plank before -Neptune. - -"You are a big, lazy, idle, mischievous, do-nothing rascal," began his -Majesty. "You deserve no good from any one, and you will get it, too, -my hearty! Give him Number 1." That was the roughest razor in use. -"Plenty of lather! Lay it on thick!" Neptune's ministers of justice -did not require a second bidding. The moment the unhappy Clack opened -his mouth to plead his cause, the tar-brush was run almost down his -throat. His face was next covered with it, and scraped with a jagged -razor, till the blood ran out in all directions. In this state he was -tossed into the tank, and bandied about among the bears, every one of -whom owed him a grudge, till some one cried out that he was done for. -He had fainted, or, like the Australian dingo, had pretended to faint, -and looked, indeed, as if he were dead. The captain, seeing what had -happened, was very angry, and ordering him to be taken to the doctor, -forbade the sports to be continued. Neptune and his secretary begged -pardon as well as they could for what had happened, and he and his -followers waddled forward, and disappeared over the bows. We heard that -evening that Michael Clack was very ill, and there was a general idea -that he was going to die. What the doctor thought about the matter I do -not know. - -Clack hated work, but he disliked nasty physic still more. This the -doctor knew; and by giving him all the most nauseous draughts he could -think of he soon got him out of the sick list. Clack, though out of the -sick list, was very soon in the black list; and being shortly afterwards -detected in helping himself to the contents of another man's bag, he was -adjudged by the captain to be placed in irons, to be kept in solitary -confinement, and otherwise punished. - -CHAPTER FIVE. - -ACROSS THE OCEAN. - -Falling in at length with the north-east trade-winds, we stood towards -the coast of South America, and entered Rio de Janeiro harbour, which -was but very little, if anything, out of our course for the Cape of Good -Hope. This will be seen by a glance at a map of the world, and ships, -therefore, frequently touch there on their way to the regions beyond the -Cape of Good Hope. It is a magnificent bit of water, surrounded by -curiously-shaped mountains and peaks, with a big city on its shores, -full of large streets and no end of churches. Sergeant Turbot took -Tommy Punchon and me with him, to keep us out of mischief, though we -would rather have gone alone to try and get into it. I was astonished -at the quantity of black slaves, grunting and groaning away under their -heavy loads. Still, they were ever ready for a joke, and the niggers we -met with loads were merry laughing fellows, who went along singing and -joking, as if no such thing as slavery existed. I might fill my journal -with an account of the numberless curious things I saw on shore, but if -I did I should have no space for my own adventures; so I will leave to -others to give a description of Rio, and go on with my sea log. - -That night, when we got on board again, Sergeant Turbot and the -boatswain were walking the forecastle, and Punchon and I were standing -not far off, when a splash was heard, and the sentry shouted out, "A man -overboard!" He immediately fired, but did not hit the man, whose head I -could see as I looked out from one of the ports as he struck out boldly -for the land; there were plenty of sharks about, so that there was not -much chance of his reaching it, even if he was allowed to go. The -sentry's shot was, however, followed by the officer of the watch calling -away the second cutter. She was lowered and manned pretty quickly, and -I watched her eagerly as she made chase after the fugitive. He was soon -brought back, and proved to be no other than Michael Clack, who, taking -advantage of the short interval when a prisoner is relieved from his -manacles in the evening, had contrived to slip overboard. No one had -supposed that he was a good swimmer, yet, to reach the shore, he must -have been a first-rate one. Perhaps some friend had told him that an -American vessel lay inside of us, and he hoped to reach her, when he -would have been taken on board and concealed. He would, however, have -been a somewhat dear bargain, if they had got him. We were soon again -at sea, steering across the Atlantic for the Cape of Good Hope. I need -scarcely say that soon after we got out of harbour Michael Clack got -four dozen for his attempt at desertion. I am not going to describe the -ceremony; it is a very unpleasant one for all hands concerned. Still, I -must own, Master Michael got what he deserved. - -"You have heard of good service stripes, may-be, Jack?" said the -sergeant to me. "Those are what we call bad service stripes; and mind -you, boy, never do anything to deserve them." - -I asked Sergeant Turbot if he could tell me anything of these -trade-winds, which had been blowing so strong in our favour for so many -days. - -"That's just what I have been talking to Futtock about," he answered. -"He and I make it out, that they always do blow in some parts from the -north-east, and, further south, from the south-east. Why they blow -thus, is more than I can tell you; but I've heard say, that they have -got the name of trade-winds, because they help on traders in a voyage -through the Atlantic." - -I was not quite satisfied with this answer, and determined to try and -find out more of the matter by-and-by. The weather had been threatening -for some hours, and towards evening the hands were turned up to reef -topsails. Three reefs were at once taken in, and not a moment too soon. -Down came the gale upon us. The big ship heeled over till the -lower-deck ports were under water. The rolling seas tossed round her, -and roared, as if eager to swallow her up. The wind whistled, the -thunder growled, every now and then breaking overhead with tremendous -rattles and crashes, and a pitchy darkness came down over the ocean, the -occasional flashes of lightning only rendering the darkness still more -dark. Before long we had our fore-topsail close reefed, three reefs in -the main-top-sail, and mizen-topsail furled, and we were running dead -before the gale, at not less than fifteen knots an hour. Mr. Futtock -said that we were going twenty; and, of course, I believed him; but I do -not now, because I never found the fastest ship go so fast, and the old -_Roarer_ was, as the men said, a good one to fight, but not to go. In -spite of the remarks I made of our captain, many of the men still held -to the notion that there was more talk than do in him. - -"Just a lady's man--very fine to look at, with his cambric handkerchiefs -and scent bottles, but you never get much out of such chaps." - -Officers little think how much they are discussed by the men. The -second-lieutenant was thought still less of, and not without reason. He -was fond of spouting poetry, and doing the polite to young ladies, -whenever any came off to see the ship; but as to seamanship, he knew -little about it. He often got the ship into a mess, but had no idea of -getting her out of it again. Now, it happened to be his first watch; it -had just struck eight bells. The starboard watch had been called, and a -few minutes afterwards the other watch was mustered. During this time -the rounds went to see all cleared up and safe below. The watch -relieved was just turning in. Some already had their clothes off, when -suddenly a fearful crashing sound was heard. No one knew what had -happened, only that there was a feeling that the ship was in some awful -danger. Not a word was heard from the officer of the watch. If we were -in peril he was not going to take us out of it--so it seemed. Neither -Punchon nor I had taken off our clothes, so we scrambled on deck to see -what was the matter. A seaman will understand our position, when I say -that the ship was taken right aback, and driving, stern first, at the -rate of some twelve knots an hour, with the sea breaking over her poop, -two-thirds of which were already under water. No one spoke; not an -order was given. Suddenly, a loud voice was heard, shouting, "On deck, -lads, for your lives?" and directly afterwards Ned Rawlings piped, "All -hands save ship!" The crew were on deck almost before the sound of the -pipe had died away; and again the same voice--we now knew it to be that -of the captain--shouted, "Man the starboard fore-brace!" Officers, -marines, any one who was near, grasped the rope, and hauled away on it -with a will. The head yards were very soon braced right up, and the -head sails took and filled at the very moment that the poop was nearly -under water, and it seemed as if the ship was going bodily down. The -main and cross-jack yards were soon braced round, and in less than a -quarter of an hour from the time the wind had shifted we were braced -sharp up on the starboard tack, and going seven knots through the water. - -"We have had a merciful deliverance," I heard old Futtock remark to the -gunner a short time afterwards. "It's not often that a ship gets into -the position we were in and gets out of it. In another minute the sea -would have been rushing right over the poop down on our quarter-deck, -and it would have been all over with us. If Mr. Muddlehead had had his -wits about him, he would have braced the yards up the moment we were -taken aback. A pretty go it would have been, if we had not been under -snug sail. Why, we should have gone right down, stern foremost, and -never have come up again. That's been the fate of many a ship out in -these parts, which has never since been heard of." - -"A fine fellow, our skipper," I heard Mr. Plumb observe to a messmate. -"I really did think at first that the Brigadier and my mother would have -had to bewail my loss. I am deeply indebted to him." - -A loud laugh followed the young gentleman's remark. "Ha! ha! ha! -Dicky, remember that all people are not taken at their own value," -exclaimed an old mate, who was fond of putting Mr. Plumb down now and -then. After this night our captain was more than ever respected by the -crew, because he was now known to be a thorough seaman--a doer as well -as a talker--and in consequence he maintained discipline on board -without flogging and without difficulty. - -We touched at the Cape, where Dicky Plumb really did go on shore and -dine with the Governor, who happened to be a friend of his father's, and -he took good care afterwards to talk not a little about his visit to his -messmates, and the way he was treated by the Governor. - -I was at this time appointed to wait on the midshipmen, the boy I -superseded being the unfortunate Jem Smudge. - -"I don't like having you to wait on us," observed Mr. Midshipman Plumb -to me, one day soon after this. "I am afraid the fellows will be -abusing you, and I could not stand that; but you must not mind it, if -they do; and if you will bear abuse for a little time, I will manage to -make all square in the end." - -"Do not trouble yourself about that, Master Richard," I answered. -"Depend upon it, I don't care what the young gentlemen say to me. I -intend to do my duty to them, and Sergeant Turbot says it will be all -the better for me. So, whatever they say, let it pass. Don't say -anything for or against me." - -"As to that, Jack, you must let me take my own course," answered Mr. -Plumb. - -I found that Dicky Plumb got considerably laughed at by his companions -for what they called his uppishness, and his boasting of his various -friends and relations of rank. Still, nothing would ever put him down. - -"It is no fault of mine if my father happens to have a Duke for a -cousin, or a Governor-General of India for a brother-in-law, or if he is -intimate with the Prime Minister, or if the Queen herself holds him in -high estimation; so I do not see why you chaps should laugh at me." - -"But, I say, Master Dicky," exclaimed an old mate, Sampson Trueman by -name, "is it a fact that your father has a cousin a Duke, and is -brother-in-law to the Governor-General?" - -"I ask you, Mr. Trueman, whether it is becoming of you--a master's mate -in the British navy, and soon, I hope, should the Lords Commissioners of -the Admiralty be made aware of your superlative merits, to become a -lieutenant--to call in question the word of another officer, -notwithstanding that he may not be of your own exalted rank," exclaimed -Dicky, in his usual pompous manner. "I must decline answering those -questions." - -There was a general laugh, in which Mr. Trueman joined; and though, -probably, the older members of the mess suspected that the gentleman had -been romancing, others were still under the impression that he really -possessed the exalted connections of whom he boasted. - -Helped along by a fine steady breeze we made good progress, and at -length reached the entrance to the river Hoogley. Dicky got leave to -accompany the captain up to Calcutta. Whether or not he was received as -a relative by the Governor-General no one in his own mess could -ascertain. He dined, however, at Government House, but that might have -been in consequence of some introduction sent out by Mrs. Brigadier. -She was, at all events, a person to take care that her son should not be -overlooked. We did not remain there long before we received orders to -make the best of our way on to China, where an expedition was engaged in -teaching the Celestials to pay due respect to the outside barbarians, as -they call the nations of Europe. - -CHAPTER SIX. - -WE REACH THE FLOWERY LAND. - -On a fine afternoon we found ourselves sailing into a beautiful bay, -with high mountains rising up on either side. We soon dropped anchor -off a town, which we found was the new English city of Victoria, in the -island of Hong Kong, close to the mainland of China. A large number of -other vessels were already at anchor, men-of-war, merchantmen, -transports, and store-ships. The transports had on board a body of -British troops destined, as Sergeant Turbot informed me, to teach the -Chinese manners. - -Before long, several of the officers and men from other ships of the -squadron came aboard us, and soon told us what had been done, making us, -of course, very eager to be engaged in similar exploits. Boxes, -slippers, daggers, knives, and all sorts of articles were exhibited as -trophies. The most highly prized were the Chinamen's pigtails, which -our men had cut off, they declared, when the enemy ran away. We had a -busy time of it at Hong Kong. It was understood that there would -probably be a good deal more fighting with the Chinese. The marines, of -course, expected to be employed on shore. I could not help feeling, -however, somewhat anxious for my friend, Sergeant Turbot; for in that -climate to have to make a long march, or to storm a fort at the top of a -hill, would, I thought, too likely prove fatal to him. - -"We shall have some work, Jack, before long," he observed to me; "and I -have no doubt our corps will uphold its credit. These Chinese are -curious fellows to fight with, I hear; for, though they are easily -beaten, they don't seem to find it out; they stop and fight till they -are killed. I rather think, however, Jack, that you will be -disappointed, as our ship is not likely to have much work to do herself, -except, perhaps, attacking forts at the mouths of the rivers, or a big -town or two near the sea. However, you will hear of it from those who -are sent away in the boats, and I dare say we marines shall have -something to talk about when we get back." - -A day or two after this, however, Mr. Plumb stopped me outside the -berth. - -"Jack," he said, "I have been appointed to a schooner--the _Fawn_--which -is to be fitted out as a tender to the ship. Mr. Ormsby, the third -lieutenant, is to command her, and I have made up my mind to get you as -one of her crew. Two or three boys are certain to be sent in her." - -I thanked Master Dicky for his kind intentions. - -"If I am ordered to go, I must," I observed, "but I would rather ask -Sergeant Turbot what he thinks about the matter, if I am to have my -choice." - -I told the sergeant. - -"I don't want to lose sight of you, boy; but, of course, you will see -more of what is going forward if you go aboard the schooner, and you -will get more seamanship, too, than you will in this big ship." - -I told Mr. Plumb, the next time I saw him, what the sergeant said. - -"Of course, I knew he would," he answered, "and I will see about it, -Jack." - -Whether Master Dicky had anything to do in the matter or not, I do not -know; but I and Tommy Punchon were two of the boys selected to go on -board the schooner. - -The whole squadron soon after sailed, and proceeded to the mouth of the -Canton River, where they astonished the Celestials by blowing their -forts to pieces. The larger ships remained at the mouth of the river, -while the smaller vessels, we among them, with a couple of steamers, -were sent higher up. The Chinese did their best, of course, to -bamboozle the diplomatists. However, those gentlemen saw enough to make -them advise all the foreign merchants living at Canton to leave the -place. They heard also that the Chinese had laid plans to destroy the -English ships, and that a large army was also collecting, to meet our -troops, should they land. We, with several other small men-of-war, -corvettes, and brigs, lay high up the river. Generally speaking, the -river is crowded with boats of every possible shape and fashion, moving -up and down the stream. A vast number of people live in these boats, -and merely go on shore occasionally to buy food, or to sell their fish -or ducks, or the articles they may have brought from other places. At -this time, however, not a boat was to be seen; they had all gone up the -creeks, out of the way of the barbarians. At length the sun set -gloomily, the sky was overcast, and the darkness increased, till it was -difficult to see far beyond the bowsprit end. Our people were all -ordered to remain on deck. The guns were loaded, and each man was -armed. The boats were cleared, ready to be lowered as they hung at the -davits, at a moment's notice. - -"Well, Jack, what do you think of it?" said Mr. Plumb, who came forward -where I was standing. - -"I suppose something or other is going to happen," I answered, "but I -don't know what." - -"Why, I will tell you," he said; "the Chinese think they are going to -catch a weasel asleep, but they are mistaken. They will find that they -have only stirred up the British Lion with a long pole, and that he will -not only roar, but make a spring which will astonish them. I have been -anxious to have something to do, and I hope we are going to find it at -last." - -Scarcely had he spoken, when the sentry from a vessel ahead of us -hailed. He got no answer, it seemed, for he immediately fired. -Directly he had done so, in the midst of the darkness, as it were, a -bright light burst forth, blazing away furiously, and revealing a number -of dark objects floating on the water. Instantly the drum sounded, -beating to quarters. The Chinese had commenced their plan for -destroying the English ships by fire-rafts. The boats of the squadron -were seen immediately, pulling up the river, when, grappling the rafts, -they towed them away clear of the ships. Some went on shore on one -bank, some on the other. Some drifted down towards a village, the -houses of which they immediately set on fire. - -Dicky Plumb had jumped into one of the boats, and I, without orders, -followed him. We steered away towards one of the rafts which seemed to -be approaching the _Fawn_. Just as we got hold of it, it burst into -flames; but, in spite of the heat, we got it clear of the vessel, and -did not leave it till it was close in with the shore. And now, on all -sides, were blazing up vast fires, some drifting about the river, others -on shore where the rafts had struck; their light exhibiting the -panic-stricken Chinese who had had charge of them, some trying to escape -towards the shore, others swimming down the stream, those who could not -swim standing on the deck till driven overboard by the heat; all the -time a sharp fire being kept up at them by our marines, who, naturally, -under such circumstances, showed them but little mercy. As the first -body of fire-rafts had been towed clear, guns opened on us from the -shore, the Chinese having erected several new batteries for that -purpose. Now began the roar of artillery, though, in consequence of the -darkness, the Chinese, not being able to distinguish the vessels, took -but bad aim. We also could only find out the whereabouts of their -batteries by the light of their guns, and the reflection of the fire -from the burning houses on the shore. These showed us numerous Tartar -officers hurrying about, and endeavouring to rally and encourage their -men to fight the guns. We managed, as did other vessels, to escape -damage, by alternately veering out cable and shortening it again, so as -considerably to alter our position, and thus to deceive the Chinese -gunners. - -This sort of work continued till daylight. At length, when the sun rose -in an unclouded sky, it exhibited to our sight a scene of havoc and -destruction on either side. On the banks were the wrecks of the still -burning fire-vessels; the batteries on shore knocked to pieces by our -shot; the suburbs of the town, and several of the villages, in flames; -while, here and there, a spar knocked away on board the vessels, or some -other trifling damage, showed how we had been employed during the night. -One of our active little steamers, soon after daylight, was some -distance ahead, when a large junk made her appearance from round a -point, and began firing away. The steamer very quickly put the junk to -flight, when, at a signal made, the boats of the squadron were ordered -to proceed after her. In a few minutes, some twenty men-of-war's boats -were pulling away, as hard as the crews could lay their backs to the -oars. I, as before, jumped into Dicky Plumb's boat, and she was away -before I was discovered. No sooner had we rounded the point I have -spoken of, than a whole fleet of war junks and boats of all sorts were -found huddled together at no great distance. Instantly, we dashed at -them. Many of the junks had soldiers on board, who, as soon as they saw -us coming, did their best to get on shore, shoving off in small boats as -fast as they could leap into them. Some, in their hurry, fell -overboard. A considerable number had thus made their escape by the time -we reached the scene of action. Some of the junks and boats were -pulling away up the river. We, with other boats, made chase. The shot -from the ships' launches quickly set many of the junks on fire. As soon -as we got up to a junk, we examined her carefully, to ascertain if -anybody was on board, before we devoted her to the flames. In a short -time, the whole water was covered with burning vessels, one after the -other, those having powder on board blowing up with loud explosions. In -spite of our humane intentions, there are so many hiding-places on board -a Chinese junk, that nearly in every one several unfortunate fellows had -concealed themselves. As the fires in creased, we saw them rushing up -from below, where they would remain until no longer able to bear the -heat on deck. Some then were seen to jump desperately overboard. Most -of these swam on shore without much difficulty; but others, who -apparently could not swim, remained clinging to the outside of the junk -or the rudder. Here we saw them holding on till the junk blew up, or -the heat compelled them to leave their last refuge. - -When we could, we took them on board, but there were so many junks -burning together that this was not always possible, and consequently a -considerable number must have perished. We had got alongside a boat, -not knowing what was on board her, when Dicky Plumb leaped on to her -deck. I had followed him, when my eye caught sight of a little fizzing -spot of light, just as if the end of a cigar had been thrown down. I -saw the fire slowly working its way on. In an instant, it occurred to -me that it was a slow match. Seizing my friend by the arm, I leaped -back into the boat. - -"Hillo, Jack! what do you mean by that?" he exclaimed in an indignant -tone. - -"Shove off!" I shouted, "and pull away!" - -The men guessed what it was, and the boat had not got ten yards off, -when up went the Chinese craft, on board which we had been a moment -before, shivered into a thousand fragments. There were a number of -similar boats near at hand, some of which caught fire, and blew up at -the same moment. - -Happily, we escaped without much hurt. We found fifty of a similar -character, which had been prepared for the destruction of the English -fleet. It was a curious scene--the Chinese craft, of all sizes, -sailing, pulling, and paddling away in every direction, the English -boats dashing here and there in pursuit. Sometimes a Chinaman would -blow up just as one of our boats got alongside, and then we had to pull -off after a different enemy. We had captured a good many junks, when, -some way ahead, we saw what looked like a steamer. Though there was no -steam up, the wheels were paddling away. We managed, however, to get up -to her, when overboard jumped a number of people; and, on reaching her -deck, we found that, though there were paddles outside, the inside had -only wooden machinery, to be worked something like a treadmill by men. -She managed, however, to go through the water at the rate of three or -four knots an hour. Several similar sham steamers were captured, which -had been manufactured by the Celestials, for the purpose of overawing us -barbarians. The fighting for the day, however, was very far from -finished. The troops had been landed, as well as the marines and -brigades of blue jackets, and were now busily employed in storming the -forts surrounding Canton. We had gone up a creek which ran near the -base of a high hill, on the top of which was a fort. A party of marines -and blue jackets had marched round by land, to attack it, and as we -approached, we saw them charge up the hill. Mr. Hanson, the mate, who -commanded the boat, was very eager to join in the fray. We had a strong -current against us. However, by dint of hard pulling, we managed at -length to get up near the base of the hill. The Chinese at the top had -made a gallant defence, and many of our people had already been killed -or wounded, or knocked up by the heat. Among others, struggling up the -side of the hill, I saw a marine, whom I knew by his red coat; his sword -was in his mouth, and with hands and feet he was endeavouring to climb -up the steep side of the hill. I guessed by his figure that he must be -my friend Sergeant Turbot. I could almost fancy that I heard him -puffing and groaning, as every now and then he looked up, and shouted to -his men to lend him a hand. They, however, had dashed on, to get at the -enemy; in fact, it seemed a wonder that he should have escaped hitherto -with his life from the showers of shot which came sweeping down the -hill-side. Just then, we saw, coming round the base of the hill, a -strong body of Tartar troops, evidently intending to take our men in the -rear. - -"Now is the time, my lads!" shouted Mr. Hanson, starting up. - -It must be understood that we had been completely concealed from the -enemy. With loud shouts and cries we all dashed forward together to -attack the head of the enemy's column. They, expecting that we were -merely a leading body of blue jackets, turned tail, and retreated, with -a greater rapidity than they had advanced, we keeping up a hot fire in -their rear. I could not bear the thoughts of leaving my old friend in -his present predicament, and, therefore, without stopping to ask leave, -I scampered off to his assistance, forgetting all about the shower of -bullets through which I had to pass. Happily, not one hit me, and I was -soon by the sergeant's side. - -"Why, Jack, you seem to me like an angel from heaven!" he exclaimed, as -he saw me. "Put your shoulder under me and help me up. Up I must go, -but it was cruel to send me to storm such a hill. It is not fit work -for a man of my figure; but, up! up!" - -The sergeant had chosen a short cut, though a very steep one. By my -aid, shoving astern, we had already made some progress, when part of the -boat's crew arrived, led on by Dicky Plumb. - -"Oh, Mr. Plumb, do get your men to lend me a hand and haul me up this -place. We should be in the fort as soon as the rest, if we could but -get up to the top of the cliff." - -I was not sorry, I confess, to have some assistance. By the aid of the -men the sergeant at last reached a level spot at the summit of the hill. - -"Now, my lads," he shouted, taking his sword from his mouth, "we'll be -at them!" - -The Chinese, believing that no one could get up that way, had neglected -its defences. Led on, therefore, by the gallant sergeant, we all -together made a dash into the fort. The enemy, taken on the flank, -began to give way, and the main body of marines and bluejackets, making -a renewed effort in front, dashed in over all obstacles, cutting down -the defenders, who stood bravely at their guns till the last. - -"Jack, Jack," said the sergeant, when the fort was in our possession, "I -owe you much. You saved my life, I believe, but you did more than that, -you saved my honour." - -Before the day was over, not only Canton, but all the surrounding forts -were in possession of the British. As Sergeant Turbot could descend the -hill more easily than he could get up it, I wished him good-bye, and -returned with my young officer to the boat. Poor Mr. Hanson had -received a wound in the leg, which had, I found, prevented him joining -in the attack. - -CHAPTER SEVEN. - -OUR CRUISE IN THE JUNK. - -Just as we got out of the creek we caught sight of a large junk stealing -round a point at no great distance from us. Although Mr. Hanson and one -of the men were wounded, he instantly ordered us to give chase, and away -we pulled after the junk, which as we rounded the point we saw was -making for one of the innumerable canals which intersect the country in -all directions. If she once got into it she might escape us. The men -therefore bent to their oars with a right good will, apparently just as -fresh, as when they left the schooner in the morning. As we approached -the junk, the Chinese began firing at us with their gingals and swivels, -and for a couple of minutes or more we were exposed to a pretty heavy -shower of bullets. I got the rim of my hat taken off. - -"No odds," I cried out; "it's better than the tip of my nose." - -A man near me had a shot through the fleshy part of his shoulder, and a -dozen bullets or more stuck in the sides of our boat. On we dashed, -however, right under the oars of the Chinaman. - -"Come on, my lads?" shouted Dicky Plumb, whose blood was up to boiling -pitch; and catching hold of a pike which was thrust at him, he hauled -himself up on to the junk's deck, four of our men climbing up at the -same moment. Fortunately for Master Dicky, Ned Rawlings was by his -side, and saved his head from a blow aimed at him by a Chinaman. Mr. -Hanson, in spite of his wound, got the men to haul him up. I followed -close behind Mr. Plumb, and in a few seconds we were all upon the deck -of the Chinaman, slashing and cutting away. So frightened had the -Chinese become at our proceedings in the morning, that very few stopped -to oppose us, and scarcely had we gained the deck, than the crew began -to jump overboard on the opposite side. In another minute not a -Chinaman was left alive on the upper deck. - -"Now, lads, let us look after them below!" shouted Mr. Plumb, leading -the way to the main deck. A considerable number of the crew had -remained there, intent upon mischief. As they saw us, however, they -made a bolt right forward and leaped through a large port, striking out -for the shore, which was not more than thirty yards off. - -"They have been after something or other," cried Mr. Plumb. - -As he spoke, I sprang down to the deck below, and there I saw what -looked like a thin snake of fire crawling along the deck. I rushed at -it, and found the end of a slow match which had not long been lighted. -To snatch it up and throw it overboard was the work of a moment. I was -only just in time, however, and did not feel very comfortable even then, -for it was leading down, through an opening in the deck, to what I had -little doubt was the magazine. Ned Rawlings, who had followed me, -sprang to where several buckets were hung up, and seizing one of them to -which a rope was attached, in a moment he had it full of water, which he -dashed down the opening into the magazine. Mr. Hanson now ordered the -cable of the junk to be cut, and sent the boat ahead to tow her out of -the creek. There was no time to be lost, for a number of Chinese were -collecting on the shore, some of them already beginning to take long -shots at us. Four hands jumped into the boat with Mr. Plumb, while two -others, with Ned Rawlings and I, remained to assist Mr. Hanson. As -there were a number of small boats along the shore, the Chinese might -easily have come back again; but they expected to see us blown up into -the air, and the fear of the consequence kept them at a distance, and -proved our safety. - -At length, just as it was growing dusk, we got clear out into the -harbour, when the wind proving fair, we hoisted the junk's sails, and -stood away towards where we expected to find the schooner. Several -times we were chased by English boats, and were twice fired at by some -of our friends, who supposed that our junk was still in the hands of the -Chinese, who were endeavouring to escape. Our prize was indeed a -curious craft; a capital place for playing hide-and-seek in--full of all -sorts of odd little cabins and cupboards and recesses in which people -could stow themselves away. Having found several lanterns, we lighted -them, and Mr. Dicky and I hunted throughout the vessel, in case any -Chinese were still on board, who might steal out and perhaps after all -blow up the vessel. We thought that we had looked into all the cabins -and cupboards, and nooks and corners, and came and reported the same to -Mr. Hanson. - -"Go and look again, Dicky," he answered. "Take Rawlings with you, and -let him run the point of his cutlass gently through all the crevices." - -Off we started again, Rawlings carrying a huge paper lantern, covered -with dragons and other monsters, and having his cutlass ready to stick -into any crevice we might discover. We began forward, examining all -sorts of curious places, but no one was to be found there. At length we -got aft, where we thought we had searched thoroughly, and came to a -little cupboard in one of the quarters, into which Ned gently inserted -the point of his weapon. A shrill cry, which made us start, was the -result, and putting in his hand he hauled out a young Chinese boy, who -had managed to coil himself away in a very small space. He seemed by -his gestures to be entreating us not to kill him, and then gave us to -understand that he was anxious to be our friend, and to serve us. Of -course, not a word he said could we understand. - -"Are there any more of you stowed away?" asked Ned; but if we did not -understand the Chinese boy, neither did he understand us, and no answer -could be got to this question. - -Having looked about in the neighbourhood of the spot where we found the -boy, we carried him on deck to Mr. Hanson. He there went through the -gestures he had made to us, and Mr. Hanson signed to him to sit down on -the deck, and let him know that he would receive no harm. We were then -sent back to continue our search. No other person was, however, found, -and at length we got alongside the schooner. We were received by a loud -cheer from our shipmates, and Mr. Ormsby ordered us to retain possession -till he could inspect the junk in the morning, and settle what was to be -done with her. - -"But Mr. Hanson is wounded, sir," sung out Dicky Plumb; "and besides, -sir, _we are hard up for grub_. The provisions the Chinese have left on -board don't look very tempting." - -Mr. Hanson, with the other wounded man, was therefore ordered to go on -board, that the assistant-surgeon might look to their hurts, while a -supply of provisions was sent us from the schooner, Dicky Plumb thus -remaining in command of the junk. - -"Jack," he said to me, "if I had my will, I should like to appoint you -my first-lieutenant, for I think you know as much about seamanship as I -do; but as that would not be quite correct, I am afraid I must have Ned -Rawlings as my second in command. I only hope we may be ordered to take -a cruise somewhere. It would be great fun going away by ourselves to -look after prizes, would it not?" - -I agreed with him, but observed that I did not think Mr. Ormsby would -dispatch us for that purpose. The next morning, when Mr. Ormsby came on -board, he declared that the junk we had taken was so fine a vessel that -it would be a pity to destroy her, and therefore obtained leave to carry -her off to Hong Kong. - -"Can I remain in command of her, sir?" asked Dicky, touching his hat -when Mr. Ormsby had arrived at this decision. - -The lieutenant looked at him with a smile. - -"Why, Mr. Plumb, what amount of navigation do you possess?" - -"Why, sir," said Dicky, promptly, "I know how to steer, and we can keep -the _Fawn_ in sight, so she will serve as our pole-star." - -"But suppose it came on thick weather, and you lost sight of us?" -observed the lieutenant. - -"We would not rest till we had found you again," answered Dicky, -promptly. - -"I suspect the _Fawn_ will outsail the junk, and then what will you do?" - -"Ask every one we meet the whereabouts of Hong Kong," answered Dicky. - -"I have no doubt you would do your best," said Mr. Ormsby, "but still I -cannot quite trust you. I must send Mr. Hanson back, and I have no -doubt that you will prove a very efficient first-lieutenant to him." - -With this Master Dicky was obliged to remain content, and, in a couple -of days, Mr. Hanson, having somewhat recovered his strength, came on -board and took the command. Before many days were over the Chinese -succeeded in bamboozling our plenipotentiaries; we gave up all we had -won, and the fleet sailed away back to Hong Kong. We followed in the -wake of the schooner, which had to shorten sail for us, when the wind -was abeam; but at length it came aft, and we then kept very good way -with her; indeed, she had to make all sail not to let us pass her. Our -captive Chinese boy seemed very well reconciled to his fate. We could -not make out what was his name, so we called him "Joss." He was a -merry, yellow-faced little chap, with the funniest pig-eyes imaginable. -He seemed always ready to laugh, and sing, and dance about the deck. It -was very evident that he would pick up English sooner than any of us -were likely to learn a word of Chinese. In the course of a few days, -indeed, he could ask for all sorts of things, and seemed to know a great -deal that was said to him. I should say Mr. Hanson spoke very -handsomely of the way Dicky Plumb had behaved in boarding the Chinese, -and told Mr. Ormsby that he had been the first on deck, and how -gallantly he had behaved also on shore, when attacking the fort. I -found, also, that he made favourable mention of my conduct on both -occasions. - -"Indeed, had it not been for Junker," I heard that he observed, "we -might all of us have been blown into the other world." Mr. Ormsby had -said that he should report my conduct to the captain, who would be sure -not to let it pass unnoticed. Dicky told me all this. - -"I was very glad of it, Jack," he said. "To tell you the truth, I have -an idea in my head. What it is, I am not going to tell you; only, Jack, -if I am ever a captain, I should like to have you as my -first-lieutenant." - -"Thank you, sir," I said, "for your kind wishes, but I am afraid such -good luck is not in store for me." - -At length, our junk, with several others that had been captured, reached -Hong Kong in safety. The harbour was crowded with vessels. There must -have been a hundred or more craft, of various sorts, from line-of-battle -ships down to schooners and cutters, and a variety of Chinese and other -foreign-rigged vessels. - -CHAPTER EIGHT. - -A TYPHOON AND A SHIPWRECK. - -The junk lay in Hong Kong harbour, close to the _Fawn_. Soon after we -brought up in the harbour, finding that a boat was to be sent from the -_Fawn_ to the _Roarer_, I got leave to go in her. I had some misgivings -about Sergeant Turbot, and was anxious to see him. I found that he was -in the sick bay, where there were several wounded men. He shook me -warmly by the hand when he saw me. - -"Jack, my boy," he said, "you saved my life t'other day, and, what is -more, my honour. If it had not been for you, my fellows would have got -into that Chinese fort while I was at the bottom of the hill; but Jack, -I confess it, I feel I am not cut out for campaigning in a hilly -country; indeed, to advance, at double-quick, across a plain, tries me -considerably." - -I was afraid, from the sergeant's way of talking, that he was very ill. -I made some remark to that effect. - -"In honest truth, Jack," he answered, "I was pretty well knocked up -altogether with that work on shore; what with the hot sun, the rapid -marching, and climbing those heights; but still, Jack, I don't think I -am going to give in just yet. If I do, remember me to your father, and -tell him that I consider you are worthy of him. However, I hope to be -fit for duty in the course of a few days, and to have another pull at -the Chinamen's pigtails before we have done with them." - -From what I could hear on board I found that our business in the boat -and capture of the junk was highly approved of. Our captain, with -several of the boats of the _Roarer_, had been engaged, and he had -behaved with great bravery and activity. I was glad to find, that in -the course of a few days Sergeant Turbot was much better. His gallantry -was well known, and Dicky Plumb told me that he had heard the captain of -marines on board say that in future he would take care that he was not -sent on an expedition where any great bodily exertion was required. We -had been some time off Hong Kong, and began to grow weary of not having -more to do. The weather had now become excessively hot and sultry. -Dark black clouds collected in the sky, and there was an oppression in -the atmosphere which made all hands feel uncomfortable. The -weather-wise predicted a typhoon. I asked Sergeant Turbot, the last -visit I paid him, the meaning of a typhoon. - -"Why, Jack, you must know that a typhoon is just like ten everyday gales -of wind pressed into one," he replied. "If a fellow is aloft he has -need to hold on with his eyelids, teeth, and nails; and if he's on -shore, to look out for falling chimneys and roofs. If we get one--and -from what I hear there's every chance of it--you'll know what it is fast -enough, and not forget either, as long as you live." - -The barometer, too, supporting the opinion of the weather-wise, was -falling, indicating a change of weather. Meantime, the Chinese on shore -seemed to be greatly excited. We saw, stuck out from many of their -houses, long poles, twenty or thirty feet high, with huge lanterns at -the end of them, ornamented with grotesque-looking figures of various -sorts. Then began the beating of gongs, the firing of crackers, and the -explosion of little bamboo petards, from one end of the town to the -other, and from all the boats along the shore. The Chinese might -possibly have thought that their fireworks had produced some effect, for -the day passed by and no typhoon broke over us. At night, however, dark -clouds again collected overhead, out of which the most vivid lightning -shot incessantly. For an instant the whole sky was lighted up, and the -numerous vessels in the harbour, and the distant shores, could be seen -clearly. Then all again was pitchy darkness. The night passed away, -however, without any incident worthy of note. In the morning, Mr. -Ormsby, who had been on board the _Roarer_, came back, and said that he -had received orders to convey the junk to Macao. - -"Then I am afraid our independent cruise will be up," I heard Mr. Plumb -observe to Mr. Hanson. - -We accordingly got under weigh, and stood out of the harbour. We had -not, however, proceeded far, when the threatening appearances of the -weather returned. Again the clouds collected, the lightning flashed -vividly, and sudden gusts came furiously off the land. Mr. Ormsby -hailed, and ordered us to bring up under the high shore, a couple of -miles to windward, he setting us the example. A few tacks brought the -_Fawn_ to an anchorage, when her topmasts were struck, and every -preparation was made for the typhoon, which, it was now evident, was -about to commence. We were some way astern of the schooner, when down -came a fierce blast with tremendous force upon us. The sails were -lowered, and the huge anchor let go. - -"The craft will ride it out after all, I believe," said Mr. Hanson, -watching to ascertain whether the junk was driving. - -"That's more than any other ship will do," observed Ned Rawlings, -pointing to the vessels in the distance, many of which were now driving -away furiously before the wind; and already the sea was covered with the -wrecks of native vessels, to which numerous persons--both men and women -and children--were clinging desperately, as they drove onward before the -wind. - -Fearful must have been the destruction of life and property in that -crowded harbour. However, we had to think about ourselves. The typhoon -was increasing in fury; it seemed to be working itself up like a man -getting into a rage. A blast ten times stronger than the first now -struck us. - -"She has parted, sir," cried Ned Rawlings. - -Away we drove before the wind. At first we went sideways, and it seemed -as if every instant we should be blown over. The helm however, was put -up, and away we drifted right before the gale; the farther we got from -the shore the higher the seas became, and the stronger the wind. Mr. -Hanson looked grave; there was good reason for his so doing, for the -junk began to pitch and roll in the most furious manner, while the seas -danced up round her, seeming determined to come on board. At times, it -seemed scarcely possible that we could hold on to her deck; we felt -somewhat like peas on a drum--jumping up and down, with the prospect of -being jerked overboard every instant. As to setting sail, that was -impossible; for even had a foot of the bamboo-matting been presented to -the wind it would have been blown away. The junk, flimsy as she looked -outside, was strongly built, so that there was less risk of her going to -pieces than might have been supposed. I asked Rawlings what he thought -about the matter. - -"Well, Jack," he said, "if we can keep the open sea the old tea-chest -may float; but if we get the coast under our lee we shall drive ashore -and go to pieces." - -More than once Mr. Hanson looked astern. - -"Perhaps he hopes that the _Fawn_ will come after us," I observed to -Rawlings. - -"That's not likely," was the answer. "It would not do to risk the loss -of the schooner on the chance of helping us; and, to my mind, there's -little help any vessel can give us." - -Had, indeed, the schooner been following, we might not have seen her; -for, so thick was the spray which drove over us, that we could scarcely -see many yards beyond the junk, all the time the wind howling and -shrieking, and the water hissing and foaming around us. We could do -nothing to help ourselves; indeed, it took all our strength just to hold -on to the side. Every now and then a huge sea would come rolling up, -and seem about to break on board, but the buoyant junk rose to the top -of it, and then again down we plunged into the deep trough below. - -Mr. Hanson and two of the men stood at the helm, trying to steer the -lumbering craft, and not without difficulty could they prevent her from -broaching-to. Dicky Plumb had done his best to keep his legs, but, -finding that impossible, at length sat down on the deck, holding on, and -endeavouring to look as unconcerned and cool as possible. As we looked -out we could see fragments of wreck floating by, showing us what would, -too probably, be our fate. We passed one large junk almost under water, -to which several people were clinging; they held out their hands to us, -asking for assistance, but we could give them none, and soon we drove -by, when they were hid from our sight by the driving spray. On we went. - -"Breakers ahead!" shouted Ned Rawlings, who had been looking out. - -There appeared, right before us, a line of coast--to weather it, seemed -impossible; and yet, if we could not do so, our destruction was -inevitable. At length we made out a point of land on the port bow--we -were driving towards it--Mr. Hanson put the helm as much as he could to -starboard. - -"If we can get to the other side of that," he observed to Mr. Plumb, "we -may escape with our lives; if not, there's not a chance for us." - -"It cannot be helped," answered Mr. Dicky, quite composedly. "We have -done our best, and can do no more." - -Closer and closer we drew to the wild rocks at the end of the point; the -surf was breaking furiously over them. I know I held my breath, and I -cannot exactly say how I felt; only I kept wishing something was over. -There were the rocks, and there was the fearful surf roaring over them. -In another instant we were in the midst of the surf; I expected to hear -a crash, and to find the vessel going to pieces. The water came rushing -over our decks; the masses of spray blinded us. On we flew, and in -another moment the point was passed; and though the sea broke heavily on -the shore, still there was a possibility of our landing on it. We had -no anchors remaining, so we could not bring up, even could any anchor -have held; shipwreck was certain. The only doubt was where we should -strike--that was settled in another minute--lifted high on a roller we -were hurled towards the shore; then suddenly down we came with a -tremendous crash; the masts instantly fell; the upper works were washed -away; with difficulty could we hold on to the wreck. - -"Now, Jack, let's see what you can do," exclaimed Ned Rawlings. -"There's not a better swimmer on board!" - -I understood what was wanted. Ned got hold of a rope, which I fastened -round my waist. - -"I'll carry it ashore," I cried out. - -"Let me go, too," cried Dicky Plumb, forgetting that he could not swim. - -There was no time for thought. I dashed overboard, and struck out for -the shore; I ran a great risk of being knocked on the head by pieces of -the wreck; I knew that several passed close to me. Now the sea came -roaring up, and, passing over the vessel, sent me some way towards the -shore; as it receded, however, it carried me back again almost to the -junk; still I struggled on; the next sea which came up took me still -nearer, and, though I went back again, still I had gained some distance; -at last, I felt my feet touch the ground, then I seemed about to be -swept back again, but I struggled on, and with a wild spring, clutching -the sand with my hands, I resisted the receding water, which came -hissing and foaming around me; then with a few more desperate struggles -I found myself out of the reach of the sea. Near me was a pointed rock; -round it I securely fastened the rope. In the meantime, three or four -men had thrown themselves into the water; one poor fellow was swept out, -his dying shriek reaching my ear just as I landed; another was holding -on desperately to a piece of the wreck; two more came on shore, but -greatly exhausted. I saw Rawlings making signals to me to haul in the -rope; I began to haul away, but the rope he had secured to the light one -I took on shore was so heavy that I could not accomplish the task; just -then I was joined by my two shipmates, and all three of us pulling away -at the rope, we got it on shore; the end was secured, as the lighter one -had been, round the rock; and the first person who tried it was -Rawlings. I found that he had secured a couple of travellers to the -rope. - -"I will go back," he said, "and bring Mr. Plumb. Mr. Hanson will not -leave the vessel till all are on shore, I know." - -Master Dicky, however, was for coming entirely by himself; still, I -think he would have been washed off had not Rawlings gone to his -assistance. Little Joss, the Chinese boy, clambered along as actively -as a monkey. There was more difficulty in getting Mr. Hanson on shore, -as he had scarcely quite recovered from his wounds. Not a moment after -he left the junk a sea came roaring up, and in an instant she split into -a thousand fragments; not a particle of her remained holding together on -the rock on which she struck; the same sea tore the poor fellow who had -been clinging to a piece of the wreck from his hold, and he was washed -away, no more to be seen. The remainder of us clambered up away from -the beach, where we sat down to consult what was best to be done. It -was now growing dark; not a house or shelter of any sort could we see. - -"We shall all perish if we spend the night exposed to this bitter -blast," said Mr. Hanson. "Lads, we must look out for some place or -other for shelter," and saying this, he led the way further inland, -where a lofty cliff appeared before us. - -Searching about, we found an opening in the rock, down the centre of -which a stream flowed, running on towards the sea. Here we were -somewhat sheltered from the wind, but it was open at the top, so that -the air even here felt very cold. - -CHAPTER NINE. - -CAPTURED BY THE CELESTIALS. - -The night passed slowly by. We were very hungry and very cold. I had -the satisfaction of having my praises sung by my commander. - -"Indeed, Junker, I am ready to confess that we owe our lives to you," -said Mr. Hanson. "It required no little courage to carry the rope on -shore in the way you did." - -I made a suitable, and, I hope, modest reply. - -There was no room to lie down, so we all had to sit up and do our best -to keep our feet out of the stream. As the morning broke the typhoon -subsided, and at last we went out of our resting-place to look about us. -The whole shore was lined with pieces of wreck. One of the poor -fellows who had been drowned had been thrown up, but the bodies of the -others could not be seen. We most of us had become desperately hungry: -I know I was. Where to get food was the question. Hunting along the -beach, however, we found a ham and a small keg of biscuits. We soon -fell to on them. Though the biscuits were somewhat soaked with water, -in a short time there was little of either one or the other to be seen. -Mr. Hanson said that we were on an island, but how we were to get away -was the question. We could only hope that the _Fawn_ might come and -look out for us, on the possibility of our having escaped. We had just -finished our breakfast, when we heard some cries above our heads, and, -looking up, we saw a number of Chinese, who were amusing themselves by -gazing down on us. We asked Joss who they were. - -"Bad people! bad people!" he answered, shaking his head. - -They seemed in a short time to have gained courage, and now some thirty -or forty men, dressed like common fishermen, came down from the heights, -and stood round us. Seeing that we were unarmed, they became familiar, -and presently one of them signed to Mr. Hanson to take off his coat. -This he did, hoping to satisfy them. No sooner did they get it, than -they set up a shout and laugh, and then signified to Dicky Plumb to do -the same. - -"I will do no such thing," he answered, buttoning up his jacket. - -On this a couple of fellows seized him and tore it open, and in another -minute hauled it off his back, in spite of his indignant expostulations. -Pleased at their success, they treated us all in the same way, leaving -us only our shirts and trousers. Mr. Hanson at length got hold of one -of the men who appeared to be a leader among them, and endeavoured by -signs to explain that if he would take us back to Hong Kong he should be -handsomely rewarded. Little Joss, who was very quick in understanding -our meaning, came to our assistance. At length the man agreed to take -us for a hundred dollars a head. We had, however, to wait for a -considerable time before the weather moderated sufficiently, and we were -then all marched to the harbour, at some distance from the place where -we drove on shore. Here another dispute arose among our captors. The -owners of different boats considered that we ought to be divided among -them. Finally, Mr. Dicky Plumb, with Ned Rawlings and I, with little -Joss, fell to the share of an old fellow with a remarkably roguish -expression of countenance. We, however, could not help ourselves, and -could only hope that the promise of the reward would induce him to take -us back safely. In the evening we were carried on board different -junks. Our boat was open amidships, with a small cabin aft, into which -we were all stowed. Here we spent the night, for we saw from the first -that our friends had no intention of getting under weigh till daylight. -The other junks sailed first, but our old captain showed no disposition -to follow them. We inquired why he did not sail with the others, but he -only grinned and shook his head at us. He was waiting apparently for -some of his crew. At length we got under weigh; and now we began to -hope that before the next morning we should find ourselves at Hong Kong. -We had not been at sea more than an hour when, coming round a point, -there appeared a large mandarin war junk. Our old captain was evidently -in great trepidation. Still he sailed on as before, hoping that the -mandarin junk would not overhaul us. A signal, however, from her was -seen, ordering us to heave-to. On this the old captain made signs to us -to lie down at the bottom of the boat, and he then covered us up with -mats. On came the junk. What was going to happen we could not tell. -Presently we heard loud voices and shouts, and we felt that a boat had -come alongside. We might well have given ourselves up for lost. - -"Jack," whispered Mr. Plumb to me, "if we could but get hold of some -swords, we would have a fight for it. I should like to die game. I -have no idea of being killed like a rat in a hole." - -I felt very much as he did, but while there was a chance of escaping -notice, I saw that it would be wiser to remain concealed. Presently, -however, we found the mats being lifted up off us; concealment was no -longer possible. We sprang to our feet, and there we saw a dozen -Chinamen, with weapons in their hands, ready to cut us down, should we -attempt resistance. Their officer turned upon our unfortunate old -captain, who stood at the helm the picture of dismay; the crew were -sitting forward, chattering with fear; without another word the officer -gave a flourish with his sword, and the old man's head rolled off into -the sea; the crew attempted to leap overboard, but were mercilessly cut -down. We fully expected to be treated in the same way; instead of this, -the boat was brought alongside the junk, on board of which we were all -ordered to go. The junk having cast off the fishing-boat, with the body -of her murdered owner still on board, and those of several of the crew, -made sail to the east. What was to be done with us we could not say. -With oars and sails the junk made great progress. Our only hope rested -on the possibility of being fallen in with by a man-of-war; but even -then, if hard pressed, our captors were very likely to murder us all. -Having got clear of the land, the junk stood away to the north. We -three were thrust into a little cabin on one side of the deck, so small, -that only one could lie down at a time; Joss, however, was allowed to -come to us, and wander about the deck as he liked. How he had escaped -we could not well tell; and now it seemed that no one intended to injure -him. He told us, that, as far as he could make out, we were going to -some place in the north, a long way off. We suspected that the captain -of the junk intended to make the most of us, and would probably declare -that, he had taken us from aboard a barbarian man-of-war, we being the -only survivors. - -"I do not at all like the look of things, Jack," said Dicky Plumb to me. -"I am afraid they will be clapping us into cages, and sending us about -the country as a show." - -"That will be one way of seeing the world," I answered; "and provided -they do not cut off our heads, I dare say, some day or other, we shall -be getting back to our friends." - -Day after day we sailed on; in vain we looked out for an English -man-of-war. - -"Very little chance of falling in with one," observed Ned Rawlings. -"After that typhoon they will all be in harbour, repairing damages." - -Ned was right. It was probably owing to that circumstance that we -escaped recapture. At length we entered the mouth of a large river, and -Joss made us understand that we were being carried to the city of -Nankin; we were, in reality, in the great river Yang-tse-Kiang. From -the time we had been coming we knew that it must be a long way from Hong -Kong, and our hopes of being retaken now vanished altogether: the wind -coming down the river, the junk came to an anchor. I should have said -that all this time our only food was salt fish and rice. When we -anchored, several boats brought off some vegetables, which we had given -to us in addition; it was hard fare, however, but after all it did not -much signify, as it kept body and soul together, and our health did not -suffer. The mandarin, being anxious, apparently, to deliver the -despatches which he carried, as well as to exhibit us, took us on shore, -and we were now all three placed in a cart, and driven off into the -interior; as there were no springs, we went bumping and thumping over -the road in a way sufficient to dislocate all our limbs. Just as we -were starting, little Joss, who had managed to get on shore, jumped into -the cart, and we were not sorry to see his merry, good-natured face. To -make a long story short, at last we arrived at a walled city; it was not -Nankin, however, but a place supposed to be very strong--Chin Kiang-foo; -it was full of Tartar soldiers, who scowled at us as we passed. We had -not gone far when we stopped before a sort of public office, I suppose, -when a man came out and put some large labels round our necks. What -they were of course we could not tell, but we made out from what Joss -said, that they were to inform the world, that we were prisoners taken -in a bloody fight from an English war ship, which had been sent, by the -bravery of the Chinese, to the bottom. Having been carried round the -city, we were taken to a place which we soon found was the public -prison; here we were all four (for Joss was with us) thrown into a small -cell not much larger than our cabin on board the junk. - -"No chance of cutting our way out, Mr. Plumb," observed Ned Rawlings. - -"I wish there was," said Mr. Plumb. - -Little Joss we found looking very sad. He seemed, from what we made -out, to think we were all going to be killed. - -"It cannot be helped," said Dicky. "Jack, are you prepared to die?" - -"I hope so," I said; "but I would rather live, I confess; and, do you -know, I think we shall, in spite of appearances. The Chinamen would -gain nothing by killing us, and our keep cannot cost them much." - -By such remarks I soon restored Dicky's hopes. We were kept for some -days in our wretched little prison, having our food brought to us, but -being otherwise left alone; at length, one day, the door opened, and -four soldiers appeared: without saying a word, they seized hold of Ned; -he shook himself free of them, however, having an idea, that they were -going to take him out and kill him. Four finding they could not manage -him, six more appeared, who, rushing on him, at length pinioned his -arms, and carried him away out of the cell. - -"I hope they will not separate us, Jack," said Dicky. "I am very -unhappy about Ned." - -"I hope they will not indeed," I answered. Poor Ned! though he made no -further resistance as long as we could see him, the Chinese soldiers -were kicking and cuffing him, some pulling his hair, and others his -ears, as they dragged him along. Two days afterwards we received a -visit from a dozen soldiers at least. They stopped for a moment when -the door was opened, and then rushing in seized the midshipman, and -pinioning his arms, dragged him out of the cell. - -"Good-bye, Jack?" he shouted out. "I suppose they are going to cut my -head off. It is reputed to be a dignified way of making an exit, and if -I cannot escape, I must grin and bear it." - -Even at that moment, Dicky could not help having a joke. I felt very -sad when I was left alone, for it seemed too likely that our cruel -captors would kill us all. At length my turn came, but I was only -honoured by six soldiers, who appeared to think that they could manage -me without much difficulty. I tried to sing, and appeared as merry as -possible, even when they came round me, knowing that kicking and -scratching would do no good. Still, I own I had an uncomfortable -feeling about my throat, fully believing that before long I was to have -my head cut off. One of them, however, clapped an iron collar round my -neck, from which a chain extended to my feet. On my ankles irons were -also fixed, so that, had I been a very Samson, I could scarcely have -escaped. In this state the soldiers dragged me along, and passing -through several courts, I was carried into a house, where, seated at a -table, I found several dignified-looking personages, with scribes at -either side of them, pen in hand, ready to make notes. They began by -asking me all sorts of questions, to which, of course, not knowing a -word they said, I could make no answers. At this, several persons -rushing forward, one gave me an unpleasant kicking behind my knees, -while another pressed me down, a third seizing my head and banging my -nose on the ground. This process did not make me speak Chinese a bit -better than at first. I guessed it was what my companions in captivity -had had to go through, and I fully expected to be led off and treated as -I supposed they had been. Instead of this, after I had received a -considerable number of blows and kicks, the mandarins, finding that they -could make nothing of me, ordered me back to my cell. For some hours -afterwards I kept constantly feeling my neck--not quite certain whether -or not it had been cut through with a fine-edged sabre, and almost -expecting every now and then to find my head roll off on to the ground. - -CHAPTER TEN. - -LIBERTY AGAIN. - -Days and weeks passed away. I was kept in a solitary cell. Even Joss -was not allowed to visit me. I feared, indeed, that he must have been -killed. Of what had become of my companions I could gain no tidings. -"They have not killed me, perhaps they have let them live." This -reasoning was the only thing that gave me hopes. I must confess, -however, it was a hard matter to keep up my spirits. The iron chains on -my neck and arms weighed me down. I was now moved into a cell in which -were two dozen or more prisoners. In it was a bench, to which I was -chained, but in such a way as to allow me to sit, if not with ease, at -all events without pain. My youth might, perhaps, have excited the -compassion of my fellow-prisoners, for savage as some of them looked, -they treated me with kindness. Had I been sure that my friends were -even no worse off than I was, I should have been contented. Many of the -poor prisoners were suffering from all sorts of complaints, and several -of them were led out from time to time, when we could hear their cries -and shrieks, and when they came back their legs and arms and bodies bore -signs of the fearful treatment they had received. Twice a day my -fellow-prisoners and I were unchained and allowed to go into the -courtyard for air and exercise. Sometimes we were allowed to remain -there longer than at other times. On one occasion we were hurried back -and quickly chained up again, when we found that it was in consequence -of the unexpected visit of a mandarin to the prison. In vain I tried to -find out whether Dicky Plumb or Ned Rawlings were alive. At last it -struck me that if they were within hearing they might answer if I were -to sing a song; so, to the astonishment of my fellow-prisoners, I -suddenly struck up "Rule Britannia?" walking about the yard, and -shouting louder and louder. They, I believe, thought I was mad. I -stopped and listened. I thought I heard a faint response from another -part of the building, but I was not certain. Several days passed by, -when, as I sat on the bench, chained as usual, I heard a voice in the -courtyard below humming the very air I had sung, but whether it was the -voice of Dicky Plumb or Ned Rawlings I could not tell; indeed, it seemed -to me to be that of a stranger. I had lost all account of the time I -had been in prison, when one day I remarked that there was a -considerable excitement exhibited by my companions. That something of -importance was taking place I was certain. Suddenly, at the time we -were usually taken into the yard in the morning, the sound of musketry -reached my ears. Faint at first, it grew louder and louder. Then there -came the roar of big guns. Oh, how I longed to be with Dicky Plumb or -Ned Rawlings! There could be no doubt that the English were attacking -the place. It did not occur to me that in revenge the Chinese might cut -off our heads. The noise grew louder and louder. Presently I could -hear shouts and cries, and bullets seemed pattering against some of the -buildings in the neighbourhood. The city was attacked--of that there -could be no doubt. I could not help shouting out again "Rule -Britannia!" The Chinese looked at me with great awe; they must have -fancied it an incantation. The hubbub increased; there was evidently -some desperate fighting close at hand. Suddenly two of the gaolers -rushed into the cell, and came up to me. I could not help fancying that -my last moment had come. Instead of that, greatly to my satisfaction, -they undid my fetters, then made a sign to me to follow them. I did so -gladly enough, and in the courtyard whom should I see but Dicky Plumb -himself! We cordially shook hands. - -"I am so glad, Jack!" he exclaimed. "To this moment I did not know -whether you were alive or dead." - -"Nor I you," I answered. Directly afterwards we were joined by Ned -Rawlings, who seemed well pleased to see us both again, while little -Joss, who soon afterwards appeared, exhibited the greatest possible -satisfaction. Directly afterwards the gates were thrown open, the -Chinese scampered off and hid themselves, and in rushed a body of blue -jackets, among whom I recognised several of the crew of the _Fawn_. -Supposing that we had long been dead, they did not know us; indeed, pale -and thin and dirty as we were, this was not surprising. The whole place -was, in a short time, in the power of the British. The Tartar soldiers -fought desperately, and when they found they could no longer defend -their houses, they deliberately killed their wives and children, and -then destroyed themselves. Several of the superior officers, rather -than be taken, threw themselves upon their swords. Others, however, who -had heard that the English treated their prisoners with humanity, if -they could not run away, more wisely lived "to fight another day." - -When the battle was over we were taken on board the _Fawn_, which lay -some way down the river. Although we had gone through many hardships, -we had reason to be thankful, for we found that we were the only persons -on board the junk who had escaped with life. I often shudder, even now, -as I think of what we had to go through. A considerable number of -English and Lascars were, about this time, seized by the Chinese, and -were put to death, after being cruelly ill-treated for several months. -The Emperor of China finding that, in spite of the boasting of his -generals, the barbarians managed to beat his troops on every occasion, -signed a treaty of peace. The squadron, therefore, once more returned -to Hong Kong. Although the war was over, we were not to be idle. We -had just time to pay our friends a visit on board the _Roarer_, when we -were ordered off in search of pirates, large numbers of which gentry -infested the China seas. Mr. Ormsby appointed me to attend him in the -cabin. Little Joss had, from the first, attached himself to me, and Mr. -Ormsby, seeing this, allowed him to help me in the cabin. He looked -upon me as an old friend, from our having been fellow-sufferers, and to -show his regard, endeavoured to teach me Chinese. I must, however, -confess, that he learned English far more rapidly than I did Chinese. -We had another mate and midshipman from the ship, instead of those lost, -and they, with Mr. Plumb, all messed together with the lieutenant, as -well as the second master and the assistant-surgeon. Mr. Ormsby, being -a very particular person, had a supply of plate, which he put under my -charge. It was kept in a chest with a number of other articles which he -had picked up in China, and valued highly. We had been away some weeks -without meeting with any suspicious craft when one night we saw a bright -light burning ahead. - -"A ship on fire!" sung out Mr. Mason, the officer of the watch. - -Mr. Ormsby at once came on deck, and ordered all sail to be made to get -up with her. The wind was light; the flames appeared to be rising -higher and higher; we were afraid that we should be too late to render -assistance to the poor people on board. Every stitch of canvas the -schooner could carry was set. - -"I would give a good round sum to be up with that vessel," exclaimed -Dicky Plumb. "A dreadful thing for them to be burnt alive or drowned." - -Several remarks of a similar nature were made; and certainly, if wishing -or whistling would have brought us up to the vessel, we should have been -there quickly enough. At length we could make out the masts and hull of -a brig--a large vessel she seemed; the flames had caught her sails, and -were playing round her spars and masts. Suddenly, as we gazed at her, -the deck seemed to lift; like sky-rockets up rose the masts; the flames -burst up brighter than ever from the hull; and then, like showers of -rockets, down came the burning rigging, hissing, into the sea; after -this the flames raged more furiously than ever; then, suddenly, there -was perfect darkness; a groan escaped the breasts of many on board. We -were too late to save any of the sufferers, still we stood on towards -the spot where the vessel had been. Suddenly a hail reached us; we -replied to it. In a short time we shortened sail, and a boat came -alongside; we had little doubt that she contained some of the people -from the brig; six men soon came up the side, most of them had their -heads and arms bound up. - -"Who are you, my men?" asked Mr. Ormsby. - -"I am the mate, sir, of the brig that just now blew up; we are the only -people who have escaped," said one of them. "This afternoon we were -attacked by half a dozen Malay prows; we fought desperately, hoping to -drive off the pirates; at length, the master and the other hands being -killed, we jumped into the long-boat and made off, hoping to return to -the brig when the pirates had left her; they, however, set her on fire, -and we were intending to make the best of our way to Singapore when we -caught sight of the schooner." - -The mate expressing his belief that the pirates had stood to the -southward, all sail was made in that direction. The weather had been -threatening for some hours; it now grew worse and worse. Mr. Ormsby's -chief regret was that it might drive the pirate fleet into port. We -made such good way, that soon after noon we caught sight of the vessels -of which we were in search; they saw us, and guessed our intentions, and -away they went before the wind. We stood on, hoping to come up with -them; hour after hour passed by, and they kept ahead. The weather was -getting more and more dirty; still we persevered, and, as the wind -increased, we gained upon them. - -"I think I could hit the sternmost of those fellows," said Ned Rawlings, -as he ran his eye along a gun. - -The gun was trained forward. Rawlings, who was one of the best marksmen -on board, fired. The shot struck the nearest prow, and sent the -splinters flying away in every direction. - -"Well done, Rawlings?" cried Mr. Ormsby. - -The gun was again loaded, when just as he fired a fearful crash was -heard; the schooner shook from stem to stern. - -"She's ashore!" cried out more than one voice. - -"And we must heave her off, lads!" cried our commander; giving the order -to take in all sail. - -The vessel only hung forward; a boat was lowered, and a hawser carried -out immediately astern. We had not struck long before our enemies -discovered what had happened; they now came clustering round us at a -respectful distance, though, having seen the effects of our shot. The -wind, however, was increasing, and the sea was getting up; and there -seemed every probability of the schooner being completely wrecked. I -bethought me, meantime, of Mr. Ormsby's directions. While the men were -working away to heave her off, I went down into the cabin; having -secured a rope round the chest Mr. Ormsby had placed under my charge, I -got a long thin line to serve as a buoy-rope, and got hold of a piece of -light wood, out of which to form the buoy. I did not think much, I own, -of the danger we were in. The wind was increasing, the sea was getting -up meantime, and I might have seen that the little craft would not hold -together many hours exposed to such a sea as was likely to roll in on -her. The junks were drawing in closer and closer, just waiting for the -moment when, our masts going, we might be thrown into confusion; and -they would have less difficulty in boarding. Having done all I could -below, I went on deck; the wind had greatly increased, the seas came -rolling slowly in towards us; still, the crew, encouraged by our brave -commander, laboured on. The cable by which we were hauling off was -tight as a harp-string; the men were pressing with might and main upon -the capstan-bars; those who were not thus employed were ordered to run -from side to side--now forward, now to rush aft altogether. Just then, -through the gloom, we observed a heavy sea rolling in towards us; it -might prove our destruction, or-- - -"Heave, lads! heave!" shouted our commander. - -With a bound, so it seemed, as the sea passed under us, the vessel came -off the reef, and was quickly hauled up to the anchor. Had it been -daylight, the pirates would have discovered what had occurred; as it -was, they probably did not find out that we were free. The cable was -brought ahead, sail was made, the anchor was hove up, and away we shot, -close-hauled, clear of the reef. - -I had gone below to get supper for the commander, for, as may be -supposed, no one had eaten anything for some hours; soon afterwards he -came into the cabin. - -"Hillo! what is this?" he exclaimed, as he got his foot round the -buoy-rope. - -I told him what I had done. He laughed. - -"Well, Jack," he said, "you did what every man should do--your duty. -You attended to your own business, and looked after the property placed -under your charge. However, I suspect if the schooner had gone to -pieces, we none of us should have remained alive to tell what had become -of my plate-chest. Still, I will not forget this night's work, Jack." - -I heard Mr. Ormsby tell the officers that he was not going to let the -prows escape. - -"We must wait, however, till daylight," he observed, "or we may be -getting on shore again." - -Bumping on a pointed rock tries a vessel. Scarcely had we got off, when -one of the carpenter's mates, who acted as our carpenter, came aft. - -"She's making water very fast, sir," he said, addressing our commander. -"It's as much as we can do to keep her afloat till the morning." - -"Rig the pumps, then; and, Mr. Norton, send the hands to work them," -said Mr. Ormsby, quite composedly. "We must not let the _Fawn_ go down, -whatever we do." - -In another minute the clank of the pumps was heard, and on it -went--"clank! clank! clank!" I dropped asleep in the midst of it. When -morning broke, a large fleet of prows was discovered about three miles -to leeward; we immediately made sail, and stood down towards them, a -bright look-out being kept for reefs and shoals. The size of the little -vessel evidently encouraged the pirates. Their numbers having been now -increased, instead of running, they stood boldly up towards us. - -"We shall see some fun now, Jack," said Dicky Plumb, "depend on that." - -In a short time we were near enough to open fire on the leading junks. -They, in no way daunted, returned it with their long brass guns and -gingals, peppering us very hotly. I rather suspect that Mr. Ormsby now -saw that it would have been wiser had we kept clear of such gentry, -especially in the sinking condition of the schooner; as long as the -breeze held, and the schooner was under command, we could run here and -there, raking the prows, and handling them very severely. At length, -however, as the evening was coming on, the wind fell; our enemies, on -this, were seen to get out their long sweeps, and come out towards us in -a body, some on one side, some on the other. It was evident that we -should have to fight for our lives; for the moment, not a man on board -thought of the leak. I got hold of a cutlass, which I could handle -pretty well, and a brace of pistols; Mr. Plumb armed himself in a -similar manner. For some time we managed to keep the enemy at a -distance with our guns, which we fired as rapidly as we could load them. -It was now again almost dark. Just as the nearest prow was about to -board, down she went; our men cheered, and redoubled their efforts; but -we had another big enemy on the other side. On she came, though hulled -several times; her crew were ready to spring on board. Mr. Ormsby, -aided by Ned Rawlings and one or two others and myself, had run in a -gun, and loaded it; it was quickly run out again, and fired right down -into the hold of the prow. Just as the Malays were about to spring on -board, a thundering noise was heard; flames burst forth, and up went the -vessel into the air; the schooner's sails were set on fire, and several -of our people were hurt; my face was blackened all over, and so was -Dicky Plumb's. Down came the wreck of the prow on our deck, while the -limbs of her unfortunate crew were sent right over us, some sticking in -the rigging; this fearful event kept the rest of our enemies at a -distance for a few minutes, and enabled us to put out the flames, and to -clear away the wreck. Scarcely, however, had we done this, than with -fierce cries and shouts once more the prows pulled up towards us; we met -them with further discharges of shot, but though many of their people -were killed, yet a big prow grappled us on either side. So fiercely did -our people fight, that not a man who reached the deck had time to -recover his legs before he was cut down. Joss exerted himself bravely, -and though not big enough to handle a cutlass, kept bringing ammunition -up from below, and then getting hold of a revolver, did good execution -with it, running in and out among the men, and killing numbers of -pirates as they attacked our people with their sharp scimitars. At -length we succeeded in casting off the grapnels which the Malays had -thrown on board; and the breeze catching our topsails, we stood out once -more from between them; we had, by this time, lost four or five of our -men, three of whom were killed outright; and it seemed too likely, if -the Malays were determined to overpower us, they would do so. Our young -commander fought like a lion, and Dicky Plumb, I must say, fought like a -lion's whelp; no sooner did a Malay show his brown face over the -bulwarks, than Dicky was at him; indeed, all hands were doing their -utmost. I will not boast of myself; in fact, if I had been ever so -great a coward, I should have fought; for I felt very sure, and so did -everybody on board, that if we did not fight, we should one and all be -knocked on the head. Directly there was a moment's cessation of firing -we had to run to the pumps, and to work away for our lives to keep the -vessel from sinking. Again and again, however, the prows came round us, -and no sooner had we beaten off one set, than others took their places. -At length Mr. Ormsby was hit; he sank on the deck. Dicky and I, who -were standing near, ran to help him up. - -"Don't give in, Mason?" he shouted; "fight to the last!" - -"Are you much hurt, sir?" I asked. - -"I don't know. Lend me a handkerchief." - -The assistant-surgeon, who was fighting as furiously as any one, now -hurried up, and bound a handkerchief tightly round Mr. Ormsby's leg. - -"Give me my sword again!" he exclaimed. "There is some fight in me -yet!" - -At that moment several fresh prows were making towards us. Every man on -board would be required to repel them. Our guns were, however, all -loaded ready to give them a warm reception. In spite of the hot fire we -poured aboard them, on they came. Now one of them grappled us on the -starboard bow, while we had another on our quarter. And now, with loud -shrieks and cries, the pirates began to spring upon the schooner's -decks. - -"Lads! we will sell our lives dearly?" exclaimed Mr. Ormsby. - -"Yes; never say Die?" shouted Dicky Plumb, in a shrill voice. - -The crew being divided, some went on the starboard bow and some on the -port side, to repel the boarders. Still it seemed impossible that we -should drive them back altogether. The Malays, from the prow on our -bow, came pouring on board. Mr. Ormsby, with Ned Rawlings and Dicky -Plumb, made a dash forward to try and repel them. Just at that moment a -loud, hearty British cheer saluted our ears. A blue light burst forth -at our port bow, and a number of blue jackets were seen climbing up over -the bulwarks, led by no less a person than our gallant captain himself. -We could scarcely believe our senses when we saw them; in fact, I -fancied it was a dream. They soon, however, by the way they treated the -Malays who had gained our decks, showed us that their appearance was a -satisfactory reality. In a few seconds the fore part of the vessel was -cleared; and now, sweeping up, they soon drove off the pirates who were -leaping down on our quarters. In another instant, the prows were making -the best of their way from us. - -"We must not let them go free!" exclaimed the captain; and calling his -men into the boats, away they started after the prows. Meantime, we -could see the blue lights from the ship burning a couple of miles away -to windward. The surgeon had now time to attend to Mr. Ormsby's wound. -I was looking out for Dicky Plumb. He was nowhere to be seen. The -thought came across me that he had been killed, or else that the Malays, -as they retired, had carried him off. We, meantime, made sail and -followed the boats. Four prows were captured. We could see their men -jumping overboard as the boats dashed alongside. Daylight at length -broke. There lay the schooner, her decks bloody, her bulwarks -shattered, and her rigging cut up. Portions of wreck floated round us. -Not a human being, however, was to be seen. The four captured prows lay -close together, and half a mile off was the old _Roarer_, standing -towards us under all sail. Captain Sharpe now came on board, and -greatly to my satisfaction Dicky Plumb came with him. He had slipped -into the captain's boat as he shoved off, as he said, to see a little -more of the fun. The _Roarer_, we found, was on her way to Calcutta. -As soon as we were again free of the pirates, the hands were again sent -to the pumps. Mr. Ormsby had done his best to keep the crew ignorant of -the condition of the vessel. It now became evident, however, that, pump -as hard as we could, she could scarcely be kept afloat. Captain Sharpe -was convinced of this as soon as he returned on board. He at once -ordered Mr. Ormsby and the other wounded men into the boats. Fresh -hands went to the pumps, but all they could do was in vain. - -"All hands into the boats?" shouted our captain. - -There was not a moment to lose. I got hold of Mr. Ormsby's sextant and -chronometer, and scarcely had I leaped with them into one of the boats, -than the schooner gave a plunge, and down she went, her pennant -streaming up, the last object seen as she disappeared beneath the -surface. The end of it, however, floated for a few seconds. She had -gone down, it was evident, in shallow water. - -"Hillo! what is that buoy floating there?" asked the captain. - -My heart gave a jump of pleasure. - -"It's Mr. Ormsby's chest," I answered, and I told him what I had done. -The launch and pinnace were ordered up, and in a short time the chest -was weighed and safely got on board, and I got highly praised for being -the means of saving it. The surviving pirates being taken out of the -prows, they were set on fire, and we watched them burning to the water's -edge, while we sailed away after their companions. - -"What are we to do with these black fellows, I wonder?" I asked of -Sergeant Turbot. - -"Why, I suppose, Jack, they will all be hung, as a lesson to their -friends," he replied, "not to go and do the same; but to my mind these -fellows are terribly hard to teach." - -CHAPTER ELEVEN. - -IN THE PIRATE STRONGHOLD. - -The navigation of those seas is ticklish work, and we knew that unless -great care was taken, we might run the old _Roarer_ on a rock, as we had -the little _Fawn_, with much more serious consequences--once hard and -fast, we were not likely to get the old barky off again. A lookout was -stationed at the foretop mast-head, and at the fore yard-arms, to watch -the appearance of the sea, and give notice of any change of colour; -while the hands were at their stations, ready to shorten sail, or to -brace the yards sharp up, should any danger appear ahead. Danger, -however, was not likely to deter Captain Sharpe in any course which he -conceived it his duty to follow. - -"These pirates must be put down," I heard him observe to Mr. Blunt. -"The only way to do so is to follow them up whenever we can get tidings -of them, to burn their villages and their vessels, and to hang them -whenever we can catch them in the act. They understand no other kind of -treatment. I remember once, in the Mediterranean, capturing a Greek -pirate. We let him go, as he showed a letter from the master of a -merchantman, in which great gratitude was expressed for the way in which -the Greek had behaved. We found, however, that the fellow had plundered -the vessel of everything of value immediately after he had got -possession of the letter. I caught him again the following year, and -asked him how, after once he had been so generously pardoned, he could -think of returning to his piratical ways. - -"`Ah, signore,' he answered, `it is our nature. Had you hung me then, I -should no longer have gone pirating.' - -"We put an effectual stop to his career this time, and he submitted with -the most perfect grace; it was our business to hang him--it was his fate -to be hung." - -I did not forget our captain's remarks. I felt much pleased when Mr. -Ormsby sent to desire that I might attend on him while he lay suffering -from his wound. - -"I know that I can trust him to you, Junker," said the surgeon, "and -take care he has his medicine at the exact hour I mark down." - -"I am thankful to have you by me, Jack," said Mr. Ormsby. "You have -behaved admirably, and I shall always be glad to render you any -assistance in my power." - -I will not say that these remarks did not raise me somewhat in my own -estimation. I do not see how it could have been otherwise; and vague -ideas of what I might perhaps become by-and-by, floated through my mind. -I was the son of a marine only, but then he was a sergeant, and my -mother was certainly a lady by birth, though she might have been -supposed to have lowered herself when she married my honest father. -"Well, well, that may be all nonsense," I thought over and over again, -"and yet, if there is an opportunity, I will try to distinguish myself. -I may, to be sure, get knocked on the head, and then there will be an -end to the matter; but still, people do go through all sorts of dangers, -and come out without even a scratch." All day long the _Roarer_ ran on, -when towards evening we stood into a bay, where she brought up. It was -supposed that the pirates were hiding away in the neighbourhood, and -during the night a bright lookout was kept, lest any of the prows, not -aware of our vicinity, might be stealing by. I sat up, as long as I -could keep awake, with Mr. Ormsby; but at length the surgeon sent me to -my hammock, he or one of the midshipmen taking my place. He, however, -had a good deal himself to do, looking after the other wounded men. -When the sun rose there was not a breath of wind, the water in the bay -looking like a polished mirror, so clear, that we could see the fish -swimming about, far down below the surface. At length the land breeze -came off the shore, the anchor was hove up, and we once more made sail. -I may as well say that this sort of work continued for several days. -Mr. Ormsby was gradually recovering, so that he did not require much of -my attendance. Dicky Plumb met me one day. - -"Jack," he said, "I have been making interest, in case there is any -boat-work, that I may be employed, and I have asked, if I go, that you -may go also. Of course the old _Roarer_ herself is never likely to get -hold of any of these fellows. They can see her coming, and hide away -without difficulty, but with the boats it may be a very different -matter." - -The very day after this we brought up as usual in a sheltered bay, the -high points on either side covered with trees completely concealing the -ship. It was dusk before we came to an anchor, so that, unless the -people on shore had been expressly looking for us, we were very likely -to have escaped observation. As soon as the sails were furled, the -captain issued an order for five boats to be got ready, and armed with -provisions for a couple of days, and it soon became known that he -himself intended to lead our expedition in search of the pirates. The -captain went in one of the boats, the second-lieutenant with the master -and two mates in the others. Dicky told me he was going with Mr. Mason. - -"And you are to take an oar in the boat, as Barket, who belongs to her, -is ill. Depend upon it, we shall see some fun. The captain would not -trouble himself, unless he felt pretty sure of bagging a few pirates." - -There was a thin crescent moon in the sky, just sufficient to enable us -to see the land, but not affording light enough to betray our approach -to any of the people on shore. I should say that two days before we had -fallen in with a trading junk proceeding northward. Captain Sharpe had -questioned the master, and having treated him very liberally, obtained, -I fancy, a good deal of information from him. As the Chinaman sailed -away to the northward, there was no danger of his carrying the -information of our being on the coast to the pirates, had he been so -disposed. He, however, was probably very thankful to us for -endeavouring to put an end to the career of those "ocean gatherers of -blackmail." - -The men, having had their suppers, got ready for the expedition. We all -had pistols in our belts and cutlasses by our sides, while in each boat -there were several muskets besides those carried by the marines. In the -bow of the launch, as also in that of the pinnace, there was a long -brass gun, which could throw a shot well able to send a pirate prow to -the bottom in the course of a few discharges. The captain gave the -order to shove off, and following him closely, the flotilla of boats -pulled away to the southward. I could not help looking every now and -then at the big ship, as her dark hull, and masts and yards rose up -against the clear sky. Our oars had been muffled, so that the pirates -might not be warned of our approach. The only sound heard was the light -splash of the blades, as they clove the calm surface of the water, and -the light ripple caused by our stems as we glided through it. We had to -round a high wooded point, which in a short time hid the ship from our -sight. We now coasted along at some distance from the land, but -sufficiently near to discover any prows which might be at anchor. Hour -after hour we pulled on, but no suspicious craft were seen which might -tempt us to overhaul them. Not a word was exchanged between the -different boats, for sound is carried at night over a calm sea-- -especially in that clear atmosphere--to an immense distance, and had we -laughed or talked, we might easily have betrayed our approach. - -"Slow work this, Mason," whispered Mr. Plumb. "I hope, however, we -shall have our reward before long." - -We soon after this saw behind us a high wooded point, very like the one -near which the _Roarer_ lay. Just then the captain dropped alongside -each boat, and told the officers to be prepared, as he fully believed we -should find a fleet of piratical prows on the other side. This put us -all on the look-out. Each man might be seen tightening his belt, and -feeling to ascertain that his pistol was ready at hand. Keeping close -together, we followed our brave leader round the point. Scarcely had we -opened the bay, when we made out a large fleet of prows at anchor, close -in with the shore. It would have been difficult to count them. - -"Lads," said the captain, as he again dropped alongside, "I expect you -to be cool and obey orders. You are to attack each prow in succession. -Two will attack one and two the other, and I will move on to wherever I -am most required. No cheering till we are actually on board and the -vessel is our own. We must make sharp work of it, and I hope daylight -will see the pirate fleet either taken or destroyed. No cheering, lads, -now. That is just what I expect you to do." - -Saying this, the captain once more took his position at the head of the -little squadron. How calm and quiet and peaceable looked that bay! Not -a ripple broke the surface of the water, which reflected the stars that -glittered in the clear heaven. Like a snake springing on its prey, the -line of boats advanced towards the prows. Our approach was not -perceived, as far as we could judge. Probably the Malays, trusting in -their numbers, and not aware of the neighbourhood of the ship, kept no -watch. There was one awkward question, which I suppose our captain had -asked himself--Were the people we were going to attack really pirates or -honest traders? He, I conclude, had received information which made him -sure that they were pirates; if not, that they had been, or would be, if -opportunity offered. If they were the gentry who had burned the -merchant vessel and attacked the _Fawn_, they deserved punishment, there -was no doubt about that. Steadily we advanced, every moment expecting -to have a fire of gingals opened upon us. The pirates slept soundly; -not even a dog barked on board any of their vessels. As we got nearer -we saw the masts of a square-rigged vessel rising up in their midst. -She was probably their prize. This made our captain more certain that -they were the pirates he hoped to find. On we steadily went till the -leading boat was within twenty yards of a large prow, two others -appearing close astern of her, while the others were anchored in line, -the barque--for such she appeared to be--inside of all; indeed, from the -way she heeled over, we judged that she was aground. There seemed to be -every probability of our getting on board unobserved, when suddenly a -shout was heard from the deck of the nearest prow, and a bullet directly -afterwards whistled over our heads. Numerous other wild cries and -shouts arose from the nearest vessel, quickly taken up by those astern -of her. - -"On, lads!" cried our captain. "Remember my directions?" - -Scarcely had he spoken, when his boat dashed alongside the prow, two -others following his example; we pushed on to the next. There was no -time for thought before we were clambering up her side and engaged hand -to hand in a desperate conflict with her dark-skinned crew, looking -still darker in the gloom of night, grinning, and shouting, and hacking -away at us with their sharp sabres, while others fired their matchlocks -and gingals in our faces. Our pistols and cutlasses, were, however, -well matched to them; I kept close to Dicky Plumb, who sprang on board -with the greatest gallantry. The glitter of Dicky's uniform seemed to -excite the fury of the Malays; three big fellows making a dash at him -together. I turned aside the sword of one fellow who was about to cut -him down; but it would have gone hard with him, had not Ned Rawlings, -who was with us, sprung forward, and with a sweep of his cutlass settled -the other two; the remainder of the crew, finding that resistance was -vain, leaped overboard, and attempted to swim on shore. No quarter was -asked for; the pirates were not accustomed to give it themselves, and -probably expected none. In ten minutes not a Malay remained alive on -board. According to orders, as soon as we had captured one vessel, we -leaped again into our boats, and pulled off to the next; in another -instant we were alongside her, with pikes being poked down at us, and -matchlocks and gingals fired in our faces. Though two of our men had -been wounded, no one as yet had been killed. In spite of the warm -reception we met with, we managed to climb on board, and we went through -much the same scene as that before enacted; we found the Malays no -despicable enemies, for they fought with the greatest desperation, even -when all hope of victory had been lost. As on board the other vessel, -no one would yield; and after a third of the crew had been killed, the -remainder sprang overboard, some being drowned, others, probably, -reaching the shore in safety. It might have been wise if we had set the -captured prows on fire immediately; but probably our captain wished to -recover the cargo of the barque, which they might have got on board, and -therefore spared them till there was time to search their holds. - -We went on from vessel to vessel, not always seeing what became of those -who jumped overboard. We had captured eight or ten in this way, when -the remainder were seen to be cutting their cables, and running on -shore; at the same time, the first vessel we had captured was observed -to be moving; there could be little doubt that the Malays who had jumped -overboard from the other prows had contrived to reach her; as she was -the largest, and had a considerable amount of cargo on board, they -probably thought it worth while running every risk in the hope of -escaping with her. Mr. Mason was the first to discover what had -occurred, and ordered us immediately into the boat; we then pulled away -in chase. The prow was making towards a point which formed one side of -the bay; she had already got a considerable start before she had been -perceived. We had had by this time one of our number killed and two -wounded, who, though they persisted in keeping at the oars, could not -put forth their usual strength; one, indeed, had before long to give up; -still Mr. Mason persevered, hoping to overtake the prow before she could -reach the shore. As we shoved off from the last vessel we had taken, he -shouted to the crew of the boat which had boarded with us, saying where -we were going; but probably he was not heard, for we were left to make -chase alone. We had four marines with us, who stood up every now and -then, and fired at the enemy, but that only made them pull away the -faster; we were gaining on them, but not very rapidly. Now and then, -the enemy fired at us in return. - -"Pull away, lads I pull away!" shouted Dicky every now and then, helping -the stroke oar. - -The prow was getting nearer and nearer the shore. It seemed very -doubtful whether we should overtake her before she reached it. Still, -the example set by Captain Sharpe was followed by his officers. His -motto was "Persevere," so was theirs. At length the prow got within -twenty fathoms of the beach. We were almost up with her, when the other -wounded man I spoke of gave in, sinking down, poor fellow! at his oar. -This hindered us when we were almost up to the vessel. Once more we -were on the point of hooking on, when the prow dashed high up on the -beach. At that moment, a number of men with firearms rushed out from -among the trees and rocks, and began peppering away at us. - -"We will board her first, and drive them away afterwards," shouted Mr. -Mason, springing up the side of the vessel. - -Dicky Plumb and I followed him, with Ned Rawlings, the marines covering -us with their muskets as we did so. The enemy soon gave way, the -greater number rushing over the bows and wading on shore. We had -recaptured the prow, but just as we were congratulating ourselves on our -easy victory, bright flames burst forth from the fore part of the -vessel, spreading rapidly. To extinguish them was impossible. - -"To the boats, lads!" shouted Mr. Mason, "or the craft may be blowing up -and carrying us with her. We must punish these fellows, however." - -The warning came just in time. Scarcely had we jumped into the boat and -made towards the beach, than up went the vessel, almost overwhelming us -with her burning fragments; indeed, it seemed a wonder that we should -have escaped, so close were we at the time. Many pieces, indeed, fell -on the outside of us--no large portion, happily, striking the boat. Led -by Mr. Mason, we dashed on shore, and with our four marines, who had -fixed bayonets--the rest of us armed with cutlasses--charged the enemy. -They ran away--the wisest thing they could do, but we followed, which -was not at all a wise thing. The Malays first fled along the beach, we -every now and then firing at them; then they turned inland. Still, as -long as we kept sight of them, Mr. Mason led us on. Rocks and trees -were on either side of us. Just as we were leaving the beach, I thought -I heard a shout from the boat, in which were the wounded men and a -couple of hands left to keep her afloat. Our blood was up, Mr. Mason -vowing that, though the Malays might run fast, he would overtake them. -We had now got a considerable distance from the beach, when our enemies -disappeared. They had evidently concealed themselves among the trees -and rocks. It was equally evident that we had done a very foolish -thing. All we could now do was to retrace our steps; that, however, was -not quite so easy a matter. Before we had moved a hundred yards we -discovered that we had lost our way. With daylight we might have found -it, but in the darkness we could not discover a glimpse of the sea. -Just then we caught sight of numerous dark forms appearing above the -rocks and among the trees. Slowly they closed in upon us. We were -surrounded by our enemies; there was no doubt about that. They were -well armed with matchlocks, for we saw the matches fizzing away at their -belts, while we had only four muskets and half a dozen pistols. Our -cutlasses and the marines' bayonets would have enabled us, perhaps, to -have fought our way out from among our enemies, could we have seen it. - -"There is no help for it; I am afraid it is all up with us, lads!" cried -Mr. Mason, as some fifty armed men pressed closer and closer round us. -"We must sell our lives dearly!" - -The threatening gestures of the enemy showed us that we must do this, if -we could not escape. An open space, however, appeared before us. - -"Fire, and then charge?" cried Mr. Mason. - -The order was obeyed. Several of the Malays fell, and on we dashed. -They, in return, however, poured in a shower of bullets upon us, which -knocked over two of the marines, and hit another of the seamen. - -"On, on, lads! We must regain the beach!" cried Mr. Mason; and we -fought our way on for another fifty yards. - -The Malays had, however, in the meantime reloaded their pieces, and a -second deadly discharge was poured in upon us. Our leader fell, as did -the two marines and three more of our men. Ned Rawlings, Dicky, and I, -indeed, were the only ones of the whole party untouched. Hearing poor -Mr. Mason groan, Dicky and I stooped down to lift up his head. - -"I just now caught sight of the water," cried Ned Rawlings. "If you -will help him up on my back, I'll carry him off to the boat." We -instantly lifted Mr. Mason on Ned's broad shoulders, and as the Malays -did not press on us, there seemed a possibility of success. They, -however, seeing only two persons able to fight, now made a rush towards -us. We, of course, thought our last moments had come. Resistance was -useless. Instead, however, of cutting us down, they seized us by the -arms, wrenched our cutlasses out of our hands, and dragged us along as -prisoners. They soon caught hold of Ned, who, however, would not let -Mr. Mason go. He was soon brought up to where we were. Mr. Mason -could, by this time, scarcely speak. - -"Put me down, my good fellow," he said, "it is useless; I have received -my deathblow; I only hope these fellows will not murder you and the -lads. Put me down, I beg you; you only increase my suffering by -attempting to carry me." - -Very unwillingly, Ned obeyed him. Mr. Mason then made signs to the -Malays, entreating them to spare our lives; and trying to explain to -them, that if they did so, we should certainly be ransomed, and they -would be the gainers. They seemed to understand him, for they held a -consultation together, as if to decide what was to be done with us. It -was an anxious time, for we knew that they were just as likely to settle -to cut off our heads as to allow them to remain on our shoulders. We, -meantime, sat down near poor Mr. Mason; he had been shot in two places, -and though we managed to tie handkerchiefs over the wounds, we could do -no more. His voice grew weaker and weaker; at length he made no answer -to our remarks, and when I lifted up his hand it fell helplessly by his -side. - -"He's gone, lads," said Ned Rawlings. "He was a brave officer, but he -wanted judgment in bringing us into this fix." - -The Malays seemed to have decided to let us live; binding our arms -behind us, they dragged us all three off up the country. At length we -heard some dogs barking, and lights were seen glimmering ahead; and in a -few minutes we found ourselves in the midst of a village of huts, with -bamboo-built walls and roofs thatched with leaves. Dawn was just -breaking. A number of dark-skinned women and children came out, -chattering and screeching, and eagerly pressing round the white -prisoners. - -"Keep up your spirits, Jack!" said Dicky to me. "If we put a bold face -on the matter we are more likely to gain their respect than if we allow -them to suppose that we are frightened." - -The inhabitants having satisfied their curiosity, we were carried into a -hut, in which we all three were shut up; the furniture consisting only -of a mat spread on the ground. - -"Can't say I like the look of those chaps," said Ned Rawlings to me. -"Shouldn't be surprised but what after all they meant to kill and eat -us. I have heard say that there are some chaps in these parts who do -that sort of thing." - -"I hope not," I observed. "I think they would have knocked us on the -head at first, if they had intended to do so; and, considering that they -must feel rather savage at having their vessels destroyed, we are -fortunate in not being killed." - -"Well, the wisest thing we can do is to make the best of it," observed -Mr. Plumb; "and as I feel pretty tired I will lie down on this mat and -go to sleep." - -Saying this the midshipman coiled himself up on the ground, and in -another minute was snoring away as if he were in his own hammock. I -felt very much inclined to follow his example; Ned, however, seemed to -think that it was his duty to keep watch, and when I lay down, I saw him -still sitting up, and evidently intending to keep awake. In a very few -minutes I was as sound asleep as Mr. Plumb; how long I had slept I do -not know, when I was awoke by the sound of firing, and loud shouts and -cheers in the distance; the midshipman also awoke, and we all sat -listening attentively, hoping that our friends were coming to the -rescue. The sounds grew louder and louder. Ned tried to force open the -door, but though made only of bamboo, the fastenings were so strong that -he could not succeed. Now arose the cries and shouts of the Malays, and -the sound of their matchlocks, as they fought desperately to defend the -approach to their village. - -"If they are beaten, they will come in and knock us on the head in -revenge," said Dicky Plumb. "It cannot be helped, though; I wish we -were out of this, however, for we might then have, at all events, a run -for life." - -The sounds grew louder and louder. It was evident that our captors were -being driven back. - -"It is just like our captain," observed Dicky. "When he found one of -the boats missing, he came on shore to look for her, and then discovered -this village, and determined to attack it, hoping to find us inside. He -will be very sorry when he hears of the death of Mr. Mason and the other -poor fellows." - -"I think we could get out through the roof of this place, though we -cannot force open the door," observed Ned, beginning to climb up the -side. - -In a little time he had worked a hole in the thick thatch; in another -minute he was through it. - -"Now, sir, catch hold of my hand and I'll haul you up," he said to Mr. -Plumb. - -The midshipman was speedily on the top of the hut; I followed, hauled up -by the same friendly hand, scarcely had I reached the top when the door -of the hut was opened, and we heard several voices utter exclamations of -surprise. - -"Follow me," whispered Mr. Plumb; "there is not a moment to be lost! we -must run for it, that's evident!" - -We dropped down to the ground as noiselessly as we could. It was broad -daylight; but, happily, we had got to the rear of the hut, which, as it -seemed, was on the outside of the village. The ground was very wild and -rough, sloping rapidly down towards the sea. - -We had got a considerable distance, however, before we were discovered. -As soon as we were seen the Malays pursued us, for they had no intention -that we should escape. Several shots were sent after us, but from the -roughness of the ground, as we kept leaping from rock to rock, we -escaped being hit. Our enemies pursued us, determined to prevent our -escape. If we were active, so were they; and away we all went, leaping -from rock to rock, they jumping as we did. A curious sight it must have -been to any one looking on. A stumble or fall would have been fatal. -We mercifully kept our legs; still, they were overtaking us, when we -caught sight of a party of our own men, who finding that side of the -hill undefended were advancing towards the village. We ran towards -them. And now the tables were turned, and the Malays had to scramble -back as fast as they had come. In the meantime Captain Sharpe with the -main body was fighting his way up towards the village, the road being -desperately defended by the piratical inhabitants. Conducted by us, the -smaller party we had joined now attacked the enemy in flank. They at -length gave way, though they bravely covered the retreat of their women -and children. A large number of the men were killed, but we were too -glad to let the others escape. Having driven out the inhabitants, we -were now ordered to search for booty. We had soon ample proof of the -character of the people by the various bales of silk and cotton goods, -cutlery, and other articles which were discovered in different -store-houses, apparently the property of the Rajah and other principal -men. Having made a thorough search, and collected all the articles of -value to be found, we conveyed them down to the boats. This done, the -village was set on fire in several places, to secure its complete -destruction--no very difficult matter, considering the materials of -which it was composed. We then pulled back towards the barque which I -have before mentioned. Her unfortunate crew and passengers, for she -apparently had had some, were all murdered. Not a human being belonging -to her could be discovered. How the Malays had allowed Dicky, Rawlings, -and myself to escape, we could not at first tell. We had, I should say, -taken a few prisoners, and among them was a lad who was discovered to be -the Rajah's son. It was concluded, therefore, that they had spared our -lives for the sake of exchanging us for him. Our victory was complete; -for we had captured all their prows, and recovered the merchant vessel -they had carried off. It had, however, been dearly purchased; for we -had lost the best part of a boat's crew and a boat which the Malays had -destroyed. The cries we heard just before leaving the beach we found -afterwards had been those of our unfortunate countrymen when they were -attacked by the Malays, who had immediately put them to death. As soon -as all the articles of value had been taken out of the prows and put on -board the prize, they were set on fire, and, burning rapidly, one after -the other quickly went to the bottom. The prize, I should have said, -had been hove off the shore. A breeze now springing up, sail was made, -and taking our boats in tow, we stood back to the _Roarer_. It was -hoped that the lesson we had given the pirates would make them and their -friends behave better for the future. We cruised for another fortnight -in search of any similar gentry. The barque was very useful, as while -we lay at anchor, concealed in some wooded bay, she was sent out to act -as a bait, for the purpose of drawing any pirates from their lairs. -Fifty hands were sent on board her, including a dozen marines, besides -which she was armed with four long sixes and half a dozen brass swivels. -After all, however, the pirates were too wary, and the bait did not -take. At length, without any further success, our time to remain in -those seas was up, and Captain Sharpe had, according to orders, to -proceed to Calcutta. - -CHAPTER TWELVE. - -I GET PROMOTED. - -We brought up for a few days at Singapore. It is a large place, -numerous fine buildings, warehouses, public edifices, and private -residences extending along the shore to a considerable distance, while -the harbour is full of vessels of all nations from China, Japan, Russia, -America, and every portion of the Eastern seas. I had never before seen -such a curious collection of rigs, the _Roarer_ looking somewhat like a -leviathan among minnows. Summary justice was here executed on the -pirates we had captured, many of them having been taken red-handed from -the murder of the crew of the barque. They themselves died with the -most perfect indifference, fully impressed with the idea that they had -lived excellent lives, and that their last act was highly meritorious. -It was necessary, however, to read a lesson to the crews of the -numberless vessels crowding the harbour, who would carry an account of -the execution wherever they went, and show the piratical tribes that the -English were determined to make them change their mode of life for one -of a more peaceable character, and more conducive to the prosperity of -commerce in those regions. The son of the Rajah whom we had captured -was, however, pardoned; and it was made known that this was in -consequence of the way we had been treated by our captors. The young -gentleman was, however, not allowed to return to his family and friends, -but kept at Singapore that he might receive instruction, and be induced -to lead a more creditable life than his father and his ancestors had -probably done. At first he begged very hard that instead of going to -school he might be taken off and hung at the yard-arm as his friends had -been. However, he shortly became reconciled to his lot, and is, I have -reason to believe, by this time a very respectable member of civilised -society. - -Sergeant Turbot told me that in his younger days he had come out to -Singapore when it was little better than a sandbank with a few -tumble-down huts upon it, inhabited by the followers of the Rajah, whose -chief occupation was to pounce out and rob all passers-by. - -"That was a good many years ago, as you may suppose," said the sergeant. -"There was, however, at that time, a man out in these parts who had a -head on his shoulders. He was called Sir Stamford Raffles. He was -Governor of Java, which our Government, very foolishly, afterwards gave -up to the Dutch, who owned it before we took it. Well, Sir Stamford saw -that it was very important to have a place to which the traders in those -seas could resort under English protection, and so he got the Government -to purchase the island from the Malay owners, and it was established as -a free port. That was all that was done. People very quickly came and -bought the land and built the warehouses, and the place became what you -now see it." - -We had to keep a bright look-out as we passed through the Straits of -Malacca. We made the northern end of Sumatra and were about a couple of -days' sail from it when the weather gave indications of a coming -typhoon. All hands were on deck shortening sail when down it came upon -us. Over heeled the old ship, and it seemed at first as if the masts -would be taken out of her, or that she would go over altogether. She -righted, however, and by desperate exertions she was made snug before -any great damage was done. It reminded us somewhat of the one we had -encountered at Hong Kong, but it was not so severe. Had we, however, -delayed another five minutes in shortening sail, it would have made us -look very foolish. All night we lay hove-to, trusting to One who looks -after sailors, but feeling that we could do very little for ourselves. -Next morning by daybreak the weather began to moderate. The hands had -just been sent aloft to shake a reef out of the topsails, when Dicky -Plumb, who was in the foretop, shouted out-- - -"A vessel on the lee bow! Dismasted! She seems a large ship, sir!" - -All eyes were turned in the direction to which Mr. Plumb pointed, but as -yet the ship could not be seen from the deck. Mr. Ormsby accordingly -went aloft, and soon found that Mr. Plumb was right. The _Roarer_ was -accordingly kept away towards her. As we approached her we saw signals -of distress flying from a spar which had been secured to the stump of -the mainmast, and, on passing near her, a man held up a board on which -was written, "We are sinking! No time to be lost!" - -There was, however, still a good deal of sea running, and it was no easy -matter for a boat to go alongside a vessel rolling as she was, without -any masts to steady her. Captain Sharpe, however, was not a man to -desert his fellow-creatures in distress; indeed, I may say, it would be -hard to find a captain in the British navy who would do so. We -accordingly hove-to to leeward of the ship, and made a signal that we -would send assistance as soon as possible. After waiting for a little -time the boats were lowered. Mr. Blunt went in one of them, and Mr. -Ormsby in the other. We watched them anxiously as they pulled towards -the dismasted ship. Now they seemed as if about to be thrown upon her -deck; now they sank down, and it appeared impossible that they could -escape being crushed by her as she rolled over. At length, however, -with great risk they got alongside, and we could see several women and -children being lowered into them, and also a few men. At length they -once more shoved off, and we watched them anxiously as they returned to -the _Roarer_. I was standing near Dicky Plumb at the time they -approached the ship; I saw him fix his eyes intently on one of the -boats; he seized a glass and looked towards it:-- - -"Yes, I'm sure I'm right! Why, I do believe there is my respected -mother! Yes, and there is the Brigadier and my sisters! Yes, yes! How -wonderful! Pray Heaven they may be got on board in safety!" he added, -with more feeling than I had ever before known him exhibit. - -Every preparation had been made by Captain Sharpe to get the people out -of the boats as they came alongside. The young ladies were first lifted -up, for Mrs. Brigadier would not go till she had seen them and her -husband safe on board; she came last, and not till then did she discover -that the ship was the _Roarer_, and that her son was on board. She -received Dicky very affectionately; again and again she pressed him in -her arms, and the tears rolled down her somewhat furrowed cheeks. Of -course, his father and sisters exhibited the feeling that might have -been expected. The boats returned immediately to the ship; and, to make -a long story short, all the people from her were got safely on board; -scarcely, however, had the last person left her, when her bows lifted, -and then down she went as if to make a long dive; we looked, and looked -in vain; she was never more destined to come up again. - -"Oh, Jack!" said Dicky, a short time afterwards to me, "I am so thankful -that my father and mother, and those dear sisters of mine, were got -safely on board the _Roarer_; suppose we had been too late, and they had -all gone to the bottom! And, I say, Jack, I have been talking about -you; and have told them all the things you have been doing; and they -want to see you, and have a talk with you; the captain, too, I can tell -you, has been praising you, and said--what I have often said--that you -ought to be on the quarter-deck." - -I thanked Master Dicky for his kind wishes; but replied (and I must -honestly confess I did not speak the truth), that I had no ambition that -way, but was very jovial and happy where I was. - -"Maybe, Jack," he answered, "but I rather think you would find yourself -still more jovial and happy as a midshipman." - -Well, I had to go on the quarter-deck, where Mrs. Brigadier shook hands -with me, as did the young ladies and the Brigadier himself. - -"I have heard a good deal about you, young man," said the old officer, -taking me aside. "If it had not been for you I should have lost my son; -and, since then, I hear you have done many gallant things. I think also -that there is another reason why Mrs. Brigadier is bound to give you a -helping hand. Do you happen to know your mother's maiden name?" - -"Evans, sir--Mary Evans." - -"I thought so," he said; "Evans was my wife's name. There were two -sisters: one married a private of marines, and the other a captain, as I -then was; but blood is blood, and I am not the man to deny its claims. -Your father is a fine, honest fellow, and I should not have been ashamed -to call him brother-in-law therefore; in fact, Jack Junker, you are my -nephew." - -I will not say how I felt; indeed, I cannot very clearly. I know I felt -very jovial; and my heart bumped and thumped in a way it had never done -before. I thanked my uncle, the Brigadier, for his kindness; and told -him I was very glad I had been of service to his son--though I little -dreamed at the time that he was my cousin--and that I liked him for -himself; and that ever since I had been on board the _Roarer_ he had -proved a steady friend to me. I confess one thing--I could not help -secretly hoping that my new aunt would not be too demonstrative in her -affection. Dicky soon afterwards came up, and shook me warmly by the -hand. - -"You are to be on the quarter-deck from this day forward," he exclaimed. -"I am so glad! I have not been more jovial for many a day. The -Brigadier is to get your outfit, so you will have no trouble or bother -about the matter." - -This announcement was confirmed soon afterwards by Captain Sharpe -himself, who complimented me very kindly on my conduct on several -occasions; and said that even had not the Brigadier and my aunt made the -application, he himself purposed endeavouring to obtain an appointment -for me on our arrival in England. From that day I entered the -midshipmen's berth; and, to the credit of my new messmates, I must say -they treated me with the greatest kindness and consideration. Of -course, I was only provisionally a midshipman, but there was no doubt of -my appointment being confirmed by the proper authorities, as captains -have no longer the power they once had of making midshipmen. - -Dicky and I had a very pleasant time of it at Calcutta; he, generous -fellow, insisting on calling me cousin, and introducing me wherever he -went. We were both very sorry when at length the ship was ordered away -on her return to England; however, our feelings were not shared in by -the majority of the officers and ship's company, who rejoiced at the -thoughts of once more returning to the shores of their native land. By -the time we reached England, I found that my father had gone to sea, my -sisters were married, and our poor stepmother had been driven out of -existence by her uproarious offspring. Ned Rawlings, on our arrival, in -consequence of the recommendation of Captain Sharpe, got his warrant as -a boatswain. Sergeant Turbot went on shore with his company, and he -told me that he thought if he was ever ordered foreign again, he must -quit the service. - -"As long as I have got a ship's deck or a plain to fight on--provided -there's not much marching--it's all very well, Jack," he said; "but if I -had to climb a hill, I should run a risk of losing my honour, if not my -life, for up it I never could get." - -I was very glad to find that shortly afterwards he got a snug little -appointment, and was never likely again to be sent to sea. - -Little Joss, who had accompanied us to England, remained on shore as a -servant in Captain Sharpe's family. Becoming a Christian, he had no -desire to return to his own country; and being a faithful and -intelligent fellow, he ultimately became the captain's butler, a -position he still holds. - -I occasionally have the honour of dining with my old captain, and at no -house am I so well looked after by the servants. I always stop -afterwards to have a yarn about the Flowery Land with Mr. Joss. He -tells me that he thinks he could do very well at Hong Kong, and I should -not be surprised to find him going off to establish himself there, with -the wages gained during his long and faithful service. - -Dicky and I, soon afterwards, through Captain Sharpe's interest, got -appointed to a smart frigate; and when she was paid off, he having -served his time, received his promotion as a lieutenant. All nonsense -had long since been knocked out of him; and he was a universal favourite -with officers and men, and acknowledged to be as gallant a fellow as -ever walked a ship's deck. - -Captain Sharpe is now an admiral, and highly esteemed in the service. -One of my cousins married Mr. Ormsby, who a short time before had been -made a commander; and when I am not at sea I always find a pleasant home -at his house, or at that of my kind-hearted uncle, who, after a few more -years' service, returned to England, and, in spite of his liver, has -managed to live to a green old age. Mrs. Brigadier has in no way -changed; and owing to her exertions, Dicky, in a short time, was made a -commander, and I became a lieutenant--a rank I at present hold. My -friends flatter me, by saying that I am such a very good -first-lieutenant, that it would be a loss to the service to make me a -commander. I am jovial and contented as ever; and after all, in my -opinion, I am in a far more enviable position than many who, as they -think, have risen to the summit of fame. - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - -The End. - - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Off to Sea, by W.H.G. Kingston - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK OFF TO SEA *** - -***** This file should be named 40689.txt or 40689.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/4/0/6/8/40689/ - -Produced by Nick Hodson of London, England - -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. 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