Paddy Finn Part 26

"Well, then, favour me by going aloft with my telescope, and you'll then, by looking down on her deck, be able to tell me whether you recognise any of those on board, or have to your knowledge seen the frigate before."

From his manner I believed he had not an idea that I suspected the frigate to be the _Liffy_.

I willingly agreed; and, taking the gla.s.s, went aloft. All my doubts were at an end. I at once made out Captain Macnamara walking the starboard side of the quarter-deck with Mr Saunders. On the opposite side, I distinguished several of my messmates by their figures. Some of the men were forward, but the greater number were below, and I could see no signs of any intentions of getting under way. I waited a considerable time, and heartily I wished for a pair of wings, that I might fly over the masts of the other vessels, and pitch down on her deck. No sight could have been more tantalising. I descended at last, and returning the telescope to Dubois, said--

"I confess frankly that I know the frigate. She is the one to which I belong."

"Is she a fast vessel?" inquired Dubois.

"She is considered so, monsieur," I answered.

"Faster than this brig?" he asked.

"Certainly, unless in a very light wind," I said. "If you expect to be chased, you have very little chance of escape from her, I should think."

"I must hope for the best," he said. "There's a fine breeze out of the harbour, and we may be off again before the frigate finds we are moving.

We have the advantage of being concealed from her sight, and she dare not fire a gun or send a boat after us, even should she wish it, till we're three leagues outside the harbour."

Dubois spoke in a confident tone, as if he did not think that there was the slightest chance I should even try to make my escape. I was dreading all the time that he would ask me to give my word not to do so.

He didn't, however, appear to think of that. In a short time La Touche came back, and reported, as I knew he would, that the frigate didn't appear to be preparing to sail. Scarcely had he come on board than the wind began to drop, till it became a stark calm. I saw the officers exchange looks with each other as they observed the dog vane hanging right up and down. It was very certain that we could not move, for we had not boats sufficient to tow the brig out of the harbour. There was every prospect of the calm continuing for many hours. The Frenchmen, by the way they paced the deck, showed their vexation, every now and then giving an impatient stamp with their feet.

At last La Touche stopped and said--

"Wouldn't it be well to go on sh.o.r.e and try and pick up some news? We may gain intelligence which may be of importance; at all events, we shall pa.s.s the time more pleasantly than on board."

"A good idea," answered Dubois. "We will go. You'll be content to remain on board?" he added, turning to me. "It might be inconvenient to take you with us, as we might meet some of your brother officers; but I brought a few books of light literature in my portmanteau, besides my nautical almanack, and you can read them while we're on sh.o.r.e."

I thanked him, and was very glad to find that he didn't wish me to go; as, although by landing I might have a chance of making my escape, I would not do so without Larry.

They did not wait for dinner; but telling the steward to bring me mine at the usual hour, pulled away in one of the boats, leaving the brig under the charge of a quartermaster, who had come on board at Gonavez Bay. He was a sharp-eyed old fellow, and had evidently been directed to keep a watch on Larry and me. Several sh.o.r.e-boats came alongside, but after some fresh provisions had been purchased, the others were ordered to keep off.

Soon after the officers had gone Larry came up to me.

"Hwist, Mr Terence," he said in a low voice. "Dan Hoolan and the other boys know that the frigate out there is the _Liffy_, and I heard Dan say to one of them that they must take care we don't get away to her, for he's afraid, if we do, that Captain Macnamara, when he hears of the mutiny, will consider that he has a right to retake the brig, and that they'll all be triced up to the yard-arm before many hours are over afterwards."

"We must try, then, to throw them off their guard, Larry," I said.

"Have you thought of any other plan for escaping?"

"Not just yet, Mr Terence; but I'm still hoping that something will turn up. I'll tell you all about it presently; but I mustn't stop long aft, for I have a notion that Dan and the rest have got something into their heads, and that they won't be stopping aboard if they can help it, to run the risk of hanging."

Larry again went forward, and I returned to the cabin. I cannot say that the books Dubois left me were edifying; and after I had turned over a few pages, I threw them aside as abominable trash, not fit for any gentleman's eyes to rest on. They were such works as contributed to prepare the way for the French Revolution. The steward brought me an excellent dinner, and placed a bottle of claret on the table, of which, however, I partook very moderately. I pa.s.sed the afternoon as best I could, now and then going on deck to have the pleasure of taking a look at the _Liffy_, and hoping to see one of her boats pa.s.sing. I determined, should one pull by, to hail her and say who I was; for I was afraid that Nettles.h.i.+p might suppose the brig had been lost, and that the report of my death might, by ill-luck, reach Ballinahone. I watched, however, in vain. As evening approached I expected that Dubois and La Touche would return. Something kept them on sh.o.r.e; probably, finding the calm continue, they were carrying out their intentions of amusing themselves. At last darkness came on, and I went back into the cabin. I should have said that the brig carried a small boat hoisted up astern, but which was in a dilapidated condition, and considered not fit to put into the water. As we had no carpenter on board able to repair her, she was allowed to remain hoisted up. I had been in the cabin some time, and I believe I must have dropped off into a doze, when I heard a sound of blocks creaking, and presently there was a splash in the water.

Springing up, I looked out of one of the stern ports, which was open, and could distinguish a boat just below me with a man in her, moving round the quarter. At first I thought he was Larry, and then I felt sure that Larry would not have taken a boat without first giving me notice of his intentions. In less than a minute afterwards, however, he poked his head into the cabin.

"Hwist, Mr Terence, it's just as I thought it would be," he whispered.

"Dan Hoolan and the rest are going to pull on sh.o.r.e. They have made the watch below drunk, and they have seized the anchor watch and put them in limbo. They fancy that if they can get away up the country, they'll be safe, and I have a mind to go with them and pull the boat back, and take you off. Keep a look-out of the cabin window, Mr Terence; maybe I'll come under the counter, and you can squeeze through the port without anybody on deck finding us out. Now I'm off."

Larry hurried out of the cabin, leaving me in a state of anxious doubt as to whether he would succeed. I was afraid of going on deck lest I should be seen by the mutineers, and I at once therefore went to the port, hoping that I might catch a glimpse of them pulling away. Even if Larry got off with them, there might be many chances against his returning. The boat even might fill before she could reach the sh.o.r.e, or she might encounter the French officers returning to the brig, and be seized. I wondered at their carelessness in leaving the vessel with such a crew as theirs; for those who had proved traitors to me might have been expected to turn traitors to them.

Scarcely a minute had elapsed before, to my surprise, I heard a "hwist"

come from under the counter, and Larry's voice saying--

"Lend a hand, Mr Terence, and catch the painter as I chuck it up."

I did as he desired, and presently he climbed up in at the port.

"Hold fast there, Mr Terence," he said, as he squeezed through, and springing forward locked the cabin door. "I'll tell you all about it when we're free of the brig," he whispered.

Quick as thought he made the painter fast to an eye-bolt, used to secure the dead-light. "Now jump into the boat, Mr Terence, and we'll be off," he added.

As he bid me, I slid down the painter, expecting him to follow immediately. For a few seconds he didn't come, and I feared that something had happened to him; but he soon appeared, and slid down as I had done, holding in his mouth a knife, with which he quickly cut the rope.

I had taken one of the oars, he seized another, and giving a shove against the counter, sent the boat off from the brig. We paddled away with might and main, making, however, as little noise as we could.

Scarcely, however, had we gone half a cable's length than I heard a gruff voice, which I recognised as Dan Hoolan's, uttering a fearful oath, and inquiring what had become of the boat. Several others replied in the same tones; and one of them, who had apparently run aft, exclaimed, "Shure there she is, and that so-and-so Larry Harrigan has gone off with her."

"Come back, come back, you villain!" shouted the men.

"It's mighty likely we'll be after doing that," Larry was on the point of shouting out, when I told him to be silent; and there being now less necessity for caution, we bent to our oars with all our might.

"I wonder the villains don't fire at us," I said.

"Shure the cabin door's locked, and they can't get at the muskets, or they would be after doing the same," answered Larry.

We had ample reason to pull hard, for the water was leaking in through every seam in the boat; but I hoped that she might keep afloat long enough to enable us to reach the side of the frigate. Hoolan and his companions, finding that it was of no use, had ceased hailing us. We had gone a short way when I saw a boat coming off from the sh.o.r.e. "A hundred to one the French officers are in her," I thought; "and if they have heard the shouting from the brig, they will fancy that something has happened, and be on the look-out. However, we are in for it." We were at first pulling ahead of the vessels which were at anchor between us and the frigate; but, on seeing the boat, I told Larry we would pa.s.s under the stern of the one nearest us, and thread our way in and out among them, so that we might be concealed from the sight of those coming off from the sh.o.r.e, in case they should make chase after us. In a short time, however, the boat was half full of water.

"We must get this out, or we shall be sinking," I said.

There was no bailer; but I had seized my hat before I had got out of the cabin window, and putting in our oars we bailed away as hard as we could. We had succeeded in partly freeing the boat of water, when we heard the splash of oars coming from the direction of the brig. Once more we gave way, the water still coming in. I very much doubted that we should reach the frigate without having again to stop. The boat, however, was gaining on us. Should she come up before we could get under our own flag, we might lawfully be recaptured; the water was already up to the thwarts, and the boat pulled heavily; our pursuers were getting closer and closer. We were nearing the frigate.

I looked round. I saw her high sides and tall masts against the sky.

I shouted at the top of my voice, "_Liffy_ ahoy! help, help here!"

Larry shouted still louder, for he had a voice of his own when he tried to exert it. The boat pulled more heavily than ever. If it had not been for the dread of the sharks, I should have jumped overboard and tried to swim to the frigate. Still we made her move. I can't say what a leap my heart gave as we ran up against her side. Some ropes were hove to us, for our shouts had attracted attention, and, swirming up them, we each reached a port in time to see our boat's gunwale flush with the water, and our pursuers turning round to pull away. As we got on deck the quartermaster brought a lantern, which he held so as to throw a light on our faces, and at the same time a mids.h.i.+pman ran up.

"Who have we here?" he exclaimed, and I recognised Chaffey's voice.

"What! Paddy Finn, my boy, where in the world have you come from?"

"From a brig--a prize to the French," I answered. "But I say, Chaffey, I want to see the captain at once. If there comes a breeze she'll be slipping out of the harbour, and we must be ready to go after her."

"Why, we thought you were on board the _Soleil_, and expected she would be put into commission, and be sent out to rejoin us, as we want small craft to watch the movements of the French."

I briefly told him what had happened. He in return told me what I was sorry to hear, that nothing had been heard of the _Soleil_, though the idea was that she had got safely into Port Royal harbour.

"The captain doesn't like to be roused up; but I suppose as your information is of importance, he won't give me a wigging for disturbing him," he said, as we reached the cabin door. Mentioning his object, the sentry stationed there allowed him to pa.s.s, and I stood for a time outside, trying to squeeze the water out of my nether garments. I had formed a little pool round my feet by the time Chaffey returned.

"You're to go into the captain, Paddy," he said. "He fired off his great guns and small arms at me, so he'll receive you pleasantly, I hope."

Giving a final wring to my coat tails, I made my way to the after cabin.

The captain, with night-cap on head, had just got into his breeches.