The Three Lieutenants Part 48

All agreed to Higson's proposal. Archy Gordon and Desmond were stationed at the window to give notice should any one attempt to look in, while the rest carefully examined the ground round the walls. A soft spot was found, and they agreed that it would be easy to excavate it with their knives and pieces of the bench which had been easily wrenched off. Believing n.o.body would come in for the remainder of the day, they at once set to work, and before long had dug a tunnel through which s.n.a.t.c.hblock could creep, and he declared that he could easily force the ground up on the outside. The earth, as they took it out, they rammed under the benches. They had observed that the hut in which they were confined stood in an open s.p.a.ce by the side of a road, so that people only pa.s.sed in front of it. This greatly a.s.sisted them, and prevented the risk of discovery, for the ground above their tunnel was so thin that any one stepping on it would have inevitably fallen through. The whole work was completed soon after nightfall. They then waited anxiously till the sounds in the village should have ceased.

"Now the sooner we are off the better," said Higson. "s.n.a.t.c.hblock and I will creep out first and seize the sentry, and the rest of you follow directly you find that we have got hold of him."

"Let me go first, sir," said s.n.a.t.c.hblock; "my shoulders are best fitted for shoving up the earth."

Higson agreed to this, and they crept into their tunnel. s.n.a.t.c.hblock had taken a piece of board which he put on his shoulders, and, giving a hearty shove, up flew the earth, and out he came into the open air.

Higson and the rest followed. While the two first crept cautiously round the hut, the remainder crouched down. s.n.a.t.c.hblock waited till the sentry came close to the end of the wall, then, making a spring, he clapped his hands over the man's mouth, while Higson seized his musket.

They then dragged him back, and, putting a piece of wood, to serve as a gag, into his mouth, they secured his hands and feet with their handkerchiefs, and pulled him through the tunnel into the hut.

"Now," said Desmond, "we have got a musket, some pieces of wood, and our fists; and, as we shall probably find some thick sticks as we go along, it ought to take a good many Brazilians to recapture us."

On going to the courthouse, they had observed the water of the harbour s.h.i.+ning in the distance, and they therefore knew the direction to take.

Keeping outside the village, they were making their way to the brow of the bill on which it stood, when they came suddenly on a large farmhouse, out of which several dogs rushed, barking furiously; the animals, however, contented themselves with making a noise, without venturing to attack the strangers, but the noise was what they had to dread. Lights were soon seen in the windows, and directly afterwards a party of men appeared at the door, armed with blunderbusses and pistols.

Higson, knowing that if they ran, both dogs and men would follow, halted, and, presenting his musket, told Norris to order the men to stand back or that he would fire. They appeared to understand what they said, for they all hurried back into the house; but as they did so, two of them let fly with their blunderbusses. Fortunately no one was. .h.i.t, but the slugs came whizzing over their heads.

"Now we must run for it," cried Higson. "Whatever we do, though, keep together."

The noise of the blunderbusses aroused the inhabitants of several neighbouring houses, some of whom came out, while others discharged their firearms from their windows. This of course aroused the whole village, and it soon became known that the English pirates had escaped.

Higson and his party were in the meantime making the best of their way down the hill, though, as they were unacquainted with the road, they were uncertain whether they were directing their course for the landing-place. They could tell by the sounds that a large body of men were collecting in their rear. Higson regretted that they had not waited till a later hour in the night, when all the inhabitants would have retired to rest. The road was extremely rough and uneven, such as it would have been difficult to traverse rapidly even in the daytime.

Tom had a severe tumble, and then down came Gerald, while poor Archy Gordon found it very difficult to get along. Their pursuers, who knew the road, were gaining on them.

"It won't do to be taken running," said Higson.

At length they reached an open s.p.a.ce on one side of the road. Higson called a halt, and facing about said--

"I will see if I can't make the fellows keep their distance."

The Brazilians in considerable force, some with firearms in their hands and others with pikes or ox-goads, were seen not a hundred yards off, coming towards them.

At that moment the tramp of feet was heard in the rear.

"We are surrounded, I am afraid," said Higson, "but we won't give in notwithstanding."

The party from the opposite side came rapidly on, and to Higson's surprise the Brazilians suddenly halted, amid began to talk in excited voices to each other. The tramp of feet grew louder and louder, when, by the light of the moon, which, by-the-bye, it should have been said, was s.h.i.+ning brightly, Higson and his companions, as they looked along the road, saw a dozen bluejackets and as many marines coming towards them, with an officer at their head, who was quickly recognised as Jack Rogers. He and the rest were soon shaking hands, when Jack told them that as soon as notice was brought on board of what had happened, Murray had sent him and his party off in a couple of boats, and that on landing and hearing the firing he had hurried up, thinking it possible that his a.s.sistance might be required.

"Then Sangaree Jack proved faithful, and told you the position in which we have been placed," said Higson.

"Yes, ma.s.sa, and he well gained de oder fifteen dollars," exclaimed the black, coming out from among the bluejackets, behind whom he had concealed himself.

No sooner did the Brazilians perceive the English party than away they scampered as fast as their legs could carry them. Jack determined at once to go to the judge's house, and to demand satisfaction for the insult which had been offered to the majesty of England in the persons of some of her naval defenders, and his black namesake undertook to guide him there.

The magistrate, aroused out of his first sleep by hearing his door-bell ringing violently, was naturally in a great fright, and stood trembling and bowing as Jack walked into the house. He excused himself on the plea that he had no notion the prisoners were English officers, fully believing that they were pirates, as the people who had captured them had a.s.serted. He acknowledged, however, that most of the said officious personages were connected with slave-dealers, and that he had little doubt they had committed the outrage to revenge themselves for the number of vessels which had been captured by the English s.h.i.+ps of war.

Jack and his party, with the rescued prisoners, declined accepting the magistrate's offered hospitality, and having received all the apologies he could make, went back to the boats, which some of the natives had even ventured to approach.

Having lighted fires to serve the double purpose of cooking their provisions and keeping off the mosquitoes, they pa.s.sed the night seated round them.

Next morning the magistrate, attended by several of the princ.i.p.al people in the place, trembling in their shoes, came down, and again tendered the most abject apologies for what had occurred. The captured boat was soon afterwards seen coming round the point, and being brought alongside by a black crew, who had been placed in her by the Brazilians, she was found not only to contain all the arms, and other articles which had been taken, but six fat pigs, several dozen ducks and fowls, with heaps of oranges and other fruit, which the magistrate begged the English officers would accept as a peace-offering.

Again he declared that what had happened had been from no fault of his; that the rascally slave-dealers had sworn that the people they had captured were pirates, and he had only acted according to his duty in judging the case brought before him. He took great credit to himself for allowing the negro, Sangaree Jack, to go down to the s.h.i.+ps of war, and hoped that this would prove the honesty of his intentions.

Rogers having received instructions not to push matters to extremities, accepted the old gentleman's apology.

"He would have shown his disinterestedness had he sent down himself, without allowing our friend Sangaree here the opportunity of doing us out of our thirty dollars," observed Higson. "Ah, blackie, how many is the old fellow to get of them?"

Sangaree Jack gave one of his broadest grins.

"One half, ma.s.sa lieutenant, as I a gentleman. He bigger rascal than all the rest--he one slave-dealer hisself. Ah! ah! ah!" and the negro chuckled with delight, rubbed his hands, and twisted and wriggled about, till he set the boat's crew all laughing.

Whether the fellow's description of the magistrate was correct or not, Rogers felt that he could take no further steps in the matter, no one having fortunately really suffered damage or hurt, beyond the inconvenience of being shut up in a dirty hut for a couple of nights.

A pleasant breeze blowing down the harbour the boats made sail, and in a few hours reached the s.h.i.+ps. The next day the _Tudor_ and _Supplejack_ were again at sea, having received orders to cruise along the Brazilian coast in search of slavers. The s.h.i.+ps got some way to the northward of Rio when Murray directed Jack to keep in sh.o.r.e as close as he could venture, while he himself stood off the land; they might thus hope to fall in, either with vessels fitted for the slave-trade about to cross to the African coast, or with full slavers attempting to make a Brazilian port. The latter cla.s.s it was of course the most desirable to capture, though should the former be taken it would materially a.s.sist to put a stop to the traffic, and save a certain number of blacks from undergoing, for a time, at all events, the horrors of a middle pa.s.sage.

The _Tudor_ shortly after daybreak was standing in under easy sail for the land, when from the masthead a schooner was observed, beating up against the breeze, which then blew off the sh.o.r.e, the rays of the rising run striking her canvas bringing her clearly into view. Murray ordered all sail to be made, and hoped to gain on the chase before the corvette was observed by her. As the _Supplejack_ was likely to be inside of her, there was every probability of her being caught by one or the other. It was soon evident, however, that she had made out the corvette, as she was seen to set all sail, and to stand away to the northward: as the _Tudor_ was a long way to leeward, the chase would probably be a long one. From the appearance and movements of the schooner Murray was convinced that she was a slaver with a cargo on board, and he determined therefore to persevere till he could come up with her, and ascertain her real character. The land was barely visible, and the _Supplejack_ might therefore be a long way off in sh.o.r.e, and not yet have caught sight of the chase.

The day wore on, and the _Tudor_ had gained considerably on her, when about six bells in the forenoon the sails gave some ominous flaps against the masts, and the wind dropping more and more, the corvette lay almost becalmed, with only just steerage way. As the schooner was, however, likewise almost becalmed she did not gain any advantage from this circ.u.mstance. A light wind, in a short time, again filled the corvette's sails; but as it was continually s.h.i.+fting, all hands were on deck employed in hauling on the braces, as necessity required. Now the corvette gained slightly on the chase, now the schooner's sails felt the breeze, and she once more glided along through the smooth water.

"She seems to be heaving something overboard, sir," said Desmond to Higson, who was standing on the forecastle with him.

"Yes, indeed," said Higson, looking through his telescope. "There goes one of her boats! now she has lowered another. The fellows are determined to make their escape if they can, she is heaving overboard cask after cask, and plank and spare spars--she must have a full cargo, or she would not do that--we shall catch her though, notwithstanding."

"I hope they won't heave any of the poor negroes overboard. That is what I have heard the slavers do when hard pressed," observed Desmond.

"The fellows would do it fast enough if they thought that we should stop to pick up the unfortunate creatures, and give them a better chance of getting off," answered Higson.

"But our commander won't let the poor wretches drown, surely," remarked Desmond.

"No, I should think not, indeed," said Higson. "I have never actually seen that done, but I have heard from others of half-a-dozen negroes being hove overboard, and if they were not carried off by sharks, picked up by a British cruiser, and the scoundrel slaver captured, notwithstanding."

"I hope we shall catch that fellow, then, at all events," said Desmond.

"There is many a slip between the cup and the lip, youngster," observed Higson. "Depend on it, however, that we will do our best as long as we can keep the schooner in sight."

By this time every possible article had been hove overboard from the schooner, and it was thought that even the water from her leaguers had been pumped out, and the stores and provisions from her hold thrown into the sea. As the corvette got up to the spot where she had been at the time, casks and spars were seen floating on every side, together with the boats, hencoops, and other articles. She benefited by the proceeding, for she now once more drew considerably ahead of the corvette. Both vessels were, however, soon afterwards becalmed, and Murray began to consider the advisability of sending the boats in chase.

Adair begged leave to command them, and Desmond and the rest were delighted at the thoughts of a hand-to-hand tussle with the slaver screw; when, just as the men were coming aft to lower the boats, the sails were once more filled and a fresh breeze from the eastward sprang up, the schooner felt it at the same moment, when, keeping before the wind she rigged out her studding-sails, and lightened as she was, she skimmed like a bird over the blue ocean.

Murray ordered studding-sails and royals to be set, and kept the _Tudor_ away towards the chase, which, however, it was soon evident gained on her. Both vessels were now rising the land.

"Sail on the port bow," cried the lookout from aloft.

"That must be Rogers," exclaimed Murray; and before long the _Supplejack_ was made out standing to the northward, so as it was hoped to cut off the chase. No sooner did the schooner discover her, than taking in her studding-sails she hauled to the wind. The corvette did the same, and had now to depend on her own speed more than on the a.s.sistance she could obtain from the _Supplejack_.

The chase now became more exciting than ever, the breeze freshened, and both vessels tore along through the water; their bows, as they clove their way through it, throwing up ma.s.ses of sparkling foam, while they left a long white line in their wake.

The wind after some time again s.h.i.+fting to the southward, both the schooner and her pursuer once more set studding-sails, the former somewhat edging in towards the land, behind which the bright sun was rapidly sinking.

"I would give a half-year's pay if we could but catch her," exclaimed s.n.a.t.c.hblock to some of his messmates. "If night comes on before we are up to her, she may give us the go-by after all."