Fitz the Filibuster Part 81

"Ah, I remember," cried Poole; "you said the block stuck fast?"

"Yes, till the idea came that I had not turned the great screw far enough."

"But you ought to have made sure of that at first."

"Of course I ought," cried Fitz sharply, "and I ought to have been as cool and calm as possible when doing such a venturesome thing--in the pitch-darkness, with perhaps ten or a dozen of the Spanish sailors--the watch--"

"The watch!" cried Poole, laughing. "Come, I like that."

"Well, then, men lying about all round us. You were perfectly cool of course?"

"I!" replied Poole. "Why I was in a state of high fever. I didn't know whether I was on my head or my heels. I believe, old fellow, that I was half mad with excitement."

"I'm sure I was," cried Fitz, "till the thought came that perhaps I had not turned the screw far enough. That thought made me quite jump. Then there was the feeling the screw move. I felt as if I could see the great thread all s.h.i.+ning as it glided along, while I must have seen the block when I lifted it out."

"But that was all fancy of course. It was the darkest, blackest night I ever saw."

"I know, but I certainly seemed to see the block as I held it hugged to my breast."

"I should have liked to see you when you were making for the side all top-heavy, and went flying over after the great quoin as you called it.

My word, Fitz, that was a flying leap overboard."

"Ugh!" e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.ed the latter with a shudder. "As I go over the task again, it seems as if it is all part of a queer dream."

"A very lively one though," said Poole, laughing. "I say, I wonder how deep you went down."

"Oh, don't talk about it! Ever so far. It seemed a terribly long time all going down and down, feeling all that time as if I should never come up again, and thinking about sharks too. Why, it couldn't have been half-a-minute from the time I touched the water till I was at the top again swimming, and yet it seemed to be an hour at least."

"It does seem long at a time like that. But I say, what a narrow escape that was."

"Of being caught, yes."

"No, no," cried Poole; "I mean when the breech-block went over the side."

"It just was," said the carpenter, coming up. "I know somebody, gentlemen, who thinks as he had a very narrow squeak of being took down to the bottom with that bit o' steel and kept there. But that would ha'

been better than floating up again to be pulled to pieces by the sharks.

I don't suppose that they stops much about the bottom o' the sea; they generally seem to be too busy up at top, drying their back-fins in the open air. Trying your little bit o' performance over again, gentlemen?"

"Yes, Chips," said Fitz, as the man stood smiling at him. "It was a horrible night's work."

"Well, no, sir, not horrid. We came out to do something and we did it fine. The on'y awkward bit on it is the risk you ran a-popping that there breech-block on somebody's head, for which miss he's very much obliged--very much indeed. But I came to see if you gents wouldn't like to come down below with us to sound the well, for I expect there's a precious lot o' water there, and a big hole to let it in. Mr Burgess have gone down with b.u.t.ters."

The two lads hurriedly followed the carpenter below, to encounter the mate and boatswain fresh from their task.

"Deal more water than I like to see, my lads," said the boatswain, "but we shall know better where we stand after that steam-pump has been going for a couple of hours."

"Job for that engineer and his fireman," said the carpenter coolly; and very soon after the panting of the donkey-engine, the rattle of the pump, and the vigorous splas.h.i.+ng down of clear water betokened the relieving of the gunboat's lower parts of some portion of their burden, as Poole said, but only to be met by a damping remark from Fitz.

"Not much good," he said, "if the water runs in as fast as it runs out."

As time could be the only test for this, the little party of examiners descended now into one of the schooner's boats, the carpenter standing up in her bows and pa.s.sing her along to make fast by one of the ringbolts of the stern-post, and giving the two lads a peculiar look as he proceeded to examine the propeller.

"Well, how does it seem?" said the mate.

"Seem, Mr Burgess, sir?" said the carpenter dryly, "don't seem at all, sir. There's nothing here but the biggest ball o' string I ever see.

Would you mind coming forard, Mr b.u.t.ters, sir, and seeing what you can make of it?"

The boatswain pa.s.sed over the thwarts and joined his comrade of the past night's work, stood looking down for a few moments, and then took off his cap and scratched one ear.

"You young gents had better come and have a look," he said; "you had the designing on it."

The boys did not wait for a second invitation, but hurriedly went forward, to find that their scheme had acted far beyond their expectations, for the fans of the propeller had wound up the thick soft cable so tightly that the opening in which the fish-tail mechanism turned was completely filled with the tightly-compressed strands of rope, so that Poole suggested that all that needed was to get hold of one end, and then as soon as the steam was well on to reverse and wind the cable off in a similar way to that in which it had been wound on.

"Hah, to be sure," said the boatswain, giving his leg a sailor's slap, "there's nothing like a bit o' sense, Mr Poole, sir; that nice noo Manilla cable's been twisted round my heart, sir, ever since it was used, and made me feel quite sore. Nothing I hates worse than waste."

"It wasn't waste," said Fitz, impatiently. "You might just as well say the bait was wasted when you have been fis.h.i.+ng. Don't you get something good in return?"

"Ah, but that's fis.h.i.+ng, young gentlemen, and this aren't," said b.u.t.ters, with a very knowing smile.

"Not fis.h.i.+ng!" cried Fitz. "I think it was fis.h.i.+ng. You used the cable, and you've caught a gunboat."

"But s'pose we've got the gunboat and the bait back as well, how then?"

cried the boatswain. "Look ye here, my lad, I'm going to have that there end of the cable taken a turn round the steam-capstan, and as soon as the chaps have got full steam on, the screw shall be turned, and we'll wind it off fine and good as noo."

Fitz shook his head as he gazed down through the clear water at the ma.s.s of rope, and exclaimed--

"I know it won't do."

"What, aren't you saddasfied now?" said the boatswain, while Chips wrinkled up his face and looked uneasy.

"Aren't never seen a screw fouled like that afore, along of a coir cable, Mr Fitz, sir, have you?"

"No," replied the middy. "But I've seen a Manilla cable after it's been down with a heavy anchor in a rocky sea off the Channel Islands."

"And how was that, sir?"

"Frayed in half-a-dozen places by the rocks, so that the anchor parted before we'd got it weighed, and the captain was obliged to send for a diver to get the anchor up."

"But there aren't no rocks here, Mr Fitz, sir, to fray this here one, because it has never been down."

"No, but it has been ground against the iron stern-post till it's nearly through in ever so many places. Look there, and there, and there."

"Hah, look at that, bosun," cried the carpenter triumphantly. "Just cast your eye along there and there. Our side's right and the Manilla cable's all wrong. I'm afeard too as we're going to find out a good many other things is wrong, and the gunboat aren't afloat yet."

"No, but you've undertaken to float her, Chips," said Poole. "I wouldn't reckon on being Don Ramon's head naval architect and engineer just yet."

"No, sir, I don't," said the carpenter seriously. "But anyhow we'll set the screw free before we trouble any more about that leakage;" and in a very business-like way he carried out the boatswain's plans, connecting the cable with the capstan, and winding it off; but it was so damaged by grinding against the edges of the opening that it parted five different times before it was all off, to the boatswain's great disgust.