With Porter in the Essex

by Amanda M. Douglas

  CHAPTER I.

  INTRODUCING MYSELF.

  An awkward, raw-boned lad of fourteen was I when an opportunity came toenlist as a boy on board the _Essex_, a United States frigate ofthirty-two guns, commanded by Captain David Porter. My desire ever hadbeen to join the navy, in which my cousin, Stephen Decatur McKnight, hadalready won much of glory and a commission; it was through him that Iwas finally able to satisfy my longings, which had increased from yearto year until it seemed as if I could be content in no other sphere ofaction than that of serving my country upon the ocean.

  War had been declared; once more was it proposed to give England alesson in good manners; and while that lesson was being taught, Iintended to so act my part that when it was finished I might havegained a recognized position among men, even though I was no more thana boy.

  Stephen had won his way upward, and why might not I? True, there weretimes when my heart grew cowardly; but as I figured it to myself at suchmoments, I was too timorous even to run, and therefore might gain thecredit of being a hero, when in reality, had I been a trifle more brave,I might have shown the white feather.

  Perhaps it is not well for me to set down all that was in my mind when Iwent on board the _Essex_, for it can be of no especial interest tothose who may chance to read what is written here. It is enough if I saythat two days before the _Essex_ left the Delaware River, or in otherwords, on the 28th of October in the year 1812, I was rated on herpapers as "boy," and had already begun to make the acquaintance of onePhilip Robbins, a lad of about my own age, who held the same rank. Ifthere had been any lower station aboard the frigate, of a truth we twowould have been found occupying it, for he knew no more concerning aseaman's duty than did I.

  A certain portion of the cruise, which proved to be one of the mostadventurous ever made by a vessel of war, must be omitted here for thevery good reason that I have little or no knowledge concerning it.During three days after we left the capes of the Delaware it was toPhilip Robbins and myself as if we lingered in the very shadow of death,and while so lingering received no word of cheer from those around usbecause of the fact that we were enduring only that which every lad mustendure who sets out to learn the trade of a sailor. Sick? It was to meas if that man who should put an end to my life would have beenrendering me a service, for I doubted not but that death must eventuallycome, and only when it did would I be free from the pangs of thatoverpowering illness which beset me.

  Both Philip and I had vaunted ourselves before the lads of Philadelphiabecause we could lay claim to being members of the crew of the _Essex_;but from the moment the good ship courtesied to the swell of theAtlantic until we were recovered and could laugh at the past, either ofus would willingly have given up all which we prized most dearly in theworld for the sake of being set back on shore in the humblest stationthat might be imagined.

  It is enough if I say that we gained the experience which comes to allwho venture upon the sea, whether for pleasure or for profit, and oncehaving gained it, were in proper condition ever after to laugh at thosewho might be learning the same severe and disagreeable lesson.

  There was never a man on board the ship who did not know that she wasbound for the purpose firstly, of capturing any English vessels that wemight be able to cope with, and secondly, to come across the_Constitution_ and the _Hornet_, with which ships we would afterwardcruise in company.

  Among our crew, and there were, counting officers as well as men, threehundred and nineteen all told, were a dozen or more who had fought underPreble at Tripoli; and while we were headed for Port Praya we heard somany yarns concerning the doings of our fleet with the Barbary piratesas would more than suffice to fill a dozen such books as I count thiswill make. Therefore it is not well that I attempt to set down any ofthem, entertaining though the least exciting would prove.

  When Philip and I signed our names to the ship's papers, both believedthat we should be called upon to take part in sea battles from the timewe gained the offing until we were once more in port; but yet there wasnothing of bloodshed, save such as could be found in the yarns spun bythe men, from the time of sailing until the 27th of November, when wesighted the mountains of St. Jago and entered the harbor of Port Praya,hoping there to gain some news of Commodore Bainbridge.

  Nothing was learned, however, as we on the gun-deck soon came to know;for it must be understood that the crew soon have repeated to them everyword which is spoken aft. Some old shellback hears a bit now and then,and by piecing the fragments together generally hits upon the truth;while the marines on guard are ever ready to carry forward such scrapsof conversation as they have overheard when on duty. It is thus, as Ihave said, that the ordinary seaman, who is supposed to be in ignoranceof everything save the happenings of the moment, is generally possessedwithin a few hours of all the information gained by his superiorofficers.

  All we got from the Portuguese governor of Port Praya was a bountifulsupply of pigs, sheep, poultry, and fruit, and it can well be supposedthat our officers were not exerting themselves to let him understandexactly why we had to enter the port. When we set sail again, it was ona seaward course, as if we were bound for an African port; but as soonas we were beyond sight of land the ship was hauled around to thesouthwest, and on the 11th of December we crossed the equator inlongitude 30 deg. west.

  Philip and I were in no very comfortable frame of mind as we neared theequator, knowing full well that lads, and for that matter seamen, whohave never crossed the imaginary line, are subjected to rough if notabsolutely brutal treatment at the hands of every messmate; and weexpected, because of certain remarks that had been made, to receive anunusually severe dose.

  But fortune favored Captain Porter as well as our humble selves; forjust at noon, when the men were making ready to introduce us to KingNeptune, a Britisher hove in sight, and there was no longer thought ofplaying pranks. The enemy had been sighted at last, and even the eldestamong us were quivering with excitement, for it was believed that oursuccess or failure in this first enterprise which presented itself wouldindicate the results of the voyage.

  I was burning with a desire to question my cousin McKnight as to whatmight possibly be the result of losing this craft; but you mustunderstand that a boy on board a frigate is not supposed to speak to hissuperior officer without permission. Even had the lieutenant been myfather, I should have been forced by the rules of the ship to keep atquite as respectful a distance from him as from Captain Porter himself.

  Up to this time neither Philip nor I had succeeded in cultivating theacquaintance of the older members of the crew; therefore we stood alone,so to speak, ignorant of what might be the possibilities, but not daringto ask a single question lest we bring the ridicule of the seamen uponus.

  If the success of this first venture since we left port had been a truetoken of the entire voyage, then were Philip Robbins and myself to reapthe greatest possible benefit from it; for when the _Essex_ was finallycome up with the Britisher on the following day, we lads not only aidedin the capture of the rich prize, but made ourselves such a friend amongthe crew as we most needed.

  A lad on board a man-of-war sees hard lines if there be not one amongthe older seamen who stands in a certain degree sponsor for him;otherwise the younger members of the crew will put upon him until his isindeed a slavish life. Now up to this day we boys could call no man ourfriend, and in this I am not counting my cousin, the lieutenant, for hiskindness toward us would count for but little while we were among ourshipmates.

  However, I am saying overly much of myself, and perchance may beaccused of giving undue importance to those members of the ship'scompany who were looked upon as of no especial consequence.

  As I have said, we crossed the equator and sighted a strange sail on thesame day. As a matter of course chase was made at once, and before thesun went down we knew beyond a peradventure that at last we had beforeus one of the enemy's vessels.

  There was nothing particularly interesting in the chase as it presenteditself to me. During the gr
eater portion of the time Philip and I werekept at work below by one task-master or another, and all we knewregarding our chances of overhauling the stranger was what could begathered from those who came near where we were. When night fell, and welads were at liberty to go on deck, there was absolutely nothing to beseen.

  In the morning, however, when the first shot was fired, just beforedaybreak, Philip and I tumbled out of our hammocks, wild withexcitement, and at the same time inwardly quaking lest peradventure wewere upon the eve of a naval engagement.

  I question if any orders, however strict, could have kept us below. Weforgot for the moment that one is not allowed to roam over a navalvessel at will, but clambered on deck as if free to follow our everyinclination; and well for us, perhaps, was it that both officers andcrew were considerably excited at the prospect of finally taking aprize, otherwise we might have been treated to a dose of the rope's endbecause of having unwittingly ventured so far aft.

  The stranger was the British government packet, _Nocton_, carrying tenguns, and had been hove to when our shot went across her bow. There wasno attempt made at resistance, and she fell into our hands as a ripeapple falls from the tree, with no particular effort on our part.

  Later, and while the prize crew was being told off to take possession ofher, we learned that she carried thirty-one men, was bound for Falmouth,and had on board fifty-five thousand dollars in gold and silver coin.

  Lieutenant Finch was made prize-master, and a crew of seventeen told offto man the packet; for Captain Porter counted on sending her to theUnited States, she being a craft that would make a reasonably goodaddition to our small navy.

  These men were transferred from our ship to the prize without delay, andthen was begun the work of bringing back the specie,--a task, it isneedless to say, in which Philip and I had no share.

  The scene was such, however, as to attract the attention of any one,however much experience he might have had in such matters, and we ladswatched with breathless eagerness all the manoeuvres, as the two vesselsrolled lazily upon the long swell, while the small boats plied to andfro like ants. We gazed curiously at the iron-bound boxes which weresaid to be filled with gold or silver, and in our ignorance it seemed asif already was the cruise a success, since we had taken from the enemysuch a vast amount of money.

  Among the crews of our boats was a seaman by the name of Hiram Hackett,with whom Philip and I had vainly tried to scrape an acquaintance. Aweather-beaten old shellback was he, who had, against his will, servedthe king, having been made prisoner by one of the press-gangs, and whoescaped only a few months before enlisting on board the _Essex_.

  His shipmates looked up to him as to a man of great experience, and wellthey might, for I question if Hiram Hackett had not seen more of the upsand downs of a sailor's life than any among us. He was the only memberof the crew who had not made sport of, or imposed upon, us two in someway; but yet never a kindly word had he given us.

  Master Hackett was pulling the bow oar of No. 2 boat when she camealongside with a load of stores, for Captain Porter was taking from theprize such provisions as would not be needed during the homeward voyage.

  The goods were being hoisted out while the boats lay a few yards off ourlee rail; and as this work was being done a cheese incased in a woodenbox slipped from the sling, and, falling, struck Master Hackett aglancing blow on the head and shoulder, knocking him senseless into thesea.

  The only thought in my mind at the instant, and Philip and I wereperched on the brig's rail directly opposite the boat, was that theseaman, having been rendered unconscious by the blow, would be quicklydrowned; and without stopping to think of possible danger, I leapedoverboard.

  Philip was moved by the same impulse at the same instant, and we struckthe water side by side.

  Looking back upon that attempt at rescue, after so many years ofexperience, I believe of a verity that not once in twenty times wouldtwo lads succeed in the effort; for the chances were that we shouldcome up directly beneath the frigate, or, as we rose to the surface, bedashed against the hull with force sufficient to kill us.

  As it was, however, we went down side by side until we came in contactwith the man we would save, and him we brought to the surface towindward of the boat, yet so near her that it was only necessary thecrew should reach out and pull us on board.

  We had done nothing which merited praise,--in fact, should have beenblamed for interfering when we might have hampered the movements ofthose who knew better what ought to be done; and yet Captain Porter waspleased to compliment us when we clambered on board looking like acouple of half-drowned rats, and the sailors clasped us by the hands asif to say that in their opinion we had proved ourselves worthy to becalled shipmates.

  It was natural that I should be somewhat puffed up by the attentionwhich was paid us; but I little dreamed what an important bearing itwould have upon our lives.

  The old sailor, still unconscious, was taken below; Philip and Ioverhung the rail once more, watching the men as they transferred theprovisions and specie, for the work had not been interrupted manymoments by the mishap, and all was as before, save for that sense ofsatisfaction and pride within my heart when Master Hackett, looking nonethe worse for the blow and the ducking, came up behind us.

  We were not aware of his presence until he laid his hands on ourshoulders, and said in a deep, grave voice, much as if speaking tohimself:--

  "I don't know whether it was a service or contrariwise that you lads didme, for I'm told that but for your tumblin' over the rail I was like tohave lost the number of my mess, bein' knocked out by the blow in suchfashion that I went down like a stone, with but little chance ofrisin'."

  I looked around at the old sailor, hardly understanding what he said;and he, gazing to windward as if there he saw something which we couldnot, continued:--

  "An old shellback like me is of but little account; and if he hangs onto life, mayhap it's only to pay off some grudge which them as claim toknow say shouldn't be harbored."

  I knew from this that he referred to the grudge he owed the Britishersfor having pressed him into the king's service, and wondered why heshould speak in such a solemn tone when it stood to reason he ought tobe rejoicing because of having escaped death.

  It was a full minute before the old man went on, and then he spoke morenearly natural, as it seemed to me:--

  "We'll set it down that you two lads have done a big service--that yousaved my life--an' it isn't much for me to say that I'm obliged to you,'cause mere words are cheap. Boys aboard a ship stand in need of afriendly hand, an' that's what I'm allowin' to hold out toward you untilsuch time as I've squared off the account begun this day. Whatsoever asailorman can do for a mate, I'm bound to do for you; an' all hands areto understand that what's sauce for you is certain to be sauce for me,or they'll know the reason why."

  Having said this, Master Hackett went aft to where Lieutenant McKnightwas standing, tugged at a wisp of hair which hung over his forehead, andat the same time scraped one foot behind him, which answered for asailor's bow, saying as he did so:--

  "I'm ready for duty, sir."

  "Your place in the boat has been taken, therefore you are at libertyuntil we get under way," my cousin said with a smile, whereupon the oldman went below, never so much as looking at Philip or me.

  It seemed as if his manner was decidedly curt. After having voluntarilyacknowledged that we saved his life, it appeared as if he might havesaid something more, or at least stood near us a few moments to let itbe seen that he had indeed taken us under his wing, and I saidlaughingly to Philip:--

  "Master Hackett is proving to us that words are indeed cheap. He hasthanked us, and that seems to be all that is necessary."

  "And so it is," Philip replied, for he was a better-natured lad than Iby far, and ever ready to make excuses where I found fault. "It wasreally nothing of consequence for us to go overboard where there are somany to lend a helping hand, and when we came on deck again I wastrembling with fear lest one of the officer
s give us a tongue lashingfor putting ourselves forward at such a time."

  "If we hadn't done so, Master Hackett would likely have gone to thebottom, for I saw no one making ready to go after him."

  "You didn't give them time, Ezra McKnight," Philip replied laughingly."The old man had no more than struck the water before we were on therail; and yet I am not to be praised for it, because, to tell the truth,I didn't realize what I was about."

  That same was true in my case; but there was no reason just then why Ishould speak overly much regarding it when I was hungering for yet morepraise, and I put an end to the conversation by turning my attentiononce more to the work going on before us.

  The task of transferring the provisions and specie to our ship was not along one, and perhaps no more than three hours elapsed from the time the_Nocton_ hove to until the _Essex_ was on her course once more, whilethe prize, with her prisoners below decks, was stretching off for thehome port.

  Before the sun set on this night, Philip and I had good proof thatMaster Hackett's gratitude was more than the mere thanks we hadreceived. Every member of the crew treated us in a differentfashion--more as if we were in fact shipmates, although I saw noparticular change in the old man's behavior.

  It is difficult for me to explain the difference in our positions, andyet it was very decided. We were called upon to do quite as much work,to wait upon this one or that one as before, and yet the orders weregiven in a more friendly tone. There were not so many kicks bestowedupon us, nor did a single man lay a rope's end upon our backs; whereasfrom the time of leaving port until we leaped overboard for MasterHackett I question if there was a waking hour when we did not receive ablow from some one.

  The old man who had declared he would stand our friend no longer wore anair which seemed to forbid our coming nearer him, and yet I cannot saythat he spoke any very kindly words; but we understood that, if ever weneeded a helping hand, his would be stretched forth.

  That night when we were ready to get into our hammocks, Philip said tome with a certain tone of triumph:--

  "This has been a lucky day for the _Essex_. She has captured a prizethat will bring all hands money with which to tassel our handkerchiefs,if it be so the _Nocton_ reaches a home port, and Captain Porter has thecredit of gathering in fifty-five thousand dollars from the enemy; but Iquestion if any aboard have been so fortunate since sunrise as you andme, for we have suddenly become shipmates with the one man among all thecrew who is able to put us on a better footing with those who havelorded it over us."