by Oliver Optic
CHAPTER VI
A MISSION UP THE FOREMAST
Christy spent some time in delivering a lecture on naval etiquette tohis single auditor. Probably he was not the highest authority on thesubject of his discourse; but he was sufficiently learned to meet therequirements of the present occasion.
"You say you can keep a secret, Dave?" continued the commander.
"I don't take any secrets to keep from everybody, Captain Passford; andI don't much like to carry them about with me," replied the steward,looking a little more grave than usual, though he still wore a cheerfulsmile.
"Then you don't wish me to confide a secret to you?"
"I don't say that, Captain Passford. I don't want any man's secrets,and I don't run after them, except for the good of the service. I was aslave once, but I know what I am working for now. If you have a secret Iought to know, Captain Passford, I will take it in and bury it away downat the bottom of my bosom; and I will give the whole state of Louisianato any one that will dig it out of me."
"That's enough, Dave; and I am willing to trust you without any oath onthe Bible, and without even a Quaker's affirmation. I believe you willbe prudent, discreet, and silent for my sake."
"Certainly I will be all that, Captain Passford, for I think you are abigger man than Jeff Davis," protested Dave.
"That is because you do not know the President of the ConfederateStates, and you do know me; but Mr. Davis is a man of transcendentability, and I am only sorry that he is engaged in a bad cause, thoughhe believes with all his heart and soul that it is a good cause."
"He never treated me like a gentleman, as you have, sir."
"And he never treated you unkindly, I am very sure."
"He never treated me any way, for I never saw him; and I would not walka hundred miles barefooted to see him, either. I am no gentleman oranything of that sort, Massa-- Captain Passford, but if I ever go backon you by the breadth of a hair, then the Alabama River will run uphill."
"I am satisfied with you, Dave; and here is my hand," added Christy,extending it to the steward, who shook it warmly, displaying a good dealof emotion as he did so. "Now, Dave, you know Mulgrum, or Pink, as youcall him?"
"Well, sir, I know him as I do the rest of the people on board; but weare not sworn friends yet," replied Dave, rather puzzled to know whatduty was required of him in connection with the scullion.
"You know him; that is enough. What do you think of him?"
"I haven't had any long talks with him, sir, and I don't know what tothink of him."
"You know that he is dumb?"
"I expect he is, sir; but he never said anything to me about it,"replied Dave. "He never told me he couldn't speak, and I never heardhim speak to any one on board."
"Did you ever speak to him?"
"Yes, sir; I spoke to him when he first came on board; but he didn'tanswer me, or take any notice of me when I spoke to him, and I got tiredof it."
"Open that door quickly, Dave," said the captain suddenly.
The steward promptly obeyed the order, and Christy saw that there wasno one in the passage. He told his companion to close the door, and Davewas puzzled to know what this movement could mean.
"I beg your pardon, Captain Passford, and I have no right to ask anyquestion; but I should like to know why you make me open that door twoor three times for nothing," said Dave, in the humblest of tones.
"I told you to open it so that I could see if there was anybody at thedoor. This is my secret, Dave. I have twice found Mulgrum at that doorwhile I was talking to the first lieutenant. He pretended to be cleaningthe brass work."
"What was he there for? When a man is as deaf as the foremast of theship what would he be doing at the door?"
"He was down on his knees, and his ear was not a great way from thekeyhole of the door."
"But he could not hear anything."
"I don't know: that is what I want to find out. The mission I have foryou, Dave, is to watch Mulgrum. In a word, I have my doubts in regard tohis deafness and his dumbness."
"You don't believe he is deaf and dumb, Captain Passford!" exclaimed thesteward, opening his eyes very wide, and looking as though an earthquakehad just shaken him up.
"I don't say that, my man. I am in doubt. He may be a deaf mute, as herepresents himself to be. I wish you to ascertain whether or not he canspeak and hear. You are a shrewd fellow, Dave, I discovered some timeago; in fact the first time I ever saw you. You may do this job in anymanner you please; but remember that your mission is my secret, and youmust not betray it to Mulgrum, or to any other person."
"Be sure I won't do that, Captain Passford."
"If you obtain any satisfactory information, convey it to meimmediately. You must be very careful not to let any one suspect thatyou are watching him, and least of all to let Mulgrum know it. Do youunderstand me perfectly, Dave?"
"Yes, sir; perfectly. Nobody takes any notice of me but you, and itwon't be a hard job. I think I can manage it without any trouble. I amnothing but a nigger, and of no account."
"I have chosen you for this mission because you can do it better thanany other person, Dave. Don't call yourself a nigger; I don't like theword, and you are ninety degrees in the shade above the lower class ofnegroes in the South."
"Thank you, sir," replied the steward with an expansive smile.
"There is one thing I wish you to understand particularly, Dave. I havenot set you to watch any officer of the ship," said Christyimpressively.
"No, sir; I reckon Pink Mulgrum is not an officer any more than I am."
"But you may discover, if you find that Mulgrum can speak and hear, thathe is talking to an officer," added the captain in a low tone.
"What officer, Captain Passford?" asked the steward, opening his eyesto their utmost capacity, and looking as bewildered as an owl in thegaslight.
"I repeat that I do not set you to watch an officer; and I leave it toyou to ascertain with whom Mulgrum has any talk, if with any one. Now Iwarn you that, if you accomplish anything in this mission, you will doit at night and not in the daytime. That is all that need be said at thepresent time, Dave, and you will attend to your duty as usual. If youlose much sleep, you may make it up in the forenoon watch."
"I don't care for the sleep, Captain Passford, and I can keep awake allnight."
"One thing more, Dave; between eight bells and eight bells to-night,during the first watch, you may get at something, but you must keepout of sight as much as you can," added Christy, as he rose from hisarmchair, and went into his state room.
Dave busied himself in clearing the table, but he was in a verythoughtful mood all the time. Loading up his tray with dishes, hecarried them through the steerage to the galley, where he found Mulgrumengaged in washing those from the ward room, which he had brought outsome time before. The steward looked at the deaf mute with more interestthan he had regarded him before. He was a supernumerary on board, andany one who had anything to do called Pink to do it. Another waiter wasgreatly needed, and Mr. Nawood, the chief steward, had engaged one, buthe had failed to come on board before the steamer sailed. Pink had beenpressed into service for the steerage; but he was of little use, and thework seemed very distasteful, if not disgusting, to him. He carried inthe food, but that was about all he was good for.
Dave watched him for a few minutes as he washed and wiped the dishes,and saw that he was very awkward at it; it was plain to him that he wasnot an experienced hand at the business. But he was doing the steward'swork, and Dave took hold and helped him. Pink was as solemn as an owl,and did his work in a very mechanical manner, and without the slightestinterest in it. The cabin steward had a mission, and he was profoundlyinterested in its execution.
By the side of the galley, or range, was a sink at which they were atwork. Dave thought he might as well begin then and there to test thehearing powers of his companion. Picking up one of the large blowersof the range, he placed himself so that Pink could not see what he wasabout, and then banged the sheet iron
against the cast iron of the greatstove. He kept his eye fixed all the time on the scullion. The noise wasenough for the big midship gun on deck, or even for a small earthquake.Pink was evidently startled by the prodigious sound, and turned towardsthe steward, who was satisfied that he had heard it; but the fellow wascunning, and realizing that he had committed himself, he picked up oneof his feet, and began to rub it as though he had been hit by thefalling blower. At the same time, he pretended to be very angry, anddemonstrated very earnestly against his companion.
Dave felt that he had made a point, and he did not carry hisinvestigation of the auditory capacity of the scullion any farther thatnight. He finished his work below, and then went on deck. He loungedabout in a very careless manner till eight bells were struck. Mr. Flinton the bridge was relieved by Mr. Lillyworth, and the port watch came onduty for the next four hours, or until midnight. This was the time thecaptain had indicated to Dave as a favorable one for the discharge ofhis special duty. Taking advantage of the absence of any person from thevicinity of the foremast, he adroitly curled himself up in the folds ofthe foresail, which was brailed up to the mast. He had his head in sucha position that he could see without being seen by any casual passer-by.
He waited in this position over an hour, and during that time Pink wentback and forth several times, and seemed to be looking up at the bridge,which was just forward of the foremast. On the top-gallant forecastlewere two men on the lookout; in the waist was a quartermaster, who wasdoing the duty that belonged to the third lieutenant, if the scarcity ofofficers had permitted the Bronx to have one. The body of the port watchwere spinning yarns on the forecastle, and none of them were very nearthe foremast. After a while, as Pink was approaching the forecastle,Dave saw the second lieutenant gesticulating to him very earnestly tocome on the bridge. The supernumerary ascended the ladder, and theofficer set him at work to lace on the sailcloth to the railing of thebridge, to shelter those on duty there from the force of the sea blast.
Dave listened with all his ears for any sound from the bridge; but hesoon realized that if there was any, he was too far off to hear it. Withthe aid of the lashings of the foresail, he succeeded in climbing up onthe mast to a point on a level with the bridge, and at the same time tomake the mast conceal him from the eyes of Mr. Lillyworth and thescullion. The latter pretended to be at work, and occasionally thesecond lieutenant "jawed" at him for his clumsiness in lacing thesailcloth. Between these growls, they spoke together in a low tone, butDave was near enough to hear what they said. Though he had never heardthe voice of Pink Mulgrum before, he knew that of the second lieutenant,and he was in no danger of confounding the two. Pink used excellentlanguage, as the steward was capable of judging, and it was plain enoughthat he was not what he had appeared to be.
Lillyworth and Mulgrum on the bridge.]