by Oliver Optic
CHAPTER XXXI
AN UNDESIRED PROMOTION
As Christy unlocked the cabin door, he discovered a negro lying on thedeck, as close as he could get to the threshold. The man attempted tospring to his feet, but the officer seized him by the hair of the head,and pulled him into the cabin.
"Here, Calwood, put your hand over this fellow's mouth!" said Christy tothe quartermaster, who laid violent hands on him, assisted by Norlock.
The latter produced a handkerchief, which he thrust into the mouth ofthe negro, so that he could not give the alarm. All the men were alertand eager to wipe out the shame, as they regarded it, of the disaster;and those who had been stationed near the cabin had certainly beenwanting in vigilance. Two of them seized a couple of the lines withwhich they had been bound, and tied the arms of the negro behind him.
A second look at the negro assured Christy that it was Quimp, and he wasmore mortified than before at the trick which had been played upon him.Thrusting his hand into the pocket of the fellow, he drew from it thethree sovereigns and the three shillings he had paid him for his boatand his information. It was evident enough now that he belonged to theReindeer, and that he had been sent out by Captain Stopfoot to doprecisely what he had done, taking advantage of the general good feelingwhich prevailed between the negroes and the Union forces.
Christy thought that Captain Stopfoot had been over-confident to leavehis prisoners without a guard; but it appeared now that Quimp had beenemployed in this capacity, though it was probable that he had beeninstructed not to show himself to them, and for that reason had crept tohis station and lain down on the deck.
"Now, my men, take your arms from that bale of cotton; but don't makeany noise," said Christy in a low tone, as he took his revolvers andcutlass from the heap of weapons; and the seamen promptly obeyed theorder. "The captain of this steamer managed his affair very well indeed,and I intend to adopt his tactics."
The steamer was under way, and had been for some time. Christy climbedupon the bales of cotton far enough to see what the crew of the vesselwere doing. The hatches appeared to have been taken off in the waist andforward, and the crew were lowering cargo into the hold. A portion ofthe cotton had either been hoisted out of the hold, or had been left ondeck, to form the hiding-places for the men. The captain must have hadearly notice of the approach of the Bellevite and Bronx; but there hadbeen time enough after the former began to fire at the battery to enablehim to make all his preparations.
Captain Stopfoot was not to be seen, and was probably in thepilot-house. The officer concluded that there must be as many as fourmen in the hold attending to the stowage of the bales, and four morecould be seen tumbling the cargo through the hatches. This accounted foreight men; and this was the number Christy had figured out as the crewof the Reindeer, though there was doubtless a man at the wheel. Theforce was about equal to his own, not counting the engineers and thefiremen.
Christy stationed his men as he believed Captain Stopfoot had arrangedhis force. The cabin was in a deck-house; between the door of it and thepiles of cotton was a vacant space of about six feet fore and aft, whichcould not be overlooked from the forward part of the vessel. It was herethat the first movement had been made. Calwood, who had been on dutyhere, said that two men had dropped down upon them; and when the thirdman came to learn the cause of the disturbance, he had been secured bytwo more.
This was the noise that Christy had heard when he sent two hands fromthe forecastle to ascertain the occasion of it. The three prisoners hadbeen disarmed, bound, and concealed in the cabin. They were threatenedwith instant death if they made any outcry, and one of their ownrevolvers was pointed at them. Linman, who had been sent to learn whathad become of Hopkins and White, was treated in the same manner. Then hewent himself, and the mate had dropped upon him, while those from underthe bales secured Bench and Kingman.
Every sailor was fully instructed in regard to the part he was to havein the programme, and Christy had crawled forward to the point where hefound the aperture in which Groomer, the mate, had been concealed. Hewas followed by Norlock, a very powerful man, who was to "make the drop"on Captain Stopfoot, and stuff a handkerchief into his mouth before hecould call for assistance. Christy believed that the commander would bethe first one to come aft when the men by the cabin fired theirrevolvers, as they had been instructed to do.
Two hands had been placed where they could fall upon the two who wererolling the cotton into the hold at the hatch in the waist; and two morewere instructed to rush forward and fall upon the two men at work at thefore-hatch. The four men in the space in front of the cabin were to leapupon the bales and rush forward, revolvers in hand, and secure those atwork in the hold. If there was any failure of the plan to work asarranged, the sailors were to rally at the side of their officer, readyfor a stand-up fight.
Christy gave the signal for the two revolvers to be discharged. Thecaptain did not appear at the report of the arms as expected; but heordered the two hands at work at the after-hatch to go aft and look outfor the prisoners. The two seamen on that side of the steamer droppedupon them, gagged them, and secured them so quickly that they couldhardly have known what had happened to them. The enterprise had beeninaugurated without much noise; but the captain had heard it, and calledone of the men at the fore-hatch to take the wheel, from which itappeared that he had been steering the steamer himself.
The naval officer saw this man enter the pilot-house, from which CaptainStopfoot had come out. He moved aft quite briskly with a revolver in hishand; but as soon as he had reached the point where the mate had droppedupon him, Christy leaped upon his head and shoulders, and he sank tothe deck, borne down by the weight of his assailant. He was surprised,as the first victim of the movement had been, and a handkerchief wasstuffed into his mouth. He had dropped his weapon, which Christy pickedup and discharged while his knees were placed on the chest of theprostrate commander, and his left hand grappled his throat. He wasconquered as quickly as the first victim had been.
The shots had been the signal for all not engaged to rally at the sideof the lieutenant, and the men rushed forward. All of them had removedtheir neck handkerchiefs to serve as gags, and they brought with themthe lines with which they had been bound. The captain was rolled over,and his arms tied behind him. He was sent aft to the cabin, whileChristy led six of his crew forward. The hands in the hold had attemptedto come on deck, but the two sailors at each hatch dropped upon them.
In less than five minutes every one of the crew of the Reindeer had been"jumped upon," as the sailors put it, bound, and marched to the cabin.The battle was fought and the victory won. Christy was quite as happy asCaptain Stopfoot had been when he had taken possession of the steamer.The man at the wheel had been the last to be secured, and Calwood wasput in his place, with directions to come about and steer for EgmontKey.
Christy determined not to make the mistake Captain Stopfoot hadcommitted in leaving his prisoners insufficiently guarded. He selectedfour of his best men, ordered them to hold the cutlass in the right handand the revolver in the left, and to keep their eyes on the prisonersall the time. He then went to those who had been gagged, and removed thehandkerchiefs from their mouths.
"I am as grateful to you, Captain Stopfoot, as you were to me less thanan hour ago," said Christy, and he removed the gag from his mouth. "I amhappy to be able to reciprocate your complimentary speeches."
"I am not aware that I have done anything to merit your gratitude, Mr.Passford," said the chief prisoner.
"You are not? Why, my dear Captain, you could not have arrangedeverything better than you did for the recapture of the Reindeer,"replied Christy.
"I did not think that ten men with their hands tied behind them could doanything to help themselves; but you Yankees are very ingenious, and itseems that you found a way to liberate yourselves. Besides, I had a handhere to watch you, with instructions to call me if there was anytrouble," added the captain, in an apologetic tone.
"When the trouble came
he was not in condition to call you," thelieutenant explained.
"No, sar! Dem beggars gagged me, and den robbed me of all my money!"howled Quimp, whose greatest grievance was the loss of his fifteendollars.
"That was hardly justifiable, Mr. Passford," added the captain shakinghis head.
"It would not have been justifiable if the rogue had not first swindledme out of the money," replied the naval officer.
"How was that?" asked the chief prisoner.
Christy explained the manner in which he had encountered Quimp, sayingthat he had paid him five dollars for the loss of his boat, and ten forthe information that a steamer was loaded with cotton and ready to sailbehind the long key.
"Quimp is as smart as a Yankee," said Captain Stopfoot, laughing inspite of his misfortune. "The flatboat was one we picked up on one ofthe keys; and the information was precisely what I instructed Quimp togive you, without money and without price. I promised to give him tendollars if he would pretend to be an honest nigger, and do the jobproperly. I have no fault to find with him; but under presentcircumstances I have not ten dollars to give him. I have lost thesteamer and the cotton, and it seems to be all up with me."
"I hope you will get into a safer business, Captain. I will suggest tothe commander of the Bellevite that you and your party be landed atGasparilla Pass; and I shall thus be able to reciprocate your goodintentions towards me."
Christy had sent some of his men forward, and he now followed themhimself. The engineers had remained in their room, and kept themachinery in motion. As the Reindeer approached Egmont Key, theBellevite, followed by the Bronx towing a schooner, were discoveredcoming out of the bay.
It was evident that the second lieutenant's capture had not been theonly one during the day, and he concluded that Mr. Lobscott had broughtout the schooner that had been supposed to be at Piney Point.
The Reindeer was about two miles south of Egmont Key when the Bellevitecame out of the bay, and the latter stopped her screw as soon as she hadreached a favorable position a mile from the island. Christy brought hisprize as near to her as it was prudent to go in the open sea. Thelieutenant went to the cabin to look out for the prisoners there, andfound that the four men who had been detailed a guard were marching upand down the cabin in front of their charge, plainly determined that thesteamer should not be captured again.
"Boat from the Bellevite, sir," said one of the men on the quarter.
"Where is the Bronx and her prize now, Kingman?" asked Christy.
"Just coming by the island, sir."
In a few minutes more the third cutter of the Bellevite came alongside.Mr. Walbrook, the third lieutenant of the ship, came on board of theReindeer, and touched his cap to his superior officer.
"Captain Breaker requests you to report on board of the ship, and I amdirected to take charge of the prize you have captured, Mr. Passford."
"I will go on board at once, Mr. Walbrook," replied Christy. "It isnecessary for me to inform you before I leave that this steamer haschanged hands twice to-day, and her ship's company have given me a greatdeal of trouble. The prisoners are in the cabin under guard, and I mustcaution you to be vigilant. Calwood will inform you in regard to theparticulars."
"I am sorry to inform you that Mr. Blowitt was severely, if notdangerously wounded in the action with the battery up the bay, where wehad some sharp work," added Mr. Walbrook.
"That is very bad news to me," replied Christy, who had known thewounded man as second officer of the Bellevite when she was his father'syacht, and had served under him when she became a man-of-war, and as hisfirst lieutenant in the Bronx.
The intelligence filled him with anxiety and sorrow; but while he wasfighting for the right, as he had been for three years, he could notgive way to his feelings. Without asking for the result of the action upthe bay, he went over the side into the cutter, and ordered the crew topull for the ship. Mr. Blowitt had been more than his superior officer,he had been his friend, and the young lieutenant was very sad while hethought of the wounded officer.
He found Captain Breaker on the quarter-deck; and he could see from hisexpression that he was greatly affected by the condition of hisexecutive officer. Mr. Dashington, his first officer in the yacht, hadbeen killed in action the year before, and now another of his intimateassociates might soon be registered in the Valhalla of the nation's deadwho had perished while fighting for the right.
"We have sad news for you, Mr. Passford," said the commander, who seemedto be struggling with his emotions.
"But I hope there is a chance for Mr. Blowitt's recovery, CaptainBreaker," added Christy.
"I am afraid there is not. Dr. Linscott has very little hope that hewill live. But we have no time to mourn even for our best friends. Youhave captured a steamer and brought her out; but I saw that you werecoming up from the southward when I first discovered the steamer. Whatdoes that mean, Mr. Passford?"
"I hardly know, Captain, whether I brought her out, or she brought meout," replied Christy, who felt very tender over the Southern Yankeetrick which had been played upon him. "The steamer is the Reindeer,Captain Stopfoot. My boat's crew were overpowered by her ship's company,and we were all made prisoners; but we rebelled against the humiliatingcircumstances, and recaptured the steamer."
"Then you have redeemed yourself," added the captain.
Christy gave a detailed report of all the events that had occurredduring his absence from the ship. The commander listened to him with thedeepest interest; for the young officer was in some sense his _protege_,and had sometimes been his instructor in navigation and seamanship. Inspite of the sadness of the hour, there was a smile on his face when hecomprehended the scheme of the captain of the Reindeer to get his vesselout of the bay in the face of two men-of-war.
While Christy was still on the quarter-deck, Mr. Lobscott came on board,and reported the capture of the schooner Sylphide, full of cotton. Hership's company, consisting of six men, were on board of the Bronx.Captain Breaker planked the deck for some time, evidently making up hismind what to do with the prizes and with their crews, for he did notregard these men as prisoners of war. He asked the second lieutenantsome questions in regard to the character of the Reindeer. She was anold-fashioned craft, but a good vessel.
"We are rather overburdened with prisoners, and I desire only to get ridof them," said the captain.
"Captain Stopfoot was considerate enough to announce his intention toput me and my men on shore at Gasparilla Pass; and I promised toreciprocate the favor by suggesting that he and his ship's company belanded at the same place."
"That will be a good way to get rid of them, and I will adopt thesuggestion," replied the commander.
All the rest of the day and a part of the night were used up in makingthe preparations for disposing of the prizes. A large number of handswere sent on board of the Reindeer, and her cotton was nearly all placedin the hold by good stowage. The prisoners from both prizes, except theengineers and firemen, who were willing to work for wages, weretransferred to the Bronx. Mr. Lobscott was appointed prize-master of thesteamer, which was to tow the schooner to Key West, where both were tobe disposed of as circumstances might require.
The Bronx was to convoy the two vessels as far as the Pass, where shewas to land her prisoners, and then return to her consort. At midnightthis fleet sailed. A protest against being landed at the place indicatedcame from Captain Stopfoot before it departed; but the commander paid noattention to it, declaring that if the Pass was good enough for one ofhis officers, it was good enough for the captain of a blockade-runner.
"Mr. Passford, by the lamentable accident to Mr. Blowitt, you become theranking lieutenant in condition for service," said Captain Breaker, soonafter the young officer had reported the capture of the Reindeer. "Youtherefore become the acting executive officer of the Bellevite."
"Of course I shall do my duty faithfully, Captain Breaker, in whateverposition is assigned to me," replied Christy, his bosom swelling withemotion. "I regret more than anythin
g else the occasion that makes itnecessary to put me in this place; and I am very sorry to be called uponto occupy a position of so much responsibility."
"You are competent to discharge the duties of executive officer, Mr.Passford, though I appreciate your modesty in not desiring such animportant position; but there is no alternative at present."
It was therefore under Christy's direction that all the arrangements forsending off the prizes were made. The Bronx returned at noon the nextday, and both vessels sailed to the station of the flag-officer. Thecommander reported that he had silenced two batteries, captured asteamer and a schooner, sending them to Key West; but the shoal water inthe vicinity of Tampa had prevented him from capturing the town.
Christy, in becoming first lieutenant, was relieved from duty as a watchofficer; but his duties and responsibilities had been vastly increased.He was the second in command, and a shot from another vessel or abattery on shore might make him the commander, and he certainly did notaspire to such a charge and such an honor. There was something in thesituation that worried him greatly. Captain Breaker had not been to theNorth since he entered upon his duties, now very nearly three years, andthe state of his health had given Dr. Linscott considerable uneasiness.
Mr. Blowitt was sent home by a store-ship; but he died soon after hisarrival; and his loving companions-in-arms could not follow his remainsto an honored grave.
The flag-officer, either because he believed that Christy was a faithfuland competent officer, in spite of his age, though in this respect hehad added a year to his span, or that no other officer was available forthe vacant position, made no other appointment, and Christy wascompelled to retain the place, very much against his desire. As hethought of it he was absolutely astonished to find himself, eventemporarily, in so exalted a position.
Here we are obliged to leave him for the present, crowned with honorsfar beyond his most sanguine expectations, but always willing to do hisduty while fighting for the right. The future was still before him; hehad not yet done all there was for him to do; and in the early years ofhis manhood came his reward, in common with the loyal sons of thenation, in A VICTORIOUS UNION.