by Oliver Optic
CHAPTER IV
CORNY PASSFORD PLAYS ANOTHER PART
Captain Carboneer brought the Florence about, and headed her across theriver. The Bellevite was moored a short distance from the estate downthe stream.
"I have been up here before to-day," said the naval officer, as the boatmoved away from the shore, assuring him that no one could be near enoughto hear what he said.
"We only reached New York yesterday, and I don't see how you can havepicked up a ship's company in that time," replied Mulgate.
"I sent the men before I came myself. I have stationed them in variousplaces on the river, where I can get them when I want them; and I shallwant them before the sun rises to-morrow morning," replied the captain.
"To-night!" exclaimed Mulgate, who seemed to be astounded at therevelation.
"Yes, to-night; in a few hours from now. I have obtained all theinformation I could in regard to the steamer, and what we do must bedone at once. The Bellevite, as they call her now, has not yet beenhanded over to the government, though she has been accepted. They arewaiting for something, though I don't know what, and she may be sentto the navy yard to-morrow; and then it will be too late for us to doanything."
"But to-night--that is rather hurried," added Mulgate, musing.
Very likely he was thinking of the beautiful Miss Florry in the elegantmansion a short distance up the river. Without a doubt he was MajorPierson, since the naval officer had addressed him by this name andtitle. He had often met the young lady at Glenfield Plantation, andpossibly his sudden visit to the North had not been without some thoughtof her. However it may have been with her, he was at least very muchinterested in Miss Florry.
The fact that she was a "Yankee" did not make her less beautiful, and itdid not make her any the less the daughter of a millionnaire. No onecould say that he was mercenary, however, and no one could say why hewas not as deeply interested in the daughter of the planter, for shewas hardly less beautiful, though her father was not considered amillionnaire, to say nothing of a ten-millionnaire. Major Pierson didnot tell what he was thinking about; but he was certainly astounded andbadly set back when the naval officer intimated that the capture of theBellevite might be undertaken that night.
"You can see for yourself that we must strike at once, or there may benothing to strike at," replied Captain Carboneer.
"But we shall have no time to work up the case," suggested the major.
"The case is all worked up, and there is nothing more to work up,"replied the captain, as he headed the boat for the steamer.
Major Pierson said no more, but he was as much dissatisfied with thepromptness of the naval officer as though he had said it in so manywords. It would be difficult to imagine how he expected to manage hiscase with Miss Florry, since he could not enter the house withoutbetraying his identity. Perhaps he intended to lie in wait for her inthe grounds of the estate, and trust that her interest in him wouldinduce her to keep his secret.
"Is that you, Christy?" called a voice from the steamer, as the Florenceapproached the Bellevite.
"Answer him, Corny," said Captain Carboneer, in a low voice. "Say 'yes,'and ask who it is that speaks."
"Yes," repeated Corny. "Who are you?"
"Sampson," replied the man on board of the steamer.
"And who is with him," added the captain.
"Are you alone on board?" demanded Corny, varying his speech a littlefrom his instructions.
"No; Warping is on board, but he has gone to sleep in the pilot-house.Do you want him?"
"No; but you wish to take a couple of friends on board to obtain themeasure of a gun-carriage," continued Captain Carboneer.
"No; I don't want Warping; I only wanted to know if he was on board,"repeated Corny. "I have a couple of friends here who want to measure agun-carriage to-night, for they have to leave in the morning."
"Very well, young man; you understand yourself very well," said thecaptain, in tones of approval.
By this time Captain Carboneer had brought the boat alongside theaccommodation steps, the lower part of which were hoisted up to preventany water tramps from coming on board without permission. But when Cornyhad delivered the last message, the steps were lowered, and the Florencemade fast to them. Corny was told to lead the way, and act as though hewere Christy Passford, and owned the ship in his own right.
The planter's son went up the steps, and the other two followed him,though the naval officer had really ascertained all he wished to know.There were only two ship-keepers on board, and they would be no obstaclein the way of the ship's company to which the captain had alluded. Butthe leader of the enterprise had another object in view, though it wasonly secondary in its nature. He was afraid to overburden the mind ofCorny, and he said nothing more.
"Is everything all right on board, Sampson?" asked Corny, as he steppeddown upon the deck of the vessel.
"All right, Christy," replied the man.
"I am glad to hear it. Is there anything new?"
"Nothing at all, Christy. I have been overhauling the boilers a littleto-day for the want of something to do, and they are in first-ratecondition. As you told me to-day that we might expect the order toreport at the navy yard at any minute, I thought I would have everythingas nearly ready as it could be."
"You have done very well, Sampson," added Corny, approvingly. "We areto get under way early in the morning, and if father gets home he willstart the steamer as soon as he comes. He went to the city this evening,and probably he will bring the order with him," continued Corny, makinguse of the information he had obtained in the house.
"Where is this long gun, my man?" asked Captain Carboneer, taking ameasure from his pocket.
"Forward, sir," replied Sampson, as he led the way.
The captain kept some distance behind the ship-keeper, and took Corny bythe arm to detain him.
"Tell him to get up steam at once," whispered the leader of the party,as he hastened forward to the long midship gun, where he proceeded totake his measurements as though he were in real earnest, though it wasso dark that he could not possibly see the marks on his tape, even if hetried to do so.
"You say that everything is ready to start the fires, Sampson?" saidCorny, as soon as he had a chance to speak to the ship-keeper.
"Everything is ready, Christy, and I have only to touch the match to theshavings to make a beginning," replied Sampson. "Is there any news aboutmy appointment in the engine-room, Christy?"
"Not yet, Sampson; but the papers will soon come, and I am almostwilling to guarantee your appointment."
"Mr. Vapoor has already spoken a good word for me."
"All right, Sampson; then you are sure of the position. I am very surethat we shall get the order before morning to move the steamer overto the navy yard, and I think you had better start the fires at once,Sampson," continued Corny, making himself as much at home on board ofthe steamer as though he had really been the person he was supposedto be.
"All right, Christy; and if the order don't come as soon as you expectit, we can bank the fires, and no harm will be done," replied the oiler,for such was his position on board, though he was evidently expectingsomething better.
By this time Captain Carboneer had finished taking the measure of thegun-carriage, though he had not been able to see anything. But he hadbeen through all the forms, and that answered his purpose just as well.He declared that he had no further business on board, and the trio wentto the accommodation ladder. Sampson had called his sleeping companion,and already the black smoke began to pour out of the smokestack.
"That was all very handsomely done," said Major Pierson, as they steppedon board of the Florence.
"Everything worked very well; but it was all owing to the fact that theship-keeper thought that Corny was some other person," replied thecaptain.
"I know that he took him for Christy Passford, and I have had someexperience with Christy," replied the major, recalling his attempts toprevent the Bellevite from escaping from Mobile Bay. "He i
s a smartfellow, as the Yankees would say, and it is fortunate that he is nothere at the present time."
"He can't be very far off," suggested Corny. "He was expected back tosupper, and I wanted to see him, for he is my cousin. He must be abouthere somewhere."
"Never mind whether he is or not; we have finished our business here,and the harvest is ripe for the sickle. We will leave this boat justwhere we found it, for I have a rowboat a little farther down theriver," continued Captain Carboneer.
"I suppose I ought to return to my uncle's house," suggested Corny."If they miss me they will be looking about here to ascertain what hasbecome of me."
"I think you had better not try to relieve their anxiety to-night.If they are worried about you, they will get over it in the morningwhen they find the steamer is missing," said Captain Carboneer, withsomething like a chuckle in his tones when he pictured the surprise ofthe "Yankees" in making the discovery that the Bellevite had taken toherself wings, and sped on her way to the South.
"I don't think they will worry about me," added Corny, laughing. "I wasafraid they might think I was here to capture the city of New York, orsomething of that sort."
"I think you had better not undeceive them to-night," replied thecaptain, as he ran the yacht upon the beach near where he had found her.
"Everything looks exceedingly well for our enterprise."
"If you get that steamer into Mobile Bay"--
"I don't intend to get her into the bay; that would be folly, and Ishall run no risks among the blockaders, for a single shot might giveher back to her present owners."
"No matter; if you only get her, and she is under the flag of theConfederacy, it will put me back where I was when she went into thebay by a Yankee trick," added Major Pierson.
"After the war, if you wish to see the young lady, you will have moretime to attend to the affair, and I shall wish you every success then,"said the captain lightly.
"How long do you think the war will last, Captain Carboneer?" asked themajor, in this connection.
"Possibly it may last a year, though if we can break up that blockade,it will not last six months longer."
The trio landed on the beach, and the naval officer made sure that theFlorence was securely fixed in the gravel. The party walked down stream,embarked in the boat of which the captain had spoken. It was pulled bytwo men, and after they had gone about a mile, the captain began to blowa boatswain's whistle which he took from his pocket.
But they had hardly jumped down on the beach before Christy Passfordopened the cabin door of the yacht, and crept out with the utmost care.