The Privateersman

by The Privateersman (retail) (epub)

  Tyrell turned and Kite said. ‘Arthur, there was never a moment’s impropriety between us…’

  Tyrell smiled, ‘Come, come, William. Except that my wife struck you with her riding crop…’

  ‘That was nothing, a misunderstanding…’

  ‘A mark of her occasional ungovernable passion, William, behaviour that, though thankfully rare, once caused her mother to consider her dangerous. Look, my boy, I shall be frank. I am an old man and Sarah is a headstrong young woman. She pined for you after you left our shores and for years I feared your return. But as before what the sea takes, it takes completely. Now, however, the case is altered; I am glad to see you, for we live in dangerous times and I fear for Sarah’s safety. New England is becoming lawless. Have you heard what happened to the Gaspée?’

  ‘Yes; the bare facts revealed by a New York newspaper.’

  Tyrell shook his head. ‘’Twas a terrible affair. Terrible. D’you know what happened to poor Duddingston, the schooner’s commander? He had to plead for his life, writhing in agony at the feet of the villains with two pistol balls in him, William. And do you know what they did with the wretched man? They let him have a boat in order that he might proceed ashore as if it was the greatest act of humanity they could do him! God rot them all…’ Tyrell paused, to catch his breath, so angry had he made himself by his tirade. ‘Oh, there are those who will tell you that Duddingston was a foul-mouthed villain, that he stopped every vessel without pretext or justification, that he allowed his men ashore to cut firewood upon anyone’s property and that he swore that if the whole of Rhode Island was aflame he would not lift a finger, or suffer his men to do likewise, to extinguish the conflagration. Most of this is true, so far as it goes, but it does not go far enough, for the truth must embrace both sides of the affair and the truth was Dudingston had been commissioned to extinguish smuggling! And if he was an insolent agent of the British Admiralty, as foul-mouthed, arrogant and ill-mannered as Admiral Montagu at New York, then these qualities were matched by the insolence, arrogance and mendacity – which is but another form of bad usage of words – as those against whom he had to contend which included every fisherman in the province! Duddingston could not obtain firewood by purchase, since none would trade with him, neither could he land and requisition it without some holy patriot claiming ownership of the land and denying access. I swear to you Kite, there has been abroad such a manner of spinning the truth that one scarce knows right from wrong, or the law from the lawless!

  ‘Did anyone know who perpetrated the piracy?’ Kite asked.

  ‘Oh yes,’ Tyrell said vehemently, resuming his seat. ‘A gentleman named Abraham Whipple led the rogues. Their only motive was to extirpate the predatory efficiency of the Gaspée before her commander put an end to their own illegal evasion of duties. He was supported by sixty-four worthy souls, chief among whom was John Rathburne, a sea-officer like Whipple. As for Whipple himself, it was he who answered Duddingston’s challenge when the commander ordered the boats not to come alongside the grounded schooner, and it was Whipple who abused Duddingston in as foul a language as ever Duddingston abused any other man. At this point a desperado named Bucklin shot Duddingston who fall back upon his own deck, and having boarded the Gaspée the brave Whipple taunted Duddingston and sported with him in a tortuous manner…’

  ‘But why were these facts not laid before the justices?’ Kite asked, adding ‘for I understood a reward of five hundred pounds had been offered for evidence against the pirates.’

  ‘Oh there was a far greater commotion raised than a mere reward. That only produced a poor black slave whom no-one believed. Although he imparted the names of Whipple, Rathburne, Bucklin and half a dozen others whom he had seen embarking in boats at the landing place, all believed he acted out of motives of greed! Ha! What a pickled irony lies there, William, and how cogently such a motive can be argued and then digested! Lost among all the argey-bargey are the little facts of the affair; the robbing of Duddingston’s silver spoons, the concerting of the raid by the beating of a tattoo which is certain evidence of a conspiracy; the shouted order that all who would have revenge upon Duddingston should meet at the house of Mr Sabin.

  ‘But all this, indeed everything that happened that night, was forgotten! When the news reached London the Attorney-General, Mr Thurlow, obtained a Royal Order in Council commanding the authorities of Rhode Island to deliver up the culprits for shipment to England and trial for piracy at the Old Bailey. But in the first place no-one could be found that knew a thing untoward had happened in Providence that night and then Stephen Hopkins, our now mightily revered old Chief Justice of the Province, refused to obey the command, refusing to sanction warrants for the arrests…’

  ‘So the names were made known to him?’

  ‘Oh yes…’ Tyrell fell quiet a moment and then looked up. ‘I am an old man, William and had I not had Sarah to worry about I should perhaps have stood up and declaimed the names of Whipple and Rathburne from the rooftops myself. But I was not in Providence and knew them only by hearsay, though that hearsay had all the authority of heroic praise! Instead I heard of a black slave who was witness to the affair and sent for him. I encouraged him to give evidence to the commissioners, thinking that I might strike a blow for justice and give the poor man a means of purchasing his manumission under the protection of the authorities.’ Tyrell gave a short, self-deprecatory laugh.

  ‘I reckoned without Hopkins, who proved as great a coward as myself and considered London to be too far off to bother us. He proved the shrewder judge, for astonishingly the matter blew over, hush-a-byed by Lord Dartmouth who was at the critical moment appointed Secretary to the Colonies. It was said that his lordship received a letter from a self-styled friend of Great Britain resident in North America. This patriotic correspondent assured Dartmouth that protracted pursuit of the incendiary pirates of Rhode Island would result in the entire continent catching fire. Beside that threat the burning of a revenue schooner was set aside as of no consequence.’

  ‘And Duddingston?’

  ‘He died in my house, raving with the pain of a gangrenous wound in his groin wide enough to place your fist into, had you the stomach for it. A month after his death a letter arrived in which Their Lordships of the Admiralty appointed him to the rank of master and commander.’

  ‘That you gave so unpopular a man some shelter argues against you being a coward, Arthur.’

  ‘Oh, it was not me; it was Sarah. She had some mad notion…’ Tyrell recalled himself. ‘I should not have said that… Please forget I mentioned it… No, no, it is not fair… Sarah was compassion itself.’ Tyrell looked up at Kite, shaking his head. ‘I should not have referred to Sarah like that.’

  Kite leaned forward and touched the old man’s hand as it lay trembling on the desk in front of him. ‘’Tis no matter, Arthur, it was between ourselves; a confidence.’

  ‘Yes, well…’ Tyrell mastered himself. ‘Well,’ he said with a shuddering sigh that seemed to emphasise his physical frailty, ‘it brings me to the heart of this matter which is indeed between ourselves.’

  ‘Which is?’ Kite frowned uncomfortably.

  ‘William, I hardly know you, yet I liked you when I first met you and we have done business during the last thirteen years and in that time I have learned that you are utterly trustworthy. You may think me foolish, but your arrival here today is mightily providential. I could almost believe that fate had stayed any inclination you might have had to revisit Sarah sooner, for I know you would not come to see me…’

  ‘Heavens, Arthur, I am here to see you now…’

  ‘Do not, I beg you, dissemble or misunderstand me. But now my mind is made up. She is yours, my boy, take her with you when you leave here, marry her when you can, for I shall not be much longer in this world. No, I am not given to moments of drama, William; but I recognise the fact and it is stupid to pretend otherwise. Lord Dartmouth may have prevented a conflagration sweeping the continent in seventy-two, but it will
come this year, or next year. There will be some new outrage, engineered as the burning of the Gaspée was, by men whose own ambition is overweening. Already there is a new zeal abroad, and in every province there are now forming Corresponding Societies dedicated to uniting us in our resistance to acts of British tyranny such as were represented by Lieutenant Duddingston and his depredations hereabouts.’

  As Tyrell fell silent, Kite recalled his own analogy, expressed to Harper, of the bad boy pushing the boundaries of parental control until they burst.

  ‘I am glad you have come, Kite,’ Tyrell said rousing himself. ‘And you will tarry at our house, I have much to discuss and arrange with you in the way of business.’ He rose, closed a ledger on his desk and carried it to a safe, the door of which stood open. He thrust the ledger inside and closed the steel door with a thud, turning the keys in the lock and then pocketing them. Turning he confronted Kite who rose to his feet. ‘Will you look after Sarah?’

  ‘Of course, if both you and she wish it, I shall offer her my protection…’

  ‘Then that is enough,’ cut in Tyrell with sudden resolution and, reaching for his tricorne, he added, ‘for the time being at least. Come, let us go home, I have need of my wife.’ And with this odd intimacy, he led Kite out into the street.

  Having divested himself of his hat in the hall of his house, Tyrell turned to Kite and gestured him to follow. ‘I do not wish to startle Sarah, William, so be a good fellow and wait for me to call you.’

  Kite nodded. He could hardly breathe and his heart was thumping in his breast. He felt ridiculous and eager, a paradox he could not reconcile as he stood behind Tyrell who opened a door and went in search of his wife. Kite stared about him. He had a vague memory of the hall, of his arrival with Puella in her dress of brilliant red and yellow silk, and remembered the smell of rich food which always a pleasure to a man inured to ship’s fare. Now he heard Tyrell say, ‘…a surprise for you my dear,’ and then he was being waved into the room.

  She rose as he stood beside her husband and footed a bow. Her face was pale with astonishment and he thought for a moment she would faint. He stepped swiftly forward as she put out her hand and bent over it and as he straightened up she smiled, her eyes full of tears. ‘Is it really you, Captain Kite?’

  ‘I should prefer it of you recognised me as William, Mistress Tyrell. It has been a long time and our former acquaintance was brief, but I recall we called each other by our Christian names.’

  ‘Yes, a long time.’ She retracted her hand with a gesture of awkwardness and dropped her eyes. ‘How is your… How is Puella?’ she asked.

  ‘Sadly she died. The air of Liverpool did not suit her and she died within a few days of our son who was struck down by the cholera.’

  ‘I am so sorry. Was this long ago?’

  Kite shook his head. ‘No, it occurred last spring, but it persuaded me to return to sea. I did not like an empty house. I resumed command of the Spitfire and having reached Antigua I purchased another ship. We arrived in her this morning, she is called the Wentworth.’

  ‘That is the ship with her topmasts missing?’

  ‘The same.’

  ‘So you have come again to Newport for repairs?’ she was laughing at the irony.

  Kite half turned to her husband, ‘so everyone reminds me…’

  ‘My dear,’ Tyrell stepped forward smiling, ‘I have insisted that William stays with us while his vessel undergoes repairs. We have much to discuss and you will enjoy his company I know. Now please do sit down and I shall order tea. William, do you write a note to the ship to have your effects sent up and I shall have it sent to the yard.’ Tyrell indicated an escritoire and a few moments later instructions were on their way to Corrie and Bandy Ben regarding his location at the Tyrell’s house and his need of a few necessities. As soon as he had overseen this and the maid had brought in tea, Tyrell made his excuses.

  ‘I shall take my tea in my study,’ he said to the maid and then to Sarah and Kite, ‘I have a few matters to attend to and I am sure you would like a few moments to yourselves.’

  For a moment the two sat in complete and baffled silence, then they both spoke at once and after a moment of foolish and constrained awkwardness Kite insisted that she continued.

  ‘It is so good to see you, William,’ she said, her voice breathless. He thought he had never seen so handsome a woman. ‘I did not think we should ever meet again.’

  ‘I er,’ Kite hesitated, lowering his glance and stirring his tea with unnecessary vigour and concentration. He was at once confused and embarrassed, aware that after his earlier remarks Tyrell had left them alone to a purpose, yet unwilling to commit any breach of propriety that might be misconstrued. Simultaneously he was intensely stirred by Sarah, eager not to let this opportunity slip past, impetuously anxious to say something which would adequately express his desire to establish that intimacy which had only previously existed in his own occasional, unfaithful phantasies. Distance and time gave no guarantee that Sarah felt any reciprocal emotion, only the strange illusion that it might be so, an illusion created entirely by Kite himself.

  And yet he had left her that evening after they had all dined together long ago with pleasantries charged hot with innuendo. Moreover Tyrell had made no secret of Sarah’s attraction to him, unless he had intended to exaggerate it in his anxiety for her future. For a moment the sudden intrusion of this thought had him stumbling tongue-tied, but he blundered on with an admission that not so much broke as smashed the ice between them.

  ‘I had not intended… No, that is not correct. I had avoided coming here immediately I began trading on the American coast some months ago. At first I felt that it would prove awkward, that my association with your husband’s business was not to be complicated by my own personal considerations and, since I was unable to pick up a cargo for Rhode Island, it seemed I was not destined to, but…’

  ‘Then you were wrecked again, which must have struck you as uncommonly providential,’ she interrupted, her eyes uncommonly bright.

  ‘You are laughing at my misfortune,’ Kite said smiling at her lightness of touch, ‘but that is not true either. In fact I was on my way here, quite deliberately intending to have some extensive work done to the ship. Then fate intervened and now has effectively extended our stay.’

  ‘Of that I am very glad… It has been so many years and much has changed.’ She paused, then added with an air of wishing the matter referred to, ‘I am sorry that you have lost Puella.’

  ‘Yes.’ Kite looked away. ‘I loved her you know…’ An unaccustomed mist filled his eyes and it occurred to him that he had not wept over Puella until now, the moment when his feelings ran high for someone else.

  ‘I know you did… But there was a strong attraction between us, was there not? All those many, many years ago.’

  Kite nodded, unable to speak. He sighed, cleared his throat and looked at her. ‘Yes, of course there was,’ he said thickly. ‘And it has not gone away. Time has enhanced your beauty Sarah. It is a terrible thing to have been so moved by one woman and yet so sincerely love another.’

  ‘The distinction is usually between love and lust, is it not?’ she said quietly. ‘I once thought I knew the first, only to discover that it faded and may have been no more than the latter.’

  ‘Your fiancé? Yes, your husband mentioned him… and what of Arthur?’

  ‘Yes, it is love… of a sort. He has been very kind to me and I have not always been a comfort to him.’ She paused and smiled at him. ‘And what else did he tell you about me?’

  ‘That you rode down to Castle Point and watched the Spitfire sail.’

  ‘He told you that?’ she seemed astonished. ‘Yes, it is true. I watched the Spitfire until she was out of sight. And was that all, that and the intelligence that I had been betrothed.’

  Kite shrugged. ‘He mentioned he thought that you regretted my departure.’

  ‘Did he tell you that I raged against my fate? Did he tell you that I w
as so furious that I nearly killed my horse and was gone into the back-country for three days? Or did he simply tell you that I was mad?’

  ‘No, that he did not, nor do I think that you are. He did, however, express his concern for you in these troubled times and it is clear by his present absence that he wishes us to be friends.’

  ‘I hope that we are already friends, William.’

  ‘Of course…’

  ‘And I am delighted that you are here, truly I am.’

  ‘Sarah, I would not have you, or your husband misunderstand. His anxieties are all about your future. As for myself, I am independent. Only the winds of heaven and commerce command me now that Puella is dead. I am at the service of you both.’

  ‘Most eloquently put, my dear William,’ said Tyrell, coming back into the room and closing the door behind him. ‘Unfortunately I am of the opinion that soon a stronger gale than that of commerce will be blowing; stronger and more irresistible than that of heaven’s breath itself. I mean of course that of rebellion and war!’

  ‘Come Arthur, do not trouble yourself with these useless speculations, it will make you ill,’ Sarah said.

  ‘Ah, my dear, circumstances will march past us if they have a mind to. God knows what the future holds, but I feel easier knowing that William is attached to you and is minded to trade on this coast… You are so minded, are you not William?’

  ‘Indeed Arthur, I have no intention of returning to England while I may turn up a profit ’twixt North America and the Antilles.’

  ‘In that Arthur will be able to help you, I am sure, won’t you Arthur?’

  ‘Of course, my dear. Now come William, I will show you your room and your traps should be here within half an hour.’