The boat’s crew was brought aboard and the boat cut adrift. There were six of them, all men of color, seemingly fit and capable looking. Captain Mullins had them called aft where he explained to them their situation.
“Men, I must tell you that this ship is outward bound searching for pirates. I have need for more hands and will sign on any of you men who can say that you are free and wish to accept the King’s shilling. I cannot accept any of you that are the property of another and will return you to shore when I can.”
“Now then, this gentleman beside me is Mister Drummond, the ship’s first officer. Any of you that are free should inform him of this fact and if you wish, he will sign you on. Those of you that are slaves, will be sent back to your owners.”
No one aboard the Hector was surprised when none of the boat’s crew admitted to being a slave. In event of later suspicion, entry was made in the ship’s log of the occasion of the recruitment of the seamen, and their individual statements that they were all freemen.
The frigate continued on northward to Spanish Florida then back around Cuba and Hispaniola. It was off Spanish Puerto Rico they found evidence they were on the pirate’s track. Off San Juan Harbor, they spoke a Spanish Guarda Costa that reported several instance of piracy in the area. The victims were mainly small coasting craft that were found looted and burned, but one was a ship-rigged vessel of good size, loaded with sugar and hardwood, bound for Seville. This ship was now missing, and it was feared she had been taken by the pirates.
Ominously, the captured ship carried a substantial battery of guns, and the guarda costa captain reported his superiors believed this vessel would soon be at work as a pirate. The burned hull of a schooner had been found wrecked on the Puerto Rican shore recently, and it was thought that vessel had taken the most recent ship. Mullins dined with the Spanish commander of the guarda costa aboard Hector.
Mullins had found previously that many of his guests did not care for the wine he had paid a good price for, so had rum served to his guest. Rum was no rarity in the Spanish colonies, but this rum apparently appealed to the officer, who drank copiously. When the young officer returned to his own vessel, he had a bundle of Spanish cigars handed down into the boat.
After the exchange, Hector sailed off to resume the hunt, armed with the description of the suspect ship. The frigate stopped off at St. Kitts, where she relayed her news, then sailed on toward Guadeloupe.
Chapter Twelve
Mullins had no real reason to return to Guadeloupe, but he reasoned the pirates, on the latest ship they had acquired, might need the men and supplies they had left behind on that island weeks ago, and may well go back. Perhaps Hector could intercept this new ship there.
Despite spending days searching the section of the coastline where the pirate’s previous vessel had been destroyed, they found no sign of a ship of any size. Mister Flowers took a landing party ashore but found nothing except the burned timbers of the original ship. Even the local villagers made no appearance. Baffled, Mullins ordered his frigate back out to sea again.
Weeks later, Mister Drummond warned his captain their supplies were becoming low and they must soon replenish. HMS Hector had sailed farther north along the American coast than she had before, and was now well off-shore of the continent, with Cape Hatteras to the west. This was a prime trade route and Mullins hated to leave the area, so decided to make for the Bahamas to take on stores and gather information.
A day after settling on the new course, a sail was sighted to starboard, also seemingly headed for their own destination. When Hector’s course was altered to close this ship though, she veered off to port and steered northeast. This was regarded as suspicious behavior and the chase was on. Hector was searching for s ship-rigged pirate and this vessel, at least, was ship-rigged.
The chase appeared to be low in the water and it was evident the frigate could out-sail her handily. She was hull-down though and dusk was upon them. When the sun dipped, the chase was lost to sight for a time, but she was spotted again after the moon came up, attempting to double back on her track. Hector chased at a distance through the night, apparently unobserved, but at dawn, hung up all of the sail she would bear as well as the red ensign and her commission pendant.
The chase continued on course and flew no flag until it appeared obvious that there could be no escape. When Hector fired a gun, the ship hove to and ran up a tattered American flag. Coming up alongside, it was readily apparent this was not the pirate they were looking for. A tubby merchantman, she had only a pair of guns up forward, as well as another pair aft.
Numerous barrels were lashed on her weather deck, and she was too slow to catch any prey. Since he had the ship under his lee though, Mullins took the opportunity to describe the ship for which he was searching and ask the American captain if he had seen her.
When Captain Peabody of the Sarah Jane answered that he had, Mullins invited him to the Hector for a drink. The indignant Peabody arrived in his own good time, highly irritated at the summons.
Mullins met him at the starboard entry port with his officers and the Marines. Peabody grumped at the ceremony, but it did seem to put him in a better mood. Invited into the cabin, Mullins and Drummond sat with him at table. There had not been enough time to prepare any food to offer the American, but he was offered a handful of Puerto Rican cigars, as well as a dozen of the wine that no others would drink.
Somewhat mollified, Peabody made known his displeasure at being pursued for two days. “I thought you were another pirate.” he explained.
“Another pirate?”, Drummond exclaimed. “Please tell me about the other.”
“Well sir, it was two days ago, in the forenoon. My lookout saw two ships together, almost hull down. One was a brig-rigged whaler I have seen before, out of Nantucket, I think. The other was a ship, Full of men with a patched fore topsail. The patch was in the shape of a cross, made with darker canvas than the rest of the sail. She had some guns poking out of her ports too, which I don’t like to see. We sheared off and the ship didn’t follow. We saw the ship set sail, leaving the brig behind. Soon after, we saw fire break out on the brig. After the ship dropped below the horizon, we doubled back and saw the brig aflame, from stem to stern. I think she was full of oil. We closed on her but could see no sign of life on board. There were no boats.”
“I am sure that ship was a pirate who stopped the whaler to take what she wanted. I doubt if they got much. The whaler was heavily laden, probably returning home with a hull full of oil. She was probably low on stores. Unless she had furs on board from trading, the pirates may not have been able to take anything. Her whale oil would have been worth a good plenty, but where were they to sell it? The pirates would have done better to take us, but of course, they didn’t know.”
Mullins pulled out the notes he had made of the description of the pirate by the Spanish Guarda Costa officer. One of the items in the description was a patched fore topsail. After getting the pirate’s course, as last seen by Captain Peabody, Hector separated from the Sarah Jane and set out on the course provided.
For two days, Hector remained on course until charred wood fragments were seen in the sea. Sailing against the current, the remains of a ship’s boat was found, then. There were two bodies aboard, both with dreadful wounds and dressed as seamen. It appeared the boat had received a charge of grapeshot which probably killed the passengers almost instantly.
Mullins hypothesized the men had tried to escape from a prize the pirate had taken and were slaughtered for their efforts. The frigate halted her search for a few hours while the bodies were prepared for a burial at sea. Mullins read the service and the men were put over the side lashed in hammocks, with a shot at each body’s feet.
From the appearance of the bodies and wreckage, it appeared the pirates were not more than two days ahead. Continuing further southward though, no more signs of the pirates were seen, and their discovery seemed to become more problematic every day. When the Bahamas were reached, time w
as lost making quick surveys of the individual islands encountered. Mullins knew well Hector was falling well behind, but absent more ships to search for the felons, there was not much he could do, but keep looking.
Nearly through the archipelago, a tendril of smoke was seen rising from a low island ahead. According to the sailing master’s chart, this island was listed as uninhabited. Hector sailed past the island, well offshore, but that night reversed course and let the current take her back. People were on the island, as evidenced by several small fires visible.
Boat carronades were mounted in the launch and cutter and the boats were crewed and set out for the island, followed by the frigate. Leadsmen in both boats and frigate were kept busy, hoping to avoid any encounter with underwater rocks or shoals,
Edging slowly along the coast, they found a small bay and in the light of the crescent moon, a ship was seen at anchor. On shore, a fire could be seen on the top of a low-lying hill, and voices could be heard.
Mullins could not be certain the ship was their quarry, but he thought it probable that it was. Therefore, the ship had been brought to quarters, ready for action at any moment. They were well offshore, but the sounds of the celebration onshore were easily heard. The ship itself seemed quiet, so Mullins decided to put a strong party in the ships’ boats and send them in to cut the ship out.
If the ship could be taken, any pirates on shore would be easy prey on that small island. The leadmen now were reporting depths too shallow to take in the frigate, without careful planning. Not wanting to alert the people on shore as well the suspect pirate ship of their presence, Mullins decided not to anchor the ship, but instead to heave to, attempting to maintain her position despite the current pushing them into the bay.
Mister Drummond prevailed upon him to permit him to command the boats. Against his own wishes, Mullins agreed, since he had himself led the assault party against the previous pirate ship. After the assault parties boarded the boats and left, Mullins had Mister Flowers take the jolly boat out to search for a path the ship could take through the shallows.
A storm farther south had pushed up some cloud cover to their location and suddenly the moon was covered. It was now very dark, and only the light of the fire onshore gave them any evidence of the pirate’s presence.
Suddenly, the fire blinked off, as though someone had thrown a quantity of water over it. At the same time, Mullins noticed the sounds of the party onshore had dissipated. Perhaps the people ashore had heard the boats approaching.
After an eternal length of time two incidents registered on Mullin’s senses. He heard the carronades of the boats fire, then heard the popping of musketry. This enraged him, since the assault party had been told to ignore the people on shore. They were to quietly make their way to the ship and board her. The guns’ flashes that were visible came from near the shoreline, not where the ship had been anchored. Perhaps they had become lost and attacked the shore instead.
The second incident that registered on his mind was the sound of a ship’s cutwater coming through a quiet sea. From the light of some gun flashes ashore, Mullins had the sense of a ship under sail coming out of the bay. Hector was almost helpless, with most of her crew in boats, about to assault an empty shore. He had not sufficient men aboard to both sail her and fight.
Of course, his guns were all charged and ready, but the ship was hove to, and she was not beam on toward the enemy. Unable to determine in the blackness just where the enemy was located, Hector was at a disadvantage.
Had the pirate captain kept his wits about him, it was likely he would have escaped without any notice. As it was, the pirate passed through a channel a long musket-shot away from the frigate. Possibly sensing the British frigate, the pirate fired a gun. The shot completely missed Hector, but the flash showed the pirate gunners just where she lay, and a dozen more guns fired. Four balls struck the frigate and six men fell, both killed and wounded.
Mullins got the ship on the wind and guessing the location of the pirate, fired a broadside at her. He knew it was wasted as soon as the guns fired. From the flashes, the pirate was well forward of the area the shots impacted in the sea.
Luckily, the pirate chose to escape into the sea rather than make a fight of it. It took almost an hour for the boats to find their way back from the island. Mister Drummond reported he was unable to find the pirate ship at anchor where she had been sighted earlier and so had attacked the position on shore. He found out moments later the pirates had already left and the pirate ship was headed out to sea.
With little idea of the bottom here, Hector had to make her way out to sea behind a boat with a leadsman hard at work. It was dawn before she was free of the land and could shake her sails out. Fortunately, their prey was still in sight, although only as a notch on the horizon.
Chapter Thirteen
The chase was well ahead, at the moment, but the day was still young. Hector appeared to be the faster of the ships, gradually overhauling the pirate. The sun was soon to dip when the frigate was within range. The pirate had done all she could do to lose her pursuer, including pumping most of her water overboard and discarding whatever stores she could. She kept her guns, though. When they met, there would be a bloody encounter.
The pirates’ actions in lightening their ship had had some effect. She was now a bit higher in the water and her trim was better. She was now marginally faster than her previous speed, although Hector was still gaining.
The frigate remained at action stations and most of the officers were on Hector’s quarterdeck observing the chase. It had been evident their ship was still overtaking their quarry, although more slowly now. After one of the officers stated he thought he could get another half a knot speed from the ship by adjusting the ship’s trim, Mullins decided not to go to the trouble.
“As it stands now, it will be after dawn before we come up with the pirate. I would just as soon bring her to action in daylight, if possible. We will go on as we are.”
Thus far, no fire had been exchanged between the two ships. It was two bells in the middle watch, shortly after midnight, when the first gun sounded from the chase. Originally having no guns that would fire straight aft, her crew had cut a port in her stern and moved a gun that could fire upon their nemeses.
It was only a six-pounder, but the first ball came uncomfortably close to their cutwater. Hector’s only guns capable of being brought to bear were the two forward carronades in the bows. Even they however, could not fire straight forward. The entire ship must veer a bit to port or starboard to allow the guns to bear and this would cause the ship to lose a little speed with each course correction.
Further, although Hector was just within carronade range, she was still a little too far astern for the precision work required. After trying a few shots at their quarry, Mullins decided to concentrate on closing the pirate while suffering the occasional ball that impacted the frigate.
The sun was just beginning to make its presence known on the horizon when a ball from the chase took off the leg of a helmsman. With the enemy now perfectly visible and close enough for all his guns, Mullins decided he had born this bombardment long enough.
After warning his officers of his intentions, he put the ship to port, leaving his starboard battery bearing on the pirate. She too began to veer, but was a little late and Hector’s broadside savaged her stern and port quarter. At this closer range, the damage was devastating and her mizzen came down directly, as well as her main topmast.
The pirate was unable to complete her turn and was caught, unable to maneuver, with only a few guns able to bear on her enemy. Hectors’ fast firing carronades continued their punishment and very soon those guns were silenced.
The bombardment of the silenced ship continued, and then her foremast fell. Had she been a proper ship-of-war, her commander would have surrendered by now, but these pirates did not have this option. They all knew, once they had been brought before a magistrate in any civilized country, they would be very quickly executed.
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The rate of fire slowed aboard Hector as the men tired, but still the thunder against the unresponding foe continued. Blood was coming out of the stricken ship’s scuppers and still the slaughter continued. Mister Flowers approached his captain and offered to take a boarding party across to the pirate to secure her surrender.
Mullins himself, was sickened by the carnage, but replied to his officer. “These pirates all know they are now dead men, whether by our fire or the hangman’s noose. If I send you over, no doubt some of them will try to take your party and hold you hostage. We will continue our fire until they do surrender or the ship sinks.”
The pirate ship had been built as a merchant ship and had not the strengthened scantlings of an especially built warship. Mulling expected she would succumb to the bombardment soon, but instead, she caught fire. Smoke was seen to come out of a fore hatch, followed by visible flame. Expecting an explosion, Mullins ordered the frigate to be sailed well clear. There was no explosion. Perhaps the pirated had flooded their magazine, but with insufficient people capable of fighting the fire, the entire forward section was soon ablaze.
Fire from Hector now ceased as it became clear the pirate ship was doomed and all waited for the end. The living pirates began throwing themselves off the burning deck to escaped the raging flames. Some of them grasped floating objects to attempt to gain another few minutes of life, while others, resigned, just allowed themselves to sink into the depths.
Mullins ordered the ships’ boats away, to bring aboard as many of the pirates as possible, warning their crews to beware of any attempt to take their boat.
Armed seamen and Marines in each boat were charged with securing any captives taken. While this operation was in progress, fire had swept over the stricken ship and all human life aboard her was extinguished.
Almost a score of pirates were pulled into the boats, but many of these were badly burned by the fire. A day later, only a dozen were still alive and Doctor Burns believed many of these would not survive the voyage back to English Harbor. One of those who did not was the pirate captain, Jean Martel. He died, in constant pain from his burns, unrecognized by anyone. From one of the survivors, Mullins learned why the fire aboard the pirate had been so disastrous.
HMS Hector: A Charles Mullins Novel (Sea Command Book 6) Page 9