We kept watchful eyes on the seas out of fear of the French. They had settlements on the west end of Hispaniola, and a colony on Tortuga, the small islet just off the northern shore. We were still purportedly at war with France, and they issued as many Marques as we did.
Hispaniola remained barely visible on the horizon for three days, and then the captain angled our course ever so slightly to the northwest and we headed for Jamaica. The next “Land Ho” from the crow’s nest brought much jubilation. With equal parts relief and anticipation, I joined the others in watching the grey smudge become an increasingly taller green isle. I began to realize this was my new home. I recalled all the other times I had ridden into strange and unknown places and the delight I had found in mounting my personal discovery of them. I reassured myself that I had few regrets.
Despite descriptions of its topography and flora, I was surprised to view a place so hilly and lush. I supposed this to be the norm for a land that never experienced winter. It was early March, and yet the temperature was the hottest I could ever recall experiencing. The air was so moist that once one perspired, one did not seem to dry unless one stood still in a heavy breeze. It was only logical that any location so climed would grow greenery like a hothouse. No wonder everyone wanted to plant things of value here.
The climate cannot explain the white sand of the beaches, though, or the azure beauty of the sea. From the deck of the ship, it was one of the most beautiful places I had ever beheld.
Port Royal sits on a cay, at the end of a long peninsula of land that arcs south and west from the island proper, enclosing a large bay. The northern side of this bay is fed by two rivers. They deliver a great deal of silt, making it unsuitable for larger craft. So upon establishing Jamaica as a colony, the English built Port Royal on the cay in order to take advantage of the best anchorage the huge harbor offered. The Spanish, not being the greatest of sailing nations despite the vast number of ships they once commanded, had not favored the site and had built farther inland and at other places along the coast.
The cay, according to my studies, had recently been joined to the peninsula by filling in the shallow brine marsh that separated them. This afforded the town greater area and allowed a land passage to the mainland, though it was quite roundabout. Most sailed or rowed across the bay to the plantations and Spanish Town, a small town about five miles inland up the Copper River. The Governor had recently moved his house there. According to my father’s associates, it had been decided that the Governor should reside someplace that the buccaneers did not.
From the sea, I could not truly tell where the Palisadoes, as the long peninsula was called, started. It initially looked like any other stretch of shore we had sailed past. Then I saw that it was more sparsely forested, with palms, cacti, and the like; and I remembered that the end of the Palisadoes, and the cay which Port Royal resided on, did not have a water source. All water had to be brought across the bay. It was also my understanding that Port Royal and its environs were often plagued by small earthquakes. I did not find all of this overly alarming. The plantation I was sent to build would be inland and have water.
We saw other ships before we saw any architectural evidence of Port Royal. Then finally we saw demonstration of human habitation. Belfry joined us at the rail and instructed us on various features. There were scattered small buildings on the Palisadoes, and then an armed wall marking the eastern edge of the town proper, and presumably the original cay. Following that, there were more buildings, mostly houses from the looks of them, and a church: St. Peters and Church of England, according to Belfry. He had taken service there on his prior voyages. He complained that the town was rife with Jews driven from Brazil, all manner of other Protestants, and even some Popish men. And that most of the buccaneers appeared to be Godless, as there was no report of them entering any church. I did not venture to explain that that bit of news sat well with me.
We soon could see a great number of more densely-packed buildings along the northern side of the cay, where the harbor was – including several large structures, which Belfry said were the King’s House and various warehouses. The southern shore we sailed along was inhabited, but not to the extent the northern edge was.
We came to Fort Charles, which had originally been Fort Cromwell, and renamed, of course, after the Restoration. This seemed to be small. All the structures bearing the name fort that I was familiar with were far larger edifices. Yet I assured myself it was a significant structure considering its locale. And it appeared to be undergoing additional construction.
“The passage up into the harbor is just past the fort,” Belfry said. “On the right, we will pass the Chocolata Hole, which is a shallow bay where the buccaneer and freebooter vessels anchor. It is well-suited to their sloops and ketches. It doesn’t have a proper wharf, but they moor and row longboats or canoes to the beach if their craft is too large to beach.”
I frowned at this. “Why Chocolata?”
“My Lord?” Belfry asked.
Davey was chuckling and I was sure I already had my answer, yet I felt compelled to press the man. “Why is it named thusly?”
“What, the Hole, sir? I do not know. It’s where the buccaneers and freebooters dock; they named it thus. It is an odd name, now that I think of it, though I haven’t considered it before. They do grow cocoa here, but...”
He noticed my amusement.
“Do you feel it has some other meaning, my Lord?”
“I feel it may have a certain connotation,” I said.
“What is it called again?” Dickey asked.
“The Chocolata Hole,” Belfry supplied with careful enunciation.
Dickey suppressed a small smile and flushed, “Ah, I find myself in agreement with Lord Marsdale.” He started laughing. “Though I dare not say how a young man of my upbringing would have heard of such a thing.”
Tom was chuckling now, but Harry looked as confused as Belfry and Fletcher.
“Would someone please explain?” Belfry asked.
“I believe it may be in reference to sodomy,” I said, which evinced a great guffaw of laughter from Davey and several of the other men standing nearby.
“Oh,” Belfry said, while staring at the place in question as we began to round the point. “Oh my. That’s….” The surprise evident on his face transmuted to indignation. “How crude.”
I ignored him and turned my attention to the craft clustered in and about the crudely but amusingly named location. I judged the Hole to be maybe a hundred yards across, and there were two sleek craft anchored in the center, the Charles and the North Wind. A smaller craft was all the way on the beach, which was bustling with activity.
Another vessel was anchored almost in the passage, and awaiting a change in the wind or tide I would assume. Named the Griffon, she was a frigate and about the same size as our vessel, though she was far sleeker. Her deck held many more men than ours. I studied these men, who I assumed were buccaneers, as we passed at the distance of a hundred feet or so. For the most part they wore canvas breeches and tunics or vests, with brightly colored kerchiefs on their heads; and, oddly, gold sparkling at their ears. They were all armed, pistol and musket as well as swords, and looked like an army of mercenaries.
With the sleek lines of the vessel and their dark eyes watching us with predatory intent, I was minded of the sharks. I was sure this one could leap forth from the water and bite whatever hairy arse it chose. I wondered if Fletcher would claim God responsible for that, too.
It was obvious to them we held a cargo of bondsmen, and they shouted many words of encouragement in several languages as we passed: most suggesting that our cargo would do well to jump ship, and if they ever did run, they would have a home amongst the Brethren, as these men apparently called themselves.
“Look at her; she’s not even flying the Union Jack. She’s already under the damn buccaneer Jolly Roger,” Belfry muttered. “No respect.”
I looked at the Griffon’s flags; she was flying red color
s, no markings, just brilliant crimson against the blue sky.
“Jolly Roger?” I asked.
“You don’t think that has another connotation, do you, sir? I was under the impression it was a French term. Perhaps….”
I shuffled it about a bit in my mind until I understood.
“Jolie Rouge,” I pronounced correctly in its native language. “Pretty Red. I would think the connotations would involve blood or power.”
“But nothing more… salacious?” he asked.
“Possibly,” I teased with a grave face. I left him to contemplating the possible salacious meanings behind every term he must have heard in these parts and looked over my companions. Fletcher was viewing the Griffon with alarm, as were Harry and Dickey, but there was a spark of curiosity in Tom’s eyes, and Davey’s gaze positively ached with yearning. He caught my eyes.
“You can join them,” I mouthed.
“How?” He shook his head at my foolishness.
Belfry was called by the captain, and I stepped closer to Davey to speak quietly. “I do not know yet. Let me see more of the lay of the land so that I can formulate a strategy. Will we dock?”
He sighed. “Captain’s not stupid. He won’t even dock until after you have your men off. And this wharf is damn expensive. We’ll come in to offload your cargo real quick.”
“That does complicate things. Still… Do you maintain the same watch schedule in port?”
He frowned. “Aye.”
“Good, then I shall know when you should be on deck. Be ready to leave at a moment’s notice. If the opportunity presents itself, I cannot have you chasing about after your possessions.”
He shook his head with a derisive snort. “I only have a small bag.”
I snorted in turn. “I usually travel as light.”
He did not seem to believe me, and I sighed.
A hand rested on my shoulder; and I forced myself not to start, and instead, glanced casually back to see Fletcher.
“The bo’sun’s watching you two,” he said just as casually.
I smiled as if he had just delivered a joke. Old Fletcher had a dishonest bone in his body after all, and the wherewithal to exercise it.
I ignored Davey for now, and returned to watching the shore of my new home. The rest of the Port Royal side of the passage into the harbor was lined with buildings and pens on the beach; someone said they were for sea turtles. Then we rounded the second point and came into the harbor itself. As Davey said, the captain did not steer for any of the wharfs, but instead sailed into the bay and anchored nearly a quarter mile from shore.
Captain Starling asked to meet with me in his cabin, and I quickly obliged. He sat at his desk with a tired sigh and the wave of a fan. The cabin was sweltering, and he had dressed to go ashore in periwig, large hat, full coat, and boots.
“We will go ashore and meet with your father’s agent,” he said slowly. “Steins gave me a letter for him to introduce you, as we have arrived well before any other news of your coming could. The bondsmen will stay here until you have a place to take them. You are contracted for a week in that regard; additional days will cost additional money. I am sure your agent will have made arrangements, though, and you will probably have them all cleared in a day or two. After your men are secure, we will dock and unload your cargo. Before that, we have one final bit of business. You were contracted for twoscore men and there are forty-one. Since you have befriended the lot of them,” he seemed disapproving of this, “I leave it to you to choose which one I get to sell.”
I was appalled but I suppose it was to be expected. “I want all of them. How much would one of their contracts normally fetch? Name an amount and I will pay you.”
He nodded slowly. “I thought you might say as much. Forty pounds.”
I knew this was high, yet I saw no point in bargaining. Between this and the amount I had promised Belfry, I had nearly halved what little my father had given me for my own use.
I retrieved my purse, and he handed me a sheaf of contracts.
“Whichever one you choose is yours; the rest will be handed to your father’s man,” he said.
It seemed an odd thing for him to say, until I realized the implications. I had purchased this contract, not my father. I rifled through the sheets until I found Fletcher’s.
A half hour later, my cabin mates and I were gathered on the deck with our belongings and prepared to depart. The captain would be rowed ashore with us, to meet with my father’s solicitor, a Mister Theodore. Most of my baggage would be landed with the rest of the cargo. I, of course, retained my weapons and personal bag.
I left Old Grisholm in charge of the men and took Fletcher with me. I told him it was to aid in the arrangements, and he did not question it. The others were anxious to get off the damn ship, and I assured them I would get them ashore as soon as I could.
As I was not sure under what circumstances I would see him again, I pulled Belfry aside and pressed a bag of coin into his hand.
“Thank you for a fine voyage and all your assistance. I wish you well in your coming nuptials.”
“Thank you, my Lord, your fine acquaintance has honored me greatly. Perhaps we will meet again the next time we sail here.”
“But of course, feel free to pay me a call. You will be most welcome.”
He bowed deeply, and I responded as if he were a gentleman of station equal to my own. He seemed to take great pleasure in this, and we parted company.
I did not see Davey. It was still his watch, and he should have been above deck; but he was not to be seen, though I did notice the bo’sun eyeing me with a smirk. I vowed to settle accounts with that man when I came to pick up Davey. It seemed he harbored a mistaken perception of his own worth.
Shortly thereafter, we disembarked onto the longboat and were rowed to the common wharf across from the King’s House. It was the original Governor’s mansion until he moved to Spanish Town. There were no ships before the landing, and so the large house was afforded an uninterrupted view of the bay and mountains to the north.
The rest of the half mile or so of the northern side of the cay was quite crowded with ships and wharfs and buildings of several stories in height. There were three docked ships: all English merchant vessels of large tonnage, and all in the process of unloading and loading cargo. Four other vessels rode at anchor in the harbor. They presented quite an engaging sight against the lush green mountains, which I guessed to be the Blue Mountains from the crude maps I had seen.
The landing places bustled with activity, as people, dressed both well and common, embarked or disembarked from the small craft that were used to cross the bay. All in all, it looked like any small English port I had seen. Oddly, I did not see any buccaneers.
Captain Starling met with a man on the wharf and sent for someone to fetch my father’s solicitor. I was not looking forward to meeting this Theodore, as I was sure he would be much as Steins had been. Starling also sent someone to fetch Tom’s uncle’s man. Then the captain sat in the shade and waved his fan.
I took the opportunity to pull Fletcher aside and explain what had occurred. I handed him the contract and bade him tear it up.
He shook his head with wonder. “But Lord Marsdale, you have paid my passage here.”
“Then I expect to hire you cheaply to run my mills,” I chided. “And you owe me forty pounds.”
His eyes went wide at the sum. “My Lord, I may as well be your bondsman,” he shrugged.
“Let us draw up our own contract for a term based on the number of years it would actually take you to earn the money, as if it were a loan.”
He finally smiled; and then true elation gripped him, and he swept me up in a great embrace. As I had not been chest to chest with another man in months, I was torn between wanting him to stop breaking my back and wanting him to squeeze tighter. Thankfully he released me before my hungry body tried to wrap itself around him.
We rejoined the boys, who were regarding us curiously. I explained abo
ut Fletcher now being a free man. They seemed surprised and pleased at this news, but quickly returned to appearing ill-at-ease.
“Is something amiss?” I asked.
“This is not as I expected,” Dickey said.
“How so?” I asked.
“I expected more,” Dickey replied. This was apparently a sentiment shared by Tom and Harry.
I chuckled. “Well, Jamaica, and this cay, has only been in English possession for eleven years now. I quite frankly expected less. But never underestimate the perniciousness of British industry. I imagine in ten years the whole cay will be packed with buildings like this, all the way to the southern shore. Land will be at a premium, and these lots on the harbor here will be worth hundreds of pounds.”
“And it will still be small,” Dickey said with disdain.
“Aye, but all commerce for Jamaica will flow through it,” I said.
“How many people are there here?” Harry asked.
“Oh, from what I heard, there are over ten thousand men, women, and children on Jamaica, and maybe a thousand here in Port Royal. Beyond that, possibly a few thousand Negro slaves.”
“And well over two thousand buccaneers,” a wherry man who had been listening to us added. “But they come and go. Don’t know what we’ll do if’en they all land at the same time. Probably run outta drink.”
I gawked at the figure. “Over two thousand? Residents or no, that is twice as many people as I was led to believe the town possesses.”
“Oh, aye, sir,” the wherry man said. “There’s a mess of ’em. Can’t control ’em. They run amuck in the streets at night, and the good folk stay indoors. The Governor had to be moved to Spanish Town after one of the bastard captains took to shooting the place up. Some crazed Portugese arse.”
Brethren Page 14