Merriman and the French Invasion (The Merriman Chronicles Book 2)

by Roger Burnage

  All signified their agreement. Merriman stood up. “Now to other matters, what about the wounded French prisoners still here?”

  “When the army marched the able bodied of them away to Cork Sir,” reported St James, “they took most of their wounded with them. We organised litters for the more seriously hurt of them and of course there were plenty of their fellows to carry them. As for the rest of them Sir, perhaps Mr McBride would be the best one to tell you.”

  “Those two men who gave themselves hernias when they were hauling that damned cannon uphill are up and about again. I fitted them with a sort of truss.” said the Doctor, “Jack is a hardy fellow and copes with physical damage which would probably kill lesser men. I expect them both to recover in time. As for the French, there are ten or twelve who are almost fit to travel and one other of them will die for certain and two others will probably not survive.”

  “Very well Mr McBride, apart from those three, can the rest of them be moved to The Fat Frog to be taken to Cork by sea?”

  “Well I suppose so, but The Fat Frog Sir? I don’t understand.”

  “Of course, That is the name given by the prize crew to the transport ship we took.” He looked at Moreau, “My apologies M’sieur.”

  Moreau inclined his head in acknowledgement, “No need to apologise M’sieur, I know that we French are named Frogs or Froggies by the English, but,” and here he laughed, “It would be better that I not tell you what the French call the English.”

  “Then Gentlemen, there is no reason why we cannot get back to sea. I think it would be for the best if Mr Dorrington is taken back on board the frigate where he can be put in Mr Weston’s cabin. As soon as he is able to understand his situation we’ll tell him what he is accused of and I’ll have a marine sentry on his door.”

  Whilst the arrangements were being made to put the wounded Frenchmen aboard and prepare for sea again, Merriman and Mr Grahame went in search of Mr White and found him in his stable yard supervising the last few men of the militia preparing the wounded for travelling.

  “Mr White, I wish to express my thanks for all you have done to help and for allowing your home to become our temporary headquarters.”

  “My dear Sir, say no more about it. I have enjoyed our adventures immensely and I’m only too pleased to have been of service in helping to thwart the damned French, although I must say that that fellow Moreau seems to be a likeable chap.”

  “Nevertheless Sir, I will say more about it,” said Grahame, “I shall commend your assistance in the warmest possible terms to my superiors in London. We would have been unlikely to have caught Moreau without your help. And that of your militia.”

  Back at sea, aboard Lord Stevenage, Merriman’s satisfaction at the outcome of the last few days was tempered by the loss of Owen. Owen had been his cox’n for the last four years and knew his ways like no other except Peters his servant. He sighed deeply. He was still pondering when the marine sentry knocked on the door and announced “Mr Grahame Sir.”

  “James, why the long face? Everything we planned for has concluded well, I have Moreau as a prisoner and he has given me much valuable information, although he will only tell me what he knows about the Revolutionary Council and their plans and spy network. Which reminds me James, I owe you an apology.”

  “Good heavens Sir, what on earth for?”

  “I apologise for losing my temper when you accepted Moreau’s parole. You were quite right to do so and I regret the harsh words I said to you.”

  “Mr Grahame, say no more, I had quite forgotten the incident”

  “Another matter should be mentioned James. The documents and papers found aboard La Sirene contain some very interesting information. Most of them are only routine orders and records concerning the day to day matters of the ship, as indeed are the ones from the aptly named Fat Frog, but there is a list of French contacts in Ireland which will be invaluable. Moreau believes that his papers had been destroyed by the French captain, so I have not told him what we have. There are others but I have not yet had time to decipher them.”

  “That is excellent news Sir. And now, I have some excellent wine discovered aboard one of the prizes which I urge you to try. Peters, where are you man? Ah there you are, we’ll have some of that new French wine you liberated, lively now.”

  When Peters had finished serving and disappeared into his own little hidey- hole in the pantry, Grahame raised the matter of Dorrington again.

  “Tell me James, where will you have him tried, could it not be done at the military garrison at Cork?”

  “No Sir, it’s a matter for the navy to resolve, not the army, and there are not enough naval officers in Cork to form a court martial. There must be at least three Post Captains.”

  “I see. The fellow is undoubtedly a bad lot and deserves all the punishment he gets. From the beginning he antagonised everybody with his sneering arrogant ways and then his treatment of young Small, followed by his attack on you and the murder of your man Owen, well really, he will be lucky to escape the noose.”

  “Yes, but I feel sorry for his mother. Apparently, since his father died she has tried to control him, but there was some trouble with a servant girl and as a last resort she asked Admiral FitzHerbert at Portsmouth, her brother, to find him a place in the navy in the hope that some discipline would do him good. And now it has come to this.”

  Both men sat lost in thought for a while as they sipped the wine, then Merriman roused himself, saying “My long face as you called it, was because I was trying to decide who I can find to replace Owen.”

  Over the next day or two he gave the matter of a new cox’n more thought but in the end had decided that it had to be either Matthews, the seaman whom Dorrington had tried to have flogged, or Jackson, the man whose efforts had been so helpful in capturing Moreau. Eventually he decided to have Jackson rated as a petty officer and Matthews as his cox’n, and called for the First Lieutenant.

  “Mr Laing, I have decided that after all his sterling efforts Jackson must be promoted. I think with a bit of reorganisation of the watch bill you can find room for him as a petty officer, especially as we lost so many men recently.”

  “Excellent idea Sir. I’ve had my eye on him for some time and I am sure he will be suitable.”

  “And further, I think Matthews would be a good replacement for Owen. What do you think?”

  “He’s a good steady man Sir, should fit into your routine very well.”

  That settled, Merriman told a grateful Matthews of his decision and informed him what his duties would be.

  The next day, as Dorrington was recovering well, Merriman could procrastinate no longer and decided that Dorrington must face his accusers. To that end he called for Mr Grahame, Mr Laing, Doctor McBride, M’sieur Moreau and the two marine officers to come to his cabin.

  “Gentlemen, I intend to inform Mr Dorrington what his position is, what he is accused of, and present him with the evidence. All of you know what has happened so I require you to be present. We’ll make this a formal affair and so I would be obliged Mr St. James if you would take a marine guard and bring him here. And I’ll have a guard over him from now on. Thank you.”

  An apprehensive Dorrington walked in flanked by two marines with the marine officer leading and stood there, casting anxious eyes over the serious faces of the others present. Merriman opened the proceedings.

  “Mr Dorrington, you have been brought here to face various charges about your conduct during our recent excursion ashore. The main charges are as follows; Item one, that you did strike me, your commanding officer from behind. Item two, that you then shot my cox’n Owen, resulting in his death. Item three, that our attempt to capture some Irish rebels and M’sieur Moreau here, was seriously impeded by your actions. There are further charges which can be made concerning your sexual proclivities and your treatment of Mr Midshipman Small, but those will wait for the present. What have you to say?”

  During this recital of these charges, Dorrington�
��s face had turned deathly white and then a fiery angry red. “It’s a lie, I did none of those things. What proof have you.”

  “We have plenty Mr Dorrington. You were watched when you struck me and shot Owen when he tried to help me.”

  “It’s a lie, who saw me? We were ambushed by the rebels, and beaten, you know how I was injured.”

  M’sieur Moreau saw you, he was in the stable and------“

  “Lies I tell you,” interrupted the youth, “The damned Frog is trying to cause trouble, that’s what he’s doing! Can’t you see.”

  Merriman ignored the wild outburst and continued “There was another witness Mr Dorrington. Owen saw you and lived long enough to tell me, the Doctor and Mr Goodwin what you had done.”

  “He couldn’t have lived, I shot him in the he---.” He stopped as he realised that he had convicted himself by his own words. Then, “Damn you Merriman, you’ve had your knife in me since I joined this blasted ship. I should have shot you when I had the chance.” There was a stony silence in the cabin, then Merriman, forcing himself to remain calm said, “You will return to your cabin and there will be a twenty four hour guard outside. When we arrive at Portsmouth you will appear before a court martial which will decide your fate. Should you attempt to leave your cabin I will have you in chains for the rest of our journey. Take him away Mr St. James.

  There was one last despairing cry from the miserable Dorrington as the marines dragged him out, struggling and screaming, “You can’t do that, I’m a gentleman, you can’t chain me like a common felon!”

  “I’m glad that’s over,” remarked Mr Grahame, “I hope not to see him again until his trial.”

  “Yes, an unpleasant business altogether. Thank you Gentlemen, of course you will all be required to give evidence at that trial.”

  Chapter 21: Ships prepare to sail for Portsmouth

  In spite of the lumbering slowness of The Fat Frog, they made good time and arrived in Cork on the early morning flood tide and anchored. There the last of the surviving wounded French prisoners were put ashore into the hands of the military garrison whose commanding officer already knew that the other prisoners were on their way.

  The cutter Tiny with Lieutenant Hetherington arrived shortly after them and immediately Merriman sent for the lieutenant.

  “What happened to you after you left to warn the garrison here?”

  “Well Sir, I did call here and then left to find Commodore Pellew as you instructed. I didn’t find him but I met with one of our brigs which had been sent from the fleet to warn the garrisons here. I told the captain that Cork had already been warned so he ordered me back here whilst he went to find Captain Pellew.”

  “Very good Lieutenant, there is nothing more for you to do here so I think you had better return to Portsmouth as your previous orders required. I will write a report for you to explain to the Admiral what you have been doing. You can also take some letters for me and advise the Admiral that my full report will follow.”

  “Yes Sir, thank you Sir. I’ll go as soon as your correspondence is ready.”

  As soon as Hetherington had gone, the marine sentry knocked and announced “Mr Grahame Sir.” Grahame entered with a satisfied, almost smug smile on his face.

  “James, I have some excellent news! You will remember that Lieutenant Hetherington brought me a letter on his first visit to this ship? It was from Lord Stevenage but because the contents were not directly concerned with our present commission I did not confide in you. It concerned reports from agents of ours indicating that the French are proposing to increase their network of agents in Portugal and in the Mediterranean, more particularly in the Kingdoms of Sicily and Sardinia, and there are some notes about agents in India.”

  “That hardly seems to be good news Sir, but I assume there is more?”

  “Indeed so James. As you know, we recovered papers from La Sirene which belonged to our friend Moreau and there is clear evidence in them that once he had finished his work in Ireland he was to go to Sicily to assist their agents in fomenting revolution there. Better still, I just found a list of people there who would be prepared to turn their coats and spy for France, for money I assume.”

  “Well that certainly would give us an advantage to know who these people are and give us a chance to do something about it Sir.”

  “Yes James, it also means that I must return to London as soon as possible to acquaint his Lordship with our new findings. I imagine it will be quite likely I will have to go to Portugal or Sicily or even India and I shall ask for your services again.”

  “Thank you Sir, but before then I hope that I shall have the opportunity to go home and get married. I understand that all arrangements have been made, only the date has to be settled.”

  Grahame grinned at Merriman. “Ah, the delightful Miss Simpson I expect. Well, I think you have waited long enough. I’ll see what I can do to help. I remember that his Lordship wanted to be invited to the wedding although I cannot understand why.”

  “No Sir, neither can I.”

  “It will be a damned uncomfortable journey, but I think I should go back to Portsmouth in Tiny, as it will be quicker than this ship. Perhaps you would be kind enough to ask Mr Hetherington to make room for me? I’ll leave Moreau with you for the time being. As Mr White said, he is a likeable fellow and has given me plenty of information.”

  “Of course Sir, Tiny will be sailing as soon as I have completed some letters and reports.”

  “It will be difficult report for you to write to Admiral FitzHerbert concerning his nephew.”

  Chapter 22: Merriman reports to the Admiralty

  For most of the voyage the weather was favourable and progress was brisk but then a gale came out of the north which cost them two days and another day repairing the Fat Frog’s rigging which had been found unequal to the strains put upon it. The leak in the corvette’s hull became markedly worse and required almost constant pumping to keep the water at bay.

  During this time Merriman found himself spending more and more time in the Frenchman’s company and little by little learned more about his past. The luxurious life he had led in the family chateau, the increasing tension between himself and his father which resulted in him leaving home with only a horse and his father’s sword.

  Moreau was a good raconteur and the time passed quickly as he told of his adventures with the Marquis de Lafayette and his French volunteers during the American War of Independence. He had been a soldier of fortune known simply as Charles Henri Moreau instead of his real and grandiose title of Count.

  Most of his experiences had been serious but he had Merriman and other officers laughing helplessly when he related some of his more hilarious exploits.

  He spoke sadly of his horror on his return to France to find that his entire family, even his young sister had perished beneath the guillotine and of how he had had to conceal the fact that he was an aristocrat and remained Charles Moreau.

  By now he and Merriman had become friends and on first name terms and Merriman told him of the forthcoming marriage and spoke of his fiancée Helen in such glowing terms that Charles remarked, “I can see James, that you are a fortunate man and I wish you every happiness. I only wish I could meet the lady.”

  Their arrival in Portsmouth should have been enjoyable for Merriman when the Lord Stevenage entered the harbour. Spontaneous cheering broke out from other ships at anchor when the two other vessels following were seen to be displaying the Union flag over the Tricolour, showing clearly that they were prizes. He raised his hat in acknowledgement, but in spite of the excitement he was too involved in the procedures of saluting the flag and anchoring where the harbour master’s boat indicated.

  “Signal Sir,” reported Midshipman Small. “Captain to report to Flag immediately.”

  Merriman’s stomach gave a lurch as he realised that the dreaded moment had come and now he would have to face the Admiral and tell him all about his nephew’s crimes. But he had no choice, his full report was writ
ten explaining all, he was wearing his best, new uniform, and was as prepared as he could be.

  Matthews was watching the lowering of his captain’s boat like hawk and as soon as the keel touched the water the crew leapt in. Merriman climbed down into the boat to the accompaniment of the usual ceremony of bos’n’s whistles and the presenting of arms by the marines and seated himself in the sternsheets, clutching his report beneath his cloak to keep it dry.

  The same harassed Lieutenant Williams met him on the quayside, imploring him to hurry, “Please Sir, the Admiral is impatient and he wants to see you in his quarters, not his office, without delay Sir, and I’ll be in trouble if you take too long Sir,”

  “We certainly don’t want that to happen, do we Lieutenant? Do you lead the way.”

  “Captain Merriman Sir,” announced the Lieutenant ushering Merriman into a room which displayed little elegance but nevertheless showed a woman’s touch in the draperies and cushions.

  “Come in Captain. Lieutenant, take the captain’s cloak and note well that I do not wish to be disturbed for anything short of a French invasion, see to it.”

  The Lieutenant fled, closing the door after him. On Merriman’s first acquaintance with him, Admiral Sir George FitzHerbert had been every inch the fiery and stern martinet but on this occasion he quietly indicated that Merriman should be seated.

  Then drawing a deep breath he asked, “Now Captain Merriman, what is all this about my nephew. That fellow Grahame told me something of it before he shot off to London but I want to hear the details from you.”

  “It’s all in my report here Sir George,” replied Merriman.

  “I know it is, but I want it straight, not cluttered up with the usual jargon.”