The Pirate Slaver

by Harry Collingwood

  “Good-bye! Heaven bless and prosper you!” fervently ejaculated the unknown, as I moved away from the door; and I thought I heard faint murmurs of a similar import from some of the other cabins, but could not be certain, as one of the outer doors giving direct access to the main-deck suddenly opened, and I had to make a dash of it for the dark vestibule in order to reach the concealment of the still darker companion-way to avoid detection. My alarm was groundless, however; for the newcomer proved to be Joe Maxwell, the carpenter, whom I saw enter the saloon, after a careful reconnaissance of its interior, with several plugs under one arm, and a maul in his hand. Seeing who it was, I followed him, and unexpectedly ran against him as he was again coming out.

  “Who the—oh, it’s you, sir! beg your pardon, I’m sure, but I thought it was one of them sneakin’ pirate chaps a-prowlin’ round,” he exclaimed. “I thought I heard a sound o’ some sort as I comed in from the deck, and thinks I, ‘That’s one o’ them cowardly villains that has sneaked aft for some purpose of his own that ain’t no good, I dare swear. I’ll just see what the scoundrel’s up to, and if he’s after anything very houtragis, I’ll maybe take the liberty of smashin’ his skull with this here maul, and droppin’ him over the starn to the sharks, where many a better man than he went this a’ternoon.’ Lucky for him that it’s you, sir, as the Irishman says. I’m just a-goin’ to make my way down into the run, so as to be all handy for pluggin’ up the holes again that these here murderin’ thieves intends to bore through the dear old gal’s skin. I think they’ll be pretty sure to come aft to do it; it’ll either be there or down in the fore-peak, where they’d have to shovel away a lot of coal to get at her below the water-line, so I expect they’ll make for the run. Now, sir, it’s a very good job as I met you just here, because I can show you the lazarette hatch—here it is, under our feet.” And he turned back a large mat upon which we were standing, disclosing a small, square hatch flush with the deck.

  “Now, sir,” he continued, “I’ll be off below at once; because, from what I saw as I comed aft, I fancy them Spanish thieves is thinkin’ about toppin’ their booms, and if so, we’ve no time to spare. There,” as he raised the hatch and dropped through the opening, “I’m all right now, sir; I can make my way well enough without a light, though I’ve got a candle and matches in my pocket that’ll give light enough to work by as soon as them villains have cleared out. Now, sir, please put on the hatch again, will ye, and don’t forget to spread the mat over it. And when them blackguards have gone you can send somebody to let me out.”

  “All right, Maxwell, never fear; I’ll see to that,” I answered, as the man disappeared in the gloom. “Good luck to you. And whatever those fellows may do, be sure that you keep silent and do not attempt to interfere with them; let them do their work and go away, and as soon as you hear the hatch close after them, go ahead and plug the holes as quickly as you like, and be sure that you make a thorough job of it.”

  “Ay, ay, sir,” came his reply, already muffled by distance and the intervening casks and cases among which he was making his way, “you may trust me for that.”

  I carefully replaced the hatch, adjusted the mat over it, and made my way cautiously up on the poop. It was evident, from what I now saw, that Maxwell was only just in time; for the pirates had knocked off work and were coming up out of the hold, refreshing themselves as they emerged by copious draughts from a tub of strong grog that stood on the deck conveniently near the hatchway. They were all pretty far gone in a state of intoxication, and were singing a jumble of at least a dozen forecastle ditties in tones of maudlin sentiment, or laughing and jeering at nothing in particular as they reeled and staggered about the deck. Disgusting as was the sight, I was glad to see it, for I felt that men in their condition would never notice the absence of Simpson or myself from the brigantine, still less that of the unaccustomed faces of those of the Bangalore’s crew who had joined me and were now snugly concealed aloft. Nor were they capable of doing very much more mischief, unless perchance they should accidentally set the ship on fire, which was what I most greatly dreaded; if, happily, we escaped this danger all might yet be well, for I felt convinced that, once on board the brigantine again, and the unhappy negroes once more set to the sweeps, nearly every man in the accursed craft’s forecastle would betake himself to his hammock and stay there until morning. There was of course the risk that Mendouca might send for me and ask me to look after his vessel for him through the night, knowing or guessing as he would the condition of his crew; but I did not believe that he would, at least not so soon after the perpetration of such fearful atrocities as he had openly committed that afternoon.

  The men having helped themselves freely from the grog-tub, until it seemed that they could take no more, tumbled rather than scrambled down into the boat alongside, and I was just beginning to cherish the hope that after all they would go away forgetting to scuttle the ship, when I saw José, the boatswain—who appeared to have assumed the command of the party—seize and detain the only man except himself who still remained on the ship’s deck. He said something to this man, and then they both staggered away forward and I lost sight of them in the deep shadows that enshrouded the fore-part of the ship. They were gone about ten minutes; and then they re-appeared, the boatswain armed with a large auger. As they passed the main-hatchway, on their way aft, José seized one of the still lighted lanterns that were standing on the deck, and seemed to direct his companion to take another. This the man did, and continuing their way aft, the pair entered the saloon from the main-deck; and presently, peering cautiously down through the open skylight, I saw that the two ruffians were groping about under the cabin table, no doubt searching for the lazarette hatch. Their search was of course in vain; and at length I overheard the boatswain assert with an oath that it was useless to search for it any longer, they must get the steward out of his pantry, and make him show them where it was. They then left the saloon, and there was silence for a few minutes; then, going to the head of the companion-ladder, I heard José demanding in broken English, with a profusion of expletives, where was the opening of the lazarette. A strange voice replied in trembling tones; and then I heard the mat flung back and the hatch wrenched off with a clatter. A few more oaths followed, there was a scrambling sound, and I concluded that the two miscreants had descended to the performance of their dastardly task.

  Then ensued what seemed like a very long—although it was actually a comparatively short—period of anxious suspense, for completely successful as we had been thus far, our absence from the brigantine might easily be discovered at any moment; and in that case there was no alternative for us between fighting to the death and ignominious surrender. I was more anxious on my own behalf than on that of the others, for their absence was scarcely likely to be noted by their drunken comrades until the next morning, while, as for me, should Mendouca take it into his head to require my presence, it would no sooner be reported to him that I was not to be found than he would have a very shrewd suspicion of what had happened; and I felt convinced that, with my knowledge of the enormities that he had perpetrated on that dreadful day, he would never willingly suffer me to escape from him alive. Then there was Pedro, too. The lad had, for some inscrutable reason, taken a violent fancy for me, and, although I have not very frequently referred to him in the telling of this story, had attached himself to me with almost the fidelity of a dog, sharing in my watch, and seizing every opportunity to be in my company. Should he find himself at liberty to seek me I should be lost, for he would not be content until he had found me. There were just two chances in my favour against many adverse possibilities: the first being that Mendouca’s condition would confine the lad to his side all through the night; the second lying in the fact that I had taken the precaution to lock my cabin-door and remove the key before leaving the brigantine, so that should it chance that I was sought for, it might be thought that I had locked myself into my cabin in anger at the piratical deed that had been perpetrated. But I grew in
creasingly uneasy as the minutes dragged their slow length along, expecting every moment to hear a hail from the brigantine inquiring as to my whereabouts. It was therefore with a feeling of keen delight that, at the expiration of about twenty-five minutes, when my state of suspense had become almost unendurable, as I stood listening at the head of the companion-way I heard José’s voice again, and the sounds of his own and his companion’s emergence from the lazarette.

  “There,” I heard him exclaim in Spanish, in a drunken voice and with a jeering laugh, “that job is done, and pretty effectually, too; I don’t suppose she will float longer than three hours more, or four at the most, and then who is to know what has become of her? It will be supposed that she foundered in a gale; and that will be the end of the matter. It is a pity, Miguel, that we should be obliged to destroy so fine a ship, but she could never be of any use to us, and necessity has no law, you know. Now—let me consider—there is one thing more to be done before we leave; what is it? It was in my mind a moment ago! Ah, yes, of course, that is it; we have to put this miserable poltroon of a steward back into his pantry, lock the door upon him, and—yes, that is all, I think. Come along, amigo!”

  I heard the steward begging piteously not to be locked up again; for although the fellow had probably not understood a single word of what José had said, he had sense enough to know that the two ruffians before him had scuttled the ship, and that if locked up in his pantry again he would probably drown there, like a rat in a trap. His entreaties, how ever, were of course unavailing with two men who knew not the meaning of mercy; there was a Spanish oath or two, the sound of a scuffle, mingled with further cries of distress from the steward, the slamming of a door, the sharp click of a lock; and a moment later José and his companion emerged upon the deck, staggered to the gangway, scrambled down the side, and the boat was shoved off.

  I waited until the boat was fairly away from the ship’s side, and then, slipping down the dark companion-way, groped about until I had found the pantry, which I unlocked, to find the unhappy steward, bound hand and foot, prostrate on the deck, weeping bitterly. In reply to my question he told me where I could lay my hand upon a knife, finding which I cut him adrift, and directed him to go forward to the forecastle to ascertain whether any of the crew were imprisoned down there. Then, making my way to the still open lazarette, I swung myself down into it, and called Maxwell’s name as loudly as I dared. He heard and answered me at once.

  “The rascals have left the ship,” I cried, “so you may ram those plugs home as tightly as you can, and perhaps even venture to give them a gentle tap or two, but we must leave the final driving until the brigantine has moved off; everything has gone right thus far, and it will never do to spoil it all now by being impatient. Has she taken in much water?”

  “Not more than we can pump out of her in ten minutes,” was the reply, as I sighted him creeping toward me along the narrow space underneath the beams. “They only bored five holes through her, and I’ve already plugged ’em tight enough to stop the water from comin’ in—though of course they’ll want a few good taps on the head to make ’em all secure. But that job can wait until the brigantine is a mile or two further away.”

  “Had you any difficulty in plugging the holes?” I asked, as honest Joe emerged into the more open spaces about the hatchway.

  “Not a bit, sir,” he answered. “You see the way of it was this: As soon as I got to understand that they was likely to scuttle the ship, the first thing I says to myself was: ‘I wonder,’ I says, ‘what size auger them murderin’ scoundrels is likely to use? Because if I only knowed that, I could make my plugs to fit the holes.’ Then the next thing I thought was that prob’ly they wouldn’t remember to bring a tool aboard with ’em, and that they’d hunt for some’at of the sort aboard here. So I goes to my cabin, gets out a inch and a half auger, a chisel, a hammer and some nails, and places ’em on the tarpaulin of the fore-hatch, where anybody going for’ard couldn’t help seein’ of ’em; and ‘There,’ I says to myself, ‘if those fellers haven’t brought no auger aboard with ’em, that’s the tool they’ll use.’ So I chanced it, and made my plugs to fit a inch and a half hole; and, as it turned out, I was right; they used my auger what I had left for ’em, and as soon as their backs was turned I slipped down and screwed the plugs into the holes.”

  “Excellent!” said I. “And now, Maxwell, the next job is to break open the state-rooms and release the poor ladies and gentlemen who are confined there. Do you think you can do it without making much noise?”

  “Lord bless you, yes, sir,” was the cheerful reply. “I’ll just go for’ard and get a bit of wire, and I’ll pick the locks of them cabin-doors in next to no time, and make no noise about it either.”

  “Then come along and let us get it done at once. That must be our first job,” said I.

  * * *

  Chapter Eighteen.

  Re-appearance of the ‘Francesca’.

  While Maxwell stole forward to get his wire, I crept up on the poop again, and carefully avoiding the skylight, so that my figure might not be revealed by the coloured rays that streamed from it, found that the boat with José and his companions, and the last of the plunder, was just going alongside the brigantine. The first to scramble out of her was José; and there was light enough about the brigantine’s decks to enable me to see that he went straight aft to the companion, which he descended. He was absent from the deck but a very few minutes, however; and when he re-appeared I supposed that he had been below to make his report to Mendouca and to receive that individual’s orders, for as he passed along the deck I heard him shout to the crew—

  “Now, then, look alive there with those bales, and get the deck clear as quickly as possible, so that we can get the niggers on deck and the sweeps at work once more. We’ve got all that we can take from the Englishman, and now the sooner we are off the better, for she won’t float above two or three hours longer; and if a breeze was to spring up, and bring a cruiser along with it, it would be bad for us if we were found in this neighbourhood. So bundle those bales down the hatchway anyhow, men, and clear the decks at once. We must stow the goods properly afterwards.”

  This was excellent—very much better than I had expected; for a dreadful idea had suggested itself to me, that Mendouca might take it into his head to remain by the ship until she should show unmistakable signs of sinking, in which case there would be nothing for us but another fight, which, short-handed as we were, would not suit our book at all.

  The men on board the Francesca, woke up a little at José’s order, and soon had the last boat unloaded and the decks clear; the slaves were then ordered on deck, the Bangalore’s boats cast adrift, the sweeps rigged out, and, with I think the most fervent emotion of gratitude and delight that I had ever experienced, I at length had the satisfaction of seeing the brigantine stir sluggishly against the background of the star-spangled heavens, turn her bows slightly away from us, and finally glide off, with a quiet, gentle, scarcely-perceptible motion, in a westerly direction.

  While I was still watching her I caught sight of Maxwell creeping along the deck from forward, under the shelter of the bulwarks, so that the light from the still burning lanterns that the pirates had left behind them might not disclose his moving figure to any of the eyes on board the Francesca that might be turned upon the ship; and making my way down the companion, I joined him in the vestibule, and we entered the cabin together.

  I led him straight to the door of the state-room with the occupant of which I had previously held a short conversation, and directed Maxwell to open it, at the same time knocking upon the panel and saying—

  “Sir, I am happy to inform you that the pirates have at length left us, and we are about to make an attempt to release you.”

  “Thank God for that!” fervently ejaculated a voice that I had not heard before. “Be as quick as you can, pray, for I fear that my poor husband here is dead or dying; and he should be attended to without a moment’s delay.”

/>   “That’s Mrs Maynard’s voice!” exclaimed the carpenter, as he worked away with his wire; “I know it well. Somebody told me that the colonel was hurt—stabbed, I think they said, in protectin’ his daughters from the ill-usage of some of them Spanish ruffians.”

  “Say you so, man?” I exclaimed. “Then never mind fiddling with that wire any longer. Let us put our shoulders to the door and burst it open!”

  “Half a second, sir; I’ve got the thing now, and—there, that’s all right! Now try the door, sir!”

  As the man spoke I heard the click of the lock as it went back, and, turning the handle, the door opened, and I entered.

  The cabin was a fine, roomy one, and of good height, as cabins went in those days; it contained two standing bunks, one above the other, fitted with brass rods and damask curtains, a sofa against the side of the ship, a wash-stand in a recess between the bunks and the bulkhead adjoining the saloon, a framed mirror above it, a folding mahogany table against the transverse bulkhead, brass pins upon which to hang clothing, a curtain to draw across the doorway, a handsome lamp with a ground-glass globe hung in gimbals in the centre of the transverse bulkhead, two large travelling trunks and three or four smaller cases, broken open and the contents strewn upon the carpeted deck, and prone among them, bound hand and foot and lashed together, were the figures of a man and woman, both evidently elderly, although their precise ages could hardly be guessed by the imperfect light that streamed in from the saloon through the open door.

  As I entered the apartment, noting these details in a single comprehensive glance, the woman moaned—

  “Oh, sir, for the love of God pray release us from these cruel bonds as quickly as possible; they are bound so tightly that the circulation of the blood is stopped, and we have been suffering the most excruciating agony for hours.”