CHAPTER SEVENTEEN.
THE CONVENTION REDOUBT.
Bob's curiosity to hear my story was about equal to his appetite fordinner, so while we proceeded with the demolition of the comestibles, Irelated to him the various adventures which had befallen me sinceleaving the old "Juno," demanding in return an explanation of thecircumstances which led to his turning up in the opportune mannerrelated in the last chapter.
"Oh!" replied he, "I can tell you that in half-a-dozen words. When theboat returned from landing you, old Rawlings went at once to the cabinto make his report, and soon afterwards we filled away and stood to thenor'ard and east'ard under easy canvas. Then the wind fell light, andby-and-by it dropped altogether, and when daylight began to appear wefound ourselves within about six miles of this brig. The skipper andMr Annesley both toddled up as far as the main-topsail-yard to take alook at her. They were about a quarter of an hour up there, and whenthey came down, the first and second cutters were sent away to see whoand what she was. Mr Flinn had charge of one boat, Percival and I wentin the other. We soon saw that she was French, and the lads gave acheer and laid themselves out to race for her. Our boat was rather thelighter of the two, and Percival and I promised our people a bottle ofgrog if we got alongside first, in consequence of which we beat Flinnall to splinters. Seeing us walking ahead, he hailed us to keep back inline with him, which was likely, wasn't it? Oh, yes! Didn't he wish hemight get it? By the time that we were within half a mile of her thebrig had got her boarding-netting all triced up, guns loaded anddepressed, and everything ready for a warm reception. She withheld herfire until we were close to her, intending, I suppose, to utterlydemolish us just before we got alongside; but I was watching them withmy telescope, and as soon as they had got their broadside carefullytrained and were about to fire, we simply took a broad sheer to port,and before they could lay their guns afresh, we were under her bows, andinto her head, from whence we at last managed to hew our way in upondeck. This disheartened the Frenchmen, and they began to give way, andat that moment in came Flinn and his lot over the starboard quarter,laying about them right and left. That settled the business; theJohnnies flung down their arms and cried for quarter, which of course wegave them.
"She turned out to be the `Requin,' privateer, armed with eight longnine-pounders, with a crew of forty men in her forecastle, and her holdcrammed with the choicest pickings of the cargoes of some five or sixprizes. So you see she proved to be a valuable prize herself. I wasput in charge, with a prize crew of eight men, to take her into Malta;and I also carried a despatch for the admiral on the station. The oldboy was as pleased as Punch, when he read the skipper's letter, andactually invited me to dine with him that night, which you may be sure Idid. He asked me a good many questions about the fight, and about thebrig herself, and next day he came on board us and gave the craft athorough overhaul. The result was, that we were ordered alongside thearsenal wharf, where we discharged the entire cargo, took in a lot ofiron ballast, filled the magazine and water-casks, shipped a quantity ofshot and provisions for the fleet here, added seventeen more hands toour books, and sailed again just a week ago to-day, with orders to jointhe fleet at San Fiorenzo and report myself to Admiral Hood, for whomalso, by the way, I have a letter or despatch, or something of thatsort."
Such was the account which Mr Robert Summers gave of himself, and uponits conclusion we adjourned to the deck.
We were by this time within three miles of the fleet, and within aboutsix miles of the two detached ships, which were still maintaining avigorous cannonade upon the shore battery. We brought our telescopes tobear upon these two ships, and soon had the gratification of recognisingin one of them our own dear old craft, the "Juno." She did not appearto have received very much damage, but the other, which we were unableto identify, seemed to be very much cut up about her spars and rigging.
While still intently watching the progress of the fight, we observed athin column of greyish brown smoke curling up into the air from the"Juno's" consort. That it was not the smoke from her guns we could seeat once by its peculiar colour. It rapidly increased in volume, and asit did so the ship's fire slackened until it died away almost entirely.Still watching the vessel, as the smoke from her guns drove away toleeward, we saw three little tongues of flame darting out from her side.
"Tell you what, Chester!" exclaimed Summers; "those fellows ashore arefiring red-hot shot, and they've set the old barkie on fire."
Such was in fact the case, and in a few minutes we saw a signal run upto the royal-mast-head of the "Victory," Lord Hood's flag-ship. Theseventy-four immediately replied, and at once ceased firing altogether,the fire from the "Juno" also slackening somewhat. Then we saw therigging of the two ships blacken, as the hands went aloft to loose thecanvas. Rapidly, yet as steadily as though the crews were merely beingput through their sail drill, the heavy folds of canvas were let fallfrom the yards, sheeted home, and hoisted, the head-yards were braced a-back, and in another minute or two the bows of both craft paid off, andthey stood out from the land, close-hauled upon the larboard tack, torejoin the rest of the fleet, our old ship delivering her portbroadside, as the guns were brought to bear, by way of a parting salute.
We were by this time threading in and out among the transports on ourway to a vacant berth at no great distance from the "Victory," and inabout five minutes afterwards the "Requin" and her prizes came to ananchor. It was amusing enough to see Master Bob strutting up and downthe diminutive quarter-deck of the brig, his telescope tucked under onearm, and the cherished speaking-trumpet under the other, issuing hisorders as to the stowing of the canvas and the squaring of the yards,etcetera; but after all it was only natural: it was his first command,and he was anxious that everybody should see that he was fully qualifiedfor it. When at length everything had been done to his satisfaction, heordered the gig to be lowered, and, jumping into her, pulled away to theadmiral's ship to deliver his despatch.
Meanwhile I amused myself by watching the seventy-four and the "Juno,"as they worked up to the anchorage, and was glad to perceive that thefire which had broken out on board the "Juno's" consort had beenconquered.
By the time that they had reached their berths, Bob had returned, inhigh feather at Lord Hood's commendations upon his conduct; and I thenjoined him, leaving Francesca for the present on board the brig, whilewe pulled away to the "Juno," to report ourselves to the skipper.
We were received very graciously by Captain Hood, and very cordially bythe rest of the officers; so much so, indeed, that as far as I wasconcerned I was both gratified and moved to discover the high estimationin which all appeared to hold me.
I had only time to glance hurriedly round the decks, and to notice thatthe jolly old craft appeared to have suffered but slightly in her recentengagement with the shore battery, when Captain Hood invited me into hiscabin, and forthwith led the way.
I had, on reporting myself, announced to him in general terms the factthat I had accomplished my mission; now I had of course to enter intofull particulars, and give a detailed narrative of my adventures.
It was a sight to be remembered, to see the skipper open his eyes inamazement, when I described to him the particulars of my flight from theisland with Count Lorenzo's daughter, winding up with a statement thatshe was at that moment on board the brig. He was good enough tocompliment me very highly upon the zeal, courage, and discretion which Ihad manifested in the performance of a most important duty, and he alsoevinced some little concern respecting my damaged arm,--which, to speakthe truth, was none the better for my experiences on board the"Mouette,"--sending word there and then for the surgeon to come aft andgive it an overhaul; but I could see that his curiosity was powerfullyexcited with regard to Francesca, and, as soon as my disabled limb hadbeen dressed and made tolerably comfortable, he ordered his own gig tobe lowered, and, requesting my company in the boat, jumped into her andwas conveyed to the brig.
He evidently had as good an eye for a pretty woman as he had
for a ship,and seemed immensely struck with my lady-love, doing his best to renderhimself agreeable, and placing the ship and all hands at her disposal.Francesca, however, young as she was, had a perfect knowledge of "theproprieties;" she felt out of place on board ship, and clearlyrecognised the desirability of at once placing herself under her aunt'scare: she therefore thanked the skipper very gracefully for his generousoffer, and said she would merely trouble him so far as to avail herselfof his aid in making her way to the quarters of her uncle, GeneralPaoli.
This was a matter involving very little difficulty. The general hadestablished his head-quarters in a small fishing village, about fourmiles from San Fiorenzo, situated on the shore of a tiny cove visiblefrom the brig's deck; we therefore proceeded in the gig, in the firstplace, alongside the "Mouette," where we shipped Francesca's smallpacket of personal belongings, and then, taking Giaccomo in the boatwith us, we stepped the mast, hoisted the lug, and ran merrily downbefore the wind to the entrance of the cove, landing on the beach inperfectly smooth water, after rather more than an hour's sail.
It was by this time growing dusk, and when we reached the cottage inwhich General Paoli had established himself, we found that he was outgoing the rounds, and seeing personally to the posting of the sentinels.His wife, however, who had determined to share with, and if possiblemitigate for her husband the hardships of the campaign, was "at home,"and from her we all received a most cordial welcome. She was of coursedistressed to hear of the strait in which we had left her brother-in-law, the count, but was quite decided in her opinion that he had doneright to send Francesca away to her, and believed that, once freed ofanxiety respecting his daughter, it would be found that he had been ableto defend himself so vigorously as to eventually beat off hisassailants. She pressed us very earnestly to remain until the generalshould return, in order that he might have an opportunity personally tothank us both--and me especially--for the important service rendered tohis niece; but Captain Hood was anxious to get back to his ship, so asto go on board the admiral's ship, to take part in a council of war: wewere therefore reluctantly compelled to decline.
Before returning to the "Juno," however, we hunted up one or twoCorsican officers with whom the skipper had already become acquainted,and learned from them that the Mortella Tower (the battery which hadbeen that day attacked by the two frigates) had, as far as they had beenable to ascertain, borne the storm of shot unscathed.
On the way back to the ship I learned from the skipper that the "Juno's"consort in the action was called the "Fortitude," and that she hadsuffered severely in the engagement, losing six men killed, and fifty-six wounded, having three of her lower-deck guns dismounted, and alsobeing set on fire.
On reaching the "Juno" we found the decks cleared up, every sign of thelate combat effaced, and all hands below, but the anchor-watch. MrAnnesley, however, was on deck, awaiting the skipper's return, and as Ifollowed the latter up the side, the first luff paused before followinghim into the cabin, and said that, as soon as Captain Hood had left forthe admiral's ship, he should be glad to hear an account of my shore-cruise. I accordingly watched the departure of the gig, and then mademy way to the poop, where all three of the lieutenants were awaiting me,and to them I related in full detail all that had occurred to me fromthe moment of leaving the ship to that of rejoining her. I will notrepeat the flattering encomiums which my narrative elicited; suffice itto say that I was greatly gratified by the approval expressed by themall, and particularly by Mr Annesley's assurance that I had only to goon as I had begun to become an ornament to the service, and a credit toall connected with me.
The next day or two passed in a state of comparative inactivity with thefleet, Lord Hood having arrived at the conclusion, through hisexperience of the effects of the engagement between the "Fortitude" and"Juno" and the Mortella Tower, that a further sea-attack upon thatbattery would be useless, and that its reduction would have to beeffected by the land forces. I use the words "comparative inactivity"advisedly, for though the ships themselves were idle, as far as theprosecution of the campaign was concerned, the admiral was indefatigablein drilling and exercising the crews, and in accustoming those of thedifferent ships to act in concert. And in addition to this there was animmense amount of passing to and fro between the fleet and the shore, inthe transmission of despatches and the landing of stores and ammunition;and in these services the little "Mouette" came in very useful,sometimes rushing backward and forward with bulky packets of officialdocuments, and at other times making the passage with a whole fleet ofdeeply-laden boats in tow. As might be supposed, my experience of hercapabilities naturally led to the craft being entrusted to me while thusengaged, so that I was kept in a state of constant activity. I must,however, do Captain Hood the justice to record that, before detailing mefor this service, he gave me the option of remaining on board the"Juno," and being excused from duty until my arm had become completelyhealed. But as I could take as much care of my wounded limb on boardthe cutter as I could on board the frigate, I gratefully declined, tothe gratification of the skipper, I could easily see; and I thus hadfrequent opportunities of seeing Francesca, as well as of making theacquaintance of her uncle, General Paoli.
At length, after the interchange of a vast amount of correspondencebetween Lord Hood and Major-General Dundas, the officer in command ofthe land forces, it was one evening announced that an attack would bemade on the following day upon the Mortella Tower from some batteriesthrown up on the adjacent heights, and accordingly, the moment thatthere was light enough to sight the guns, the cannonade commenced. Itlasted for several hours, the fort replying with the utmost vigour tothe fire of our batteries, and doing a great deal of execution. By-and-by some genius on our side proposed paying-off the French in their owncoin by trying the effect of a few red-hot shot upon them. A make-shiftfurnace for heating the shot was accordingly hastily constructed, andthe shot were heated before being discharged at the fort. This sun hadthe desired effect. The parapet of the tower was lined with mantletsconstructed of bass junk for the purpose of protecting the gunners fromsplinters, and the red-hot shot striking these mantlets set them onfire, whereupon the French flag was hauled down, and the garrisonsurrendered.
We of the fleet witnessed this only from a distance, as it was thoughtpossible it might be necessary for some of the ships to approach andengage the battery from the sea, thus distracting the enemy's attention,and placing him between two fires. Everybody therefore remained at hispost on board ship in case of his services being required. Luckily,however, for our reputation interference on the part of the fleet wasunnecessary, the land forces proving sufficient for the subjugation ofthe battery, which mounted three guns only--two eighteens and one six-pounder,--and was garrisoned by no more than thirty-three men.
So far, so good. But though we had taken the Mortella Tower, we werestill nearly as far off having San Fiorenzo as ever. The town wascommanded and completely defended by a formidable redoubt, which mountedtwenty-one heavy guns, and was moreover perched upon an eminence whichcommanded every other accessible height in the neighbourhood, and thepossession of this redoubt really meant the possession of San Fiorenzo.So the question of the hour became, how to find a way of getting intothis Convention Redoubt, as the place was called.
The first proposal was to storm the place. But on making a carefulreconnaissance it became evident that, from its strength and thesteepness of the acclivity leading up to it, a storming-party would beannihilated before it could possibly reach the top. Its great elevationabove the sea-level rendered it equally hopeless to think of achievingany good result by an attack on the part of the fleet. And so strict awatch was maintained by its garrison, that our leaders soon becameconvinced of the impossibility of effecting a surprise. Naturally thesubjugation of this redoubt became the all-absorbing topic ofconversation.
While the interest was at its highest, it happened that Mr Annesley hadoccasion to go on shore, and he took a passage with me in the little"Mouette." He had ne
ver landed on the island before, and so, as we randown toward the creek, I pointed out to him the various points ofinterest in the landscape. He was very anxious to get a sight of theConvention Redoubt, but this was not just then possible, a high rockyacclivity close to the shore shutting out the view. I had often lookedat this rock, and had thought what a fine view of the redoubt might behad from its summit, and how easily the place might be reduced, were itonly possible to plant guns there, and I mentioned something of thiswhile we were going ashore.
Our worthy "first" remained silent for a good ten minutes after I hadconcluded my remarks, intently examining through his telescope the faceof the rock meanwhile. At last he said,--
"I should like to give that rock a bit of an overhaul, Chester. Are youa good hand at climbing?"
"Pretty fair, sir, I believe," was my modest reply.
"Well, then, as soon as I have transacted my business, we will both goand see what it looks like," said he.
Accordingly, as soon as he was at liberty, we made our way to the baseof the rock. I call it a rock, and so it certainly was; but there was aconsiderable depth of soil in many places about its sides, which soilwas thickly covered with short close herbage, upon which a few goatswere browsing here and there, and it sent a thrill through us both tosee these active animals leaping from one projection to another, orclinging like flies to the almost perpendicular faces of the thinly-scattered grassy slopes. Looking up at them through our telescopes, itfrequently seemed that they had got themselves into such a position,that it would be equally impossible for them to attempt either to goforward or to return without precipitating themselves headlong to thebottom of the precipice.
It was not an encouraging spectacle to two persons who entertainedserious thoughts of scaling such a cliff, especially as stones detachedby the feet of the scrambling goats above occasionally came plungingdown about our ears; but sailors are not easily, daunted when it comesto a question of climbing, and accordingly after a careful examination,with the view of selecting the most practicable path, we went resolutelyat it.
It was not quite so bad as it looked for about two-thirds of the way up;but when we neared the top, the rocky face became so nearlyperpendicular--indeed, it actually overhung in places--that we hadserious thoughts of abandoning the enterprise altogether. However, wedid not like to be beaten after having achieved so much, so wepersevered, and at last, after a most perilous and laborious climb,actually succeeded in reaching the summit.
The view from our exalted situation was superb. We were standing uponthe highest eminence for many miles round, and the air was so clear andtransparent that distant objects were as distinctly seen as thoughviewed through a telescope. On our left the blue expanse of theMediterranean stretched far away to the northward and westward, dottedhere and there with the sails of a few tiny coasting or fishing craft.Below us, and apparently near enough for us to have thrown a stone onboard any of them, lay the fleet of men-o'-war and transports, withtheir sails loose to dry from a heavy shower of the previous night, andthe men about their decks reduced to mere moving specks. In front of,and still below us, and so near that we could distinguish theaccoutrements of the men forming its garrison, was the redoubt, with itstwenty-one guns projecting their muzzles threateningly over the sodparapet, and symmetrical little pyramidal piles of shot heaped upalongside each gun. Beyond it lay San Fiorenzo, with its narrowstreets, red-tiled, white-washed houses, terraced gardens,insignificant-looking churches, and the harbour beyond, with the cliffsstretching away beyond it again as far as Cape Corso, and away out atsea the small island of Capriaja. Upon our right a continuous chain ofhills reared themselves, thickly wooded to their very summits; while inour rear Calvi, although something like thirty miles distant, wasclearly distinguishable.
But the redoubt was with us the chief point of interest. We examined itwith the utmost minuteness, and Mr Annesley, who possessed some skillwith the pencil, made an accurate sketch of it, indicating clearly whatseemed to us its weakest points. This done, we made a very carefulexamination on all sides of the face of the rock upon which we stood,finally coming to the conclusion that, though a difficult feat, it waspossible to raise a few 18-pounders to the summit.
That same evening Mr Annesley, accompanied by the skipper, proceeded onboard the "Victory," and reported to the admiral the fact of our havingscaled the rock, exhibited his sketch of the redoubt, and explained hisideas as to the practicability of establishing a battery upon thesummit. The result was that, on the following morning, Lord Hood,Commodore Linzee, Sir Hyde Parker, Captain (afterwards Lord) Nelson, theskipper, and Mr Annesley took a passage ashore with me in the"Mouette," and all hands of us shinned aloft--the first luff and I toshow the way, the rest to reconnoitre.
On reaching the foot of the cliff our superiors (with the exception ofCaptain Nelson) rather threw cold water upon the proposed scheme ofraising guns to the top; Mr Annesley, however, with respectful firmnessmaintained his belief in the practicability of his ideas; and after agreat deal of discussion they decided to at least attempt the ascentthemselves, and see how the project looked from the lofty stand-point ofthe summit.
By the time that we had accomplished our climb their views had becomesomewhat modified, Captain Nelson's quick eye having lighted uponseveral spots, in the progress of his ascent, where it would bepracticable to erect sheers or to secure tackles. But it was the sightof the redoubt itself, as seen from the top of the rock, and thecomplete command of it which would be obtained by a battery planted atthe spot whereon they stood, which finally decided the admiral to makethe attempt.
The details of the plan were arranged there and then, the mostadvantageous positions for sheers, etcetera, fixed upon during thedescent, the resources of the fleet discussed on the passage off, and,immediately on our arrival alongside the "Victory," the preparationswere commenced. Anchors, chains, ropes, blocks, etcetera, were loadedinto the ships' boats, spare spars were launched overboard and formedinto a raft, and that same evening the "Mouette" left the fleet, withfourteen boats and the raft in tow; and the wind happening to be deadfair, and just a nice little breeze for the purpose, enabling us all tocrowd every stitch of canvas we could set, we ran gaily down before it,and by dusk had everything ashore in readiness for the commencement ofour task the first thing on the following morning.
It is not necessary to describe in detail the operations whicheventually resulted in the planting of a battery of 18-pounder guns,together with the necessary ammunition, upon the summit of thatprecipitous rock, at a height of no less than 700 feet above the sea-level; suffice it to briefly say that by the almost unparalleled skilland perseverance of the officers in charge, and the equallyextraordinary exertions of the bluejackets, the feat was actuallyaccomplished, and by sunset on the 15th of February, 1794, everythingwas ready for opening fire.
I had hoped that, as the idea might fairly be said to have originatedwith me, I should be entrusted with the charge of one of the workingparties engaged in the task of establishing the battery; but, much to mydisappointment, I was left in charge of the cutter, which, during theprogress of the operations, was kept going between the fleet and theshore literally day and night, in consequence of which Mr RobertSummers was turned over to me as my first lieutenant. We grumbledalmost incessantly at our hard lot in not being allowed to render ourvaluable assistance more directly to the work in hand, but the rewardfor our enforced self-denial was nearer at hand than either of usexpected.
The morning of the 16th broke fair and clear, with scarcely a breath ofair to ruffle the surface of the water, and with the first streak ofdawn all hands were aroused by the roar of the cannonade from the CliffBattery, as we had named it. All day long without a moment'sintermission was the fire kept up, and on into the evening as long asthere was light enough to see. Then the fire slackened down somewhat,the efforts of our gunners being merely directed through the night tothe prevention of all attempts on the part of the enemy to executerepairs. On the following morning our
guns again opened upon thedevoted redoubt, and shortly after midday a message was brought down tome for conveyance to the admiral, the substance of which was that therewas every indication of a practicable breach being effected beforesunset.
There was a fresh breeze dead against us, but we crowded sail on thecutter to such an extent, in our eagerness to get off to the fleet withthe welcome news, that it is the greatest wonder in the world we did notcarry the sticks out of her. Arrived under the lee of the "Victory,"Bob and I jumped into our dinghy, and, rowing alongside the flag-ship,sprang up her lofty sides, and, finding the admiral on the quarter-deck,went up to him and delivered our message.
"I was wondering," said Sir Hyde Parker, who was also on the quarter-deck, "what good news you young monkeys had to tell, that you werecarrying-on upon the boat in that unmerciful manner. If you are notmore careful, young gentlemen, that craft will turn the turtle with yousome day, and our friend Hood will lose two of his most promisingofficers, eh?"
The admiral looked at us for a moment with just the ghost of a smileflickering over his inscrutable features, and then ordered the signal tobe made for the captains of the various men-o'-war to rendezvous onboard the flag-ship.
"I have arranged with Dundas," he said, "to send a brigade on shore tohelp make up the storming-party, and I think it will be best to let eachcaptain call for a certain number of volunteers."
Bob and I stepped forward with one accord, just as Sir Hyde whippedround upon his heel and said sharply,--
"If you have no objection, sir, I should like to lead our bluejackets inthis affair. You will have to send some one with them; they will beworse than useless in the hands of the soldier-officers, since they willnot understand each other, and I might as well go as another."
"Not to be thought of for a moment, sir," returned the admiral. "No,no, no; give one or other of the captains a chance to distinguishhimself; you have already made your mark. Well, what can I do for you,young gentlemen?" turning to us.
"We shall volunteer, sir," said I, as bold as brass; "and we should feel_very_ much obliged if you will put in a word for us with the sk-- withCaptain Hood, sir, if you please."
"Have either of you ever been present at the storming of a fortress?"asked the admiral.
"No, sir," cut in Bob, taking the words out of my mouth, "but we haveboarded an enemy's ship before now, sir, which is pretty much the samething."
"About as much like it as the musketry-fire of a squad of marines is tothe broadside of this ship," remarked the admiral. "No, my lads, takemy advice and remain on board your ship. I have no doubt your courageis more than sufficient for such work, but you lack _strength. Men_ areneeded for a storming-party; you could be of no possible use, and bygoing would only risk your lives needlessly. I am sorry to be obligedto refuse you, but I should not be justified in acceding to yourrequest. You may retire, young gentlemen, but I shall not forget yourgallant behaviour."
We accordingly retreated down the side, very much crestfallen anddisappointed indeed, and, jumping into the dinghy, returned to the"Mouette," just as the captains' gigs from the various ships were comingup alongside.
Seating ourselves upon the companion-slide, and dangling our legsdisconsolately down the companion, we abandoned ourselves to the mostgloomy reflections, watching meanwhile the boats as they dashed upalongside the flag-ship, and cynically criticising the stroke and actionof the several crews; and I am afraid the skippers themselves did notaltogether escape our disparaging remarks.
We had been sitting thus for about a quarter of an hour, givingunrestrained vent to our feelings of dissatisfaction, when Bob'scountenance suddenly brightened, and, turning to me, he exclaimed in ananimated tone of voice,--
"I say, Chester, what fools we are! Let's go aboard the old `Juno' andwait until the skipper returns, and when he calls for volunteers we'llbe the first to step to the front. Old Hood," (it was in thisunpardonably disrespectful manner he alluded to the admiral) "hasforgotten all about us by this time, and so he will never think ofmentioning to the skipper our request, and I don't see why we haven't agood chance yet. Do you?"
No sooner said than done. We knew that the chiefs would at that momentbe seated in the admiral's cabin, so, filling upon the cutter, we boreaway and ran down under the lee of the "Juno," whose deck we gained justas the captains' gigs were shoving off from the "Victory's"accommodation-ladder.
Ten minutes afterwards Captain Hood came up the side, and immediatelygave orders for all hands to come aft. He then, accompanied by MrAnnesley, went up on the poop, and stood there, watching the eager andexpectant faces of the men as they clustered thickly in the waist onboth sides of the deck. The officers were all grouped together upon thequarter-deck.
Waiting until all hands were present, the skipper stepped forward to thehead of the poop-ladder, and, waving his hand for silence, said,--
"My lads, I have just weturned from a conference with the admiwal, atwhich every captain in the fleet was pwesent. And I am--ah--charged byLord Hood to expwess to you all--officers and men alike--his thanks foryour wecent exertions in waising the guns to the top of yonder wock.The battewy thus--er--ah--placed in position will, it is expected,effect a--a pwacticable bweach in the wall of the Convention Wedoubt bysunset this evening, and it is intended to storm the place as soon as--ah--darkness sets in. The storming-party is to be made up of an equalnumber of soldiers and bluejackets,"--here the speaker was interruptedby an enthusiastic cheer from his audience, the repetition of which waschecked by the skipper's uplifted hand--"the storming-party," hecontinued, "is to be composed equally, I say, of soldiers andbluejackets, and the admiwal has authowized each captain to call forfifty volunteers--keep steady, men; be silent and--ah--wait until I havequite finished, if you please. I am authowized to call for fiftyvolunteers; but I wish you all distinctly to understand that no man whohas in any way misconducted himself will be accepted. Now let those whovolunteer for the storming-party come abaft the mainmast."
Bob and I, knowing what was coming, had gradually edged to the front--wewere of course, with the rest of the officers, already abaft themainmast--and, directly the skipper ceased, we stepped smartly out andposted ourselves at the foot of the poop-ladder, to show that we werevolunteering; and then faced round to witness the effect of CaptainHood's speech upon the crew.
The scene was irresistibly comic. In the first place we found that thegroup of officers had simply shifted position in a compact body, so thatwe all stood pretty much as we were before. The front ranks of the menhad also advanced until they were well abaft the mainmast, when theyhalted--that is, they _would_ have baited had it not been for thepressure behind, which was pretty steady in the front portion of themass, but in the rear something very like a panic ensued, and almostbefore one could count ten those unfortunates who had not already gainedthe coveted position began to clamber over the booms, along the hammock-rail, and actually out through the ports, along the main-channels, andin again through the ports farther aft, in their eagerness to volunteer.The struggling and elbowing increased until it became almost desperate,when one of the boatswain's mates--a brawny, muscular, old sea-dog, witha mahogany visage, a gigantic pig-tail, and his chest and armselaborately tattooed--stepped out, and, facing round, exclaimed instentorian tones,--
"Avast heaving there, ye unmannerly swabs; do you take his Majesty'squarter-deck,"--lifting his hat--"for a playhouse-booth on Southseacommon? Belay all, and stand fast, every mother's son of ye, and let mespeak to the skipper for ye."
Then, facing the poop once more, he stepped forward out of the crowd,and doffing his hat, while he made an elaborate sea-scrape with hisright foot and gave a tug at his forelock, he addressed the skippersomewhat as follows,--
"I hope your honour'll kindly overlook this little bit of a scrimmagethat's just took place, and forgive our unperliteness, seeing as how amany of us has never had a chance of larnin' how to behave ourselves indelicate sitivations. Your honour doesn't need to be told--at least, we
hopes not--that we didn't mean nothing in any way unbecoming ordisrespectable to you or the rest of the hofficers--no, not by no mannerof means whatsomever. All we want to say is just this here: that allhands on us, down to the powder-monkeys, begs most respectably towolunteer for this here boardin'-party; and we hopes as how you'll takethe whole kit of us, 'ceptin' of course the black-sheep as your honourspoke of just now, and let them and the `jollies' look arter the oldbarkie, who won't mind takin' care of herself for an hour or two--Godbless her!--while us, her precious hinfants, is havin' a little bit of alark with the Crapoos ashore there."
A loud murmur of approval greeted this effort on the part of theboatswain's mate, and then everybody awaited in silence the reply.
A deep flush of gratification lighted up Captain Hood's features as hesaid,--
"I thank you from my heart, men, for your--um--generous wesponse to mycall, and I am sincerely sowwy that I cannot take you--er--eh--at yourwords. But the admiwal's instwuctions are impewative, and I have nopower to dwaw more than the specified number. As therefore you have_all_ volunteered, the `Juno's' contingent shall be chosen by lot,whereby all partiality or unfairness will be avoided, and I hope thatthe awwangement will pwove satisfactowy."
The crew were accordingly arranged in a double rank, fore and aft thedeck, and lots drawn--each man choosing a folded slip of paper from abundle, fifty of which were marked, the remainder being blank.
Then came the question of selecting officers, a proper quota of whichwere to go with the men. It came out at this stage of the proceedingsthat our skipper had been chosen to command the naval brigade; MrAnnesley therefore, much to his chagrin, found that he had no option butto remain on board. The second and third lieutenants tossed up todecide which of them should go, and the "second" was lucky enough towin. One other officer was required, and the lot fell on Percival, themaster's-mate. The doctor was to go, as a matter of course, but he wasto be a non-combatant. Little Summers and I--poor Pilgarlic--were soentirely consumed with disgust, that we could find no words sufficientlypowerful to express our feelings, and we simply stood glaring at eachother in moody silence.
Suddenly a brilliant idea flashed through my brain. Winkingencouragingly at the disconsolate Bob, I stepped boldly up to theskipper, and, touching my cap, said,--
"I hope, sir, as the officers will doubtless go ashore in the cutter,that you will allow Summers and me to land and join the storming-party.We will try to make ourselves useful, sir, in the carrying of messagesand so on, and--and we have been looking forward so much to the affairthat--that we _hope_ you will not disappoint us, sir."
"Oh!" said the skipper; "you wish--you and Summers--to join thestorming-party, eh? Well, I weally don't know what to say about that;it would scarcely be fair to the other young gentlemen, you know.Still--um--ah--let me see. The admiwal and some of the officers, notforming part of the stormers, are going on shore, and they willdoubtless use the cutter; and as they will stay until all is over, Ithink you may venture to join us, and if you get into twouble over theaffair, I must do the best I can to make excuses for you."
"Hurrah, Bob!" I exclaimed, as I rejoined my despondent friend. "Faintheart never won fair lady; the skipper has given us permission to slipashore and join the stormers, so off you go at once and get ready. Anddon't be long, old chap, for the admiral and a lot more are going ashorein the little `Mouette,' and we must be on hand directly our signal ismade."
"Never fear," joyously responded Bob. "I'll be ready in a brace ofshakes; I've only to get my `weepons' as our Scotch doctor calls them,and I'll be on deck again as soon as you are."
Having already so successfully enacted the part of a petitioner, Idetermined to try my luck once more, and accordingly hunted up theHonourable Mortimer, who had retired to his cabin. One of the hobbiesof our somewhat eccentric "third" was the collection of choice weapons,several valuable specimens of which adorned his state-room. If he eversaw anything specially curious or choice in the shape of sword orpistol, he never rested until he had made it his own; but when once thecoveted article had come into his possession he seemed to lose allfurther interest in it, and accordingly, being also a good-naturedindividual enough, he was always ready to lend from his stock, providedan undertaking were entered into to take due care of the borrowedarticle, and to faithfully return it.
To this accommodating friend I briefly stated my case, which was simply,that as there was just a bare possibility--I did not like to put it anystronger, remembering that he was one of the disappointed ones--of mybeing present at the storming of the redoubt, I was anxious to beprovided with some more efficient weapon than my dirk, and that I wouldfeel very much obliged to him if he would lend me one of his swords.This he at once did, bidding me take my choice, and I thereupon selecteda beautiful Turkish scimitar, the curved blade of which, inlaid with adelicate scroll pattern in gold, was as keen as a razor. Tucking thisunder my arm, and thanking him duly for his kindness, I next hurriedaway to the armourer, and wheedled him out of a pair of ship's pistols,together with the necessary ammunition; after which I returned to thedeck and awaited my ally, calm in the consciousness that I was nowprepared for any and every emergency. I was almost immediatelyafterwards joined by Bob, whose face beamed with delight as he directedmy attention to a ship's cutlass which he had girded to his thigh, and apair of long-barrelled duelling-pistols which our fire-eating "second"had entrusted to his care. We at once trundled down over the side intoour cockleshell of a boat, and, getting on board the "Mouette" with allspeed, roused up the anchor and dodged about well in view of theadmiral, keeping a sharp lookout for the "whiff" in the mizzen-rigging,which was our especial signal for service.
Under the Meteor Flag: Log of a Midshipman during the French Revolutionary War Page 17