CHAPTER XX
AN UNEXPECTED PERIL IN VIEW
The Fatimé was not more than fifty feet distant from the Maud, and the voice of the Pacha could be very distinctly heard when he hailed the little steamer by her old name. The reply of Scott must have been equally audible on board of the other steamer, but no attention was given to it. The distinguished Moor could not have helped seeing the name "Maud" on the pilot-house, for he had lived in England, and he could speak and write the language.
Scott had been in his employ at least a week, and he knew something about him. The one thing in particular he had learned about the Pacha was that he was obstinately persevering in whatever he undertook. If he took a fancy to obtain anything, or to accomplish anything, he stuck to it till he succeeded. The engineer and the captain of the Fatimé were Englishmen, though both of them spoke the language of Morocco well enough to enable them to discharge their duties.
Scott had been on board of the Fatimé, and had met and talked with these officers. They were paid much better wages than they could obtain at home, and were satisfied with the positions they held. They told him that, if he learned the language and did his duty, he would make his fortune. The Pacha had a respect for Englishmen; and doubtless he had learned that they would not "stand any nonsense," and that it was not prudent to offend them.
It had been far otherwise with Felipe Garcias, who had been the engineer of the Salihé in the Pacha's employ, for he was a Spaniard, and only eighteen years old. He was very religious; and, like the Mohammedans, he was very strict in the observance of his Catholic duties, and had a high moral sense. The distinguished Moor conducted some very questionable enterprises on board of the little steamer, and when the young man objected to obeying some of his orders, he was abused and maltreated. For this reason he had run away from his Mohammedan employer. It was largely a religious matter with him, while the Englishmen on board of the Fatimé did not trouble themselves or the Pacha about such questions.
"That steamer belongs to me!" shouted the mighty Mohammedan.
"That steamer belongs to me."
"That steamer belongs to me."
"That steamer belongs to me."
"We bought her and paid for her," returned the captain of the Maud; but the remark of the owner of the Fatimé seemed to open a new question.
Louis was startled at the claim of ownership made by the Pacha. Captain Chickworth had told a plausible story of the manner in which he had come into possession of the little steamer, and not a doubt had been raised or suggested in regard to his title in the craft. The young millionaire had not seen Chickworth's bill of sale from the Pacha; but he concluded that he had one, and probably Captain Ringgold had required it to be produced when he paid for her.
"Does he own the craft we are sailing in?" asked Felix, taking in the force of the Pacha's claim.
"Decidedly not," replied Louis. "I have not looked into Chickworth's rights in the steamer, and I never thought of the matter before. Captain Ringgold must have seen the Moor's bill of sale to him, and perhaps has it among his papers now."
"I filed the Gibraltar bills and papers early this morning, and I saw no such paper among them," added Felix, who was the captain's clerk.
"But the trade was not closed till the middle of the forenoon, and you did not see the bill of sale Chickworth must have given to the commander."
"That's so; I didn't think of that."
"I see you, Scott!" shouted the Pacha. "You ran away with Felipe, and stole the steam-launch!"
"That is bringing it home to Felipe and me," said the captain, with an attempt to laugh off the charge; but it was not altogether a success. "That's a lie, which you know as well as I do, Louis."
"Assuredly it is not the truth, and I know that you did not run away with Felipe, for we captured you at Funchal in your Moorish uniform."
"Though Felipe worked for the Pacha at the same time I did, I never even saw him till we met on board of this boat on the voyage from Madeira to Tarifa," protested Scott, who was evidently not a little disturbed by the accusation of the distinguished Moor.
"So I have heard you say before."
"And so Felipe will say. At the same time it is an awkward charge to be accused of stealing the steamer," protested the captain.
"That is true; and if you should be arrested and taken to Tangier, the Pacha would have it all his own way, and you would certainly be convicted. I doubt if they would even give you the form of a trial. But there is an American consul here, and he could make a good deal of trouble for the Moroccan."
"But I have no idea of being taken to Tangier or any other port in Morocco," Scott affirmed in the most resolute manner, shaking his head like a boy who is getting decidedly "mad."
"You are not going there voluntarily, you mean," suggested Louis.
"Neither voluntarily nor involuntarily!" protested the captain very warmly.
"But if you couldn't help yourself, you wouldn't go there voluntarily," said Felix, who was an attentive listener and a close observer of all that transpired.
"You had better translate that into ancient Greek so that we can't understand it, Flix," replied Louis.
"Oi kin translate it into modern Kilkenny Greek; but Oi have forgotten all the ancient Greek Oi iver knew, and that's sorra one bit," returned Felix. "If ye's can't help yersel', ye's can't prayvint the anti-pork ayters from taking ye's to Tangier. But Oi'll foight for ye's, Scotty darlint, wid me fishts and me revolver."
"Thank you, Felix; but I don't believe this is to be a matter of fighting so much as it will be of running away," replied Scott.
"Do you expect to run away from the Fatimé, Captain Scott?"
"That's the only way out of the scrape as I understand the situation," answered Scott, as he picked up the chart of the Strait, which lay on the miniature capstan upon the forecastle, and began to study it attentively.
"Do you expect to beat the Pacha's steamer on a straight run to Gibraltar, Captain Scott?" asked Louis incredulously.
"I don't know how fast the Fatimé is; but she was slow enough on the run from Mogadore to Funchal, though perhaps they did not hurry her. I don't believe I shall make a straight course of it to Gib," answered the captain, still studying the chart.
Louis had been directed to head the Maud for Point Malabata, and Scott stood by the open window of the pilot-house during the conversation. The little steamer had certainly gained upon the bigger one, which was said to be of about four hundred tons, for she had passed out of a convenient speaking distance of her. When first seen the Fatimé's smoke-stack seemed to be a useless appendage, for nothing issued from it; but as soon as she came about a volume of black smoke had begun to pour out of it, which was continuously increasing.
"Do you see the black smoke the Fatimé is sending out of her funnel?" asked Louis of the captain, who still retained his place at the window.
"I see it; and perhaps that explains why we have run away from her," replied Scott. "When we first discovered her she was just going into port, and, as the engineer had ordered his men to let the fires down in the furnaces, she was going very slowly. She had not steam enough to enable her to keep up with us. But as soon as the Pacha told his captain to chase the Maud, they began to shovel in the coal."
"That explains it all right," added Louis.
"I would give ten cents out of my own pocket to know how much water that steamer draws," continued Captain Scott, who was still gazing intently at the chart.
"I have not the least idea. She is two hundred tons less in burden than the Guardian-Mother, if that will give you any idea," replied Louis. "Perhaps Felipe knows something about it. Flix, stand by the engine and ask the engineer to come to the pilot-house."
"I'll do that same. I'll stand by the engine while Felipe comes here, and see that no one runs away with it while he is gone; but that is all I can do," replied the Milesian, as he went aft.
The Spaniard was shovelling in more coal at the furnaces when Felix went into the engine-room. He had been ordered to get up all the speed he could on the boat, but he had not been informed in regard to the occasion of this hurry. He promptly obeyed the summons of the captain. When he came to the door of the pilot-house he turned to enter, and then, for the first time, he discovered the Pacha's yacht astern of the Maud.
"La Fatimé!" he exclaimed, aghast at the sight of her, as he retreated in absolute terror.
"Verdaderamente" (Truly), added Louis. "But don't you be alarmed."
"The Pacha will put me in the prison!" gasped poor Felipe.
"Not a bit of it!" protested Captain Scott. "You belong to the Guardian-Mother, and Captain Ringgold will protect you."
It required some minutes to overcome the tribulation of the Spanish engineer. He had obtained an interior view of Mohammedan institutions, and he had a mortal terror of being restored to the service of his former master.
"We must run away from him, Felipe," said the captain.
"I don't know," added the engineer, shaking his head to intensify his doubt.
"Do you know how much water the Fatimé draws, Felipe?" asked Scott, as he looked through the back windows of the pilot-house over the promenade deck at the Pacha's steamer.
"Draws?" queried Felipe, who did not comprehend the meaning of the question, as he looked to his instructor for further light. "Ella no es caballo" (She is not a horse).
"How deep in the water does she set?" Louis interpreted the expression, and resorted to other paraphrases of the question till he made him understand it.
"Quince piés" (Fifteen feet), he answered, directing his reply to his teacher.
"Fifteen feet," repeated Louis to the captain.
"Good!" exclaimed Scott, to whom the answer appeared to be extremely satisfactory, and to stimulate very strongly his hopefulness, though he had not yet developed to his companions his plan for escaping from the Fatimé, if her speed proved to be greater than that of the Maud, as it would naturally be expected to be. "Go back to the engine, Felipe, and run it for all it is worth."
"All it is worth?" repeated the Spaniard, interrogatively.
"Make the steamer go as fast as you can," added Louis, taking Felipe by the arm and leading him back to the engine-room.
"All it is worth means very fast,doce nudos la hora", said Felipe, as he entered his apartment.
"Not always," replied Louis, laughing; "but that will do for the present."
"I think I have got the hang of the thing now," said Captain Scott, as Louis and Felix returned to the forecastle. "If we don't wax that fellow, I will quit guessing and go to New England to learn how."
"On board of the Guardian-Mother inferiors are not allowed to ask questions in the line of duty. I don't know how you are going to manage this business, Captain Scott, and I am unable to guess whether you will wax him or not."
"I will tell you all about it in due time; but I am busy just now, and you must excuse me," replied Scott, who had before taken the wheel himself.
Louis was satisfied, and kept a sharp lookout for the steamer astern.