Christy looked over the side of the boat, and saw that the water was quite clear. The channel, which lay in the middle of the bay, had four and a quarter fathoms of water at mean low tide, according to the chart the officer had with him. He had brought several copies of the large chart with him from New York, and he had cut them up into convenient squares, so that they could be easily handled when he was on boat service. But his authority gave no depth of water on the shoal sands.
In a short time the boat came to the verge of the channel, and Christy directed the bowman to stand by with the lead, with which the boat was provided. The first heaving gave three and a half fathoms, and it gradually decreased at each report, till only two fathoms and a quarter was indicated, when the boat was between the two keys, thesouthern of which Quimp called the long key, simply because that was the longest in the bay, and not because it was a proper name.
"Now, Massa Ossifer, look sharp ober on de starboard side," said the negro.
"I don't see anything," replied Christy.
"No, sar, not yet; but look ober dat way, and you see somet'ing fo' yore t'ree minutes older, massa."
Christy fixed his gaze on the point of the long key, beyond which Quimp intimated that the steamer would be seen.
"Now, Massa Ossifer, fo' yore two minutes nearer glory, you'll see de end ob de bowsprit ob de Reindeer," added Quimp, who was beginning to be somewhat excited, possibly in expectation of receiving his ten dollars; and perhaps he was regretting that he had not demanded twenty.
"How big is that steamer, Quimp?" asked the officer of the cutter.
"Fo' hund'ed tons, massa; dat's what Cap'n Stopfoot done say, kase I never done measure her. He done say she is very flat on her bottom, and don't draw much water for her size," replied the negro. "Dar's de end ob de bowsprit, massa!" he exclaimed at this moment.
"Way enough, cockswain!" said Christy sharply. "Stern all!"
The headway of the cutter was promptly checked, and she was set back a couple of lengths, when the order was given to the crew to lay on their oars.
"W'at's the matter, Massa Ossifer? Arn't you gwine no furder?" asked Quimp.
"I have seen enough of the Reindeer to satisfy me that she is there; and I have stopped the boat to give you a chance to make your escape," replied Christy. "I don't want you to lose your head for the service you have rendered to me."
"Dis nigger can't get away from here, massa," replied the boatman, looking about him. "A feller can't swim a mile when de water's full ob alligators. Dem varmints like niggers to eat jus' as well as dey do white men."
Christy had his doubts about there being alligators of a dangerous size in the bay, though he had seen small ones in other bays of the coast; but he was willing to admit that Quimp knew better about the matter than he did. It was a hard swim to any other key than the long one, to which the cutter was quite near. He could land the negro on that key, but he would reveal the presence of the boatto the people on board of the Reindeer, and they would burn her rather than have her fall into the hands of the Union navy.
"I can land you on the long key, Quimp," suggested the officer.
"No, sar! Can't go there; for Cap'n Stopfoot sartainly cotch me dar," protested the negro.
"I don't think so, Quimp."
"De ossifers and men ob de Reindeer will go asho' when you done took de steamer; don't you see dat, massa?"
"What shall I do with you then?" asked Christy, as he handed him two sovereigns and two shillings.
"T'ank you, sar; dat's a pile ob money!" exclaimed Quimp, as he looked with admiration upon the coins.
"It is what I agreed to give you. But what shall I do with you now? That is the question I want answered," continued the officer impatiently.
"You can't do not'ing wid me, Massa Ossifer, and I must tooken my chance to go up in de boat. Better hab my froat cut 'n be chawed up by a big alligator. Was you ever bit by an alligator, Massa Ossifer?"
"I never was."
"I knows about dat, massa," added Quimp, as he bared his leg, and showed an ugly scar.
Christy would not wait to hear any more, but ordered the cockswain to go ahead again. It looked to him that Quimp, now that he had received his money, and made fifteen dollars out of his morning's work, was intentionally delaying the object of the expedition, for what reason he could form no clear idea.
"I spose, if Captain Stopfoot kill me for w'at I done do, you'll bury me side de old woman dat done gone to glory ten year ago?" continued the negro, who did not look old enough to have buried a wife ten years before.
"I am not in the burying business, my friend, and after you are dead, you had better send for your sons to do the job, for they will know where to find the grave of the departed companion of your joys and sorrows," replied Christy, as the boat came in sight of the bowsprit of the Reindeer again.
"My sons done gone away to Alabamy, sar, and"—
"That's enough about that. There are no alligatorsabout here, and you can swim ashore if you are so disposed; but you must shut up your wide mouth and keep still if you stay in the boat. Heave the lead, bowman!"
"Mark under water two, sir," reported the leadsman.
In a few moments more the cutter had gained a position where the steamer could be fully seen. She was a side-wheeler, and appeared to be a very handsome vessel. She had a considerable deck-load of cotton, and doubtless her hold was filled with the same valuable commodity.
"Is that steamer armed, Quimp?" asked Christy, who could see no signs of life on board of her.
"She don't got no arms, but she hab two field-pieces on her for'ad deck," replied the negro.
"How many men has she on board?"
"L'em me see: the cap'n and de mate is two, two ingineers, two firemen; dat makes six; and den she hab two deck-hands."
"But that makes only eight in all," replied Christy. "Are you sure that is all?"
"Dead shoar dat's all, Massa Ossifer."
"But that is not enough to handle the steamer on a voyage to a foreign port, for I dare say she isgoing to Nassau," added Christy, who was on the lookout for some piece of strategy by which his boat and its crew might be destroyed.
"I don't know not'ing about dat, sar; but Cap'n Stopfoot is a pow'ful smart man; and he's Yankee too. I done hear him say he gwine to j'in de Yankee navy."
What Quimp said was rather suspicious; but Christy could see nothing to justify his doubts. He directed the cockswain to steer the cutter as closely to the side of the Reindeer as the movement of the oars would permit, so that the field-pieces could not be brought to bear upon it. The steamer lay at a sort of temporary pier, which had evidently been erected for her accommodation, and the cotton had doubtless been brought to the key by river steamers by the Suwanee and other streams from cotton regions.
There was no habitation or other building on the shore, but a gangway was stretched to the land, over which a couple of men were hastening on board when the cutter reached the stern of the Reindeer. From appearances Christy judged that the water had been deepened by dredges, for a considerable quantity of sand and mud was disposedin heaps in the shallow water a hundred feet or more from the rude wharf.
"Boat ahoy!" shouted a person on board, near the starboard accommodation ladder, which the officer of the boat had noticed was in place.
"On board the steamer!" replied Christy.
"What is your business here?" inquired the person on the deck of the Reindeer, though he could not be seen from the cutter.
"I will go on board and inform you," replied Christy.
As there were no signs of resistance on board of the vessel, the officer of the cutter directed his men to make a dash for the accommodation ladder, which had the appearance of having been left to make things convenient for a boarding-party. The crew were all armed with a cutlass and revolver in the belt.
"Lay her aboard!" said Christy, quietly enough, as he led the way himself, for he was a bold leader, and was not content to follow his men. As he leaped down from the bulwarks to the deck, he confronted the person who had hailed him in the boat.
"What is your business on board of the Reindeer?"demanded, in a very tame tone, the man in front of him.
"I am an officer of the United States navy, and my business is to make a prize of this steamer and her cargo," replied Christy.
"Is that so? You did not give me your name, sir," added the man.
"Lieutenant Passford, attached to the United States steamer Bellevite. Do me the favor to explain who you are, sir," returned Christy.
"I am Captain Solomon Stopfoot, in command of the Reindeer, at your service, born and brought up on Long Island," answered the commander of the steamer.
"Then what are you doing here?" demanded the naval officer. "Where were you born on Long Island?"
"In Babylon, on the south shore."
"Then Babylon is fallen!" exclaimed Christy, indignant to find a man born so near his own home doing the dirty work of the Confederate government.
"Perhaps not; and perhaps you may change your view of me when you have heard my story," added Captain Stopfoot.
"Well, Captain, there is only one story that I care to hear just now, and its title is simply 'Surrender,'" replied Christy rather impatiently. "You understand my business on board of the Reindeer; and if you propose to make any resistance, it is time for you to begin."
"It would be folly for me to make any resistance, and I shall not make any. I have only two engineers, two firemen, foreigners, hired in Nassau, who would not fight if I wished them to do so, and two deck-hands. I could do nothing against the eight well-armed men you have brought on board. I surrender."
"I should say that was a wise step on your part, Captain Stopfoot," replied Christy. "When you are more at leisure, I hope you will indulge me in an explanation of the manner in which a Long Islander happens to be engaged in blockade-running."
"I am an American citizen now, as I have always been; I shall be only too happy to get back under the old flag. As an evidence of my sincerity, I will assist you in getting the Reindeer out of this place. The tide is high at this moment; and half an hour from now it will betoo late to move the vessel," said Captain Stopfoot, with every appearance of sincerity in his manner.
"I will see you, Captain, as soon as I have looked the steamer over," replied Christy, as he left the commander of the Reindeer at the door of his cabin, and went forward to examine the vessel.
He found the steam up; and the engineer bowed to him as he looked into his room. There was nothing to be seen but cotton, piled high on the deck, and stuffed into the hold; and he returned to the cabin.
It seemed to Christy, after he had completed his examination of the Reindeer, that she carried an enormous deck-load for a steamer of her size, and that the bales were piled altogether too high for a vessel that was liable to encounter a heavy sea. But the cotton was where it could be readily thrown overboard if the safety of the steamer was threatened by its presence. He found only the six men mentioned by Stopfoot, though he had looked in every part of the vessel, even to the fire-room and the quarters of the crew and firemen.
"I find everything as you stated, Captain Stopfoot; but I should say that you were proposing to go to sea short-handed. I did not even see a person whom I took for the mate. Is it possible that you could get along without one?" said Christy, when he met the commander at the door of the cabin.
"The truth is, that my men deserted me when they saw the two men-of-war come into the bay, for they knew I had no adequate means of making a defence. In fact, the Reindeer was as good as captured as soon as your two steamers came into the bay, for you were morally sure to find her," replied the captain.
"But where are your men? How could they get away?" asked Christy.
"They have not got away a great distance. You could see the gangway to the shore; and all they had to do was to land, without even the trouble of taking to a boat. They are all on the long key; and without some sort of a craft they will not be able to leave it. If you desire to spend your time in hunting them down, I have no doubt you could find them all."
"How many of them are there on the island, Captain Stopfoot?"
"The mate, four deck-hands, and two firemen. It would not be a difficult task for you to capture them all, for I did not look upon them as fighting material; they have crowded about all the men of that sort into the army."
"I have no desire to find them, and they maystay on the key till doomsday, so far as I am concerned," replied Christy. "We don't regard the men employed on blockade-runners as of much account. But it is time to get under way, Captain; I have men enough to do all the work, and I think I have learned the channel well enough to find the way out into the deep water of the bay."
"As I said before, Lieutenant Passford, I am willing to assist you, for I am anxious to get back among my own people, and to find a position in the old navy. I have been master of a vessel for the last ten years, and I know the Southern coast better than most of your officers."
"No doubt you will find a place when you want one, for all competent men are taken," replied Christy, as he went to the quarter to see if the Bellevite's cutter was in condition to be towed by the Reindeer.
He had left the boat in charge of Quimp, or rather he had left him in it without assigning any particular duty to him. He was no longer in the cutter, and the officer concluded that he had taken to the long key, and was fraternizing with the renegades who had deserted the Reindeer. The long painter of the boat was taken to the stern andmade fast in a suitable place, and Christy hastened to the forward part of the vessel with six of his men, leaving a quartermaster, who was the cockswain of the cutter, with two others, in charge of the after part.
On his way he went into the engine-room, which opened from the main deck, where he had before seen the two engineers, the chief of whom had received him very politely. He suggested to the captain that he had made no arrangement with these officers, and he was not quite sure that they would be willing to do duty now that the steamer was a prize.
"There will be no trouble about them, for they are Englishmen, engaged at Nassau, and they will do duty as long as they are paid for it, as they have no interest in the quarrel between the North and the South," said Captain Stopfoot; and Christy could not help seeing that he was making everything very comfortable for him.
"We are willing to work for whoever will pay us," added the chief engineer, "and without asking any hard questions."
"I will see that you are paid," returned Christy. "You will attend to the bells as usual, will you?"
"Yes, sir; we will do our duty faithfully," answered the chief.
Christy and the captain proceeded to the pilot-house, which appeared to have been recently added to the vessel to suit the taste of her American owners. The naval officer stationed one of his own men at the wheel, and then took a careful survey of the position of the steamer. He directed his crew to cast off the fasts.
"Is there a United States flag on board of this craft, Captain Stopfoot?" asked Christy.
"To be sure there is, Lieutenant," said the captain with a laugh; "but I do not get much chance to get under its folds."
"Of course you have Confederate flags in abundance?"
"Enough of them," replied the commander, as he drew forth from a signal-box the flags required. "What do you intend to do with these?"
"I intend to hoist the United States flag over the Confederate to show that this steamer is a prize, otherwise the Bellevite might put a shot through her as soon as she shows herself outside of the key," replied Christy.
"A wise precaution," added Captain Stopfoot.
The naval officer rang one bell as one of his men reported to him that the fasts had been cast off, and that all was clear. The grating sound of the engine was immediately heard, with the splash of the paddle wheels. Very slowly the Reindeer began to move forward. Christy had very carefully noted the bearings of the channel by which the steamer must pass out into the deep water of the bay, and the instructions which the captain volunteered to give him were not necessary.
"I suppose I am as really a Northern man in principle as you are, Mr. Passford," said the captain, as the steamer crept very cautiously through the pass between the keys.
"If you are, you have taken a different way to show it," replied Christy, glancing at the speaker.
"But the circumstances have compelled me to remain in the service of my Southern employer until the present time, and this promises to be the first favorable opportunity to escape from it that has been presented to me," Captain Stopfoot explained.
"You have been to Nassau a number of times, I judge; and it was possible for you to abandon your employment any time you pleased," suggested the naval officer.
"It was not so easy a matter as you seem to think; for there were no Northern vessels there in which I could take passage to New York, or any other loyal port.
"Mr. Groomer, the mate of the Reindeer, is part owner of her, though he is not competent to navigate a vessel at sea, and he kept close watch of me all the time, on shore as well as on board."
"But I understand that Mr. Groomer, the mate, has deserted you, and gone on shore with the others of your ship's company," added Christy, rather perplexed at the situation indicated by the captain.
"What else could he do?"
"What else could you do? and why did you not abandon the steamer when he did so? If one of the owners would not stand by the vessel, why did you do so?"
"I have told you before why I did not: because I wish to get back to my friends in the North, and find a place in the old navy, which would be more congenial to me than selling cotton for the benefit of the Confederacy," replied Captain Stopfoot with considerable energy.
The explanation seemed to be a reasonable one,and Christy could not gainsay it, though he was not entirely satisfied with the declarations of the commander. He admitted that he regarded the Reindeer as good as captured when he saw the Bellevite and Bronx come into the bay; and he could easily have escaped in a boat to one of the gunboats after the watchful mate "took to the woods," as he had literally done, for the key was partly covered with small trees.
"And a quarter two!" reported the leadsman who had been stationed on the forecastle.
"The water don't seem to vary here," added Christy.
"No, for the owners had done some dredging in this channel; in fact, there was hardly anything like a channel here when they began the work," replied Captain Stopfoot. "To which of the steamers do you belong, Mr. Passford?"
"To the Bellevite, the one which lies below the long key. The other has gone up the bay."
"She has gone on a fruitless errand, for there is not another vessel loading in these waters," said the captain. "I suppose you will report on board of the Bellevite, Mr. Passford?"
"Of course I shall not leave the Reindeer withoutan order from the commander of the ship," replied the lieutenant.
"And a half two!" shouted the leadsman.
"The channel deepens," said Christy.
"You will be in deep water in five minutes."
On this report Christy rang four bells, and the Reindeer went ahead at full speed.
"By the mark three!" called the man at the lead.
The water was deepening rapidly, and presently the report of three and a half fathoms came from the forecastle. It was soon followed by "And a half four," upon which the lieutenant directed the wheelman to steer directly for the Bellevite. He had hardly given the order before the report of heavy firing from the upper waters of the bay came to his ear.
"What can that be?" he asked, looking at Captain Stopfoot.
"I don't know; but I suppose that the gunboat which went up the bay is firing at some battery she has discovered. They have strengthened the works in that direction which defend the town, since the only one there was silenced by one of your gunboats," the captain explained.
The guns were heard on board of the Bellevite, and she began to move up the bay as though she intended to proceed to the assistance of her consort. Mr. Blowitt in the first cutter had followed the Bronx, and the third cutter, in charge of Mr. Lobscott, had gone over to Piney Point, to which there was a channel with from three to five fathoms of water, and which seemed to be a favorable place to load a vessel with cotton.
As the Reindeer approached the Bellevite, the latter stopped her screw, and Christy directed the wheelman to run the steamer alongside, and within twenty or thirty feet of her. There was no sea in the bay, and there was no danger in doing so. As the Reindeer approached the position indicated, two bells were struck to stop her. The flags that had been hoisted on board, informed Captain Breaker of the capture of the steamer, so that no report was necessary.
"I have to report the capture of the Reindeer, loaded with cotton, and ready to sail for Nassau," said Christy, mounting one of the high piles of cotton bales, and saluting the commander of the Bellevite, who had taken his place on the rail to see the prize.
"Do you know the cause of the firing up the bay, Mr. Passford?" asked Captain Breaker.
"I do not, Captain; but I learn that the battery below the town has been strengthened, and I should judge that the Bronx had engaged it."
"Have you men enough to hold your prize, Mr. Passford?"
"I think I have, Captain."
"You will go down the bay, and anchor outside of Egmont Key."
Christy rang one bell, and then four.
The Reindeer went ahead at full speed, while the Bellevite stood up the bay, picking up the crew of Mr. Blowitt's boat on the way, evidently with the intention of taking part in the action which the Bronx had initiated. The loud reports at intervals indicated that the Bronx was using her big midship gun, while the feebler sounds proved that the metal of the battery was much lighter. The prize was not a fast steamer, and she was over an hour in making the dozen miles to Egmont Island, on which was the tower of a lighthouse forty feet high, but no use was made of it at that time.
The Bellevite proceeded very slowly, sounding all the time; but at the end of half an hour the Reindeer was at least ten miles from her, which was practically out of sight and hearing. About this time Christy observed that Captain Stopfoot left the pilot-house, where he had remained fromthe first; but he paid no attention to him. He had three men on the quarter-deck of the steamer, one in the pilot-house with him, and five more in other parts of the vessel.
Christy knew the channel to the south of the lighthouse, and piloted the steamer to a point about half a mile to the westward of the island. He was looking through one of the forward windows of the pilot-house, selecting a proper place to come to anchor, in accordance with the orders of Captain Breaker. While he was so engaged he heard some sort of a disturbance in the after part of the steamer.
"On deck there!" he called sharply; and the five men who had been stationed in this part of the steamer stood up before him, jumping up from the beds they had made for themselves on the cotton bales, or rushing out from behind them. "Hopkins and White, go aft and ascertain the cause of that disturbance," he added.
The two men promptly obeyed the order, and the naval officer directed the other three to stand by to anchor the steamer. In a few minutes the anchor was ready to let go. Perhaps a quarter of an hour had elapsed, when Christy began to wonderwhat had become of the two men he had sent aft to report on the disturbance.
"Linman," he called to one of the three men on the forecastle, "go aft and see what has become of Hopkins and White."
Linman proceeded to obey the order, but had not been gone twenty seconds, before the noise of another disturbance came to Christy's ears, and this time it sounded very much like a scuffle. Up to this moment, and even since Captain Stopfoot had left the pilot-house, Christy had not suspected that anything on board was wrong. The sounds that came from the after part of the vessel excited his suspicions, though they did not assure him that the ship's company of the steamer were engaged in anything like a revolt.
"Follow me, Bench and Kingman!" he shouted to the two men that remained on the forecastle. "Strike two bells, Landers," he added to the wheelman.
Christy had drawn the cutlass he carried in his belt, and was ready, with the assistance of the two men he had called, to put down any insubordination that might have been manifested by the ship's company of the prize. He would have been willingto admit, if he had given the matter any attention at that moment, that it was the natural right of the captured captain and his men to regain possession of their persons and property by force and violence; but he was determined to make it dangerous for them to do so.
"On the forecastle, sir!" exclaimed Landers, the wheelman.
Christy had put his hand upon the door of the pilot-house to open it as the two men were moving aft; but he looked out the window at the exclamation of the wheelman. The cotton bales seemed to have become alive all at once, for half a dozen of them rolled over like a spaniel just out of the water, and four men leaped out from under them, or from apertures which had been formed beneath them.
illustration of quoted scene"His assailant put his arms around him and hugged him like a bear."(Page 339)
Bench and Kingman seemed to be bewildered, and both of them were thrown down by the movement of the bales. The four men who had so suddenly appeared sprang upon them, and almost in the twinkling of an eye had tied their hands behind them. Christy drew one of the revolvers from his belt; but he did not fire, for he was as likely to hit his own men as their assailants. Thevictors in the struggle dragged the two men into the forecastle, and disappeared themselves.
Christy was almost confounded by the suddenness of the attack; but he did not give up the battle, for he had at least six men in the after part of the steamer. Bidding Landers draw his cutlass and follow him, he rushed out at the door he had before opened. He could not see anything aft but the walls of cotton bales, with a narrow passage between them and the bulwarks. He moved aft with his eyes wide open; but he had not gone ten feet before a man dropped down upon him from the top of the deck-load with so much force as to carry him down to the planks.
His assailant put his arms around him and hugged him like a bear, so that he could neither use his cutlass nor his revolvers. At the same moment another man dropped down on Landers in like manner. It was impossible to resist an attack made from overhead, where it was least expected, and when they were taken by surprise. Christy was a prisoner, and his hands were bound behind him.
At this moment Captain Stopfoot presented himself before the prize-master, his face coveredwith smiles, and nervous from the excess of his joy at the recapture of the Reindeer. Christy could not see what had become of the rest of his men. Heknewthat three of them had been secured, but he did not know what had become of the other six, and he had some hope that they had escaped their assailants, and were in condition to render him needed assistance, for it seemed impossible that all of them could have been overcome.
In spite of his chagrin and mortification, Christy could not help seeing that the affair on the part of Captain Stopfoot had been well managed, and that the author of the plot was smart enough to be a Yankee, whether he was one or not. It was evident enough now that the mate and the rest of the crew had not "taken to the woods," but had been concealed in such dens as could be easily made among the cotton bales.
"I hope you are not very uncomfortable, Mr. Passford," said Captain Stopfoot, as he presented his smiling face before his late captor.
"Physically, I am not very uncomfortable, in spite of these bonds; but otherwise, I must say that I am. I am willing to acknowledge that it is a bad scrape for me," replied Christy as good-naturedlyas possible, for his pride would not allow him to let the enemy triumph over him.
"That would not be at all unnatural, and I think it is a very bad scrape for a naval officer of your high reputation to get into," added the captain. "But I desire to say, Mr. Passford, that I have no ill-will towards you, and it will not be convenient for me to send you to a Confederate prison, important as such a service would be to our cause."
"I judge that you are not as anxious as you were to get into the old navy," added Christy.
"I confess that I am not, and that I should very much prefer to obtain a good position in the Confederate navy. I hope you will excuse the little fictions in which I indulged for your amusement. I was born in the very heart of the State of Alabama, and never saw Long Island in all my life," continued the captain. "By the way, my mate is not part owner of the Reindeer, though he is just as faithful to her interests as though he owned the whole of her; and it was he that pounced down upon you at the right moment. I assure you he is a very good fellow, and I hope you will not have any grudge against him."
"Not the least in the world, Captain Stopfoot," replied Christy.
"I hope I shall not be obliged to detain you long, Mr. Passford; and I shall not unless one of your gunboats chases me. I shall endeavor to put you and your men on shore at the Gasparilla Pass, where you can hail one of the gunboats as it comes along in pursuit of the Reindeer, though I hope they will not sail for this purpose before night."
"The Bellevite is not likely to discover the absence of the prize at present, for she will have to remain up the bay over one tide," said the mate.
"That is what I was calculating upon," added the captain. "Now, Mr. Passford, I shall be compelled to take my leave of you, for we have to stow the cotton over again before we go to sea. I am exceedingly obliged to you for the very valuable service you have rendered me."
"I was not aware that I had rendered you any service," replied Christy, wondering what he could mean.
"You are not? Then your perception is not as clear as I supposed it was. When it was reported to me that two gunboats were coming into the bay I considered the Reindeer as good as captured, as Ihave hinted to you before. My cargo will bring a fortune in Nassau, and I am half owner of the steamer and her cargo, if Mr. Groomer, the mate, is not. I was almost in despair, for I could not afford to lose my vessel and her valuable cargo. I considered myself utterly ruined. But just then I got an idea, and I came to a prompt decision;" and the captain paused.
"And what was that decision?" asked Christy curiously.
"When I saw your boat coming, for I was on the long key, I determined that you should bring the Reindeer out into the Gulf, and save me all trouble and anxiety in regard to her, and I knew that you could do it a great deal better than I could. Wherefore I am extremely grateful to you for this very important service," said Captain Stopfoot, bowing very politely. "But I am compelled to leave you now to your own pleasant reflections. Mr. Passford, I shall ask you and your men to take possession of the cabin, and not show yourselves on deck; and you will pardon me if I lock the door upon you."
The captive officer followed the captain aft to the door of the cabin. On a bale of cotton he sawthe cutlasses and revolvers which had been taken from him and his men, which had apparently been thrown in a heap where they happened to hit, and had been forgotten. Seated on the cotton he found all his men, with their hands tied behind them. Captain Stopfoot opened the cabin door, and directed his prisoners to enter.
"Excuse me for leaving you so abruptly, Mr. Passford," continued the captain while he was feeling in his pocket for the key of the door. "It looks as though it were going to blow before night, and I must get ready for it. Besides, the Bellevite may return on the present tide, and I am informed that she is a very fast sailer, as the Reindeer is not, and I must make the most of my opportunity; but when my fortune is made out of my present cargo, I shall owe it largely to you. Adieu for the present."
Captain Stopfoot left the cabin, locking the door behind him. The hands of the prisoners, ten in number, were tied behind them with ropes, for probably the steamer was not provided with handcuffs. Christy examined his men in regard to the manner in which they had been overcome. The three men who had been left near the cabin doorhad been overthrown by those who jumped down upon them when they were separated, one at the stern, one on the bales, watching the Bellevite in the distance, and the third asleep on a cotton bale. The lieutenant had seen the rest of the enterprise.
"This thing is not going to last long, my men," said Christy, who realized that he should never be able to stand up under the obloquy of having brought out a blockade-runner for the enemy.
He caused the hands to march in front of him till he found one who had been carelessly bound. He backed this one up in the rear of Calwood, the quartermaster, and made him untie the line, which he could do with his fingers, though his wrists were bound. It was not the work of three minutes to unbind the rest of them.
Christy broke a pane of glass in the door, and unlocked it with the key the captain had left in the keyhole.
As Christy unlocked the cabin door, he discovered a negro lying on the deck, as close as he could get to the threshold. The man attempted to spring to his feet, but the officer seized him by the hair of the head, and pulled him into the cabin.
"Here, Calwood, put your hand over this fellow's mouth!" said Christy to the quartermaster, who laid violent hands on him, assisted by Norlock.
The latter produced a handkerchief, which he thrust into the mouth of the negro, so that he could not give the alarm. All the men were alert and eager to wipe out the shame, as they regarded it, of the disaster; and those who had been stationed near the cabin had certainly been wanting in vigilance. Two of them seized a couple of the lines with which they had been bound, and tied the arms of the negro behind him.
A second look at the negro assured Christy thatit was Quimp, and he was more mortified than before at the trick which had been played upon him. Thrusting his hand into the pocket of the fellow, he drew from it the three sovereigns and the three shillings he had paid him for his boat and his information. It was evident enough now that he belonged to the Reindeer, and that he had been sent out by Captain Stopfoot to do precisely what he had done, taking advantage of the general good feeling which prevailed between the negroes and the Union forces.
Christy thought that Captain Stopfoot had been over-confident to leave his prisoners without a guard; but it appeared now that Quimp had been employed in this capacity, though it was probable that he had been instructed not to show himself to them, and for that reason had crept to his station and lain down on the deck.
"Now, my men, take your arms from that bale of cotton; but don't make any noise," said Christy in a low tone, as he took his revolvers and cutlass from the heap of weapons; and the seamen promptly obeyed the order. "The captain of this steamer managed his affair very well indeed, and I intend to adopt his tactics."
The steamer was under way, and had been for some time. Christy climbed upon the bales of cotton far enough to see what the crew of the vessel were doing. The hatches appeared to have been taken off in the waist and forward, and the crew were lowering cargo into the hold. A portion of the cotton had either been hoisted out of the hold, or had been left on deck, to form the hiding-places for the men. The captain must have had early notice of the approach of the Bellevite and Bronx; but there had been time enough after the former began to fire at the battery to enable him to make all his preparations.
Captain Stopfoot was not to be seen, and was probably in the pilot-house. The officer concluded that there must be as many as four men in the hold attending to the stowage of the bales, and four more could be seen tumbling the cargo through the hatches. This accounted for eight men; and this was the number Christy had figured out as the crew of the Reindeer, though there was doubtless a man at the wheel. The force was about equal to his own, not counting the engineers and the firemen.
Christy stationed his men as he believed CaptainStopfoot had arranged his force. The cabin was in a deck-house; between the door of it and the piles of cotton was a vacant space of about six feet fore and aft, which could not be overlooked from the forward part of the vessel. It was here that the first movement had been made. Calwood, who had been on duty here, said that two men had dropped down upon them; and when the third man came to learn the cause of the disturbance, he had been secured by two more.
This was the noise that Christy had heard when he sent two hands from the forecastle to ascertain the occasion of it. The three prisoners had been disarmed, bound, and concealed in the cabin. They were threatened with instant death if they made any outcry, and one of their own revolvers was pointed at them. Linman, who had been sent to learn what had become of Hopkins and White, was treated in the same manner. Then he went himself, and the mate had dropped upon him, while those from under the bales secured Bench and Kingman.
Every sailor was fully instructed in regard to the part he was to have in the programme, and Christy had crawled forward to the point where hefound the aperture in which Groomer, the mate, had been concealed. He was followed by Norlock, a very powerful man, who was to "make the drop" on Captain Stopfoot, and stuff a handkerchief into his mouth before he could call for assistance. Christy believed that the commander would be the first one to come aft when the men by the cabin fired their revolvers, as they had been instructed to do.
Two hands had been placed where they could fall upon the two who were rolling the cotton into the hold at the hatch in the waist; and two more were instructed to rush forward and fall upon the two men at work at the fore-hatch. The four men in the space in front of the cabin were to leap upon the bales and rush forward, revolvers in hand, and secure those at work in the hold. If there was any failure of the plan to work as arranged, the sailors were to rally at the side of their officer, ready for a stand-up fight.
Christy gave the signal for the two revolvers to be discharged. The captain did not appear at the report of the arms as expected; but he ordered the two hands at work at the after-hatch to go aft and look out for the prisoners. The two seamenon that side of the steamer dropped upon them, gagged them, and secured them so quickly that they could hardly have known what had happened to them. The enterprise had been inaugurated without much noise; but the captain had heard it, and called one of the men at the fore-hatch to take the wheel, from which it appeared that he had been steering the steamer himself.
The naval officer saw this man enter the pilot-house, from which Captain Stopfoot had come out. He moved aft quite briskly with a revolver in his hand; but as soon as he had reached the point where the mate had dropped upon him, Christy leaped upon his head and shoulders, and he sank to the deck, borne down by the weight of his assailant. He was surprised, as the first victim of the movement had been, and a handkerchief was stuffed into his mouth. He had dropped his weapon, which Christy picked up and discharged while his knees were placed on the chest of the prostrate commander, and his left hand grappled his throat. He was conquered as quickly as the first victim had been.
The shots had been the signal for all not engaged to rally at the side of the lieutenant, and the menrushed forward. Allofthem had removed their neck handkerchiefs to serve as gags, and they brought with them the lines with which they had been bound. The captain was rolled over, and his arms tied behind him. He was sent aft to the cabin, while Christy led six of his crew forward. The hands in the hold had attempted to come on deck, but the two sailors at each hatch dropped upon them.
In less than five minutes every one of the crew of the Reindeer had been "jumped upon," as the sailors put it, bound, and marched to the cabin. The battle was fought and the victory won. Christy was quite as happy as Captain Stopfoot had been when he had taken possession of the steamer. The man at the wheel had been the last to be secured, and Calwood was put in his place, with directions to come about and steer for Egmont Key.
Christy determined not to make the mistake Captain Stopfoot had committed in leaving his prisoners insufficiently guarded. He selected four of his best men, ordered them to hold the cutlass in the right hand and the revolver in the left, and to keep their eyes on the prisoners all the time. Hethen went to those who had been gagged, and removed the handkerchiefs from their mouths.
"I am as grateful to you, Captain Stopfoot, as you were to me less than an hour ago," said Christy, and he removed the gag from his mouth. "I am happy to be able to reciprocate your complimentary speeches."
"I am not aware that I have done anything to merit your gratitude, Mr. Passford," said the chief prisoner.
"You are not? Why, my dear Captain, you could not have arranged everything better than you did for the recapture of the Reindeer," replied Christy.
"I did not think that ten men with their hands tied behind them could do anything to help themselves; but you Yankees are very ingenious, and it seems that you found a way to liberate yourselves. Besides, I had a hand here to watch you, with instructions to call me if there was any trouble," added the captain, in an apologetic tone.
"When the trouble came he was not in condition to call you," the lieutenant explained.
"No, sar! Dem beggars gagged me, and den robbed me of all my money!" howled Quimp,whose greatest grievance was the loss of his fifteen dollars.
"That was hardly justifiable, Mr. Passford," added the captain shaking his head.
"It would not have been justifiable if the rogue had not first swindled me out of the money," replied the naval officer.
"How was that?" asked the chief prisoner.
Christy explained the manner in which he had encountered Quimp, saying that he had paid him five dollars for the loss of his boat, and ten for the information that a steamer was loaded with cotton and ready to sail behind the long key.
"Quimp is as smart as a Yankee," said Captain Stopfoot, laughing in spite of his misfortune. "The flatboat was one we picked up on one of the keys; and the information was precisely what I instructed Quimp to give you, without money and without price. I promised to give him ten dollars if he would pretend to be an honest nigger, and do the job properly. I have no fault to find with him; but under present circumstances I have not ten dollars to give him. I have lost the steamer and the cotton, and it seems to be all up with me."
"I hope you will get into a safer business, Captain.I will suggest to the commander of the Bellevite that you and your party be landed at Gasparilla Pass; and I shall thus be able to reciprocate your good intentions towards me."
Christy had sent some of his men forward, and he now followed them himself. The engineers had remained in their room, and kept the machinery in motion. As the Reindeer approached Egmont Key, the Bellevite, followed by the Bronx towing a schooner, were discovered coming out of the bay.
It was evident that the second lieutenant's capture had not been the only one during the day, and he concluded that Mr. Lobscott had brought out the schooner that had been supposed to be at Piney Point.
The Reindeer was about two miles south of Egmont Key when the Bellevite came out of the bay, and the latter stopped her screw as soon as she had reached a favorable position a mile from the island. Christy brought his prize as near to her as it was prudent to go in the open sea. The lieutenant went to the cabin to look out for the prisoners there, and found that the four men who had been detailed a guard were marching up and down the cabin in front of their charge, plainly determinedthat the steamer should not be captured again.
"Boat from the Bellevite, sir," said one of the men on the quarter.
"Where is the Bronx and her prize now, Kingman?" asked Christy.
"Just coming by the island, sir."
In a few minutes more the third cutter of the Bellevite came alongside. Mr. Walbrook, the third lieutenant of the ship, came on board of the Reindeer, and touched his cap to his superior officer.
"Captain Breaker requests you to report on board of the ship, and I am directed to take charge of the prize you have captured, Mr. Passford."
"I will go on board at once, Mr. Walbrook," replied Christy. "It is necessary for me to inform you before I leave that this steamer has changed hands twice to-day, and her ship's company have given me a great deal of trouble. The prisoners are in the cabin under guard, and I must caution you to be vigilant. Calwood will inform you in regard to the particulars."
"I am sorry to inform you that Mr. Blowitt was severely, if not dangerously wounded in theaction with the battery up the bay, where we had some sharp work," added Mr. Walbrook.
"That is very bad news to me," replied Christy, who had known the wounded man as second officer of the Bellevite when she was his father's yacht, and had served under him when she became a man-of-war, and as his first lieutenant in the Bronx.
The intelligence filled him with anxiety and sorrow; but while he was fighting for the right, as he had been for three years, he could not give way to his feelings. Without asking for the result of the action up the bay, he went over the side into the cutter, and ordered the crew to pull for the ship. Mr. Blowitt had been more than his superior officer, he had been his friend, and the young lieutenant was very sad while he thought of the wounded officer.
He found Captain Breaker on the quarter-deck; and he could see from his expression that he was greatly affected by the condition of his executive officer. Mr. Dashington, his first officer in the yacht, had been killed in action the year before, and now another of his intimate associates might soon be registered in the Valhalla of the nation'sdead who had perished while fighting for the right.
"We have sad news for you, Mr. Passford," said the commander, who seemed to be struggling with his emotions.
"But I hope there is a chance for Mr. Blowitt's recovery, Captain Breaker," added Christy.
"I am afraid there is not. Dr. Linscott has very little hope that he will live. But we have no time to mourn even for our best friends. You have captured a steamer and brought her out; but I saw that you were coming up from the southward when I first discovered the steamer. What does that mean, Mr. Passford?"
"I hardly know, Captain, whether I brought her out, or she brought me out," replied Christy, who felt very tender over the Southern Yankee trick which had been played upon him. "The steamer is the Reindeer, Captain Stopfoot. My boat's crew were overpowered by her ship's company, and we were all made prisoners; but we rebelled against the humiliating circumstances, and recaptured the steamer."
"Then you have redeemed yourself," added the captain.
Christy gave a detailed report of all the events that had occurred during his absence from the ship. The commander listened to him with the deepest interest; for the young officer was in some sense hisprotégé, and had sometimes been his instructor in navigation and seamanship. In spite of the sadness of the hour, there was a smile on his face when he comprehended the scheme of the captain of the Reindeer to get his vessel out of the bay in the face of two men-of-war.
While Christy was still on the quarter-deck, Mr. Lobscott came on board, and reported the capture of the schooner Sylphide, full of cotton. Her ship's company, consisting of six men, were on board of the Bronx. Captain Breaker planked the deck for some time, evidently making up his mind what to do with the prizes and with their crews, for he did not regard these men as prisoners of war. He asked the second lieutenant some questions in regard to the character of the Reindeer. She was an old-fashioned craft, but a good vessel.
"We are rather overburdened with prisoners, and I desire only to get rid of them," said the captain.
"Captain Stopfoot was considerate enough to announce his intention to put me and my men on shore at Gasparilla Pass; and I promised to reciprocate the favor by suggesting that he and his ship's company be landed at the same place."
"That will be a good way to get rid of them, and I will adopt the suggestion," replied the commander.
All the rest of the day and a part of the night were used up in making the preparations for disposing of the prizes. A large number of hands were sent on board of the Reindeer, and her cotton was nearly all placed in the hold by good stowage. The prisoners from both prizes, except the engineers and firemen, who were willing to work for wages, were transferred to the Bronx. Mr. Lobscott was appointed prize-master of the steamer, which was to tow the schooner to Key West, where both were to be disposed of as circumstances might require.
The Bronx was to convoy the two vessels as far as the Pass, where she was to land her prisoners, and then return to her consort. At midnight this fleet sailed. A protest against being landed at the place indicated came from Captain Stopfootbefore it departed; but the commander paid no attention to it, declaring that if the Pass was good enough for one of his officers, it was good enough for the captain of a blockade-runner.
"Mr. Passford, by the lamentable accident to Mr. Blowitt, you become the ranking lieutenant in condition for service," said Captain Breaker, soon after the young officer had reported the capture of the Reindeer. "You therefore become the acting executive officer of the Bellevite."
"Of course I shall do my duty faithfully, Captain Breaker, in whatever position is assigned to me," replied Christy, his bosom swelling with emotion. "I regret more than anything else the occasion that makes it necessary to put me in this place; and I am very sorry to be called upon to occupy a position of so much responsibility."
"You are competent to discharge the duties of executive officer, Mr. Passford, though I appreciate your modesty in not desiring such an important position; but there is no alternative at present."
It was therefore under Christy's direction that all the arrangements for sending off the prizes were made. The Bronx returned at noon thenext day, and both vessels sailed to the station of the flag-officer. The commander reported that he had silenced two batteries, captured a steamer and a schooner, sending them to Key West; but the shoal water in the vicinity of Tampa had prevented him from capturing the town.
Christy, in becoming first lieutenant, was relieved from duty as a watch officer; but his duties and responsibilities had been vastly increased. He was the second in command, and a shot from another vessel or a battery on shore might make him the commander, and he certainly did not aspire to such a charge and such an honor. There was something in the situation that worried him greatly. Captain Breaker had not been to the North since he entered upon his duties, now very nearly three years, and the state of his health had given Dr. Linscott considerable uneasiness.
Mr. Blowitt was sent home by a store-ship; but he died soon after his arrival; and his loving companions-in-arms could not follow his remains to an honored grave.
The flag-officer, either because he believed that Christy was a faithful and competent officer, in spite of his age, though in this respect he hadadded a year to his span, or that no other officer was available for the vacant position, made no other appointment, and Christy was compelled to retain the place, very much against his desire. As he thought of it he was absolutely astonished to find himself, even temporarily, in so exalted a position.
Here we are obliged to leave him for the present, crowned with honors far beyond his most sanguine expectations, but always willing to do his duty while fighting for the right. The future was still before him; he had not yet done all there was for him to do; and in the early years of his manhood came his reward, in common with the loyal sons of the nation, inA Victorious Union.
All-Over-the-World Library.ByOliver Optic. First Series. Illustrated. Price per volume, $1.25.
1. A Missing Million;or, The Adventures of Louis Belgrade.
2. A Millionaire at Sixteen;or, The cruise of the "Guardian Mother."
3. A Young Knight Errant;or, Cruising in the West Indies.
4. Strange Sights Abroad;or, Adventures in European Waters.
No author has come before the public during the present generation who has achieved a larger and more deserving popularity among young people than "Oliver Optic." His stories have been very numerous, but they have been uniformly excellent in moral tone and literary quality. As indicated in the general title, it is the author's intention to conduct the readers of this entertaining series "around the world." As a means to this end, the hero of the story purchases a steamer which he names the "Guardian Mother," and with a number of guests she proceeds on her voyage.—Christian Work, N. Y.
All-Over-the-World Library.ByOliver Optic. Second Series. Illustrated. Price per volume, $1.25.
1. American Boys Afloat;or, Cruising in the Orient.
2. The Young Navigators;or, The Foreign Cruise of the "Maud."
3. Up and Down the Nile;or, Young Adventurers in Africa.
4. Asiatic Breezes; or,Students on the Wing.
The interest in these stories is continuous, and there is a great variety of exciting incident woven into the solid information which the book imparts so generously and without the slightest suspicion of dryness. Manly boys will welcome this volume as cordially as they did its predecessors.—Boston Gazette.
All-Over-the-World Library.ByOliver Optic. Third Series. Illustrated. Price per volume, $1.25.
1. Across India;or, Live Boys in the Far East.
2. Half Round the World;or, Among the Uncivilized.
3. Four Young Explorers;or, Sight-Seeing in the Tropics.
4. Pacific Shores;or, Adventures in Eastern Seas.
Amid such new and varied surroundings it would be surprising indeed if the author, with his faculty of making even the commonplace attractive, did not tell an intensely interesting story of adventure, as well as give much information in regard to the distant countries through which our friends pass, and the strange peoples with whom they are brought in contact. This book, and indeed the whole series, is admirably adapted to reading aloud in the family circle, each volume containing matter which will interest all the members of the family.—Boston Budget.
Army and Navy Stories.ByOliver Optic. Six volumes. Illustrated. Any volume sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25.
1. The Soldier Boy; or,Tom Somers in the Army.
2. The Sailor Boy; or,Jack Somers in the Navy.
3. The Young Lieutenant; or,Adventures of an Army Officer.
4. The Yankee Middy; or,Adventures of a Navy Officer.
5. Fighting Joe; or,The Fortunes of a Staff Officer.
6. Brave Old Salt; or,Life on the Quarter Deck.
"This series of six volumes recounts the adventures of two brothers, Tom and Jack Somers, one in the army, the other in the navy, in the great Civil War. The romantic narratives of the fortunes and exploits of the brothers are thrilling in the extreme. Historical accuracy in the recital of the great events of that period is strictly followed, and the result is, not only a library of entertaining volumes, but also the best history of the Civil War for young people ever written."
Boat Builders Series.ByOliver Optic. In six volumes. Illustrated. Any volume sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25.
1. All Adrift; or,The Goldwing Club.
2. Snug Harbor; or,The Champlain Mechanics.
3. Square and Compasses; or,Building the House.
4. Stem to Stern; or,Building the Boat.
5. All Taut; or,Rigging the Boat.
6. Ready About; or,Sailing the Boat.
"The series includes in six successive volumes the whole art of boat building, boat rigging, boat managing, and practical hints to make the ownership of a boat pay. A great deal of useful information is given in thisBoat Builders Series, and in each book a very interesting story is interwoven with the information. Every reader will be interested at once in Dory, the hero of 'All Adrift,' and one of the characters retained in the subsequent volumes of the series. His friends will not want to lose sight of him, and every boy who makes his acquaintance in 'All Adrift' will become his friend."
Riverdale Story Books.ByOliver Optic. Twelve volumes. Illustrated. Illuminated covers. Price: cloth, per set, $3.60; per volume, 30 cents; paper, per set, $2.00.
Riverdale Story Books.ByOliver Optic. Six volumes. Illustrated. Fancy cloth and colors. Price per volume, 30 cents.
Flora Lee Library.ByOliver Optic. Six volumes. Illustrated. Fancy cloth and colors. Price per volume, 30 cents.
These are bright short stories for younger children who are unable to comprehend theStarry Flag Seriesor theArmy and Navy Series. But they all display the author's talent for pleasing and interesting the little folks. They are all fresh and original, preaching no sermons, but inculcating good lessons.
The Great Western Series.ByOliver Optic. In six volumes. Illustrated. Any volume sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25.
1. Going West;or, The Perils of a Poor Boy.
2. Out West;or, Roughing It on the Great Lakes.
3. Lake Breezes;or, The Cruise of the Sylvania.
4. Going South;or, Yachting on the Atlantic Coast.
5. Down South;or, Yacht Adventures in Florida.
6. Up the River;or, Yachting on the Mississippi.
"This is the latest series of books issued by this popular writer, and deals with life on the Great Lakes, for which a careful study was made by the author in a summer tour of the immense water sources of America. The story, which carries the same hero through the six books of the series, is always entertaining, novel scenes and varied incidents giving a constantly changing yet always attractive aspect to the narrative.Oliver Optichas written nothing better."
The Yacht Club Series.ByOliver Optic. In six volumes. Illustrated. Any volume sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25.
1. Little Bobtail;or, The Wreck of the Penobscot.
2. The Yacht Club;or, The Young Boat Builders.