Chapter Twenty.

Chapter Twenty.The Arrow schooner had suffered very severely in the contest, having lost her commanding officer and thirteen men killed and wounded: indeed, had not the Calliope been at hand, it was the general opinion that the Stella would have overpowered her, notwithstanding that the latter had lost her mainmast, for the Arrow was completely dismantled, and would not have been able to have made sail.The Calliope sent her carpenters and best seamen on board to repair her damages, and the next day we stood away for Port Royal, Jamaica, to announce the destruction of the pirate vessel.In the morning Captain Delmar sent for me.“Mr Keene, as you cannot do duty for the present, and as I do not wish you to be idle, I think you had better pay a little attention to navigation. You send in your day’s work, I perceive, but I suppose you have never regularly gone through a course of study.”“No, sir,” replied I; “I fudge my day’s work, and I should be very glad to learn navigation properly.”“So I presume. Well, then, I have spoken with Mr Smith, the master, who has promised me to give you the necessary instruction. You will commence to-morrow; you can sit at the table in the fore-cabin, where you will have nothing to distract your attention. You may go now.”I bowed and left the cabin, and meeting Bob Cross on the main deck, I told him what the captain had said.“I’m glad of it, Master Keene; it shows that the captain does now take a strong interest in you. He has never taken any trouble of that kind with any midshipman before. It will be of great service to you, so pay attention; it will please the captain if the master gives a good report of you. Who knows but you may be sent away in a prize, and I sent with you to take care of you? Wouldn’t that be a capital spree?”The next day I commenced accordingly, under the tuition of the master, and as I had not Tommy Dott to play with, I gave satisfaction, and continued to do so until our arrival at Port Royal, when the captain went up to the admiral’s, stating all the particulars of the action, and, by way of sequel, my adventures on board of the pirate vessel. The admiral was so much interested that he requested Captain Delmar to bring me on shore to dine with me the next day.I was still very black; but that made me, I presume more interesting. I told my story over again, and it afforded great amusement to the company; particularly to the ladies; and I have reason to believe that many compliments were paid me behind my back, by the admiral and officers who dined there; at all events, Captain Delmar was much pleased.My strange history soon got wind. The governor heard of it, and asked Captain Delmar about it. The consequence was, that I received another invitation from the governor, and Captain Delmar again informed me that I might tell my own story, which I did, modestly as before. I say modestly, for I never was a boaster at any time; and I really believe that I thought much less of the circumstances than those did to whom I narrated them. I had at that time but one wish, which was to find favour in the sight of Captain Delmar. I felt that all my prospects in life depended upon that; and aware of his disposition, and the deference that he expected, humility had become, as it were, habitual.During the time that we remained at Port Royal I continued my studies in the cabin and as the captain remained almost altogether on shore, I found the run of the cabin very pleasant; but as I had no inclination to study the whole of the day, I was not sorry that Tommy Dott was very often my companion in the cabin, an entrance to which, as he could not pass the sentry at the door, he obtained by climbing down the mizen chains, and creeping into the port windows. As soon as the captain’s boat was seen coming off Tommy was out again by the port as quick as a monkey, and I was very studiously poring over right-angled triangles. I rose, of course, as the captain entered the cabin. “Sit down, Mr Keene,” he would say—“sit down; the master has reported favourably of you, and I am glad to hear of it.”One morning, when, as usual, Tommy Dott had come through the port, we were so busily employed with a caricature which we were making of old Culpepper, that the captain’s boat came alongside without our being aware of it, and the captain’s voice speaking to the first lieutenant as he was descending the after-ladder was the first intimation we received of his being on board.It was impossible for Tommy Dott to escape without being seen as he climbed out. The table which was in the centre of the cabin was covered with a blue cloth, large enough for the table when all the additional leaves were put to it, and in its present reduced size the cloth fell down to the deck; I pointed it out to Tommy, as the sentry’s hand upon the handle of the door announced the immediate entrance of the captain, and he darted underneath the table, that he might escape detection intending as soon as the captain went into the after-cabin to make his retreat by the cabin-door or windows. The captain entered, and I rose, as usual, from my chair.“Mr Keene,” said he, “I have occasion to speak to the first lieutenant on important private business; oblige me by leaving the cabin till that is done. You may as well tell Mr Hippesley that I wish to see him.”“Yes, sir,” replied I making a bow, and leaving the cabin. I felt very much alarmed lest Tommy should be discovered in his hiding-place; and after the captain had stated that he had particular business with the first lieutenant, it was my duty, knowing that Mr Dott was there, to have said so. I hardly knew what to do, or how to act. After all, it was no great crime as it stood. Tommy Dott had come into the cabin without leave, and had concealed himself; but if I was to allow Tommy to remain there and listen to important and particular business, evidently of a secret nature, I should forfeit the good opinion and confidence of the captain: nevertheless, I was very unwilling to betray him; I was dreadfully puzzled, and when I went to the first lieutenant he perceived my confusion.“Why, what is the matter with you, Mr Keene?—you look quite frightened,” said he.“Well, sir, I am,” replied I; “and I think it my duty to tell you why I am so.”I then informed him that Tommy Dott was under the cabin-table, and would, of course, hear the secret communications of the captain.“You have done very right, Mr Keene, and I know how unpleasant it is to you to inform against your messmate; but at present there is no harm done.”He then laughed, and said, “However, Mr Dott shall never know that you have said anything about it, and I will frighten him out of the cabin for the future.”He then went down the ladder, and into the fore-cabin. I expected that he would have discovered Tommy as if by accident, but such was not the case. The captain had just gone into the after-cabin, and Mr Hippesley immediately followed him, and shutting the door, informed him of Mr Dott’s position, and why I had made it known. The captain could not help laughing, as, after all, it was no great offence.He then gave the necessary information to the first lieutenant, and they both walked into the fore-cabin; the first lieutenant saying, “If you please, then, Captain Delmar, I will send a boat immediately with the letter.”“Certainly,” replied the captain, sitting down, and who evidently was inclined to join in the joke with Mr Hippesley. “Sentry, send the officer on deck to man the jolly-boat, and tell Mr Dott to come here immediately.”I was on deck when the sentry put his head up the ladder and gave the order, and I immediately perceived the plan of the first lieutenant and the state of alarm in which Tommy Dott must have been put.The jolly-boat was manned, and Mr Dott called for in every quarter of the ship, but he did not make his appearance. After a delay of several minutes, the officer on deck went down into the cabin, reporting that the jolly-boat had been manned some time but that Mr Dott was not to be found.“Not to be found!” replied the captain; “why, he can’t have fallen overboard.”“Not he, sir,” replied the first lieutenant; “he has gone to sleep somewhere: either in the tops or the fore-topmast staysail netting.”“He appears to be a very troublesome boy,” replied the captain.“Very useless, indeed, sir,” replied the first lieutenant. “Sentry, have they found Mr Dott?”“No, sir; quarter-masters have been everywhere. He’s not in the ship.”“Very odd!” observed the captain.“Oh! he’ll turn up soon, sir; but really, Captain Delmar, if you were to give him two or three dozen at the cabin gun, it would bring him to his senses.”“That I most certainly will do,” replied Captain Delmar; “and I authorise you to do it, Mr Hippesley, as soon as he makes his appearance; it will be of some service to him; but I hope no accident has happened to him.”“I have no fear of that, sir,” replied the first lieutenant: “if the purser’s steward’s room had been open to-day, I should have sent to see if he was not locked up in another attempt to steal raisins, but that has not been the case. By-the-by, the spirit-room was open this morning, and he may have been down there, and may have had the hatches put over him.”“Well, we must send another midshipman; call Mr Keene,” said Captain Delmar.The sentry called me, and I made my appearance.“Mr Keene, you’ll go on shore to the dockyard in the jolly-boat: give that letter to the master attendant, and wait for an answer.”“Yes, sir,” replied I.“Have you seen anything of Mr Dott?” said the first lieutenant; “you are constantly together.”“I saw him just before Captain Delmar came on board, sir, but I have not seen him since.”“Well, well, we will settle accounts with the young gentleman as soon as he turns up,” replied the captain: “you may go, Mr Keene.”I perceived that the captain and first lieutenant both smiled as I left the cabin. It appeared that soon after they left it and the captain went on shore; but Tommy was so frightened that he remained in his hiding-place, as he made sure he would be flogged if he made his appearance, and he resolved to remain where he was until my return, that he might consult me.As soon as I had reported myself, and given the answer to the first lieutenant, I hastened to the cabin, and then poor Tommy crawled from under the table; the tears were still wet on his cheeks.“I shall be flogged, Keene, as sure as I stand here. Tell me, what can I do—what can I say?”“Tell the truth; that’s the best way,” replied I.“Tell the captain that I was hid under the table! that would never do.”“Depend upon it, it’s the best plan,” replied I; “and it is the only advice I can give you: you may be flogged if you tell the truth, but you aresureto be flogged if you tell a lie. It will only add to your offence.”“Well, I’ve been thinking about it—I’m sure that Mr Hippesley will flog me if he catches me to-day or to-morrow; but if I remain hid for a day or two, they will really think that I have fallen overboard, and then they will say, ‘poor Tommy Dott,’ and perhaps be so glad when I do make my appearance, that they will forgive me.”“Yes,” replied I, delighted at the idea; “I’m sure they will, if you do tell the truth when you appear again.”“Then, that is what I’ll do. The first lieutenant said that I might be in the spirit-room. Where shall I go to?”“Why,” said I, “you must remain under the table till dark, and then you may easily slip down into the coal-hole, where it is so dark that they never will see you, even if they go down for coals. It is the only place I know of; stay there all to-morrow and next day, and come up in the evening; or the next morning perhaps will be better.”“Well, it’s a very good place,” replied Tommy; “anything better than being flogged; but will you bring me something to eat and drink?”“Depend upon me, Tommy,” replied I; “I’ll contrive to bring you something every night.”“Well, then, I’ll do that,” replied he.“Yes; and tell the truth when you come out,” said I.“Yes, upon my honour I will;” and so saying, Tommy, hearing a noise, again dived under the cabin table.Soon afterwards I went out of the cabin. The first lieutenant beckoned me to him, and asked me where Mr Dott was, and I told him what had been arranged between us. He laughed very much, and said—“Well, if Master Tommy punishes himself by two days’ confinement in the coal-hole, and tells the truth when he comes out, I think I may promise he will get off his flogging; but don’t you say that I have spoken to you about it, and let him do as he proposes.”When it was dark, I supplied Tommy with provisions, and he gained the coal-hole without being discovered.The next day the speculations at his disappearance were general, and it was now believed that poor Tommy had fallen overboard, and, as the sharks are thick enough in Port Royal, that he was safely stowed away in one of their maws. I will say that the whole of the ship’s company were very sorry for him, with the exception of Mr Culpepper, who observed that no good ever came of a boy who stole raisins.“So you think, that because a lad steals a few of your confounded plums,” observed the second lieutenant, “he deserves to be eaten by the sharks. If I were Tommy Dott, I would haunt you if I could.”“I’m not afraid of dead men,” replied Mr Culpepper; “they are quiet enough.”“Perhaps so; but recollect, you make them chew tobacco, and therefore they ought to rise up in judgment against you, if they do against any one.”As this conversation passed on the quarter-deck, it put an idea in my head. That night I went to Tommy, whom I found terribly tired of sitting on the coals. I brought him a bottle of mixed grog, and some boiled beef and biscuit. I consoled him by telling him that every one was sorry at his disappearance, and that I was convinced that he would not be punished if he told the truth.Tommy was for leaving the coal-hole immediately, but I pointed out to him that the captain had not been on board that a and that it was necessary that the captain should believe that he had fallen overboard as well as the officers, or his compassion would not be roused. Tommy saw the propriety of this, and consented to remain another day. I then told him what Mr Culpepper had said, and I added, “Now, Tommy, if Mr Culpepper should see you by any chance, pretend to be your ghost.”“That I will,” replied Tommy, “if I get six dozen for it.” I then left him.On my return on deck, I saw Bob Cross; he was on shore during the major portion of the day, attending upon the captain, and as I was no longer in the captain’s gig, I saw but little of him.“Well, Mr Keene,” said he, “I think you have quite recovered your colour by this time, and I hope to see you in the gig again.”“I do not think I shall yet awhile—I have not yet learnt navigation enough; but the master says he will be done with me in a fortnight, if I go on as well as I do now.”“Yes; I heard him tell the captain that you were very quick, and would be a good navigator but I can’t get over the loss of poor Tommy Dott; he was a little scampish, that’s sartin, but still he was a merry, kind-hearted boy—too good for the sharks, at all events. You must feel his loss, Mr Keene, for you were always together.”“No, I don’t, Bob,” replied I.“Well, I’m sorry to hear you say that, Mr Keene; I thought you had a kinder heart.”“So I have, Bob; but I’ll tell you a secret, known only to the first lieutenant and me; and that is, Tommy’s in the coal-hole, very dirty, but quite safe.”Bob Cross burst into a fit of laughing, which lasted some time.“Well, Mr Keene, you have really taken a weight off my mind; now tell me all about it. You know I’m safe.”I then told Bob what had happened, and of Tommy’s intention to make his appearance on the following evening or the next morning.“Well,” said Bob, “you’re mischief itself, Master Keene, and that’s a fact; however, it’s all right this time, and you have the captain and first lieutenant as your confidants and partners in the joke. You did perfectly right and I’m sure the captain and first lieutenant must be pleased with you; but recollect, Master Keene, keep your distance as before; don’t presume.”“Never fear, Bob,” replied I: “but now I have told you that, I want you to assist me.” I then repeated the conversation of Mr Culpepper with the second lieutenant.“Now,” continued I; “you see, Cross, I can’t do anything myself; Mr Culpepper hates me, and would suspect me; but if we could only frighten him: you might, for he would not think you were playing him a trick.”“I see,” replied Bob; “it will be a good thing for Tommy Dott, and a nice wind-up of this affair. Let me alone. When I come on board to-morrow evening I’ll manage it if I can.”After a little more conversation, we separated for the night.The next morning the captain came on board. He remained on deck with the first lieutenant for some minutes, during which of course, he was made acquainted with Tommy Dott’s position. When he came down into the cabin, I moved from my seat, as respectful and serious as before; and when ordered to sit down again, resumed my studies with great apparent diligence. He did not say a word to me about Tommy Dott; and as he was going out of the cabin, Mr Culpepper was announced by the sentry.“If you please, Captain Delmar,” said Mr Culpepper, with his usual profound bow, “what are we to do with the effects of Mr Dott, who has fallen overboard? By the regulations of the service, they should be sold before the mast. And I also wish to know whether he is to be continued to be victualled, or whether it is your pleasure that he is discharged as dead?”The captain smiled, and turned his face towards me; but I continued with my eyes down on my book.“Perhaps we had better wait till to-morrow, Mr Culpepper,” replied the captain, “and then you may sell his effects, and put DD to his name, poor fellow.” And having made this reply, the captain went out of his cabin. Mr Culpepper followed; and shortly afterwards the captain went on shore again.Before dusk, the captain’s gig, as usual, returned on board, and I was at the gangway to meet Bob Cross; the boat was hoisted up, and then Bob came to me.“I must first go down and see Mr Dott, that I may be able to swear to the fact.” Bob did so, and then returned on deck. Mr Culpepper was abaft, walking by himself, when Bob went up and accosted him.“If you please, sir,” said Bob, touching his hat, “did the captain say anything to you about coals, for I expect we shall not stay here much longer?”“No,” replied Mr Culpepper.“Then he must have forgot it, I suppose sir.”“Well, there’s plenty of coals,” replied Mr Culpepper.“Well, sir, I don’t know; but I think I heard the cook’s mate say as how they were getting rather low.”“Getting rather low! then there must have been great waste,” exclaimed Mr C, who was very careful of his expenses.“I don’t know how far it may be so; but I think it might be as well to know how matters stand; and if so be there’s plenty, why I can tell Captain Delmar when I go on shore to-morrow.”“I’ll see; I’ll go down myself to-night,” replied Mr Culpepper. “The midshipmen are allowed a stove to themselves—very unusual—and they are cooking all day.”“Talking about midshipmen, sir,” replied Cross, “you may think it’s very odd but as I stand here—and you know, Mr Culpepper, I am not easily scared—I saw that young Tommy Dott, or his ghost, this very evening.”It was now quite dark; and Mr Culpepper stared at the coxswain, and then replied, “Pooh, nonsense!”“It’s no nonsense, I do assure you. I saw him with these eyes, sure as I stand here.”“Where?” exclaimed Mr C.“Right forward, sir. I only mention it to you, but don’t say a word about it, for I should only be laughed at; but I do assure you that I would kiss the Bible to it, if it was required. I never did before believe in anything of that sort, that’s sartain; but it’s no use talking about it, sir. I think I had better get a lantern, and get over this coal business at once.”“Yes, yes,” replied Mr Culpepper; “but you won’t know how much coals there are: I must go myself and see.”Bob Cross was soon ready with the lantern, and went forward with Mr Culpepper. The hammocks had been piped down, and they were obliged to bend double under them to get along the lower deck. I followed unperceived.The descent into the coal-hole was by battens, and not very easy for an old man like Mr C But Cross went down first, holding the light for the purser to follow, which he did very slowly, and with great caution. As soon as they both stood on the coals below, the purser took the light to make his survey.“Why, there’s plenty of coals for three months, coxswain,” said he. “I thought there was; you see they are nearly up to the beams abaft.”“Look! sir—look!” exclaimed Cross, starting back; “what’s that?”“Where?” exclaimed Mr C, alarmed.“There, sir—there he is: I told you so.”The purser’s eyes were directed to where Bob pointed, and then he beheld Tommy Dott standing immovable, with his arms extended, as if denouncing him—his eyes staring, and his mouth wide open.“Mercy!—murder!” cried the purser, dropping the lantern, which went out and left them in the dark; and he tumbled down on the coals.Bob Cross stepped over him, and hastened up to the lower deck, followed by Tommy Dott, who first, by way of revenge, jumped several times upon the purser’s face and body before he climbed up.The cry of the purser had given the alarm. The master-at-arms hastened forward with his lantern just as Tommy had made his appearance above the coamings. Seeing Tommy as black as a sweep, he too was frightened; the men had put their heads out of their hammocks and some of them had seen Tommy.Bob Cross, as he crawled aft, cried out, “Tommy Dott’s ghost!” I had pretended to be terrified out of my wits as I ran aft, and all was confusion on the lower deck. The first lieutenant had come out of the wardroom, and seeing me, he inquired what was the matter. I replied that Mr Culpepper had gone down into the coal-hole, and had seen Mr Dott’s ghost. He laughed heartily, and went back.Tommy had in the mean time made his appearance in the mids’ berth, at which they had all rushed from him in dismay, just as I entered; when I caught him by the hand saying, “Tommy, my boy, how are you?” They then perceived that it was Tommy himself, and order was restored.Mr Culpepper was hoisted up out of the coal-hole; Master Tommy having jumped upon his face, he looked a very miserable object, as he was well blackened, as well as much bruised from the soles of Tommy’s shoes, and his nose had bled profusely. He was very incoherent for some time; but the doctor gave him an opiate, and put him to bed.The next morning the whole affair was explained on the quarterdeck, Master Tommy well reprimanded, and desired to return to his duty. The captain was very much amused at the winding up of this affair, as it was a capital story to tell at the governor’s. Tommy never had an idea that I had blown upon him, nor did Mr Culpepper imagine that their meeting was premeditated.I had now completed the usual course of navigation under the master, and had no longer any cause for remaining in the cabin; I therefore returned to my berth; but as I had taken a liking to navigation, I now was employed daily in working sights and rating the chronometer.We remained three weeks longer in Port Royal, and then were ordered out on a cruise, on the South American coast. There we continued for nearly six months without anything occurring worth relating, except our having captured four good prizes. We were returning to Jamaica, when we fell in with a schooner, which gave us the intelligence of the capture of the island of Curaçao by four English frigates.As we were near to the island and short of water, Captain Delmar resolved to touch at it, and remained two or three days.The reader will perhaps recollect that the old Dutch gentleman, whose life I had saved in the pirate vessel, had stated that his name was Vanderwelt, and that he lived at Curaçao. The next evening we entered the harbour, and it was astonishing to every one how so strong a place could have been taken by so small a force. The commodore, who had plenty of work on hand, requested, or rather ordered, our captain to remain with him for ten days or a fortnight, to assist him.On the third day after our arrival I obtained leave to go on shore, as I wished to find out the old Dutch gentleman. As I was again in the captain’s gig, I had very often landed, but had not had an opportunity of making inquiries, as I could not leave my boat and boat’s crew.This afternoon I landed in the gig, and went up through the gate into the town, but I could not find anyone who spoke English. At last, by asking for the house of Mynheer Vanderwelt, it was pointed out to me, and I went up to the door; it was a very large house, with a verandah all round it, painted bright green and while alternately. There were several slaves sitting down at the entrance, and I asked for Mynheer Vanderwelt; they stared at me, and wondered what I wanted, but as I was in midshipman’s uniform, they were of course very civil, and one of them beckoned me to follow him, which I did, and was introduced to the old gentleman, who was sitting in a cane arm-chair with his pipe in his mouth, and fanned by two slave girls, about twelve years old.As he had spoken to me in English on board of the pirate, I immediately went up to him, and said, “How do you do, sir?”“I am very well, sir,” replied he, taking the pipe out of his mouth. “What do you want? do you come from the English commodore? What is his pleasure?”“No, sir,” replied I; “I do not come from the commodore; but I came up to see you.”“Oh, that is all,” replied the old gentleman, putting his pipe in his mouth again, and resuming his smoking. I felt rather nettled at his treatment, and then said—“Don’t you know me, sir?”“No, sir,” replied he, “I have not that honour. I have never seen you in my life before, and I do not know you.”My blood was up at this cool declaration.“Then I wish you a good morning, sir,” replied I; and turning on my heel, I was strutting out with all the dignity of an offended midshipman, when I was met face to face by the little girl, his daughter. She stared at me very much, and I passed her in sovereign contempt; she followed me timidly, and looked into my face, then panting for breath, seized me by the arm. I turned to her at being stopped in this manner, and was about to shake her off with anything but politeness, when she screamed out, and in a moment had sprung up, and was hanging with both arms round my neck.“Fader, fader,” she cried out as I struggled to disengage myself.The old gentleman came out at the summons.“Stop him! fader; don’t let him go away,” cried she in Dutch; “it is he! it is he!”“Who, my child?” asked the old gentleman.“The pirate-boy,” replied the little girl, bursting into a paroxysm of tears, on my shoulders.“Mein Gott! it cannot be; he wasblack, my child; yet,” continued the old gentleman, looking at me, “he is like him. Tell me, sir, are you our preserver?”“Yes,” replied I, “I was; but that is of little consequence now. Will you oblige me by removing this young lady?” continued I, for I was highly offended.“Sir, I ask your pardon,” replied the old gentleman; “but I am not to blame. How could I recognise you in a white person when you were so dark-coloured at our meeting on board of that vessel? I am not to blame; indeed I am not, my dear young friend. I would have given ten thousand rix dollars to have met you, that I might prove my gratitude for your noble defence of us, and our preservation at such a risk. Come, sir, you must forgive the mistake of an old man, who was certainly not inclined to be civil to an officer who belonged to the squadron, who had within these few days so humiliated us by their astonishing bravery and success. Let my little girl, whose life you saved, persuade you, if I cannot.”In the mean time the little girl had dropped from my shoulder, and was on the floor, embracing my knees, and still sobbing. I felt convinced that what the old gentleman said was true, and that he had not recognised me. I had forgotten that I had been stained dark at the time that I had met them on board of the Stella.I therefore held out my hand to the old gentleman, and raising the little girl, we all three went in together to where we had found the old gentleman on my first introduction to him.“If you knew how delighted I am to see you, and be able to express my thanks,” said Mynheer Vanderwelt, “and poor Minnie too. How often have we talked over that dreadful day, and wondered if ever we should see you again. I assure you, on my honour, that now I no longer regret the capture of the island.”Minnie stood by me during the time her father was speaking, her large blue eyes beaming through the tears with which they brimmed; and as I turned to her, our eyes met, and she smiled. I drew her towards me. She appeared as if she only required some encouragement, for she immediately kissed me several times on the cheek nearest to her, every now and then saying a word or two in Dutch to her father, which I could not understand.I hardly need say, that after this, intimacy was soon brought about. If I thought that at first I had been treated with ingratitude, ample amends was made afterwards.The old gentleman said during the evening, “Good heaven! if my daughter’s eyes had not been sharper than mine; if you had gone away, thinking that I did not choose to recognise you—had I found it out afterwards, it would have broken my heart, and poor Minnie’s too. Oh! I am grateful—very grateful to God that it was not so.”That I passed a very pleasant evening the reader may imagine. The household who had been told who I was, appeared to almost worship me. The old gentleman asked me a hundred questions as to my parentage, etcetera, about Captain Delmar and the service, and begged of me to remain with him altogether while the frigate was in port. I told him that was impossible, but that I would come as often as I could obtain leave. At nine o’clock I bade them good night, and was escorted to the boat by six of the slaves carrying lanterns.Captain Delmar, as well as all the other captains of the frigates, had taken up his quarters on shore for the harbour was so narrow and landlocked, that the heat on board was excessive. I found that the next day old Mr Vanderwelt had paid his respects to Captain Delmar, giving him an account of what had occurred on board of the pirate much more flattering to me than what I had stated myself. The steward was present at the time, and he had told Bob Cross, who communicated it to me. Mynheer Vanderwelt had also begged as a favour that I might be permitted to stay on shore with him during the time that the frigate was in harbour, but to this Captain Delmar had not consented, promising, however, that I should have occasional leave when the service would permit of it.The reader may recollect that the island of Curaçao had been surrendered to the English in 1800, and restored to the Dutch in 1802. During that interval several English merchants had settled there and remained after the restoration, and now at the second capture we found them still on the island. From these we received the information that Mr Vanderwelt was the richest man on the island, and that the Dutch government was indebted to him in very large sums; that he had long retired from business, although he had large property in the Havannah, which he received with his wife, who had been a Spanish lady, and that it was his intention to have gone back to Holland by the first man-of-war which should have arrived.We remained three weeks at Curaçao, during which time the first lieutenant gave me leave to go on shore almost every evening after the captain had dismissed his gig, and to remain at Mr Vanderwelt’s till half-past eight the following morning, when I joined my boat, and attended on the captain. By this plan my duty was not interfered with, and I had many pleasant meetings with my new friends, and became, as may be imagined, very intimate with little Minnie.I may as well describe her. She was about ten years old, tall for her age; she was very fair, with deep blue eyes, and very dark hair; her countenance was very animated and expressive, and she promised to be a very handsome woman. Her father doted upon her, for he had no other child; he had married late in life, and his wife had died a few days after Minnie was born. She was very affectionate in disposition, and very sweet-tempered; up to the present she had received but little education, and that was one principal reason for Mr Vanderwelt’s wishing to return to Holland. I soon became as one of the family, and certainly was treated as such.Minnie was very curious to know what it was that I carried about my neck in the seal-skin pouch, but I never could tell either her or her father what it really was. Mr Vanderwelt very often asked me if I liked being at sea, and I invariably replied in the affirmative.At last the frigate was to sail, and I had but one more evening to pass with them. Mr Vanderwelt appeared very grave, and little Minnie would every now and then during the evening burst into tears at the idea of our separation.At last the hour of parting arrived—it was very painful. I promised to write to them, and Mr Vanderwelt told me that his house was always ready to receive me, and begged that if I wanted anything I would let him know.I cried, myself, when I left the house—the first time that I ever cried, I believe, on such an occasion. The next morning we were again under weigh, to rejoin the admiral at Jamaica.Bob Cross had told me that he wished to have a little talk with me in the first watch, and I met him on the gangway, our usual rendezvous.“Master Keene, I have some news for you, which I gained from the steward last night. I will say, that his ears are always open; not that I think he is generally what is called an eavesdropper but he likes you, and when you are concerned, he does care to find out what is going on. Now you see, sir, that Dutch gentleman whom you saved from the nigger pirate came to call on Captain Delmar yesterday morning, and, after some palaver, he told the captain that he wished you to remain with him altogether, and leave his majesty’s service; and he begged the captain to allow you to be discharged, and then he would be a father to you, as you had no father. There was a great deal more which the steward could not make out, but it was all to that effect. Well, the captain said that it was very true that you had lost your father but that he considered you ashis ownson, and could not part with you on any account; and he stated that you were so promising an officer, that it be very wrong that you should leave the service, and that it must not be thought of. The old gentleman said a great deal, and tried very hard to persuade the captain, but it was of no use. The captain said he would never let you go till you were a post-captain and commanded a fine frigate, and then you would of course be your own master, and act as you please.”“I am very glad to hear all this, Bob, I can assure you.”“Yes, sir, it is very good news: but, Master Keene, I only hope, knowing Captain Delmar as you do, that you will act towards him as if you had never heard it.”“I will, depend upon it, Cross. As for leaving the service, that I would not have done even if Captain Delmar had agreed to it. I’m an Englishman, and I don’t want to be under Dutch protection.”“That’s right, sir—that’s right—just as I wished you to feel. How time flies away. Why, Master Keene, you have been afloat nearly three years.”“Within a month, Bob.”“And you’re growing such a tall fellow, they won’t keep you much longer in the captain’s gig, I expect: I shall be sorry for that. So Master Tommy Dott is in another scrape.”“How?—I heard nothing of it.”“No, because it’s only within this half-hour that he’s got in it.”“Tell me.”“Why, sir, Mr Culpepper had fallen fast asleep on the gunroom table, under the skylight, which, as you know, is always open, and his head had fallen back, and his mouth was wide open: there was no other officer in the gun-room except Mr Culpepper: and Tommy Dott, who perceived him, asked Timothy Jenkins, the maintop-man, to give him a quid of tobacco; well, Jenkins takes it out of his cheek, red-hot, as you may suppose, and hands it to Master Tommy, who takes his perpendicular very accurately, and drops the quid into the purser’s open mouth.“Mr Culpepper was almost choked, but after a terrible coughing, the quid comes up again; notwithstanding, he turns as sick as a dog, and is obliged to run to the basin in his cabin. Well, sir, as soon as he comes out again, he goes up under the half deck, and inquires of the sentry who it was that did it; and the sentry, who is that sulky fellow, Martin, instead of knowing nothing about it, says directly, it was Master Tommy; and now there’s a formal complaint made by Mr Culpepper on the quarter-deck, and Master Tommy will get it as sure as a gun.”“He don’t know how to play a trick,” replied I; “he is always found out and punished: the great point is, not to be discovered—that’s the real pleasure in playing a trick.”“Well, you certainly do manage well, Master Keene; but I think it’s almost time you left them off now, you’re getting an oldster. Why, you must be seventeen, sir?”“Yes, Bob, not very far from it.”“Well, I suppose I must say Mister Keene for the future.”“You may call be what you like, Bob; you have been a good friend to me.”“Well, sir, I only hope that Captain Delmar will make you a post-captain, as he says, and that you’ll get a fine frigate, and I’ll be your coxswain; but that’s a long way to look to, and we shan’t have any more councils of war on the gangway then.”“No; but we may in the cabin, Cross.”“A large sail on the starboard bow,” cried the look-out man forward.“A large sail on the starboard bow,” reported the mate of the watch.My glass was on the capstern, and I ran for it, and went forward to examine the vessel, although my duty as signal midshipman was ended at sunset.“What do you make of it, Mr Keene?” said the officer of the watch.“I think she is a man-of-war; but it is so dark, that I cannot make her out very clearly.”“Is she standing this way?”“Yes, sir, under top-sails and top-gallant-sails, I think.”The officer of the watch went down to report to the captain, who had not yet turned into his cot. Captain Delmar had been informed that a Dutch frigate was expected at the island, but not until the following month; still we had no reason to suppose that there were any of our frigates down in these latitudes, except those lying in the harbour at Curaçao. The wind was light, about a three knot breeze, and there being no moon till after twelve o’clock, it was very difficult to make out what she was. Some said she was a two-decked vessel. The captain went down to look at his private signals for the night, and before he came up I was all ready with the lanterns.“Two lights over one in a triangle; be quick, Mr Keene.”“Aye, aye, sir,” replied I.The lights were soon hoisted at the peak, but as they could not well be seen by the other vessel, as we were standing towards her, we went about and hove to across her hawse. For a quarter of an hour she continued to stand towards us without noticing the signals; at last the captain said, “They must be all asleep on board of the vessel.”“No, Captain Delmar,” replied I, keeping my telescope on the vessel, “they are not all asleep, for I saw lights on the main-deck through the bow-ports. I see them again now.”“So do I,” said the first lieutenant.“Then we’ll beat to quarters, Mr Hippesley,” rejoined the captain.The men were summoned to quarters, and hammocks piped up and stowed in a very short time, the guns cast loose, and every man at his post (but the ports not opened), waiting the coming down of the stranger, now about a mile distant, when suddenly she rounded to the wind on the same tack that we were, and set her royals and flying-jib.“She does not answer our signals,” observed the captain: “I suspect by that and her present manoeuvre she must be an enemy.”“I have no doubt of it, sir,” observed the first lieutenant; “an English frigate would not behave in that way.”“Open the ports and get up the fighting lanterns, then,” said the captain; for, up to the present, we had been careful not to show any lights.It was now plain to see that her men were at their quarters and that she was prepared for action. When everything was ready on deck, the royals and flying-jib were set, and we gave chase. The strange vessel was about three-quarters of a mile on our weather-beam; in half an hour we had gained upon her considerably, and our sailing was so superior that we were satisfied, should she prove an enemy, that in an hour more we should be engaged.Of course, we might have engaged her at the distance we were from her, but you cannot be too careful in a night action, and ought never to engage without first hailing the vessel to make sure that she is an enemy, as circumstances may, and have occurred by which an English vessel may not be able to answer the private signal, and, of course, a vessel belonging to a neutral power would be in the same position.The incertitude which existed as to whether the strange vessel was an enemy or not created great excitement. My duty, as signal midshipman, placed me abaft on the quarter-deck, and Bob Cross, who was really a quarter-master, although doing duty as captain’s coxswain, was at the wheel.At last we had brought the chase well on our weather quarter, and when we tacked we found that we lay well up, she being about a point on our lee bow. Another half-hour brought us within two cables’ length of her, when we kept away, so as to pass her to leeward, close enough to have thrown a biscuit on board. The stranger still remaining on the opposite tack, Captain Delmar then hailed from the gangway—“Ship, a-hoy!”There was a death-like silence on board of both vessels, and his voice pierced sonorously through the night wind.“Ah! yaw!” was the reply.“What ship is that?” continued Captain Delmar.During this time every man was at his gun; the captains, with the lanyards of the locks in their hands, ready to pour in a broadside.The reply from the other vessel was—“Vat chip is dat?”“His Britannic Majesty’s ship Calliope,” replied Captain Delmar; and then he repeated—“What ship is that? Let every man lie down at his quarters,” said Captain Delmar. The order was hardly obeyed, when the stranger frigate poured in her broadside, and as we were then very close, with great execution to our hull and rigging: but as the men had been lying down, very few of them were hurt.As soon as the crash was over, Captain Delmar cried out—“Up, men, and fire, as I round to under her stern.”In a few seconds we had passed through the volumes of smoke, and luffed up under her stern: we poured in our whole broadside.“Let her go off again—flatten in there forward. Reedy about,” was the next order given.We ran away from her about three cables’ length, until we had sufficient way to tack, and then we went about and stood towards her, steering for her weather quarter, as if we were going to engage her to windward.“Over to the larboard guns, my lads. Hands by, after bracings and howlings, Mr Hippesley.”“Aye, aye, sir, all ready.”As soon as we were near enough, the after-yards were shivered, the jib sheet to windward, and the helm put up. The Calliope worked beautifully; she paid sharp off, and we again passed under her stern, and gave another raking broadside; very unexpected on the part of the Dutchman, who presumed that we were going to engage him to windward, and had his men all ready at his larboard guns in consequence.The Dutch captain was evidently much annoyed: he stood at the taffrail, and, much to our amusement, cried out, in bad English, “You coward—not fight fair.”As we shot ahead of her, to leeward, she gave us a portion of her starboard broadside: but the men, having been over at the guns on the other side, were not quick enough, and they did us no injury; whereas, her mizzen-mast fell over the side a few minutes after we passed her.She then raid off, and so did we, so that she might not rake us, and broadsides were exchanged on equal terms; but before we had exchanged these broadsides, both ships running with the wind on the quarter, we found that our superiority in sailing free was so great, that we shot ahead of him out of his fire, and we were enabled to luff up and rake him again.The last raking broadside brought down his main-topmast and then she was all our own, as Bob Cross said; as she could not round to with no after sail, and we could from our superiority in sailing, take our position as we pleased, which we did, constantly keeping ahead of him, and raking him, broadside after broadside, and receiving but one broadside in return, until his foremast went by the board, and he had nothing but his main-mast standing.This bettered his condition on the whole; as, although hardly manageable with so little wind, he had more power over his vessel, as far as rounding to the wind, which he did, and the action continued; but our fighting under sail gave us great advantage, and although an occasional shot would come in, and we had to carry some men into the cockpit, for one shot we received, we certainly returned ten. The action had continued about an hour, when, by the continual cannonading, the light wind was beaten down, and it fell dead calm. This put us again upon a more equal footing, as the Calliope had not steerage way.We were then about a quarter of a mile apart, lying head and stern; but both ships had fallen off during the calm, so that only the quarter guns of each could be brought to bear. The major portion of the ship’s company being, therefore, not able to use their guns, were employed in repairing the damages we had received, which were very considerable, especially in the sails and rigging.I was standing by Bob Cross, who was looking out for cats’ paws, as we call slight breaths of wind, when he said in a low voice:—“Master Keene, I never had an idea that the captain could handle his ship so well: he really knows what he’s about as well as any man in the service.”“I thought so, too,” replied I. “Whew! there’s a nasty shot,” cried I, as one came in and upset half a dozen of the marines, who were hauling upon the mizzen-topsail sheet, which had just been spliced.“Yes, sir, that chap is made of good stuff, depend upon it—all the Dutchmen are: if they could only keep their hands out of their breeches pockets, they would be rummer customers than they are now; as it is, they are not to be played with; and, depend upon it, we’re a long way off having him yet: we must pray for wind to come up and he must pray for the calm to continue.”“Where’s Mr Keene?” said the captain, who was on the other side of the deck.“Here, sir,” said I, running up and touching my hat.“Mr Keene, go down quietly and ascertain how many men we have hurt: the doctor will be able to tell you pretty nearly.”“Aye, aye, sir,” replied I, and I dived down below; just as I did so, a shot came in and cut away the lower rail of the copper stanchions which were round the hatchway, about a foot beyond my hat: had I not gone down so quickly, it would have taken my head off.I went down into the gun-room, for the doctor preferred being there to the cockpit, as there was so much more room to operate, and I gave him the captain’s message.He was very busy taking off a poor fellow’s leg. It was a horrible sight and made me sick and faint. As soon us the bone had been sawed off, he said—“You will find all the wounded I have dressed in the steerage; those they have brought me down dead are in the cockpit. There have been five amputations already the master is badly wounded, and Mr Williams the mate, is killed: those whom I have not been able to attend to yet, are here in the gun-room. You must ascertain what the captain wishes to know yourself, Mr Keene. I cannot, leave a leg with the arteries not taken up, to count heads. Mr Rivers, the tenaculum—ease the tourniquet, now.”As I felt what the doctor said to be true, I got a lantern and commenced my examinations. I found fourteen wounded men waiting the doctor’s care in the gun-room, which was almost a pool of blood. In the steerage there were nine who had been dressed, and four in their hammocks, who had undergone amputation of the arm or leg. I then went down into the cockpit, where I counted eleven of our best men lying dead. Having obtained the information required, I was proceeding up the cockpit ladder, when I turned towards the purser’s steward’s room, and saw Mr Culpepper, the purser, on his knees before a lantern; he looked very pale—he turned round and saw me.“What’s the matter?” cried he.“Nothing, sir; only the captain wishes to know how many men are killed and wounded.”“Tell him I do not know: surely he does not want me on deck?”“He wants to know how many men are hurt, sir,” replied I, for I perceived that he thought that the message was sent to him.“Mercy on me! Stop a minute, Mr Keene, and I’ll send up word by you.”“I can’t stop, sir,” replied I, going up the ladder.Mr Culpepper would have called me back, but I preferred leaving him in his error, as I wished to see which he most dreaded, the captain’s displeasure or the shot of the enemy.I returned on deck and made my report. The captain looked very grave, but made no reply.I found that the two frigates were now lying stern to stern, and firing occasional guns, which raked fore and aft. Except the men who worked the guns aft, our people were lying down at their quarters, by the order of the captain.“If we only had but a capful of wind,” said the captain to the first lieutenant, “but I see no appearance of it.”I touched my hat and said, “The moon will rise in about ten minutes, sir, and she often brings the wind up with her.”“That’s true, Mr Keene, but it’s not always the case. I only hope she will; if not, I fear we shall lose more of our men.”The firing continued, and our main-mast had received so many shots, that we were obliged to hold it for its support. While so employed, the moon rose, and the two vessels had now a good view of each other. I directed my glass to the horizon under the moon, and was delighted to perceive a black line, which promised wind; I reported it to the master, and the promise was kept good, for in a quarter of an hour our sails flapped, and then gradually filled.“She has steerage way, sir,” reported Bob Cross.“Thank Heaven for that,” replied Captain Delmar. “Jump up, men. Brace round the yards, Mr Hippesley.”“The enemy’s main yard is cut in two in the slings, sir,” reported I, after I had my glass upon her.“Then her last hope is gone,” replied Mr Hippesley. “Haul over the starboard jib-sheet forward—let her come to, quartermaster. Larboard guns, my lads.”“Now, my men,” cried Captain Delmar, “make short work of her.”This injunction was obeyed. We had now a good sight of the enemy, and brought our whole broadside to bear upon her stern; and after a quarter of an hour more firing I perceived that her ensign was no longer on the staff, where it had been hoisted after the fall of the mizenmast; neither had she for the last five minutes given us a gun in return.“She has struck, sir, I think,” said I to Captain Delmar; “her ensign is down.”“Pass the word ‘Cease firing,’ Mr Hippesley; but let the guns be all reloaded in case of accidents. Have we a boat that can swim? Examine the cutters, Mr Keene.”I found the cutter on the larboard quarter, with her bottom out: she could not swim, that was clear. The starboard one was in better condition.“The starboard cutter will float, sir; her gunwale is all torn away, but there are rollocks enough to pull.”“Let her be cleared away and lowered down, Mr Hippesley. Send for the second lieutenant.”“I believe he’s not on deck sir,” replied the first lieutenant.“Not much hurt, I hope?”“A splinter, I was told, sir.”“Where’s Mr Weymss, the third lieutenant? Mr Weymss, jump into the boat, and take possession of the prize: take as many men as you can; and, Mr Keene, with Mr Weymss, and as soon as you have gained the necessary information, come back with the boat and two hands.”I followed the third lieutenant info the boat, and we pulled on board of our antagonist. A junior officer received us on the deck, and presented his sword. His left arm was bound up, and he was very pale from loss of blood. He spoke pretty good English; and we found that we had captured the Dort, Dutch frigate, of thirty-eight guns, bound to Curaçao, with a detachment of troops for the garrison, and a considerable quantity of ammunition and specie on board for the use of the colony.We inquired whether the captain was much hurt, as he did not appear on deck.“He is dead, gentlemen,” replied the young officer: “he was my father. Our loss has been very great. I am only a cadet, yet I am commanding officer.”A tear rolled down his cheek as he said that the captain was his father, and I felt for him. Shortly afterwards he staggered to a carronade slide, and dropped down on it, and very soon was in a state of insensibility.The carnage had been dreadful, and the bulwarks of the vessel had been shattered to pieces. The scene was almost as had as the Stella’s decks before she was blown up by the negro captain. Several of the guns were dismounted and two of them had burst. I had only time to go round the gun-deck, and then I ordered two hands into the boat, that I might make my report to Captain Delmar.I asked the third lieutenant to allow me to take on board the young officer, who still remained lifeless on the carronade slide, and, as it was proper for me to bring back with me the commanding officer, he consented. We lowered him with a rope into the boat, and then I returned on board of the Calliope, and went up to the captain to make my report, and present him with the sword of the officer commanding the prize.Just as I was commencing my story, Mr Culpepper came up without his wig, and in a state of great disorder, with a piece of dirty paper in his hand. He trembled very much from the effects of his alarm, but made a very profound bow, and said to Captain Delmar—“Here is the state of killed and wounded, Captain Delmar, as far as I have been able to collect them. I could not possibly get them ascertained before, although I have been an hour or two employed—ever since Mr Keene came down.”The captain, who did not like the interruption, replied very haughtily, “Mr Culpepper, it’s the duty of the surgeon to send in the report of killed and wounded. You had better go down below, get your dress in a little better order. Now, Mr Keene.”Old Culpepper slunk away as I proceeded to give the information, and the captain now asked the carpenter if the pinnace was sufficiently repaired.“In a few minutes, sir,” was the reply.“Mr Hippesley, you must, then, send forty hands on board the prize to repair her damages, as far as we can. Mr Weymss must remain on board.”In the meantime the young officer had been taken down below to the surgeon, who had now some leisure to attend to him. He was soon restored, and the surgeon expressed his opinion that it would be possible to save his arm. I went down to see him, and I gave him my hammock to sleep in for the present, and as soon as he was comfortably arranged under the half-deck I returned to the quarter-deck, and made myself as useful as I could, for we had plenty to do on board of our own frigate, knotting and splicing, having only made temporary repairs.It was now dawn of day, and very soon afterwards broad daylight. The men were ordered aft with the buckets, and the decks, which were smeared and black with powder and the blood of the wounded, were washed down. That we were all very tired I hardly need say, but it was not yet time for repose; the magazines had been secured and the fires lighted.Another boat, with the carpenter and assistant-surgeon, had been sent on board the prize to remedy any serious damage and to assist in dressing the wounded. I was sent with the boat. Mr Weymss, the third lieutenant, had not been idle: jury-masts were in preparation, the decks had been cleared, the dead thrown overboard, and the wounded taken below.On mustering the remainder of the Dort’s ship’s company, and calling over the muster-roll of the troops on board, we found that she had lost the captain, 2 lieutenants and 10 officers, 73 seamen and 61 soldiers, killed; and the first-lieutenant, 13 officers, and 137 wounded—147 killed and 151 wounded: total 298. She had received several shot between wind and water, and had a good deal of water in the hold: this was, however, soon remedied by the carpenter and his crew, and the frigate pumped out by the prisoners.I returned on board of the Calliope with this intelligence to the captain, and found that the surgeon had just sent in the report of our own loss, which was, 1 officer and 17 men killed—master, 2 lieutenants, 2 midshipmen, and 47 wounded.“Do you know who are the midshipmen wounded?” said the captain to me.“I heard that Mr James was killed, sir, but not the names of those who are wounded; but I think one of them must be Mr Dott, or we certainly should have seen him about.”“I should not be surprised,” replied the captain. “Sentry, ask who are the young gentlemen wounded.”The sentry replied, “Mr Castles and Mr Dott.”“Well,” replied the captain, “he’ll be in no more mischief for some time; I heard of his trick to the purser.”As the captain was saying this, I perceived the piece of paper which the purser had brought up as his report of killed and wounded lying on the table with the other reports. It had, apparently, not been examined by the captain, but my eye caught it, and I observed, written in a shaking hand, “Pieces of beef, 10; ditto pork, 19; raisins, 17; marines, 10.” I could not help smiling.“What are you amused with, Mr Keene, may I ask?” said the captain, rather gravely.“I beg your pardon, sir, for venturing so in your presence,” replied I; “but it is Mr Culpepper’s report of killed and wounded;” which I then took up, and handed to the captain.This proof of Mr Culpepper’s state of mind during the conflict was too much for even Captain Delmar, who laughed outright.“The old fool,” muttered he.“You may go now, Mr Keene. If breakfast is ready, tell Mr Hippesley to let the men have it as soon as possible.”“Aye, aye, sir,” replied I, and bowing respectfully, I quitted the cabin; for I felt that Captain Delmar thought that he had not been quite so reserved towards me as he always wished to be.As soon as I had given the captain’s orders, I went down to find out Tommy Dott. He was in his hammock, next to mine, in which I had put the young Dutch officer. Dott was wide awake, and, apparently, very feverish.“Where are you hurt, Tommy?”“I am sure I don’t know,” said he. “Get me some water, Keene.”I got a pannikin of water, and he drank it.“Don’t you know where you are hurt?”“I believe it’s my side—somewhere about the body, I know; but I’m so stiff all over, that I can’t tell exactly where. Something hit me, and I fell right down the hatchway; that’s all I know about it until I found myself in my hammock.”“Well, at all events, you won’t be punished now for dropping the quid into Mr Culpepper’s mouth.”“No,” replied Tommy, with a smile, in spite of his pain; “but I would have played him a better trick than that if I had had any idea that we should have been so soon in action. I wish I could turn round, Keene—I think I should be easier.”I turned poor Tommy in his hammock, and then left him. I looked at the son of the Dutch captain—he was slumbering; he was a very slight youth, with very beautiful, but very feminine features. I felt a kindness towards him, poor fellow; for he had lost his father, and he was about to pass his best years in prison. But the boatswain’s mates piped to breakfast, and I hastened down into the berth to get my share of the cocoa.As soon as the men had finished their breakfast, the hands were again turned up, the lower deck cleared and washed, new sails bent and the guns properly secured; screens were put up round the half-deck where the wounded were in their beds. The dead were brought up and sewed up in their hammocks, laid out on gratings, and covered with the ensign and union jack, preparatory to their being committed to the deep. Another party was sent to assist on board of the prize, and the prisoners were brought on board, and put down in the fore-hold, which had been cleared for their reception.By noon everything was so far ready that we were enabled to take the prize in tow, and make sail on the Calliope, after which the men, who were exhausted, went to dinner, and were permitted to sleep during the remainder of the day until the evening, when the ship’s company was ordered up, and the dead were committed to the deep blue sea with the usual ceremonies.The breeze was steady but the water was smooth during the night, and glad I was to throw myself on one of the lockers in the midshipmen’s berth, after so many hours of excitement. I slept till four in the morning, and finding the planks not quite so soft as they might be, I then turned into the hammock of the midshipman of the morning watch, and remained till six hells, when Bob Cross came down and told me that the captain would soon be on deck.“Well, Cross,” said I, as I came on deck and went aft to look at the prize in tow, “this is a nice business, and our captain will gain a great deal of credit.”“And he deserves it, Master Keene,” replied Cross: “as I said before, I never had an idea that he could handle his ship so well—no, nor none of the ship’s company. We all thought Mr Hippesley the best officer of the two, but we have found out our mistake. The fact is, Mr Keene, Captain Delmar wraps himself an in his dignity like a cloak, and there’s no making him out, till circumstances oblige him to take it off.”“That’s very true, Bob,” replied I: “it is only this very morning that he laughed himself, and I laughed also, and he pulled up immediately afterwards, twice as stiff to me as before.”I then told Bob of Mr Culpepper’s report, which amused him very much.“I am sure that he is pleased with you, Mr Keene, and I must say that you were very useful and very active.”“Do you know that the carpenter says that we have received injuries that cannot be well repaired without the ship going into dock, and I should not be surprised if we were to be sent home, if the survey confirms his report. I hope we shall; I am tired of the West Indies, and I should like to see my mother; we have a nice breeze now, and we are two points free. If it lasts, we shall be at Jamaica in a fortnight or less.”The captain coming on deck put an end to our conversation.Before night the prize had got up jury-masts, and sail set upon them, and we went through the water more rapidly. In ten days we arrived at Port Royal with our prize. The captain went on shore, and what was still more agreeable, we got rid of all our prisoners and wounded men. A survey, in consequence of the carpenter’s report was held upon the Calliope, and the result was, she was ordered home to be repaired. The Dort was commissioned by the admiral, and Mr Hippesley received an acting order to the sloop of war, which had become vacant by the commander of her being promoted into the Dort, which was now christened the Curaçao.In ten days after our arrival we were ready, and made sail for Old England. Tommy Dott and the second lieutenant remained on board, and were both convalescent before we entered the Channel. Tommy Dott’s wound, by the bye, was a splinter in the back, added to severe bruises from tumbling down the hatchway.Captain Delmar had shown great kindness to the son of the Dutch captain and he did not send him on shore with the rest of the prisoners, but permitted him to remain, and come home in the Calliope. He recovered slowly, but was soon out of danger, and was walking about with his arm in a sling long before we arrived in England. It appeared to me that, during the passage home, old Culpepper was not so much in the good graces of Captain Delmar as he used to be; he was, however, more obsequious than ever. We had a fine run home, and in seven weeks from our leaving Port Royal, we dropped our anchor at Spithead.I may have been wrung, but it certainly did appear to me that as we neared the coast of England, the behaviour of Captain Delmar was more reserved to me (I may say it was harsher) than ever it had been before. Hurt at treatment which I felt I did not deserve, I tried to analyse the cause as I walked up and down the deck, and at last I decided that his pride was again alarmed. On the one hand he was returning to his own country, to meet with his aristocratical connections, and on the other he was reminded of my mother, and hismésalliancewith her—if such a term can be used to a woman who had sacrificed herself to one above her in rank. At all events, I was the result of that connection, and I presumed that he was ashamed of it, and consequently kept me at a distance, and checked his feelings towards me. Perhaps he thought that my mother might be induced to disclose to me that which I had under his own hand-writing, and wore next my heart; or he might consider I was no longer a boy, but a tall young man, and one who might be induced to claim his protection. Such were my reflections, and my resolutions were taken accordingly—I wanted no Bob Cross to counsel me now.When the captain left the ship, I made no request, as did the other midshipmen, for leave to see my friends; nor even when he returned on board, which he did several times after the ship had gone into harbour, and was stripping, preparatory to being docked. One thing, however, gave me great satisfaction, which was, that when the despatch which we brought home was published, I found my name honourably mentioned in conjunction with other officers, and but three midshipmen were named.When the Calliope went into dock the report of the dockyard was very unfavourable. She required a thorough repair which would take some months. She was therefore ordered to be paid off. In the mean time the captain had gone to London. During his sojourn at Portsmouth I had never spoken to him, except on duty, and he had left me without a word of explanation as to his intentions towards me. As soon, however, as the order came down for paying off the ship, I received a letter from him, very cold and stiff, stating that I might, if I pleased, join any other ship, and he would recommend me to the captain; or I might remain on the books of the guard-ship, and wait until he commissioned another vessel, when he would be happy to take me with him.

The Arrow schooner had suffered very severely in the contest, having lost her commanding officer and thirteen men killed and wounded: indeed, had not the Calliope been at hand, it was the general opinion that the Stella would have overpowered her, notwithstanding that the latter had lost her mainmast, for the Arrow was completely dismantled, and would not have been able to have made sail.

The Calliope sent her carpenters and best seamen on board to repair her damages, and the next day we stood away for Port Royal, Jamaica, to announce the destruction of the pirate vessel.

In the morning Captain Delmar sent for me.

“Mr Keene, as you cannot do duty for the present, and as I do not wish you to be idle, I think you had better pay a little attention to navigation. You send in your day’s work, I perceive, but I suppose you have never regularly gone through a course of study.”

“No, sir,” replied I; “I fudge my day’s work, and I should be very glad to learn navigation properly.”

“So I presume. Well, then, I have spoken with Mr Smith, the master, who has promised me to give you the necessary instruction. You will commence to-morrow; you can sit at the table in the fore-cabin, where you will have nothing to distract your attention. You may go now.”

I bowed and left the cabin, and meeting Bob Cross on the main deck, I told him what the captain had said.

“I’m glad of it, Master Keene; it shows that the captain does now take a strong interest in you. He has never taken any trouble of that kind with any midshipman before. It will be of great service to you, so pay attention; it will please the captain if the master gives a good report of you. Who knows but you may be sent away in a prize, and I sent with you to take care of you? Wouldn’t that be a capital spree?”

The next day I commenced accordingly, under the tuition of the master, and as I had not Tommy Dott to play with, I gave satisfaction, and continued to do so until our arrival at Port Royal, when the captain went up to the admiral’s, stating all the particulars of the action, and, by way of sequel, my adventures on board of the pirate vessel. The admiral was so much interested that he requested Captain Delmar to bring me on shore to dine with me the next day.

I was still very black; but that made me, I presume more interesting. I told my story over again, and it afforded great amusement to the company; particularly to the ladies; and I have reason to believe that many compliments were paid me behind my back, by the admiral and officers who dined there; at all events, Captain Delmar was much pleased.

My strange history soon got wind. The governor heard of it, and asked Captain Delmar about it. The consequence was, that I received another invitation from the governor, and Captain Delmar again informed me that I might tell my own story, which I did, modestly as before. I say modestly, for I never was a boaster at any time; and I really believe that I thought much less of the circumstances than those did to whom I narrated them. I had at that time but one wish, which was to find favour in the sight of Captain Delmar. I felt that all my prospects in life depended upon that; and aware of his disposition, and the deference that he expected, humility had become, as it were, habitual.

During the time that we remained at Port Royal I continued my studies in the cabin and as the captain remained almost altogether on shore, I found the run of the cabin very pleasant; but as I had no inclination to study the whole of the day, I was not sorry that Tommy Dott was very often my companion in the cabin, an entrance to which, as he could not pass the sentry at the door, he obtained by climbing down the mizen chains, and creeping into the port windows. As soon as the captain’s boat was seen coming off Tommy was out again by the port as quick as a monkey, and I was very studiously poring over right-angled triangles. I rose, of course, as the captain entered the cabin. “Sit down, Mr Keene,” he would say—“sit down; the master has reported favourably of you, and I am glad to hear of it.”

One morning, when, as usual, Tommy Dott had come through the port, we were so busily employed with a caricature which we were making of old Culpepper, that the captain’s boat came alongside without our being aware of it, and the captain’s voice speaking to the first lieutenant as he was descending the after-ladder was the first intimation we received of his being on board.

It was impossible for Tommy Dott to escape without being seen as he climbed out. The table which was in the centre of the cabin was covered with a blue cloth, large enough for the table when all the additional leaves were put to it, and in its present reduced size the cloth fell down to the deck; I pointed it out to Tommy, as the sentry’s hand upon the handle of the door announced the immediate entrance of the captain, and he darted underneath the table, that he might escape detection intending as soon as the captain went into the after-cabin to make his retreat by the cabin-door or windows. The captain entered, and I rose, as usual, from my chair.

“Mr Keene,” said he, “I have occasion to speak to the first lieutenant on important private business; oblige me by leaving the cabin till that is done. You may as well tell Mr Hippesley that I wish to see him.”

“Yes, sir,” replied I making a bow, and leaving the cabin. I felt very much alarmed lest Tommy should be discovered in his hiding-place; and after the captain had stated that he had particular business with the first lieutenant, it was my duty, knowing that Mr Dott was there, to have said so. I hardly knew what to do, or how to act. After all, it was no great crime as it stood. Tommy Dott had come into the cabin without leave, and had concealed himself; but if I was to allow Tommy to remain there and listen to important and particular business, evidently of a secret nature, I should forfeit the good opinion and confidence of the captain: nevertheless, I was very unwilling to betray him; I was dreadfully puzzled, and when I went to the first lieutenant he perceived my confusion.

“Why, what is the matter with you, Mr Keene?—you look quite frightened,” said he.

“Well, sir, I am,” replied I; “and I think it my duty to tell you why I am so.”

I then informed him that Tommy Dott was under the cabin-table, and would, of course, hear the secret communications of the captain.

“You have done very right, Mr Keene, and I know how unpleasant it is to you to inform against your messmate; but at present there is no harm done.”

He then laughed, and said, “However, Mr Dott shall never know that you have said anything about it, and I will frighten him out of the cabin for the future.”

He then went down the ladder, and into the fore-cabin. I expected that he would have discovered Tommy as if by accident, but such was not the case. The captain had just gone into the after-cabin, and Mr Hippesley immediately followed him, and shutting the door, informed him of Mr Dott’s position, and why I had made it known. The captain could not help laughing, as, after all, it was no great offence.

He then gave the necessary information to the first lieutenant, and they both walked into the fore-cabin; the first lieutenant saying, “If you please, then, Captain Delmar, I will send a boat immediately with the letter.”

“Certainly,” replied the captain, sitting down, and who evidently was inclined to join in the joke with Mr Hippesley. “Sentry, send the officer on deck to man the jolly-boat, and tell Mr Dott to come here immediately.”

I was on deck when the sentry put his head up the ladder and gave the order, and I immediately perceived the plan of the first lieutenant and the state of alarm in which Tommy Dott must have been put.

The jolly-boat was manned, and Mr Dott called for in every quarter of the ship, but he did not make his appearance. After a delay of several minutes, the officer on deck went down into the cabin, reporting that the jolly-boat had been manned some time but that Mr Dott was not to be found.

“Not to be found!” replied the captain; “why, he can’t have fallen overboard.”

“Not he, sir,” replied the first lieutenant; “he has gone to sleep somewhere: either in the tops or the fore-topmast staysail netting.”

“He appears to be a very troublesome boy,” replied the captain.

“Very useless, indeed, sir,” replied the first lieutenant. “Sentry, have they found Mr Dott?”

“No, sir; quarter-masters have been everywhere. He’s not in the ship.”

“Very odd!” observed the captain.

“Oh! he’ll turn up soon, sir; but really, Captain Delmar, if you were to give him two or three dozen at the cabin gun, it would bring him to his senses.”

“That I most certainly will do,” replied Captain Delmar; “and I authorise you to do it, Mr Hippesley, as soon as he makes his appearance; it will be of some service to him; but I hope no accident has happened to him.”

“I have no fear of that, sir,” replied the first lieutenant: “if the purser’s steward’s room had been open to-day, I should have sent to see if he was not locked up in another attempt to steal raisins, but that has not been the case. By-the-by, the spirit-room was open this morning, and he may have been down there, and may have had the hatches put over him.”

“Well, we must send another midshipman; call Mr Keene,” said Captain Delmar.

The sentry called me, and I made my appearance.

“Mr Keene, you’ll go on shore to the dockyard in the jolly-boat: give that letter to the master attendant, and wait for an answer.”

“Yes, sir,” replied I.

“Have you seen anything of Mr Dott?” said the first lieutenant; “you are constantly together.”

“I saw him just before Captain Delmar came on board, sir, but I have not seen him since.”

“Well, well, we will settle accounts with the young gentleman as soon as he turns up,” replied the captain: “you may go, Mr Keene.”

I perceived that the captain and first lieutenant both smiled as I left the cabin. It appeared that soon after they left it and the captain went on shore; but Tommy was so frightened that he remained in his hiding-place, as he made sure he would be flogged if he made his appearance, and he resolved to remain where he was until my return, that he might consult me.

As soon as I had reported myself, and given the answer to the first lieutenant, I hastened to the cabin, and then poor Tommy crawled from under the table; the tears were still wet on his cheeks.

“I shall be flogged, Keene, as sure as I stand here. Tell me, what can I do—what can I say?”

“Tell the truth; that’s the best way,” replied I.

“Tell the captain that I was hid under the table! that would never do.”

“Depend upon it, it’s the best plan,” replied I; “and it is the only advice I can give you: you may be flogged if you tell the truth, but you aresureto be flogged if you tell a lie. It will only add to your offence.”

“Well, I’ve been thinking about it—I’m sure that Mr Hippesley will flog me if he catches me to-day or to-morrow; but if I remain hid for a day or two, they will really think that I have fallen overboard, and then they will say, ‘poor Tommy Dott,’ and perhaps be so glad when I do make my appearance, that they will forgive me.”

“Yes,” replied I, delighted at the idea; “I’m sure they will, if you do tell the truth when you appear again.”

“Then, that is what I’ll do. The first lieutenant said that I might be in the spirit-room. Where shall I go to?”

“Why,” said I, “you must remain under the table till dark, and then you may easily slip down into the coal-hole, where it is so dark that they never will see you, even if they go down for coals. It is the only place I know of; stay there all to-morrow and next day, and come up in the evening; or the next morning perhaps will be better.”

“Well, it’s a very good place,” replied Tommy; “anything better than being flogged; but will you bring me something to eat and drink?”

“Depend upon me, Tommy,” replied I; “I’ll contrive to bring you something every night.”

“Well, then, I’ll do that,” replied he.

“Yes; and tell the truth when you come out,” said I.

“Yes, upon my honour I will;” and so saying, Tommy, hearing a noise, again dived under the cabin table.

Soon afterwards I went out of the cabin. The first lieutenant beckoned me to him, and asked me where Mr Dott was, and I told him what had been arranged between us. He laughed very much, and said—

“Well, if Master Tommy punishes himself by two days’ confinement in the coal-hole, and tells the truth when he comes out, I think I may promise he will get off his flogging; but don’t you say that I have spoken to you about it, and let him do as he proposes.”

When it was dark, I supplied Tommy with provisions, and he gained the coal-hole without being discovered.

The next day the speculations at his disappearance were general, and it was now believed that poor Tommy had fallen overboard, and, as the sharks are thick enough in Port Royal, that he was safely stowed away in one of their maws. I will say that the whole of the ship’s company were very sorry for him, with the exception of Mr Culpepper, who observed that no good ever came of a boy who stole raisins.

“So you think, that because a lad steals a few of your confounded plums,” observed the second lieutenant, “he deserves to be eaten by the sharks. If I were Tommy Dott, I would haunt you if I could.”

“I’m not afraid of dead men,” replied Mr Culpepper; “they are quiet enough.”

“Perhaps so; but recollect, you make them chew tobacco, and therefore they ought to rise up in judgment against you, if they do against any one.”

As this conversation passed on the quarter-deck, it put an idea in my head. That night I went to Tommy, whom I found terribly tired of sitting on the coals. I brought him a bottle of mixed grog, and some boiled beef and biscuit. I consoled him by telling him that every one was sorry at his disappearance, and that I was convinced that he would not be punished if he told the truth.

Tommy was for leaving the coal-hole immediately, but I pointed out to him that the captain had not been on board that a and that it was necessary that the captain should believe that he had fallen overboard as well as the officers, or his compassion would not be roused. Tommy saw the propriety of this, and consented to remain another day. I then told him what Mr Culpepper had said, and I added, “Now, Tommy, if Mr Culpepper should see you by any chance, pretend to be your ghost.”

“That I will,” replied Tommy, “if I get six dozen for it.” I then left him.

On my return on deck, I saw Bob Cross; he was on shore during the major portion of the day, attending upon the captain, and as I was no longer in the captain’s gig, I saw but little of him.

“Well, Mr Keene,” said he, “I think you have quite recovered your colour by this time, and I hope to see you in the gig again.”

“I do not think I shall yet awhile—I have not yet learnt navigation enough; but the master says he will be done with me in a fortnight, if I go on as well as I do now.”

“Yes; I heard him tell the captain that you were very quick, and would be a good navigator but I can’t get over the loss of poor Tommy Dott; he was a little scampish, that’s sartin, but still he was a merry, kind-hearted boy—too good for the sharks, at all events. You must feel his loss, Mr Keene, for you were always together.”

“No, I don’t, Bob,” replied I.

“Well, I’m sorry to hear you say that, Mr Keene; I thought you had a kinder heart.”

“So I have, Bob; but I’ll tell you a secret, known only to the first lieutenant and me; and that is, Tommy’s in the coal-hole, very dirty, but quite safe.”

Bob Cross burst into a fit of laughing, which lasted some time.

“Well, Mr Keene, you have really taken a weight off my mind; now tell me all about it. You know I’m safe.”

I then told Bob what had happened, and of Tommy’s intention to make his appearance on the following evening or the next morning.

“Well,” said Bob, “you’re mischief itself, Master Keene, and that’s a fact; however, it’s all right this time, and you have the captain and first lieutenant as your confidants and partners in the joke. You did perfectly right and I’m sure the captain and first lieutenant must be pleased with you; but recollect, Master Keene, keep your distance as before; don’t presume.”

“Never fear, Bob,” replied I: “but now I have told you that, I want you to assist me.” I then repeated the conversation of Mr Culpepper with the second lieutenant.

“Now,” continued I; “you see, Cross, I can’t do anything myself; Mr Culpepper hates me, and would suspect me; but if we could only frighten him: you might, for he would not think you were playing him a trick.”

“I see,” replied Bob; “it will be a good thing for Tommy Dott, and a nice wind-up of this affair. Let me alone. When I come on board to-morrow evening I’ll manage it if I can.”

After a little more conversation, we separated for the night.

The next morning the captain came on board. He remained on deck with the first lieutenant for some minutes, during which of course, he was made acquainted with Tommy Dott’s position. When he came down into the cabin, I moved from my seat, as respectful and serious as before; and when ordered to sit down again, resumed my studies with great apparent diligence. He did not say a word to me about Tommy Dott; and as he was going out of the cabin, Mr Culpepper was announced by the sentry.

“If you please, Captain Delmar,” said Mr Culpepper, with his usual profound bow, “what are we to do with the effects of Mr Dott, who has fallen overboard? By the regulations of the service, they should be sold before the mast. And I also wish to know whether he is to be continued to be victualled, or whether it is your pleasure that he is discharged as dead?”

The captain smiled, and turned his face towards me; but I continued with my eyes down on my book.

“Perhaps we had better wait till to-morrow, Mr Culpepper,” replied the captain, “and then you may sell his effects, and put DD to his name, poor fellow.” And having made this reply, the captain went out of his cabin. Mr Culpepper followed; and shortly afterwards the captain went on shore again.

Before dusk, the captain’s gig, as usual, returned on board, and I was at the gangway to meet Bob Cross; the boat was hoisted up, and then Bob came to me.

“I must first go down and see Mr Dott, that I may be able to swear to the fact.” Bob did so, and then returned on deck. Mr Culpepper was abaft, walking by himself, when Bob went up and accosted him.

“If you please, sir,” said Bob, touching his hat, “did the captain say anything to you about coals, for I expect we shall not stay here much longer?”

“No,” replied Mr Culpepper.

“Then he must have forgot it, I suppose sir.”

“Well, there’s plenty of coals,” replied Mr Culpepper.

“Well, sir, I don’t know; but I think I heard the cook’s mate say as how they were getting rather low.”

“Getting rather low! then there must have been great waste,” exclaimed Mr C, who was very careful of his expenses.

“I don’t know how far it may be so; but I think it might be as well to know how matters stand; and if so be there’s plenty, why I can tell Captain Delmar when I go on shore to-morrow.”

“I’ll see; I’ll go down myself to-night,” replied Mr Culpepper. “The midshipmen are allowed a stove to themselves—very unusual—and they are cooking all day.”

“Talking about midshipmen, sir,” replied Cross, “you may think it’s very odd but as I stand here—and you know, Mr Culpepper, I am not easily scared—I saw that young Tommy Dott, or his ghost, this very evening.”

It was now quite dark; and Mr Culpepper stared at the coxswain, and then replied, “Pooh, nonsense!”

“It’s no nonsense, I do assure you. I saw him with these eyes, sure as I stand here.”

“Where?” exclaimed Mr C.

“Right forward, sir. I only mention it to you, but don’t say a word about it, for I should only be laughed at; but I do assure you that I would kiss the Bible to it, if it was required. I never did before believe in anything of that sort, that’s sartain; but it’s no use talking about it, sir. I think I had better get a lantern, and get over this coal business at once.”

“Yes, yes,” replied Mr Culpepper; “but you won’t know how much coals there are: I must go myself and see.”

Bob Cross was soon ready with the lantern, and went forward with Mr Culpepper. The hammocks had been piped down, and they were obliged to bend double under them to get along the lower deck. I followed unperceived.

The descent into the coal-hole was by battens, and not very easy for an old man like Mr C But Cross went down first, holding the light for the purser to follow, which he did very slowly, and with great caution. As soon as they both stood on the coals below, the purser took the light to make his survey.

“Why, there’s plenty of coals for three months, coxswain,” said he. “I thought there was; you see they are nearly up to the beams abaft.”

“Look! sir—look!” exclaimed Cross, starting back; “what’s that?”

“Where?” exclaimed Mr C, alarmed.

“There, sir—there he is: I told you so.”

The purser’s eyes were directed to where Bob pointed, and then he beheld Tommy Dott standing immovable, with his arms extended, as if denouncing him—his eyes staring, and his mouth wide open.

“Mercy!—murder!” cried the purser, dropping the lantern, which went out and left them in the dark; and he tumbled down on the coals.

Bob Cross stepped over him, and hastened up to the lower deck, followed by Tommy Dott, who first, by way of revenge, jumped several times upon the purser’s face and body before he climbed up.

The cry of the purser had given the alarm. The master-at-arms hastened forward with his lantern just as Tommy had made his appearance above the coamings. Seeing Tommy as black as a sweep, he too was frightened; the men had put their heads out of their hammocks and some of them had seen Tommy.

Bob Cross, as he crawled aft, cried out, “Tommy Dott’s ghost!” I had pretended to be terrified out of my wits as I ran aft, and all was confusion on the lower deck. The first lieutenant had come out of the wardroom, and seeing me, he inquired what was the matter. I replied that Mr Culpepper had gone down into the coal-hole, and had seen Mr Dott’s ghost. He laughed heartily, and went back.

Tommy had in the mean time made his appearance in the mids’ berth, at which they had all rushed from him in dismay, just as I entered; when I caught him by the hand saying, “Tommy, my boy, how are you?” They then perceived that it was Tommy himself, and order was restored.

Mr Culpepper was hoisted up out of the coal-hole; Master Tommy having jumped upon his face, he looked a very miserable object, as he was well blackened, as well as much bruised from the soles of Tommy’s shoes, and his nose had bled profusely. He was very incoherent for some time; but the doctor gave him an opiate, and put him to bed.

The next morning the whole affair was explained on the quarterdeck, Master Tommy well reprimanded, and desired to return to his duty. The captain was very much amused at the winding up of this affair, as it was a capital story to tell at the governor’s. Tommy never had an idea that I had blown upon him, nor did Mr Culpepper imagine that their meeting was premeditated.

I had now completed the usual course of navigation under the master, and had no longer any cause for remaining in the cabin; I therefore returned to my berth; but as I had taken a liking to navigation, I now was employed daily in working sights and rating the chronometer.

We remained three weeks longer in Port Royal, and then were ordered out on a cruise, on the South American coast. There we continued for nearly six months without anything occurring worth relating, except our having captured four good prizes. We were returning to Jamaica, when we fell in with a schooner, which gave us the intelligence of the capture of the island of Curaçao by four English frigates.

As we were near to the island and short of water, Captain Delmar resolved to touch at it, and remained two or three days.

The reader will perhaps recollect that the old Dutch gentleman, whose life I had saved in the pirate vessel, had stated that his name was Vanderwelt, and that he lived at Curaçao. The next evening we entered the harbour, and it was astonishing to every one how so strong a place could have been taken by so small a force. The commodore, who had plenty of work on hand, requested, or rather ordered, our captain to remain with him for ten days or a fortnight, to assist him.

On the third day after our arrival I obtained leave to go on shore, as I wished to find out the old Dutch gentleman. As I was again in the captain’s gig, I had very often landed, but had not had an opportunity of making inquiries, as I could not leave my boat and boat’s crew.

This afternoon I landed in the gig, and went up through the gate into the town, but I could not find anyone who spoke English. At last, by asking for the house of Mynheer Vanderwelt, it was pointed out to me, and I went up to the door; it was a very large house, with a verandah all round it, painted bright green and while alternately. There were several slaves sitting down at the entrance, and I asked for Mynheer Vanderwelt; they stared at me, and wondered what I wanted, but as I was in midshipman’s uniform, they were of course very civil, and one of them beckoned me to follow him, which I did, and was introduced to the old gentleman, who was sitting in a cane arm-chair with his pipe in his mouth, and fanned by two slave girls, about twelve years old.

As he had spoken to me in English on board of the pirate, I immediately went up to him, and said, “How do you do, sir?”

“I am very well, sir,” replied he, taking the pipe out of his mouth. “What do you want? do you come from the English commodore? What is his pleasure?”

“No, sir,” replied I; “I do not come from the commodore; but I came up to see you.”

“Oh, that is all,” replied the old gentleman, putting his pipe in his mouth again, and resuming his smoking. I felt rather nettled at his treatment, and then said—

“Don’t you know me, sir?”

“No, sir,” replied he, “I have not that honour. I have never seen you in my life before, and I do not know you.”

My blood was up at this cool declaration.

“Then I wish you a good morning, sir,” replied I; and turning on my heel, I was strutting out with all the dignity of an offended midshipman, when I was met face to face by the little girl, his daughter. She stared at me very much, and I passed her in sovereign contempt; she followed me timidly, and looked into my face, then panting for breath, seized me by the arm. I turned to her at being stopped in this manner, and was about to shake her off with anything but politeness, when she screamed out, and in a moment had sprung up, and was hanging with both arms round my neck.

“Fader, fader,” she cried out as I struggled to disengage myself.

The old gentleman came out at the summons.

“Stop him! fader; don’t let him go away,” cried she in Dutch; “it is he! it is he!”

“Who, my child?” asked the old gentleman.

“The pirate-boy,” replied the little girl, bursting into a paroxysm of tears, on my shoulders.

“Mein Gott! it cannot be; he wasblack, my child; yet,” continued the old gentleman, looking at me, “he is like him. Tell me, sir, are you our preserver?”

“Yes,” replied I, “I was; but that is of little consequence now. Will you oblige me by removing this young lady?” continued I, for I was highly offended.

“Sir, I ask your pardon,” replied the old gentleman; “but I am not to blame. How could I recognise you in a white person when you were so dark-coloured at our meeting on board of that vessel? I am not to blame; indeed I am not, my dear young friend. I would have given ten thousand rix dollars to have met you, that I might prove my gratitude for your noble defence of us, and our preservation at such a risk. Come, sir, you must forgive the mistake of an old man, who was certainly not inclined to be civil to an officer who belonged to the squadron, who had within these few days so humiliated us by their astonishing bravery and success. Let my little girl, whose life you saved, persuade you, if I cannot.”

In the mean time the little girl had dropped from my shoulder, and was on the floor, embracing my knees, and still sobbing. I felt convinced that what the old gentleman said was true, and that he had not recognised me. I had forgotten that I had been stained dark at the time that I had met them on board of the Stella.

I therefore held out my hand to the old gentleman, and raising the little girl, we all three went in together to where we had found the old gentleman on my first introduction to him.

“If you knew how delighted I am to see you, and be able to express my thanks,” said Mynheer Vanderwelt, “and poor Minnie too. How often have we talked over that dreadful day, and wondered if ever we should see you again. I assure you, on my honour, that now I no longer regret the capture of the island.”

Minnie stood by me during the time her father was speaking, her large blue eyes beaming through the tears with which they brimmed; and as I turned to her, our eyes met, and she smiled. I drew her towards me. She appeared as if she only required some encouragement, for she immediately kissed me several times on the cheek nearest to her, every now and then saying a word or two in Dutch to her father, which I could not understand.

I hardly need say, that after this, intimacy was soon brought about. If I thought that at first I had been treated with ingratitude, ample amends was made afterwards.

The old gentleman said during the evening, “Good heaven! if my daughter’s eyes had not been sharper than mine; if you had gone away, thinking that I did not choose to recognise you—had I found it out afterwards, it would have broken my heart, and poor Minnie’s too. Oh! I am grateful—very grateful to God that it was not so.”

That I passed a very pleasant evening the reader may imagine. The household who had been told who I was, appeared to almost worship me. The old gentleman asked me a hundred questions as to my parentage, etcetera, about Captain Delmar and the service, and begged of me to remain with him altogether while the frigate was in port. I told him that was impossible, but that I would come as often as I could obtain leave. At nine o’clock I bade them good night, and was escorted to the boat by six of the slaves carrying lanterns.

Captain Delmar, as well as all the other captains of the frigates, had taken up his quarters on shore for the harbour was so narrow and landlocked, that the heat on board was excessive. I found that the next day old Mr Vanderwelt had paid his respects to Captain Delmar, giving him an account of what had occurred on board of the pirate much more flattering to me than what I had stated myself. The steward was present at the time, and he had told Bob Cross, who communicated it to me. Mynheer Vanderwelt had also begged as a favour that I might be permitted to stay on shore with him during the time that the frigate was in harbour, but to this Captain Delmar had not consented, promising, however, that I should have occasional leave when the service would permit of it.

The reader may recollect that the island of Curaçao had been surrendered to the English in 1800, and restored to the Dutch in 1802. During that interval several English merchants had settled there and remained after the restoration, and now at the second capture we found them still on the island. From these we received the information that Mr Vanderwelt was the richest man on the island, and that the Dutch government was indebted to him in very large sums; that he had long retired from business, although he had large property in the Havannah, which he received with his wife, who had been a Spanish lady, and that it was his intention to have gone back to Holland by the first man-of-war which should have arrived.

We remained three weeks at Curaçao, during which time the first lieutenant gave me leave to go on shore almost every evening after the captain had dismissed his gig, and to remain at Mr Vanderwelt’s till half-past eight the following morning, when I joined my boat, and attended on the captain. By this plan my duty was not interfered with, and I had many pleasant meetings with my new friends, and became, as may be imagined, very intimate with little Minnie.

I may as well describe her. She was about ten years old, tall for her age; she was very fair, with deep blue eyes, and very dark hair; her countenance was very animated and expressive, and she promised to be a very handsome woman. Her father doted upon her, for he had no other child; he had married late in life, and his wife had died a few days after Minnie was born. She was very affectionate in disposition, and very sweet-tempered; up to the present she had received but little education, and that was one principal reason for Mr Vanderwelt’s wishing to return to Holland. I soon became as one of the family, and certainly was treated as such.

Minnie was very curious to know what it was that I carried about my neck in the seal-skin pouch, but I never could tell either her or her father what it really was. Mr Vanderwelt very often asked me if I liked being at sea, and I invariably replied in the affirmative.

At last the frigate was to sail, and I had but one more evening to pass with them. Mr Vanderwelt appeared very grave, and little Minnie would every now and then during the evening burst into tears at the idea of our separation.

At last the hour of parting arrived—it was very painful. I promised to write to them, and Mr Vanderwelt told me that his house was always ready to receive me, and begged that if I wanted anything I would let him know.

I cried, myself, when I left the house—the first time that I ever cried, I believe, on such an occasion. The next morning we were again under weigh, to rejoin the admiral at Jamaica.

Bob Cross had told me that he wished to have a little talk with me in the first watch, and I met him on the gangway, our usual rendezvous.

“Master Keene, I have some news for you, which I gained from the steward last night. I will say, that his ears are always open; not that I think he is generally what is called an eavesdropper but he likes you, and when you are concerned, he does care to find out what is going on. Now you see, sir, that Dutch gentleman whom you saved from the nigger pirate came to call on Captain Delmar yesterday morning, and, after some palaver, he told the captain that he wished you to remain with him altogether, and leave his majesty’s service; and he begged the captain to allow you to be discharged, and then he would be a father to you, as you had no father. There was a great deal more which the steward could not make out, but it was all to that effect. Well, the captain said that it was very true that you had lost your father but that he considered you ashis ownson, and could not part with you on any account; and he stated that you were so promising an officer, that it be very wrong that you should leave the service, and that it must not be thought of. The old gentleman said a great deal, and tried very hard to persuade the captain, but it was of no use. The captain said he would never let you go till you were a post-captain and commanded a fine frigate, and then you would of course be your own master, and act as you please.”

“I am very glad to hear all this, Bob, I can assure you.”

“Yes, sir, it is very good news: but, Master Keene, I only hope, knowing Captain Delmar as you do, that you will act towards him as if you had never heard it.”

“I will, depend upon it, Cross. As for leaving the service, that I would not have done even if Captain Delmar had agreed to it. I’m an Englishman, and I don’t want to be under Dutch protection.”

“That’s right, sir—that’s right—just as I wished you to feel. How time flies away. Why, Master Keene, you have been afloat nearly three years.”

“Within a month, Bob.”

“And you’re growing such a tall fellow, they won’t keep you much longer in the captain’s gig, I expect: I shall be sorry for that. So Master Tommy Dott is in another scrape.”

“How?—I heard nothing of it.”

“No, because it’s only within this half-hour that he’s got in it.”

“Tell me.”

“Why, sir, Mr Culpepper had fallen fast asleep on the gunroom table, under the skylight, which, as you know, is always open, and his head had fallen back, and his mouth was wide open: there was no other officer in the gun-room except Mr Culpepper: and Tommy Dott, who perceived him, asked Timothy Jenkins, the maintop-man, to give him a quid of tobacco; well, Jenkins takes it out of his cheek, red-hot, as you may suppose, and hands it to Master Tommy, who takes his perpendicular very accurately, and drops the quid into the purser’s open mouth.

“Mr Culpepper was almost choked, but after a terrible coughing, the quid comes up again; notwithstanding, he turns as sick as a dog, and is obliged to run to the basin in his cabin. Well, sir, as soon as he comes out again, he goes up under the half deck, and inquires of the sentry who it was that did it; and the sentry, who is that sulky fellow, Martin, instead of knowing nothing about it, says directly, it was Master Tommy; and now there’s a formal complaint made by Mr Culpepper on the quarter-deck, and Master Tommy will get it as sure as a gun.”

“He don’t know how to play a trick,” replied I; “he is always found out and punished: the great point is, not to be discovered—that’s the real pleasure in playing a trick.”

“Well, you certainly do manage well, Master Keene; but I think it’s almost time you left them off now, you’re getting an oldster. Why, you must be seventeen, sir?”

“Yes, Bob, not very far from it.”

“Well, I suppose I must say Mister Keene for the future.”

“You may call be what you like, Bob; you have been a good friend to me.”

“Well, sir, I only hope that Captain Delmar will make you a post-captain, as he says, and that you’ll get a fine frigate, and I’ll be your coxswain; but that’s a long way to look to, and we shan’t have any more councils of war on the gangway then.”

“No; but we may in the cabin, Cross.”

“A large sail on the starboard bow,” cried the look-out man forward.

“A large sail on the starboard bow,” reported the mate of the watch.

My glass was on the capstern, and I ran for it, and went forward to examine the vessel, although my duty as signal midshipman was ended at sunset.

“What do you make of it, Mr Keene?” said the officer of the watch.

“I think she is a man-of-war; but it is so dark, that I cannot make her out very clearly.”

“Is she standing this way?”

“Yes, sir, under top-sails and top-gallant-sails, I think.”

The officer of the watch went down to report to the captain, who had not yet turned into his cot. Captain Delmar had been informed that a Dutch frigate was expected at the island, but not until the following month; still we had no reason to suppose that there were any of our frigates down in these latitudes, except those lying in the harbour at Curaçao. The wind was light, about a three knot breeze, and there being no moon till after twelve o’clock, it was very difficult to make out what she was. Some said she was a two-decked vessel. The captain went down to look at his private signals for the night, and before he came up I was all ready with the lanterns.

“Two lights over one in a triangle; be quick, Mr Keene.”

“Aye, aye, sir,” replied I.

The lights were soon hoisted at the peak, but as they could not well be seen by the other vessel, as we were standing towards her, we went about and hove to across her hawse. For a quarter of an hour she continued to stand towards us without noticing the signals; at last the captain said, “They must be all asleep on board of the vessel.”

“No, Captain Delmar,” replied I, keeping my telescope on the vessel, “they are not all asleep, for I saw lights on the main-deck through the bow-ports. I see them again now.”

“So do I,” said the first lieutenant.

“Then we’ll beat to quarters, Mr Hippesley,” rejoined the captain.

The men were summoned to quarters, and hammocks piped up and stowed in a very short time, the guns cast loose, and every man at his post (but the ports not opened), waiting the coming down of the stranger, now about a mile distant, when suddenly she rounded to the wind on the same tack that we were, and set her royals and flying-jib.

“She does not answer our signals,” observed the captain: “I suspect by that and her present manoeuvre she must be an enemy.”

“I have no doubt of it, sir,” observed the first lieutenant; “an English frigate would not behave in that way.”

“Open the ports and get up the fighting lanterns, then,” said the captain; for, up to the present, we had been careful not to show any lights.

It was now plain to see that her men were at their quarters and that she was prepared for action. When everything was ready on deck, the royals and flying-jib were set, and we gave chase. The strange vessel was about three-quarters of a mile on our weather-beam; in half an hour we had gained upon her considerably, and our sailing was so superior that we were satisfied, should she prove an enemy, that in an hour more we should be engaged.

Of course, we might have engaged her at the distance we were from her, but you cannot be too careful in a night action, and ought never to engage without first hailing the vessel to make sure that she is an enemy, as circumstances may, and have occurred by which an English vessel may not be able to answer the private signal, and, of course, a vessel belonging to a neutral power would be in the same position.

The incertitude which existed as to whether the strange vessel was an enemy or not created great excitement. My duty, as signal midshipman, placed me abaft on the quarter-deck, and Bob Cross, who was really a quarter-master, although doing duty as captain’s coxswain, was at the wheel.

At last we had brought the chase well on our weather quarter, and when we tacked we found that we lay well up, she being about a point on our lee bow. Another half-hour brought us within two cables’ length of her, when we kept away, so as to pass her to leeward, close enough to have thrown a biscuit on board. The stranger still remaining on the opposite tack, Captain Delmar then hailed from the gangway—

“Ship, a-hoy!”

There was a death-like silence on board of both vessels, and his voice pierced sonorously through the night wind.

“Ah! yaw!” was the reply.

“What ship is that?” continued Captain Delmar.

During this time every man was at his gun; the captains, with the lanyards of the locks in their hands, ready to pour in a broadside.

The reply from the other vessel was—“Vat chip is dat?”

“His Britannic Majesty’s ship Calliope,” replied Captain Delmar; and then he repeated—“What ship is that? Let every man lie down at his quarters,” said Captain Delmar. The order was hardly obeyed, when the stranger frigate poured in her broadside, and as we were then very close, with great execution to our hull and rigging: but as the men had been lying down, very few of them were hurt.

As soon as the crash was over, Captain Delmar cried out—“Up, men, and fire, as I round to under her stern.”

In a few seconds we had passed through the volumes of smoke, and luffed up under her stern: we poured in our whole broadside.

“Let her go off again—flatten in there forward. Reedy about,” was the next order given.

We ran away from her about three cables’ length, until we had sufficient way to tack, and then we went about and stood towards her, steering for her weather quarter, as if we were going to engage her to windward.

“Over to the larboard guns, my lads. Hands by, after bracings and howlings, Mr Hippesley.”

“Aye, aye, sir, all ready.”

As soon as we were near enough, the after-yards were shivered, the jib sheet to windward, and the helm put up. The Calliope worked beautifully; she paid sharp off, and we again passed under her stern, and gave another raking broadside; very unexpected on the part of the Dutchman, who presumed that we were going to engage him to windward, and had his men all ready at his larboard guns in consequence.

The Dutch captain was evidently much annoyed: he stood at the taffrail, and, much to our amusement, cried out, in bad English, “You coward—not fight fair.”

As we shot ahead of her, to leeward, she gave us a portion of her starboard broadside: but the men, having been over at the guns on the other side, were not quick enough, and they did us no injury; whereas, her mizzen-mast fell over the side a few minutes after we passed her.

She then raid off, and so did we, so that she might not rake us, and broadsides were exchanged on equal terms; but before we had exchanged these broadsides, both ships running with the wind on the quarter, we found that our superiority in sailing free was so great, that we shot ahead of him out of his fire, and we were enabled to luff up and rake him again.

The last raking broadside brought down his main-topmast and then she was all our own, as Bob Cross said; as she could not round to with no after sail, and we could from our superiority in sailing, take our position as we pleased, which we did, constantly keeping ahead of him, and raking him, broadside after broadside, and receiving but one broadside in return, until his foremast went by the board, and he had nothing but his main-mast standing.

This bettered his condition on the whole; as, although hardly manageable with so little wind, he had more power over his vessel, as far as rounding to the wind, which he did, and the action continued; but our fighting under sail gave us great advantage, and although an occasional shot would come in, and we had to carry some men into the cockpit, for one shot we received, we certainly returned ten. The action had continued about an hour, when, by the continual cannonading, the light wind was beaten down, and it fell dead calm. This put us again upon a more equal footing, as the Calliope had not steerage way.

We were then about a quarter of a mile apart, lying head and stern; but both ships had fallen off during the calm, so that only the quarter guns of each could be brought to bear. The major portion of the ship’s company being, therefore, not able to use their guns, were employed in repairing the damages we had received, which were very considerable, especially in the sails and rigging.

I was standing by Bob Cross, who was looking out for cats’ paws, as we call slight breaths of wind, when he said in a low voice:—

“Master Keene, I never had an idea that the captain could handle his ship so well: he really knows what he’s about as well as any man in the service.”

“I thought so, too,” replied I. “Whew! there’s a nasty shot,” cried I, as one came in and upset half a dozen of the marines, who were hauling upon the mizzen-topsail sheet, which had just been spliced.

“Yes, sir, that chap is made of good stuff, depend upon it—all the Dutchmen are: if they could only keep their hands out of their breeches pockets, they would be rummer customers than they are now; as it is, they are not to be played with; and, depend upon it, we’re a long way off having him yet: we must pray for wind to come up and he must pray for the calm to continue.”

“Where’s Mr Keene?” said the captain, who was on the other side of the deck.

“Here, sir,” said I, running up and touching my hat.

“Mr Keene, go down quietly and ascertain how many men we have hurt: the doctor will be able to tell you pretty nearly.”

“Aye, aye, sir,” replied I, and I dived down below; just as I did so, a shot came in and cut away the lower rail of the copper stanchions which were round the hatchway, about a foot beyond my hat: had I not gone down so quickly, it would have taken my head off.

I went down into the gun-room, for the doctor preferred being there to the cockpit, as there was so much more room to operate, and I gave him the captain’s message.

He was very busy taking off a poor fellow’s leg. It was a horrible sight and made me sick and faint. As soon us the bone had been sawed off, he said—

“You will find all the wounded I have dressed in the steerage; those they have brought me down dead are in the cockpit. There have been five amputations already the master is badly wounded, and Mr Williams the mate, is killed: those whom I have not been able to attend to yet, are here in the gun-room. You must ascertain what the captain wishes to know yourself, Mr Keene. I cannot, leave a leg with the arteries not taken up, to count heads. Mr Rivers, the tenaculum—ease the tourniquet, now.”

As I felt what the doctor said to be true, I got a lantern and commenced my examinations. I found fourteen wounded men waiting the doctor’s care in the gun-room, which was almost a pool of blood. In the steerage there were nine who had been dressed, and four in their hammocks, who had undergone amputation of the arm or leg. I then went down into the cockpit, where I counted eleven of our best men lying dead. Having obtained the information required, I was proceeding up the cockpit ladder, when I turned towards the purser’s steward’s room, and saw Mr Culpepper, the purser, on his knees before a lantern; he looked very pale—he turned round and saw me.

“What’s the matter?” cried he.

“Nothing, sir; only the captain wishes to know how many men are killed and wounded.”

“Tell him I do not know: surely he does not want me on deck?”

“He wants to know how many men are hurt, sir,” replied I, for I perceived that he thought that the message was sent to him.

“Mercy on me! Stop a minute, Mr Keene, and I’ll send up word by you.”

“I can’t stop, sir,” replied I, going up the ladder.

Mr Culpepper would have called me back, but I preferred leaving him in his error, as I wished to see which he most dreaded, the captain’s displeasure or the shot of the enemy.

I returned on deck and made my report. The captain looked very grave, but made no reply.

I found that the two frigates were now lying stern to stern, and firing occasional guns, which raked fore and aft. Except the men who worked the guns aft, our people were lying down at their quarters, by the order of the captain.

“If we only had but a capful of wind,” said the captain to the first lieutenant, “but I see no appearance of it.”

I touched my hat and said, “The moon will rise in about ten minutes, sir, and she often brings the wind up with her.”

“That’s true, Mr Keene, but it’s not always the case. I only hope she will; if not, I fear we shall lose more of our men.”

The firing continued, and our main-mast had received so many shots, that we were obliged to hold it for its support. While so employed, the moon rose, and the two vessels had now a good view of each other. I directed my glass to the horizon under the moon, and was delighted to perceive a black line, which promised wind; I reported it to the master, and the promise was kept good, for in a quarter of an hour our sails flapped, and then gradually filled.

“She has steerage way, sir,” reported Bob Cross.

“Thank Heaven for that,” replied Captain Delmar. “Jump up, men. Brace round the yards, Mr Hippesley.”

“The enemy’s main yard is cut in two in the slings, sir,” reported I, after I had my glass upon her.

“Then her last hope is gone,” replied Mr Hippesley. “Haul over the starboard jib-sheet forward—let her come to, quartermaster. Larboard guns, my lads.”

“Now, my men,” cried Captain Delmar, “make short work of her.”

This injunction was obeyed. We had now a good sight of the enemy, and brought our whole broadside to bear upon her stern; and after a quarter of an hour more firing I perceived that her ensign was no longer on the staff, where it had been hoisted after the fall of the mizenmast; neither had she for the last five minutes given us a gun in return.

“She has struck, sir, I think,” said I to Captain Delmar; “her ensign is down.”

“Pass the word ‘Cease firing,’ Mr Hippesley; but let the guns be all reloaded in case of accidents. Have we a boat that can swim? Examine the cutters, Mr Keene.”

I found the cutter on the larboard quarter, with her bottom out: she could not swim, that was clear. The starboard one was in better condition.

“The starboard cutter will float, sir; her gunwale is all torn away, but there are rollocks enough to pull.”

“Let her be cleared away and lowered down, Mr Hippesley. Send for the second lieutenant.”

“I believe he’s not on deck sir,” replied the first lieutenant.

“Not much hurt, I hope?”

“A splinter, I was told, sir.”

“Where’s Mr Weymss, the third lieutenant? Mr Weymss, jump into the boat, and take possession of the prize: take as many men as you can; and, Mr Keene, with Mr Weymss, and as soon as you have gained the necessary information, come back with the boat and two hands.”

I followed the third lieutenant info the boat, and we pulled on board of our antagonist. A junior officer received us on the deck, and presented his sword. His left arm was bound up, and he was very pale from loss of blood. He spoke pretty good English; and we found that we had captured the Dort, Dutch frigate, of thirty-eight guns, bound to Curaçao, with a detachment of troops for the garrison, and a considerable quantity of ammunition and specie on board for the use of the colony.

We inquired whether the captain was much hurt, as he did not appear on deck.

“He is dead, gentlemen,” replied the young officer: “he was my father. Our loss has been very great. I am only a cadet, yet I am commanding officer.”

A tear rolled down his cheek as he said that the captain was his father, and I felt for him. Shortly afterwards he staggered to a carronade slide, and dropped down on it, and very soon was in a state of insensibility.

The carnage had been dreadful, and the bulwarks of the vessel had been shattered to pieces. The scene was almost as had as the Stella’s decks before she was blown up by the negro captain. Several of the guns were dismounted and two of them had burst. I had only time to go round the gun-deck, and then I ordered two hands into the boat, that I might make my report to Captain Delmar.

I asked the third lieutenant to allow me to take on board the young officer, who still remained lifeless on the carronade slide, and, as it was proper for me to bring back with me the commanding officer, he consented. We lowered him with a rope into the boat, and then I returned on board of the Calliope, and went up to the captain to make my report, and present him with the sword of the officer commanding the prize.

Just as I was commencing my story, Mr Culpepper came up without his wig, and in a state of great disorder, with a piece of dirty paper in his hand. He trembled very much from the effects of his alarm, but made a very profound bow, and said to Captain Delmar—

“Here is the state of killed and wounded, Captain Delmar, as far as I have been able to collect them. I could not possibly get them ascertained before, although I have been an hour or two employed—ever since Mr Keene came down.”

The captain, who did not like the interruption, replied very haughtily, “Mr Culpepper, it’s the duty of the surgeon to send in the report of killed and wounded. You had better go down below, get your dress in a little better order. Now, Mr Keene.”

Old Culpepper slunk away as I proceeded to give the information, and the captain now asked the carpenter if the pinnace was sufficiently repaired.

“In a few minutes, sir,” was the reply.

“Mr Hippesley, you must, then, send forty hands on board the prize to repair her damages, as far as we can. Mr Weymss must remain on board.”

In the meantime the young officer had been taken down below to the surgeon, who had now some leisure to attend to him. He was soon restored, and the surgeon expressed his opinion that it would be possible to save his arm. I went down to see him, and I gave him my hammock to sleep in for the present, and as soon as he was comfortably arranged under the half-deck I returned to the quarter-deck, and made myself as useful as I could, for we had plenty to do on board of our own frigate, knotting and splicing, having only made temporary repairs.

It was now dawn of day, and very soon afterwards broad daylight. The men were ordered aft with the buckets, and the decks, which were smeared and black with powder and the blood of the wounded, were washed down. That we were all very tired I hardly need say, but it was not yet time for repose; the magazines had been secured and the fires lighted.

Another boat, with the carpenter and assistant-surgeon, had been sent on board the prize to remedy any serious damage and to assist in dressing the wounded. I was sent with the boat. Mr Weymss, the third lieutenant, had not been idle: jury-masts were in preparation, the decks had been cleared, the dead thrown overboard, and the wounded taken below.

On mustering the remainder of the Dort’s ship’s company, and calling over the muster-roll of the troops on board, we found that she had lost the captain, 2 lieutenants and 10 officers, 73 seamen and 61 soldiers, killed; and the first-lieutenant, 13 officers, and 137 wounded—147 killed and 151 wounded: total 298. She had received several shot between wind and water, and had a good deal of water in the hold: this was, however, soon remedied by the carpenter and his crew, and the frigate pumped out by the prisoners.

I returned on board of the Calliope with this intelligence to the captain, and found that the surgeon had just sent in the report of our own loss, which was, 1 officer and 17 men killed—master, 2 lieutenants, 2 midshipmen, and 47 wounded.

“Do you know who are the midshipmen wounded?” said the captain to me.

“I heard that Mr James was killed, sir, but not the names of those who are wounded; but I think one of them must be Mr Dott, or we certainly should have seen him about.”

“I should not be surprised,” replied the captain. “Sentry, ask who are the young gentlemen wounded.”

The sentry replied, “Mr Castles and Mr Dott.”

“Well,” replied the captain, “he’ll be in no more mischief for some time; I heard of his trick to the purser.”

As the captain was saying this, I perceived the piece of paper which the purser had brought up as his report of killed and wounded lying on the table with the other reports. It had, apparently, not been examined by the captain, but my eye caught it, and I observed, written in a shaking hand, “Pieces of beef, 10; ditto pork, 19; raisins, 17; marines, 10.” I could not help smiling.

“What are you amused with, Mr Keene, may I ask?” said the captain, rather gravely.

“I beg your pardon, sir, for venturing so in your presence,” replied I; “but it is Mr Culpepper’s report of killed and wounded;” which I then took up, and handed to the captain.

This proof of Mr Culpepper’s state of mind during the conflict was too much for even Captain Delmar, who laughed outright.

“The old fool,” muttered he.

“You may go now, Mr Keene. If breakfast is ready, tell Mr Hippesley to let the men have it as soon as possible.”

“Aye, aye, sir,” replied I, and bowing respectfully, I quitted the cabin; for I felt that Captain Delmar thought that he had not been quite so reserved towards me as he always wished to be.

As soon as I had given the captain’s orders, I went down to find out Tommy Dott. He was in his hammock, next to mine, in which I had put the young Dutch officer. Dott was wide awake, and, apparently, very feverish.

“Where are you hurt, Tommy?”

“I am sure I don’t know,” said he. “Get me some water, Keene.”

I got a pannikin of water, and he drank it.

“Don’t you know where you are hurt?”

“I believe it’s my side—somewhere about the body, I know; but I’m so stiff all over, that I can’t tell exactly where. Something hit me, and I fell right down the hatchway; that’s all I know about it until I found myself in my hammock.”

“Well, at all events, you won’t be punished now for dropping the quid into Mr Culpepper’s mouth.”

“No,” replied Tommy, with a smile, in spite of his pain; “but I would have played him a better trick than that if I had had any idea that we should have been so soon in action. I wish I could turn round, Keene—I think I should be easier.”

I turned poor Tommy in his hammock, and then left him. I looked at the son of the Dutch captain—he was slumbering; he was a very slight youth, with very beautiful, but very feminine features. I felt a kindness towards him, poor fellow; for he had lost his father, and he was about to pass his best years in prison. But the boatswain’s mates piped to breakfast, and I hastened down into the berth to get my share of the cocoa.

As soon as the men had finished their breakfast, the hands were again turned up, the lower deck cleared and washed, new sails bent and the guns properly secured; screens were put up round the half-deck where the wounded were in their beds. The dead were brought up and sewed up in their hammocks, laid out on gratings, and covered with the ensign and union jack, preparatory to their being committed to the deep. Another party was sent to assist on board of the prize, and the prisoners were brought on board, and put down in the fore-hold, which had been cleared for their reception.

By noon everything was so far ready that we were enabled to take the prize in tow, and make sail on the Calliope, after which the men, who were exhausted, went to dinner, and were permitted to sleep during the remainder of the day until the evening, when the ship’s company was ordered up, and the dead were committed to the deep blue sea with the usual ceremonies.

The breeze was steady but the water was smooth during the night, and glad I was to throw myself on one of the lockers in the midshipmen’s berth, after so many hours of excitement. I slept till four in the morning, and finding the planks not quite so soft as they might be, I then turned into the hammock of the midshipman of the morning watch, and remained till six hells, when Bob Cross came down and told me that the captain would soon be on deck.

“Well, Cross,” said I, as I came on deck and went aft to look at the prize in tow, “this is a nice business, and our captain will gain a great deal of credit.”

“And he deserves it, Master Keene,” replied Cross: “as I said before, I never had an idea that he could handle his ship so well—no, nor none of the ship’s company. We all thought Mr Hippesley the best officer of the two, but we have found out our mistake. The fact is, Mr Keene, Captain Delmar wraps himself an in his dignity like a cloak, and there’s no making him out, till circumstances oblige him to take it off.”

“That’s very true, Bob,” replied I: “it is only this very morning that he laughed himself, and I laughed also, and he pulled up immediately afterwards, twice as stiff to me as before.”

I then told Bob of Mr Culpepper’s report, which amused him very much.

“I am sure that he is pleased with you, Mr Keene, and I must say that you were very useful and very active.”

“Do you know that the carpenter says that we have received injuries that cannot be well repaired without the ship going into dock, and I should not be surprised if we were to be sent home, if the survey confirms his report. I hope we shall; I am tired of the West Indies, and I should like to see my mother; we have a nice breeze now, and we are two points free. If it lasts, we shall be at Jamaica in a fortnight or less.”

The captain coming on deck put an end to our conversation.

Before night the prize had got up jury-masts, and sail set upon them, and we went through the water more rapidly. In ten days we arrived at Port Royal with our prize. The captain went on shore, and what was still more agreeable, we got rid of all our prisoners and wounded men. A survey, in consequence of the carpenter’s report was held upon the Calliope, and the result was, she was ordered home to be repaired. The Dort was commissioned by the admiral, and Mr Hippesley received an acting order to the sloop of war, which had become vacant by the commander of her being promoted into the Dort, which was now christened the Curaçao.

In ten days after our arrival we were ready, and made sail for Old England. Tommy Dott and the second lieutenant remained on board, and were both convalescent before we entered the Channel. Tommy Dott’s wound, by the bye, was a splinter in the back, added to severe bruises from tumbling down the hatchway.

Captain Delmar had shown great kindness to the son of the Dutch captain and he did not send him on shore with the rest of the prisoners, but permitted him to remain, and come home in the Calliope. He recovered slowly, but was soon out of danger, and was walking about with his arm in a sling long before we arrived in England. It appeared to me that, during the passage home, old Culpepper was not so much in the good graces of Captain Delmar as he used to be; he was, however, more obsequious than ever. We had a fine run home, and in seven weeks from our leaving Port Royal, we dropped our anchor at Spithead.

I may have been wrung, but it certainly did appear to me that as we neared the coast of England, the behaviour of Captain Delmar was more reserved to me (I may say it was harsher) than ever it had been before. Hurt at treatment which I felt I did not deserve, I tried to analyse the cause as I walked up and down the deck, and at last I decided that his pride was again alarmed. On the one hand he was returning to his own country, to meet with his aristocratical connections, and on the other he was reminded of my mother, and hismésalliancewith her—if such a term can be used to a woman who had sacrificed herself to one above her in rank. At all events, I was the result of that connection, and I presumed that he was ashamed of it, and consequently kept me at a distance, and checked his feelings towards me. Perhaps he thought that my mother might be induced to disclose to me that which I had under his own hand-writing, and wore next my heart; or he might consider I was no longer a boy, but a tall young man, and one who might be induced to claim his protection. Such were my reflections, and my resolutions were taken accordingly—I wanted no Bob Cross to counsel me now.

When the captain left the ship, I made no request, as did the other midshipmen, for leave to see my friends; nor even when he returned on board, which he did several times after the ship had gone into harbour, and was stripping, preparatory to being docked. One thing, however, gave me great satisfaction, which was, that when the despatch which we brought home was published, I found my name honourably mentioned in conjunction with other officers, and but three midshipmen were named.

When the Calliope went into dock the report of the dockyard was very unfavourable. She required a thorough repair which would take some months. She was therefore ordered to be paid off. In the mean time the captain had gone to London. During his sojourn at Portsmouth I had never spoken to him, except on duty, and he had left me without a word of explanation as to his intentions towards me. As soon, however, as the order came down for paying off the ship, I received a letter from him, very cold and stiff, stating that I might, if I pleased, join any other ship, and he would recommend me to the captain; or I might remain on the books of the guard-ship, and wait until he commissioned another vessel, when he would be happy to take me with him.

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