IXGetting out to sea strengthened me a little more, and I took heart, though the evil associations of theCharles the Secondpained the conscience. Very small scrapings had fallen to them since they had left Joanna, and the mood of the crew was sour.However, they parliamented together and voted to go to the Gulf of Aden to find Moorish ships, and perhaps waylay the rich fleet of Mocha, whose movements they had learned of at Madagascar.“With that,” said Mr. Every, “we shall make our fortune”,—fortune being a great word in his mouth.In those regions the sun is cruel. As we drew on to the gulf the heat lay upon us like a smothering blanket; nay, like many blankets, so that the very air one breathed seemed to sear the throat; we went about our blistered decks nearly naked—to put your hand on one of the guns was like laying it on a hot oven—and Mr. Every sprawled under an awning that was rigged over the poop, drinking bomboo[10]and wishing he had made his fortune and were living in a fine housewith a fine wife in England. Nor had we the comfort of looking toward cooler waters, but every day drew farther and farther into the furnace.[10]Grog of limes, sugar, etc.At the mouth of the Red Sea—red is the color of flame—we fell in with two ships that were on the same account as we, and the morning after meeting them met three more ships of bad intent, some being Englishmen from America—Captains May (no relative of mine) Farrel and Wake—until you might have supposed a parliament of pirates was meeting. We were all there for the Mocha fleet; but after riding together a night or two and exchanging visits we separated, each captain having his own notion of the place where the fleet we sought would pass.But wide is the sea and many are its paths, and the Mocha fleet slipped by us all in the night of Saturday. Next morning the men held a general consult as to whether we should follow them or not, and after a great dispute as usual, a vote was taken which fell for pursuit, and so the Sabbath was desecrated by a wicked chase.At sundown we came upon a lagging ship of the fleet and took her without a fight, and with her something of gold and silver, but no great sum. We put a prize crew aboard but soon called them off again and left the ship to go her voyage.There was enough profit in this plunder to cheer our people, and they became hungry for more. A few days thereafter we spied anothersail and, getting up our anchor, stood to her. Before we came up to her a haze fell over the sea, which presently turned to a thick fog, thereby favoring Mr. Every’s enterprise by allowing him to get close and make a sort of surprise.When nigh enough we sent a shot across her bows; but she, fearing that we were a lawless ship, refused to heave back but hauled to the wind and made off. With the breeze on our starboard quarter, despite the fog we kept her in sight; and, being the better sailer, we drew down upon her, so near that we made her out to be theGunsway, East Indiaman.Mr. Every now yawed his ship occasionally as he worked for the range; but they opened first at us, giving us a load from their stern-chasers, which split our larboard foreyard arm and might, had it been a little cleaner break, put us out of the pursuit. Mr. Every replied with our bow-chasers, which we learned afterward did them little hurt.Our captain, wishing to get the range for his broadside more quickly and theGunswaybeginning to show a chance of escape, we put our helm down hard, and, coming athwart the bow, fell foul of theGunsway, so that our larboard cathead was abreast her starboard gangway. Here we fought muzzle to muzzle—they with brass cannon, we with our iron ones—as pretty a fight as ever I saw since the days of the oldHectorand the battle of Bergen.If we had had to fight it out in this fashion the event might have been uncertain, but Mr. Every—who as I have said was a fine seaman—cunningly disengaged his ship and managed to back her clear of theGunswayand then, bearing up under her stern, let go a broadside.That finished a fight which could not have been longer than an hour. The Indiaman put out the white flag; nor could he do less, seeing his hull and rigging were badly hit and ten of his men lay dead about his guns. Half a dozen of the pirates were killed and not a few wounded.During the battle I hauled ammunition and dragged off the wounded to the hold,—to shirk here would have been to buy a quick end to my life.Over the bulwarks of theGunswayour villains poured and ran greedily about the ship, looking for loot. Presently a great shout went up, and four men ran from the master’s cabin bearing brass-bound coffers,—the ship’s treasure.Somebody with an ax smashed the fastenings, and over the decks there spilled great piles of gold and silver coins; of pieces-of-eight, for instance, we afterwards counted not less than one hundred thousand. Add to this the same number of chequins[11]and you can see that Mr. Every had made his fortune.[11]Sequins—worth about $2.25.The pirates went mad with delight; some danced upon the money, some threw themselveson the deck and tossed and fingered the coins like children playing on the sand; while as for Mr. Every, he stood leaning upon his cutlass, looking down at the shining heaps and laughing.Nothing would do the men but to divide the spoil then and there, and the average share was worth one thousand pounds apiece. Five hundred pounds were given me, though I had been sick, useless and more of a hindrance than help.Though this was the wrong sort of saltwater money, I perforce took it, being in no mind to have myself marked among them. When they had stripped theGunswayof everything that could be carried off, they left her to go on to Surat with her sad tale of crime.
Getting out to sea strengthened me a little more, and I took heart, though the evil associations of theCharles the Secondpained the conscience. Very small scrapings had fallen to them since they had left Joanna, and the mood of the crew was sour.
However, they parliamented together and voted to go to the Gulf of Aden to find Moorish ships, and perhaps waylay the rich fleet of Mocha, whose movements they had learned of at Madagascar.
“With that,” said Mr. Every, “we shall make our fortune”,—fortune being a great word in his mouth.
In those regions the sun is cruel. As we drew on to the gulf the heat lay upon us like a smothering blanket; nay, like many blankets, so that the very air one breathed seemed to sear the throat; we went about our blistered decks nearly naked—to put your hand on one of the guns was like laying it on a hot oven—and Mr. Every sprawled under an awning that was rigged over the poop, drinking bomboo[10]and wishing he had made his fortune and were living in a fine housewith a fine wife in England. Nor had we the comfort of looking toward cooler waters, but every day drew farther and farther into the furnace.
[10]Grog of limes, sugar, etc.
[10]Grog of limes, sugar, etc.
At the mouth of the Red Sea—red is the color of flame—we fell in with two ships that were on the same account as we, and the morning after meeting them met three more ships of bad intent, some being Englishmen from America—Captains May (no relative of mine) Farrel and Wake—until you might have supposed a parliament of pirates was meeting. We were all there for the Mocha fleet; but after riding together a night or two and exchanging visits we separated, each captain having his own notion of the place where the fleet we sought would pass.
But wide is the sea and many are its paths, and the Mocha fleet slipped by us all in the night of Saturday. Next morning the men held a general consult as to whether we should follow them or not, and after a great dispute as usual, a vote was taken which fell for pursuit, and so the Sabbath was desecrated by a wicked chase.
At sundown we came upon a lagging ship of the fleet and took her without a fight, and with her something of gold and silver, but no great sum. We put a prize crew aboard but soon called them off again and left the ship to go her voyage.
There was enough profit in this plunder to cheer our people, and they became hungry for more. A few days thereafter we spied anothersail and, getting up our anchor, stood to her. Before we came up to her a haze fell over the sea, which presently turned to a thick fog, thereby favoring Mr. Every’s enterprise by allowing him to get close and make a sort of surprise.
When nigh enough we sent a shot across her bows; but she, fearing that we were a lawless ship, refused to heave back but hauled to the wind and made off. With the breeze on our starboard quarter, despite the fog we kept her in sight; and, being the better sailer, we drew down upon her, so near that we made her out to be theGunsway, East Indiaman.
Mr. Every now yawed his ship occasionally as he worked for the range; but they opened first at us, giving us a load from their stern-chasers, which split our larboard foreyard arm and might, had it been a little cleaner break, put us out of the pursuit. Mr. Every replied with our bow-chasers, which we learned afterward did them little hurt.
Our captain, wishing to get the range for his broadside more quickly and theGunswaybeginning to show a chance of escape, we put our helm down hard, and, coming athwart the bow, fell foul of theGunsway, so that our larboard cathead was abreast her starboard gangway. Here we fought muzzle to muzzle—they with brass cannon, we with our iron ones—as pretty a fight as ever I saw since the days of the oldHectorand the battle of Bergen.
If we had had to fight it out in this fashion the event might have been uncertain, but Mr. Every—who as I have said was a fine seaman—cunningly disengaged his ship and managed to back her clear of theGunswayand then, bearing up under her stern, let go a broadside.
That finished a fight which could not have been longer than an hour. The Indiaman put out the white flag; nor could he do less, seeing his hull and rigging were badly hit and ten of his men lay dead about his guns. Half a dozen of the pirates were killed and not a few wounded.
During the battle I hauled ammunition and dragged off the wounded to the hold,—to shirk here would have been to buy a quick end to my life.
Over the bulwarks of theGunswayour villains poured and ran greedily about the ship, looking for loot. Presently a great shout went up, and four men ran from the master’s cabin bearing brass-bound coffers,—the ship’s treasure.
Somebody with an ax smashed the fastenings, and over the decks there spilled great piles of gold and silver coins; of pieces-of-eight, for instance, we afterwards counted not less than one hundred thousand. Add to this the same number of chequins[11]and you can see that Mr. Every had made his fortune.
[11]Sequins—worth about $2.25.
[11]Sequins—worth about $2.25.
The pirates went mad with delight; some danced upon the money, some threw themselveson the deck and tossed and fingered the coins like children playing on the sand; while as for Mr. Every, he stood leaning upon his cutlass, looking down at the shining heaps and laughing.
Nothing would do the men but to divide the spoil then and there, and the average share was worth one thousand pounds apiece. Five hundred pounds were given me, though I had been sick, useless and more of a hindrance than help.
Though this was the wrong sort of saltwater money, I perforce took it, being in no mind to have myself marked among them. When they had stripped theGunswayof everything that could be carried off, they left her to go on to Surat with her sad tale of crime.