The information in regard to Florry was very meagre and very indefinite. She was a very beautiful young lady of eighteen; and it was not at all strange that a young Confederate officer should be attracted to her, though the thought of it was exceedingly disagreeable to her father, under present circumstances.
Percy evidently was not satisfied with the situation; and after he had given the information which had so disturbed the owner of the steamer, he desired to change the subject of the conversation, to which Captain Passford only assented after he realized that nothing could be ascertained from him in regard to his daughter.
"I don't think I quite understand the situation on board of this steamer," said Percy, when he had told all he knew about the visits of his brother at Glenfield.
"What further do you desire to know in regard to her?" asked Captain Passford; for the commander, when he saw that there was a family matter involved in the conversation, was disposed to be very reticent.
"I did not come on board of this vessel in the manner I did—I do not even know her name yet," continued Percy; and when he found that he was talking to a brother of Colonel Passford, he dropped all his rather magnificent airs, and became quite sensible.
"The steamer is called the Bellevite," replied the owner.
"The Bellevite. It is an odd name, but I think I can remember it. I was about to say that I did not come on board of her, as I did, without an object; for I assure you that I am high-toned enough not to do any thing in an irregular manner unless for the most weighty reasons," said Percy, with an anxious look directed towards the island, which was now almost out of sight.
"I do not ask your reasons; but, if you wish to give them, I will hear all you have to say, Mr. Percy," replied the owner.
"I talked with Mr. Pierson on shore; andthough he was disposed at first to chaff me, and avoid giving me any information in regard to this steamer, he afterwards informed me that the gentleman who owned her intended to get rid of her as soon as he could."
"And you came on board for the purpose of buying her?" suggested Captain Passford.
"I did not expect to buy her myself, of course; but my father is exceedingly anxious to obtain a steamer like this one, and he asked me to do what I could to obtain any information in regard to her. That was the object which brought me on board of her in a clandestine manner."
"You were very zealous in meeting the wishes of your father."
"More than that, I was at work in a good cause; and I think I have patriotism enough to do my duty to my country in the hour of her need," added the young man, with a swell of the chest.
"After his family, a man's first duty is to his country," said the owner.
"I wanted to go into the army, for I am eighteen years old; but my father insisted that I could be of more service to the Confederacy as his assistant in obtaining vessels for its use."
"I understand your motives."
"From what I learned from Mr. Pierson,—though I do not yet know who or what he is," said Percy, bestowing a smiling glance upon Christy.
"You may look upon him as my nephew," added Captain Passford, glancing at his son, who gave a slight bow for the benefit of the guest on board.
"From what I could learn from your nephew, sir, I concluded that this steamer could be bought, if I could only obtain an interview with the owner," continued Percy, with an inquiring glance at all who were present "I understand you are the owner of the vessel, Captain Passford."
"You are quite right: she has been my yacht since she was built, and a stronger and more able vessel was never put into the water."
"Mr. Pierson gave me to understand that he was in sympathy with the Confederacy; and since I came on board, and learned that you were a brother of our nearest neighbor, I have no difficulty in arriving at the conclusion that you are a devoted friend of the Southern cause."
"What I am, for the present, I do not feel atliberty to say," replied Captain Passford, who was certainly reluctant to play a double part before the young man, though he felt that the necessities of the occasion required him to do so.
"Quite right, sir; one cannot be too cautious in these times. But it is time for me to say that I did not intend to take passage in the Bellevite, and I am sure my father will be very anxious in my absence."
"May I ask how you did intend to proceed?"
"I can hardly tell myself, sir; but my object was to see the owner as soon as I could discover who he was. But I have found you now, Captain Passford, and I am glad to find in you a friend of our holy cause."
The owner only bowed; and it was as true as it could be that the representative of the intended purchaser of vessels jumped at nearly all of his conclusions, giving the captain but little occasion to say any thing that was not literally true; though the deception was just as real as though it had been carried on with actual falsehood.
"May I ask you for a few minutes in private, Captain Passford?" continued Percy.
"Certainly;" and the owner retired with him to the weather-rail.
"I have seen this vessel, and I have heard what you say of her. Now I am better informed in regard to her than my father is. I am not authorized to name a price, but I am very sure that he will buy her."
"So he said to me himself, Mr. Percy," added the owner with a smile.
"He said so to you, sir!" exclaimed the young man, starting back; for he believed that he had accomplished all that had been done towards buying the vessel.
"I had an interview with him, and stated most explicitly that the Bellevite could not be purchased by any person at any price; and when I hinted very guardedly to him, as I do to you, in the strictest confidence, that I am hound for Mobile Bay, he did not urge the matter. He was satisfied that the steamer was to be used in a good cause; and I can give you the same assurance, Mr. Percy."
The young man looked positively humble after he had listened to the remark of the owner, for he felt that his father had "taken all the wind outof his sails." He looked in the direction of the receding island of Nassau, and realized that he had been wasting his time, to say nothing of the wasted strategy he had bestowed on his enterprise.
"You have stated that you are bound for Mobile Bay, sir," said he. "That is a long distance from New Providence, as I have learned from experience."
"But this trip will give you the satisfaction of being restored to your own home in a very short time, for there is no faster vessel afloat than the Bellevite," added Captain Passford.
"It will put me into the army," said Mr. Percy; but he felt at once that he had made a slip of the tongue, and he hastened to correct the effect of his involuntary speech. "Of course, I wanted to go into the army of my country, as every patriotic fellow in the South does; but my father objects simply because I can be of more service to the good cause in another field of action, and I had to yield the point."
The owner thought he had not been guilty of a very savage yielding of his own inclination, but he said nothing. He was evidently the youngest child of the family, and doubtless the pet of hisparents; and it was hard for them to put him in a position to be shot, or to endure the hardships of the camp.
"I see now that my mission is a failure, though with no detriment to the good cause. I wish I was in New Providence again," continued Mr. Percy, looking very much discontented with himself.
"I am sorry you did not speak to me on shore as your father did, and that would have saved you from all annoyance."
"But I must beg you to do me the favor to put me ashore again, for my father will suffer untold agonies when he misses me to-night."
"Put you on shore!" exclaimed Captain Passford. "You are a sensible and reasonable young gentleman, and you will readily see that this is quite impossible."
"We have not been out above two hours, sir," suggested Percy.
"But we have made thirty-six miles, at least, in that time; and to return would delay me about four or five hours,—long enough, perhaps, to defeat the object of my voyage. I assure you that it is wholly impossible for us to return."
"Do you think so, sir?" asked the enterprising purchaser of vessels, looking very disconsolate indeed.
"I not only think so, but I am perfectly sure on this point. You can see for yourself that I cannot sacrifice the object of my voyage—for the vessel has a special mission at her destination—by a delay of some hours. I am not responsible for your being on board, and I am sorry that I cannot do any thing for you."
"But you can put me ashore at Key West, and I may find some vessel bound to Nassau," suggested Percy, becoming more and more disconsolate, as he realized the difficulties of his situation, for he was plainly very much averse to returning to his home.
"But, my dear Mr. Percy, the Bellevite will not go within fifty miles of Key West; and if she did, I should not dare to put in there, for the port is a naval station of the United States, and my vessel might be taken from me in the absence of any regular papers to explain her character."
"I suppose you are right," added Percy gloomily.
Captain Passford was really more afraid of falling in with any naval vessel of the nation than ofmeeting any of the Confederate tugs or other vessels which had been hurriedly fitted out, even at this early period of the war; for he knew that his mission, however justifiable under the circumstances, was quite irregular. He had decided to keep at least fifty miles from Key West, and the usual course of vessels bound into the Gulf of Mexico.
"We may meet some vessel, and you could put me on board of her," the disconsolate young man proposed.
"My mission compels me to give every vessel a wide berth, and I can incur no risks. But it cannot be a great hardship for you to be conveyed back to your own home."
"But my father needs me with him, and he will suffer terrible anxiety when he fails to find me. He will even think I am dead."
"I know he must be anxious, but I think some way will be found to send a letter to him."
"But I shall be compelled to go into the army, and my father is utterly opposed to that."
"But you have a brother who is a major in the army, and I should say that he will be able to save you."
"My brother is the one who insists that I shall go into one of the regiments forming in the State. He called me a coward because I yielded to my father and mother."
"All that is your own family affair, and I am sorry that I can do nothing for you, Mr, Percy.—Mr. Watts," he called to the chief steward, who was planking the lee-side of the deck.
"Here, sir," replied the official.
"Give Mr. Percy the best stateroom available, and see that he is made as comfortable and happy as possible," added the owner.
The involuntary guest on board was conducted to the cabin.
However interesting the voyage of the Bellevite might prove to be, the purpose of this story does not admit of its details. Mr. Vapoor was instructed to the effect that a quick run was desirable, and he governed himself accordingly. At daylight on a bright May morning, the lofty light tower of Sand Island, off the entrance to Mobile Bay, was reported by the lookout, and the captain was called.
On the passage from Nassau, the guns of the steamer had been mounted; for, as a measure of prudence, they had been put in the hold. Though the owner hoped to avoid any close scrutiny of his outfit, and had succeeded in doing so, he was not inclined to tempt fate by any carelessness. But when the first watch was called, the nightbefore her arrival off the bay, every thing was in condition for active service.
Captain Passford had not a particle of the foam generated by the excitement of the times, and he sincerely hoped he should have no occasion to use the guns which it had cost him so much trouble to procure. Fort Morgan was on one side of the entrance to the bay, and Fort Gaines on the other side.
He had seen a paragraph in one of his papers, to the effect that one or both of these works had been garrisoned by Confederate troops, and it was not likely to be an easy matter to get into the bay. As it looked to the owner and the commander, the only way to accomplish this feat was by running the gauntlet of both forts, which were just three nautical miles apart.
A shot from either of them might go through the boiler or engine of the Bellevite, which would render her utterly helpless, and subject all on board to the fate of prisoners-of-war. It looked like a terrible alternative to the owner, so overburdened with anxiety for the safety of his daughter; but he was prepared to run even this risk for her sake.
The method of getting into the bay had been fully considered by the owner and the captain; and as soon as the latter came on deck, he ordered the course of the vessel to be changed to the westward, as they had decided to enter the bay by the Middle Channel. For the danger from Fort Gaines was believed to be less than that from Fort Morgan, though either of them doubtless had the means of sinking the steamer with a single shot.
The water was shoal in the Middle Channel, and it was not prudent to attempt to go into the bay at any other time than high tide; though Captain Breaker was thoroughly acquainted with the channel, having once been engaged in a survey of the shifting shoals in this locality, and he had once before taken the Bellevite by this passage on a trip to New Orleans.
As he could not foresee the time of the steamer's arrival off the bay, he was obliged to consult his almanac, and make his calculations in regard to the tide, which rises and falls less than three feet at this point. It would not be safe to attempt the passage before nine o'clock in the forenoon, and he headed the vessel away from the land.
Percy had tried to make the best of his situation, annoying as it was; and Christy amused him with more Chinese reminiscences. Both of them came on deck at an unusually early hour on the morning that the Sand Island light was made out; for there was more commotion than usual on board, and even in the cabin, where the owner and commander discussed the situation.
"Here we are, my Chinese friend," said Percy, as he joined Christy on deck, and made out the tall tower in the distance. "I wish I was on the Island of Nassau, instead of here."
"Why, Mr. Percy, this is your own, your native land; and in China we always used to have a warm affection for our own country," replied Christy.
"You didn't have to go into the army there," said Percy with a sigh.
"But don't you want to go into the army?"
"Certainly I do; that is the dearest wish of my heart. But my father would not let me, and what could I do?"
"If you were bent on it, like a patriot, as you must be, you could run away and enlist. I don'tknow but I shall do that when I get back to China."
"I don't like to do any thing to make my poor father unhappy. I am afraid my absence now, without his knowing where I am, or whether I am dead or alive, will bring on a fit of sickness."
"But I am sure he would be very proud of you if you should run away and join the army."
"Perhaps he would; but I should not feel very proud of myself if I did a thing like that. I am only afraid I shall meet my brother, Major Pierson, and that he will make me go into some regiment against the wishes of my father and mother. He is not willing to hear a word from either of them," replied Percy, disgusted with the prospect before him.
"He is very patriotic," suggested Christy.
"He is altogether too patriotic for me. But don't misunderstand me: I am really very anxious to go into the army, and fight the enemies of my country."
"I see that you are, and perhaps you and I had better run away and enlist."
"My conscience would not let me do thatcontrary to the wishes of my parents," replied Percy, shaking his head vigorously.
"But you may not see your brother the major; for probably he has been ordered away with his regiment before this time," said his companion in comforting tones, though he was not as sincere as he generally was.
"I am afraid I shall; and I fear, that, in the absence of my father, he would put me into the ranks in spite of all I could do."
"But your mother is at home."
"Lindley don't care a rush for what she says in this matter, for he insists that a boy of eighteen ought not to be tied to his mother's apron-strings when his country needs his services, I may see my brother before we get fairly into the bay."
"Where in the world are you going to see him before you get on shore?" asked Christy, becoming more interested in the conversation.
"I believe he is in command of the garrison at Fort Gaines, though I am not sure," replied Percy, suddenly looking more disconsolate than ever at the prospect of meeting his patriotic brother.
"What makes you think he is?" asked Christy,with the feeling that he might be on the point of obtaining some useful information.
"They talked of sending him there before father and I left for New Providence."
"I supposed your brother was a young fellow like yourself."
"I believe he is twenty-six years old; but he has been two years in a military school in North Carolina, and they say he is a good soldier, and knows all about guns and forts and such things."
"Where do you think we are likely to overhaul him?"
"I don't know much about this business; but don't a boat have to come out from the fort and see that this vessel is all right before she can go into the bay?" asked Percy.
"I don't know about that. We may run into the bay without waiting for any boat."
"Then they fire on you from the fort," suggested the disconsolate.
"We rather expect that," added Christy quietly.
"You do?"
"Of course, a shot from the fort may blow us out of the water; but we can't help that, and we must take our chances of being hit."
"But that is terribly risky business, and the whole of us may be killed before we get by the fort."
"Of course: that may be the case; but we have no papers, and we have to take things as they come."
"It isn't pleasant to take cannon-balls as they come, for they are apt to hit hard. But they won't fire at us if a boat comes off to examine the vessel."
"But in that case you will have the pleasure of meeting your brother the major."
"And whatever he may do with the steamer, he will take me to the fort with him, and put me into the ranks."
"Perhaps we can save you from such a fate in some way," suggested Christy, who was already doing some heavy thinking on his own account.
"I wish you would!" exclaimed Percy, catching at the straw held out to him.
"There is time enough, and I will see you again," added Christy, as he joined his father on the forecastle, where lie was taking a survey.
The owner's son had an idea, and he thought it was a good one. Without losing any time, helaid it before his father, explaining it in detail. He was even ready to remove objections to the scheme, and was confident that it would succeed. Captain Passford called the commander, and informed him what his son had suggested. Captain Breaker heartily approved it; for, if it failed, it would leave the steamer in no worse position than before, with all her chances of running the gauntlet successfully still open to her.
Christy was the best person on board to manage the details, for he was the most intimate with the son of the purchaser of vessels. He returned to that part of the deck where he had left his companion. He found that Percy was very anxious to see him again, for he had founded a hope on what had been said before.
"I think we can manage it, Mr. Percy, if you will do just what you are told to do," Christy began.
"I will do all that to the letter," protested Percy; and a smile actually lighted up his face at the prospect of escaping the fate to which his father and mother objected so strongly.
"You see the trouble with the Bellevite is that she has no papers; not even a letter from theConfederate agent who is picking up vessels for the navy. But I think we can manage it if you will learn your part correctly."
"I will do that. Do you think you can really keep my brother from taking me to the fort?" asked Percy, his tones and manner burdened with anxiety.
"I feel almost sure of it."
"Good for you!"
"You must go into the cabin now with me. They are just starting up the steamer again, and she will soon reach the channel where she is going into the bay."
The owner and the commander were busy in instructing the ship's company in regard to what would be expected of them as soon as the Bellevite was in motion again. All the men spoken to smiled as they heard what was said to them, and they evidently regarded the whole affair as a decided pleasantry. But they all promised to be very discreet, and to say only what they had been told to say if they were called on for any information by Confederate officials.
In the mean time Christy was very busy with his pupil, who entered heartily into the planwhich promised to save him from shouldering a musket in one of the companies of his brother's regiment. He had been quite enthusiastic from the first; and, as he was deeply interested in the result of the adventure, he was a very apt pupil.
As the Bellevite approached the Middle Channel, a tug-boat was discovered off Fort Gaines, which immediately began to move towards the approaching steamer. Examined with the glass, a heavy gun was seen on her forecastle.
The tug appeared to be one of the craft which had been hastily prepared for service, and she did not look like a formidable vessel. Captain Breaker was sure he could blow her out of the water with his heavy guns, on an emergency; but this would be bad policy, and he did not propose to do any thing of this kind.
He was not as confident as Captain Passford and his son were that the plan adopted would be an entire success, with the assistance of Percy; but there could be no harm in trying it. He intended to pass as near Fort Gaines as possible, for it was not probable that the works were yet in the best condition; and two miles from Fort Morgan, which was doubtless much stronger, would afford a better chance of escaping any shots fired from it.
As the Bellevite approached the channel, where there could not be more than a foot of water under her keel, Christie came on deck, followed by Percy. The latter wore a sort of naval uniform, which his instructor had borrowed for him from his own stock. It fitted him well; for he was no larger than the owner's son, though he was two years older.
Percy was to be on duty, on board of the steamer, as a Confederate agent taking the vessel into the bay for service. He was not a little inflated by the position which had been assigned to him, though he had no powers whatever, except in appearance. He had been instructed to conduct himself boldly, and to insist that the vessel was in his charge, when she was boarded by officers from the tug or from the fort. His very nature inclined him to play this part to the best advantage.
The blockade had been established at some of the northern ports of the seceded States, but not yet at the cities on the Gulf of Mexico; and the only real obstacle to the passage of the Bellevite into the bay consisted of the two forts, for the tug-boats were not regarded as of any consequenceto an armed steamer of great speed like the Bellevite,
"We are approaching the shoal water now," said Captain Breaker to Mr. Vapoor, as the steamer came near the south-eastern end of Pelican Island. "We may take the ground, for the shoals have an ugly trick of changing their position. Let her go at about half speed."
"Half speed, sir," replied the chief engineer, as he descended to the engine-room.
"Is it fully high tide now, Breaker?" asked Captain Passford, who was watching the movements of the vessel with the most intense interest, for it seemed to him that the critical moment in his enterprise had come.
"Not quite; it will not be full sea for about half an hour," replied the commander. "If we take the ground, we shall have some small chance of getting off.—Mr. Dashington."
"On duty, sir," responded the first officer.
"Beeks has the wheel, I believe?"
"Yes; and Thayer is with him."
"They are both reliable men; but I wish you would stand by the helm, and see that the steamer is headed directly towards the eastern end ofDauphine Island. That will give us the deepest water till we get to the spit. Have a man in the port and starboard chains with directions to sound as fast as possible."
"Mr. Blowitt," called the first officer, "let a hand sound in the port and starboard chains, and look out for it yourself, if you please."
The second officer went forward and the first officer aft, each to perform the duties assigned to him by the captain. The speed of the Bellevite had been reduced, and she was going along at a very easy rate. The tug was some distance beyond Fort Gaines when she was first seen, and she seemed to be incapable of making more than six knots an hour.
The steamer had taken on board all the coal it was possible for her to stow away in her bunkers, and a large supply had been put into the hold; but she had used a considerable portion of it in her rapid passage, though she had still an abundant supply for her return voyage. The reduction in the quantity had made her draught somewhat less, and the owner and captain hoped she would get through the channel.
But the thought had hardly passed throughtheir minds before the Bellevite came to a sudden stop, and her keel was heard grinding on the bottom. Mr. Vapoor heard the sound in the engine-room, and felt the jar; and before any bell came to him, he had stopped the machine, and reversed it so as to check the steamer's headway.
"Run her back with all the steam you can crowd on, Mr. Vapoor," said Captain Breaker, as he hastened to the door of the engine-room.
"I don't think she hit the ground very hard, captain," added the chief engineer.
"No; she will come off. The ground has shifted since I was here last," said the captain of the vessel.
But it was half an hour before she yielded to the pressure brought to bear upon her, and then only because a few inches had been added by the tide to the depth of water. She went back, and came into depth enough to give her a foot under her keel.
"It don't look very hopeful," said Captain Passford, as he joined the commander at the door of the engine-room.
"Oh, I think we shall be all right now!" replied Captain Breaker very cheerfully. "Ihave found where the shoal is now, and I know where to find deeper water.—Keep her going astern, Mr. Vapoor."
"A boat from the fort, sir," reported a messenger, who had been sent aft by the second officer on the forecastle.
"That looks like an inquiry into our business here," added the owner.
"Now we are all right," said the commander, who was watching the position of the vessel very carefully. "I must go to the wheel, and look out for the course myself."
Again the Bellevite went ahead; and she soon reached a point half way between the two forts, and her speed was reduced to not more than three knots. But the tug was approaching, and the worst part of the channel was still to be attempted. The two men in the chains reported the depth as rapidly as they could heave the lead, and it was soon evident that the steamer could not pass the extensive bar to the westward of the ship-channel.
"Steamer ahoy!" shouted the captain of the tug, as he stopped his screw within hailing-distance of the Bellevite.
"Reply to that hail, Mr. Percy," said the commander to the young gentleman in uniform. "You must do all the talking."
"I shall be very happy to do it, and I think I can do it to your satisfaction," replied Percy confidently.
"Jump up on the rail nearest to the tug, where you can see and hear."
"I am not much of a sailor, Captain Breaker, and I don't pretend to be one," added Percy. "What shall I say to the captain of that boat?"
"On board of the tug!" shouted the agent of his father, after the commander had instructed him in regard to his speech.
"What steamer is that?" demanded the master of the tug.
Captain Breaker instructed him in what manner to make his reply, though he did not tell him what to say. The young man was to explain the character of the vessel as he understood it; and neither the commander nor the owner was disposed to indulge in any unnecessarystrategeticalfalsehood, though they felt that they could do so in the service of the Union.
"The Bellevite from Nassau," replied Percy.
"Is she a Federal vessel?" inquired the captain of the tug with the greatest simplicity.
"A Federal vessel!" exclaimed Percy, evidently expressing by his manner some of the indignation he felt. "Do you mean to insult me, sir?"
"No, I do not mean to insult you; but it becomes necessary for me to ascertain something more in regard to the steamer," returned the other. "Where are you from?"
"I told you the vessel was from Nassau."
"But she don't hail from Nassau. Where did she come from before that?"
"From Bermuda," answered Percy, as instructed.
"But she don't belong to Bermuda."
The volunteer agent of the Confederate cause was not able to answer any questions in this direction, and the commander did not tell him what more to say.
"Can you tell me who is in command of Fort Gaines at the present time?" demanded Percy, branching out on his own account.
"I can; but I want you to tell me something more about the steamer, before I answer any questions. Is the steamer armed?"
"She is armed; and she could blow your tug into ten thousand pieces in four minutes if she should open upon you," added Percy; and the listeners were of the opinion that he was beginning to use strong speech.
"That may be; but with a fort on each side of you, I don't think you will get into the bay in broad daylight," said the captain of the tug. "The commander of Fort Gaines is in that boat, and I suppose he is coming off to examine the steamer. As you are not disposed to answer my questions, you can wait for him; but if you try to get into the bay, you will find that a shot from both forts can reach you."
"I am an agent of the Confederate government, and my father has been sent to Nassau to obtain vessels for our navy," continued Percy, as he saw that the boat from the fort was still some distance from the vessel.
"Why didn't you say so before?" demanded the captain of the tug rather impatiently. "Of course you have some papers from the agent at Nassau, to show what the vessel is."
"Not a single paper; he had no time to give me any."
"Who is the agent?"
The question was evidently put as a test; for if the young agent, as the captain could see that he was, gave a known name, it would be some evidence that he told the truth.
"Colonel Richard Pierson; and he is my father."
"Your father!" exclaimed the other, evidently impressed with the fact, and his tone was more respectful.
"You can come on board and see her for yourself," suggested Percy, prompted by the commander; for there was nothing on board to betray her true character, the guns having been concealed.
"I will not do that, as the commander of the fort will soon be here, and he may make the examination for himself. But perhaps you will be willing to give me your name?" added the captain.
"My name is Percy Pierson; and, as I told you, I am the son of Colonel Richard Pierson."
"Then you are the brother of Major Pierson, who is in command of Fort Gaines. I think it must be all right."
"Of course it is all right. Do you think I would bring a vessel into this bay if she were not all right?" inquired Percy with becoming indignation.
"I suppose you have heard there is going to be a war, and it is necessary to find out what vessels go into the bay," said the captain of the tug, when he had brought his craft quite near the steamer. "That is a very fine vessel."
"It is the fastest and strongest steamer that floats, and she will give a good account of herself when the trouble begins in earnest."
"Here comes the boat from the fort, and I see that Major Pierson is in the stern sheets. I have no doubt he will find you all right," said the captain.
The boat came alongside of the Bellevite, and the major went on board.
Percy Pierson retained his position on the rail when his brother the major came up the gangway steps, which had been put over for him. As the latter went up, he could not help seeing him; and his astonishment evidently mounted to the highest degree, as manifested in his expression. The owner and the commander stood near the rail, to give the visitor a pleasant reception.
But the major took no notice of them; for his attention was plainly absorbed in his surprise at seeing his brother, dressed in uniform, on the rail of the steamer. He halted as soon as he had mounted the rail, over which he must pass to reach the deck. He looked at Percy for some time, without being able to say a word, and seemed to be not quite sure that it was he.
The younger brother was as silent as the olderone; for he had had some rather exciting times with him in the matter of enlisting, and he was not very confident of his reception at the hands of the commander of Fort Gaines. He looked at him with interest, not unmingled with some painful solicitude for the future.
"Percy!" exclaimed Major Pierson at last, when he was entirely satisfied that the young man was his brother, in spite of the uniform of blue he wore, though the gray had not yet come into extensive use.
"Lindley!" added the younger, evidently desiring to go no faster than the occasion might require of him.
"I am glad to see you back again," continued the major, without offering to take his hand. "You deserted like a coward, and I have been ashamed of you ever since. A young fellow like you, eighteen years old, who will not fight for his country, ought to lose the respect of even his own brother."
"That is a pleasant greeting," replied Percy, with the suspicion of a sneer on his face.
"It is all that a coward deserves," replied Lindley severely.
"I am no coward, any more than you are," protested Percy. "You know that father did not wish me to join the army, though I wished to do so."
"I know that you wished to do so just as any other coward does,—over the left."
"What could I do when father told me not to go to the war?"
"What could you do? You could have gone! If you had not been a poltroon, you would have joined the first regiment that came in your way."
"I never was in the habit of disobeying my father," pleaded the young agent.
"You were not? You ran away to New Orleans last winter when your father told you not to go. You came home from the academy when he told you to remain there. You have spent the evening in Mobile when he told you not to go there. I could tell you instances all day in which you disobeyed him, and mother too," continued the soldier warmly.
"That was different."
"It was different; and you could obey your father in a bad cause, but not in a good one. Iam heartily ashamed of you, and I don't feel willing to own you as a brother of mine."
"But my father told me that I could better serve the good cause by going with him than I could by joining the army."
"And you were willing to go with him, for then you could keep out of danger. Father is getting old, and he is not fit to serve in the army; and you have been his pet since you were born. But that is no excuse for you; and if I can get you back into the army, I mean to do so."
Percy was afraid he might succeed, and he did not feel as confident as he had been; and he lost, for the time, some of his self-possession. He was confronting the fate he had dreaded when he found the steamer was leaving Nassau.
"What are you doing here?" demanded the major, looking down upon the deck of the vessel for the first time.
"I am taking this steamer into the bay, where she is to go into the service of the Confederate States," answered Percy, plucking a little more confidence from the nature of his present occupation.
"You are taking her into the bay!" exclaimed the older brother.
"That is what I said, and that is what I mean," added Percy, glad to see that his mission had produced an impression.
"Taking this steamer into the bay!" repeated the major, evidently unable to comprehend the mission of his brother. "Do you mean to say thatyouare taking her in, Percy?"
"That is what I mean to say, and do say."
"Are you the pilot of the steamer? I should think you might have been, for she was aground just now," sneered the commander of the fort.
"I am not the pilot, and I don't pretend to be a sailor; but the steamer is in my charge," replied Percy, elevating his head to the need of the occasion.
"In charge of the steamer! I would not trust a coward like you in charge of a sick monkey," added Lindley, with his contempt fully expressed in his face.
"See here, Lindley, I don't mean to be insulted on board of this steamer by my own brother. If you can't be decent, I have nothing more to sayto you!" cried Percy, his wrath breaking out quite violently.
"If you give me an impudent word, I will take you into the boat and put you into the fort," added the major, as he stepped down upon the deck.
"No, you won't. I will jump overboard before I will be carried to the fort. I have done just what my father told me to do, to say nothing of my mother; and I won't be insulted by you. It is you who are the coward and the poltroon, to do so," continued Percy, boiling over with rage.
Whatever provocation the major had had for his savage treatment of his brother, the owner of the Bellevite thought his conduct was unjustifiable. The young man was under age; and whether or not his father was less a patriot than his older son, the latter was certainly unkind, ungenerous, and even brutal. Without being a "milk-and-water man," Captain Passford was full of kindness, courtesy, and justice. He did not like the behavior of the major towards his brother.
It looked like a family quarrel of the two brothers on board of the steamer; for Percy was evidently "a weak chicken," after all, though hehad become desperate under the stings and reproaches of the major. Under present circumstances, it did not appear that Percy could be of any service on board of the Bellevite, for his brother would not hear a word he said. Captain Passford directed the commander to have every thing ready for a hurried movement at once, for there was but little hope of satisfying a man as unreasonable as the commander of the fort had proved himself to be in his dealing with his brother.
The captain of the steamer went to Mr. Vapoor, who was standing near the door of the engine-room, and said something to him, which soon produced a lively effect among the coal-passers below.
"I will attend to your case in a few minutes, Percy, for I do not allow any one to be impudent to me," growled the major.
"Nor I either. If you put a finger on me, I will put a bullet through your head, if you are my brother!" yelled Percy, as he took a small revolver from his hip-pocket.
This demonstration increased the anger of Lindley; and he ran up the steps to the railagain, where he called upon two soldiers to come on deck. At the same moment, Captain Breaker, as instructed by the owner, rang the bell on the quarter, and the engine began to move again. Before the men from the boat could leave it, the steamer was moving, and it was no longer possible for them to obey the order.
"What are you about, sir?" demanded Major Pierson, rushing to the commander, not a little excited by what had been done.
"I think this thing has gone about far enough, sir," replied Captain Breaker, as calmly as though there had not been a ripple on the surface of affairs.
"But I came on board of this steamer to make an examination of the character of the vessel," protested the major, who evidently did not like the present aspect of the situation.
"I have waited for you to do so; but I do not care to lose the tide while you are quarrelling with your brother, sir," added the commander.
"But I order you to stop, sir!" continued the major.
"What am I to do, Mr. Percy?" asked Captain Breaker, addressing the young man with a revolver in his hand.
There was something on the part of the commander which indicated that he was playing a part, as were all on board, though he seemed to be a little amused to find that he was taking his orders from a boy of eighteen. At the same time he nodded his head slightly, though very significantly, to the young agent.
"Go ahead just as fast as you can make the steamer travel, Captain Breaker," said Percy, with as much energy as though he had been in command of a Confederate fleet.
"Certainly, Mr. Percy; I shall obey your order, as you have charge of the vessel," added the commander.
This passage between the authority of the steamer and his brother absolutely confounded the major, and for a couple of minutes he was unable to say any thing at all. But Captain Breaker, who was the only pilot on board, was obliged to leave the ship's guest in order to look out for the course of the steamer.
It seemed to be useless to attempt to get over the bar where he had tried to do so; and he directed the vessel towards the main ship-channel, finding plenty of water to enable him toreach it. But he would have to run the gauntlet of Fort Morgan, and the chances of a shot were against him.
"Do you mean to say that Percy is in charge of this steamer, Captain Breaker?" demanded Major Pierson, who had by this time recovered some portion of his self-possession.
"That is what both he and I said to you," replied Captain Breaker.
"And the vessel is to be in the service of the Confederate States," added Percy, with more pluck than he had displayed before. "If my brother will not let her pass into the bay, I will go on shore at Fort Morgan, and explain the situation to the officer in command," blustered Percy; and perhaps he would have done just as much under the circumstances if he had known the vessel was on the other side in the coming conflict.
"Where are your papers, sir?" asked the major.
"We have no papers; and that is why I am come in charge of the steamer," replied the agent, who seemed to be quite able to strain a point when necessary.
"We met Colonel Richard Pierson in Nassau,and I believe he is your father and Mr. Percy's," answered Captain Breaker.
"He is; but I can hardly understand how he happened to send my brother home in charge of this fine steamer," said the major, glancing at his brother.
"Going into the army is not all the duty a man has to do for his country," said Percy warmly.
"May I ask where this vessel came from?" inquired the commander of the fort.
"From New York before she went to Bermuda and Nassau; before that, from England," replied the commander evasively.
"If you are really in charge of the steamer, Percy, I have nothing more to say," continued Major Pierson. "Now may I ask who owns her?"
"Captain Horatio Passford, who stands there?"
The officer in command of the fort started back as though he had received another surprise, greater than before.