CHAPTER VIINORTHWARD TO THE SOLOMONSOnce clear of the dangerous expanse of reefs which surround the entrance to Noumea Harbour, the captain hauled up to the N.N.W. and ran along under the land, the brig going in gallant style, for the water was smooth and the wind fresh and steady. Before reaching Noumea, old Sam had bent his best suit of sails, and painted the ship inside and out, so that she now cut quite a respectable appearance below as well as aloft; and now, as he stood at the break of the poop, smoking a huge cigar, his fat little body swelled with pride. De Caen had expressed his admiration at the manner in which he had worked the brig out through the Dunbea Pass; also he had complimented him upon the serviceable condition and smart appearance of the four carronades and their gear generally.This had gone to the skipper's heart, and he was struggling with two emotions--one of which was to joke with his crew, as was usual with him when in a good temper; and the other was to treat them with dignified hauteur in the presence of the French officer. He decided upon a middle course by unbending to Tom--he could not possibly remain silent for a whole quarter of an hour. So, calling the lad to him, he pointed out the various headlands and bays on the line of coast, with every one of which he was familiar. The day was clear and bright, with a cloudless sky of blue, and Tom could not but be enchanted by the panorama of tropical beauty which was unfolded before him as the vessel quickly opened out bay after bay and beach after beach, with a background of the loveliest green imaginable rising beyond; and here and there the curious conical-shaped and thatched roofs of a native village could just be discerned embowered in a forest of coco-nut palms.'And a murdering lot of ruffians they are, too, Tom, these New Caledonia Kanakas; no better now than they were fifteen years ago, before the Frenchmen took the place. Why I can tell you if anybody can all about 'em. I was in the sandal-wood trade with Captain Paddon, of Annatam--old Jimmy Paddon who is living in Sydney now worth millions. Do you see that narrow bay in there? Well, that's Uaran; it's a big village full of the most poisonous niggers as ever polished teeth on a man's thighbone. I was partner with Paddon. We had a little fore-and-aft schooner called the Kirribilli which he sailed about the coast while I kept to this brig meeting him now and again at Noumea, Levuka in Fiji, or Tongatubu in the Friendly Islands or any other port agreed upon.'Well, one day as Jimmy Paddon was sailing along the coast, just about where we are now four miles off Uaran he sprung his mainmast and ran in there to anchor and fish it. He knew the place pretty well and was friendly with the two head chiefs who sometimes visited his trading station at Noumea; so when one of 'em came aboard with a lot of his people they were allowed to have the run of the decks and he came down into the cabin, smoked a pipe with Jimmy, and then went ashore, saying he would send off some food for the crew as a present. Towards four or five o'clock a whaleship was sighted about four miles off the land; and as it was falling calm, Jimmy decided to pull out to her and try to buy a bolt or two of canvas. He took four hands with him leaving the mate and six others on board. He got the canvas and started back for the schooner just after dark, one of the whaleship's boats coming with him with her second mate and five hands, to buy some pigs from the natives. She was lying nice and quiet but was showing no light anywhere and there wasn't a sign of any one on deck. In a moment he thought something was wrong, so they stopped pulling and hailed--no answer. "Pull up, lads," he said, and they ran alongside, and as the poor chap who was pulling bow oar stood up and caught hold of the rail, a tomahawk came down like a flash and cut off his hand, and in a moment the schooner's decks were alive with natives, who began firing at the boat, killing another man before it could be pushed off again; and then the blacks, seeing the whaler's boat coming, began to jump overboard and swim ashore.'They, of course, meant to wait till Jimmy and his boat's crew were all on deck, and then club them, but one of 'em was in too much of a hurry and begun work too soon, and that spoilt their plan. As soon as the other boat came up they lit a boat lantern, and Jimmy and the rest went on board; and there were the decks just smothered in blood, but no trace of the mate and the rest of the men. But it was easy to know where they had been taken to, for the cannibals' drums were beating, and every now and then the saucy niggers would send a bullet flying out, and then give a yell together. The schooner was gutted of most everything of any value--arms, ammunition, trade goods, and even the sails and standing rigging were cut to pieces. Jimmy wasn't long in hoisting lights for assistance, slipping his cable, and towing out towards the ship, which helped him to get the schooner to Noumea. And that there job cost us nigh on four hundred pounds, let alone the loss of the poor mate and the other men who went into the niggers' gullets.'Tom was deeply interested in the skipper's story--only one of hundreds of such tragedies as were then of common occurrence throughout the savage Western Pacific, and even at the present day are still enacted among the murderous and cannibalistic natives of the Solomon Group and the German Islands of the Bismarck Archipelago.For three days the brig ran steadily along the coast of New Caledonia, till D'Entrecasteaux Reefs being cleared, the captain and De Caen held a consultation. The latter was in favour of laying a direct course for New Britain. The former thought that the brig should work through the Solomon Islands, where they would be sure to meet with trading vessels, from which they might obtain valuable information; furthermore, he contended that if any of the survivors of the Marengo (the missing transport) had escaped in boats, they would be almost sure to steer for Noumea by way of the Solomons, where not only was there a likelihood of meeting with trading vessels, but where they could obtain fresh supplies of water and food from numberless islands, many of which being uninhabited, they could land at and refresh without danger. Then again, both he and Mr. Collier pointed out to De Caen that the boats, by working through the smooth waters lying between the two chains of islands which form the vast archipelago of the Solomon Group, would, when they reached San Christoval, the last island of the cluster, have but five hundred miles to traverse to reach the nearest land--the Huon Islands, off the coast of New Caledonia itself--instead of a long and trying voyage of sixteen hundred miles across the open sea, without even sighting a single island, did they endeavour to make a direct course from New Britain to Noumea.De Caen followed old Sam's reasoning very closely, and could not but be convinced of the soundness of his arguments. The general chart of the Western Pacific was spread out upon the cabin table, and he looked at it thoughtfully.'It is possible, Captain Hawkins, that the officer in command of the boats--if, alas! there is an officer alive--may have steered for the coast of New Guinea, rounded the Louisiade Archipelago, and kept away for the Australian coast.''That's true enough, Mr. de Cann, but if they have done that it's no use our looking for them now and our orders are to search northward--through the Solomons if we like, if not, then along the coast of Noo Britain for the relicks if any are available. At the same time I am under your orders if you like to tell me to steer west for Whitsunday Pass on the Great Barrier Reef and then work up along the coast to the Louisiades.''Certainly not, captain! I merely advanced a supposition. I have the most absolute faith in your very excellent judgment and superior knowledge. Let us steer north for San Christoval, and trust that good fortune may attend our search.'Old Sam's red face beamed with a childish pleasure, and he gurgled something out about 'the intense relevancy of the satisfaction it gave him to be in such complete and personal discord with Mr. de Cann,' and that he 'sincerely trusted they would always remain as such.' Then he strutted away, and bawled out an order to the second mate to tell the cook to kill the pig, as the creature 'discommoded and dirtied the decks with continuous incessity and was always rubbing itself against one of the carronades and suffusing the ship with its intolerability.' (As a matter of fact, he had no ill-feeling against poor Julia, but thought it rather undignified to have the creature poking about the main deck with a naval officer on board.)These were happy days for Tom. Between himself and the quiet, self-contained young mate there already existed a feeling of friendship, which grew stronger day by day. The advent of De Caen, an educated and travelled man, whose usually refined and dignified manner but concealed a disposition that in reality was brimming over with an almost boyish love of merriment and an ardent spirit of adventure, was another source of pleasure to him; and both of the grown men seemed to vie with each other, as the days went on, in instructing a mind so open and ingenuous, and so quick to receive impressions for good; for whilst Collier gave him lessons in navigation and practical seamanship, De Caen talked to him of the world beyond the Southern Seas, of the history of his own country, and was delighted to find that Tom knew a good deal of his (De Caen's) pet hero, the adventurous Dupleix, and of his struggle with Clive for the supremacy of India in the early days of 'John Company.'And then in the evenings Collier would tell him tales of his own adventures in the South Seas, tales that made Tom's heart beat quicker as he listened, for the quiet, grave-eyed young officer had faced death and danger very often, from one side of the Pacific to the other.'The South Sea Islands are a bit different, though, Tom, to what they were fifty, ay, twenty years ago,' he said, with a smile; 'but even Captain Hawkins, who pretends to grumble at the changes that have occurred, admits that us sailor-men have much to be thankful for. The missionaries--English missionaries, I mean--have done a lot for us, quite apart from what they have done for the natives. And yet most trading captains have not a good word for the missionary.''Why is that, Mr. Collier?''For many reasons, Tom. One is because the advent of the missionary means less profit to the trader, less prestige to him as the one white man on one particular island. The trader wants to sell his grog and his firearms, and he ruins and destroys the natives; the missionary comes to elevate and redeem them. Tom, my boy, you should read what English missionaries have done in the South Seas! It is a better tale than that of the victories won by British troops upon the blood-stained field of battle; for the victories of the missionary have brought peace and happiness instead of tears and sorrow to the vanquished. Look here, Tom.'He took down a book from the shelf over his bunk.'Here, look at this. It is the narrative of the first voyage of John Williams to the South Seas--John Williams, who gave up his life for Christ under the clubs of the savage people of Erromanga. Here you will read the story of those first missionaries. Some of them, perhaps, were better fitted for the task than others; but all were eager to teach the gospel of Jesus Christ. And they taught it well. Some of them, like Williams, gave their lives for those whom they had come to help; others lived and worked and died, and no one hears of them, Tom. But though they have no earthly monument to record their good work, God knows it all, Tom; God knows it all.'One morning at breakfast De Caen was telling Collier some stories about the characters of the convicts in New Caledonia, and of their continual attempts to escape to Australia in small and ill-equipped boats. Once, he said, a party of nine desperate creatures hurriedly made a raft by tying together some timber intended for the flooring of the Governor's house, and with a few bottles of water and a bag of flour to sustain them during a voyage of more than a thousand miles, set out to reach Australia. They actually succeeded in clearing the reefs surrounding Noumea, when the raft came to pieces, and the poor wretches were devoured by sharks, in the presence of the crew of a vessel entering Dumbea Pass.'Quite recently,' continued the French officer, 'five men, three of whom were seamen, managed, through the negligence of their guards, to escape in a good boat. Their leader, an American by birth, had been sentenced to penal servitude for life, for the murder of the captain of a French ship, of which he was chief officer. He always protested his innocence, and at his trial in Bordeaux said that the steward was the guilty man. Our Governor, who is very just and humane, once told my captain that he believed his assertions; and indeed the poor fellow was innocent; for the Cyclope brought an intimation from France to that effect, and instructions to set him at liberty. This was told to me by the Governor the day after the Cyclope arrived from Sydney.'Old Sam nearly choked himself with a large mouthful of bread, and then said--'What might his name be Mr. de Cann?''Casalle--Henri Casalle.''Casalle!' Tom echoed; 'why, that was the name of the captain of the Bandolier; and the man we saw at Wreck----'The captain gave him a furious kick beneath the table, upset his own cup of coffee, and jumping up from his seat, uttered a yell at the helmsman at the same time.'Now then, mutton head, whereareyou steering to? Excuse me Mr. de Cann, but that fellow who is steering is the continual cause of my flamatory objections. I could tell you some queer things about him. He is a native of Rotumah--ever been there, sir?--fine island with remarkable lucidity of climate one of Natur's handmaidens as it were only waiting to be tickled with a hoe to laugh with the utmost profligacy. Tom, as you have finished will you be so good as to go on deck and tell the second mate to hoist out a barrel of pork I want to see the head taken off being American pork I'm dubious about it if there's anything in the world that disturbs my naval and automical principles it's stinking pork.'De Caen waited until he had finished, then added--'The Governor was much distressed to think that this unfortunate man may never learn of his pardon, for if he and his companions succeed in reaching Australia, they will most likely never be heard of again. Once they get to any of the gold-fields in New South Wales or Victoria, it will be impossible to trace them.'Collier nodded assent, and then in his quiet manner remarked that, as one of the five was an innocent man, he hoped they had all reached Australia in safety. Then, seeing that old Sam was looking very uncomfortable, he said nothing further, and the subject was dropped.Under clear, cloudless skies, and with the brave south-east trade wind blowing steadily all day, and dropping to a faint air at night, the Lady Alicia made steady progress to the northward till within a hundred miles of San Christoval. Then it fell calm, and for two days the brig lay sweltering upon a sea of glass, under a fierce, relentless sun, and rolling heavily to a long sweeping swell from the eastward. On the morning of the third day, the wind came away from the westward, and blew in sharp, short squalls, attended by thick, driving rain, which, rising black and lowering on the sea-rim, changed to a dull grey and then to snowy white, as it came rushing and roaring down upon the ship.Just before noon the sun came out for a brief space, and Maori Bill, who happened to be aloft, called out that a sail was in sight right ahead, and standing down towards the brig. Mr. Collier at once went aloft, and there, not three miles away, was a large white-painted vessel carrying single-topsails, like the Lady Alicia, and running with squared yards before the wind.For the moment Mr. Collier could not make out whether she was a barque or a brig, as she was coming 'dead on,' but presently she lifted to a high sea and yawed a bit, and he saw that she was a brig of about 500 tons. In an instant he hailed the captain.'Please come aloft, sir, at once.'Old Sam waddled along the deck, and then clambered up to the fore-yard beside his mate.[image]SAM CLAMBERED UP TO THE FORE-YARD BESIDE HIS MATE.'What is she, Mr. Collier?' he began, and then he gave a gasp of rage, mingled with alarm, as his eye lit upon the stranger.'May I be shot if it isn't Bully Hayes's brig! I've never seen the Leonie but that's her sure enough for I've heard all about the look of her.''Yes, that is the Leonie, sir. I knew her when she was in the China trade, before Captain Hayes stole her. There is no other vessel like her in the South Seas. He means to speak us, at any rate--if he intends no further mischief--and he can sail rings round us, so it is no use our trying to get away from him. What will you do, sir?''Fight him,' said the little man energetically, 'fight him like I would any other pirate--for he is a pirate and nothing else.' Then he bawled to the second mate to stand by to wear ship, and in another five seconds was on deck, followed by Collier.The helm was put hard up, the yards squared, and the old brig put nearly before the wind, which was her best sailing point, and which would give those on board another hour to prepare. Old Sam, though really bursting with excitement, gave his orders quietly and calmly, and then turned to Lieutenant de Caen, who was thoroughly at a loss to understand why the brig's course had been so suddenly altered by the appearance of another ship.'Mr. de Cann least said is soonest done as it were so with your permission I will call the hands aft and if you do not care to participate in my remarks you are free to do so. All hands aft.'The crew, headed by Maori Bill, trooped along the main deck and stood in a group in front of the poop, from which the skipper spoke.'My lads, I'm not running away from that ship, which is commanded by Captain Bully Hayes, an out-an-out pirate. I mean to fight him that's all I have to say and I hope you will not disgrace me and this ship which is on foreign service. Bos'un, cast off the housings and clear the guns for action. Mr. Collier you and the steward pass up the small arms. Mr. Todd you and two hands pass up ammunition for the carronades and if I see any man funking his mother won't know him again. Mr. de Cann you may depend upon me to collorate any suggestions you may make you being as it were my superior in such a case as is now protruded. Stations men and don't disgrace me and Mr. de Cann. Tom you can bring up that flash gun of yours and stand by me here; every little helps and it is a poor heart that never rejoices so cheer up my lad. I will never let you come to harm through a refuted pirate. Mr. de Cann, this ship is to all intents and purposes a French ship as it were and I am willing to obey your orders I am confident that we can smash this fellow but you must let me have my own way and propagation of ideas which is to lie low and let him come close to and then let drive at him with the carronades unless he begins pounding at us beforehand with his two big guns which I believe he carries being stolen property like the ship herself. Why, he is the man who sunk a Portuguese gunboat in the East Indies five years ago. Certainly he only fired one shot at her but it did the trick and she sunk and when the American commodore at Hongkong tried to arrest him he sent him a letter and said it was an accident and that if it wasn't an accident it was a joke.'The French officer, who could scarcely follow old Sam's rapid utterances, but quite understood that the strange vessel meant mischief, was quickly enlightened by Mr. Collier in a few words.'Captain Hayes is the most notorious man in the Pacific, and his crew have the reputation of being a band of unmitigated ruffians. That very vessel you now see he carried off out of Singapore five years ago, and since then he had been cruising among the Islands, trading, pearl-shelling, and engaging in native wars. A Portuguese gunboat tried to capture him off Macao--he sunk her with one shot. He has been chased all over the Pacific by English and American cruisers, but never yet caught. At the same time, I do not believe all that is said about him and his savage nature, but he certainly is a dangerous man.'During the few minutes which had elapsed since the stranger was sighted, the utmost activity had prevailed on board the Lady Alicia. Nearly two-thirds of the eighteen men she carried were determined, resolute fellows, who had stood by their captain in many a fight with the savage natives of the Solomon and New Hebrides Group; and they were well able to work the four carronades, though rifles were more to their liking. The small arms on board consisted of fifty Enfield rifles and cutlasses, and then, in addition to these, were the thirty rifles brought on board by Mr. de Caen. These were breech-loaders, which had only been adopted by the French Navy a year or two before. They were a Swiss invention, heavy and awkward to handle, but yet very effective. These were brought up by the lieutenant's orders, and he at once proceeded to load them, aided by Tom. Meanwhile, old Sam had his carronades loaded in readiness, and the decks of the little vessel presented the appearance of those of an old time ten-gun brig going into action.The strange vessel was now rapidly overhauling the Lady Alicia, and Tom, as he stood beside the French officer on the poop, could not repress his admiration of the beautiful sight she presented as she rose and sank to the swelling seas--with her snowy white canvas glinting and shining against the sun. For some minutes the little group watched her in silence; then Hawkins, noticing how very quickly she was coming up, turned quietly to the mate.'Hands to the braces. Mr. Collier, let him come up as quick as he likes, I'm ready for him.'The yards were braced up, and the brig laid to her former course; the stranger at once followed suit, and as she sailed three feet to the one of the Lazy Alice, she was soon within hailing distance. On decks were a number of naked natives, some of whom were standing on the top-gallant fo'c'sle. Aft, on the quarter deck, a big black-bearded man, dressed in pyjamas, was standing beside the helmsman, smoking a cigar.The strange ship came sweeping on, then suddenly kept away, so as to pass astern of the Lady Alicia.As she surged past, the big man walked over to the rail, and drawing one hand carelessly through his flowing beard, he nodded to Captain Hawkins, and said with a laugh--'Good morning, captain. Will you be so good as to back your main-yard and let me come aboard? But you won't hurt me, will you?'Before old Sam could frame a reply, the strange brig came to the wind swiftly and noiselessly, a whaleboat which hung on the port quarter was lowered, and pulled over towards the Lady Alicia, the big bearded man steering.'Back the main-yard, Mr. Collier,' said old Sam, quietly. 'Let him come aboard and see how we look.'CHAPTER VIIICAPTAIN BULLY HAYES COMES ON BOARDThe boat drew alongside, and the tall bearded man climbed up the rope ladder hung on the side amidships, and then jumped lightly on the deck, where he was met just inside the gangway by Captain Hawkins, who had descended from the poop.'How do you do, captain?' said the stranger, affably, extending his hand. 'My name is Hayes;' and then, as his bright blue eye took in the surroundings, and he saw the brig's crew standing by the guns, and a group of armed men on the poop deck, he gave a loud hearty laugh, so genuine and spontaneous that old Sam stared at him in astonishment.'I asked you not to hurt me, and of course you won't. So you, too, think that poor Bully Hayes is a bloodthirsty pirate! Come, shake hands, my red-faced little fighting-cock. I like you all the better for your pluck. There, that's right;' and seizing the skipper's unwilling hand in his own, he shook it with tremendous vigour; 'but please make your men put away those rifles and cutlasses. I'm such a nervous man, and the sight of any one with a gun in his hand makes me both mad and frightened, so that I can't help knocking him down, just to protect myself.''What is it you want on board my ship, Captain Hayes?' said old Sam, pointedly.'My dear sir, do not look at me in that distant manner,' and he clapped his sun-browned hand on the captain's shoulder, 'it pains me. You've rolling topsails, I see. How do you find them answer? Bonnets trouble you? Mine are perfection. You must come on board and see my ship. Come, now, my dear sir,don'tlook so angry. I'm not at all a bad fellow, I can assure you, nothing so black as I am painted.''Well, you mustn't blame me,' said old Sam, more graciously, 'you've got the name anyway; but I must say you don't look like----''Like a cut-throat, Captain----' He paused.'Hawkins, if you please.''Captain Hawkins, I'm glad to meet you. Now, can you sell me a few bags of rice and some casks of molasses for my native passengers? I've a hundred and twenty blackbirds on board, bound for Samoa, and I'm afraid I'll run short of rice.''I can do that,' said Hawkins, delighted to find that his visitor had no evil intentions.'Thank you very much.' Then, going to the side, he hailed his boat's crew and told them to pass up a bag of dollars; and when old Sam asked him below to have a glass of wine, he again laughed in his boyish and apparently unaffected manner. 'Certainly, captain, with pleasure. You have passengers, I see,' he added, indicating Mr. de Caen and Tom, but politely ignoring the pile of rifles lying on top of the skylight.'Yes,' said the skipper, 'Mr. de Cann, of the French Navy lieutenant of the Cyclope and Mr. Tom Wallis--Captain Hayes.'The moment the visitor heard the words 'French Navy,' a swift gleam of light passed over his handsome face; but he bowed courteously to the officer, and together the three men went below and seated themselves at the table, whilst the steward placed refreshments before them. In less than ten minutes, so engaging was Hayes's outspoken yet polite manner, that both Hawkins and De Caen were laughing and talking with him as if they had known him for months.'Where are you bound to, sir?' asked Captain Hawkins, again filling his visitor's glass; 'you have a lot of natives on board. Where are they from?''I am bound to Samoa. The natives are from various islands to the northward. I recruited them for the German planters in Samoa. They are a very savage lot, and'--here he smiled--'although I hate to have armed men about a ship's deck, we have to keep our weather eye lifting, or we might lose the ship some day. Now, tell me,' he added pleasantly, 'where are you bound to, Captain Hawkins?''To the Solomons and Noo Britain, captain;' and then, with an air of pride which he tried hard to conceal, 'We're under charter to the Governor of Noo Caledonia to make a search for relicks human or otherwise of a French transport loaded with exigencies for the garrison and convicts at Noumea.''Ah,' said Hayes, quickly, 'so you're looking for the Marengo?'De Caen and Hawkins sprang to their feet. 'Yes. Do you know anything about her?''Yes, I do,' he answered curtly, with a harsh inflexion in his hitherto modulated tones. 'I can tell you all about her, and where to find the ship's company--on a certain condition.''What is it?' said De Caen, with a contemptuous shrug of his shoulder; 'is it a question of money?'An angry flash came from Hayes's blue eyes. 'Be careful how you speak, or you'll get no information from me. I don't want money for putting you on the right course to rescue your countrymen--though I have little cause to love them--your admiral at Tahiti sent a rotten old gunboat to the Paumotus to chase and harry me from one island to another, when I was a legitimate trader. I could have captured that gunboat on two separate occasions, had I desired it, and made a bonfire of her for her confounded meddling. And now that I have said so much, I might as well tell you both, that if I had wanted to do this old hooker of a brig any harm, and had acted up to the reputation I have of being a pirate, I could have knocked you to pieces in half an hour, although you do carry four carronades--I've something better than those.' Then he added, with a hard laugh, 'Perhaps you would like me to show you.'There was a brief silence, then De Caen said smoothly--'I am sorry for my remark, Captain Hayes. I did not wish to offend you. But surely no seaman would try to take advantage of shipwrecked people?''I do not wish to dothemany harm, but I want to do myself a considerable lot of good; and it rests with you entirely whether I tell you where to find them, or let you go and look for them--and a pretty search you will have, I can assure you.'De Caen thought a moment. 'Anything that it is in my power to do I will do; but surely you will tell me this first, are the survivors in danger?'Hayes laughed. 'Ah, that's a clever question, and I should not answer it until you have heard my condition, and have given me your answer. But I shall. They are not in danger, and, furthermore, not a single life was lost when the ship was wrecked. This,' he added slowly, and watching old Sam's and De Caen's faces, 'was told me by Commander Goigoux himself when he boarded my vessel a few weeks ago.'De Caen's face flushed with pleasure. 'I am pleased indeed. Now, sir, tell me what it is you wish me to do.''Steady there, if you please, Mr. de Cann,' interrupted Hawkins, 'before you go making any promises. Now look here Captain Hayes without wishing to cast inflections on your mere verbose statement I would like you to show us some proof that you are not playing us a trick, and that you did see Captain Gee--go. I've heard that you are very fond of a joke, and----''That is all right, my little bantam. I----''Bantam!--you overgrown turkey-cock!' began the old man furiously, when the French officer placed his hand on his arm, and then looked appealingly at Hayes, who was regarding Hawkins with an amused smile.'For goodness' sake, Captain Hawkins, do not let us quarrel. Captain Hayes, I am sure, would not act so heartlessly.''No, indeed I would not. And there, Captain Hawkins, I meant nothing offensive to you. You're a white man to your backbone. I've heard all about you and this fine vessel of yours years ago, from Captain Bannister, who sailed with you as mate when you were in the blackbirding trade--as I am now.'The fat little man was mollified in an instant. 'Joe Bannister is a good friend of mine but I was never a "blackbirder"--I got my natives honest square and fair--and if you withdraw "bantam" I regret "turkey" both of which are good birds alive or dead;' and he laughed at his own wit as he held out his hand.Hayes smiled good-naturedly as he grasped it, and then resumed--'Now the captain, officers, and crew of the transport would be aboard my ship this moment but for three things. In the first place, I had on board two hundred and twenty natives, which are worth nearly two thousand pounds to me delivered in Samoa; and Captain Goigoux would not guarantee me more than fifteen thousand francs for taking him and his men to Noumea; therefore, as a business matter, I could not accept his offer. In the second place, the Governor of New Caledonia might seize me and my ship for some little differences I had with the admiral at Tahiti. To be perfectly plain, I would have brought the shipwrecked people away, but did not want to risk losing both my ship and my liberty for six hundred pounds. But I told Captain Goigoux that I would try to send him assistance; and if you will give me your promise that you will endeavour to get the Governor of New Caledonia to have the orders for my arrest issued by the Governor of Tahiti cancelled, I will tell you where you can find Captain Goigoux and his ship's company. Have I made myself clear to you? I told him then what I tell you now.''I will certainly do all in my power for you with the Governor,' said De Caen; 'for such a service as you propose to render me he will be grateful.''I hope so,' said Hayes, quietly. 'I have been hunted from one end of the Pacific to the other for five years. I bought land in the Gambier Group, settled down, and would be a rich man by now if the Governor of Tahiti had not driven me out of the Paumotus, and then outlawed me for acts I was driven to commit through the interference of the greedy priests and the persecution of his deputy-governor. Now, about the Marengo. She went ashore in the straits between New Britain and New Ireland, and broke up very quickly. All the boats but two were smashed in the surf, but the crew all got to shore safely, and a number of stores were saved. From the spot where the ship was lost they made their way to Mioko Harbour, in the Duke of York Island, where you will find them. Half of them are down with fever at one time or another, but otherwise they are safe. They built a cutter from the wreck to carry them to Noumea, but she was accidentally burnt, and when I left they were beginning another; but sickness hinders the work, and the natives have twice attacked them.'He stopped, and then with a twinkle in his eye, as he looked at old Sam, took a letter from his pyjama jacket and went on.'And here is a letter addressed to the commander of any French ship of war, the naval officer in charge at Noumea, or the French Consul at Sydney or Melbourne. It was written by Captain Goigoux. No doubt you will open it, Mr. de Caen.'De Caen took the letter from his hand with an eager exclamation, and at once read it.'I thank you very much, Captain Hayes. You have made our task easy for us. And the Governor will not forget that Captain Goigoux here writes that you gave him many very necessary articles to aid him in building and fitting out the second vessel he is constructing, and would not accept any payment. For myself I thank you very sincerely.''And so do I,' said old Sam; 'and believing in the old axleiom that one good turn deserves another I won't charge you for the rice and molasses no one ever said I don't know how to recipercate in the same way a good or bad action, under any circumstances so put up those dollars captain and your good health.'They drank together, and then Hayes rose to leave, with the remark that he must not delay, as two of his officers and a dozen of his men were suffering from fever, and that with so many dangerous natives on board he had to exercise great care, only letting fifty on deck at a time, and these were carefully watched.'I have never been caught napping yet,' he added, 'but I'll be honestly glad when I'm rid of my cargo this time; for they are all recruited from the north end of New Ireland, and are as savage a lot of beggars as ever ate roast man. If they came from various islands they would be safe enough, I could play one lot against the other, if any party of them plotted to take the ship; but all coming from one place, I have had an anxious time, with so many of my men sick.''Have you plenty of arms, Captain Hayes?' said the master of the Lady Alicia. 'I can spare you ten or a dozen rifles.''Thank you, I have plenty; more than we could use--if we have to use them. My brig, as you may have seen, is flush-decked, which is another disadvantage; but I have a white line painted across the after part, and another just above the fore hatch. Whenever one of them steps over either of these lines, he gets a crack on the head from a belaying pin, to make him remember. So far, we have had no serious trouble. I treat them kindly, and none of my officers or men hit a man unless he is obliged to do so for our common safety.'Old Sam nodded. 'Ay, ay, once let 'em think you're frightened it's a case of bloodshed and murder. But you'll have to be careful, captain.'Just as they were leaving the cabin, the mate entered.'The rice and two casks of molasses are in Captain Hayes's boat, sir; but I don't think it safe to lower the other barrels--she won't stand it in such a lumpy sea. She's too deep as she is.'The two captains went on deck and looked over the side.'Drop our own whaleboat into the water, Mr. Collier,' said Hawkins, 'and put the two casks into her. Then take a couple of hands with you and get back as quick as you can.'Hayes thanked him for his good nature. 'I'm sorry to cause you so much trouble. I would have brought another boat as well, but could not spare the hands. Now, won't you come aboard yourself, and have a look at my cargo?'Old Sam shook his head, and made his usual remark, about not being able to leave his ship when on Government service.'Can't I go with Mr. Collier, sir?' put in Tom, quickly; 'I'd give anything to go.''Would you, my cockerel? Well, I don't know. What do you think, Captain Hayes?'Hayes laughed. 'Yes, let him come, captain. He'll see what a "blackbirder" looks like. Come with me in my boat.'Tom was delighted, and presently slid down the boat falls and waited.Then Hayes, after giving Hawkins some important particulars about the entrance to Mioko Harbour, bade him and De Caen farewell, with wishes for a speedy voyage, got over the side into his own boat, which shoved off, and followed that of the mate.'You'll get wet before you get alongside, Captain Hayes!' cried Hawkins, pointing to a rain-squall which was approaching.The big captain made some jesting reply, and then Hawkins went below to discuss the important news they had learnt with the French officer, leaving Mr. Todd to attend to the ship.CHAPTER IXTHE FIGHT ON BOARD THE LEONIEMr. Collier's boat, being much lighter than that belonging to the Leonie, and manned by Maori Bill and three stalwart natives, soon left the latter some distance astern. The two brigs had now drifted about a mile and a half apart, and presently Hayes, looking at the coming squall, said--'We'll have to bring to for a while until----' The rest of his words were lost in the hum of the wind and the tropical rain, which descended upon the boat with a noise like the simultaneous falling of thousands of great forest trees; and had not Tom seized a bucket used as a baler, and set vigorously to work, the boat would have filled. For ten minutes Hayes kept her head to wind, then the rain ceased as if by magic, and the sun shone out as brightly as ever.'It's all over, my lad,' said Hayes, as he swung the boat round again, 'and--oh, the natives have broken loose. Pull, boys, pull for your lives!'As he spoke, there came the sound of rifle shots from the Leonie, followed by the roar of a heavy gun, answered by yells and savage cries; and Tom saw that the brig was lying all aback, and her after part was crowded with struggling figures.'Pull, boys, pull!' shouted the captain, as a second gun was fired; 'the mate is firing into them with the two after guns. Ah, bravo!' he added, as a third heavy report came from the Lady Alicia; 'the brig is coming to assist us. Bravo, little man, bravo!'Tom, who at the first alarm had sprung to double-bank the after oar, took a hurried glance astern, and saw that his own ship was indeed running down with squared yards towards the Leonie. Old Sam had evidently fired one of his carronades, to let Hayes know he was coming.For the next five minutes no word was spoken, as the dark-skinned seamen panted and bent to their oars, and Hayes, his face now set hard and cruel-looking, kept his eyes on his ship, from which came the continuous crack of small arms.As the boat swept on, he stooped down, and from the stern locker took out half a dozen broad-bladed tomahawks and six short Snider carbines with belts, and filled cartridge pouches and threw them at his feet. The four native seamen showed their white teeth and grinned savagely.In another two or three hundred yards they overtook Mr. Collier's boat, which was lying to, waiting for the Lady Alicia.'I wish I could help you, sir,' shouted the mate quickly, as Hayes passed, 'but we are unarmed. Tom, jump overboard, and I'll pick you up.'But Tom either could not or would not hear, as he tugged away at his oar, although Mr. Collier continued to shout and gesticulate."Stay where you are,' said Hayes; 'you need not come on deck. Now, look out, boys. I'll lay you alongside at the fore-chains. Avast pulling there for a bit, and take these.'In a few moments each man had buckled on his cartridge pouch, thrust a tomahawk through his belt, loaded his carbine, and placed it in readiness beside him. Then once more they seized their oars, and as they dashed alongside, and the bow oarsman grasped the fore-chains, a chorus of savage yells sounded above, as the body of a white sailor was thrown over the side, to fall into the boat.'Up you come!' roared Hayes to his boat's crew as, tomahawk in hand, he sprang up the chains and disappeared over the bulwarks, followed by the men, leaving Tom alone in the boat, gazing with horror-struck eyes at the ensanguined form lying across the midship thwart on which it had fallen. The sight was too much for him, though his courage quickly returned.Seizing the painter, he hurriedly made it fast, then ran aft, picked up the remaining carbine, and with his heart thumping against his ribs clambered up after the others, and jumped down on deck, landing on the top of some dead natives lying between the bulwarks and the for'ard deckhouse.For a moment or two he was dazed, not only at the sight of the awful carnage the decks presented, but with the din, and smoke, and yells, and curses that filled the air. The fore deck was covered with dead and dying savages, and the main filled with a swaying, surging mass of naked figures, half of whom were pressing towards the after deckhouse, to which the survivors of the crew had been driven, and the others surrounding the giant figure of Hayes and his boat's crew, who were hacking and hewing their way through them with their hatchets; for, after the first few shots, they had been unable to use their carbines again.Hardly knowing what he was doing, Tom raised his Snider to his shoulder, and sent his first bullet into the packed mass before him. Then quickly jerking out the empty case, he slipped in another cartridge and fired again.'That's good!' shouted a voice above him; 'jump up here, young feller, quick!'Loosely coiled on top of the deckhouse was a huge coir hawser, and in the centre of it was the man who had called Tom. He was evidently wounded, for he was in a sitting position. Putting one foot through a port in the deckhouse, Tom clambered up, and took his place beside him.'Quick! Lie down, and fire into 'em there on the starboard side,' said the wounded man; 'my arm is nearly broken, and I'm no good. Ah! that's it!' he cried, as Tom began firing steadily into a crowd of savages on the starboard side, who were so tightly jammed together that every shot did deadly work. 'Hurrah! the skipper's through into the house, and one man with him. Look out, young feller, they've seen us. I oughtn't to have brought you up here. Jump down again, and over the side, and swim round to the stern. Don't mind me, youngster, I'm done for. Even if I was all right, I can't swim.''I'll help you,' panted Tom, putting another cartridge into the breach, 'and the boat is here under the chains.'In an instant they were on their feet, jumped down, and got over the side into the boat just in time, for half a dozen enemies made a savage rush at them, and one, springing up on the rail, hurled a club at Tom. It struck the barrel of his Snider, and sent it flying out of his hand into the sea.The sailor, although his right arm was almost useless, and he had received a slashing cut across his ribs, quickly severed the painter with his sheath-knife, and then, pushing the boat off, he put an oar out, and, with Tom's aid, worked the boat round to the stern of the brig.'The mate and some other sick men are in the cabin; the ports are open, and we can get in, if you heave the painter through, and have it made fast.'Breathless and excited as he was, Tom, without answering, did as he was told, and as soon as the boat was under the square stern of the brig, he called out--'Stand by there, and catch this line.'A man's face appeared at the port, and, as Tom hove the line, he caught it, and then called out--'All fast.'Leaving the wounded sailor--who protested that he was quite comfortable--in the boat, Tom, with the aid of the painter, got through the port and into the main cabin, just as Hayes rushed down the companion.'Where is the steward, Mr. Kelly?' he said to the man who had spoken to Tom, and who was lying on cushions on the transoms.'Dead, sir;' and Kelly pointed to a prone figure near the cabin table. 'He was one of the first to be cut down when the niggers rushed the after guard. I did what I could for him, but he did not last long.'Hayes bent down and looked into the face of the dead man.'Poor Manuel! poor Manuel!' he muttered, and drawing off the tablecloth he spread it over the body. Then, as he turned to speak to his chief officer again, he caught sight of Tom. 'Ah, my boy, I'm glad you are safe. Mr. Kelly, we have beaten the natives back for the present, but they have possession for'ard and below in the 'tween decks. But there are two boats coming from that brig, and I hope we can avoid further bloodshed.'The mate, a tall, thin American, who was hardly able to stand through weakness, was about to make some reply, when the boats were reported alongside, and then a second later a hoarse cry rang out--'Fire! The ship is on fire, sir!'Hayes leapt up the companion way, followed by Tom, and saw, as he gained the deck, that smoke was issuing from the fore part of the main hatch, which was open. And at the same moment, and as the men from the Lady Alicia, headed by old Sam and Collier, sprang on deck, the natives streamed up from below from both fore and main hatchways, and again attempted to get possession of the deck. So sudden was their onslaught that most of the white men, although they shot five or six of the foremost, were driven back aft to the deckhouse, leaving Mr. Collier, Maori Bill, and Tom cut off and surrounded by a score or so of blood-maddened savages, all armed with clubs and tomahawks. Old Sam, a gigantic American negro belonging to the Leonie, and half a dozen of Hawkins's men, made a dash to their aid, and slashed their way through to them with their cutlasses--for they were unable to use their rifles. Tom and Mr. Collier were down, and not knowing whether they were alive or dead, their rescuers picked them up and then fought their way aft again. Then Hayes, with rage and despair in his heart, as he saw the smoke increase in volume, called out to Hawkins to make a stand with his men on each side of and in front of the deckhouse.'Keep them at bay for another five minutes. I shall show them no mercy now!'Utterly undaunted by the steady and deadly fire which had been poured into them by the crew of the Lady Alicia and the crew of the Leonie, the natives made the most determined efforts to overwhelm them by sheer force of weight alone. Then Hayes's voice was heard--'Stand back there!--this will settle the business.'He and some of the Leonie's crew had loaded the two guns with heavy charges of nuts and bolts, nails, and whatever other bits of iron which could be found in the deckhouse.The guns were quickly run forward, until their muzzles were almost touching the naked bodies of the savages, and then fired by Hayes and the big negro.For a moment or two after the bursting roar of their discharge there was silence; and even Hayes, maddened and desperate as he was, could not help shuddering when he saw the awful sight the main deck presented.Driving all who were left alive of the now cowed and terrified natives down into the fore peak, Hayes and Hawkins turned their attention to the fire, leaving their own wounded to be attended to by Mr. Todd and Lieutenant de Caen, both of whom now appeared with a fresh party of men from the Lady Alicia to assist.The fire was fortunately confined to the after part of the 'tween decks, and the hands from the Lady Alicia turned to with such hearty good-will that two hoses were soon at work; and a cheer went up when, after ten minutes' vigorous pumping, the smoke rapidly decreased, and a party were able to descend and completely extinguish it.Then old Sam and Hayes, blackened with smoke and all but exhausted, went aft to the deckhouse. Todd met them with a grave face.'Mr. Collier is dying, Captain Hawkins, and wishes to see you; and that poor lad is pretty badly hurt too.'Sitting in the centre of the house, and supported by De Caen, poor Collier was breathing his last, his dark features fast paling with the coming dissolution of soul from body.Above, in one of the berths, lay Tom, with closed eyes and bandaged head. In all the remaining bunks--six in all--there was either a sick or a wounded man. Tom had received a heavy blow on his forehead, and another on his ribs from a club; the mate had been cut down with a tomahawk.As Hayes and the captain of the Lady Alicia entered, and Tom heard old Sam's voice, he opened his eyes, and vainly tried to sit up.'My poor boy, my poor boy!' said the old seaman, stepping over to him, and taking his hand, 'are you badly hurt?''Not much, sir; but I got a tremendous crack on the side, that pains terribly,' said Tom in a faint voice. 'Oh, how is poor Mr. Collier, sir?'Hawkins shook his head sadly. 'Going fast my lad, going fast!' he said, as he turned away from Tom to kneel beside the young mate, who was feebly asking for him.Tom saw the skipper's old white head bend close to Collier's face, and the two men speaking to each other.Then a brief pause, and then Collier called out distinctly--'Tom!''Yes, Collier,' replied Tom.'Good-bye, Tom, my dear lad. I cannot see your face; good-bye.'He made a faint motion of farewell with his hand, leant his head against old Sam's shoulder, and Tom covered his face, and sobbed under his breath. When he looked again, De Caen and the captain were gone, and the still figure of his friend was lying on the deck with his face covered with old Sam's blue-and-white silk handkerchief. Seven of the Leonie's crew of thirty had been killed, and as many more wounded; and as soon as possible the bodies of the former were brought on the quarter deck and made ready for burial, together with that of the first mate of the Lady Alicia.For some little time, as the two brigs sailed along within a few cable lengths of each other, Hayes and the master of the Lady Alicia paced the quarter deck and talked of the fight. The old man was deeply distressed at the death of Collier, and Hayes, worried as he was with his own troubles, was touched at the spectacle of his grief.'I am sorry, for your sake, that we ever sighted each other, Captain Hawkins,' he said; 'more than that I cannot say. I do not want to speak of my own losses; but I do want you to believe me--I am sorry, very sorry.'Old Sam drew his hand across his eyes. 'It cannot be helped,' he answered huskily, 'and I only did for you what was my duty as a man, and what I believe you would have done for me if I stood in the same danger; but I would rather have lost my ship and all I have in the world than that poor young fellow. A better seaman never trod a deck, and a better, cleaner livin' man never drew breath, an' he's gone with a clean sheet too.'Hayes nodded, and smoked on in silence for another half a dozen turns, then said--'About that poor boy, Captain Hawkins. His back is badly hurt, and if you take him away with you, the chances are that he will die of fever when you get to New Britain. This is the rainy season, and that some of your ship's company will be laid up with fever is a dead certainty. He will never recover from even a slight attack.'Old Sam groaned. 'Poor lad! what can I do? Believe me, sir, I'd as lief die myself as see him go. It would just about finish me if I had to write to his father and----''Leave him with me,' said Hayes, quickly. 'I pledge you my honour as a man to take good care of him. With this westerly weather we shall make a quick run to Samoa. If he is not better by the time we get to Apia, there are two good doctors there. And from Samoa he will soon get a chance to return to Australia. I will pay his passage. If you take him with you, you are risking his chances of recovery, strong as is his constitution. Mr. de Caen,' turning to the Frenchman, who had joined them, 'do you not think so?'De Caen did think so, and so it was decided that Tom should remain on board the Leonie, and old Sam and De Caen went to bid him farewell.'Tom my hearty,' said the skipper, after he had explained to the lad the reasons for his decision, 'you have to get well without any prevarication and go home to your father and brother and tell them that old Sam Hawkins isn't a bad old shellback with all his delimits and sincrasses as it were and that he knows his duty and proper evolutions, and you'll have Maori Bill with you to remind you of me and the old Lady A--for Mr. de Cann is a gentleman and is going to do mate's duty in place of poor Mr. Collier and I've given Captain Hayes the loan of Maori Bill and I want you Tom to never disremember that if you never see old Sam Hawkins again, that his last words were always do the straight thing and keep clear of drinkin' and swearin' and dirty conduct and do your duty and give my honoured requests to your father and eat all you can, the more vittels you stow away under the bunt when you have broken bones the more they get settled up as it were and inform their natural functions on the germinus through which the pores circulate. Good-bye my boy, and God bless you and never say die under any exemplifications no matter where or how rigidous.' And the kind-hearted old sailor wrung Tom's hand so warmly that even had not the lad's overwrought feelings at parting with him brought the tears to his eyes, the energy of the farewell would have done so. Then De Caen came and bade him good-bye in his effusive French fashion, much to Tom's discomfiture--for what lad with British blood in his veins likes being kissed by a man?--and promised to write to him from Noumea. Late in the afternoon both brigs hove to. Mr. Collier's body was placed in one of the boats from the Lady Alicia, and Hayes once again bade Hawkins and De Caen good-bye.Maori Bill, whose own chest, with Tom's effects, had been sent on board the Leonie, shook hands with his captain and Mr. de Caen in silence, and then quietly walking through the men assembled on the main deck, descended to the boat in which the body of the mate was laid, lifted the rug which covered it, and pressed his face to the dead man's hand, and uttered a shorttagi, or cry of mourning. Then returning to the deck, he stood awaiting the orders of his new captain.As the two boats pulled quickly away towards the Lady Alicia, Hayes waved his hand to De Caen and Hawkins, and then beckoned to Maori Bill.'Bill, come here. I want you to do the second mate's duty. He will take Mr. Kelly's place. I know that you are a good man, and will stand no nonsense. Stand by me, and I will stand by you. Call the hands aft.'The crew trooped aft silently, and Hayes said, curtly--'Men, this man here is the second mate now, instead of Mr. Harvey, who will take Mr. Kelly's place until Mr. Kelly is able for duty again. Remember that he is an officer now, and "Mr. Chester."'Then, turning to a coloured man who was now doing duty as steward, 'Serve out some grog.'Grog was served out liberally to the hands as they stood, and then Hayes brought the brig up a couple of points, so as to increase her speed. The breeze had now freshened, and for an hour or so the two vessels kept the same course.As the sun began to dip into the western sea-rim, Hayes hove-to and hoisted the American colours half-mast. The Lady Alicia also brought to, and half-masted both British and French colours.Standing in the waist with bared heads, Hayes and most of the crew waited till the bodies of the seven murdered men were brought from aft, and laid side by side on the deck. Then, as he said in low but distinct tones the words, 'We therefore commit these bodies to the deep, to be turned into corruption,' the canvas-shrouded forms were launched overboard in succession as quickly as possible.Scarcely had the last body plunged towards its resting-place two thousand fathoms deep, when Hayes called out in a harsh voice--'Turn to again, Mr. Harvey. East by south is the course. Steward, serve out some more grog to the men. Mr. Harvey, lower the colours, and then run them up again and dip to the Lady Alicia.'He strode aft again, and Tom, lying and listening in his bunk in the deckhouse, heard him suddenly burst out into an awful torrent of blasphemy, cursing his ill-luck: his officers, who 'could let a lot of naked niggers take charge of the ship, and kill seven men who were as good and better men than any one of them,' and the crew themselves for being such a lazy, useless lot of loafers and dead-beats, who deserved to have their throats cut. And, he added savagely, he would show them what he thought of such a lot of crawling, useless 'soldiers,' who were not fit to be left in charge of a canal boat tied up to a horse's tail.He ceased as suddenly as he began, and then coming to the door of the deckhouse, peered in and spoke to the fever-stricken and wounded men in such suave and kindly tones, that Tom could scarcely believe the evidence of his own senses.'And how are you, my boy?' he said, coming over to him, and placing his hand on his knees with almost fatherly kindness. 'Do you think you can bear moving? I want to have you down in the cabin, where you will be more comfortable than in this house. You can lie on one of the transom lockers, where you will get plenty of air through the stern ports. The mate will be near you, and you and he will have to make a race to see who gets on his pins first.'Tom smiled. 'Just as you please, sir; but I don't want to give too much trouble.'Hayes nodded. 'That's all right. You're to be the leading invalid on board the Leonie, and all hands and the cook are to stand by and wait on you.' Stepping outside, he called out--'Send a couple of hands here, Mr. Harvey, to carry Mr. Wallis below; and tell Charlie to come here.''Charlie' was the sailor with the injured arm, who, as soon as Tom was lifted out of his bunk, appeared with his arm in a sling, contentedly smoking a pipe.'How are you, Charlie?' said Hayes.'Right as rain, sir. I guess you've made a good job of it, sir,' indicating his arm. 'Hallo, young feller, how are you? Here, shake;' and he put out his left hand to Tom; 'my right arm is parcelled up like a half dollar roll of preserved Tahiti bananas. Young feller, I reckon thet you hev the makin's of a general in you. If it hadn't been for him, captain, I wouldn't be here now. He's grit to the backbone.'Tom was lifted up carefully by two of the crew, and carried below to a comfortable, amply cushioned lounge on the transoms, where he was greeted by the sick mate, whose legs were so enormously swollen from the effects of fever and quinine that he was unable to stand. Otherwise he was perfectly sound, and in full possession of a truly remarkable fund of vituperative expressions, some of which, when he heard Tom let an expression of pain escape him, he hurled at the two men who brought him down. Neither of them, he asserted with many unnecessary oaths, had the strength to lift a sitting hen off her nest, nor the will to pull their mothers out of a fire; also that as soon as he 'got around' again he would haze their worthless lives out of their useless carcases for their clumsiness, and derive unalloyed pleasure from seeing them go over the side feet first with a round shot at their heels.The men, both of whom were Chilenos, grinned and made no reply. They were used to him, for, ruffian and brute as he was to them occasionally, they yet had a liking for him, born out of their constant association with him in the face of danger and death. And Tom, though the man's language and merciless severity shocked and horrified him, later on learned to respect the many good traits in his character, chief of which were his unswerving devotion and loyalty to Hayes, his iron resolution and dauntless courage, and his restless, untiring energy and watchfulness in all that concerned his duty and care of the ship. Then, too, he had a sense of humour, grim enough, perhaps inborn, perhaps unconsciously acquired from Hayes, who, in his bursts of temper, would kick an offending seaman all round the deck, down the companion-way, and bawl out 'Arnica!' to the steward simultaneously.Unable to sleep from the pain he suffered, Tom was rather glad than otherwise that the mate, from the same cause, was rather restless, and disposed to be very communicative. The night was brilliantly clear and bright from the light of myriad stars; and from the widely opened stern ports he and Tom, who were lying near each other, watched the bubble and boil of the phosphorescent water in the brig's wake as it went hissing astern. Mr. Kelly, in expectation of one of his frequent attacks of ague, was heavily wrapped up in blankets and rugs, so that only his face was visible.'We have the breeze set steady now, I believe,' he said, 'and ought to sight Vanikoro in a couple of days. Were you a passenger on that brig?'Tom gave him the history of his adventures, to which the American listened with great interest, and in return he gave Tom an account of the origin of the attempt to capture the Leonie by the natives.When Hayes left to board the Lady Alicia the brig was in charge of the second mate, who had with him the carpenter and boatswain, the latter being stationed for'ard to watch the natives--about forty--who were on deck at the time. The chief mate himself, the third officer, and two boys who were suffering severely from fever, were lying down in the main cabin, and in the after deckhouse were two or three other sick men, and two more were lying on mats under the topgallant fo'c'sle, being attended to by Manuel, the half-caste Portuguese steward. On the topgallant fo'c'sle were two white seamen armed with rifles and cutlasses; another stood guard over the main hatchway, keeping watch upon the remaining hundred and eighty savages in their quarters in the 'tween decks, and two other men armed with cutlasses only were stationed one on each side of the deckhouse aft. Between the deckhouse and the bulwarks were two brass guns (heavily charged with slugs and bullets), but these had their housings on, on account of the rain-squalls, and were not instantly available at the moment they were wanted. The rest of the crew, who were not armed, but whose rifles and cutlasses were handy for use in the for'ard deckhouse, or in their own bunks, were dispersed about the decks, engaged in various work, utterly unsuspicious of any danger.Suddenly, and in the midst of a heavy, drenching rain-squall, the forty natives on deck sprang upon the crew, killed the two sentries up for'ard and the one at the main hatch, and were instantly joined by many others from below, the poor seaman on guard there being cut down as he was attempting to unhook the ladder and drop it below. A third party, who had cut a hole through the forward bulkhead, made their way on deck through the fore-scuttle, and armed with tomahawks and clubs united with their fellows, and made a determined rush aft, driving before them most of the unarmed seamen. Fortunately, the men who were on sentry in the alley-ways beside the house made good use of their Sniders, and so gave their comrades time to obtain arms from both the deckhouse and main cabin. Then it was that the second mate succeeded in firing the two guns. The discharge from the first cut a lane through the swarming savages on the port side; the second, through being badly pointed in the mad confusion, did but little damage.'Then,' added the mate,' you fellows came along; an' I guess I felt pleased. I couldn't get up to take part in the proceedin's myself--had to stay down here and load rifles and pass 'em up on deck. Anyway it's been a mighty bad business all round.... Seven of our men gone, one of yours, and ninety valooable----''Don't,' said Tom shudderingly, covering his face with his hands; 'don't say any more--it was too horrible.'The American desisted at once, when he saw how even the memory of the dreadful scenes affected the lad's mind.
CHAPTER VII
NORTHWARD TO THE SOLOMONS
Once clear of the dangerous expanse of reefs which surround the entrance to Noumea Harbour, the captain hauled up to the N.N.W. and ran along under the land, the brig going in gallant style, for the water was smooth and the wind fresh and steady. Before reaching Noumea, old Sam had bent his best suit of sails, and painted the ship inside and out, so that she now cut quite a respectable appearance below as well as aloft; and now, as he stood at the break of the poop, smoking a huge cigar, his fat little body swelled with pride. De Caen had expressed his admiration at the manner in which he had worked the brig out through the Dunbea Pass; also he had complimented him upon the serviceable condition and smart appearance of the four carronades and their gear generally.
This had gone to the skipper's heart, and he was struggling with two emotions--one of which was to joke with his crew, as was usual with him when in a good temper; and the other was to treat them with dignified hauteur in the presence of the French officer. He decided upon a middle course by unbending to Tom--he could not possibly remain silent for a whole quarter of an hour. So, calling the lad to him, he pointed out the various headlands and bays on the line of coast, with every one of which he was familiar. The day was clear and bright, with a cloudless sky of blue, and Tom could not but be enchanted by the panorama of tropical beauty which was unfolded before him as the vessel quickly opened out bay after bay and beach after beach, with a background of the loveliest green imaginable rising beyond; and here and there the curious conical-shaped and thatched roofs of a native village could just be discerned embowered in a forest of coco-nut palms.
'And a murdering lot of ruffians they are, too, Tom, these New Caledonia Kanakas; no better now than they were fifteen years ago, before the Frenchmen took the place. Why I can tell you if anybody can all about 'em. I was in the sandal-wood trade with Captain Paddon, of Annatam--old Jimmy Paddon who is living in Sydney now worth millions. Do you see that narrow bay in there? Well, that's Uaran; it's a big village full of the most poisonous niggers as ever polished teeth on a man's thighbone. I was partner with Paddon. We had a little fore-and-aft schooner called the Kirribilli which he sailed about the coast while I kept to this brig meeting him now and again at Noumea, Levuka in Fiji, or Tongatubu in the Friendly Islands or any other port agreed upon.
'Well, one day as Jimmy Paddon was sailing along the coast, just about where we are now four miles off Uaran he sprung his mainmast and ran in there to anchor and fish it. He knew the place pretty well and was friendly with the two head chiefs who sometimes visited his trading station at Noumea; so when one of 'em came aboard with a lot of his people they were allowed to have the run of the decks and he came down into the cabin, smoked a pipe with Jimmy, and then went ashore, saying he would send off some food for the crew as a present. Towards four or five o'clock a whaleship was sighted about four miles off the land; and as it was falling calm, Jimmy decided to pull out to her and try to buy a bolt or two of canvas. He took four hands with him leaving the mate and six others on board. He got the canvas and started back for the schooner just after dark, one of the whaleship's boats coming with him with her second mate and five hands, to buy some pigs from the natives. She was lying nice and quiet but was showing no light anywhere and there wasn't a sign of any one on deck. In a moment he thought something was wrong, so they stopped pulling and hailed--no answer. "Pull up, lads," he said, and they ran alongside, and as the poor chap who was pulling bow oar stood up and caught hold of the rail, a tomahawk came down like a flash and cut off his hand, and in a moment the schooner's decks were alive with natives, who began firing at the boat, killing another man before it could be pushed off again; and then the blacks, seeing the whaler's boat coming, began to jump overboard and swim ashore.
'They, of course, meant to wait till Jimmy and his boat's crew were all on deck, and then club them, but one of 'em was in too much of a hurry and begun work too soon, and that spoilt their plan. As soon as the other boat came up they lit a boat lantern, and Jimmy and the rest went on board; and there were the decks just smothered in blood, but no trace of the mate and the rest of the men. But it was easy to know where they had been taken to, for the cannibals' drums were beating, and every now and then the saucy niggers would send a bullet flying out, and then give a yell together. The schooner was gutted of most everything of any value--arms, ammunition, trade goods, and even the sails and standing rigging were cut to pieces. Jimmy wasn't long in hoisting lights for assistance, slipping his cable, and towing out towards the ship, which helped him to get the schooner to Noumea. And that there job cost us nigh on four hundred pounds, let alone the loss of the poor mate and the other men who went into the niggers' gullets.'
Tom was deeply interested in the skipper's story--only one of hundreds of such tragedies as were then of common occurrence throughout the savage Western Pacific, and even at the present day are still enacted among the murderous and cannibalistic natives of the Solomon Group and the German Islands of the Bismarck Archipelago.
For three days the brig ran steadily along the coast of New Caledonia, till D'Entrecasteaux Reefs being cleared, the captain and De Caen held a consultation. The latter was in favour of laying a direct course for New Britain. The former thought that the brig should work through the Solomon Islands, where they would be sure to meet with trading vessels, from which they might obtain valuable information; furthermore, he contended that if any of the survivors of the Marengo (the missing transport) had escaped in boats, they would be almost sure to steer for Noumea by way of the Solomons, where not only was there a likelihood of meeting with trading vessels, but where they could obtain fresh supplies of water and food from numberless islands, many of which being uninhabited, they could land at and refresh without danger. Then again, both he and Mr. Collier pointed out to De Caen that the boats, by working through the smooth waters lying between the two chains of islands which form the vast archipelago of the Solomon Group, would, when they reached San Christoval, the last island of the cluster, have but five hundred miles to traverse to reach the nearest land--the Huon Islands, off the coast of New Caledonia itself--instead of a long and trying voyage of sixteen hundred miles across the open sea, without even sighting a single island, did they endeavour to make a direct course from New Britain to Noumea.
De Caen followed old Sam's reasoning very closely, and could not but be convinced of the soundness of his arguments. The general chart of the Western Pacific was spread out upon the cabin table, and he looked at it thoughtfully.
'It is possible, Captain Hawkins, that the officer in command of the boats--if, alas! there is an officer alive--may have steered for the coast of New Guinea, rounded the Louisiade Archipelago, and kept away for the Australian coast.'
'That's true enough, Mr. de Cann, but if they have done that it's no use our looking for them now and our orders are to search northward--through the Solomons if we like, if not, then along the coast of Noo Britain for the relicks if any are available. At the same time I am under your orders if you like to tell me to steer west for Whitsunday Pass on the Great Barrier Reef and then work up along the coast to the Louisiades.'
'Certainly not, captain! I merely advanced a supposition. I have the most absolute faith in your very excellent judgment and superior knowledge. Let us steer north for San Christoval, and trust that good fortune may attend our search.'
Old Sam's red face beamed with a childish pleasure, and he gurgled something out about 'the intense relevancy of the satisfaction it gave him to be in such complete and personal discord with Mr. de Cann,' and that he 'sincerely trusted they would always remain as such.' Then he strutted away, and bawled out an order to the second mate to tell the cook to kill the pig, as the creature 'discommoded and dirtied the decks with continuous incessity and was always rubbing itself against one of the carronades and suffusing the ship with its intolerability.' (As a matter of fact, he had no ill-feeling against poor Julia, but thought it rather undignified to have the creature poking about the main deck with a naval officer on board.)
These were happy days for Tom. Between himself and the quiet, self-contained young mate there already existed a feeling of friendship, which grew stronger day by day. The advent of De Caen, an educated and travelled man, whose usually refined and dignified manner but concealed a disposition that in reality was brimming over with an almost boyish love of merriment and an ardent spirit of adventure, was another source of pleasure to him; and both of the grown men seemed to vie with each other, as the days went on, in instructing a mind so open and ingenuous, and so quick to receive impressions for good; for whilst Collier gave him lessons in navigation and practical seamanship, De Caen talked to him of the world beyond the Southern Seas, of the history of his own country, and was delighted to find that Tom knew a good deal of his (De Caen's) pet hero, the adventurous Dupleix, and of his struggle with Clive for the supremacy of India in the early days of 'John Company.'
And then in the evenings Collier would tell him tales of his own adventures in the South Seas, tales that made Tom's heart beat quicker as he listened, for the quiet, grave-eyed young officer had faced death and danger very often, from one side of the Pacific to the other.
'The South Sea Islands are a bit different, though, Tom, to what they were fifty, ay, twenty years ago,' he said, with a smile; 'but even Captain Hawkins, who pretends to grumble at the changes that have occurred, admits that us sailor-men have much to be thankful for. The missionaries--English missionaries, I mean--have done a lot for us, quite apart from what they have done for the natives. And yet most trading captains have not a good word for the missionary.'
'Why is that, Mr. Collier?'
'For many reasons, Tom. One is because the advent of the missionary means less profit to the trader, less prestige to him as the one white man on one particular island. The trader wants to sell his grog and his firearms, and he ruins and destroys the natives; the missionary comes to elevate and redeem them. Tom, my boy, you should read what English missionaries have done in the South Seas! It is a better tale than that of the victories won by British troops upon the blood-stained field of battle; for the victories of the missionary have brought peace and happiness instead of tears and sorrow to the vanquished. Look here, Tom.'
He took down a book from the shelf over his bunk.
'Here, look at this. It is the narrative of the first voyage of John Williams to the South Seas--John Williams, who gave up his life for Christ under the clubs of the savage people of Erromanga. Here you will read the story of those first missionaries. Some of them, perhaps, were better fitted for the task than others; but all were eager to teach the gospel of Jesus Christ. And they taught it well. Some of them, like Williams, gave their lives for those whom they had come to help; others lived and worked and died, and no one hears of them, Tom. But though they have no earthly monument to record their good work, God knows it all, Tom; God knows it all.'
One morning at breakfast De Caen was telling Collier some stories about the characters of the convicts in New Caledonia, and of their continual attempts to escape to Australia in small and ill-equipped boats. Once, he said, a party of nine desperate creatures hurriedly made a raft by tying together some timber intended for the flooring of the Governor's house, and with a few bottles of water and a bag of flour to sustain them during a voyage of more than a thousand miles, set out to reach Australia. They actually succeeded in clearing the reefs surrounding Noumea, when the raft came to pieces, and the poor wretches were devoured by sharks, in the presence of the crew of a vessel entering Dumbea Pass.
'Quite recently,' continued the French officer, 'five men, three of whom were seamen, managed, through the negligence of their guards, to escape in a good boat. Their leader, an American by birth, had been sentenced to penal servitude for life, for the murder of the captain of a French ship, of which he was chief officer. He always protested his innocence, and at his trial in Bordeaux said that the steward was the guilty man. Our Governor, who is very just and humane, once told my captain that he believed his assertions; and indeed the poor fellow was innocent; for the Cyclope brought an intimation from France to that effect, and instructions to set him at liberty. This was told to me by the Governor the day after the Cyclope arrived from Sydney.'
Old Sam nearly choked himself with a large mouthful of bread, and then said--
'What might his name be Mr. de Cann?'
'Casalle--Henri Casalle.'
'Casalle!' Tom echoed; 'why, that was the name of the captain of the Bandolier; and the man we saw at Wreck----'
The captain gave him a furious kick beneath the table, upset his own cup of coffee, and jumping up from his seat, uttered a yell at the helmsman at the same time.
'Now then, mutton head, whereareyou steering to? Excuse me Mr. de Cann, but that fellow who is steering is the continual cause of my flamatory objections. I could tell you some queer things about him. He is a native of Rotumah--ever been there, sir?--fine island with remarkable lucidity of climate one of Natur's handmaidens as it were only waiting to be tickled with a hoe to laugh with the utmost profligacy. Tom, as you have finished will you be so good as to go on deck and tell the second mate to hoist out a barrel of pork I want to see the head taken off being American pork I'm dubious about it if there's anything in the world that disturbs my naval and automical principles it's stinking pork.'
De Caen waited until he had finished, then added--
'The Governor was much distressed to think that this unfortunate man may never learn of his pardon, for if he and his companions succeed in reaching Australia, they will most likely never be heard of again. Once they get to any of the gold-fields in New South Wales or Victoria, it will be impossible to trace them.'
Collier nodded assent, and then in his quiet manner remarked that, as one of the five was an innocent man, he hoped they had all reached Australia in safety. Then, seeing that old Sam was looking very uncomfortable, he said nothing further, and the subject was dropped.
Under clear, cloudless skies, and with the brave south-east trade wind blowing steadily all day, and dropping to a faint air at night, the Lady Alicia made steady progress to the northward till within a hundred miles of San Christoval. Then it fell calm, and for two days the brig lay sweltering upon a sea of glass, under a fierce, relentless sun, and rolling heavily to a long sweeping swell from the eastward. On the morning of the third day, the wind came away from the westward, and blew in sharp, short squalls, attended by thick, driving rain, which, rising black and lowering on the sea-rim, changed to a dull grey and then to snowy white, as it came rushing and roaring down upon the ship.
Just before noon the sun came out for a brief space, and Maori Bill, who happened to be aloft, called out that a sail was in sight right ahead, and standing down towards the brig. Mr. Collier at once went aloft, and there, not three miles away, was a large white-painted vessel carrying single-topsails, like the Lady Alicia, and running with squared yards before the wind.
For the moment Mr. Collier could not make out whether she was a barque or a brig, as she was coming 'dead on,' but presently she lifted to a high sea and yawed a bit, and he saw that she was a brig of about 500 tons. In an instant he hailed the captain.
'Please come aloft, sir, at once.'
Old Sam waddled along the deck, and then clambered up to the fore-yard beside his mate.
[image]SAM CLAMBERED UP TO THE FORE-YARD BESIDE HIS MATE.
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SAM CLAMBERED UP TO THE FORE-YARD BESIDE HIS MATE.
'What is she, Mr. Collier?' he began, and then he gave a gasp of rage, mingled with alarm, as his eye lit upon the stranger.
'May I be shot if it isn't Bully Hayes's brig! I've never seen the Leonie but that's her sure enough for I've heard all about the look of her.'
'Yes, that is the Leonie, sir. I knew her when she was in the China trade, before Captain Hayes stole her. There is no other vessel like her in the South Seas. He means to speak us, at any rate--if he intends no further mischief--and he can sail rings round us, so it is no use our trying to get away from him. What will you do, sir?'
'Fight him,' said the little man energetically, 'fight him like I would any other pirate--for he is a pirate and nothing else.' Then he bawled to the second mate to stand by to wear ship, and in another five seconds was on deck, followed by Collier.
The helm was put hard up, the yards squared, and the old brig put nearly before the wind, which was her best sailing point, and which would give those on board another hour to prepare. Old Sam, though really bursting with excitement, gave his orders quietly and calmly, and then turned to Lieutenant de Caen, who was thoroughly at a loss to understand why the brig's course had been so suddenly altered by the appearance of another ship.
'Mr. de Cann least said is soonest done as it were so with your permission I will call the hands aft and if you do not care to participate in my remarks you are free to do so. All hands aft.'
The crew, headed by Maori Bill, trooped along the main deck and stood in a group in front of the poop, from which the skipper spoke.
'My lads, I'm not running away from that ship, which is commanded by Captain Bully Hayes, an out-an-out pirate. I mean to fight him that's all I have to say and I hope you will not disgrace me and this ship which is on foreign service. Bos'un, cast off the housings and clear the guns for action. Mr. Collier you and the steward pass up the small arms. Mr. Todd you and two hands pass up ammunition for the carronades and if I see any man funking his mother won't know him again. Mr. de Cann you may depend upon me to collorate any suggestions you may make you being as it were my superior in such a case as is now protruded. Stations men and don't disgrace me and Mr. de Cann. Tom you can bring up that flash gun of yours and stand by me here; every little helps and it is a poor heart that never rejoices so cheer up my lad. I will never let you come to harm through a refuted pirate. Mr. de Cann, this ship is to all intents and purposes a French ship as it were and I am willing to obey your orders I am confident that we can smash this fellow but you must let me have my own way and propagation of ideas which is to lie low and let him come close to and then let drive at him with the carronades unless he begins pounding at us beforehand with his two big guns which I believe he carries being stolen property like the ship herself. Why, he is the man who sunk a Portuguese gunboat in the East Indies five years ago. Certainly he only fired one shot at her but it did the trick and she sunk and when the American commodore at Hongkong tried to arrest him he sent him a letter and said it was an accident and that if it wasn't an accident it was a joke.'
The French officer, who could scarcely follow old Sam's rapid utterances, but quite understood that the strange vessel meant mischief, was quickly enlightened by Mr. Collier in a few words.
'Captain Hayes is the most notorious man in the Pacific, and his crew have the reputation of being a band of unmitigated ruffians. That very vessel you now see he carried off out of Singapore five years ago, and since then he had been cruising among the Islands, trading, pearl-shelling, and engaging in native wars. A Portuguese gunboat tried to capture him off Macao--he sunk her with one shot. He has been chased all over the Pacific by English and American cruisers, but never yet caught. At the same time, I do not believe all that is said about him and his savage nature, but he certainly is a dangerous man.'
During the few minutes which had elapsed since the stranger was sighted, the utmost activity had prevailed on board the Lady Alicia. Nearly two-thirds of the eighteen men she carried were determined, resolute fellows, who had stood by their captain in many a fight with the savage natives of the Solomon and New Hebrides Group; and they were well able to work the four carronades, though rifles were more to their liking. The small arms on board consisted of fifty Enfield rifles and cutlasses, and then, in addition to these, were the thirty rifles brought on board by Mr. de Caen. These were breech-loaders, which had only been adopted by the French Navy a year or two before. They were a Swiss invention, heavy and awkward to handle, but yet very effective. These were brought up by the lieutenant's orders, and he at once proceeded to load them, aided by Tom. Meanwhile, old Sam had his carronades loaded in readiness, and the decks of the little vessel presented the appearance of those of an old time ten-gun brig going into action.
The strange vessel was now rapidly overhauling the Lady Alicia, and Tom, as he stood beside the French officer on the poop, could not repress his admiration of the beautiful sight she presented as she rose and sank to the swelling seas--with her snowy white canvas glinting and shining against the sun. For some minutes the little group watched her in silence; then Hawkins, noticing how very quickly she was coming up, turned quietly to the mate.
'Hands to the braces. Mr. Collier, let him come up as quick as he likes, I'm ready for him.'
The yards were braced up, and the brig laid to her former course; the stranger at once followed suit, and as she sailed three feet to the one of the Lazy Alice, she was soon within hailing distance. On decks were a number of naked natives, some of whom were standing on the top-gallant fo'c'sle. Aft, on the quarter deck, a big black-bearded man, dressed in pyjamas, was standing beside the helmsman, smoking a cigar.
The strange ship came sweeping on, then suddenly kept away, so as to pass astern of the Lady Alicia.
As she surged past, the big man walked over to the rail, and drawing one hand carelessly through his flowing beard, he nodded to Captain Hawkins, and said with a laugh--
'Good morning, captain. Will you be so good as to back your main-yard and let me come aboard? But you won't hurt me, will you?'
Before old Sam could frame a reply, the strange brig came to the wind swiftly and noiselessly, a whaleboat which hung on the port quarter was lowered, and pulled over towards the Lady Alicia, the big bearded man steering.
'Back the main-yard, Mr. Collier,' said old Sam, quietly. 'Let him come aboard and see how we look.'
CHAPTER VIII
CAPTAIN BULLY HAYES COMES ON BOARD
The boat drew alongside, and the tall bearded man climbed up the rope ladder hung on the side amidships, and then jumped lightly on the deck, where he was met just inside the gangway by Captain Hawkins, who had descended from the poop.
'How do you do, captain?' said the stranger, affably, extending his hand. 'My name is Hayes;' and then, as his bright blue eye took in the surroundings, and he saw the brig's crew standing by the guns, and a group of armed men on the poop deck, he gave a loud hearty laugh, so genuine and spontaneous that old Sam stared at him in astonishment.
'I asked you not to hurt me, and of course you won't. So you, too, think that poor Bully Hayes is a bloodthirsty pirate! Come, shake hands, my red-faced little fighting-cock. I like you all the better for your pluck. There, that's right;' and seizing the skipper's unwilling hand in his own, he shook it with tremendous vigour; 'but please make your men put away those rifles and cutlasses. I'm such a nervous man, and the sight of any one with a gun in his hand makes me both mad and frightened, so that I can't help knocking him down, just to protect myself.'
'What is it you want on board my ship, Captain Hayes?' said old Sam, pointedly.
'My dear sir, do not look at me in that distant manner,' and he clapped his sun-browned hand on the captain's shoulder, 'it pains me. You've rolling topsails, I see. How do you find them answer? Bonnets trouble you? Mine are perfection. You must come on board and see my ship. Come, now, my dear sir,don'tlook so angry. I'm not at all a bad fellow, I can assure you, nothing so black as I am painted.'
'Well, you mustn't blame me,' said old Sam, more graciously, 'you've got the name anyway; but I must say you don't look like----'
'Like a cut-throat, Captain----' He paused.
'Hawkins, if you please.'
'Captain Hawkins, I'm glad to meet you. Now, can you sell me a few bags of rice and some casks of molasses for my native passengers? I've a hundred and twenty blackbirds on board, bound for Samoa, and I'm afraid I'll run short of rice.'
'I can do that,' said Hawkins, delighted to find that his visitor had no evil intentions.
'Thank you very much.' Then, going to the side, he hailed his boat's crew and told them to pass up a bag of dollars; and when old Sam asked him below to have a glass of wine, he again laughed in his boyish and apparently unaffected manner. 'Certainly, captain, with pleasure. You have passengers, I see,' he added, indicating Mr. de Caen and Tom, but politely ignoring the pile of rifles lying on top of the skylight.
'Yes,' said the skipper, 'Mr. de Cann, of the French Navy lieutenant of the Cyclope and Mr. Tom Wallis--Captain Hayes.'
The moment the visitor heard the words 'French Navy,' a swift gleam of light passed over his handsome face; but he bowed courteously to the officer, and together the three men went below and seated themselves at the table, whilst the steward placed refreshments before them. In less than ten minutes, so engaging was Hayes's outspoken yet polite manner, that both Hawkins and De Caen were laughing and talking with him as if they had known him for months.
'Where are you bound to, sir?' asked Captain Hawkins, again filling his visitor's glass; 'you have a lot of natives on board. Where are they from?'
'I am bound to Samoa. The natives are from various islands to the northward. I recruited them for the German planters in Samoa. They are a very savage lot, and'--here he smiled--'although I hate to have armed men about a ship's deck, we have to keep our weather eye lifting, or we might lose the ship some day. Now, tell me,' he added pleasantly, 'where are you bound to, Captain Hawkins?'
'To the Solomons and Noo Britain, captain;' and then, with an air of pride which he tried hard to conceal, 'We're under charter to the Governor of Noo Caledonia to make a search for relicks human or otherwise of a French transport loaded with exigencies for the garrison and convicts at Noumea.'
'Ah,' said Hayes, quickly, 'so you're looking for the Marengo?'
De Caen and Hawkins sprang to their feet. 'Yes. Do you know anything about her?'
'Yes, I do,' he answered curtly, with a harsh inflexion in his hitherto modulated tones. 'I can tell you all about her, and where to find the ship's company--on a certain condition.'
'What is it?' said De Caen, with a contemptuous shrug of his shoulder; 'is it a question of money?'
An angry flash came from Hayes's blue eyes. 'Be careful how you speak, or you'll get no information from me. I don't want money for putting you on the right course to rescue your countrymen--though I have little cause to love them--your admiral at Tahiti sent a rotten old gunboat to the Paumotus to chase and harry me from one island to another, when I was a legitimate trader. I could have captured that gunboat on two separate occasions, had I desired it, and made a bonfire of her for her confounded meddling. And now that I have said so much, I might as well tell you both, that if I had wanted to do this old hooker of a brig any harm, and had acted up to the reputation I have of being a pirate, I could have knocked you to pieces in half an hour, although you do carry four carronades--I've something better than those.' Then he added, with a hard laugh, 'Perhaps you would like me to show you.'
There was a brief silence, then De Caen said smoothly--
'I am sorry for my remark, Captain Hayes. I did not wish to offend you. But surely no seaman would try to take advantage of shipwrecked people?'
'I do not wish to dothemany harm, but I want to do myself a considerable lot of good; and it rests with you entirely whether I tell you where to find them, or let you go and look for them--and a pretty search you will have, I can assure you.'
De Caen thought a moment. 'Anything that it is in my power to do I will do; but surely you will tell me this first, are the survivors in danger?'
Hayes laughed. 'Ah, that's a clever question, and I should not answer it until you have heard my condition, and have given me your answer. But I shall. They are not in danger, and, furthermore, not a single life was lost when the ship was wrecked. This,' he added slowly, and watching old Sam's and De Caen's faces, 'was told me by Commander Goigoux himself when he boarded my vessel a few weeks ago.'
De Caen's face flushed with pleasure. 'I am pleased indeed. Now, sir, tell me what it is you wish me to do.'
'Steady there, if you please, Mr. de Cann,' interrupted Hawkins, 'before you go making any promises. Now look here Captain Hayes without wishing to cast inflections on your mere verbose statement I would like you to show us some proof that you are not playing us a trick, and that you did see Captain Gee--go. I've heard that you are very fond of a joke, and----'
'That is all right, my little bantam. I----'
'Bantam!--you overgrown turkey-cock!' began the old man furiously, when the French officer placed his hand on his arm, and then looked appealingly at Hayes, who was regarding Hawkins with an amused smile.
'For goodness' sake, Captain Hawkins, do not let us quarrel. Captain Hayes, I am sure, would not act so heartlessly.'
'No, indeed I would not. And there, Captain Hawkins, I meant nothing offensive to you. You're a white man to your backbone. I've heard all about you and this fine vessel of yours years ago, from Captain Bannister, who sailed with you as mate when you were in the blackbirding trade--as I am now.'
The fat little man was mollified in an instant. 'Joe Bannister is a good friend of mine but I was never a "blackbirder"--I got my natives honest square and fair--and if you withdraw "bantam" I regret "turkey" both of which are good birds alive or dead;' and he laughed at his own wit as he held out his hand.
Hayes smiled good-naturedly as he grasped it, and then resumed--
'Now the captain, officers, and crew of the transport would be aboard my ship this moment but for three things. In the first place, I had on board two hundred and twenty natives, which are worth nearly two thousand pounds to me delivered in Samoa; and Captain Goigoux would not guarantee me more than fifteen thousand francs for taking him and his men to Noumea; therefore, as a business matter, I could not accept his offer. In the second place, the Governor of New Caledonia might seize me and my ship for some little differences I had with the admiral at Tahiti. To be perfectly plain, I would have brought the shipwrecked people away, but did not want to risk losing both my ship and my liberty for six hundred pounds. But I told Captain Goigoux that I would try to send him assistance; and if you will give me your promise that you will endeavour to get the Governor of New Caledonia to have the orders for my arrest issued by the Governor of Tahiti cancelled, I will tell you where you can find Captain Goigoux and his ship's company. Have I made myself clear to you? I told him then what I tell you now.'
'I will certainly do all in my power for you with the Governor,' said De Caen; 'for such a service as you propose to render me he will be grateful.'
'I hope so,' said Hayes, quietly. 'I have been hunted from one end of the Pacific to the other for five years. I bought land in the Gambier Group, settled down, and would be a rich man by now if the Governor of Tahiti had not driven me out of the Paumotus, and then outlawed me for acts I was driven to commit through the interference of the greedy priests and the persecution of his deputy-governor. Now, about the Marengo. She went ashore in the straits between New Britain and New Ireland, and broke up very quickly. All the boats but two were smashed in the surf, but the crew all got to shore safely, and a number of stores were saved. From the spot where the ship was lost they made their way to Mioko Harbour, in the Duke of York Island, where you will find them. Half of them are down with fever at one time or another, but otherwise they are safe. They built a cutter from the wreck to carry them to Noumea, but she was accidentally burnt, and when I left they were beginning another; but sickness hinders the work, and the natives have twice attacked them.'
He stopped, and then with a twinkle in his eye, as he looked at old Sam, took a letter from his pyjama jacket and went on.
'And here is a letter addressed to the commander of any French ship of war, the naval officer in charge at Noumea, or the French Consul at Sydney or Melbourne. It was written by Captain Goigoux. No doubt you will open it, Mr. de Caen.'
De Caen took the letter from his hand with an eager exclamation, and at once read it.
'I thank you very much, Captain Hayes. You have made our task easy for us. And the Governor will not forget that Captain Goigoux here writes that you gave him many very necessary articles to aid him in building and fitting out the second vessel he is constructing, and would not accept any payment. For myself I thank you very sincerely.'
'And so do I,' said old Sam; 'and believing in the old axleiom that one good turn deserves another I won't charge you for the rice and molasses no one ever said I don't know how to recipercate in the same way a good or bad action, under any circumstances so put up those dollars captain and your good health.'
They drank together, and then Hayes rose to leave, with the remark that he must not delay, as two of his officers and a dozen of his men were suffering from fever, and that with so many dangerous natives on board he had to exercise great care, only letting fifty on deck at a time, and these were carefully watched.
'I have never been caught napping yet,' he added, 'but I'll be honestly glad when I'm rid of my cargo this time; for they are all recruited from the north end of New Ireland, and are as savage a lot of beggars as ever ate roast man. If they came from various islands they would be safe enough, I could play one lot against the other, if any party of them plotted to take the ship; but all coming from one place, I have had an anxious time, with so many of my men sick.'
'Have you plenty of arms, Captain Hayes?' said the master of the Lady Alicia. 'I can spare you ten or a dozen rifles.'
'Thank you, I have plenty; more than we could use--if we have to use them. My brig, as you may have seen, is flush-decked, which is another disadvantage; but I have a white line painted across the after part, and another just above the fore hatch. Whenever one of them steps over either of these lines, he gets a crack on the head from a belaying pin, to make him remember. So far, we have had no serious trouble. I treat them kindly, and none of my officers or men hit a man unless he is obliged to do so for our common safety.'
Old Sam nodded. 'Ay, ay, once let 'em think you're frightened it's a case of bloodshed and murder. But you'll have to be careful, captain.'
Just as they were leaving the cabin, the mate entered.
'The rice and two casks of molasses are in Captain Hayes's boat, sir; but I don't think it safe to lower the other barrels--she won't stand it in such a lumpy sea. She's too deep as she is.'
The two captains went on deck and looked over the side.
'Drop our own whaleboat into the water, Mr. Collier,' said Hawkins, 'and put the two casks into her. Then take a couple of hands with you and get back as quick as you can.'
Hayes thanked him for his good nature. 'I'm sorry to cause you so much trouble. I would have brought another boat as well, but could not spare the hands. Now, won't you come aboard yourself, and have a look at my cargo?'
Old Sam shook his head, and made his usual remark, about not being able to leave his ship when on Government service.
'Can't I go with Mr. Collier, sir?' put in Tom, quickly; 'I'd give anything to go.'
'Would you, my cockerel? Well, I don't know. What do you think, Captain Hayes?'
Hayes laughed. 'Yes, let him come, captain. He'll see what a "blackbirder" looks like. Come with me in my boat.'
Tom was delighted, and presently slid down the boat falls and waited.
Then Hayes, after giving Hawkins some important particulars about the entrance to Mioko Harbour, bade him and De Caen farewell, with wishes for a speedy voyage, got over the side into his own boat, which shoved off, and followed that of the mate.
'You'll get wet before you get alongside, Captain Hayes!' cried Hawkins, pointing to a rain-squall which was approaching.
The big captain made some jesting reply, and then Hawkins went below to discuss the important news they had learnt with the French officer, leaving Mr. Todd to attend to the ship.
CHAPTER IX
THE FIGHT ON BOARD THE LEONIE
Mr. Collier's boat, being much lighter than that belonging to the Leonie, and manned by Maori Bill and three stalwart natives, soon left the latter some distance astern. The two brigs had now drifted about a mile and a half apart, and presently Hayes, looking at the coming squall, said--
'We'll have to bring to for a while until----' The rest of his words were lost in the hum of the wind and the tropical rain, which descended upon the boat with a noise like the simultaneous falling of thousands of great forest trees; and had not Tom seized a bucket used as a baler, and set vigorously to work, the boat would have filled. For ten minutes Hayes kept her head to wind, then the rain ceased as if by magic, and the sun shone out as brightly as ever.
'It's all over, my lad,' said Hayes, as he swung the boat round again, 'and--oh, the natives have broken loose. Pull, boys, pull for your lives!'
As he spoke, there came the sound of rifle shots from the Leonie, followed by the roar of a heavy gun, answered by yells and savage cries; and Tom saw that the brig was lying all aback, and her after part was crowded with struggling figures.
'Pull, boys, pull!' shouted the captain, as a second gun was fired; 'the mate is firing into them with the two after guns. Ah, bravo!' he added, as a third heavy report came from the Lady Alicia; 'the brig is coming to assist us. Bravo, little man, bravo!'
Tom, who at the first alarm had sprung to double-bank the after oar, took a hurried glance astern, and saw that his own ship was indeed running down with squared yards towards the Leonie. Old Sam had evidently fired one of his carronades, to let Hayes know he was coming.
For the next five minutes no word was spoken, as the dark-skinned seamen panted and bent to their oars, and Hayes, his face now set hard and cruel-looking, kept his eyes on his ship, from which came the continuous crack of small arms.
As the boat swept on, he stooped down, and from the stern locker took out half a dozen broad-bladed tomahawks and six short Snider carbines with belts, and filled cartridge pouches and threw them at his feet. The four native seamen showed their white teeth and grinned savagely.
In another two or three hundred yards they overtook Mr. Collier's boat, which was lying to, waiting for the Lady Alicia.
'I wish I could help you, sir,' shouted the mate quickly, as Hayes passed, 'but we are unarmed. Tom, jump overboard, and I'll pick you up.'
But Tom either could not or would not hear, as he tugged away at his oar, although Mr. Collier continued to shout and gesticulate.
"Stay where you are,' said Hayes; 'you need not come on deck. Now, look out, boys. I'll lay you alongside at the fore-chains. Avast pulling there for a bit, and take these.'
In a few moments each man had buckled on his cartridge pouch, thrust a tomahawk through his belt, loaded his carbine, and placed it in readiness beside him. Then once more they seized their oars, and as they dashed alongside, and the bow oarsman grasped the fore-chains, a chorus of savage yells sounded above, as the body of a white sailor was thrown over the side, to fall into the boat.
'Up you come!' roared Hayes to his boat's crew as, tomahawk in hand, he sprang up the chains and disappeared over the bulwarks, followed by the men, leaving Tom alone in the boat, gazing with horror-struck eyes at the ensanguined form lying across the midship thwart on which it had fallen. The sight was too much for him, though his courage quickly returned.
Seizing the painter, he hurriedly made it fast, then ran aft, picked up the remaining carbine, and with his heart thumping against his ribs clambered up after the others, and jumped down on deck, landing on the top of some dead natives lying between the bulwarks and the for'ard deckhouse.
For a moment or two he was dazed, not only at the sight of the awful carnage the decks presented, but with the din, and smoke, and yells, and curses that filled the air. The fore deck was covered with dead and dying savages, and the main filled with a swaying, surging mass of naked figures, half of whom were pressing towards the after deckhouse, to which the survivors of the crew had been driven, and the others surrounding the giant figure of Hayes and his boat's crew, who were hacking and hewing their way through them with their hatchets; for, after the first few shots, they had been unable to use their carbines again.
Hardly knowing what he was doing, Tom raised his Snider to his shoulder, and sent his first bullet into the packed mass before him. Then quickly jerking out the empty case, he slipped in another cartridge and fired again.
'That's good!' shouted a voice above him; 'jump up here, young feller, quick!'
Loosely coiled on top of the deckhouse was a huge coir hawser, and in the centre of it was the man who had called Tom. He was evidently wounded, for he was in a sitting position. Putting one foot through a port in the deckhouse, Tom clambered up, and took his place beside him.
'Quick! Lie down, and fire into 'em there on the starboard side,' said the wounded man; 'my arm is nearly broken, and I'm no good. Ah! that's it!' he cried, as Tom began firing steadily into a crowd of savages on the starboard side, who were so tightly jammed together that every shot did deadly work. 'Hurrah! the skipper's through into the house, and one man with him. Look out, young feller, they've seen us. I oughtn't to have brought you up here. Jump down again, and over the side, and swim round to the stern. Don't mind me, youngster, I'm done for. Even if I was all right, I can't swim.'
'I'll help you,' panted Tom, putting another cartridge into the breach, 'and the boat is here under the chains.'
In an instant they were on their feet, jumped down, and got over the side into the boat just in time, for half a dozen enemies made a savage rush at them, and one, springing up on the rail, hurled a club at Tom. It struck the barrel of his Snider, and sent it flying out of his hand into the sea.
The sailor, although his right arm was almost useless, and he had received a slashing cut across his ribs, quickly severed the painter with his sheath-knife, and then, pushing the boat off, he put an oar out, and, with Tom's aid, worked the boat round to the stern of the brig.
'The mate and some other sick men are in the cabin; the ports are open, and we can get in, if you heave the painter through, and have it made fast.'
Breathless and excited as he was, Tom, without answering, did as he was told, and as soon as the boat was under the square stern of the brig, he called out--
'Stand by there, and catch this line.'
A man's face appeared at the port, and, as Tom hove the line, he caught it, and then called out--
'All fast.'
Leaving the wounded sailor--who protested that he was quite comfortable--in the boat, Tom, with the aid of the painter, got through the port and into the main cabin, just as Hayes rushed down the companion.
'Where is the steward, Mr. Kelly?' he said to the man who had spoken to Tom, and who was lying on cushions on the transoms.
'Dead, sir;' and Kelly pointed to a prone figure near the cabin table. 'He was one of the first to be cut down when the niggers rushed the after guard. I did what I could for him, but he did not last long.'
Hayes bent down and looked into the face of the dead man.
'Poor Manuel! poor Manuel!' he muttered, and drawing off the tablecloth he spread it over the body. Then, as he turned to speak to his chief officer again, he caught sight of Tom. 'Ah, my boy, I'm glad you are safe. Mr. Kelly, we have beaten the natives back for the present, but they have possession for'ard and below in the 'tween decks. But there are two boats coming from that brig, and I hope we can avoid further bloodshed.'
The mate, a tall, thin American, who was hardly able to stand through weakness, was about to make some reply, when the boats were reported alongside, and then a second later a hoarse cry rang out--
'Fire! The ship is on fire, sir!'
Hayes leapt up the companion way, followed by Tom, and saw, as he gained the deck, that smoke was issuing from the fore part of the main hatch, which was open. And at the same moment, and as the men from the Lady Alicia, headed by old Sam and Collier, sprang on deck, the natives streamed up from below from both fore and main hatchways, and again attempted to get possession of the deck. So sudden was their onslaught that most of the white men, although they shot five or six of the foremost, were driven back aft to the deckhouse, leaving Mr. Collier, Maori Bill, and Tom cut off and surrounded by a score or so of blood-maddened savages, all armed with clubs and tomahawks. Old Sam, a gigantic American negro belonging to the Leonie, and half a dozen of Hawkins's men, made a dash to their aid, and slashed their way through to them with their cutlasses--for they were unable to use their rifles. Tom and Mr. Collier were down, and not knowing whether they were alive or dead, their rescuers picked them up and then fought their way aft again. Then Hayes, with rage and despair in his heart, as he saw the smoke increase in volume, called out to Hawkins to make a stand with his men on each side of and in front of the deckhouse.
'Keep them at bay for another five minutes. I shall show them no mercy now!'
Utterly undaunted by the steady and deadly fire which had been poured into them by the crew of the Lady Alicia and the crew of the Leonie, the natives made the most determined efforts to overwhelm them by sheer force of weight alone. Then Hayes's voice was heard--
'Stand back there!--this will settle the business.'
He and some of the Leonie's crew had loaded the two guns with heavy charges of nuts and bolts, nails, and whatever other bits of iron which could be found in the deckhouse.
The guns were quickly run forward, until their muzzles were almost touching the naked bodies of the savages, and then fired by Hayes and the big negro.
For a moment or two after the bursting roar of their discharge there was silence; and even Hayes, maddened and desperate as he was, could not help shuddering when he saw the awful sight the main deck presented.
Driving all who were left alive of the now cowed and terrified natives down into the fore peak, Hayes and Hawkins turned their attention to the fire, leaving their own wounded to be attended to by Mr. Todd and Lieutenant de Caen, both of whom now appeared with a fresh party of men from the Lady Alicia to assist.
The fire was fortunately confined to the after part of the 'tween decks, and the hands from the Lady Alicia turned to with such hearty good-will that two hoses were soon at work; and a cheer went up when, after ten minutes' vigorous pumping, the smoke rapidly decreased, and a party were able to descend and completely extinguish it.
Then old Sam and Hayes, blackened with smoke and all but exhausted, went aft to the deckhouse. Todd met them with a grave face.
'Mr. Collier is dying, Captain Hawkins, and wishes to see you; and that poor lad is pretty badly hurt too.'
Sitting in the centre of the house, and supported by De Caen, poor Collier was breathing his last, his dark features fast paling with the coming dissolution of soul from body.
Above, in one of the berths, lay Tom, with closed eyes and bandaged head. In all the remaining bunks--six in all--there was either a sick or a wounded man. Tom had received a heavy blow on his forehead, and another on his ribs from a club; the mate had been cut down with a tomahawk.
As Hayes and the captain of the Lady Alicia entered, and Tom heard old Sam's voice, he opened his eyes, and vainly tried to sit up.
'My poor boy, my poor boy!' said the old seaman, stepping over to him, and taking his hand, 'are you badly hurt?'
'Not much, sir; but I got a tremendous crack on the side, that pains terribly,' said Tom in a faint voice. 'Oh, how is poor Mr. Collier, sir?'
Hawkins shook his head sadly. 'Going fast my lad, going fast!' he said, as he turned away from Tom to kneel beside the young mate, who was feebly asking for him.
Tom saw the skipper's old white head bend close to Collier's face, and the two men speaking to each other.
Then a brief pause, and then Collier called out distinctly--
'Tom!'
'Yes, Collier,' replied Tom.
'Good-bye, Tom, my dear lad. I cannot see your face; good-bye.'
He made a faint motion of farewell with his hand, leant his head against old Sam's shoulder, and Tom covered his face, and sobbed under his breath. When he looked again, De Caen and the captain were gone, and the still figure of his friend was lying on the deck with his face covered with old Sam's blue-and-white silk handkerchief. Seven of the Leonie's crew of thirty had been killed, and as many more wounded; and as soon as possible the bodies of the former were brought on the quarter deck and made ready for burial, together with that of the first mate of the Lady Alicia.
For some little time, as the two brigs sailed along within a few cable lengths of each other, Hayes and the master of the Lady Alicia paced the quarter deck and talked of the fight. The old man was deeply distressed at the death of Collier, and Hayes, worried as he was with his own troubles, was touched at the spectacle of his grief.
'I am sorry, for your sake, that we ever sighted each other, Captain Hawkins,' he said; 'more than that I cannot say. I do not want to speak of my own losses; but I do want you to believe me--I am sorry, very sorry.'
Old Sam drew his hand across his eyes. 'It cannot be helped,' he answered huskily, 'and I only did for you what was my duty as a man, and what I believe you would have done for me if I stood in the same danger; but I would rather have lost my ship and all I have in the world than that poor young fellow. A better seaman never trod a deck, and a better, cleaner livin' man never drew breath, an' he's gone with a clean sheet too.'
Hayes nodded, and smoked on in silence for another half a dozen turns, then said--
'About that poor boy, Captain Hawkins. His back is badly hurt, and if you take him away with you, the chances are that he will die of fever when you get to New Britain. This is the rainy season, and that some of your ship's company will be laid up with fever is a dead certainty. He will never recover from even a slight attack.'
Old Sam groaned. 'Poor lad! what can I do? Believe me, sir, I'd as lief die myself as see him go. It would just about finish me if I had to write to his father and----'
'Leave him with me,' said Hayes, quickly. 'I pledge you my honour as a man to take good care of him. With this westerly weather we shall make a quick run to Samoa. If he is not better by the time we get to Apia, there are two good doctors there. And from Samoa he will soon get a chance to return to Australia. I will pay his passage. If you take him with you, you are risking his chances of recovery, strong as is his constitution. Mr. de Caen,' turning to the Frenchman, who had joined them, 'do you not think so?'
De Caen did think so, and so it was decided that Tom should remain on board the Leonie, and old Sam and De Caen went to bid him farewell.
'Tom my hearty,' said the skipper, after he had explained to the lad the reasons for his decision, 'you have to get well without any prevarication and go home to your father and brother and tell them that old Sam Hawkins isn't a bad old shellback with all his delimits and sincrasses as it were and that he knows his duty and proper evolutions, and you'll have Maori Bill with you to remind you of me and the old Lady A--for Mr. de Cann is a gentleman and is going to do mate's duty in place of poor Mr. Collier and I've given Captain Hayes the loan of Maori Bill and I want you Tom to never disremember that if you never see old Sam Hawkins again, that his last words were always do the straight thing and keep clear of drinkin' and swearin' and dirty conduct and do your duty and give my honoured requests to your father and eat all you can, the more vittels you stow away under the bunt when you have broken bones the more they get settled up as it were and inform their natural functions on the germinus through which the pores circulate. Good-bye my boy, and God bless you and never say die under any exemplifications no matter where or how rigidous.' And the kind-hearted old sailor wrung Tom's hand so warmly that even had not the lad's overwrought feelings at parting with him brought the tears to his eyes, the energy of the farewell would have done so. Then De Caen came and bade him good-bye in his effusive French fashion, much to Tom's discomfiture--for what lad with British blood in his veins likes being kissed by a man?--and promised to write to him from Noumea. Late in the afternoon both brigs hove to. Mr. Collier's body was placed in one of the boats from the Lady Alicia, and Hayes once again bade Hawkins and De Caen good-bye.
Maori Bill, whose own chest, with Tom's effects, had been sent on board the Leonie, shook hands with his captain and Mr. de Caen in silence, and then quietly walking through the men assembled on the main deck, descended to the boat in which the body of the mate was laid, lifted the rug which covered it, and pressed his face to the dead man's hand, and uttered a shorttagi, or cry of mourning. Then returning to the deck, he stood awaiting the orders of his new captain.
As the two boats pulled quickly away towards the Lady Alicia, Hayes waved his hand to De Caen and Hawkins, and then beckoned to Maori Bill.
'Bill, come here. I want you to do the second mate's duty. He will take Mr. Kelly's place. I know that you are a good man, and will stand no nonsense. Stand by me, and I will stand by you. Call the hands aft.'
The crew trooped aft silently, and Hayes said, curtly--
'Men, this man here is the second mate now, instead of Mr. Harvey, who will take Mr. Kelly's place until Mr. Kelly is able for duty again. Remember that he is an officer now, and "Mr. Chester."'
Then, turning to a coloured man who was now doing duty as steward, 'Serve out some grog.'
Grog was served out liberally to the hands as they stood, and then Hayes brought the brig up a couple of points, so as to increase her speed. The breeze had now freshened, and for an hour or so the two vessels kept the same course.
As the sun began to dip into the western sea-rim, Hayes hove-to and hoisted the American colours half-mast. The Lady Alicia also brought to, and half-masted both British and French colours.
Standing in the waist with bared heads, Hayes and most of the crew waited till the bodies of the seven murdered men were brought from aft, and laid side by side on the deck. Then, as he said in low but distinct tones the words, 'We therefore commit these bodies to the deep, to be turned into corruption,' the canvas-shrouded forms were launched overboard in succession as quickly as possible.
Scarcely had the last body plunged towards its resting-place two thousand fathoms deep, when Hayes called out in a harsh voice--
'Turn to again, Mr. Harvey. East by south is the course. Steward, serve out some more grog to the men. Mr. Harvey, lower the colours, and then run them up again and dip to the Lady Alicia.'
He strode aft again, and Tom, lying and listening in his bunk in the deckhouse, heard him suddenly burst out into an awful torrent of blasphemy, cursing his ill-luck: his officers, who 'could let a lot of naked niggers take charge of the ship, and kill seven men who were as good and better men than any one of them,' and the crew themselves for being such a lazy, useless lot of loafers and dead-beats, who deserved to have their throats cut. And, he added savagely, he would show them what he thought of such a lot of crawling, useless 'soldiers,' who were not fit to be left in charge of a canal boat tied up to a horse's tail.
He ceased as suddenly as he began, and then coming to the door of the deckhouse, peered in and spoke to the fever-stricken and wounded men in such suave and kindly tones, that Tom could scarcely believe the evidence of his own senses.
'And how are you, my boy?' he said, coming over to him, and placing his hand on his knees with almost fatherly kindness. 'Do you think you can bear moving? I want to have you down in the cabin, where you will be more comfortable than in this house. You can lie on one of the transom lockers, where you will get plenty of air through the stern ports. The mate will be near you, and you and he will have to make a race to see who gets on his pins first.'
Tom smiled. 'Just as you please, sir; but I don't want to give too much trouble.'
Hayes nodded. 'That's all right. You're to be the leading invalid on board the Leonie, and all hands and the cook are to stand by and wait on you.' Stepping outside, he called out--
'Send a couple of hands here, Mr. Harvey, to carry Mr. Wallis below; and tell Charlie to come here.'
'Charlie' was the sailor with the injured arm, who, as soon as Tom was lifted out of his bunk, appeared with his arm in a sling, contentedly smoking a pipe.
'How are you, Charlie?' said Hayes.
'Right as rain, sir. I guess you've made a good job of it, sir,' indicating his arm. 'Hallo, young feller, how are you? Here, shake;' and he put out his left hand to Tom; 'my right arm is parcelled up like a half dollar roll of preserved Tahiti bananas. Young feller, I reckon thet you hev the makin's of a general in you. If it hadn't been for him, captain, I wouldn't be here now. He's grit to the backbone.'
Tom was lifted up carefully by two of the crew, and carried below to a comfortable, amply cushioned lounge on the transoms, where he was greeted by the sick mate, whose legs were so enormously swollen from the effects of fever and quinine that he was unable to stand. Otherwise he was perfectly sound, and in full possession of a truly remarkable fund of vituperative expressions, some of which, when he heard Tom let an expression of pain escape him, he hurled at the two men who brought him down. Neither of them, he asserted with many unnecessary oaths, had the strength to lift a sitting hen off her nest, nor the will to pull their mothers out of a fire; also that as soon as he 'got around' again he would haze their worthless lives out of their useless carcases for their clumsiness, and derive unalloyed pleasure from seeing them go over the side feet first with a round shot at their heels.
The men, both of whom were Chilenos, grinned and made no reply. They were used to him, for, ruffian and brute as he was to them occasionally, they yet had a liking for him, born out of their constant association with him in the face of danger and death. And Tom, though the man's language and merciless severity shocked and horrified him, later on learned to respect the many good traits in his character, chief of which were his unswerving devotion and loyalty to Hayes, his iron resolution and dauntless courage, and his restless, untiring energy and watchfulness in all that concerned his duty and care of the ship. Then, too, he had a sense of humour, grim enough, perhaps inborn, perhaps unconsciously acquired from Hayes, who, in his bursts of temper, would kick an offending seaman all round the deck, down the companion-way, and bawl out 'Arnica!' to the steward simultaneously.
Unable to sleep from the pain he suffered, Tom was rather glad than otherwise that the mate, from the same cause, was rather restless, and disposed to be very communicative. The night was brilliantly clear and bright from the light of myriad stars; and from the widely opened stern ports he and Tom, who were lying near each other, watched the bubble and boil of the phosphorescent water in the brig's wake as it went hissing astern. Mr. Kelly, in expectation of one of his frequent attacks of ague, was heavily wrapped up in blankets and rugs, so that only his face was visible.
'We have the breeze set steady now, I believe,' he said, 'and ought to sight Vanikoro in a couple of days. Were you a passenger on that brig?'
Tom gave him the history of his adventures, to which the American listened with great interest, and in return he gave Tom an account of the origin of the attempt to capture the Leonie by the natives.
When Hayes left to board the Lady Alicia the brig was in charge of the second mate, who had with him the carpenter and boatswain, the latter being stationed for'ard to watch the natives--about forty--who were on deck at the time. The chief mate himself, the third officer, and two boys who were suffering severely from fever, were lying down in the main cabin, and in the after deckhouse were two or three other sick men, and two more were lying on mats under the topgallant fo'c'sle, being attended to by Manuel, the half-caste Portuguese steward. On the topgallant fo'c'sle were two white seamen armed with rifles and cutlasses; another stood guard over the main hatchway, keeping watch upon the remaining hundred and eighty savages in their quarters in the 'tween decks, and two other men armed with cutlasses only were stationed one on each side of the deckhouse aft. Between the deckhouse and the bulwarks were two brass guns (heavily charged with slugs and bullets), but these had their housings on, on account of the rain-squalls, and were not instantly available at the moment they were wanted. The rest of the crew, who were not armed, but whose rifles and cutlasses were handy for use in the for'ard deckhouse, or in their own bunks, were dispersed about the decks, engaged in various work, utterly unsuspicious of any danger.
Suddenly, and in the midst of a heavy, drenching rain-squall, the forty natives on deck sprang upon the crew, killed the two sentries up for'ard and the one at the main hatch, and were instantly joined by many others from below, the poor seaman on guard there being cut down as he was attempting to unhook the ladder and drop it below. A third party, who had cut a hole through the forward bulkhead, made their way on deck through the fore-scuttle, and armed with tomahawks and clubs united with their fellows, and made a determined rush aft, driving before them most of the unarmed seamen. Fortunately, the men who were on sentry in the alley-ways beside the house made good use of their Sniders, and so gave their comrades time to obtain arms from both the deckhouse and main cabin. Then it was that the second mate succeeded in firing the two guns. The discharge from the first cut a lane through the swarming savages on the port side; the second, through being badly pointed in the mad confusion, did but little damage.
'Then,' added the mate,' you fellows came along; an' I guess I felt pleased. I couldn't get up to take part in the proceedin's myself--had to stay down here and load rifles and pass 'em up on deck. Anyway it's been a mighty bad business all round.... Seven of our men gone, one of yours, and ninety valooable----'
'Don't,' said Tom shudderingly, covering his face with his hands; 'don't say any more--it was too horrible.'
The American desisted at once, when he saw how even the memory of the dreadful scenes affected the lad's mind.