The Life of a Celebrated Buccaneer

by Richard Clynton

  CHAPTER XL.

  Just as people had conjectured; there was a mutiny on board the oldship, and amongst the Starboard Watch which old Dogvane had allowed toget a little out of hand.

  Even the conspirators of the cook's caboose were torn asunder, and thehand of the cook wished to grapple round the throat of the carpenter.The cook abused poor Chips right merrily, and called him every nameunder the sun, and would allow him no virtue, and very littleintelligence. Pepper, with Billy Cheeks the burly butcher, stuck totheir captain with an affection that was pleasant to see, and therecould not be a doubt that if all went well with the captain, these twowould be amply rewarded for their fidelity. But the cabal of the cook'scaboose was completely broken up.

  The carpenter now behaved in a manner that did him very great credit,and surprised not a few. He turned his back upon the cook and thebutcher, and this so displeased them that they never after had a goodword to say for him.

  It is most fortunate that this mutiny, unlike most other mutinies, wasunattended with any bloodshed or loss of life, and of course, this beingthe case, it lost very much of its interest. Neither was the old Ship ofState scuttled and then run on shore, robbed, plundered, and abandoned.Nor did the crew fall upon each other in the division of the plunder,cutting each other's throats and otherwise conducting themselves as isusual on such occasions, though it must be said that the Ojabberawaysexcited fear in many a breast.

  How long the idea of freeing this people had been a quiet occupant ofold Dogvane's breast, smouldering there as such things generally do, itis impossible to say. He was sphinxlike and could not be read. Nor wasit at all easy to tell which way he would go, or what he would do; forhe at all times made what is said to be the true and proper use oflanguage, namely to disguise his thoughts. He also found it a mostuseful means of either screening an advance into an unknown, andunfriendly country, and also to cover his retreat when beaten. Theupshot of the mutiny in the Starboard Watch was, that one fine morningour old Buccaneer woke up to find that Dogvane, his trusted captain, inwhom he had placed so much confidence, had gone over bag and baggage tothe Ojabberaways, and that he had taken with him Pepper the cook, andBilly Cheeks the burly butcher.

  The captain had apparently come to a hurried conclusion, and had risenin the dead of night, and having hastily stowed away his sea chest, andcalled to his side his beloved son, the small band deserted their oldcomrades, and turned their backs upon them for ever.

  When all these things became noised abroad, very great was theconsternation, and it set many tongues wagging, and all kinds of thingswere said. The carpenter was very much applauded even by those who atone time had plentifully abused him; but in this world of ours nothinglasts long; the sinner of to-day is the saint of to-morrow, and the onlything needful is to wait. Chips, the carpenter, was now thought fitcompany for the noblest in the land; no doubt, all this was mostgratifying, and if it had not been for the constant prods, that the cookkept on giving him with his flesh fork, the prongs of which were dippedin gall; and the occasional sarcasms hurled at him by Billy Cheeks, nodoubt Chips would have been a happy man.

  As is always the case on such occasions, vague rumours got about, someof which turned out in the end to be true. It was said, upon what wassupposed to be very good authority, that Dogvane was to be crowned kingof the Ojabberaways, and all, both friends and enemies, wished him joy.

  There are those who go about seeking kingdoms; carpet-bag kings in fact,but Dogvane was not one of these kind of pedlars, though if a kingdomwas thrust upon him, of course he could not help himself.

  It is very much to be regretted that ill-nature did not spare CaptainDogvane; but it did not, and very many most improbable stories now gotwind. It was said, amongst other things, that every night before goingto bed, when anything had gone wrong with him in the day, that he toreup his night shirt. The story is scarcely worthy of credence, but evenif it were true, history affords many examples of a like nature. We aretold on the most reliable authority that the Patriarchs of old wheneverthey were put about invariably rent their garments, and even King Davidhimself, it would appear, was very much given to this practice. A kingof course can do no wrong; but amongst people of lower degree the habitshould be discountenanced, both on the score of expense, and of decency.

  It was also said that Pepper was to be rewarded for his fidelity to hismaster by being made court jester to Dogvane, king of the Ojabberaways,and that in addition, he was to be chancellor of the exchequer,custodian of the Ojabberaways' morals, and a teacher to them of manners.These offices were brought under one head for the sake of economy, andas Pepper was an enemy to all official extravagance, this combinationpleased him. All thought he would have quite enough to do; but thenPepper was an able man, and what to others would have been fraught withvery great difficulty, was to him a matter of ease. It is a happy thingto be especially endowed by Providence. Billy Cheeks, the burly butcher,was also promoted from his humble position on board the old Ship ofState, so it was said, to be minister of justice to the king of theOjabberaways, for he had some legal knowledge and gravity enough for ajudge, and as things were to be conducted on strictly economicalprinciples, he was also to preside over the Ojabberaways' High Court ofAssassination. He was to be also the keeper of the king's conscience. Itwas thought that he also would have enough to do.

  Again did the Port Watch step on board with that jaunty anddevil-me-care air, so peculiar to sailors. Random Jack was given ahigher post even than that which he had held before; for he was madekeeper of the Till and holder of the Buccaneer's Great Purse, officesonly held by men of the most approved ability, and integrity. Manybelieved that he was destined on some future day to command one of thewatches, but there seemed to be some difference of opinion as to which.Many indeed there were who pinned their faith to Random Jack, and manythere also were who asked themselves how it was that he had thus madehis way. Some affirmed that it was by his undoubted ability, but quiteas many declared that it was by his unbounded impudence, frequentlycalled self-confidence. Possibly it was by a happy combination of theabove two qualities that he had been so successful. Certain it is thatno man can expect to rise to a great height unless he has a good shareof the last of the above virtues, for it is the only one that the worldtruly appreciates.

  Of all things there is nothing like success. The middy now, instead ofbeing ridiculed, sneered at, and flouted, was taken up, and those whobefore would have passed him by without bestowing upon him even so muchas a supercilious nod now claimed an acquaintance with him, and declaredthat they had seen all along the superior stuff he was made of.

  Those people who know everything, and they are so many that it is littleshort of a wonder that the world still keeps so uninlightened, said theyshould never be surprised to find that Random Jack had entered into analliance with the carpenter, and obtained through him and others thecommand of the Starboard Watch; but the carpenter was an ambitious man.Upon the old cox'sn being asked his opinion about Random Jack, he gaveit, as was his custom, and according to his own fashion. "The lad isgood enough, d'ye see. He has parts, and he's got his head pointing inthe right direction; if only he has his ballast all aboard. But, mymates, he seems a bit light at times, and does not stand up well to hiscanvas, but that will come in due course; that will come when he hastrimmed his ship a bit. Then he has a knack of steering a bit wide attimes; now coming up in the eye of the wind, until he is nearly takenaback; then veering away until he nearly wears round on the other tack,why, his wake, my lads, is about as straight as a cork-screw. Give himmore ballast, and a steadier hand at the helm, and the lad will steer agood course through life. Them's my sentiments, mates."

  But one fine day when Random Jack was sailing pleasantly along with allplain sail set to a fair wind of public opinion, he suddenly, withoutrhyme or reason, put his helm down, and everything went by the board,and Random Jack was left a sport to the waves of Fortune, without eithersails or rudder, and it was doubtful whether he would ever again makethe fair land of Prom
ise.

  But before all this a sad thing happened on board the old Ship of State.The first lieutenant of the Port Watch, honest Ben Backstay, had, somany people thought, been treated in a somewhat scurvy manner, not onlyby the captain of the watch, but by some of his mess-mates. On oneoccasion he was tripped up, it was said, by Random Jack and another, andpoor old Ben was hurt considerably, though like the brave sailor that hewas, he never uttered a word of complaint; but as a slight reward he waskicked upstairs into the Buccaneer's Upper Chamber, thereby fallingunder the displeasure of the immortal Pepper.

  If honest Ben had any feelings he never showed them, and of course, notdoing so they were not respected. One morning the whole ship's crew werestricken with sorrow, for Ben, while at his post, heard Him whom allmust obey, call his name; so leaving his body below, his soul soared upaloft. The flag of the old Ship of State was half masted, and minuteguns were fired. The bells from the church towers tolled out themournful news, and the Church Hulk sent up to Heaven a requiem on behalfof poor Ben. He was a staunch friend of this old Ship, and she could illafford, in such perilous times, to lose even one supporter. TheBuccaneer mourned the loss of his trusty servant, and he kept a smallspot in his heart wherein to plant a few flowers of memory to honest BenBackstay, and as they towed him to his last moorings, the old Buccaneersaid: "Let us all hope that poor Ben Backstay, like poor Tom Bowling,may find pleasant weather, until He who all commands, shall give tocall life's crew together the word, to pipe all hands." There was muchsorrowing in the land, and many a heart was sad.

  Ah! the human heart is but a grave-yard, where lie buried many hopesthat never survive even their first childhood; many ambitions cut off inall the freshness of youth, and many friends. As we live, we bear therefrom time to time, the cherished remains of someone, or of something welove. In our lonely hours we sit by these silent graves, and shed manywarm tears of sorrow over them; wishing oftentimes, that we could bringback the dead. Thus we sit, and sit, and mourn, and mourn, day afterday, and night after night. At length our sun sets, and our eyes growdim in the waning light, until at last they close forever. With us wetake our little grave-yard, with all its flowers, and bear it away intothe great darkness of eternity.