There was a silence: then the Commander-in-Chief said, 'Dr Jacob, we are very grateful indeed for your good news and your early warning—at least we shall be able to receive these gentlemen in a suitable manner. Lord Keith, you are the senior officer present: may I ask your opinion?'
'My opinion is that we should welcome this approach most heartily . . .'
'Hear, hear,' said the politico. Stephen and Jack, being parties concerned, said nothing; but Jack at all events felt a spring of delight rising in his heart.
'. . . and,' went on Lord Keith, 'since I was concerned with Captain Aubrey's orders in the first place, and since I know the little ways of the prize-court through and through, I propose taking this case before them at once, and then desiring the dockyard to give the vessel something in the way of gold leaf to make her a more presentable present. As for the Dey's loan, I am obviously no longer in a position to speak of the colony's finances, but I have no doubt that the Ministry would consider it a very reasonable outlay.'
'Hear, hear,' said the politico.
The Commander-in-Chief only nodded; but his mobile face, recently so very sour and ill-natured now shone with an inner sun: in the course of these last few minutes his flag-officer's third part of Jack's share of the prize, so recently despaired of, had returned as a solid, very beautiful fact.
Lord Keith was a good friend to Jack Aubrey: very early in the morning he had surprised the swabbers at their task and within minutes there were a score of barrows alongside the Surprise: under guard they wheeled the massy little chests to the premises of Gibraltar's three substantial goldsmiths, who reduced the whole to tested ingots of a stated weight well before the Algerine ship came in with its delegation and a present of full-grown ostriches.
Jacob was present at the various ceremonies, but Jack and Stephen were wholly taken up with other things—Jack with persuading the officers, warrant-officers, steady petty officers and seamen to have at least two-thirds of their prize-money sent home, and with storing the ship for the first leg of his voyage; while Stephen did much the same for his department, as well as writing a very long coded report to Sir Joseph.
The ceremonies, it appeared, went off very well, particularly the state appearance of the loan on silver salvers: but in the evening, with the Algerines gone to the sound of guns, drums and trumpets, when the Keiths came down to say good-bye, accompanied by an over-excited Mona and Kevin, barely to be restrained by their nursemaid, Jack and Harding found to their grief that they had not been able to keep all their people sober.
It was none of it very gross, and even Queenie had seen a drunken sailor: yet even so Jack was relieved when the moorings were cast off and Surprise, dropping her foresail, glided free of the mole.
'God bless,' called Queenie; and 'Liberate Chile, and come home as soon as ever you can,' called her husband, while the children screeched out very shrill, fluttering handkerchiefs. And at the very end of the Mole, when the frigate turned westward along the Strait with a following breeze, stood an elegant young woman with a maidservant, and she too waving, waving, waving . . .
The Hundred Days Page 29
