The Quest of the 'Golden Hope': A Seventeenth Century Story of Adventure
Page 19
CHAPTER XVIII
"Repel Boarders!"
The three vessels had now ceased firing, and from under their sternssix large boats, crowded with armed men, were being pulled straighttowards us with all their rowers' might.
We could see the water foaming at their bows, and hear the splash ofthe oars as they dipped with rapidity and regularity, while the sunglistened on gun barrel, pike, and cutlass.
Unmolested they passed between the two arms of the harbour, then,having drawn into line, they separated, three boats making for eachof our vessels.
Suddenly the order was given to open fire. The guns were run out,and the _Golden Hope_ quivered from truck to keelson with the roarof her ordnance. The _Neptune_ followed suit, while the stockadeashore added to the din.
The calm water around the boats was transformed into a veritablecauldron, and it seemed impossible that a single boat could remainafloat in that iron hail.
Although taken completely by surprise, the buccaneers were made ofstern stuff, and before the smoke cleared away sufficiently toenable us to see the result of our united broadsides, they wereswarming up over our tall sides.
"Repel boarders!" thundered Captain Jeremy, waving his cutlass as hesprang to meet the attack. Nobly our men responded, and midst thesharp crack of pistols, the groans of the wounded, and the sharpexclamations of fury, cutlass crossed with cutlass and pikeencountered pike.
I found myself opposed to a villainous halfcaste, clad only in apair of drawers, and armed with a large cutlass. In spite of myefforts, for I possessed both skill and strength far beyond my age,I soon found that I had all my work cut out, for my opponent whirledhis blade with great force and rapidity. Twice, however, I put in athrust beneath his guard, wounding him slightly on the hip and onthe right shoulder. Yet in spite of this slight advantage I wasslowly and surely being driven back, when, tripping over a brokenspar, I fell heavily.
Every instant I expected to feel the sweep of the pirate's cutlass,but the blow never came. So I took courage and raised myself on myelbow, and, to my surprise, I found my late antagonist engaged in ahand-to-hand fight with the man who had been brought before CaptainJeremy for skulking in the hold.
All sense of fear had apparently left the latter. I heard afterwardsthat he had received a slight wound in his left arm, and the painhad transformed him into a veritable demon. Shouting, "Let me have arub at the brutes!" he seized an iron bar, and met the onrushingbuccaneers with the utmost fury. Two men had already gone downbefore his ponderous weapon ere, fortunately for me, he diverted theattention of the mulatto just as he had me at his mercy.
Even as I looked the iron bar crashed past the pirate's upliftedcutlass and, descending on the half-caste's head, stretched himlifeless on the deck; but in the moment of victory a chance pistolshot laid the erstwhile coward over the body of his antagonist.
It seemed at this juncture that the buccaneers would succeed incarrying the _Golden Hope_, till Clemens, the Cornishman whom we hadrescued from the Algerine vessel, clambered up the shattered poopladder, and, training one of the swivel guns, which fortunately wasloaded, upon the thickest of the press of our enemies, fired a heavycharge of small shot with deadly effect.
Then, headed by Captain Jeremy and the master gunner, our men made adetermined rush, and, still contesting every inch of our planks, thebuccaneers were forced back over the side.
A hurried glance showed that the _Neptune_ had also succeeded inbeating off her attackers, and was already resuming her fire uponthe retreating boats.
Without pausing to regain their breath, our men also remanned theirguns and poured a destructive broadside on the boats, of which threehad been sunk when we first opened fire. Two more disappeared amidsta swirl of shot-torn water, while the sole remaining boat, movingslowly, for most of her oars had been shattered and she was morethan half-full, managed by little short of a miracle to regain herparent ship.
But there was no respite for our weary crew, for the threebuccaneering craft resumed their fire. It being comparativelyfeeble, we knew that their guns were now ill-served, and that theywere only firing to aid their escape.
"Aim carefully! Wing 'em!" shouted the master gunner, as he passedalong the line of guns, some, alas! silent for want of a crew. Inspite of his cautions, however, our men, elated with their victory,fired rapidly and erratically; but as the buccaneers made haste tosheer off, the mainmast of one came crashing over the side, whilethe others' spars were in a tottering state.
We could see the discomfited crew of the former vessel attack thewreckage with axes in an attempt to free themselves from the fatalencumbrance, but ere this could be done their ship drifted on to ashoal.
The remaining vessels were more fortunate. Slowly tacking, they drewbeyond range, and having picked up the survivors of their consortwho, on finding their vessel aground, had abandoned her, they gainedthe open sea.
"Man the long-boat and make sure of yonder craft!" shouted CaptainJeremy. "Let go her anchors when you get aboard, or she may floatoff with the rising tide."
Even as he spoke there was a crashing report, and, clapping hishands to his head, our gallant Captain staggered and fell senselessto the deck.
One of the buccaneers, who had been left for dead on our deck, hadtreacherously shot him at almost point-blank range.
With a howl of rage some of our men threw themselves upon thevillain and dispatched him with their cutlasses, while othershastened to raise Captain Jeremy and bear him into his cabin.
There we found that the wound, though dangerous, might not provemortal. The bullet had ploughed a furrow just above the temple, andthough the place bled profusely, Captain Jeremy soon recovered hissenses.
His first thought was of the disabled buccaneering vessel. "Hath thelong-boat pushed off yet?" he asked. "No? Then bid them go at once."
"Master Hammond," said Touchstone, on whom the command of the_Golden Hope_ now devolved, "do you take charge of the boat. Youknow your orders?"
"Yes, sir," I replied.
"Then carry them out--but, hark'ee, mind how you board. Be careful;make sure she is quite deserted, and straightway examine her hold. Iknow the villains; unless I am much mistaken, they will have left aslow match to the magazine."
Taking my place in the stern sheets, I ordered the boat to give way,feeling highly elated at my first command, yet, withal, having apresentiment that 'twas a hazardous enterprise.
Half-way across the harbour we came upon the shattered bow of one ofthe pirates' boats floating just awash, while all around were piecesof planks, showing how effectual and destructive our fire had been.The other boats that had been destroyed must have sunk with theweight of their contents, for we saw no signs of them.
The deserted ship lay with her bow towards the reef on the larboardside of the channel, and having received several shot-holes 'twixtwind and water, had settled down somewhat, till the sea lapped herafter ports.
"She's safe enough, sir!" exclaimed one of the boat's crew, lookingover his shoulder at the wreck, as he rested on his oar. "Her holdis full of water. That'll put out any trains, if the villains haveleft them."
I was of the same opinion, so, having rowed completely round thestranded ship, which seemed quite deserted, I gave the word to runalongside.
Bidding all the men save one to remain in the boat, I made sure ofthe priming of my pistols, then swinging myself up the side by meansof the cordage of the broken mainmast, I gained the deck.
It was deserted, save for the corpses of some half a dozen men whohad been slain by the discharge of our ordnance, most of them beingshockingly mangled.
A hurried yet cautious search revealed a like state of things in theafter cabins, while the fo'c'sle was also empty. Peering down themain hatch I saw that, as we had expected, the main hold wasflooded, though amidships the depth of water was but a foot.
Making fast one end of a rope, for there was no sign of a ladder, Ithrew the other end down the hatchway, and by this means gained thesloping planks of the hold
. Ankle deep in water, I made my wayforward, till in the dim light I perceived a stout bulkhead runningathwartships and pierced by a little sliding door, or hatch.
Owing to the slight list of the ship this door had jammed, so thatit required considerable effort ere I opened it sufficiently toenable me to squeeze through.
Within it seemed as black as the darkest night, till I saw a sightthat caused me to be rooted to the spot. Softly fizzing andspluttering within a few inches of two tiers of sinister-lookingbarrels was a fuse!