CHAPTER XXVIII
The Fate of the Mutineers
Presently most of the men who had been left in the stockade, havingtaken to the boats and the little sloop, came on board. Fury,disappointment, and despair were written on their faces as theygathered in the waist awaiting the orders that were not forthcoming.
"Aren't you going to weigh and chase 'em, Cap'n?" shouted one, withmore zeal than discretion.
"Send away the long-boat, and we'll soon overhaul them," suggestedanother.
"With this sea running?" replied Captain Jeremy at length. "Youwould never make head way. Trust me and wait."
The crew could scarce believe their ears. Was the Captain overcomeby the strain of the last few days? His pensive attitude seemedincomprehensible.
Yet Captain Jeremy was outwardly cool and collected as, glass inhand, he followed the course of the disappearing _Neptune_.
She was now on the bar, tossing, pitching, and rolling in the heavybreakers, for already the sea outside was running high and breakingover the shoals in one continuous field of snow-flecked foam. Yetthe errant brig held slowly and truly on her course 'twixt theshallows that threatened her at half a cable's length to starboardand larboard.
She stood out close hauled on the larboard tack, the wind being duenorth, till she reached the bend in the channel that ran parallelwith the shore. Here, being smartly handled, she turned and ran deadbefore the wind, her hull being lost to view from our decks by theintervening reef.
Instantly there was a scramble aloft, Captain Jeremy and I, withnearly a dozen men, gaining the main top, while the shrouds werealive with the discomfited crew as they watched from their loftypoint of vantage the rapidly receding brig.
I glanced at Captain Jeremy. In spite of his coolness, I fancy hisanxiety increased as the _Neptune_ ran before the wind.
"Sink me," I heard him mutter, "she's hauling to the wind!"
This was indeed the case, but even as she did so she struck thefatal reef. The next instant she broached to, the rollers makingclean breaches over her hull, and almost immediately her masts wentby the board.
Then I understood, though imperfectly. Captain Jeremy, by alteringthe position of the clump of trees, had created a false landmark,and the _Neptune_ had fallen into the trap.
"There's an end to the treasure, anyway," exclaimed one of the men."There won't be as much as a plank or a copper nail left ere night."
Having witnessed the destruction of the mutineers, Captain Jeremydescended to the deck and ordered the bos'n to pipe all hands. Then,mounting the poop, he faced the dejected men.
"My lads," he exclaimed in ringing tones, "I'll deceive you nolonger. There is no need for discontent or vain regrets, for not onepennyworth of treasure is aboard yon craft. The whole of it is nowlying in the storehouse on shore!"
For a full twenty seconds there was a lull or absolute silence; themen seemed unable to grasp the full significance of the words. Then,as the meaning dawned upon them, a roar of cheering burst from ahundred throats.
"If you pause to consider," continued the Captain, "you will seethat I acted for the best, even though I had to practise a milddeceit on most of you. Knowing that the rogues on the _Neptune_ werein league with that villain Slater, I purposely caused the treasurechests, filled with stones, to be conveyed on board their craft. Youwill remember that at no time did I say the treasure was in thosechests, but the rascals jumped at the bait. By so doing they haveserved a double purpose: we shall be troubled by them no more, andthe loss of the _Neptune_ has relieved me of a great load ofanxiety. How say you? What would they at home say if they saw mebringing back two ships, when I set sail with one only? I also see away whereby those of you who were shipped as slaves aboard the_Neptune_ can return to your homes, or, if you will it, be setashore at any port we touch, with your full share of the spoil ofthe captured buccaneer."
"I have also another proposal to make. By their mutinous conductthose aboard the _Neptune_ would have forfeited their share in the_Madre_ treasure had they lived, so that the amount to bedistributed amongst the remaining members of the original crew ofthe _Golden Hope_ is considerably increased. Now, I am going to setaside the amount of those forfeited shares and divide it amongstyou, irrespective of rank, or whether ye be the men who left Poolein the _Golden Hope_ or those who joined us off the _Neptune_; for'twas by the hearty efforts of all hands here that we were enabledto lay hands on the treasure. Now, lads, I thank you one and all. Itonly remains to load up our precious cargo, get the ship ready forsea, and yo-ho! for old England."
When the applause that greeted the termination of Captain Jeremy'sspeech had subsided, a number of men, headed by Tom Cherry, elbowedtheir way through the dense crowd of their delighted comrades.
"Cap'n," exclaimed Cherry, "I've a favour to ask you."
"Say on," replied Captain Jeremy.
"Me and my mates here," said the sturdy seaman, "want to take thelong-boat and row out to yon wreck. Maybe some of the poor chaps arestill aboard."
"Nay," answered the Captain, a flush of anger overspreading hisbronzed features. "They are but mutinous dogs; let them perish."
"They were our comrades, an', though it shames me to say it, mybrother's son is with them," Cherry said doggedly. "If we pick 'emup we can send 'em off in the sloop, and they won't harm us anymore."
"A boat would never live in such a sea," observed Captain Jeremy,with a sweep of his arm in the direction of the bar, where thebreakers were tumbling in white, confused masses, for it was nowblowing hard outside. Yet our Captain was certainly turning asidefrom his hard purpose.
"We are willing to take the risk, sir," pleaded the seamanearnestly. "I've not been brought up on the coast of Kent fornothing."
"Then go. But, mind you, one condition I make. Should you bring thatmurderous villain Ned Slater back alive, I'll run him up to theyardarm."
Tom Cherry touched his forelock and turned away, followed by hiseight comrades. The long-boat was already alongside; so, tossing amast and sail, an empty beaker, and a coil of grass rope into her,the dauntless men dropped over the side of the _Golden Hope_ andpushed off.
"You are quite certain of the channel, I hope, Cherry?" shoutedCaptain Jeremy.
"Yes, sir; and besides, there's enough water over the shoals forus."
"Not with this tumble outside; so be careful, and keep to thesmoothest water."
"More food for the sharks," I heard a seaman say, as he watched theboat gather way.
Hoisting a mere rag of sail, the daring rescuers headed for theopen, the boat speeding under the pressure of the howling wind,while Tom Cherry steered her adroitly to meet each threateningcomber. At one moment we could see nearly the whole of the boat'sbottom boards, as she climbed an immense wall of water; at another,only her long, lean quarters and stern, as she slid down the farside of the safely passed crest.
Once more we manned the rigging, and with eager eyes andapprehensive looks followed the hazardous fortunes of our humanecomrades as they turned and ran down before the wind towards thewreck.
From my swaying perch on the main top--for even in this usuallysheltered harbour a heavy "gush" caused the _Golden Hope_ to rollsluggishly--I had great difficulty in keeping the boat within thefield of my telescope. The men had now stowed sail, and under oarswere backing slowly towards the shattered _Neptune_, the figure ofTom Cherry being clearly distinguishable as he stood, steering oarin hand, keeping the boat's stern to the towering crests.
By this time the after part of the _Neptune_ had completelydisappeared, and the waist was fast breaking up under the relentlessblows of the resistless breakers; yet through the cloud of spraythat dashed over the fo'c'sle I could see the forms of some half adozen helpless creatures hanging on to the frail protection affordedby the weather rail.
The men in the long-boat were now rowing their hardest to keep towindward of the wreck. They were evidently paying out the beaker bythe grass warp in the hope of establishing a communication 'twixtthe two craft. It was a lif
e-or-death struggle with theelements--English courage and brawn pitted against the combinedaction of wind and sea. Which would win?
Suddenly a heavy rain squall came on, bearing down the crested waveswith its weight, and obliterating everything within a quarter of amile of us.
When the squall passed, a groan of dismay burst from our lips. Asfar as the eye could see, there was nothing but a chaos of angry seaand sky. Both the wreck and the gallant long-boat had vanished.
The Quest of the 'Golden Hope': A Seventeenth Century Story of Adventure Page 29
