Off to Sea: The Adventures of Jovial Jack Junker on his Road to Fame
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had made to us, and Mr. Hanson signed to him to sit down onthe deck, and let him know that he would receive no harm. We were thensent back to continue our search. No other person was, however, found,and at length we got alongside the schooner. We were received by a loudcheer from our shipmates, and Mr. Ormsby ordered us to retain possessiontill he could inspect the junk in the morning, and settle what was to bedone with her.
"But Mr. Hanson is wounded, sir," sung out Dicky Plumb; "and besides,sir, _we are hard up for grub_. The provisions the Chinese have left onboard don't look very tempting."
Mr. Hanson, with the other wounded man, was therefore ordered to go onboard, that the assistant-surgeon might look to their hurts, while asupply of provisions was sent us from the schooner, Dicky Plumb thusremaining in command of the junk.
"Jack," he said to me, "if I had my will, I should like to appoint youmy first-lieutenant, for I think you know as much about seamanship as Ido; but as that would not be quite correct, I am afraid I must have NedRawlings as my second in command. I only hope we may be ordered to takea cruise somewhere. It would be great fun going away by ourselves tolook after prizes, would it not?"
I agreed with him, but observed that I did not think Mr. Ormsby woulddispatch us for that purpose. The next morning, when Mr. Ormsby came onboard, he declared that the junk we had taken was so fine a vessel thatit would be a pity to destroy her, and therefore obtained leave to carryher off to Hong Kong.
"Can I remain in command of her, sir?" asked Dicky, touching his hatwhen Mr. Ormsby had arrived at this decision.
The lieutenant looked at him with a smile.
"Why, Mr. Plumb, what amount of navigation do you possess?"
"Why, sir," said Dicky, promptly, "I know how to steer, and we can keepthe _Fawn_ in sight, so she will serve as our pole-star."
"But suppose it came on thick weather, and you lost sight of us?"observed the lieutenant.
"We would not rest till we had found you again," answered Dicky,promptly.
"I suspect the _Fawn_ will outsail the junk, and then what will you do?"
"Ask every one we meet the whereabouts of Hong Kong," answered Dicky.
"I have no doubt you would do your best," said Mr. Ormsby, "but still Icannot quite trust you. I must send Mr. Hanson back, and I have nodoubt that you will prove a very efficient first-lieutenant to him."
With this Master Dicky was obliged to remain content, and, in a coupleof days, Mr. Hanson, having somewhat recovered his strength, came onboard and took the command. Before many days were over the Chinesesucceeded in bamboozling our plenipotentiaries; we gave up all we hadwon, and the fleet sailed away back to Hong Kong. We followed in thewake of the schooner, which had to shorten sail for us, when the windwas abeam; but at length it came aft, and we then kept very good waywith her; indeed, she had to make all sail not to let us pass her. Ourcaptive Chinese boy seemed very well reconciled to his fate. We couldnot make out what was his name, so we called him "Joss." He was amerry, yellow-faced little chap, with the funniest pig-eyes imaginable.He seemed always ready to laugh, and sing, and dance about the deck. Itwas very evident that he would pick up English sooner than any of uswere likely to learn a word of Chinese. In the course of a few days,indeed, he could ask for all sorts of things, and seemed to know a greatdeal that was said to him. I should say Mr. Hanson spoke veryhandsomely of the way Dicky Plumb had behaved in boarding the Chinese,and told Mr. Ormsby that he had been the first on deck, and howgallantly he had behaved also on shore, when attacking the fort. Ifound, also, that he made favourable mention of my conduct on bothoccasions.
"Indeed, had it not been for Junker," I heard that he observed, "wemight all of us have been blown into the other world." Mr. Ormsby hadsaid that he should report my conduct to the captain, who would be surenot to let it pass unnoticed. Dicky told me all this.
"I was very glad of it, Jack," he said. "To tell you the truth, I havean idea in my head. What it is, I am not going to tell you; only, Jack,if I am ever a captain, I should like to have you as myfirst-lieutenant."
"Thank you, sir," I said, "for your kind wishes, but I am afraid suchgood luck is not in store for me."
At length, our junk, with several others that had been captured, reachedHong Kong in safety. The harbour was crowded with vessels. There musthave been a hundred or more craft, of various sorts, from line-of-battleships down to schooners and cutters, and a variety of Chinese and otherforeign-rigged vessels.
CHAPTER EIGHT.
A TYPHOON AND A SHIPWRECK.
The junk lay in Hong Kong harbour, close to the _Fawn_. Soon after webrought up in the harbour, finding that a boat was to be sent from the_Fawn_ to the _Roarer_, I got leave to go in her. I had some misgivingsabout Sergeant Turbot, and was anxious to see him. I found that he wasin the sick bay, where there were several wounded men. He shook mewarmly by the hand when he saw me.
"Jack, my boy," he said, "you saved my life t'other day, and, what ismore, my honour. If it had not been for you, my fellows would have gotinto that Chinese fort while I was at the bottom of the hill; but Jack,I confess it, I feel I am not cut out for campaigning in a hillycountry; indeed, to advance, at double-quick, across a plain, tries meconsiderably."
I was afraid, from the sergeant's way of talking, that he was very ill.I made some remark to that effect.
"In honest truth, Jack," he answered, "I was pretty well knocked upaltogether with that work on shore; what with the hot sun, the rapidmarching, and climbing those heights; but still, Jack, I don't think Iam going to give in just yet. If I do, remember me to your father, andtell him that I consider you are worthy of him. However, I hope to befit for duty in the course of a few days, and to have another pull atthe Chinamen's pigtails before we have done with them."
From what I could hear on board I found that our business in the boatand capture of the junk was highly approved of. Our captain, withseveral of the boats of the _Roarer_, had been engaged, and he hadbehaved with great bravery and activity. I was glad to find, that inthe course of a few days Sergeant Turbot was much better. His gallantrywas well known, and Dicky Plumb told me that he had heard the captain ofmarines on board say that in future he would take care that he was notsent on an expedition where any great bodily exertion was required. Wehad been some time off Hong Kong, and began to grow weary of not havingmore to do. The weather had now become excessively hot and sultry.Dark black clouds collected in the sky, and there was an oppression inthe atmosphere which made all hands feel uncomfortable. Theweather-wise predicted a typhoon. I asked Sergeant Turbot, the lastvisit I paid him, the meaning of a typhoon.
"Why, Jack, you must know that a typhoon is just like ten everyday galesof wind pressed into one," he replied. "If a fellow is aloft he hasneed to hold on with his eyelids, teeth, and nails; and if he's onshore, to look out for falling chimneys and roofs. If we get one--andfrom what I hear there's every chance of it--you'll know what it is fastenough, and not forget either, as long as you live."
The barometer, too, supporting the opinion of the weather-wise, wasfalling, indicating a change of weather. Meantime, the Chinese on shoreseemed to be greatly excited. We saw, stuck out from many of theirhouses, long poles, twenty or thirty feet high, with huge lanterns atthe end of them, ornamented with grotesque-looking figures of varioussorts. Then began the beating of gongs, the firing of crackers, and theexplosion of little bamboo petards, from one end of the town to theother, and from all the boats along the shore. The Chinese mightpossibly have thought that their fireworks had produced some effect, forthe day passed by and no typhoon broke over us. At night, however, darkclouds again collected overhead, out of which the most vivid lightningshot incessantly. For an instant the whole sky was lighted up, and thenumerous vessels in the harbour, and the distant shores, could be seenclearly. Then all again was pitchy darkness. The night passed away,however, without any incident worthy of note. In the morning, Mr.Ormsby, who had been on board the _Roarer_, came back, and said that hehad rec
eived orders to convey the junk to Macao.
"Then I am afraid our independent cruise will be up," I heard Mr. Plumbobserve to Mr. Hanson.
We accordingly got under weigh, and stood out of the harbour. We hadnot, however, proceeded far, when the threatening appearances of theweather returned. Again the clouds collected, the lightning flashedvividly, and sudden gusts came furiously off the land. Mr. Ormsbyhailed, and ordered us to bring up under the high shore, a couple ofmiles to windward, he setting us the example. A few tacks brought the_Fawn_ to an anchorage, when her topmasts were struck, and everypreparation was made for the typhoon, which, it was now evident, wasabout to commence. We were some way astern of the schooner, when downcame a fierce blast with tremendous force upon us. The sails