immediately into the boat; we then pulled awayin chase. The prow was making towards a point which formed one side ofthe bay; she had already got a considerable start before she had beenperceived. We had had by this time one of our number killed and twowounded, who, though they persisted in keeping at the oars, could notput forth their usual strength; one, indeed, had before long to give up;still Mr. Mason persevered, hoping to overtake the prow before she couldreach the shore. As we shoved off from the last vessel we had taken, heshouted to the crew of the boat which had boarded with us, saying wherewe were going; but probably he was not heard, for we were left to makechase alone. We had four marines with us, who stood up every now andthen, and fired at the enemy, but that only made them pull away thefaster; we were gaining on them, but not very rapidly. Now and then,the enemy fired at us in return.
"Pull away, lads I pull away!" shouted Dicky every now and then, helpingthe stroke oar.
The prow was getting nearer and nearer the shore. It seemed verydoubtful whether we should overtake her before she reached it. Still,the example set by Captain Sharpe was followed by his officers. Hismotto was "Persevere," so was theirs. At length the prow got withintwenty fathoms of the beach. We were almost up with her, when the otherwounded man I spoke of gave in, sinking down, poor fellow! at his oar.This hindered us when we were almost up to the vessel. Once more wewere on the point of hooking on, when the prow dashed high up on thebeach. At that moment, a number of men with firearms rushed out fromamong the trees and rocks, and began peppering away at us.
"We will board her first, and drive them away afterwards," shouted Mr.Mason, springing up the side of the vessel.
Dicky Plumb and I followed him, with Ned Rawlings, the marines coveringus with their muskets as we did so. The enemy soon gave way, thegreater number rushing over the bows and wading on shore. We hadrecaptured the prow, but just as we were congratulating ourselves on oureasy victory, bright flames burst forth from the fore part of thevessel, spreading rapidly. To extinguish them was impossible.
"To the boats, lads!" shouted Mr. Mason, "or the craft may be blowing upand carrying us with her. We must punish these fellows, however."
The warning came just in time. Scarcely had we jumped into the boat andmade towards the beach, than up went the vessel, almost overwhelming uswith her burning fragments; indeed, it seemed a wonder that we shouldhave escaped, so close were we at the time. Many pieces, indeed, fellon the outside of us--no large portion, happily, striking the boat. Ledby Mr. Mason, we dashed on shore, and with our four marines, who hadfixed bayonets--the rest of us armed with cutlasses--charged the enemy.They ran away--the wisest thing they could do, but we followed, whichwas not at all a wise thing. The Malays first fled along the beach, weevery now and then firing at them; then they turned inland. Still, aslong as we kept sight of them, Mr. Mason led us on. Rocks and treeswere on either side of us. Just as we were leaving the beach, I thoughtI heard a shout from the boat, in which were the wounded men and acouple of hands left to keep her afloat. Our blood was up, Mr. Masonvowing that, though the Malays might run fast, he would overtake them.We had now got a considerable distance from the beach, when our enemiesdisappeared. They had evidently concealed themselves among the treesand rocks. It was equally evident that we had done a very foolishthing. All we could now do was to retrace our steps; that, however, wasnot quite so easy a matter. Before we had moved a hundred yards wediscovered that we had lost our way. With daylight we might have foundit, but in the darkness we could not discover a glimpse of the sea.Just then we caught sight of numerous dark forms appearing above therocks and among the trees. Slowly they closed in upon us. We weresurrounded by our enemies; there was no doubt about that. They werewell armed with matchlocks, for we saw the matches fizzing away at theirbelts, while we had only four muskets and half a dozen pistols. Ourcutlasses and the marines' bayonets would have enabled us, perhaps, tohave fought our way out from among our enemies, could we have seen it.
"There is no help for it; I am afraid it is all up with us, lads!" criedMr. Mason, as some fifty armed men pressed closer and closer round us."We must sell our lives dearly!"
The threatening gestures of the enemy showed us that we must do this, ifwe could not escape. An open space, however, appeared before us.
"Fire, and then charge?" cried Mr. Mason.
The order was obeyed. Several of the Malays fell, and on we dashed.They, in return, however, poured in a shower of bullets upon us, whichknocked over two of the marines, and hit another of the seamen.
"On, on, lads! We must regain the beach!" cried Mr. Mason; and wefought our way on for another fifty yards.
The Malays had, however, in the meantime reloaded their pieces, and asecond deadly discharge was poured in upon us. Our leader fell, as didthe two marines and three more of our men. Ned Rawlings, Dicky, and I,indeed, were the only ones of the whole party untouched. Hearing poorMr. Mason groan, Dicky and I stooped down to lift up his head.
"I just now caught sight of the water," cried Ned Rawlings. "If youwill help him up on my back, I'll carry him off to the boat." Weinstantly lifted Mr. Mason on Ned's broad shoulders, and as the Malaysdid not press on us, there seemed a possibility of success. They,however, seeing only two persons able to fight, now made a rush towardsus. We, of course, thought our last moments had come. Resistance wasuseless. Instead, however, of cutting us down, they seized us by thearms, wrenched our cutlasses out of our hands, and dragged us along asprisoners. They soon caught hold of Ned, who, however, would not letMr. Mason go. He was soon brought up to where we were. Mr. Masoncould, by this time, scarcely speak.
"Put me down, my good fellow," he said, "it is useless; I have receivedmy deathblow; I only hope these fellows will not murder you and thelads. Put me down, I beg you; you only increase my suffering byattempting to carry me."
Very unwillingly, Ned obeyed him. Mr. Mason then made signs to theMalays, entreating them to spare our lives; and trying to explain tothem, that if they did so, we should certainly be ransomed, and theywould be the gainers. They seemed to understand him, for they held aconsultation together, as if to decide what was to be done with us. Itwas an anxious time, for we knew that they were just as likely to settleto cut off our heads as to allow them to remain on our shoulders. We,meantime, sat down near poor Mr. Mason; he had been shot in two places,and though we managed to tie handkerchiefs over the wounds, we could dono more. His voice grew weaker and weaker; at length he made no answerto our remarks, and when I lifted up his hand it fell helplessly by hisside.
"He's gone, lads," said Ned Rawlings. "He was a brave officer, but hewanted judgment in bringing us into this fix."
The Malays seemed to have decided to let us live; binding our armsbehind us, they dragged us all three off up the country. At length weheard some dogs barking, and lights were seen glimmering ahead; and in afew minutes we found ourselves in the midst of a village of huts, withbamboo-built walls and roofs thatched with leaves. Dawn was justbreaking. A number of dark-skinned women and children came out,chattering and screeching, and eagerly pressing round the whiteprisoners.
"Keep up your spirits, Jack!" said Dicky to me. "If we put a bold faceon the matter we are more likely to gain their respect than if we allowthem to suppose that we are frightened."
The inhabitants having satisfied their curiosity, we were carried into ahut, in which we all three were shut up; the furniture consisting onlyof a mat spread on the ground.
"Can't say I like the look of those chaps," said Ned Rawlings to me."Shouldn't be surprised but what after all they meant to kill and eatus. I have heard say that there are some chaps in these parts who dothat sort of thing."
"I hope not," I observed. "I think they would have knocked us on thehead at first, if they had intended to do so; and, considering that theymust feel rather savage at having their vessels destroyed, we arefortunate in not being killed."
"Well, the wisest thing we can do is to make the best of it," observedMr. Plum
b; "and as I feel pretty tired I will lie down on this mat andgo to sleep."
Saying this the midshipman coiled himself up on the ground, and inanother minute was snoring away as if he were in his own hammock. Ifelt very much inclined to follow his example; Ned, however, seemed tothink that it was his duty to keep watch, and when I lay down, I saw himstill sitting up, and evidently intending to keep awake. In a very fewminutes I was as sound asleep as Mr. Plumb; how long I had slept I donot know, when I was awoke by the sound of firing, and loud shouts andcheers in the distance; the midshipman also awoke, and we all satlistening attentively, hoping that our friends were coming to therescue. The sounds grew louder and louder. Ned tried to force open thedoor, but though made only of bamboo, the fastenings were so strong thathe could not succeed.
Off to Sea: The Adventures of Jovial Jack Junker on his Road to Fame Page 19
