The Three Commanders Part 48

"I think we should be right to hang up their captors at their own yard-arms, and send their vessels to the bottom!" cried Tom indignantly.

Archie, though he doubted the legality of the proceeding, perfectly agreed with Tom that it would be a just punishment for the kidnappers.

Six ruffianly-looking fellows, one of whom appeared to be the master, most of them having their heads or arms bandaged up as if they had been wounded, received them on deck. The master pointed to the Peruvian flag, and inquired why he was stopped on his voyage.

"I'll tell you when we've examined your craft," answered Green.

"You'd better not go into the forecastle, where we have five of our men suffering from the smallpox," said the skipper.

"And how many have you in the hold?" asked Green, who knew Spanish sufficiently to carry on a conversation.

"We have no one there, but you had better not go into it, for some have died there of smallpox, and you may carry the disease on board your own s.h.i.+p," answered the skipper.

"We will run the risk," said Green; "take off the hatches, and I'll go below."

As no one seemed inclined to obey him, he ordered his own men to lift off the hatches. He and Tom, with two of the men, went below, while Archie, with the rest, remained on deck, keeping an eye upon the Peruvian crew, who, as Tim Nolan observed, "looked as if they were after mischief." The hold was empty, but it was evidently fitted for pa.s.sengers, or rather for slaves.

"What are all those dark marks?" asked Tom.

"Bloodstains," answered Green, examining them; "and see, here are bullets sticking in the deck and timbers. The wood has been splintered in all directions; depend on it there has been some desperate work going on. I believe that the account of the smallpox was false, and was merely given to try and prevent us from examining the craft."

"You found no one, as I told you," said the skipper, when Green returned on deck.

"No, but we have found enough to convince us that you have murdered the unhappy wretches you induced to come on board," answered Green.

"You should rather say our pa.s.sengers treacherously rose on us, and we had to fight in self-defence," said the skipper, forgetting what he had said about the smallpox.

"And your men forward are suffering from the wounds they received?" said Green.

"Such is the case, but I was ashamed to acknowledge how nearly we were defeated by the savages," said the master, with the greatest coolness.

Green accordingly went forward, and found five men in their bunks, all badly-wounded, two being nearly at the last gasp.

"I will bring the surgeon to dress their hurts," said Green; "though, if what I suspect is the case, you all deserve to be sent to the bottom; and, depend on it, we shall endeavour to get at the truth of the story, and you will hear more of the matter by and by."

The master shrugged his shoulders; and Green, not thinking it prudent to leave anyone on board with such villains, returned with the mids.h.i.+pmen to the s.h.i.+p to make his report. Jack was doubting how to proceed with the brigantine, when her sails were let fall, and, the breeze freshening, she stood away to windward. As the _Dragon_ had not even her fires lighted, there was but little chance of catching her, and Jack did not think it worth while to go in chase, as he felt pretty sure that she would not continue her kidnapping cruise.

The next day the look-out announced that he saw a fleet of vessels ahead. "A grove of palm trees, rather," observed Green, laughing. As the s.h.i.+p rose and fell in the swell, the trees alternately disappeared and came into sight; and, on getting nearer, a coral island hove in view; it consisted of a ring a quarter of a mile or so in width, with a lagoon in the centre. First was seen a line of surf, then a white sandy beach, and beyond a belt of green ground, spa.r.s.ely sprinkled with cocoanut and panda.n.u.s trees, and here and there with a few bushes of low growth. The s.h.i.+p stood along the sh.o.r.e at a respectful distance, a look-out being kept for inhabitants, as Jack thought it possible that if any of the people had escaped from the brigantine, they might have managed to effect a landing, the natives of these islands being generally first-rate swimmers. No one, however, was seen, and he feared that the whole of the kidnapped people must have perished. As he was unwilling to lose time by heaving-to to effect a landing, he stood on towards Tahiti.

All hands were somewhat disappointed with the appearance of that island when they first came in sight of it--jagged peaks and rugged mountains being alone visible; for the shady groves and waterfalls, the verdant meadows and fields, were not to be seen till the s.h.i.+p got close to the entrance of the harbour. Before them appeared a line of breakers das.h.i.+ng in snow-white foam on the encircling reef of coral, with a lagoon of calm blue water within, out of which rose the sh.o.r.e, covered with the richest tropical vegetation; numberless vines and creeping plants making their way up the hillsides, amid which sparkling cascades came falling down from the rugged mountains above.

"Well, after all, Tahiti does present a highly picturesque and beautiful landscape," exclaimed Mildmay, taking out his notebook; "and I hope that we shall find the inhabitants living in that Arcadian simplicity appropriate to so lovely a region."

Alas! they found but little Arcadian simplicity when they reached the sh.o.r.e; guns frowned from the surrounding heights down on the harbour; the French flag flew from the battlements of the forts; French soldiers were everywhere seen. It was soon, evident that the once free Tahitians were a conquered race.

Jack lost no time in communicating with the French governor, who had already heard that many of the natives of the outlying islands under French protection had been carried off. He had already sent out two men-of-war to try and catch the kidnappers, and he expressed his wish heartily to co-operate with the English in putting a stop to so abominable a system. Jack, being satisfied that the French would attend to that part of the Pacific, determined to proceed to the westward, where the appearance of an English man-of-war might effect some good.

The fires were lighted, and preparations were being made for weighing, when a column of smoke was seen in the distance, announcing the approach of a steamer. A French officer on board said that she must be direct from Europe, as none of their own cruisers were expected. Jack, hoping to obtain some news, accordingly waited for her arrival. As she approached, she made the number of the _Eolus_. Soon, coming to an anchor, visits were exchanged between the two s.h.i.+ps' companies. Adair told Jack that he had arrived at Callao the day after the _Dragon_ had left, and that as soon as he could obtain fresh provisions and water, he had again sailed in search of him. The _Eolus_ had come round by the Cape, and had not entered the Pacific till three weeks after the _Dragon_.

Jack agreed to wait till the _Eolus_ could take in provisions and water.

The feeling with which the unjustifiable capture of Tahiti by the French had been regarded by the English had by this time subsided; and, the officers of the two s.h.i.+ps having been treated with all the civility the French were able to show, they left the harbour with some regret, as they were not likely to meet with any place so advanced in civilisation before they reached Sydney.

A voyage across the Pacific sounds very romantic; but there are often long distances to be traversed when no land is in sight, and there is nothing to break the monotony of the voyage. The mids.h.i.+pmen of the two s.h.i.+ps voted it very dull, and began to believe that they should meet with none of the wonderful adventures which they had antic.i.p.ated. Mr Mildmay confessed that he had been dreadfully disappointed; he had expected everywhere to see bevies of graceful nymphs, dressed in gossamer robes, their glossy hair decked with wreaths of bright flowers, and their necks and arms adorned with coral and precious stones; instead of which, he declared that he had seen only a set of dowdy women with brown skins and without a particle of beauty to boast of.

"One thing, however, can be said of the inhabitants of these islands,"

observed Jack; "whereas a few years ago they were in heathen darkness, now, thanks to the exertions of the missionaries, heathenism has disappeared from all the islands to the southward; and if the people are not perfect Christians, they are at all events as much so as the great ma.s.s of people in Christendom."

Jack was right; indeed, they found missionaries established at all the princ.i.p.al islands at which they touched, with large chapels, well-built schoolhouses, and neat villages; the inhabitants being universally able to read and write, and many of them being well informed on various important subjects. After touching at several islands to the south and west of Tahiti, where not a single heathen remains, the s.h.i.+ps steered for a harbour in one of the islands of the Samoan group. It was here that a boat's crew of the French navigator, La Perouse, were ma.s.sacred.

As they approached the islands, no sign of a harbour could be perceived--lofty cliffs towering up before them to the sky without apparently a break. Still the _Dragon_ stood on, followed by the _Eolus_, two rocks appearing, one called the Tower Rock, and another on the opposite side, the Devil's Point, so well defined that Jack had no fears of mistaking the entrance. The sails were furled, and the steam got up. At length the s.h.i.+ps entered a pa.s.sage between the cliffs, about a third of a mile in width, till they reached a basin, completely surrounded by lofty precipices, from 800 to 1000 feet in height. The lower portion of the rocks was bare, but their summits were clothed with the most luxuriant vegetation--magnificent tree-ferns and cocoanut-trees growing high up in situations in which they are seldom seen in other lat.i.tudes.

No sooner had the s.h.i.+ps dropped their anchors than they were surrounded by canoes full of natives, who, though they appeared to be merry fellows, were remarkably well behaved; all of them being also decently clothed. Several chiefs and others came on board, some of whom spoke English; and from them it was ascertained that the whole of the people were Christians, having long been under missionary influence. One of Jack's chief objects in entering the harbour was to ascertain whether any of the natives had been carried off. A strange vessel had appeared off the coast, and had attempted to entrap some lads fis.h.i.+ng in a canoe, but they had been too wary to be so caught; and when a boat put off in chase of their canoe, they had made their way to the sh.o.r.e, though only just in time to escape capture.

Jack issued a notice which he desired might be sent among all the islands of the group, warning the people against the various devices practised by the kidnappers. After a short time the two s.h.i.+ps again put to sea.

CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR.

SANTA CRUZ--ITS UNATTRACTIVE INHABITANTS--A SCHOONER CHASED BY THE BOATS--SUSPICIOUS CHARACTERS--THE SCHOONER ALLOWED TO PROCEED--A GALE-- RUN FOR SHELTER UNDER THE LEE OF AN ISLAND--A VOLCANO BURSTS FORTH-- DRIVEN AWAY--BREAKERS AHEAD--AN OPENING IN THE REEF--Pa.s.s THROUGH--LAND ON AN ISLAND--FOOD FOUND--NATIVES APPEAR--HOSTILE DEMONSTRATIONS-- GREEN'S OLD s.h.i.+PMATE--PEACE ESTABLISHED--ESCAPE FROM THE ISLAND.

The _Dragon_ and _Eolus_ had been for some weeks at sea; the latter was to touch at various islands of the New Hebrides group, after which she was to proceed to the Loyalty Islands, to visit the Isle of Pines and Norfolk Island, and thence to go on to Sydney. The _Dragon_, meantime, was to continue her course to the north-west, visiting Santa Cruz, the Solomon Islands, New Ireland, and New Britain; and she also was to visit Sydney. Thence the two s.h.i.+ps were to recross the Pacific, to touch at the Sandwich Islands, and to go on to Vancouver's Island and British Columbia; after which, all hands heartily hoped that they might be ordered home. The projected cruise was being discussed in the mids.h.i.+pmen's berth, with the chart on the table.

"It doesn't look so very far," observed Billy Blueblazes; "though, considering that we are to perform the distance under sail, it will take us some time, I suppose."

"I rather think so, laddie," observed Archie, who had a pair of compa.s.ses in his hand, and was measuring off the distances; "we shall have run over between sixty and seventy thousand miles of salt water before we drop anchor in Portsmouth harbour,--not an inch less according to my calculation,--it would be enough to wear the sheathing off the s.h.i.+p's bottom if it was not pretty thick to begin with."

Most of the islands the s.h.i.+p visited were lofty, the hills covered thickly with trees to their summits. They were surrounded by coral reefs, through which, in many instances, no pa.s.sage was to be found; others had openings affording secure harbours within them. After visiting several small islands in the neighbourhood, the s.h.i.+p came to an anchor in a sheltered harbour in the island of Santa Cruz. Canoes quickly gathered round her, full of the ugliest-looking natives they had yet met with. Their skin was nearly black, their heads covered with thick woolly hair, their foreheads low and receding, their faces broad, with high cheek-bones, their noses flat, and their mouths large. They had adorned their bodies with various colours, and ornamented themselves further with rings through their noses and ears, as also with armlets and necklaces of human teeth; the rest of their dress consisting only of a string round the waist, to which a small ap.r.o.n was secured. These unattractive-looking personages were considerably under the ordinary size, but appeared, notwithstanding the character bestowed on them of being the most cruel and treacherous in the Pacific Ocean, to be a good-tempered, merry race. They brought off large quant.i.ties of cocoanuts, bows, arrows, and mats, which they were willing to exchange for empty bottles, old-clothes, and tobacco. As yet, no missionaries having ventured among them, they were in the same savage state in which they had for centuries existed.

In the evening, those who had been allowed to come on board were turned out of the s.h.i.+p, and a bright look-out was kept against any treacherous trick they might have attempted to play. The fires had been let out, as Jack intended to remain during the day for the purpose of obtaining water. Early the next morning, a schooner was seen pa.s.sing close in with the land. As the wind was light, Jack despatched two boats to overhaul her; one was commanded by Green, who was accompanied by Archie--the other by Tom, who had Billy Blueblazes as his companion.

They pulled away, hoping soon to overtake the stranger. When, however, they were about half a mile from her, a breeze sprang up; but, as the boats had their sails, the masts were stepped, and they stood on after the chase. She took no notice of the musket which Green fired as a signal for her to heave-to, but, instead of doing so, she set more sail and stood on. This making him more suspicious than ever of her character, he determined to persevere; Tom and his companion being equally ready to continue the pursuit.

"Perhaps she is a pirate," observed Billy, "and when she finds that she cannot get off she will try to defend herself, and we shall have some fighting--something to vary the monotony of the voyage."

"As to that, I doubt whether such craft are to be found in these seas at the present day," answered Tom; "and I rather think, if we can manage to get up to her, that she will strike without firing a shot."

The question was, however, whether the boats would come up with her; the breeze was freshening, and she was walking away from them. Still Green kept on, hoping that the wind might head her, or that it might fall calm, when they would soon be alongside. She was steering towards a lofty conical island, which rose sheer out of the sea, with a thick cloud of smoke rising above its summit, which showed it to be an active volcano. The day was drawing on, but the schooner did not gain sufficiently on the boats to make Green abandon all hopes of overtaking her. Her persevering efforts to escape convinced him that something was wrong, and made him the more eager to overhaul her. At length, her sails were seen to flap against her masts, and, though the boats still had the breeze, it was very evident that she was becalmed. The sky had for some time been wearing a threatening aspect, and had not Green been so eager to overhaul the stranger, he would have endeavoured to make the best of his way back to Santa Cruz. At length the wind dropped altogether, and, the sails being lowered, the crews of the boats gave way, with a certainty that they should at length get up with the chase.

Each boat had four muskets; the officers had stuck their pistols in their belts, and the men had their cutla.s.ses--weapons on which British seamen always place more reliance than on firearms. They were now within gunshot of the schooner, but she did not fire, nor were any signs visible that she intended to offer resistance. Green steered for the starboard quarter, and directed Tom to board on the port side. They were soon up with her; Tom and Billy, with six men, scrambled up on deck, which Green and his party gained at the same time; but, except the man at the helm, and one other forward, none of the crew were visible.

The man at the helm looked very much astonished, and asked with cool effrontery what they wanted. Green replied that he must know where the schooner was from, whither she was bound, and what cargo she had on board.

"The master will tell you all about it, sir," answered the man, "but he is at present below, sick with a bad leg."

"Then I must pay him a visit, and get him to show his papers," said Green; who, telling Tom and Billy to keep a watch on deck, went into the master's cabin with Archie, and a couple of armed men. The master was sitting up in his cot, with a black boy attending on him.

"Well, gentlemen, what do you want?" he asked, as Green and Archie entered.

"Why did you run away from us," asked Green, "when you must have seen that our boats were those of one of Her Majesty's s.h.i.+ps-of-war?"

"How could I tell what you were?" said the master; "you might be pirates. At all events, I have no wish to be stopped in my voyage."