Whenever there was a chance, a pirate hand would be raised above the rail of the _Monterey_ and a revolver discharged upon her rail, and every few minutes there would be a rush to one point or another and a desperate fight upon the rail. The engines of both vessels had been stopped, and the screaming and roaring of the escaping steam gave additional horror to this fearful battle. Not a word could be heard from any one, no matter how loudly it might be shouted.
Whatever firearms were possessed by the men on the _Monterey_ were used with good effect, but in this respect they were vastly inferior to the enemy. When they had fired their pistols and their guns, some of them had no more ammunition, and others had no opportunity to reload. The men of the _Vittorio_ had firearms in abundance and pockets full of cartridges. Consequently it was not long before Captain Horn"s men were obliged to rely upon their hatchets, their handspikes, their belaying-pins, and their numbers.
Banker was in a very furious state of mind. He had expected to board the _Monterey_ without opposition, and now he had been fighting long and hard, and not a man of his crew was on board the other vessel. He had soon discovered that there were a great many men on board the _Monterey_, but he believed that the real reason for the so far successful resistance was the fact that Captain Horn commanded them.
Several times he mounted the upper deck of the _Vittorio_, and with a rifle in hand endeavored to get a chance to aim at the tall figure of which he now and then caught sight, and who he saw was directing everything that was going on. But every time he stood out with his rifle a pistol ball whizzed by him, and made him jump back. Whoever fired at him was not a good shot, but Banker did not wish to expose himself to any kind of a shot. Once he got a chance of taking aim at the Captain from behind the smokestack, but at that moment the Captain stepped back hurriedly out of view, as if somebody had been pulling him by the coat, and a ball rang against the funnel high above his own head. It was plain he was watched, and would not expose himself.
But that devil Horn must be killed, and he swore between his grinding teeth that he himself would do it. His men, many of them with b.l.o.o.d.y heads, were still fighting, swearing, climbing, and firing. None of them had been killed except those who had gained the deck of the other vessel, but Banker did not believe that they would be able to board the _Monterey_ until its captain had been disposed of. If he could put a ball into that fellow, the fight would be over.
Banker now determined to lead a fresh attack instead of simply ordering one. If he could call to his men from the deck of the _Monterey_, they would follow him. The _Vittorio_ lay so that her bow was somewhat forward of that of the _Monterey_, and as the rails at the bows of the two vessels were some distance apart, there was no fighting forward. The long boom of the fore-mast of the _Vittorio_ stretched over her upper deck, and, crouching low, Banker cut all the lines which secured it.
Then with a quick run he seized the long spar near its outer end, and thus swinging it out until it struck the shrouds, he found himself dangling over the forward deck of the _Monterey_, upon which he quickly dropped.
It so happened that the fight was now raging aft, and for a moment Banker stood alone looking about him. He believed his rapid transit through the air had not been noticed. He would not call upon his men to follow as he had intended. Without much fear of detection he would slip quietly behind the crew of the _Monterey_, and take a shot at Captain Horn the moment he laid eyes on him. Then he could shout out to his men to some purpose.
Banker moved on a few steps, not too cautiously, for he did not wish to provoke suspicion, when suddenly a hand was placed upon his chest. There was n.o.body in front of him, but there was the hand, and a very big one it was, and very black. Like a flash Banker turned, and beheld himself face to face with the man Mok, the same chimpanzee-like negro who had been his slave, and with whom in the streets of Paris he had once had a terrible struggle, which had resulted in his capture by the police and his imprisonment. Here was that same black devil again, his arms about him as if they had been chain-cables on a windla.s.s.
Banker had two pistols, but he had put them in his pockets when he made his swing upon the boom, and he had not yet drawn them, and now his arms were held so tightly to his sides that he could not get at his weapons.
There was no one near. Banker was wise enough not to call out or even to swear an oath, and Mok had apparently relapsed into the condition of the speechless savage beast. With a wrench which might have torn an ordinary limb from its socket, Banker freed his left arm, but a black hand had grasped it before he could reach his pistol.
Then there was a struggle--quick, hard, silent, and furious, as if two great cobras were writhing together, seeking each other"s death. Mok was not armed. Banker could not use knife or pistol. They stumbled, they went down on their knees, they rose and fell together against the rail.
Instantly Banker, with his left arm and the strength of his whole body, raised the negro to the rail and pushed him outward. The action was so sudden, the effort of the maddened pirate was so great, that Mok could not resist it--he went over the side. But his hold upon Banker did not relax even in the moment when he felt himself falling, and his weight was so great and the impetus was so tremendous that Banker could not hold back, and followed him over the rail. Still clutching each other tightly, the two disappeared with a splash into the sea.
Fears were beginning to steal into the valiant heart of Captain Horn.
The pirates were so well armed, they kept up such a savage fire upon his decks, that although their shots were sent at random, several men had been killed, and others--he knew not how many--wounded, that he feared his crew, ordinary sailors and not accustomed to such savage work as this, might consider the contest too unequal, and so lose heart. If that should be the case, the affair would be finished.
But there was still one means of defence on which he thought he might rely to drive off the scoundrels. The _Monterey_ had been a cotton ship, and she was provided with hose by which steam could be thrown upon her cargo in case of fire, and Captain Hagar had undertaken to try to get this into condition to use upon the scoundrels who were endeavoring to board the vessel. By this time two heavy lines of hose had been rigged and attached to the boiler, and the other ends brought out on deck--one forward and the other amidships.
[Ill.u.s.tration: BANKER COULD NOT HOLD BACK]
Captain Hagar was a quiet man, and in no way a fighter, but now he seemed imbued with a reckless courage; and without thinking of the danger of exposing himself to pistol or to rifle, he laid the nozzle of his hose over the rail and directed it down upon the deck below. As soon as the hot steam began to pour upon the astonished pirates there were yells and execrations, and when another scalding jet came in upon them over the forward bulwarks of the _Monterey_, the confusion became greater on the pirate ship.
It was at this moment, as Edna, her face pale and her bright eyes fixed upon the upper deck of the _Vittorio_, stood with a revolver in her hand at the window of her cabin, which was on deck, that her Swedish maid, trembling so much that she could scarcely stand, approached her and gave her notice that she must quit her service. Edna did not hear what she said. "Are you there?" she cried. "Look out--tell me if you can see Captain Horn!"
The frightened girl, scarcely knowing what she did, rushed from the cabin to look for Captain Horn, not so much because her mistress wanted information of him as because she thought to throw herself upon his protection. She believed that the Captain could do anything for anybody, and she ran madly along the deck on the other side from that on which the battle was raging, and meeting no one, did not stop until she had nearly reached the bow. Then she stopped, looked about her, and in a moment was startled by hearing herself called by her name. There was no one near her; she looked up, she looked around.
Then again she heard her name, "Sophee! Sophee!" Now it seemed to come from the water, and looking over the low rail she beheld a black head on the surface of the sea. Its owner was swimming about, endeavoring to find something on which he could lay hold, and he had seen the white cap of the maid above the ship"s side. Sophia and Mok were very good friends, for the latter had always been glad to wait upon her in every way possible, and now she forgot her own danger in her solicitude for the poor black man.
"Oh, Mok! Mok!" she cried, "can"t you get out of the water? Can I help you?"
Mok shouted out one of his few English words. "Rope! rope!" he said. But Sophia could see no rope except those which were fast to something, and in her terror she ran aft to call for a.s.sistance.
There was now not so much noise and din. The steam was not escaping from the boilers of the _Monterey_, for it was needed for the hose, and there were no more shots fired from the _Vittorio_. The officers of the pirate ship were running here and there looking for Banker, that they might ask for orders, while the men were crowding together behind every possible protection, and rushing below to escape the terrible streams of scalding steam.
Now that they could work in safety, the _Monterey"s_ men got their handspikes under the grappling-irons, and wrenched them from their holes, and leaning over the side they cut the ropes which held them to the pirate ship. The two vessels now swung apart, and Captain Horn was on the point of giving orders to start the engines and steam ahead, when the maid, Sophia, seized him by the arm. "Mrs. Horn wants you," she said, "and Mok"s in the water!"
"Mok!" exclaimed the Captain.
"Yes, here! here!" cried Sophia, and running to the side, she pointed to where Mok"s black head and waving arms were still circling about on the surface of the sea.
When a rope had been cast to Mok, and he had been hauled up the side, the Captain gave orders to start ahead, and rushed to the cabin where he had left Edna; but it was not during that brief interval of thankfulness that he heard how she had recognized the Rackbird, Banker, on the pirate ship, and how she had fired at him every time he had shown himself.
The _Monterey_ started southward towards the point where they had last seen the yacht and the _Dunkery Beacon_, and the pirate ship, veering off to the south-east, steamed slowly away. The people on board of her were looking everywhere for Banker, for without him they knew not what they ought to do, but if their leader ever came up from the great depth to which he had sunk with Mok"s black hands upon his throat, his comrades were not near the spot where, dead or alive, he floated to the surface.
CHAPTER x.x.xI
"SHE BACKED!"
When Captain Burke observed the _Dunkery Beacon_ steaming in his direction, and soon afterwards perceived a signal on this steamer to the effect that she wished to speak with the yacht, he began to hope that he was going to get out of his difficulties. The natural surmise was that as one of the pirates had gone to join another just arriving upon the scene, the _Dunkery Beacon_--the Captain and crew of which must have turned traitors--was now coming to propose some arrangement, probably to give up Shirley if the yacht would agree to go its way and cease its hara.s.sing interference.
If this proposition should be made, Burke and Mrs. Cliff, in conference, decided to accept it. They had done all they could, and would return to Kingston to report to Captain Horn what they had done, and what they had discovered. But it was not long before the people on the yacht began to wonder very much at the conduct of the great steamer which was now rapidly approaching them, apparently under full head of steam.
The yacht was lying to, her engines motionless, and the _Dunkery Beacon_ was coming ahead like a furious ram on a course, which, if not quickly changed, would cause her to strike the smaller vessel almost amidships.
It became plainer and plainer every second that the Dunkery did not intend to change her course, and that her object was to run down the yacht.
Why the _Dunkery Beacon_ should wish to ram the _Summer Shelter_ n.o.body on board the yacht considered for a moment, but every one, even w.i.l.l.y Croup, perceived the immediate necessity of getting out of the way.
Burke sprang to the wheel, and began to roar his orders in every direction. His object was to put the yacht around so that he could get out of the course of the _Dunkery Beacon_ and pa.s.s her in the opposite direction to which she was going, but n.o.body on board seemed to be sufficiently alive to the threatening situation, or to be alert enough to do what was ordered at the very instant of command; and Burke, excited to the highest pitch, began to swear after a fashion entirely unknown to the two ladies and the members of the Synod. His cursing and swearing was of such a cyclonic and all-pervading character that some of those on board shuddered almost as much on account of his language as for fear of the terrible crash which was impending.
"This is dreadful!" said one of the clergymen, advancing as if he would mount to the pilot house.
"Stop!" said Mr. Arbuckle, excitedly placing his hand upon the shoulder of the other. "Don"t interfere at such a moment. The ship must be managed."
In a very short time, although it seemed like long, weary minutes to the people on the yacht, her engines moved, her screw revolved, and she slowly moved around to leeward. If she could have done this half a minute sooner, she would have steamed out of the course of the _Dunkery Beacon_ so that that vessel must have pa.s.sed her, but she did not do it soon enough. The large steamer came on at what seemed amazing speed, and would have struck the yacht a little abaft the bow had not Burke, seeing that a collision could not be avoided, quickly reversed his helm. Almost in the next second the two vessels came together, but it was the stem of the yacht which struck the larger steamer abaft the bow.
The shock to the _Summer Shelter_ was terrific, and having but little headway at the moment of collision she was driven backward by the tremendous momentum of the larger vessel as if she had been a ball struck by a bat. Every person on board was thrown down and hurled forward. Mrs. Cliff extended herself flat upon the deck, her arms outspread, and every clergyman was stretched out at full length or curled up against some obstacle. The engineer had been thrown among his levers and cranks, bruising himself badly about the head and shoulders, while his a.s.sistant and Mr. Hodgson, who were at work below, were jammed among the ashes of the furnace as if they were trying to stop the draught with their bodies.
Mr. Burdette was on the forward deck, and if he had not tripped and fallen, would probably have been shot overboard; and the sailing-master was thrown against the smokestack with such violence that for a few moments he was insensible.
Burke, who was at the wheel, saw what was coming and tried to brace himself so that he should not be impaled upon one of the handles, but the shock was too much for him and he pitched forward with such force that he came near going over the wheel and out of the window of the pilot house. As soon as Captain Burke could recover himself he scrambled back to his position behind the wheel. He had been dazed and bruised, but his senses quickly came to him and he comprehended the present condition of affairs.
The yacht had not only been forced violently backward, but had been veered around so that it now lay with its broadside towards the bow of the other steamer. In some way, either unwittingly by the engineer or by the violence of the shock, her engine had been stopped and she was without motion, except the slight pitching and rolling occasioned by the collision. The _Dunkery Beacon_ was not far away, and Burke saw to his horror that she was again moving forward. She was coming slowly, but if she reached the yacht in the latter"s present position, she would have weight and force enough to turn over the smaller vessel.
Immediately Burke attempted to give the order to back the yacht. The instant performance of this order was the only chance of safety, but he had been thrown against the speaking-tube with such violence that he had jammed it and made it useless. If he pulled a bell the engineer might misunderstand. She must back! She could not pa.s.s the other vessel if she went ahead. He leaned out of the door of the pilot house and yelled downward to the engineer to back her; he yelled to somebody to tell the engineer to back her; he shouted until his shouts became screams, but n.o.body obeyed his orders, no one seemed to hear or to heed. But one person did hear.
w.i.l.l.y Croup had been impelled out of the door of the saloon and had slid forward on her knees and elbows until she was nearly under the pilot house. At the sound of Burke"s voice, she looked up, she comprehended that orders were being given to which no attention was paid. The wild excitement of the shouting Captain filled her with an excitement quite as wild. She heard the name of the engineer, she heard the order, and without taking time to rise to her feet, she made a bound in the direction of the engine room.
Thrusting her body half through the doorway she yelled to the engineer, who, scarcely conscious of where he was or what he was doing, was pushing himself away from among his bars and rods. "Back her!" screamed w.i.l.l.y, and without knowing what she said or did, she repeated this order over and over again in a roaring voice which no one would have supposed her capable of, and accompanied by all the oaths which at that moment were being hurled down from the pilot house.
The engineer did not look up; he did not consider himself nor the situation. There was but one impression upon his mind made by the electric flash of the order backed by the following crash of oaths.
Instinctively he seized his lever, reversed the engine, and started the _Summer Shelter_ backward. Slowly, very slowly, she moved. Burke held his breath!
But the great steamer was coming on slowly. Her motion was increasing, but so was that of the yacht, and when, after some moments of almost paralyzing terror, during which w.i.l.l.y Croup continued to hurl her furious orders into the engine room, not knowing they had been obeyed, the two vessels drew near each other, the _Dunkery Beacon_ crossed the bow of the _Summer Shelter_ a very long biscuit-toss ahead.
"Miss Croup," said Mr. Litchfield, his hand upon her shoulder, "that will do! The yacht is out of immediate danger."
w.i.l.l.y started up. Her wild eyes were raised to the face of the young clergyman, the roar of her own invectives sounded in her ears. Tears poured from her eyes.