Our first care was to get the pa.s.sengers and crew of the _Phoenix_ safely ash.o.r.e. There was, we heard, a stout barque on the point of sailing for Virginia in a few days" time, so that those who were of a mind to cross the ocean, and had sufficient means to pay for their pa.s.sage, could avail themselves of her departure.
Mistress Farndale and her family had resolved to do this, but ere they went ash.o.r.e I promised to call upon them as soon as my duties would permit, for until the matter of sharing the treasure was settled Captain Jeremy would allow no communication with the land.
Three days later two a.s.sessors, being duly qualified Government officers, came post haste from the Royal Mint and boarded us. The seals of the strong room were broken and the ma.s.sive locks unfastened, and the task of allotting the wealth proceeded.
Having set aside the t.i.the claimed by the state, and also the amount due to Sir William Soams (who received a good eight hundred per centum on his outlay), the shares owing to the original crew of the _Golden Hope_ and to the men of the _Neptune_ were duly paid out.
Then the residue, by a rough calculation of the value of 180,000 pounds, was to be equally divided "twixt Captain Jeremy and the heirs of the late Captain Richard Hammond. I could hardly realize the value of this immense sum, though I knew that our share was sufficient to restore the fortunes of our house to its former greatness.
The _Golden Hope_ was now moored alongside a wharf on the Hamworthy side of the harbour, and at two bells in the afternoon watch the men mustered on deck, those who came off the _Neptune_ having fallen in on the larboard side, each with his bundle ready for his long tramp to distant Sedgemoor.
In a few hearty words Captain Jeremy addressed them, thanking them for their services, and wishing them every success in their future.
Then, after three ringing cheers, the "Neptunes", their pockets filled with coin, went ash.o.r.e, amid the boisterous farewells of their comrades of the last two years and more; and as the little band of men, who were now returning to till the soil instead of ploughing the deep, disappeared from our view, I felt that another link with the past had been finally severed.
Our share of the treasure having been placed in safe keeping in the town vaults of the corporation of Poole, those of the crew who wished to take their discharge were dismissed, and under the command of Clemens and the master gunner the _Golden Hope_ sailed for the Thames, where she was to be handed back to her owners.
Two days later Master Phillips, a London goldsmith, arrived, and, having carefully examined the plate, made us a good offer. Thus the precious cargo of the wrecked _Madre de Dios_ pa.s.sed out of our keeping, though I retained a few pieces of rare and costly workmanship as a visible reminder of the treasure that, according to the friar"s prophecy, had been obtained through fire and blood.
Thus the story of the quest of the _Golden Hope_ draws to a close, yet I must briefly dwell on the subsequent history of the princ.i.p.al characters who played their parts in the search for the Madre treasure.
"Enery, bluff, stouthearted seaman, is now master and part owner of the vessel in which he sailed with Captain Jeremy to the far-off West Indies, for the _Golden Hope_ is now engaged in prosperous trading voyages to the Mediterranean ports. Yet whenever she returns home, Captain "Enery, still much the same as of yore, generally contrives to visit his native Lymington; nor does he forget to extend his journey as far as Brockenhurst, where, joining with his former captain in a gla.s.s and a pipe, he"ll fight his battles o"er again.
Of Clemens the Cornishman we still hear, though less frequently than we should like. He returned to his native town of Looe, where, having given up the sea, he has worked up a sound boat-building business.
Silas Touchstone, the master gunner, finding little use for his calling on private vessels, took service in His Majesty"s Fleet, and promised to make a name for himself. Both at La Hogue and the desperate and successful attempt upon St. Malo our late master gunner was mentioned for conspicuous bravery. To what extent his dauntless courage would have led him "twould have been hard to say, had not his career afloat been nipped in the bud by the loss of a leg in action in Vigo Bay.
On attaining my twenty-first birthday I took ship to Richmond, in Virginia, where Winifred and I were made one. A happier couple "twould be hard to find, for our love has stood the test of time.
Still, there are moments when I hear the call of the salt-laden breezes, and even yet I may once more adventure myself upon the high seas.
Nor must I omit mention of a tall, elderly man, who, despite his white locks and iron-grey beard, still carries himself erect and alert as of yore. A general favourite with my children, especially his little namesake, now a st.u.r.dy child of nine years, Captain Jeremy Miles has given up the sea, and spends the greater part of his leisure hours in spinning yarns to his interested listeners of the quest of the _Golden Hope_.