Ocean Queen
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By the time we were able to get underway again, it was dark, and the wind had dropped. It would have been possible to continue with the sparsail alone; but as the main topgallant stayed in place, a jury-rigged canvas yard rigged across this allowed us to carry on.
We could now sail without tacking, and by keeping our heads up, even with the wind against us, we managed to reach Port Antonio at last—a long wearying day of sailing—and then took up our anchor.
“The first thing for us to do is to find out what has happened,” said Captain Flint. “I think that you had best go ashore.”
We made all arrangements for our comfort while they remained, and I went off into the town to see if I could learn anything. The Governor had been murdered two days before. A young French officer named d’Orbigny, who had taken refuge there after escaping from prison, was supposed to be responsible for his death.
There was little doubt that he would try and make his escape from Jamaica as soon as he found himself able to do so. It was rumored that he possessed a secret passage into the harbor, though there was no proof whatever of its existence.
I was fortunate enough to meet Captain Grant, whom I knew from an early period of my life when I lived on the island. He was well known and respected among the people, not only as a mariner but as a man who had fought gallantly in the American War and had returned to become Governor of Jamaica.
It was therefore impossible to get any information about the situation which existed at that moment outside the walls of the Government House. All that I could collect was that, although the people were very much alarmed, there appeared no immediate threat to the island itself.
This was something of a relief, since, with every day’s delay, we were growing more apprehensive as to whether we might not have missed the last ship for England.
When Captain Flint came back, he informed us that the Governor’s murder was being actively investigated and that he did not feel justified in leaving Port Royal yet. As it was too late in the season for us to expect any help from any other vessel which might be put into Jamaica, he decided that we should remain where we were until spring.
This was a disappointment, but I was not sorry for myself: it was bad luck for those who had to face winter at sea in such circumstances. But I thought it was very bad news for poor Tom Badgerlock.
I spent the remainder of my leave doing what work I could, writing letters and making arrangements for our future departure; so that we were well prepared for any eventuality when Captain Flint finally ordered me ashore once more.
***
Our stay at Port Royal continued to be eventless. We had no idea when or even if we were likely to sail again, for there was still no sign of a ship coming in to take on water and provisions. At length one night, in passing our position, we saw three ships anchored in the harbor; and when morning came we knew by their flags that they belonged to England.
They were the Indiamen Hibernia and Stirling Castle, which had arrived from the West Indies, and the East India Company’s vessel, the Duke of York.
I felt sure that this must be our salvation, for the men who had come with the Hibernian and the Stirling Castle had told us that the latter ship had left for Plymouth almost immediately on arrival; whereas the Indiamen had been delayed until they received orders from London.
I, therefore, ran to tell Captain Flint as soon as it was light, but it seemed that he had been waiting at least until the evening. By that time the Indiamen had cleared out, and there was nothing we could do.
In the course of the following weeks, there occurred several incidents which were of great importance both for us and for Port Royal. The Hibernia and Stirling Castle had been detained for some time at Bermuda because their captain thought that she would be obliged to put into port again for freshwater; and as it had been difficult to arrange any sort of transport for their cargoes, the cargo had been unloaded at different ports and sent down the coast by road.
One of these places was Kingston, where it was sold to private merchants, and it was from there that it was smuggled out into the interior by the slaves, and then carried on overland to the West Indies. It had thus reached Jamaica before we did.
Another incident that proved to be highly important took place just as we were preparing to go ashore. Our vessel was being watched closely, and the governor had given orders to his soldiers that no one could pass the gates without being searched.
When one of the crews who was a member of the Jamaican militia attempted to do so, he was shot down and killed. His comrades, of course, were not slow in discovering that it was a ruse of their enemies, and they began shooting at the watch-house, and at anyone who approached the wall.
Fortunately for us, they did not attempt to enter the city, for they knew that this would mean certain destruction. However, as they were firing, they did manage to kill two of our people; and as it was a clear indication of how desperate their feelings were, it made us even more anxious about the fate awaiting us.
The only other event of any consequence which happened during the last few days of our stay was a small fire at Government House, caused by a candle being put out too hastily. A large crowd gathered around the spot, for all sorts of rumors were flying through the air.
One of them was that a French squadron had sailed into the bay and captured the town and that the English governor had escaped from Government House; another that the French had landed on the shore behind the city, and were advancing towards Port Royal; and a third that a detachment of the French army had marched in from the north-west, and was already camped between Montego Bay and Ocho Rios, while their artillery had opened up at Pigeon Point.
All these stories were wild exaggerations, but they did cause much excitement; and as the French were known to be in possession of Jamaica, the people believed that Port Royal would be the next point on which the attack was directed.
Captain Flint, however, was convinced that none of these rumors were true and that we should be safe until we were ready to sail. He, therefore, determined that we would leave Port Royal before the day was far advanced. I think it must have been about six o’clock when he called me to his quarters and gave me some instructions.
“Bruno,” he said, “I’m afraid it is time you returned to England.”
It was with a heavy heart that I replied: “Yes, Captain. And I thank God that I will soon see my dear wife and children again!”
For the moment he remained silent, and I could hear him talking with someone else. Presently he turned back to me.
“By now you can guess what I am going to tell you, I think, Bruno?” he asked.
“No, sir; but perhaps you know yourself better than I do.”
“You may think that I should send you away from here. You are right. But that isn’t enough. We shall have to leave Port Royal. If we remain longer we shall certainly be taken. In spite of all my precautions, it is impossible to avoid suspicion, and it would not be long before it became common knowledge that our vessels were being held under guard in Port Royal.”
This was a terrible blow to us all! We could hardly believe that anything so disastrous could happen to us. It was like a nightmare, something beyond comprehension or belief. The shock of it was very great.
When Captain Flint had explained to us what steps he intended to take, we went to look for Lieutenant Bligh, and he agreed to follow our example. He too had to return to England, and we left him in charge of the ship.
Then we walked across the beach to meet Mr. Hyde and Mr. Pitt. I cannot describe how distressed I felt at leaving them. They were good friends, and I was sorry to part with them. They had both promised to keep my secret, and I could not bear to think that they might be discovered.
As we passed through the crowd outside Government House, I noticed that several persons were pointing at me and calling out questions. It was plain that they already suspected that we were in communication with the British authorities, and if our names had not been written on our hands I doubt if anyone would have recognized either of us.
There was also the rumor that a Frenchman had landed in Port Royal, and I wondered whether they knew about that. Perhaps they did not; and yet it seemed strange that they should allow a vessel belonging to their own country to lie at anchor inside the harbor. It was evident that Captain Flint’s caution in this matter had been justified.
As soon as we reached the town we sought an inn where we could make our plans and wait till nightfall. The streets were crowded with people, and it was difficult to get anywhere near the main thoroughfares.
There were hundreds of houses standing close together, many of them occupied by wealthy merchants and gentlemen of the town. Some of the windows were open, and we heard music and singing, and could even distinguish the voices of some who were sitting at the table.
But there was nothing that showed that Port Royal was preparing to repel an invasion. No cannon was mounted on the ramparts, no flags flew from the roofs of the town, and only a few men were on the walls looking out over the sea towards the northwest.
There was little or no activity at the fortifications; it seemed as though the inhabitants believed that no danger threatened them. This was probably true, but that did not satisfy us. We could not remain in Port Royal when such preparations were being made against us, and as we could not sail before dawn the next morning we decided that we must find someplace to stay until then.
There was a public house not far from Government House where we thought we should be safe enough; and as it was still early evening we took ourselves off to it, accompanied by Major Maturin.
When we entered it we found that the innkeeper was absent, having gone down to the wharf to bring some fresh meat from one of the ships lying there, which she sold in the shop below. So we sat down to rest while we waited.
Mr. Pitt came across to our side and joined us.
“I have heard of you from Captain Aubrey, sir,” he said. “And you must forgive me for asking you, sir—if you please! —but do you really mean to sail tomorrow, sir?”
He spoke respectfully enough, and his manner was not unfriendly. I answered him in the same spirit:
“If Captain Flint says so, Mr Pitt, we shall certainly have to sail tomorrow. And if you do not wish to sail, perhaps you will kindly leave us in peace.”
There was no sign that he understood a word of what I had said. He shook his head sadly and returned to our party.
Presently the innkeeper appeared, with a young girl, and we told her that we wished to take up quarters there. She looked rather dubious when she saw Mr. Hyde and Mr. Pitt, but when we mentioned Captain Aubrey’s name she gave us permission without further questioning. She had evidently known the captain well.
When we had settled ourselves and were eating our dinner, we noticed a gentleman sitting in another part of the room who appeared to be reading a newspaper; but he did not turn a page all the time we were there and, when I happened to notice him looking at us once or twice, he turned back quickly and pretended to be engrossed in what he read.
He was dressed very neatly, with a fine black coat and breeches, but as he wore neither hat nor gloves his attire was quite ordinary. I remarked on his appearance to Mr. Pitt, and he replied that he did not know him, although he was a frequent visitor in the town.
At first, I thought it was the doctor’s voice I had heard from the window, but as we talked it occurred to me that his accent was different from Dr. Maturin’s. He may have been a native of Port Royal, but if so he did not seem to belong among its better-born inhabitants.
After dinner, we strolled into the garden at the back of the house and stood talking for a while before going to bed. It was growing darker, but I could just make out the figure of the man who had been sitting in the tavern; it seemed to me that he was looking straight at me, but when I looked directly at him his face was invisible behind the window curtain.
The End