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words
Clash with each other like conflicting swords —
The robber’s quarrel by such sounds is shown,
And true men have some chance to gain their own,
Captivity, a Poem.
When Cleveland, borne off in triumph from his assailants in Kirkwall, found himself once more on board the pirate-vessel, his arrival was hailed with hearty cheers by a considerable part of the crew, who rushed to shake hands with him, and offer their congratulations on his return; for the situation of a Buccaneer Captain raised him very little above the level of the lowest of his crew, who, in all social intercourse, claimed the privilege of being his equal.
When his faction, for so these clamorous friends might be termed, had expressed their own greetings, they hurried Cleveland forward to the stem, where Goffe, their present commander, was seated on a gun, listening in a sullen and discontented mood to the shout which announced Cleveland’s welcome. He was a man betwixt forty and fifty, rather under the middle size, but so very strongly made, that his crew used to compare him to a sixty-four cut down. Black-haired, bull-
necked, and beetlebrowed, his clumsy strength and ferocious countenance contrasted strongly with the manly figure and open countenance of Cleveland, in which even the practice of his atrocious profession had not been able to eradicate a natural grace of motion and generosity of expression. The two piratical Captains looked upon each other for some time in silence, while the partisans of each gathered around him. The elder part of the crew were the principal adherents of Goffe, while the young fellows, among whom Jack Bunce was a principal leader and agitator, were in general attached to Cleveland.
At length Goffe broke silence. — ” You are welcome aboard, Captain Cleveland. — Smash my taffrail! I suppose you think yourself commodore yet! but that was over, by G — , when you lost your ship, and be d — d!”
And here, once for all, we may take notice, that it was the gracious custom of this commander to mix his words and oaths in nearly equal proportions, which he was wont to call shotting his discourse. As we delight not, however, in the discharge of such artillery, we shall only indicate by a space like this the places in which these expletives occurred; and thus, if the reader will pardon a very poor pun, we will reduce Captain Goffe’s volley of sharp-shot into an explosion of blank cartridges. To his insinuations that he was come on board to assume the chief command, Cleveland replied, that he neither desired, nor would accept, any such promotion, but would only ask Captain Goffe for a cast of the boat, to put him ashore in one of the other islands, as he had no wish either to command Goffe, or to remain in a vessel under his orders. “And why not under my orders, brother? “ demanded Goffe, very austerely; “are you too good a man, with your cheese-toaster and your jib there, to serve under my orders, and be d — d to you, where there are so many gentlemen that are elder and better seamen than yourself?”
“I wonder which of these capital seamen it was,” said Cleveland coolly, “that laid the ship under the fire of yon six-gun battery, that could blow her out of the water, if they had a mind, before you could either cut or slip? Elder and better sailors than I may like to serve under such a lubber, but I beg to be excused for my own share, Captain — that’s all I have got to tell you.”
“By G — , I think you are both mad!” said Hawkins the boatswain — ” a meeting writh sword and pistol may be devilish good fun in its way, when no better is to be had; but who the devil that had common sense, amongst a set of gentlemen in our condition, would fall a-quarrelling with each other, to let these duck-winged, web-footed islanders have a chance of knocking us all upon the head?”
“Well said, old Hawkins! “ observed Derrick;the quartermaster, who was an officer of very considerable importance among these rovers; “ I say, if the two captains won’t agree to live together quietly, and club both heart and head to defend the vessel, why, d — n me, depose them both, say I, and choose another in their stead!”
“Meaning yourself, I suppose, Master Quartermaster!” said Jack Bunce; “but that cock won’t fight. He that is to command gentlemen, should be a gentleman himself, I think; and I give my vote for Captain Cleveland, as spirited and as gentlemanlike a man as ever daffed the world aside, and bid it pass!”
“What! you call yourself a gentleman, I warrant! “ retorted Derrick; “ why,your eyes! a tailor would make a better out of the worst suit of rags in your strolling wardrobe! — It is a shame for men of spirit to have such a Jack-a-dandy scarecrow on board!”
Jack Bunce was so incensed at these base comparisons, that without more ado, he laid his hand on his sword. The carpenter, however, and boatswain, interfered, the former i brandishing his broad axe, and swearing he would put the skull of the first who should strike a blow past clouting, and the latter reminding them, that, by their articles, all quarrel-c ling, striking, or more especially fighting, on board, was strictly prohibited; and that, if any gentleman had a quarrel to settle, they were to go ashore, and decide it with cutlass and pistol r in presence of two of their messmates.
“I have no quarrel with any one,!” said Goffe r sullenly; “ Captain Cleveland has wandered about among the islands here, amusing himself,! and we have f wasted our time and property in waiting for him, when we might have been adding twenty or -thirty thousand dollars to the stock-purse. However, if it pleases the rest of the gentlemen-adventurers,! why, I shall not grumbleabout it.”
“I propose,” said the boatswain, “ that there should be a general council called in the great cabin, according to our articles, that we may consider what course we are to hold in this matter.”
A general assent followed the boatswain’s proposal; for every one found his own account in these general councils, in which each of the rovers had a free vote. By far the greater part of the crew only valued this franchise, as it allowed them, upon such solemn occasions, an unlimited quantity of liquor — a right which they failed not to exercise to the uttermost, by way of aiding their deliberations. But a few amongst the adventurers, who united some degree of judgment with the daring and profligate character of their profession, were wont, at such periods, to limit themselves within the bounds of comparative sobriety, and by these, under the apparent form of a vote of the general council, all things of moment relating to the voyage and undertakings of the pirates were in fact determined. The rest of the crew, when they recovered from their intoxication, were easily persuaded that the resolution adopted had been the legitimate effort of the combined wisdom of the whole senate.
Upon the present occasion the debauch had proceeded until the greater part of the crew were, as usual, displaying inebriation in all its most brutal and disgraceful shapes — swearing empty and unmeaning oaths — venting the most horrid imprecations in the mere gaiety of their heart — singing songs, the ribaldry of which was only equalled by their profaneness; and, from the middle of this earthly hell, the two captains, together with one or two of their principal adherents, as also the carpenter and boatswain, who always took a lead on such occasions, had drawn together into a pandemonium, or privy council of their own, to consider what was to be done; for, as the boatswain metaphorically observed, they were in a narrow channel, and behoved to keep sounding the tide-way.
When they began their consultations, the friends of Goffe remarked, to their great displeasure, that he had not observed the wholesome rule to which we have just alluded; but that, in. endeavouring to drown his mortification at the sudden appearance of Cleveland, and the reception he met with from the crew, the elder Captain had not been able to do so without overflowing his reason at the same time. His natural sullen taciturnity had prevented this from being observed until the council began its deliberations, when it proved impossible to hide it.
The first person who spoke was Cleveland, who said, that, so far from wishing the command of the vessel, he desired no favour at any one’s hand, except to land him upon some island or holm at a distance from Kirkwall, and leave him to shift for himself.
The boatswain remonstrated strongly against this resolution. “ The lads,” he said, “ all knew Cleveland, and could trust his seamanship, as well as his courage; besides, he never let the grog get quite uppermost, and was always in proper trim, either to sail the ship,