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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of On The Blockade, by Oliver Optic
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: On The Blockade
+       SERIES: The Blue and the Gray Afloat
+
+Author: Oliver Optic
+
+Release Date: June 18, 2006 [EBook #18617]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ON THE BLOCKADE ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Louise Hope, David Garcia, Juliet Sutherland
+and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at
+http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images
+generously made available by The Kentuckiana Digital
+Library)
+
+
+
+
+
+
+THE BLUE AND THE GRAY--AFLOAT
+
+Two colors cloth  Emblematic Dies  Illustrated
+Price per volume $1.50
+
+  TAKEN BY THE ENEMY
+  WITHIN THE ENEMY'S LINES
+  ON THE BLOCKADE
+  STAND BY THE UNION
+  FIGHTING FOR THE RIGHT
+  A VICTORIOUS UNION
+
+THE BLUE AND THE GRAY--ON LAND
+
+Two colors cloth  Emblematic Dies  Illustrated
+Price per volume $1.50
+
+  BROTHER AGAINST BROTHER
+  IN THE SADDLE
+  A LIEUTENANT AT EIGHTEEN
+  ON THE STAFF
+  AT THE FRONT
+  AN UNDIVIDED UNION
+
+Any Volume Sold Separately
+
+Lee and Shepard Publishers
+  BOSTON
+
+
+
+
+  [Illustration: Mulgrum and the engineer.]
+
+
+
+
+                      The
+
+               BLUE AND THE GRAY
+
+                     Series
+
+                 [Illustration]
+
+                By Oliver Optic
+
+                ON THE BLOCKADE
+
+
+
+
+         _The Blue and the Gray Series_
+
+                ON THE BLOCKADE
+
+                       by
+                  OLIVER OPTIC
+
+                   Author of
+"The Army and Navy Series" "Young America Abroad"
+"The Great Western Series" "The Woodville Stories"
+"The Starry Flag Series" "The Boat-Club Stories"
+"The Onward and Upward Series" "The Yacht-Club Series"
+"The Lake Shore Series" "The Riverdale Series"
+"The Boat-Builder Series" "Taken by the Enemy"
+        "Within the Enemy's Lines" etc.
+
+
+                     BOSTON
+
+          LEE AND SHEPARD  Publishers
+
+
+
+
+      Copyright, 1890, by Lee and Shepard
+             _All rights reserved._
+
+                On the Blockade.
+
+
+
+
+               To my Son-in-Law,
+
+               SOL SMITH RUSSELL,
+
+        of the United States of America,
+   though Residing in Minneapolis, Minnesota,
+
+                 who is always
+"On the Blockade" against Melancholy, "The Blues,"
+           and all similar maladies,
+
+                  This Volume
+          is affectionately dedicated.
+
+
+
+
+PREFACE
+
+
+"ON THE BLOCKADE" is the third of "The Blue and the Gray Series." Like
+the first and second volumes, its incidents are dated back to the War
+of the Rebellion, and located in the midst of its most stirring scenes
+on the Southern coast, where the naval operations of the United States
+contributed their full share to the final result.
+
+The writer begs to remind his readers again that he has not felt called
+upon to invest his story with the dignity of history, or in all cases
+to mingle fiction with actual historic occurrences. He believes that all
+the scenes of the story are not only possible, but probable, and that
+just such events as he has narrated really and frequently occurred in
+the days of the Rebellion.
+
+The historian is forbidden to make his work more palatable or more
+interesting by the intermixture of fiction with fact, while the
+story-writer, though required to be reasonably consistent with the
+spirit and the truth of history, may wander from veritable details, and
+use his imagination in the creation of incidents upon which the grand
+result is reached. It would not be allowable to make the Rebellion a
+success, if the writer so desired, even on the pages of romance; and it
+would not be fair or just to ignore the bravery, the self-sacrifice, and
+the heroic endurance of the Southern people in a cause they believed to
+be holy and patriotic, as almost universally admitted at the present
+time, any more than it would be to lose sight of the magnificent spirit,
+the heroism, the courage, and the persistence, of the Northern people in
+accomplishing what they believed then, and still believe, was a holy and
+patriotic duty in the preservation of the Union.
+
+Incidents not inconsistent with the final result, or with the spirit
+of the people on either side in the great conflict are of comparatively
+little consequence. That General Lee or General Grant turned this or
+that corner in reaching Appomattox may be important, but the grand
+historical tableau is the Christian hero, noble in the midst of defeat,
+disaster, and ruin, formally rendering his sword to the impassible but
+magnanimous conqueror as the crowning event of a long and bloody war.
+The details are historically important, though overshadowed by the
+mighty result of the great conflict.
+
+Many of the personages of the preceding volumes have been introduced in
+the present one, and the central figure remains the same. The writer is
+willing to admit that his hero is an ideal character, though his lofty
+tone and patriotic spirit were fully paralleled by veritable individuals
+during the war; and he is not prepared to apologize for the abundant
+success which attended the career of Christy Passford. Those who really
+struggled as earnestly and faithfully deserved his good fortune, though
+they did not always obtain it.
+
+  Dorchester, Mass., April 24, 1890.
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+                                              Page
+CHAPTER I.
+The United States Steamer Bronx                 15
+
+CHAPTER II.
+A Dinner for the Confederacy                    26
+
+CHAPTER III.
+The Intruder at the Cabin Door                  37
+
+CHAPTER IV.
+A Deaf and Dumb Mystery                         48
+
+CHAPTER V.
+A Confidential Steward                          59
+
+CHAPTER VI.
+A Mission up the Foremast                       70
+
+CHAPTER VII.
+An Interview on the Bridge                      81
+
+CHAPTER VIII.
+Important Information, if True                  92
+
+CHAPTER IX.
+A Volunteer Captain's Clerk                    103
+
+CHAPTER X.
+The Unexpected Orders                          114
+
+CHAPTER XI.
+Another Reading of the Sealed Orders           125
+
+CHAPTER XII.
+A Sail on the Starboard Bow                    136
+
+CHAPTER XIII.
+The Steamer in the Fog                         147
+
+CHAPTER XIV.
+The Confederate Steamer Scotian                158
+
+CHAPTER XV.
+The Scotian becomes the Ocklockonee            169
+
+CHAPTER XVI.
+Captain Passford's Final Orders                180
+
+CHAPTER XVII.
+A Couple of Astonished Conspirators            191
+
+CHAPTER XVIII.
+A Triangular Action with Great Guns            202
+
+CHAPTER XIX.
+On the Deck of the Arran                       213
+
+CHAPTER XX.
+The New Commander of the Bronx                 224
+
+CHAPTER XXI.
+An Expedition in the Gulf                      235
+
+CHAPTER XXII.
+A Night Expedition in the Boats                246
+
+CHAPTER XXIII.
+The Visit to a Shore Battery                   257
+
+CHAPTER XXIV.
+Captain Lonley of the Steamer Havana           268
+
+CHAPTER XXV.
+The New Engineer of the Prize Steamer          279
+
+CHAPTER XXVI.
+The Battle with the Soldiers                   290
+
+CHAPTER XXVII.
+The Innocent Captain of the Garrison           301
+
+CHAPTER XXVIII.
+The Bearer of Despatches                       312
+
+CHAPTER XXIX.
+The New Commander of the Vixen                 323
+
+CHAPTER XXX.
+The Action with a Privateer Steamer            334
+
+CHAPTER XXXI.
+A Short Visit to Bonnydale                     345
+
+
+
+
+ON THE BLOCKADE
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER I
+
+THE UNITED STATES STEAMER BRONX
+
+
+"She is a fine little steamer, father, without the possibility of a
+doubt," said Lieutenant Passford, who was seated at the table with his
+father in the captain's cabin on board of the Bronx. "I don't feel quite
+at home here, and I don't quite like the idea of being taken out of the
+Bellevite."
+
+"You are not going to sea for the fun of it, my son," replied Captain
+Passford. "You are not setting out on a yachting excursion, but on the
+most serious business in the world."
+
+"I know and feel all that, father, but I have spent so many pleasant
+days, hours, weeks, and months on board of the Bellevite, that I am
+very sorry to leave her," added Christy Passford, who had put on his new
+uniform, which was that of master in the United States Navy; and he was
+as becoming to the uniform as the uniform was to him.
+
+"You cannot well help having some regrets at leaving the Bellevite;
+but you must remember that your life on board of her was mostly in the
+capacity of a pleasure-seeker, though you made a good use of your time
+and of your opportunities for improvement; and that is the reason why
+you have made such remarkable progress in your present profession."
+
+"I shall miss my friends on board of the Bellevite. I have sailed with
+all her officers, and Paul Vapoor and I have been cronies for years,"
+continued Christy, with a shade of gloom on his bright face.
+
+"You will probably see them occasionally, and if your life is spared
+you may again find yourself an officer of the Bellevite. But I think
+you have no occasion to indulge in any regrets," said Captain Passford,
+imparting a cheerful expression to his dignified countenance. "Allow me
+to call your attention to the fact that you are the commander of this
+fine little steamer. Here you are in your own cabin, and you are still
+nothing but a boy, hardly eighteen years old."
+
+"If I have not earned my rank, it is not my fault that I have it,"
+answered Christy, hardly knowing whether to be glad or sorry for his
+rapid advancement. "I have never asked for anything; I did not ask or
+expect to be promoted. I was satisfied with my rank as a midshipman."
+
+"I did not ask for your promotion, though I could probably have procured
+for you the rank of master when you entered the navy. I do not like to
+ask favors for a member of my own family. I have wished you to feel that
+you were in the service of your country because it needs you, and not
+for glory or profit."
+
+"And I have tried to feel so, father."
+
+"I think you have felt so, my son; and I am prouder of the fact that you
+are a disinterested patriot than of the rank you have nobly and bravely
+won," said Captain Passford, as he took some letters from his pocket,
+from which he selected one bearing an English postage stamp. "I have
+a letter from one of my agents in England, which, I think, contains
+valuable information. I have called the attention of the government to
+these employes of mine, and they will soon pass from my service to that
+of the naval department. The information sent me has sometimes been very
+important."
+
+"I know that myself, for the information that came from that source
+enabled the Bellevite to capture the Killbright," added Christy.
+
+"The contents of the letter in my hand have been sent to the Secretary
+of the Navy; but it will do no harm for you to possess the information
+given to me," continued Captain Passford, as he opened the letter. "But
+I see a man at work at the foot of the companion way, and I don't care
+to post the whole ship's company on this subject."
+
+"That is Pink Mulgrum," said Christy with a smile on his face. "He is
+deaf and dumb, and he cannot make any use of what you say."
+
+"Don't be sure of anything, Christy, except your religion and your
+patriotism, in these times," added Captain Passford, as he rose and
+closed the door of the cabin.
+
+"I don't think there is much danger from a deaf mute, father," said the
+young commander of the Bronx laughing.
+
+"Perhaps not; but when you have war intelligence to communicate, it is
+best to believe that every person has ears, and that every door has a
+keyhole. I learn from this letter that the Scotian sailed from Glasgow,
+and the Arran from Leith. The agent is of the opinion that both these
+steamers are fitted out by the same owners, who have formed a company,
+apparently to furnish the South with gunboats for its navy, as well as
+with needed supplies. In his letter my correspondent gives me the reason
+for this belief on his part."
+
+"Does your agent give you any description of the vessels, father?" asked
+Christy, his eyes sparkling with the interest he felt in the
+information.
+
+"Not a very full description, my son, for no strangers were allowed on
+board of either of them, for very obvious reasons; but they are both of
+less than five hundred tons burthen, are of precisely the same model and
+build, evidently constructed in the same yard. Both had been pleasure
+yachts, though owned by different gentlemen. Both sailed on the same
+day, the Scotian from Greenock and the Arran from Leith, March 3."
+
+Christy opened his pocket diary, and put his finger on the date
+mentioned, counting up the days that had elapsed from that time to the
+present. Captain Passford could not help smiling at the interest his son
+manifested in the intelligence he had brought to him. The acting
+commander of the Bronx went over his calculation again.
+
+"It is fourteen days since these vessels sailed," said he, looking at
+his father. "I doubt if your information will be of any value to me, for
+I suppose the steamers were selected on account of their great speed, as
+is the case with all blockade runners."
+
+"Undoubtedly they were chosen for their speed, for a slow vessel does
+not amount to much in this sort of service," replied Captain Passford.
+"I received my letter day before yesterday, when the two vessels had
+been out twelve days."
+
+"If they are fast steamers, they ought to be approaching the Southern
+coast by this time," suggested Christy.
+
+"This is a windy month, and a vessel bound to the westward would
+encounter strong westerly gales, so that she could hardly make a quick
+passage. Then these steamers will almost certainly put in at Nassau or
+the Bermudas, if not for coal and supplies, at least to obtain the
+latest intelligence from the blockaded coast, and to pick up a pilot for
+the port to which they are bound. The agent thinks it is possible that
+the Scotian and Arran will meet some vessel to the southward of the Isle
+of Wight that will put an armament on board of them. He had written to
+another of my agents at Southampton to look up this matter. It is a
+quick mail from the latter city to New York, and I may get another
+letter on this subject before you sail, Christy."
+
+"My orders may come off to me to-day," added the acting commander. "I am
+all ready to sail, and I am only waiting for them."
+
+"If these two steamers sail in company, as they are likely to do if they
+are about equal in speed, and if they take on board an armament, it will
+hardly be prudent for you to meddle with them," said Captain Passford
+with a smile, though he had as much confidence in the prudence as in the
+bravery of his son.
+
+"What shall I do, father, run away from them?" asked Christy, opening
+his eyes very wide.
+
+"Certainly, my son. There is as much patriotism in running away from a
+superior force as there is in fighting an equal, for if the government
+should lose your vessel and lose you and your ship's company, it would
+be a disaster of more or less consequence to your country."
+
+"I hardly think I shall fall in with the Scotian and the Arran, so I
+will not consider the question of running away from them," said Christy
+laughing.
+
+"You have not received your orders yet, but they will probably require
+you to report at once to the flag-officer in the Gulf, and perhaps
+they will not permit you to look up blockade runners on the high seas,"
+suggested Captain Passford. "These vessels may be fully armed and
+manned, in charge of Confederate naval officers; and doubtless they will
+be as glad to pick up the Bronx as you would be to pick up the Scotian
+or the Arran. You don't know yet whether they will come as simple
+blockade runners, or as naval vessels flying the Confederate flag.
+Whatever your orders, Christy, don't allow yourself to be carried away
+by any Quixotic enthusiasm."
+
+"I don't think I have any more than half as much audacity as Captain
+Breaker said I had. As I look upon it, my first duty is to deliver my
+ship over to the flag-officer in the Gulf; and I suppose I shall be
+instructed to pick up a Confederate cruiser or a blockade runner, if
+one should cross my course."
+
+"Obey your orders, Christy, whatever they may be. Now, I should like
+to look over the Bronx before I go on shore," said Captain Passford.
+"I think you said she was of about two hundred tons."
+
+"That was what they said down south; but she is about three hundred
+tons," replied Christy, as he proceeded to show his father the cabin
+in which the conversation had taken place.
+
+The captain's cabin was in the stern of the vessel, according to the
+orthodox rule in naval vessels. Of course it was small, though it seemed
+large to Christy who had spent so much of his leisure time in the cabin
+of the Florence, his sailboat on the Hudson. It was substantially fitted
+up, with little superfluous ornamentation; but it was a complete parlor,
+as a landsman would regard it. From it, on the port side opened the
+captain's state room, which was quite ample for a vessel no larger
+than the Bronx. Between it and the pantry on the starboard side, was
+a gangway leading from the foot of the companion way, by which the
+captain's cabin and the ward room were accessible from the quarter deck.
+
+Crossing the gangway at the foot of the steps, Christy led the way
+into the ward room, where the principal officers were accommodated.
+It contained four berths, with portières in front of them, which could
+be drawn out so as to inclose each one in a temporary state room.
+The forward berth on the starboard side was occupied by the first
+lieutenant, and the after one by the second lieutenant, according to the
+custom in the navy. On the port side, the forward berth belonged to the
+chief engineer, and the after one to the surgeon. Forward of this was
+the steerage, in which the boatswain, gunner, carpenter, the assistant
+engineers, and the steward were berthed. Each of these apartments was
+provided with a table upon which the meals were served to the officers
+occupying it. The etiquette of a man-of-war is even more exacting than
+that of a drawing room on shore.
+
+Captain Passford was then conducted to the deck where he found the
+officers and seamen engaged in their various duties. Besides his son,
+the former owner of the Bellevite was acquainted with only two persons
+on board of the Bronx, Sampson, the engineer, and Flint, the acting
+first lieutenant, both of whom had served on board of the steam yacht.
+Christy's father gave them a hearty greeting, and both were as glad to
+see him as he was to greet them. Captain Passford then looked over the
+rest of the ship's company with a deeper interest than he cared to
+manifest, for they were to some extent bound up with the immediate
+future of his son. It was not such a ship's company as that which manned
+the Bellevite, though composed of much good material. The captain shook
+hands with his son, and went on board of his boat. Two hours later he
+came on board again.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II
+
+A DINNER FOR THE CONFEDERACY
+
+
+Christy Passford was not a little surprised to see his father so soon
+after his former visit, and he was confident that he had some good
+reason for coming. He conducted him at once to his cabin, where Captain
+Passford immediately seated himself at the table, and drew from his
+pocket a telegram.
+
+"I found this on my desk when I went to my office," said he, opening a
+cable message, and placing it before Christy.
+
+"'Mutton, three veal, four sea chickens,'" Christy read from the paper
+placed before him, laughing all the time as he thought it was a joke of
+some sort. "Signed 'Warnock.' It looks as though somebody was going to
+have a dinner, father. Mutton, veal, and four sea chickens seem to form
+the substantial of the feast, though I never ate any sea chickens."
+
+"Perhaps somebody will have a dinner, but I hope it will prove to be
+indigestible to those for whom it is provided," added Captain Passford,
+amused at the comments of his son.
+
+"The message is signed by Warnock. I don't happen to have the pleasure
+of his acquaintance, and I don't see why he has taken the trouble to
+send you this bill of fare," chuckled the commander of the Bronx.
+
+"This bill of fare is of more importance to me, and especially to you,
+than you seem to understand."
+
+"It is all Greek to me; and I wonder why Warnock, whoever he may be, has
+spent his money in sending you such a message, though I suppose you know
+who is to eat this dinner."
+
+"The expense of sending the cablegram is charged to me, though the
+dinner is prepared for the Confederate States of America. Of course I
+understand it, for if I could not, it would not have been sent to me,"
+replied Captain Passford, assuming a very serious expression. "You know
+Warnock, for he has often been at Bonnydale, though not under the name
+he signs to this message. My three agents, one in the north, one in the
+south, and one in the west of England, have each an assumed name. They
+are Otis, Barnes, and Wilson, and you know them all. They have been
+captains or mates in my employ; and they know all about a vessel when
+they see it."
+
+"I know them all very well, and they are all good friends of mine,"
+added Christy.
+
+"Warnock is Captain Barnes, and this message comes from him. Captain
+Otis signs himself Bixwell in his letters and cablegrams, and Mr.
+Wilson, who was formerly mate of the Manhattan, uses the name of
+Fleetley."
+
+"I begin to see into your system, father; and I suppose the government
+will carry out your plan."
+
+"Very likely; for it would hardly be proper to send such information as
+these men have to transmit in plain English, for there may be spies or
+operators bribed by Confederate agents to suppress such matter."
+
+"I see. I understand the system very well, father," said Christy.
+
+"It is simple enough," added his father, as he took a paper from his
+pocket-book.
+
+"If you only understand it, it is simple enough."
+
+"I can interpret the language of this message, and there is not another
+person on the western continent that can do so. Now, look at the
+cablegram, Christy," continued Captain Passford, as he opened the
+paper he held in his hand. "What is the first word?"
+
+"Mutton," replied the commander.
+
+"Mutton means armed; that is to say the Scotian and the Arran took an
+armament on board at some point south of England, as indicated by the
+fact that the intelligence comes from Warnock. In about a week the mail
+will bring me a letter from him in which he will explain how he obtained
+this information."
+
+"He must have chartered a steamer and cruised off the Isle of Wight to
+pick it up," suggested Christy.
+
+"He is instructed to do that when necessary. What is the next word?"
+
+"'Three,'" replied Christy.
+
+"One means large, two medium, and three small," explained his father.
+"Three what, does it say?"
+
+"'Three veal.'"
+
+"Veal means ship's company, or crew."
+
+"Putting the pieces together, then, 'three veal' means that the Scotian
+and the Arran have small crews," said Christy, intensely interested in
+the information.
+
+"Precisely so. Read the rest of the message," added Captain Passford.
+
+"'Four sea chickens,'" the commander read.
+
+"'Four' means some, a few, no great number; in other words, rather
+indefinite. Very likely Warnock could not obtain exact information.
+'C' stands for Confederate, and 'sea' is written instead of the letter.
+'Chickens' means officers. 'Four sea chickens,' translated means 'some
+Confederate officers.'"
+
+Christy had written down on a piece of paper the solution of the enigma,
+as interpreted by his father, though not the symbol words of the
+cablegram. He continued to write for a little longer time, amplifying
+and filling in the wanting parts of the message. Then he read what he
+had written, as follows: "'The Scotian and the Arran are armed; there
+are some Confederate officers on board, but their ship's companies are
+small.' Is that it, father?"
+
+"That is the substance of it," replied Captain Passford, as he restored
+the key of the cipher to his pocket-book, and rose from his seat. "Now
+you know all that can be known on this side of the Atlantic in regard to
+the two steamers. The important information is that they are armed, and
+even with small crews they may be able to sink the Bronx, if you should
+happen to fall in with them, or if your orders required you to be on the
+lookout for them. There is a knock at the door."
+
+Christy opened the door, and found a naval officer waiting to see him.
+He handed him a formidable looking envelope, with a great seal upon it.
+The young commander looked at its address, and saw that it came from the
+Navy Department. With it was a letter, which he opened. It was an order
+for the immediate sailing of the Bronx, the sealed orders to be opened
+when she reached latitude 38° N. The messenger spoke some pleasant
+words, and then took his leave. Christy returned to the cabin, and
+showed the ponderous envelope to his father.
+
+"Sealed orders, as I supposed you would have," said Captain Passford.
+
+"And this is my order to sail immediately on receipt of it," added
+Christy.
+
+"Then I must leave you, my son; and may the blessing of God go with you
+wherever your duty calls you!" exclaimed the father, not a little shaken
+by his paternal feelings. "Be brave, be watchful; but be prudent under
+all circumstances. Bravery and Prudence ought to be twin sisters, and
+I hope you will always have one of them on each side of you. I am not
+afraid that you will be a poltroon, a coward; but I do fear that your
+enthusiasm may carry you farther than you ought to go."
+
+"I hope not, father; and your last words to me shall be remembered. When
+I am about to engage in any important enterprise, I will recall your
+admonition, and ask myself if I am heeding it."
+
+"That satisfies me. I wish you had such a ship's company as we had on
+board of the Bellevite; but you have a great deal of good material, and
+I am confident that you will make the best use of it. Remember that you
+are fighting for your country and the best government God ever gave to
+the nations of the earth. Be brave, be prudent; but be a Christian, and
+let no mean, cruel or unworthy action stain your record."
+
+Captain Passford took the hand of his son, and though neither of them
+wept, both of them were under the influence of the strongest emotions.
+Christy accompanied his father to the accommodation ladder, and shook
+hands with him again as he embarked in his boat. His mother and his
+sister had been on board that day, and the young commander had parted
+from them with quite as much emotion as on the present occasion. The
+members of the family were devotedly attached to each other, and in some
+respects the event seemed like a funeral to all of them, and not less to
+Christy than to the others, though he was entering upon a very exalted
+duty for one of his years.
+
+"Pass the word for Mr. Flint," said Christy, after he had watched the
+receding boat that bore away his father for a few minutes.
+
+"On duty, Captain Passford," said the first lieutenant, touching his cap
+to him a few minutes later.
+
+"Heave short the anchor, and make ready to get under way," added the
+commander.
+
+"Heave short, sir," replied Mr. Flint, as he touched his cap and
+retired. "Pass the word for Mr. Giblock."
+
+Mr. Giblock was the boatswain of the ship, though he had only the rank
+of a boatswain's mate. He was an old sailor, as salt as a barrel of
+pickled pork, and knew his duty from keel to truck. In a few moments his
+pipe was heard, and the seamen began to walk around the capstan.
+
+"Cable up and down, sir," said the boatswain, reporting to the second
+lieutenant on the forecastle.
+
+Mr. Lillyworth was the acting second lieutenant, though he was not to
+be attached to the Bronx after she reached her destination in the Gulf.
+He repeated the report from the boatswain to the first lieutenant. The
+steamer was rigged as a topsail schooner; but the wind was contrary, and
+no sail was set before getting under way. The capstan was manned again,
+and as soon as the report came from the second lieutenant that the
+anchor was aweigh, the first lieutenant gave the order to strike one
+bell, which meant that the steamer was to go "ahead slow."
+
+The Bronx had actually started on her mission, and the heart of Christy
+swelled in his bosom as he looked over the vessel, and realized that
+he was in command, though not for more than a week or two. All the
+courtesies and ceremonies were duly attended to, and the steamer, as
+soon as the anchor had been catted and fished, at the stroke of four
+bells, went ahead at full speed, though, as the fires had been banked in
+the furnaces, the engine was not working up to its capacity. In a couple
+of hours more she was outside of Sandy Hook, and on the broad ocean. The
+ship's company had been drilled to their duties, and everything worked
+to the entire satisfaction of the young commander.
+
+The wind was ahead and light. All hands had been stationed, and at four
+in the afternoon, the first dog watch was on duty, and there was not
+much that could be called work for any one to do. Mr. Lillyworth, the
+second lieutenant, had the deck, and Christy had retired to his cabin
+to think over the events of the day, especially those relating to the
+Scotian and the Arran. He had not yet read his orders, and he could not
+decide what he should do, even if he discovered the two steamers in
+his track. He sat in his arm chair with the door of the cabin open,
+and when he saw the first lieutenant on his way to the ward room,
+he called him in.
+
+"Well, Mr. Flint, what do you think of our crew?" asked the captain,
+after he had seated his guest.
+
+"I have hardly seen enough of the men to be able to form an opinion,"
+replied Flint. "I am afraid we have some hard material on board, though
+there are a good many first-class fellows among them."
+
+"Of course we can not expect to get such a crew as we had in the
+Bellevite. How do you like Mr. Lillyworth?" asked the commander, looking
+sharply into the eye of his subordinate.
+
+"I don't like him," replied Flint, bluntly. "You and I have been in some
+tight places together, and it is best to speak our minds squarely."
+
+"That's right, Mr. Flint. We will talk of him another time. I have
+another matter on my mind just now," added Christy.
+
+He proceeded to tell the first lieutenant something about the two
+steamers.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III
+
+THE INTRUDER AT THE CABIN DOOR
+
+
+Before he said anything about the Scotian and the Arran, Christy,
+mindful of the injunction of his father, had closed the cabin door,
+the portière remaining drawn as it was before. When he had taken this
+precaution, he related some of the particulars which had been given to
+him earlier in the day.
+
+"It is hardly worth while to talk about the matter yet awhile," added
+Christy. "I have my sealed orders, and I can not open the envelope until
+we are in latitude 38, and that will be sometime to-morrow forenoon."
+
+"I don't think that Captain Folkner, who expected to be in command
+of the Teaser, as she was called before we put our hands upon her,
+overestimated her speed," replied Lieutenant Flint, consulting his
+watch. "We are making fifteen knots an hour just now, and Mr. Sampson
+is not hurrying her. I have been watching her very closely since we left
+Sandy Hook, and I really believe she will make eighteen knots with a
+little crowding."
+
+"What makes you think so, Flint?" asked Christy, much interested in the
+statement of the first lieutenant.
+
+"I suppose it is natural for a sailor to fall in love with his ship,
+and that is my condition in regard to the Bronx," replied Flint, with
+a smile which was intended as a mild apology for his weakness. "I used
+to be in love with the coasting schooner I owned and commanded, and I
+almost cried when I had to sell her."
+
+"I don't think you need to be ashamed of this sentiment, or that
+an inanimate structure should call it into being," said the young
+commander. "I am sure I have not ceased to love the Bellevite; and in
+my eyes she is handsomer than any young lady I ever saw. I have not been
+able to transfer my affections to the Bronx as yet, and she will have to
+do something very remarkable before I do so. But about the speed of our
+ship?"
+
+"I have noticed particularly how easily and gracefully she makes her way
+through the water when she is going fifteen knots. Why that is faster
+than most of the ocean passenger steamers travel."
+
+"Very true; but like many of these blockade runners and other vessels
+which the Confederate government and rich men at the South have
+purchased in the United Kingdom, she was doubtless built on the Clyde.
+Not a few of them have been constructed for private yachts, and I have
+no doubt, from what I have seen, that the Bronx is one of the number.
+The Scotian and the Arran belonged to wealthy Britishers; and of course
+they were built in the very best manner, and were intended to attain the
+very highest rate of speed."
+
+"I shall count on eighteen knots at least on the part of the Bronx when
+the situation shall require her to do her best. By the way, Captain
+Passford, don't you think that a rather queer name has been given to our
+steamer? Bronx! I am willing to confess that I don't know what the word
+means, or whether it is fish, flesh or fowl," continued Flint.
+
+"It is not fish, flesh or fowl," replied Christy, laughing. "My father
+suggested the name to the Department, and it was adopted. He talked with
+me about a name, as he thought I had some interest in her, for the
+reason that I had done something in picking her up."
+
+"Done something? I should say that you had done it all," added Flint.
+
+"I did my share. The vessels of the navy have generally been named after
+a system, though it has often been varied. Besides the names of states
+and cities, the names of rivers have been given to vessels. The Bronx is
+the name of a small stream, hardly more than a brook, in West Chester
+County, New York. When I was a small boy, my father had a country place
+on its banks, and I did my first paddling in the water in the Bronx.
+I liked the name, and my father recommended it."
+
+"I don't object to the name, though somehow it makes me think of a
+walnut cracked in your teeth when I hear it pronounced," added Flint.
+"Now that I know what it is and what it means, I shall take more kindly
+to it, though I am afraid we shall get to calling her the Bronxy before
+we have done with her, especially if she gets to be a pet, for the name
+seems to need another syllable."
+
+"Young men fall in love with girls without regard to their names."
+
+"That's so. A friend of mine in our town in Maine fell in love with a
+young lady by the name of Leatherbee; but she was a very pretty girl and
+her name was all the objection I had to her," said Flint, chuckling.
+
+"But that was an objection which your friend evidently intended to
+remove at no very distant day," suggested Christy.
+
+"Very true; and he did remove it some years ago. What was that noise?"
+asked the first lieutenant, suddenly rising from his seat.
+
+Christy heard the sounds at the same moment. He and his companion in the
+cabin had been talking about the Scotian and the Arran, and what his
+father had said to him about prudence in speaking of his movements came
+to his mind. The noise was continued, and he hastened to the door of his
+state room, and threw it open. In the room he found Dave hard at work on
+the furniture; he had taken out the berth sack, and was brushing out the
+inside of the berth. The noise had been made by the shaking of the slats
+on which the mattress rested. Davis Talbot, the cabin steward of the
+Bronx, had been captured in the vessel when she was run out of Pensacola
+Bay some months before. As he was a very intelligent colored man, or
+rather mulatto, though they were all the same at the South, the young
+commander had selected him for his present service; and he never had
+occasion to regret the choice. Dave had passed his time since the Teaser
+arrived at New York at Bonnydale, and he had become a great favorite,
+not only with Christy, but with all the members of the family.
+
+"What are you about, Dave?" demanded Christy, not a little astonished to
+find the steward in his room.
+
+"I am putting the room in order for the captain, sir," replied Dave
+with a cheerful smile, such as he always wore in the presence of his
+superiors. "I found something in this berth I did not like to see about
+a bed in which a gentleman is to sleep, and I have been through it with
+poison and a feather; and I will give you the whole southern Confederacy
+if you find a single redback in the berth after this."
+
+"I am very glad you have attended to this matter at once, Dave."
+
+"Yes, sir; Captain Folkner never let me attend to it properly, for he
+was afraid I would read some of his papers on the desk. He was willing
+to sleep six in a bed with redbacks," chuckled Dave.
+
+"Well, I am not, or even two in a bed with such companions. How long
+have you been in my room, Dave?" added Christy.
+
+"More than two hours, I think; and I have been mighty busy too."
+
+"Did you hear me when I came into the cabin?"
+
+"No, sir, I did not; but I heard you talking with somebody a while ago."
+
+"What did I say to the other person?"
+
+"I don't know, sir; I could not make out a word, and I didn't stop in my
+work to listen. I have been very busy, Captain Passford," answered Dave,
+beginning to think he had been doing something that was not altogether
+regular.
+
+"Don't you know what we were talking about, Dave?"
+
+"No, sir; I did not make out a single word you said," protested the
+steward, really troubled to find that he had done something wrong,
+though he had not the least idea what it was. "I did not mean to do
+anything out of the way, Captain Passford."
+
+"I have no fault to find this time, Dave."
+
+"I should hope not, sir," added Dave, looking as solemn as a sleepy owl.
+"I would jump overboard before I would offend you, Massa Christy."
+
+"You need not jump overboard just yet," replied the captain, with a
+pleasant smile, intended to remove the fears of the steward. "But I want
+to make a new rule for you, Dave."
+
+"Thank you, sir; if you sit up nights to make rules for me, I will obey
+all of them; and I would give you the whole State of Florida before I
+would break one of them on purpose, Massa Christy."
+
+"Massa Christy!" exclaimed the captain, laughing.
+
+"Massa Captain Passford!" shouted Dave, hastening to correct his
+over-familiarity.
+
+"I don't object to your calling me Christy when we are alone, for I look
+upon you as my friend, and I have tried to treat you as a gentleman,
+though you are a subordinate. But are you going to be a nigger again,
+and call white men 'Massa?' I told you not to use that word."
+
+"I done forget it when I got excited because I was afraid I had offended
+you," pleaded the steward.
+
+"Your education is vastly superior to most people of your class, and you
+should not belittle yourself. This is my cabin; and I shall sometimes
+have occasion to talk confidentially with my officers. Do you understand
+what I mean, Dave?"
+
+"Perfectly, Captain Passford: I know what it is to talk confidently and
+what it is to talk confidentially, and you do both, sir," replied the
+steward.
+
+"But I am sometimes more confidential than confident. Now you must do
+all your work in my state room when I am not in the cabin, and this is
+the new rule," said Christy, as he went out of the room. "I know that I
+can trust you, Dave; but when I tell a secret I want to know to how many
+persons I am telling it. You may finish your work now;" and he closed
+the door.
+
+Christy could not have explained why he did so if it had been required
+of him, but he went directly to the door leading out into the companion
+way, and suddenly threw it wide open, drawing the portière aside at the
+same time. Not a little to his surprise, for he had not expected it,
+he found a man there; and the intruder was down on his knees, as if in
+position to place his ear at the keyhole. This time the young commander
+was indignant, and without stopping to consider as long as the precepts
+of his father required, he seized the man by the collar, and dragged him
+into the cabin.
+
+"What are you doing there?" demanded Christy in the heat of his
+indignation.
+
+The intruder, who was a rather stout man, began to shake his head with
+all his might, and to put the fore finger of his right hand on his mouth
+and one of his ears. He was big enough to have given the young commander
+a deal of trouble if he had chosen to resist the force used upon him;
+but he appeared to be tame and submissive. He did not speak, but he
+seemed to be exerting himself to the utmost to make himself understood.
+Flint had resumed his seat at the table, facing the door, and in spite
+of himself, apparently, he began to laugh.
+
+"That is Pink Mulgrum, Captain Passford," said he, evidently to prevent
+his superior from misinterpreting the lightness of his conduct. "As you
+are aware, he is deaf and dumb."
+
+  [Illustration: Mulgrum at the captain's door.]
+
+"I see who he is now," replied Christy, who had just identified the man.
+"He may be deaf and dumb, but he seems to have a great deal of business
+at the door of my cabin."
+
+"I have no doubt he is as deaf as the keel of the ship, and I have not
+yet heard him speak a word," added the first lieutenant. "But he is a
+stout fellow, very patriotic, and willing to work."
+
+"All that may be, but I have found him once before hanging around that
+door to-day."
+
+At this moment Mulgrum took from his pocket a tablet of paper and a
+pencil, and wrote upon it, "I am a deaf mute, and I don't know what you
+are talking about." Christy read it, and then wrote, "What were you
+doing at the door?" He replied that he had been sent by Mr. Lillyworth
+to clean the brasses on the door. He was then dismissed.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IV
+
+A DEAF AND DUMB MYSTERY
+
+
+As he dismissed Mulgrum, Christy tore off the leaf from the tablet on
+which both of them had written before he handed it back to the owner.
+For a few moments, he said nothing, and had his attention fixed on the
+paper in his hand, which he seemed to be studying for some reason of his
+own.
+
+"That man writes a very good hand for one in his position," said he,
+looking at the first lieutenant.
+
+"I had noticed that before," replied Flint, as the commander handed
+him the paper, which he looked over with interest. "I had some talk with
+him on his tablet the day he came on board. He strikes me as a very
+intelligent and well-educated man."
+
+"Was he born a deaf mute?" asked Christy.
+
+"I did not think to ask him that question; but I judged from the
+language he used and his rapid writing that he was well educated. There
+is character in his handwriting too; and that is hardly to be expected
+from a deaf mute," replied Flint.
+
+"Being a deaf mute, he can not have been shipped as a seaman, or even as
+an ordinary steward," suggested the captain.
+
+"Of course not; he was employed as a sort of scullion to be worked
+wherever he could make himself useful. Mr. Nawood engaged him on the
+recommendation of Mr. Lillyworth," added Flint, with something like a
+frown on his brow, as though he had just sounded a new idea.
+
+"Have you asked Mr. Lillyworth anything about him?"
+
+"I have not; for somehow Mr. Lillyworth and I don't seem to be very
+affectionate towards each other, though we get along very well together.
+But Mulgrum wrote out for me that he was born in Cherryfield, Maine, and
+obtained his education as a deaf mute in Hartford. I learned the deaf
+and dumb alphabet when I was a schoolmaster, as a pastime, and I had
+some practice with it in the house where I boarded."
+
+"Then you can talk in that way with Mulgrum."
+
+"Not a bit of it; he knows nothing at all about the deaf and dumb
+alphabet, and could not spell out a single word I gave him."
+
+"That is very odd," added the captain musing.
+
+"So I thought; but he explained it by saying that at the school they
+were changing this method of communication for that of actually speaking
+and understanding what was said by observing the vocal organs. He had
+not remained long enough to master this method; in fact he had done all
+his talking with his tablets."
+
+"It is a little strange that he should not have learned either method of
+communication."
+
+"I thought so myself, and said as much to him; but he told me that he
+had inherited considerable property at the death of his father, and he
+was not inclined to learn new tricks," said Flint. "He is intensely
+patriotic, and said that he was willing to give himself and all his
+property for the salvation of his country. He had endeavored to obtain
+a position as captain's clerk, or something of that sort, in the navy;
+but failing of this, he had been willing to go to the war as a scullion.
+He says he shall fight, whatever his situation, when he has the
+opportunity; and that is all I know about him."
+
+Christy looked on the floor, and seemed to be considering the facts he
+had just learned. He had twice discovered Mulgrum at the door of his
+cabin, though his presence there had been satisfactorily explained; or
+at least a reason had been given. This man had been brought on board by
+the influence of Mr. Lillyworth, who had been ordered to the Gulf for
+duty, and was on board as a substitute for Mr. Flint, who was acting in
+Christy's place, as the latter was in that of Mr. Blowitt, who outranked
+them all. Flint had not been favorably impressed with the acting second
+lieutenant, and he had not hesitated to speak his mind in regard to him
+to the captain. Though Christy had been more reserved in speech, he had
+the feeling that Mr. Lillyworth must establish a reputation for
+patriotism and fidelity to the government before he could trust him
+as he did the first lieutenant, though he was determined to manifest
+nothing like suspicion in regard to him.
+
+At this stage of the war, that is to say in the earlier years of it,
+the government was obliged to accept such men as it could obtain for
+officers, for the number in demand greatly exceeded the supply of
+regularly educated naval officers. There were a great many applicants
+for positions, and candidates were examined in regard to their
+professional qualifications rather than their motives for entering the
+service. If a man desired to enter the army or the navy, the simple wish
+was regarded as a sufficient guaranty of his patriotism, especially in
+connection with his oath of allegiance. With the deaf mute's leaf in his
+hand Christy was thinking over this matter of the motives of officers.
+He was not satisfied in regard to either Lillyworth or Mulgrum, and
+besides the regular quota of officers and seamen permanently attached
+to the Bronx, there were eighteen seamen and petty officers berthed
+forward, who were really passengers, though they were doing duty.
+
+"Where did you say this man Mulgrum was born, Mr. Flint?" asked the
+captain, after he had mused for quite a time.
+
+"In Cherryfield, Maine," replied the first lieutenant; and he could not
+help feeling that the commander had not been silent so long for nothing.
+
+"You are a Maine man, Flint: were you ever in this town?"
+
+"I have been; I taught school there for six months; and it was the last
+place I filled before I went to sea."
+
+"I am glad to hear it, for it will save me from looking any further for
+the man I want just now. If this deaf mute was born and brought up in
+Cherryfield, he must know something about the place," added Christy as
+he touched a bell on his table, to which Dave instantly responded.
+
+"Do you know Mulgrum, Dave?" asked the captain.
+
+"No, sir; never heard of him before," replied the steward.
+
+"You don't know him! The man who has been cleaning the brass work on the
+doors?" exclaimed Christy.
+
+"Oh! Pink, we all call him," said the steward.
+
+"His name is Pinkney Mulgrum," Flint explained.
+
+"Yes, sir; I know him, though we never had any long talks together,"
+added Dave with a rich smile on his face.
+
+"Go on deck, and tell Mulgrum to come into my cabin," said Christy.
+
+"If I tell him that, he won't hear me," suggested Dave.
+
+"Show him this paper," interposed the first lieutenant, handing him a
+card on which he had written the order.
+
+Dave left the cabin to deliver the message, and the captain immediately
+instructed Flint to question the man in regard to the localities and
+other matters in Cherryfield, suggesting that he should conduct his
+examination so as not to excite any suspicion. Pink Mulgrum appeared
+promptly, and was placed at the table where both of the officers could
+observe his expression. Then Flint began to write on a sheet of paper,
+and passed his first question to the man. It was: "Don't you remember
+me?" Mulgrum wrote that he did not. Then the inquisitor asked when he
+had left Cherryfield to attend the school at Hartford; and the date he
+gave placed him there at the very time when Flint had been the master of
+the school for four months. On the question of locality, he could place
+the church, the schoolhouse and the hotel; and he seemed to have no
+further knowledge of the town. When asked where his father lived, he
+described a white house next to the church; but Flint knew that this had
+been owned and occupied by the minister for many years.
+
+"This man is a humbug," was the next sentence the first lieutenant
+wrote, but he passed it to the captain. Christy wrote under it: "Tell
+him that we are perfectly satisfied with his replies, and thank him for
+his attendance;" which was done at once, and the captain smiled upon him
+as though he had conducted himself with distinguished ability.
+
+"Mulgrum has been in Cherryfield; but he could not have remained there
+more than a day or two," said Flint, when the door had closed behind the
+deaf mute.
+
+The captain made a gesture to impose silence upon his companion.
+
+"Mulgrum is all right in every respect," said he in a loud tone, so
+that if the subject of the examination had stopped at the keyhole of the
+door, he would not be made any the wiser for what he heard there.
+
+"He knows Cherryfield as well as he knows the deck of the Bronx, and as
+you say, Captain Passford, he is all right in every respect," added the
+first lieutenant in the same loud tone. "Mulgrum is a well educated man,
+captain, and you will have a great deal of writing to do: I suggest that
+you bring him into your cabin, and make him your clerk."
+
+"That is a capital idea, Mr. Flint, and I shall consider it," returned
+the commander, making sure that the man at the door should hear him,
+if Mulgrum lingered there. "I have a number of letters sent over from
+England relating to blockade runners that I wish to have copied for the
+use of any naval officers with whom I may fall in; and I have not the
+time to do it myself."
+
+"Mulgrum writes a very handsome hand, and no one could do the work any
+better than he."
+
+Christy thought enough had been said to satisfy the curiosity of Mulgrum
+if he was still active in seeking information, and both of the officers
+were silent. The captain had enough to think of to last him a long
+while. The result of the inquiry into the auditory and vocal powers of
+the scullion, as Flint called him, had convinced him that the deaf mute
+was a fraud. He had no doubt that he could both speak and hear as well
+as the rest of the ship's company. But the puzzling question was in
+relation to the reason why he pretended to be deaf and dumb. If he was
+desirous of serving his country in the navy, and especially in the
+Bronx, it was not necessary to pretend to be deaf and dumb in order to
+obtain a fighting berth on board of her. It looked like a first class
+mystery to the young commander, but he was satisfied that the presence
+of Mulgrum meant mischief. He could not determine at once what it was
+best to do to solve the mystery; but he decided that the most extreme
+watchfulness was required of him and his first lieutenant. This was all
+he could do, and he touched his bell again.
+
+"Dave," said he when the cabin steward presented himself before him, "go
+on deck and ask Mr. Lillyworth to report to me the log and the weather."
+
+"The log and the weather, sir," replied Dave, as he hastened out of the
+cabin.
+
+Christy watched him closely as he went out at the door, and he was
+satisfied that Mulgrum was not in the passage, if he had stopped there
+at all. His present purpose was to disarm all the suspicions of the
+subject of the mystery, but he would have been glad to know whether or
+not the man had lingered at the door to hear what was said in regard to
+him. He was not anxious in regard to the weather, or even the log, and
+he sent Dave on his errand in order to make sure that Mulgrum was not
+still doing duty as a listener.
+
+"Wind south south west, log last time fifteen knots and a half,"
+reported Dave, as he came in after knocking at the door.
+
+"I can not imagine why that man pretended to be deaf and dumb in order
+to get a position on board of the Bronx. He is plainly a fraud," said
+the captain when Dave had gone back to his work in the state room.
+
+"I don't believe he pretended to be a deaf mute in order to get a place
+on board, for that would ordinarily be enough to prevent him from
+getting it. I should put it that he had obtained his place in spite of
+being deaf and dumb. But the mystery exists just the same."
+
+The captain went on deck, and the first lieutenant to the ward room.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER V
+
+A CONFIDENTIAL STEWARD
+
+
+The wind still came from the southward, and it was very light. The sea
+was comparatively smooth, and the Bronx continued on her course. At the
+last bi-hourly heaving of the log, she was making sixteen knots an hour.
+The captain went into the engine room, where he found Mr. Gawl, one of
+the chief's two assistants, on duty. This officer informed him that no
+effort had been made to increase the speed of the steamer, and that she
+was under no strain whatever. The engine had been thoroughly overhauled,
+as well as every other part of the vessel, and every improvement that
+talent and experience suggested had been made. It now appeared that the
+engine had been greatly benefited by whatever changes had been made.
+These improvements had been explained to the commander by Mr. Sampson
+the day before; but Christy had not given much attention to the matter,
+for he preferred to let the speed of the vessel speak for itself; and
+this was what it appeared to be doing at the present time.
+
+Christy walked the deck for some time, observing everything that
+presented itself, and taking especial notice of the working of the
+vessel. Though he made no claims to any superior skill, he was really an
+expert, and the many days and months he had passed in the companionship
+of Paul Vapoor in studying the movements of engines and hulls had made
+him wiser and more skilful than it had even been suspected that he was.
+He was fully competent for the position he was temporarily filling; but
+he had made himself so by years of study and practice.
+
+Christy had not yet obtained all the experience he required as a naval
+officer, and he was fully aware that this was what he needed to enable
+him to discharge his duty in the best manner. He was in command of a
+small steamer, a position of responsibility which he had not coveted in
+this early stage of his career, though it was only for a week or less,
+as the present speed of the Bronx indicated. He had ambition enough to
+hope that he should be able to distinguish himself in this brief period,
+for it might be years before he again obtained such an opportunity. His
+youth was against him, and he was aware that he had been selected to
+take the steamer to the Gulf because there was a scarcity of officers of
+the proper grade, and his rank gave him the position.
+
+The motion of the Bronx exactly suited him, and he judged that in a
+heavy sea she would behave very well. He had made one voyage in her from
+the Gulf to New York, and the steamer had done very well, though she had
+been greatly improved at the navy yard. Certainly her motion was better,
+and the connection between the engine and the inert material of which
+the steamer was constructed, seemed to be made without any straining
+or jerking. There was very little shaking and trembling as the powerful
+machinery drove her ahead over the quiet sea. There had been no very
+severe weather during his first cruise in the Bronx, and she had not
+been tested in a storm under his management, though she had doubtless
+encountered severe gales in crossing the Atlantic in a breezy season of
+the year.
+
+While Christy was planking the deck, four bells were struck on the
+ship's great bell on the top-gallant forecastle. It was the beginning
+of the second dog watch, or six o'clock in the afternoon, and the watch
+which had been on duty since four o'clock was relieved. Mr. Flint
+ascended the bridge, and took the place of Mr. Lillyworth, the second
+lieutenant. Under this bridge was the pilot-house, and in spite of her
+small size, the steamer was steered by steam. The ship had been at sea
+but a few hours, and the crew were not inclined to leave the deck. The
+number of men on board was nearly doubled by the addition of those sent
+down to fill vacancies in other vessels on the blockade. Christy went on
+the bridge soon after, more to take a survey inboard than for any other
+purpose.
+
+Mr. Lillyworth had gone aft, but when he met Mulgrum coming up from the
+galley, he stopped and looked around him. With the exception of himself
+nearly the whole ship's company were forward. The commander watched him
+with interest when he stopped in the vicinity of the deaf mute, who
+also halted in the presence of the second lieutenant. Then they walked
+together towards the companion way, and disappeared behind the mainmast.
+Christy had not before noticed any intercourse between the lieutenant
+and the scullion, though he thought it a little odd that the officer
+should set the man at work cleaning the brasses about the door of the
+captain's cabin, a matter that belonged to the steward's department. He
+had learned from Flint that Mulgrum had been recommended to the chief
+steward by Lillyworth, so that it was evident enough that they had been
+acquainted before either of them came on board. But he could not see
+them behind the mast, and he desired very much to know what they were
+doing.
+
+Flint had taken his supper before he went on duty on the bridge, and the
+table was waiting for the other ward room officers who had just been
+relieved. It was time for Lillyworth to go to the meal, but he did not
+go, and he seemed to be otherwise engaged. After a while, Christy looked
+at his watch, and found that a quarter of an hour had elapsed since the
+second lieutenant had left the bridge, and he had spent nearly all this
+time abaft the mainmast with the scullion. The commander had become
+absolutely absorbed in his efforts to fathom the deaf and dumb mystery,
+and fortunately there was nothing else to occupy his attention, for
+Flint had drilled the crew, including the men for other vessels, and
+had billeted and stationed them during the several days he had been on
+board. Everything was working as though the Bronx had been at sea a
+month instead of less than half a day.
+
+Christy was exceedingly anxious to ascertain what, if anything, was
+passing between Lillyworth and Mulgrum; but he could see no way to
+obtain any information on the subject. He had no doubt he was watched as
+closely as he was watching the second lieutenant. If he went aft, that
+would at once end the conference, if one was in progress. He could
+not call upon a seaman to report on such a delicate question without
+betraying himself, and he had not yet learned whom to trust in such a
+matter, and it was hardly proper to call upon a foremast hand to watch
+one of his officers.
+
+The only person on board besides the first lieutenant in whom he felt
+that he could repose entire confidence was Dave. He knew him thoroughly,
+and his color was almost enough to guarantee his loyalty to the country
+and his officers, and especially to himself, for the steward possessed a
+rather extravagant admiration for the one who had "brought him out of
+bondage," as he expressed it, and had treated him like a gentleman from
+first to last. He could trust Dave even on the most delicate mission;
+but Dave was attending to the table in the ward room, and he did not
+care to call him from his duty.
+
+At the end of another five minutes, Christy saw Mulgrum come from abaft
+the mainmast, and descend the ladder to the galley. He saw no more of
+Lillyworth, and he concluded that, keeping himself in the shadow of
+the mast, he had gone below. He remained on the bridge a while longer
+considering what he should do. He said nothing to Flint, for he did
+not like to take up the attention of any officer on duty. The commander
+thought that Dave could render him the assistance he required better
+than any other person on board, for being only a steward and a colored
+man at that, less notice would be taken of him than of one in a higher
+position. He was about to descend from the bridge when Flint spoke to
+him in regard to the weather, though he could have guessed to a point
+what the captain was thinking about, perhaps because the same subject
+occupied his own thoughts.
+
+"I think we shall have a change of weather before morning, Captain
+Passford. The wind is drawing a little more to the southward, and we are
+likely to have wind and rain," said the first lieutenant.
+
+"Wind and rain will not trouble us, and I am more afraid that we shall
+be bothered with fog on this cruise," added Christy as he descended the
+ladder to the main deck.
+
+He walked about the deck for a few minutes, observing the various
+occupations of the men, who were generally engaged in amusing
+themselves, or in "reeling off sea yarns." Then he went below. At the
+foot of the stairs in the companion way, the door of the ward room was
+open, and he saw that Lillyworth was seated at the table. He sat at the
+foot of it, the head being the place of the first lieutenant, and the
+captain could see only his back. He was slightly bald at the apex of
+his head, for he was an older man than either the captain or the first
+lieutenant, but inferior to them in rank, though all of them were
+masters, and seniority depended upon the date of the commissions;
+and even a single day settled the degree in these days of multiplied
+appointments. Christy went into his cabin, where the table was set for
+his own supper.
+
+The commander looked at his barometer, and his reading of it assured him
+that Flint was correct in regard to his prognostics of the weather. But
+the young officer had faced the winter gales of the Atlantic, and the
+approach of any ordinary storm did not disturb him in the least degree.
+On the contrary he rather liked a lively sea, for it was less monotonous
+than a calm. He did not brood over a storm, therefore, but continued
+to consider the subject which had so deeply interested him since he
+discovered Mulgrum on his knees at the door, with a rag and a saucer of
+rottenstone in his hands. He had a curiosity to examine the brass knob
+of his door at that moment, and it did not appear to have been very
+severely rubbed.
+
+"Quarter of seven, sir," said Dave, presenting himself at the door while
+Christy was still musing over the incidents already detailed.
+
+"All right, Dave; I will have my supper now," replied Christy,
+indifferently, for though he was generally blessed with a good appetite
+the mystery was too absorbing to permit the necessary duty of eating to
+drive it out of his mind.
+
+Dave retired, and soon brought in a tray from the galley, the dishes
+from which he arranged on the table. It was an excellent supper, though
+he had not given any especial orders in regard to its preparation. He
+seated himself and began to eat in a rather mechanical manner, and no
+one who saw him would have mistaken him for an epicure. Dave stationed
+himself in front of the commander, so that he was between the table and
+the door. He watched Christy, keeping his eyes fixed on him without
+intermitting his gaze for a single instant. Once in a while he tendered
+a dish to him at the table, but there was but one object in existence
+for Christy at that moment.
+
+"Dave," said the captain, after he had disposed of a portion of his
+supper.
+
+"Here, sir, on duty," replied the steward.
+
+"Open the door behind you, quick!"
+
+Dave obeyed instantly, and threw the door back so that it was wide open,
+though he seemed to be amazed at the strangeness of the order.
+
+"All right, Dave; close it," added Christy, when he saw there was no
+one in the passage; and he concluded that Mulgrum was not likely to be
+practising his vocation when there was no one in the cabin but himself
+and the steward.
+
+Dave obeyed the order like a machine, and then renewed his gaze at the
+commander.
+
+"Are you a Freemason, Dave?" asked Christy.
+
+"No, sir," replied the steward with a magnificent smile.
+
+"A Knight of Pythias, of Pythagoras, or anything of that sort?"
+
+"No, sir; nothing of the sort."
+
+"Then you can't keep a secret?"
+
+"Yes, sir, I can. If I have a secret to keep, I will give the whole
+Alabama River to any one that can get it out of me."
+
+Christy felt sure of his man without this protestation.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VI
+
+A MISSION UP THE FOREMAST
+
+
+Christy spent some time in delivering a lecture on naval etiquette to
+his single auditor. Probably he was not the highest authority on the
+subject of his discourse; but he was sufficiently learned to meet the
+requirements of the present occasion.
+
+"You say you can keep a secret, Dave?" continued the commander.
+
+"I don't take any secrets to keep from everybody, Captain Passford; and
+I don't much like to carry them about with me," replied the steward,
+looking a little more grave than usual, though he still wore a cheerful
+smile.
+
+"Then you don't wish me to confide a secret to you?"
+
+"I don't say that, Captain Passford. I don't want any man's secrets,
+and I don't run after them, except for the good of the service. I was a
+slave once, but I know what I am working for now. If you have a secret I
+ought to know, Captain Passford, I will take it in and bury it away down
+at the bottom of my bosom; and I will give the whole state of Louisiana
+to any one that will dig it out of me."
+
+"That's enough, Dave; and I am willing to trust you without any oath on
+the Bible, and without even a Quaker's affirmation. I believe you will
+be prudent, discreet, and silent for my sake."
+
+"Certainly I will be all that, Captain Passford, for I think you are a
+bigger man than Jeff Davis," protested Dave.
+
+"That is because you do not know the President of the Confederate
+States, and you do know me; but Mr. Davis is a man of transcendent
+ability, and I am only sorry that he is engaged in a bad cause, though
+he believes with all his heart and soul that it is a good cause."
+
+"He never treated me like a gentleman, as you have, sir."
+
+"And he never treated you unkindly, I am very sure."
+
+"He never treated me any way, for I never saw him; and I would not walk
+a hundred miles barefooted to see him, either. I am no gentleman or
+anything of that sort, Massa-- Captain Passford, but if I ever go back
+on you by the breadth of a hair, then the Alabama River will run up
+hill."
+
+"I am satisfied with you, Dave; and here is my hand," added Christy,
+extending it to the steward, who shook it warmly, displaying a good deal
+of emotion as he did so. "Now, Dave, you know Mulgrum, or Pink, as you
+call him?"
+
+"Well, sir, I know him as I do the rest of the people on board; but we
+are not sworn friends yet," replied Dave, rather puzzled to know what
+duty was required of him in connection with the scullion.
+
+"You know him; that is enough. What do you think of him?"
+
+"I haven't had any long talks with him, sir, and I don't know what to
+think of him."
+
+"You know that he is dumb?"
+
+"I expect he is, sir; but he never said anything to me about it,"
+replied Dave. "He never told me he couldn't speak, and I never heard
+him speak to any one on board."
+
+"Did you ever speak to him?"
+
+"Yes, sir; I spoke to him when he first came on board; but he didn't
+answer me, or take any notice of me when I spoke to him, and I got tired
+of it."
+
+"Open that door quickly, Dave," said the captain suddenly.
+
+The steward promptly obeyed the order, and Christy saw that there was
+no one in the passage. He told his companion to close the door, and Dave
+was puzzled to know what this movement could mean.
+
+"I beg your pardon, Captain Passford, and I have no right to ask any
+question; but I should like to know why you make me open that door two
+or three times for nothing," said Dave, in the humblest of tones.
+
+"I told you to open it so that I could see if there was anybody at the
+door. This is my secret, Dave. I have twice found Mulgrum at that door
+while I was talking to the first lieutenant. He pretended to be cleaning
+the brass work."
+
+"What was he there for? When a man is as deaf as the foremast of the
+ship what would he be doing at the door?"
+
+"He was down on his knees, and his ear was not a great way from the
+keyhole of the door."
+
+"But he could not hear anything."
+
+"I don't know: that is what I want to find out. The mission I have for
+you, Dave, is to watch Mulgrum. In a word, I have my doubts in regard to
+his deafness and his dumbness."
+
+"You don't believe he is deaf and dumb, Captain Passford!" exclaimed the
+steward, opening his eyes very wide, and looking as though an earthquake
+had just shaken him up.
+
+"I don't say that, my man. I am in doubt. He may be a deaf mute, as he
+represents himself to be. I wish you to ascertain whether or not he can
+speak and hear. You are a shrewd fellow, Dave, I discovered some time
+ago; in fact the first time I ever saw you. You may do this job in any
+manner you please; but remember that your mission is my secret, and you
+must not betray it to Mulgrum, or to any other person."
+
+"Be sure I won't do that, Captain Passford."
+
+"If you obtain any satisfactory information, convey it to me
+immediately. You must be very careful not to let any one suspect that
+you are watching him, and least of all to let Mulgrum know it. Do you
+understand me perfectly, Dave?"
+
+"Yes, sir; perfectly. Nobody takes any notice of me but you, and it
+won't be a hard job. I think I can manage it without any trouble. I am
+nothing but a nigger, and of no account."
+
+"I have chosen you for this mission because you can do it better than
+any other person, Dave. Don't call yourself a nigger; I don't like the
+word, and you are ninety degrees in the shade above the lower class of
+negroes in the South."
+
+"Thank you, sir," replied the steward with an expansive smile.
+
+"There is one thing I wish you to understand particularly, Dave. I have
+not set you to watch any officer of the ship," said Christy
+impressively.
+
+"No, sir; I reckon Pink Mulgrum is not an officer any more than I am."
+
+"But you may discover, if you find that Mulgrum can speak and hear, that
+he is talking to an officer," added the captain in a low tone.
+
+"What officer, Captain Passford?" asked the steward, opening his eyes
+to their utmost capacity, and looking as bewildered as an owl in the
+gaslight.
+
+"I repeat that I do not set you to watch an officer; and I leave it to
+you to ascertain with whom Mulgrum has any talk, if with any one. Now I
+warn you that, if you accomplish anything in this mission, you will do
+it at night and not in the daytime. That is all that need be said at the
+present time, Dave, and you will attend to your duty as usual. If you
+lose much sleep, you may make it up in the forenoon watch."
+
+"I don't care for the sleep, Captain Passford, and I can keep awake all
+night."
+
+"One thing more, Dave; between eight bells and eight bells to-night,
+during the first watch, you may get at something, but you must keep
+out of sight as much as you can," added Christy, as he rose from his
+armchair, and went into his state room.
+
+Dave busied himself in clearing the table, but he was in a very
+thoughtful mood all the time. Loading up his tray with dishes, he
+carried them through the steerage to the galley, where he found Mulgrum
+engaged in washing those from the ward room, which he had brought out
+some time before. The steward looked at the deaf mute with more interest
+than he had regarded him before. He was a supernumerary on board, and
+any one who had anything to do called Pink to do it. Another waiter was
+greatly needed, and Mr. Nawood, the chief steward, had engaged one, but
+he had failed to come on board before the steamer sailed. Pink had been
+pressed into service for the steerage; but he was of little use, and the
+work seemed very distasteful, if not disgusting, to him. He carried in
+the food, but that was about all he was good for.
+
+Dave watched him for a few minutes as he washed and wiped the dishes,
+and saw that he was very awkward at it; it was plain to him that he was
+not an experienced hand at the business. But he was doing the steward's
+work, and Dave took hold and helped him. Pink was as solemn as an owl,
+and did his work in a very mechanical manner, and without the slightest
+interest in it. The cabin steward had a mission, and he was profoundly
+interested in its execution.
+
+By the side of the galley, or range, was a sink at which they were at
+work. Dave thought he might as well begin then and there to test the
+hearing powers of his companion. Picking up one of the large blowers
+of the range, he placed himself so that Pink could not see what he was
+about, and then banged the sheet iron against the cast iron of the great
+stove. He kept his eye fixed all the time on the scullion. The noise was
+enough for the big midship gun on deck, or even for a small earthquake.
+Pink was evidently startled by the prodigious sound, and turned towards
+the steward, who was satisfied that he had heard it; but the fellow was
+cunning, and realizing that he had committed himself, he picked up one
+of his feet, and began to rub it as though he had been hit by the
+falling blower. At the same time, he pretended to be very angry, and
+demonstrated very earnestly against his companion.
+
+Dave felt that he had made a point, and he did not carry his
+investigation of the auditory capacity of the scullion any farther that
+night. He finished his work below, and then went on deck. He lounged
+about in a very careless manner till eight bells were struck. Mr. Flint
+on the bridge was relieved by Mr. Lillyworth, and the port watch came on
+duty for the next four hours, or until midnight. This was the time the
+captain had indicated to Dave as a favorable one for the discharge of
+his special duty. Taking advantage of the absence of any person from the
+vicinity of the foremast, he adroitly curled himself up in the folds of
+the foresail, which was brailed up to the mast. He had his head in such
+a position that he could see without being seen by any casual passer-by.
+
+He waited in this position over an hour, and during that time Pink went
+back and forth several times, and seemed to be looking up at the bridge,
+which was just forward of the foremast. On the top-gallant forecastle
+were two men on the lookout; in the waist was a quartermaster, who was
+doing the duty that belonged to the third lieutenant, if the scarcity of
+officers had permitted the Bronx to have one. The body of the port watch
+were spinning yarns on the forecastle, and none of them were very near
+the foremast. After a while, as Pink was approaching the forecastle,
+Dave saw the second lieutenant gesticulating to him very earnestly to
+come on the bridge. The supernumerary ascended the ladder, and the
+officer set him at work to lace on the sailcloth to the railing of the
+bridge, to shelter those on duty there from the force of the sea blast.
+
+Dave listened with all his ears for any sound from the bridge; but he
+soon realized that if there was any, he was too far off to hear it. With
+the aid of the lashings of the foresail, he succeeded in climbing up on
+the mast to a point on a level with the bridge, and at the same time to
+make the mast conceal him from the eyes of Mr. Lillyworth and the
+scullion. The latter pretended to be at work, and occasionally the
+second lieutenant "jawed" at him for his clumsiness in lacing the
+sailcloth. Between these growls, they spoke together in a low tone, but
+Dave was near enough to hear what they said. Though he had never heard
+the voice of Pink Mulgrum before, he knew that of the second lieutenant,
+and he was in no danger of confounding the two. Pink used excellent
+language, as the steward was capable of judging, and it was plain enough
+that he was not what he had appeared to be.
+
+  [Illustration: Lillyworth and Mulgrum on the bridge.]
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII
+
+AN INTERVIEW ON THE BRIDGE
+
+
+Although Mr. Lillyworth knew very well that Pink Mulgrum was deaf and
+dumb, he "jawed" at him as though his hearing was as perfect as his own,
+doubtless forgetting for the moment his infirmity.
+
+"Draw up the bight, and lace it tighter," exclaimed the second
+lieutenant, intermixing an expletive at each end of the sentence. "Oh,
+you can't hear me!" he shouted, as though the fact that the scullion
+could not hear him had suddenly come to his mind. "Well, it is a nice
+thing to talk to a deaf man!"
+
+Dave could see that Mulgrum also seemed to forget that his ears were
+closed to all sounds, for he redoubled his efforts to haul the screen
+into its place.
+
+"I could not hear anything that was of any consequence," the steward
+heard the deaf mute say in a lower tone than his companion used.
+
+"Couldn't you hear anything?" asked Mr. Lillyworth, making a spring
+at the canvas as though he was disgusted with the operations of his
+companion on the bridge.
+
+"Only what I have just told you," replied Mulgrum.
+
+"But you were at the door when the captain and the first lieutenant were
+talking together in the cabin," continued the officer in a low tone.
+
+"But they were talking about me, as I told you before," answered the
+scullion, rather impatiently, as though he too had a mind of his own.
+
+"Wasn't anything said about the operations of the future?" demanded Mr.
+Lillyworth.
+
+"Not a word; but you know as well as I do that the captain has sealed
+orders which he will not see before to-morrow. I heard him tell his
+father that he was to open the envelope in latitude 38," said the
+supernumerary.
+
+"You must contrive some way to hear the captain when he reads his
+orders," continued the second lieutenant. "He will be likely to have
+Mr. Flint with him when he opens the envelope."
+
+"It will be difficult," replied Mulgrum, and Dave could imagine that he
+saw him shake his head. "The captain has found me cleaning the brasses
+on his door twice, and it will hardly do to be found at the door again."
+
+"Isn't there any place in his cabin where you can conceal yourself?"
+inquired Mr. Lillyworth.
+
+"I don't know of any place, unless it is his state room; and the cabin
+steward has been at work there almost all the time since we got under
+way. Dave seems to be a sort of confidant of the captain," suggested
+Mulgrum; and it looked as though the deaf mute had not held his tongue
+and kept his ears open for nothing; but the steward could not understand
+how he had got this idea into his head, for he had received his
+instructions while the commander was at supper, and he was sure, as
+he had thrown the door open several times, that the scullion was not
+on the other side of it.
+
+"A nigger for his confidant!" exclaimed the second lieutenant, as he
+interpolated a little jaw for the benefit of the seamen and petty
+officers within earshot of him. "What can we expect when a mere boy
+is put in command of a steamer like this one?"
+
+"I think you need not complain, Pawcett, for you are on board of this
+vessel, and so am I, because she is under the command of a boy. But he
+is a tremendous smart boy, and he is older than many men of double his
+age," added Mulgrum.
+
+Dave realized that the supernumerary was well informed in regard to
+current history in connection with naval matters, and he was willing to
+believe that he was quite as shrewd as the officer at his side.
+
+"The boy is well enough, though he is abominably overrated, as you will
+see before I have done with him," said Mr. Lillyworth contemptuously.
+"It is galling for one who has seen some service to touch his cap to
+this boy and call him captain."
+
+"I hope you are not forgetting yourself, Pawcett--"
+
+"Don't mention my name on board of this vessel, Hungerford," interposed
+the officer.
+
+"And you will not mention mine," added the scullion promptly. "We are
+both careless in this matter, and we must do better. I think I ought to
+caution you not to neglect any outside tokens of respect to the captain.
+You can have your own opinions, but I think you do not treat him with
+sufficient deference."
+
+"Perhaps I don't, for it is not an easy thing to do," replied the second
+lieutenant. "But I think the captain has no cause to complain of me.
+We must find out something about these orders, and you must be on the
+lookout for your chances at meridian to-morrow. If you can stow yourself
+away under the captain's berth in his state room, you may be able to
+hear him read them to the first lieutenant, as he will be sure to do."
+
+"I don't believe in doing that," replied Mulgrum. "If I am discovered,
+no explanation could be made as to why I was concealed there."
+
+"But we must take some risks," persisted Mr. Lillyworth. "After what you
+told me in the first of our talk, it may not be necessary to conceal
+yourself. I shall say something to the captain on the subject at which
+you hinted as soon as I get a chance. You may be in a situation to hear
+all that is said without danger."
+
+Dave wondered what could be meant by this remark, for he had not heard
+the conversation between the captain and the first lieutenant which was
+intended as a "blind" to the listener, known to be at the door.
+
+"I am willing to take any risk that will not ruin our enterprise,"
+Mulgrum responded to the remark of his companion.
+
+"At noon to-morrow I shall come on deck in charge, and the first
+lieutenant will be relieved, so that he will be at liberty to visit the
+captain in his cabin. That will be your time, and you must improve it."
+
+"But I shall meet you again to-morrow, and I will look about me, and see
+what can be done," said Mulgrum, as he made a new demonstration at the
+canvas screen.
+
+"I will keep my eyes open, and you must do the same. How is it with our
+men forward?" asked the officer.
+
+"I have had no chance to speak with any of them, for they are all the
+time in the midst of the rest of the seamen," replied the deaf mute.
+"But I have no doubt they are all right."
+
+"But you must have some way to communicate with them, or they might as
+well be on shore. As there are six of them, I should say you might get a
+chance to speak to one of them whenever you desire."
+
+"I have had nothing to say to them so far, and I have not considered the
+matter of communicating with them."
+
+"It is time to know how you can do so."
+
+"I can manage it in some way when the time comes," replied Mulgrum
+confidently. "I am sure the captain and the first lieutenant have no
+suspicion that I am not what I seem to be. The executive officer put me
+through a full examination, especially in regard to Cherryfield, where I
+told him I used to live. I came off with flying colors, and I am certain
+that I am all right now."
+
+Dave knew nothing about the examination to which Mr. Flint had subjected
+the deaf mute. It is evident that Mulgrum took an entirely different
+view of the result of the test from that taken by the examiner and the
+captain; but both of the latter had taken extreme pains to conceal their
+opinion from the subject of the test.
+
+"I think we had better not say anything more to-night, and you have been
+on the bridge long enough," said Mr. Lillyworth, walking to the windward
+end of the bridge, and peering out into the gloom of the night.
+
+He had hardly looked in the direction of the deaf mute while he was on
+the bridge, but had busied himself with the lashing of the screen, and
+done everything he could to make it appear that he was not talking to
+his companion. Mulgrum, overhauling the screen as he proceeded, made his
+way to the steps by the side of the foremast. But he did not go down, as
+he had evidently intended to do, and waited till the second lieutenant
+came over to the lee side of the vessel.
+
+"Perhaps the man at the wheel has been listening to our conversation,"
+said the deaf mute, plainly alarmed at the situation. "I did not think
+of him."
+
+"I did," replied Mr. Lillyworth; "but it is all right, and the man at
+the wheel is Spoors, one of our number."
+
+"All right," added Mulgrum, and he descended the steps.
+
+Dave kept his place in the folds of the foresail, and hardly breathed
+as the scullion passed him. With the greatest caution, and after he had
+satisfied himself that no one was near enough to see him, he descended
+to the deck. He wandered about for a while, and saw that the
+supernumerary went to the galley, where, in the scarcity of
+accommodations for the extra persons on board, he was obliged to sleep
+on the floor. He was not likely to extend his operations any farther
+that night, and Dave went to the companion way, descended the steps,
+and knocked at the door of the captain's cabin.
+
+"Come in," called the occupant, who had been writing at his desk in the
+state room, though the door was open.
+
+Dave presented himself before the commander, who was very glad to see
+him. Christy wiped the perspiration from his forehead, for he had
+evidently been working very hard all the evening. Four bells had just
+struck, indicating that it was ten o'clock in the evening. Flint's
+prediction in regard to the weather seemed to be in the way of
+fulfilment, for the Bronx had been leaping mildly on a head sea for the
+last hour. But everything was going well, and the motion of the vessel
+was as satisfactory to the commander in rough water as it had been in a
+smooth sea.
+
+"I am glad to see you, Dave," said Christy, as the steward presented
+himself at the door of the state room. "I suppose from your coming
+to-night that you have something to tell me."
+
+"Yes, sir; I have; and I will give you the whole Gulf of Mexico if it
+isn't a big thing," replied Dave with his most expansive smile. "You
+done get into a hornet's nest, Captain Passford."
+
+"Not so bad as that, I hope," replied Christy, laughing.
+
+"Bad enough, sir, at any rate," added Dave. "Pink Mulgrum has been
+talking and listening to the second lieutenant all the evening."
+
+"Then he is not a deaf mute, I take it."
+
+"Not a bit of it; he can talk faster than I can, and he knows all about
+his grammar and dictionary. You have just eight traitors on board of the
+Bronx, Captain Passford," said Dave very impressively.
+
+"Only eight?"
+
+"That's all I know about; and I think that is enough for one cruise in a
+Yankee ship."
+
+"Eight will do very well, Dave; but who are they?" asked the captain
+with interest.
+
+"I know just three of them. One is the second lieutenant; Pink Mulgrum
+is another, and Spoors, one of the quartermasters, is the third. They
+didn't mention any more of them."
+
+"All right, Dave; now sit down on that stool, and tell me the whole
+story," said Christy, pointing to the seat.
+
+The steward, believing that he had done a "big thing" that evening, did
+not hesitate to seat himself in the presence of the commander, and
+proceeded at once to relate all that he had done, and all that he had
+seen and heard on the bridge. When Dave had finished his story, and
+answered the questions put to him, the commander was willing to believe
+that he had done a big thing; though he said nothing beyond a few words
+of general commendation to the steward. Then he dismissed him, and,
+locking his desk, he went on deck. After taking an observation of the
+weather he mounted the bridge.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VIII
+
+IMPORTANT INFORMATION, IF TRUE
+
+
+"Good evening, Mr. Lillyworth," said Captain Passford, when he reached
+the bridge.
+
+"Good evening, Captain Passford," replied the second lieutenant, as he
+touched his cap to his superior, galling as the act was, according to
+his own statement.
+
+"It looks as though we should have some wind," added the captain.
+
+"Yes, sir; and we shall have a nasty time of it across the Gulf Stream."
+
+"If there is any decided change in the weather during your watch, you
+will oblige me by having me called," added the captain; "I think I am
+tired enough to turn in, for I have been very busy all the evening,
+copying letters and papers. I think I need a clerk almost as much as
+the captain of a frigate."
+
+"I think you ought to have one, sir," added Mr. Lillyworth, manifesting
+a deep interest in this matter.
+
+"As the matter now stands I have to use a good deal of my time in
+copying documents. By the way, if we fall in with any United States
+man-of-war, I wish to communicate with her."
+
+"Of course I shall report to you, sir, if one comes in sight during my
+watch," replied the second lieutenant, with a greater manifestation of
+zeal than he had before displayed in his relations with his commander,
+evidently profiting by the suggestion made to him by Pink Mulgrum.
+
+"But I hope we shall not fall in with one before day after tomorrow, for
+I have not copied all the letters I desire to use if such an occasion
+offers," said Captain Passford, who was really playing out a baited hook
+for the benefit of the second lieutenant, in regard to whose intentions
+he had no doubt since the revelations of the steward.
+
+"By the way, Captain Passford, what you say in regard to the amount of
+writing imposed upon you reminds me that there is a man on board who
+might afford you some relief from this drudgery. Possibly you may have
+noticed this man, though he is doing duty as a mere scullion."
+
+"Do you mean the man I have seen cleaning brass work about the cabin?"
+asked Christy, glad to have the other take hold of the baited hook.
+
+"That is the one; he is deaf and dumb, but he has received a good
+education, and writes a good hand, and is rapid about it," added the
+second lieutenant, with some eagerness in his manner, though he tried
+to conceal it.
+
+"But my writing is of a confidential nature," replied the captain.
+
+"I have known this man, whose name is Pink Mulgrum, for some time. He is
+deaf and dumb, and you must have noticed him."
+
+"Oh, yes; I have seen him, and he had an interview with Mr. Flint in my
+presence. I observed that he wrote a good hand, and wrote very rapidly."
+
+"I am very confident that you can trust him with your papers, Captain
+Passford. He could not go into the service as a soldier or a sailor
+on account of his infirmity; but he desired to do something for his
+country. He was determined to go to the war, as he called it, in any
+capacity, even if it was as a scullion. He wrote me a letter to this
+effect, and Mr. Nawood consented to take him as a man of all work.
+If he ever gets into an action, you will find that he is a fighting
+character."
+
+"That is the kind of men we want, and at the present time, when we are
+hardly in a fighting latitude, perhaps I can use him as a copyist, if he
+will agree to make no use whatever of any information he may obtain in
+that capacity. I will speak to Mr. Nawood about the matter."
+
+"Thank you, Captain Passford. Mulgrum is a very worthy man, patriotic in
+every fibre of his frame, and in every drop of his blood. I should be
+glad to obtain some permanent occupation for him in the service of his
+country, for nothing else will suit him in the present exciting times.
+Perhaps when you have tested his qualifications, this will make an
+opening for him."
+
+"I will consider the subject tomorrow," said Christy, as he descended
+from the bridge.
+
+The commander was satisfied that the portion of the conversation which
+had taken place between the aspirant for the position of captain's clerk
+and the second lieutenant and which had been finished before the steward
+had reached his perch on the foremast, related to this matter. Mulgrum
+had heard the conversation between the first lieutenant and himself,
+which was intended to blind the listener, and he had reported it to his
+confederate. It was only another confirmation, if any were needed, in
+regard to the character of the conspirators.
+
+Christy had no doubt in regard to the disloyalty of these two men; but
+nothing in respect to their ultimate intentions had yet been revealed.
+They had brought six seamen on board with them, and they appeared to
+have influence enough in some quarter to have had these men drafted
+into the Bronx. Eight men, even if two of them were officers, was an
+insignificant force, though he was willing to believe that they intended
+to obtain possession of the vessel in some manner. The captain returned
+to his cabin, and resumed his work in the state room.
+
+Though Christy had spent several hours at his desk, he had really
+produced but a single letter, and had not yet finished it. When he heard
+eight bells strike, he left his state room, and seated himself at the
+table in the middle of his cabin. The door was open into the companion
+way. Mr. Flint presently appeared, and went on deck to relieve the
+second lieutenant, who came below a few minutes later, though the
+captain did not allow himself to be seen by him. Then he closed the
+cabin door, and turned in, for he began to realize that he needed some
+rest. He went to sleep at once, and he did not wake till four bells
+struck in the morning. The Bronx was pitching heavily, though she still
+maintained her reputation as an easy-going ship in spite of the head
+sea. He dressed himself, and seated himself at his desk at once,
+devoting himself to the letter upon which he had been engaged the
+evening before. The second lieutenant was on duty at this time, and the
+first was doubtless asleep in his berth, but he had been below six hours
+during the night, and, calling Dave with his bell, he sent him for Mr.
+Flint, who presented himself a few minutes later.
+
+"Good morning, Captain Passford; you have turned out early, sir," said
+the first lieutenant.
+
+"Not very early, and I am sorry to wake you so soon. I did not turn in
+till after you had gone on deck to take the midwatch. I have been very
+busy since we parted, and I need your advice and assistance," replied
+the commander. "I have got at something."
+
+"Indeed! I am glad to hear it," added Mr. Flint.
+
+Without the loss of any time, the captain called Dave, who was at work
+in the ward room, and told him to see that no one came near the door of
+his cabin. The steward understood him perfectly, and Christy resumed his
+place at the table with the executive officer, and proceeded to detail
+to him as briefly as he could all the information he had obtained
+through Dave, and the manner of obtaining it. It required some time
+to do this, and the first lieutenant was intensely interested in the
+narrative.
+
+"I am not greatly surprised so far as Lillyworth is concerned, for there
+has been something about him that I could not fathom since both of us
+came on board," said Mr. Flint.
+
+"Of course these men are on board for a purpose, though I acknowledge
+that I cannot fathom this purpose, unless it be treason in a general
+sense; but I am inclined to believe that they have some specific
+object," added the captain. "Of course you will be willing to believe
+that both of these men are sailing under false colors."
+
+"Undoubtedly. It has occurred to me that the second lieutenant invented
+the name that represents him on the ship's books. Lillyworth is a little
+strained; if he had called himself Smith or Brown, it would have been
+less suspicious."
+
+"In the conversation to which Dave listened on the bridge, both of them
+blundered, and let out their real names, though each of them reproved
+the other for doing so. The second lieutenant's real name is Pawcett,
+and that of the deaf mute is Hungerford."
+
+"The last is decidedly a southern name, and the other may be for aught
+I know. Hungerford, Hungerford," said Mr. Flint, repeating the name
+several times. "It means something to me, but I can't make it out yet."
+
+The first lieutenant cudgelled his brains for a minute or two as though
+he was trying to connect the name with some event in the past. The
+captain waited for him to sound his memory; but it was done in vain;
+Flint could not place him. He was confident, however, that the
+connection would be made in his mind at some other moment.
+
+"The interesting question to us just now is to determine why these men,
+eight in number, are on board of the Bronx at all, and why they are on
+board at the present time," said the captain. "I happen to know that
+Lillyworth was offered a better position than the one he now fills
+temporarily; but my father says he insisted on going in the Bronx."
+
+"Certainly he is not here on a fool's errand. He has business on board
+of this particular steamer," replied Flint, speaking out of his musing
+mind. "Ah! now I have it!" he suddenly exclaimed. "Hungerford was the
+executive officer of the Killbright, or the Yazoo, as they called her
+afterwards. I had a very slight inkling that I had seen the face of the
+deaf mute before; but he has shaved off his beard, and stained his face,
+so that it is no wonder I did not identify him; but the name satisfies
+me that he was the first officer of the Yazoo."
+
+"That means then that he is a regular officer of the Confederate
+navy," suggested the captain; "and probably Lillyworth is also. The
+only other name Dave was able to obtain was that of Spoors, one of the
+quartermasters; and very likely he is also another."
+
+"We have almost a double crew on board, Captain Passford, and what can
+eight men do to capture this vessel?" asked Flint.
+
+"I don't know what they intend to do, and I must give it up. Now I want
+to read a letter to you that I have written; and you can tell me what
+you think of it." The commander then read as follows from the sheet in
+his hand, upon which appeared no end of changes and corrections:
+
+  "TO THE COMMANDER OF ANY UNITED STATES SHIP OF WAR, _Sir_:-- The
+  undersigned, master in the United States Navy, in temporary command
+  of the United States Steamer Bronx, bound to the Gulf of Mexico,
+  respectfully informs you that he has information, just received,
+  of the approach to the coast of the southern states of two steamers,
+  the Scotian and the Arran, believed to be fitted out as cruisers for
+  the Confederate Navy. They will be due in these waters about March
+  17. They are of about five hundred tons each. A letter from the
+  confidential agent of my father, Captain Horatio Passford, an agent
+  in whom he has perfect confidence, both on account of his loyalty
+  to his country undivided, and because of his skill as a shipmaster,
+  contains this statement, which is submitted to you for your
+  guidance: 'I have put twelve loyal American seamen, with an officer,
+  on board of each of the steamers mentioned above; and they comprise
+  about one-half of the crew of each vessel; and they will take
+  possession of each of the two steamers when supported by any United
+  States man-of-war. WARNOCK.'
+
+    Respectfully yours,
+      CHRISTOPHER PASSFORD,
+        _Master Commanding_."
+
+"I beg your pardon, Captain Passford, but what under the canopy is that
+letter for?" asked Flint, not a little excited.
+
+"It is for Pink Mulgrum to copy," replied the captain. "That is all the
+use I intend to make of it."
+
+Flint leaned back in his chair and laughed heartily, and the commander
+could not help joining him.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX
+
+A VOLUNTEER CAPTAIN'S CLERK
+
+
+Mr. Flint was really amused at the plan of the commander of the Bronx,
+as indicated in the letter he had just read, and he was not laughing out
+of mere compliment to his superior officer, as some subordinates feel
+obliged to do even when they feel more like weeping. Perhaps no one knew
+Christy Passford so well as his executive officer, not even his own
+father, for Flint had been with him in the most difficult and trying
+ordeals of his life. He had been the young leader's second in command in
+the capture of the Teaser, whose cabin they now occupied, and they had
+been prisoners together. He had been amazed at his young companion's
+audacity, but he had always justified his action in the end. They had
+become excellent friends as well as associates in the navy, and there
+was a hearty sympathy between them.
+
+Christy laughed almost in spite of himself, for he had been giving very
+serious attention to the situation on board of the Bronx. In the ship's
+company were at least two officers on the other side of the great
+question of the day, both of them doubtless men of great experience
+in their profession, more mature in years than their opponent on this
+chess-board of fate, and they had come on board of the steamer to
+accomplish some important purpose. The game at which they were engaged
+had already become quite exciting, especially as it looked as if the
+final result was to be determined by strategy rather than hard fighting,
+for Pawcett and Hungerford could hardly expect to capture the Bronx with
+only a force of eight men.
+
+"Mulgrum is to copy this letter," said Flint, suppressing his laughter.
+
+"I have written the letter in order to have something for him to copy,
+and at the same time to give him and his confederate something to think
+about," replied Christy; and he could hardly help chuckling when he
+thought of the effect the contents of the letter would produce in the
+minds of those for whom the missive was really intended.
+
+"Do you think they will swallow this fiction, Captain Passford?" asked
+the first lieutenant.
+
+"Why shouldn't they swallow it, hook, bait, and sinker? They are
+Confederate agents beyond the possibility of a doubt; and they are
+looking for a ship in which they intend to ravage the commerce of the
+United States," replied Christy; and the question had done something to
+stimulate his reasoning powers. "They want a vessel, and the Bronx would
+suit them very well."
+
+"But they will not attempt to capture her under present circumstances,
+I am very confident. They know that we have about twenty seamen extra
+on board."
+
+"They know that certainly; but possibly they know some things in this
+connection that we do not know," added Christy, as he put his hand on
+his forehead, and leaned over the table, as though his mind were
+strongly exercised by some serious question he was unable to answer
+satisfactorily to himself.
+
+"What can they know that we don't know in regard to this vessel?"
+demanded Flint, looking quite as serious as the commander.
+
+"Whether our extra men are loyal or not," answered Christy, dropping his
+hand, and looking his companion full in the face.
+
+"Do you think there is any doubt in regard to them?"
+
+"I confess that I have not had a doubt till this moment," said the
+captain, wiping the perspiration from his brow, for the terrible
+possibility that any considerable portion of the extra men were in the
+employ of the two Confederates had almost overcome him.
+
+For a few moments he was silent as he thought of this tremendous idea.
+It was appalling to think of going into action with the Scotian or the
+Arran, or both of them, and have a part of his own force turn against
+him on his own deck. This was possible, but he could hardly believe it
+was probable. Dave had reported very faithfully to him all the details
+of the conversation between the Confederates, and they had claimed only
+six men. If they had any hold on the extra men on board, they would have
+been likely to say so, or at least to speak more indefinitely than they
+had of their expectations.
+
+"Have you any friends on board, Mr. Flint, among the crew?" asked
+Christy suddenly, as though a solution of the difficult question of the
+loyalty of the men had suggested itself to him.
+
+"I have at least half a dozen whom I worked hard to have drafted into
+the Bronx, for I know that they are good and true men, though they may
+not be able to pass the technical examination of the naval officers,"
+replied the first lieutenant promptly. "I can trust every one of them as
+far as I could trust myself. One of them was the mate of my vessel at
+the time I sold her, and he has since been in command of her."
+
+"Who is he?"
+
+"His name is Baskirk; and he is a quartermaster now. I wrote to him, and
+promised to do the best I could to advance him. He is not a graduate of
+a college, but he is a well-informed man, well read, sober, honest, and
+a man of good common-sense."
+
+"The others?"
+
+"McSpindle was a classmate of mine in college, and he is a capital
+fellow. Unfortunately, he got into the habit of drinking more than was
+good for him, and spoiled his immediate future. He has made two foreign
+voyages, and he is a good seaman. He came home second mate of an
+Indiaman, promoted on his merit. He is also a quartermaster," said
+Flint, who was evidently very deeply interested in the persons he
+described.
+
+"Any more?"
+
+"Luffard is a quartermaster, for I selected the best men I had for these
+positions. He is a young fellow, and the son of a rich man in Portland.
+He is a regular water bird, though he is not over eighteen years old."
+
+"His age is no objection," added Christy with a smile.
+
+"I suppose not; but I have taken Luffard on his bright promise rather
+than for anything he has ever done, though I have seen him sail a
+forty-footer in a race and win the first prize. The other men I happen
+to think of just now have been sailors on board of my coaster. They are
+good men, and I can vouch for their loyalty, though not for their
+education. They are all petty officers."
+
+"I have a mission for your men, to be undertaken at once, and I shall
+be likely to want the first three you named for important positions, if
+my orders do not fetter me too closely," said Christy. "As the matter
+stands just now, Mr. Flint, it would hardly be expedient for us to
+capture a schooner running the blockade for the want of an officer to
+act as prize master."
+
+"The three quartermasters I named are competent for this duty, for they
+are navigators, and all of them have handled a vessel."
+
+"I am glad to hear it; we are better off than I supposed we were. My
+father told me that several vessels had been sent to the South short of
+officers, and we are no worse off than some others, though what you say
+makes us all right."
+
+"I can find three officers on board who are as competent as I am, though
+that is not saying much," added Flint.
+
+"I can ask no better officers, then. But to return to this letter.
+I have spent a considerable part of my time at Bonnydale in talking
+with my father. He is in the confidence of the naval department."
+
+"He ought to be, for he gave to the navy one of its best steamers, to
+say the least."
+
+"I don't want to brag of my father," suggested Christy, laughing;
+"I only wanted to show that he is posted. Coming to the point at once,
+putting this and that together of what I learned on shore, and of what
+I have discovered on board of the Bronx, I am inclined to believe that
+Pawcett and Hungerford have their mission on board of this steamer in
+connection with the Scotian and the Arran. I will not stop now to
+explain why I have this idea, for I shall obtain more evidence as
+we proceed. At any rate, I thought I would put the ghost of a
+stumbling-block in the path of these conspirators; and this is the
+reason why I have put thirteen American seamen on board of each of the
+expected steamers. If my conjectures are wrong the stumbling-block will
+be nothing but a ghost; if I am right, it will make our men somewhat
+cautious as to what they do if we should be so fortunate as to fall in
+with the two vessels."
+
+"I understand you perfectly, Captain Passford. You said that you had
+something for my men to do at once; but you did not explain what this
+duty was," said Flint. "If you require their services at once, I will
+instruct them."
+
+"I did not explain, for I have so many irons in the fire that I am
+afraid I am getting them mixed, and I forgot to tell you what they were
+to do. But I shall leave the details to be settled in your own way.
+I want to know who are loyal men and who are not. There are at least
+six men, according to the report of Dave, who are followers of Pawcett
+and Hungerford. We don't know who they are; but doubtless they have
+been selected for their shrewdness. Probably they will be looking for
+information among the men. Spoors is one of them, and by watching him
+some clew may be obtained to the others."
+
+"I am confident my men can find out all you want to know," added the
+first lieutenant.
+
+"It should be done as soon as possible," replied the commander.
+
+"Not a moment shall be lost. I have the deck at eight this morning, and
+one of the quartermasters will be at the wheel. I will begin with him."
+
+Mr. Flint left the cabin, for his breakfast was waiting for him in
+the ward room. Christy walked through to the steerage, where he found
+Mulgrum attending to the wants of the warrant officers as well as he
+could. He looked at this man with vastly more interest than before he
+had listened to Dave's report. It was easy to see that he was not an
+ordinary man such as one would find in menial positions; but it was not
+prudent for him to make a study of the man, for his quick eye was taking
+in everything that occurred near him.
+
+Eight bells struck, and Mr. Flint hastened on deck to relieve the second
+lieutenant. Christy took his morning meal at a later hour, and when he
+had finished it, he sent for Pink Mulgrum. Of course the conversation
+had to be written, and the captain placed the scullion opposite himself
+at the table.
+
+"I learn from Mr. Lillyworth that you are a good writer, and that you
+are well educated," Christy wrote on a piece of paper, passing it to the
+deaf mute.
+
+Mulgrum read the sentence, and nodded his head with something like
+a smile. If Christy was a judge of his expression, he was certainly
+pleased, evidently to find that his confederate's plan was working well.
+
+"I have a letter of which I desire several copies. Can I trust you to
+make these copies?" Christy wrote.
+
+The man read and nodded his head eagerly.
+
+"Will you promise on your honor as a man that you will not reveal what
+you write to any person whatever?" Christy proceeded. Mulgrum read, and
+nodded his head earnestly several times.
+
+The commander procured paper and other writing materials for him,
+and placed them before him. Then he seated himself again opposite the
+copyist, and fixed his gaze upon him; unfolding the letter, of which he
+had made a fair copy himself, he placed it under the eyes of the deaf
+mute. Mulgrum had retained his smile till this moment. He had arranged
+his paper and taken a pen in his hand. Then he began to read; as he
+proceeded the smile deserted his face. He was plainly startled.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X
+
+THE UNEXPECTED ORDERS
+
+
+Christy sat for some minutes watching the expression of Mulgrum as he
+read the letter he was to copy. Like a careful man, he was evidently
+taking a glance at it as a whole. The interested observer could see that
+he fixed his gaze upon the last part of the letter, the extract from the
+missive of Warnock, relating to the twelve loyal American seamen and
+their officer. In fact, he seemed to be paralyzed by what he read.
+
+The commander was satisfied with what he had seen, and he rose from his
+chair. His movement seemed to restore the self-possession of the deaf
+mute, and he began to write very rapidly. Christy went into his state
+room, where he kept all his important papers in his desk. He gave
+himself up to a consideration of the situation in which he was placed.
+He had partly closed the door. But he had not been in the room half an
+hour before he heard a knock.
+
+"Come in," said he, supposing the caller was Dave.
+
+The door was pushed open, and Mulgrum came in with his tablet in his
+hand. The deaf mute had certainly heard his reply to the knock, for
+he had heeded it instantly, and he smiled at the manner in which the
+conspirator had "given himself away." The scullion presented his tablet
+to the captain with a very deferential bow.
+
+"There is an error in the copy of the letter you gave me--in the
+extract. If you will give me the original letter from Mr. Warnock,
+I will correct the mistake," Christy read on the tablet. It was not
+impossible that he had made a mistake in copying his letter; but the
+object of Mulgrum in desiring to see the original of the letter from
+England was sufficiently apparent. "Bring me my copy of the letter,"
+he wrote on the tablet, and handed it back to the owner.
+
+The captain took from his desk a bundle of letters and selected one,
+which he opened and laid on the table, though not where his copyist
+could see it. Mulgrum returned and presented him the letter, pointing
+out the mistake he had discovered. He looked at the blind letter, and
+then at the other. There was certainly an error, for his letter said
+"and they comprise about one of crew of each vessel." This was nonsense,
+for he had accidentally omitted the word "half" after "one." He inserted
+the word above the line in its proper place, and gave it back to the
+copyist. It was clear enough that Mulgrum was disappointed in the result
+of this interview; but he took the letter and returned to the table.
+
+At the end of another quarter of an hour, he brought the first copy of
+the letter. He knocked as before, and though Christy told him in a loud
+tone to come in, he did not do so. He repeated the words, but the
+conspirator, possibly aware of the blunder he had made before, did
+not make it again. Then he wrote on his tablet, after the captain had
+approved his work, that he found the table very uncomfortable to write
+upon while the ship was pitching so smartly, and suggested that he
+should be allowed to make the rest of the copies on the desk in
+the state room, if the captain did not desire to use it himself.
+Unfortunately for the writer, he did desire to use it himself, and he
+could not help smiling at the enterprise of the deaf mute in his attempt
+to obtain an opportunity to forage among the papers in his drawers.
+
+Mulgrum certainly did his work nicely and expeditiously, for he had
+finished it at three bells in the forenoon watch. He was dismissed
+then, for his presence was not particularly agreeable to the commander.
+Christy locked his desk and all the drawers that contained papers, not
+as against a thief or a burglar, but against one who would scorn to
+appropriate anything of value that did not belong to him, for he had no
+doubt now that Mulgrum was a gentleman who was trying to serve what he
+regarded as his country, though it was nothing but a fraction of it.
+
+In fact, inheriting, as it were, the broad and generous policy of his
+father, Christy had no personal prejudices against this enemy of his
+country, and he felt just as he would if he had been sailing a boat
+against him, or playing a game of whist with him. He was determined to
+beat him if he could. But he was not satisfied with locking his papers
+up; he called Dave, and set him as a watch over them. If the conspirator
+overhauled his papers, he would have been more concerned about what he
+did not find than in relation to what he did find, for the absence of
+the original of Warnock's letter would go far to convince him that the
+extract from it was an invention.
+
+When he had taken these precautions he went on deck. The wind was
+blowing a moderate gale; but the Bronx was doing exceedingly well,
+lifting herself very lightly over the foaming billows, and conveying
+to one walking her deck the impression of solidity and strength. The
+captain went to the bridge after a while, though not till he had noticed
+that something was going on among the crew; but he was not disposed to
+inquire into the matter, possibly regarding it as beneath the dignity of
+a commander to do so.
+
+Christy mounted the steps to the bridge. This structure is hardly
+a man-of-war appendage. It had been there, and it had been permitted
+to remain. The first shot in action might carry it away, and this
+contingency had been provided for, as she was provided with a duplicate
+steam-steering apparatus, as well as a hand wheel at the stern. The
+proper position of the officer of the watch, who is practically in
+command for the time being, is on the quarter deck, though he is
+required during his watch to visit all parts of the deck. On board of
+the Bronx this officer was placed on the bridge, where he could overlook
+all parts of the ship.
+
+The first lieutenant, who had the forenoon watch, saluted him, but there
+was nothing of interest to report. Christy asked the meaning of the
+movement he had observed among the seamen and petty officers, and was
+told that Baskirk was getting up an association on board, the first
+requirement to which was for all who wished to become members to sign
+the oath of allegiance to the United States government, "as represented
+by and presided over by the President at Washington." It was to be a
+secret society, and Flint added that it was really a branch of the Union
+League. Christy did not think it wise to ask any more questions, but he
+understood that this was really a movement to ascertain the sentiments
+of the members of the ship's company as to the extent of their duty in
+supporting the government.
+
+"Mr. Flint, I am not a little dissatisfied with the manner in which we
+are compelled to carry on our duty on board of the Bronx, though no
+blame is to be attached to the naval department on account of it," said
+Christy, after he had walked the bridge for a time.
+
+"Is anything going wrong, Captain Passford?" asked the first lieutenant
+anxiously.
+
+"Oh, no: I have no fault to find with any one, and least of all with
+you," added the captain promptly. "The trouble is that we are short of
+officers, though all that could be spared for this vessel were sent on
+board of her. As the matter now stands, Dr. Spokeley and I are the only
+idlers on board in the cabin and ward room. The first lieutenant has to
+keep a watch, which is not at all regular, and I foresee that this
+arrangement will be a very great disadvantage to me. It could not be
+helped, and the Bronx was evidently regarded as of no great importance,
+for she is little more than a storeship just now, though the flag
+officer in the Gulf will doubtless make something more of her."
+
+"We have a big crew for this vessel, but we are short of officers,"
+added Flint.
+
+"From the best calculations I have been able to make, with my father to
+help me, we ought to fall in with the Scotian and the Arran; and in view
+of such an event, I propose to prepare for the emergency by appointing a
+temporary third lieutenant."
+
+"I think that would be a very wise step to take," added Flint very
+cordially.
+
+"Of the men you mentioned to me, who is the best one for this position?"
+asked Christy.
+
+"I have no hesitation in saying that Baskirk is the right man for the
+position."
+
+"Very well; he shall be appointed," added Christy, as he left the
+bridge. But in a few minutes he returned, and handed an order to the
+first lieutenant.
+
+Baskirk was sent for, and the captain had a long talk with him. He
+found that the candidate had more knowledge of naval discipline than
+he had supposed, and he was pleased with the man. He was the leading
+quartermaster in rank, having been appointed first. After another talk
+with Flint, the latter gave the order to pass the word for Mr. Giblock,
+who was the acting boatswain, though in rank he was only a boatswain's
+mate. He was directed to call all hands. When the ship's company were
+assembled on the forward deck, though this is not the usual place for
+such a gathering, the first lieutenant read the order of the commander
+appointing George Baskirk as acting third lieutenant of the Bronx, and
+directing that he should be respected and obeyed as such. A smart cheer
+followed the announcement, though the second lieutenant, who had taken
+a place on the bridge, looked as though he did not approve the step the
+captain had taken. The officer of the deck next appointed Thomas McLinn
+a quartermaster. The ship's company were then dismissed.
+
+Just before noon by the clocks, Lieutenant Baskirk appeared on the
+bridge, dressed in a brand-new uniform, with a sextant in his hands.
+Christy, who did not depend upon his pay for the extent of his wardrobe,
+had not less than three new suits, and he had presented one of them to
+the newly appointed officer, for there was no material difference in the
+size of the two persons. All the officers who kept watches were required
+to "take the sun," and at the moment the meridian was crossed, the
+captain gave the word to "make it noon," and the great bell sounded out
+eight bells. The officers proceeded to figure up the results of the
+observations. The longitude and latitude were entered on the log slate,
+to be transferred to the log book. Baskirk was directed to take the
+starboard watch, and he was formally presented to the second lieutenant
+by the captain; and whatever his feeling or opinions in regard to the
+step which had just been taken, he accepted the hand of the new officer
+and treated him with proper courtesy.
+
+"Latitude 37° 52'," said the captain significantly, as he led the way
+down from the bridge, attended by the first and third lieutenants.
+
+They followed him to the captain's cabin. Christy gave them seats at
+the table, and then went into his state room for the ponderous envelope
+which contained his orders. He seated himself between his two officers;
+but before he broke the great seal, he discovered Dave in the passageway
+making energetic signs to him. He hastened to him, and followed him into
+the ward room.
+
+"Pink is under your berth in the state room," whispered the steward in
+the most impressive manner.
+
+"All right, Dave; you have been faithful to your duty," said Christy,
+as he hastened back into his cabin.
+
+Resuming his place at the table, he broke the seal of the huge envelope.
+He unfolded the inclosed instructions, and ran over them without
+speaking a word.
+
+"We have nothing to do on this cruise," said he, apparently taking his
+idea from the paper in his hand. "I will read the material parts of it,"
+he continued in a much louder tone than the size of the cabin and the
+nearness of his auditors seemed to demand. "'You will proceed with all
+reasonable despatch to the Gulf of Mexico, and report to the flag
+officer, or his representative, of the eastern Gulf Squadron. You will
+attempt no operations on your passage, and if an enemy appears you will
+avoid her if possible with honor.' That's all, gentlemen."
+
+The two listeners seemed to be utterly confounded.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XI
+
+ANOTHER READING OF THE SEALED ORDERS
+
+
+Christy finished the reading of the orders, folded up the document, and
+put it in his pocket. But he immediately took it out and unfolded it
+again, as though a new thought had struck him. Flint watched him with
+the utmost attention, and he realized that the bearing of the commander
+was quite different from his usual manner; but he attributed it to the
+very unexpected nature of the orders he had just read. He was distinctly
+directed to attempt no operations on the passage, and to proceed to the
+destination indicated with all reasonable despatch.
+
+The wording of the order was rather peculiar, and somewhat clumsy,
+Flint thought; but then he had been a schoolmaster, and perhaps he
+was inclined to be over-critical. But the meaning of the first clause
+could not be mistaken, however, though the word "operations" seemed
+to indicate something on a grander scale and more prolonged than an
+encounter with a blockade-runner, or a Confederate man-of-war; something
+in the nature of a campaign on shore, or a thorough scouring of the
+ocean in search of the vessels of the enemy.
+
+But any such interpretation of the order was rendered impossible by what
+followed. The commander was distinctly forbidden to engage the enemy if
+such an encounter could be avoided "with honor." The first lieutenant
+knew that a combat could be easily avoided simply by not following up
+any suspicious craft, unless a fully manned and armed Confederate
+cruiser presented herself, and then it might be honorable to run away
+from her. There was no mistaking the meaning of the orders, and there
+was no chance to strain a point, and fall upon one or both of the
+expected steamers.
+
+The captain was strictly enjoined from meddling with them, even if they
+came in his way. If they chased the Bronx, she would be justified in
+defending herself under the orders; and that was the most she could do.
+Flint was terribly disappointed, and he regarded the commander with the
+deepest interest to learn what interpretation he would give to the
+orders, though there seemed to him to be no room even to take advantage
+of any fortunate circumstance.
+
+The appearance of the commander did not throw any new light upon the
+contents of the document. After he had finished the reading of the
+paper, Christy sat in his chair, apparently still looking it over, as
+though he did not fully comprehend its meaning. But he made no sign and
+indulged in no remark of any kind, and in a few moments folded the order
+and put it back into his pocket. Undoubtedly he was thinking very
+energetically of something, but he did not reveal the nature of his
+reflections.
+
+Flint concluded that he was utterly dissatisfied with his orders, and
+even regarded them as a slight upon himself as the commander of the
+steamer for the time being. It was not customary to direct captains
+to avoid the enemy under all circumstances that were likely to be
+presented. The first lieutenant began to realize the disadvantage of
+sailing with a captain so young, for it looked to him as though the
+strange order had been issued on account of the youth of the commander.
+
+When Christy had restored the paper to his pocket, he rose from his
+seat, and thus indicated that there was to be no consultation with the
+officers in regard to the unusual instructions. The two officers rose at
+the same time, and closely observed the face of the commander; but this
+time Flint could find nothing there as serious as he had observed
+before; in fact, there was a twinkle in his eye that looked promising.
+
+"Gentlemen, it is dinner time in the ward room, and I will not detain
+you any longer," said Christy, as politely as he usually spoke to his
+officers, though the opera of "Pinafore" had not been written at that
+time.
+
+Flint bowed to his captain, and left the cabin; and his example was
+followed by Baskirk. Christy certainly did not look as though he were
+embarrassed by his orders, or as if he were disappointed at the
+restrictions they imposed upon him. He left the cabin so that Dave could
+prepare his table for dinner as he had the time to do so. He left the
+cabin; but in the passage he called the steward to him, and whispered a
+brief sentence to him.
+
+He then ascended to the deck, and proceeded to take a "constitutional"
+on the windward side of the quarter deck. The gale had moderated very
+sensibly, though the wind was still from the southward. The sea was
+still quite rough, though it was likely to subside very soon. After the
+captain had walked as long as he cared to do, he mounted the bridge.
+
+"What do you think of the weather, Mr. Lillyworth?" he asked of the
+officer of the deck, after he had politely returned his salute.
+
+"I don't believe we shall have any more wind today," replied the second
+lieutenant, as he looked wisely at the weather indications the sky
+presented. "But it don't look much like fairing off, and I shall look
+for fog as long as the wind holds where it is."
+
+"I have been expecting to be buried in fog," added the captain, as he
+took a survey of the deck beneath him. "I see by the log slate that we
+are making fifteen knots an hour, and we certainly are not driving her."
+
+"There can be no doubt that this is a very fast vessel," said Mr.
+Lillyworth. "Well, she ought to be, for I understand that she was built
+for a nobleman's yacht, and such men want speed, and are willing to pay
+for it."
+
+"By tomorrow, we shall be in the latitude of the Bermudas, and most of
+the blockade runners put in there, or some more southern port, to get
+the news, and obtain a pilot, if they don't happen to have one on
+board."
+
+"That seems to be the way they do it."
+
+"This fog is favorable to blockade runners if they have a skilful pilot
+on board; and they all contrive to have such a one," added the captain,
+as he moved towards the steps to the deck.
+
+"I suppose you have opened your sealed orders, Captain Passford," said
+the second lieutenant, who seemed to be interested in this subject. "We
+have crossed the thirty-eighth parallel."
+
+"Yes; I have opened the envelope, and found the orders very peculiar
+and very disappointing," replied the captain as he took a step on the
+ladder. "But you will excuse me now from speaking of them, for I have
+another matter on my mind."
+
+Christy thought Pink Mulgrum might as well tell him about the orders and
+he could at least save his breath if he had no other motive for leaving
+the second lieutenant in the dark for the present. He went to the deck,
+and then down into the cabin. His breakfast was ready, but Dave was not
+there, and he walked forward into the ward room, from which he saw
+Mulgrum replenishing the table in the steerage. He had evacuated his
+place under the berth in the state room, and the captain went to his
+breakfast in his cabin. Dave soon appeared with the hot dishes from the
+galley, for he had seen Christy take his place at the table.
+
+"What's the news, Dave?" asked the captain.
+
+"No news, sir, except that I gave Pink a chance to get out of that state
+room," replied the steward, spreading out his broadest smile. "I spoke
+out loud just like I was calling to some one in the ward room, 'No, sir,
+I can't go now; I have to go to the galley for the dishes.' Then I left
+the cabin, and went forward; when I came back, I looked under your
+berth, sir, and Pink wasn't there then."
+
+"How did you know he was under the berth in the first place, Dave?"
+
+"Just before eight bells I saw him cleaning the brasses on the door.
+I think he will wear those door knobs all out before the cruise is up.
+I knew he was up to something, and I just watched him. He went out of
+sight and I did not know where he was. Then I took the feather duster,
+and worked about the cabin; but I couldn't find him. Then I dusted the
+state room, and then I did find him."
+
+"You have rendered good service, Dave, and I shall not forget it," added
+Christy. "Where are Mr. Flint and Mr. Baskirk?"
+
+"In the ward room, sir."
+
+"Give my compliments to them, and say that I wish to see them in my
+cabin in about ten minutes," continued the captain.
+
+Dave left the cabin, and Christy devoted himself to his breakfast; and
+in his haste to meet the officers indicated, he hurried the meal more
+than was prudent for the digestion. The steward reported that he had
+delivered the message, and Christy finished his hasty collation.
+
+The table was hurriedly cleared by the steward, and the captain paid a
+visit to his state room, during which he did not fail to look under his
+berth. He had a trunk there, and he saw that it had been moved to the
+front of the space, so that there was room enough for the conspirator to
+conceal his body behind it, though his was a good-sized body. Returning
+to the cabin, he took his usual seat at the table, facing the door. In a
+few minutes more Mr. Flint and Mr. Baskirk came to the door and were
+invited to come in. Dave had returned from the galley, and he was
+instructed to watch that door as he was told to close it.
+
+  [Illustration: Dave finds Mulgrum under the berth.]
+
+Flint took the seat assigned to him, and Baskirk was placed opposite to
+him. The first lieutenant appeared to be a great deal more dissatisfied
+than the captain; but then he was a poor man, and next to his duty to
+his country, he was as anxious as the average officer to make all the
+money he could out of the prizes captured by his ship. It looked to him
+as though all his chances had slipped beyond his reach for the present.
+
+Flint had taken no little stock in the two steamers that were expected
+on the coast at this time, and in spite of the treachery anticipated he
+had counted upon a share in at least one of them. He knew very well that
+the commander, from sharp experience at his side some months before,
+would not pass by an opportunity to strike a blow, even in the face of
+any reasonable risk. But now, as he looked at it, the wings of the young
+captain had been clipped by the authorities at Washington, in the sealed
+orders.
+
+"I am glad to meet you again, gentlemen; indeed I may say that I am
+particularly glad to see you," said Christy in his most cheerful tones,
+as he looked about the cabin, and especially at the ports, to see if
+there was a spy looking in at one of them.
+
+The thought came to him then and there that it was possible for a man to
+hang over the rail, and place one of his ears at an opening and listen
+to what was going on; and besides there were, besides Mulgrum, six
+others who were capable of doing such a thing. He sent Mr. Baskirk on
+deck to see that no man was at work over the side. He returned and
+reported that no one was in a position to hear what was said in the
+cabin.
+
+Flint did not seem to be as much interested in the proceedings as on
+former occasions, for he had had time to consider the effect of the
+orders, and he saw no way to evade them. They might pick up some cotton
+schooners, but no such prizes as the Scotian and the Arran were likely
+to be taken when the steamer reached her station, wherever it might be,
+and the whole squadron shared the proceeds of the captures.
+
+"You listened to the orders I read this noon," began Christy, with a
+pronounced twinkling of his eyes.
+
+"Yes, sir; and, Captain Passford, I have felt as if the gates of honor
+and profit had been closed against the Bronx," added Flint.
+
+"Perhaps a second reading of the orders will put a different aspect on
+the gates," said the captain with a significant smile, the force of
+which, however, the first lieutenant failed to comprehend.
+
+"Under these orders there seems to be no alternative but to hasten to
+the Gulf of Mexico, and run away from any blockade runner we may happen
+to see," growled Flint.
+
+"You are not as amiable as usual, Mr. Flint."
+
+"How can one be amiable under such orders?" added Flint, trying to
+smile.
+
+"I will read them over again, now that we have not as many auditors as
+before," said the captain.
+
+Christy proceeded to read the document as it was written.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XII
+
+A SAIL ON THE STARBOARD BOW
+
+
+Before Captain Passford had read two lines of the document in his hands,
+a noise as of a scuffle was heard in the passage way to the ward room.
+Mr. Baskirk was sent to ascertain the cause of the disturbance, and he
+threw the door wide open. Dave was there, blocking the passage way, and
+Pink Mulgrum was trying to force his way towards the cabin door. The
+steward declared that no one must go to the cabin; it was the order of
+the captain himself. Mulgrum found it convenient not to hear on this
+occasion. The moment Baskirk appeared, the deaf mute exhibited a paper,
+which he passed to the new lieutenant, evidently satisfied that he could
+get no nearer to the door. When he had delivered the paper, he hastened
+up the ladder to the deck. Dave came into the cabin and explained that
+Mulgrum had tried to force him out of the way, and he had resisted. The
+intruder did not exhibit any paper till the third lieutenant appeared at
+the door.
+
+"That man is very persevering in his efforts to procure information,"
+said Christy, as he unfolded the paper. "'The fog is very dense ahead,
+and we shall soon be shut in by it,'" he read from the paper. "Mr.
+Lillyworth might have found a man that could speak for his messenger,"
+he continued, "but of course he wanted to assist his confederate to
+obtain more information."
+
+"I don't see what he wants to know now, for Mulgrum has told him the
+contents of the sealed envelope before this time, and he knows that the
+gates are closed against us," added Flint. "It is plain enough that they
+have had their heads together."
+
+"Certainly they have; but Mr. Lillyworth may not be any better satisfied
+with his information than you are, Mr. Flint," replied the captain, with
+an expressive smile, though he felt that his fellow officer had been
+tantalized long enough by the circumstances. "I have read and studied my
+orders very attentively. They direct me to proceed with all reasonable
+despatch to the Gulf of Mexico, and report to the flag officer of the
+Eastern Gulf Squadron, or his representative."
+
+"'But information has been received,'" continued Christy, reading what
+he had not read before, "'that two steamers, probably fitted out for
+service in the Confederate navy, are approaching the coast of the
+Southern States, and it is very important that they should be
+intercepted. Both of these vessels are reported to have small crews,
+but they are said to be fast. The department regrets that it has not a
+suitable steamer available to send in search of these two vessels; but
+relying upon your well-known patriotism and the excellent record you
+have already made, you are instructed to intercept them, even if you
+are delayed a week or more by any hopeful circumstances.' That is the
+material portion of my orders," added Christy, as he read the last
+sentence. "But I beg you to bear in mind that I did not write the
+commendatory expressions in the paper."
+
+"But they are as true as the holy Gospels!" exclaimed Flint, springing
+out of his chair in the heat of the excitement which the new reading of
+the orders produced in his mind. "But I thought you had read the sealed
+orders to us before, Captain Passford."
+
+"I read but a very small part of them before; and as I had to improvise
+the greater part of what I read, or rather did not read, but simply
+uttered, the language was not all well chosen," replied Christy,
+laughing in spite of all his attempts to maintain his dignity. "The fact
+is, Mr. Flint, I had too many listeners when I read the paper before."
+
+"There was no one in the cabin but Mr. Baskirk and myself, and Dave had
+been stationed at the door; or at least he was there, for he beckoned
+you out into the gangway just as you were beginning to read the orders,"
+argued Flint. "Possibly I should have understood the first reading
+better if I had not seen for myself that you had taken all precautions
+against any listener. You went out when Dave called you; but you were
+not gone half a minute; and that was not long enough for the steward to
+spin any long yarn."
+
+"But it was long enough for Dave to tell me that Pink Mulgrum was under
+my berth, with the state room door open," replied Christy.
+
+"Just so; I comprehend the whole matter now," said Flint, joining the
+captain in the laugh.
+
+"Now you know what my instructions are, gentlemen," continued the
+commander, "and I hope and believe that Mr. Lillyworth and his right
+hand man do not know them. I think you have been already posted, Mr.
+Baskirk, in regard to the anomalous state of affairs on board of the
+Bronx," added the captain.
+
+"Not fully, Captain Passford; but Mr. Flint has told me something about
+the situation," replied the third lieutenant.
+
+"It may not be necessary, gentlemen, that I should say it, but not a
+word of what passes in my cabin is to be repeated in any other part of
+the ship; not even in the ward room when you believe you are entirely
+alone," said the captain, very earnestly and impressively. "If the doors
+and keyholes do not have ears, there may be ears behind them, as some of
+us have learned to our entire satisfaction."
+
+"Not a word from me, Captain Passford," added Baskirk.
+
+"And not one from me," repeated Flint.
+
+"Unquestionably the curiosity of Mr. Lillyworth and his confederate
+are and will continue to be excited to the highest pitch," continued
+Christy. "I shall have occasion to change the course of the ship, and
+head her more to the eastward. Of course the second lieutenant will
+observe this, and will understand that I am not following the orders
+reported to him by Mulgrum. You are my only confidants on board, and it
+will be necessary for you to refer Mr. Lillyworth to me when he asks for
+further information."
+
+"Perfectly understood," replied Flint, who was now in most excellent
+humor.
+
+"Now, gentlemen, I will leave you in my cabin that Mr. Baskirk may be
+more fully instructed in regard to the matters which have passed between
+Mr. Flint and myself. I have great expectations in regard to you, Mr.
+Baskirk, and I am confident that you will realize them."
+
+Saying this, Christy bowed to his companions, and left the cabin,
+retiring to his state room and closing the door. He had on board a full
+supply of charts and nautical instruments of his own, in addition to
+those belonging to the ship. Spreading out the chart of the South
+Atlantic on the desk, he went to work with his dividers and parallel
+rule. He made his figures on a piece of paper, and then laid off a
+course on the chart with a pencil, to be deepened in red ink at another
+time.
+
+Writing "southeast by east" on a slip of paper, he restored his charts
+and instruments to their places and left the state room. The two
+lieutenants were still in his cabin, but he did not disturb them and
+went on deck. Before he reached the bridge, six bells struck, or three
+o'clock in the afternoon. He then ascended the ladder to the bridge. The
+fog which the second lieutenant had predicted had not yet enveloped the
+ship; on the contrary, it looked more like clearing off, and some
+patches of blue sky could be seen.
+
+"Mr. Lillyworth, you will make the course southeast by east," said
+Christy, looking at the officer of the deck.
+
+"Southeast by east!" exclaimed the second lieutenant; and his remark
+needed an exclamation point after it, for though it was customary to
+repeat an order to make sure that it was understood, he did so in such
+a tone and in such a manner as to manifest very clearly his astonishment
+at the nature of the order. The former course had been south by west.
+
+One thing was fully evident from this surprise--that the officer of the
+deck gave full faith to the bogus instructions which had been imparted
+to him by Mulgrum. He believed that the Bronx was to hasten to the Gulf,
+as the former course indicated. It was plain enough to Lillyworth that
+the captain was disregarding his instructions; but his lips were sealed
+in regard to this disobedience, for he could not indicate in any manner
+that he knew the purport of the sealed orders; and doubtless it did not
+occur to him that the deaf mute had been blinded, in addition to his
+other infirmities. The course was given out to the quartermaster at the
+wheel. The steamer promptly fell off, and began to ride quartering over
+the smart billows, brought out by the wind from the south-southwest, as
+it had blown for the last hour or more.
+
+Christy believed that he had put everything in train for accomplishing
+the mission of the Bronx on the new course he had just ordered. There
+were no more orders to be read, and he did not see that the conspirators
+could do anything more to derange the plans of the loyal officers and
+seamen on board. All they had attempted so far was to obtain information
+in regard to the movements of the vessel; and Christy had taken care
+that they should receive all the information they wanted, though not as
+reliable as it might have been. He was satisfied with the situation as
+it must remain till some decided event should call for energetic action.
+
+The captain and the two ward-room officers in his confidence were
+obliged to conduct themselves with the utmost caution and discretion in
+order not to undo anything which had been done in blinding the eyes of
+the conspirators. Christy had an abundance of writing to do, and it was
+of a kind that would not betray any of his secrets; he called upon
+Mulgrum to do this work, in order to keep up appearances. He did not
+call any more conferences with his friends in the cabin, for there was
+no need of any, and entire silence was the more prudent.
+
+The Bronx proceeded on the course the captain had given out until the
+twentieth of the month, when the steamer was a little to the southward
+of the Bermudas. She had not been near enough to the islands to be made
+out from the shore. On this day, when the Bronx was three days from
+Sandy Hook, the fog which Mr. Lillyworth had been predicting settled
+down on the steamer, not as dense as it might be, but thick enough to
+prevent those on board of her from seeing anything at any great distance
+from her. The second lieutenant, in charge of the deck, suggested to the
+captain that the whistle should be blown; but Christy answered very
+emphatically that no whistles were to be blown; though he ordered the
+lookouts to be doubled, and the steamer to proceed at half speed.
+
+In the middle of the second dog watch, in charge of Mr. Baskirk, the
+lookout on the topsail yard made himself heard, and the others aloft
+repeated the call.
+
+"Sail on the starboard bow, sir!" said the first lookout from the yard,
+hailing the bridge.
+
+Captain Passford heard the hail from aloft, for he was planking the deck
+with the first lieutenant. Both of them rushed forward at a pace rather
+undignified for a commander.
+
+"Silence, aloft!" shouted the captain. "We have made her out. Mr. Flint,
+you will take the deck, and call all hands without any unnecessary
+noise."
+
+This order was given to Giblock, the boatswain, and in a minute or two
+every man on board was in his station. The first lieutenant remained on
+the bridge, but the second took his place in the waist, and the third
+forward, though this arrangement of the officers was not sanctioned by
+ancient usage. Silence was commanded, and the engine, working at half
+speed, made hardly any noise. The captain had spoken to Sampson, the
+chief engineer, and he had done his best to avoid all noise in his
+department.
+
+The captain and the first lieutenant remained on the bridge, anxiously
+sighting in the direction in which the sail had been reported to be. As
+the captain had instructed the engineer to do, he had caused the fires
+to be reduced and a change of fuel used so that the smokestack of the
+Bronx was just beginning to send up volumes of black smoke. The bunkers
+contained a small portion of soft coal for this purpose.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIII
+
+THE STEAMER IN THE FOG
+
+
+The Bronx was slowly approaching the steamer in the fog, which appeared
+to have stopped her propeller, and to be resting motionless on the long
+swells, hardly disturbed by a breath of air. By this time the smokestack
+of the Bronx was vomiting forth dense clouds of black smoke. The
+steamers of the navy used anthracite coal, which burns without any
+great volume of smoke, and blockade runners had already begun to lay
+in whatever stock of it they were able to procure to be used as they
+approached the coast where they were to steal through the national
+fleet. The attention of the naval department of the United States had
+already been given to this subject, and the first steps had been taken
+to prevent the sale of this comparatively smokeless coal where it could
+be obtained by the blockade runners.
+
+Christy had been on the blockade; and he had been in action with a
+steamer from the other side of the ocean; and he knew that this black
+smoke of the soft coal, exclusively used by English steamers, was a
+telltale in regard to such vessels. It had been an idea of his own to
+take in a supply of this kind of fuel, for while its smoke betrayed the
+character of vessels intending to run the blockade, the absence of it
+betrayed the loyalty of the national steamers to the blockade runners.
+It was a poor rule that would not work both ways, and the commander of
+the Bronx had determined to adopt the scheme he had now put in force on
+board of his vessel. Although the craft on the starboard bow could
+hardly be distinguished in the fog, Christy had sent a trusty seaman
+aloft to report on the color of the smoke that issued from her funnel.
+
+This man had reported by swinging his cap in the air, as the captain had
+instructed him to do if he found that the smoke was that of soft coal.
+If there was no black smoke, he was to return to the deck without making
+any sign. The moment therefore that the man had been able to see the
+quality of the smoke, the commander was made as wise as though he had
+seen it himself. The information left him no doubt that the steamer was
+intended to run the blockade; but whether or not she was one of the
+expected pair, of course he could form no opinion, for already this part
+of the ocean had begun to swarm with vessels in this service.
+
+"I am beginning to make her out a little better," said Flint, who had
+been straining his eyes to the utmost capacity, as everybody else on
+board was doing, to obtain the best and earliest information in regard
+to the stranger on the starboard bow.
+
+"What do you make out, Mr. Flint?" asked Christy, who was too busily
+employed in watching the movements of the officers and seamen on his own
+deck to give especial attention to the character of the other steamer.
+
+"I can't see well enough yet to say anything in regard to details,"
+replied the first lieutenant. "I can only make out her form and size;
+and she seems to be as nearly like the Bronx as one pea is like another,
+though I should say that she was longer."
+
+"Is she in motion?" asked the captain with interest.
+
+"She appears to be at rest, though it is possible that she is moving
+very slowly; but if she has not stopped her screw, she is not going more
+than four knots."
+
+"You say that she is built like the Bronx, Mr. Flint?" asked Christy
+anxiously.
+
+"Just like her; I should say that both hulls came out of the same
+mould."
+
+"That very nearly settles the question in my mind. Probably she was
+designed by the same naval architect, and constructed by the same
+builders, as the Bronx," replied Christy, gazing intently at the dim
+outlines of the steamer in the fog. "When a designer has made a great
+reputation for fast ships, men with piles of money, like the former
+owners of the Bronx, the Scotian, and the Arran, employ him to furnish
+the plans for their steam yachts. From what we have learned so far,
+though it is very little indeed, I feel reasonably sure that this
+steamer ahead of us is the Scotian or the Arran, and I don't care much
+which it is. But why has she stopped her screw, or reduced her speed to
+four knots?"
+
+"That is a question that can only be answered an hour or two hence, if
+ever," replied the first lieutenant.
+
+"But it is a very important question all the same," added Christy.
+
+"I doubt if the Bronx is making four knots at the present moment," said
+Flint, as he went to the end of the bridge, and looked down into the
+water.
+
+"In changing the fires in the furnaces, Mr. Sampson had been obliged to
+clear them out in part, and that has reduced the pressure of steam; but
+we shall soon have the usual head," said Christy, as he went to the
+speaking tube and communicated with the chief engineer.
+
+He was informed that his explanation was correct in regard to the coal,
+and that in a very short time the boilers would have a full head of
+steam. Christy spent the next few minutes in an earnest study of the
+scarcely perceptible outline of the steamer in the fog. He was hardly
+wiser when he had finished his examination than before. The hull and
+lower masts of the vessel could be indistinctly made out, and that was
+all. Sampson informed him that he had not been using all the steam he
+had, and that the screw was hardly turning at all. He ordered him to
+stop it entirely.
+
+Impatient as he was to follow up the discovery that had been made, he
+realized that it would be very imprudent to expose his ship to possible
+danger when he had not steam enough to work her to the best advantage.
+He could only wait; but he was satisfied that he had done the best
+possible thing in changing the coal, for the black smoke would
+effectually blind the officers of the other vessel. They were not
+engaged in a chase, and the exciting question could be settled a few
+hours hence as well as at the present time.
+
+"If the steamer ahead is the Scotian or the Arran, as I fully believe
+she is, probably her consort is somewhere in these waters," said the
+commander.
+
+"Probably she lost sight of her in this fog," added Flint. "But, Captain
+Passford, we are in the face of something, though we do not yet know
+precisely what. I suppose you have your eye on Mr. Lillyworth?"
+
+"I have kept him in sight all the time. He is on the quarter deck now,
+as he has been since all hands were called," replied Christy, who had
+not failed to look at him for a full minute since the discovery of the
+sail on the starboard. "He seems to be perplexed by the situation, and
+his time for action, if he intends to act, has not yet come."
+
+"I don't see Pink Mulgrum anywhere about the deck."
+
+"I saw him a few minutes since," added Christy. "He passed several times
+quite near Mr. Lillyworth, and very likely something was said between
+them; but they had no long talk."
+
+Christy had charged Dave to watch Mulgrum if he went below, and to
+follow him up closely; but the deaf mute had been on deck most of the
+time. There was nothing that he could do, and nothing that the second
+lieutenant could do, to embarrass the operations of the ship while she
+remained at rest. The captain then descended to the deck, and personally
+looked into the condition of everything. In the course of his round he
+came to the quarter deck where the second lieutenant was stationed. He
+could see that he was nervous and uneasy about something, and it was not
+difficult to divine what perplexed him. He could hardly see the black
+smoke from the funnel of the steamer in the fog, for his place on the
+deck did not permit him to obtain as good a view of her as could be had
+from the bridge, and especially from aloft.
+
+"Do you make out what that vessel is, Captain Passford?" asked
+Lillyworth, as Christy passed near him.
+
+"Not yet, Mr. Lillyworth," replied the captain, not caring to converse
+with the conspirator.
+
+"The fog does not seem to be very dense, and I should think the vessel
+might be made out from aloft," added the second lieutenant, evidently
+very anxious to know more about the sail ahead.
+
+"Not very clearly," replied Christy, as he went forward to the engine
+hatch.
+
+He descended to the engine room, and while he was listening to the roar
+of the flames in the furnaces, so different from the action of
+anthracite coal, Sampson came up from the fire room.
+
+"We shall have a sufficient head of steam in a few minutes to justify
+you in going ahead, Captain Passford," said the engineer without waiting
+to be questioned.
+
+"I am glad to hear it, though we are in no special hurry at present, in
+spite of our impatience to know what is before us," replied the captain.
+"Do you know the man who passes under the name of Mulgrum, Mr. Sampson?"
+
+"You mean Pink, the deaf mute? Mr. Nawood pointed him out to me, and I
+have seen him about the deck or in the steerage several times."
+
+"Has he been in the engine room at any time since we sailed?" asked
+Christy.
+
+"He may have been; but I have not noticed him anywhere in my
+department," replied Sampson.
+
+"You will not allow him in the engine or fire room," continued the
+captain. "Send him out, drive him out, if necessary, at once."
+
+"Being deaf and dumb, I should suppose he were harmless wherever he
+happened to be. Is he--"
+
+"Never mind what he is just now, Mr. Sampson," interposed Christy. "Be
+very particular to obey my order in regard to him to the letter; that's
+all now. Inform me at once when you are ready to go ahead, and I shall
+be on the bridge."
+
+The order which Christy had just given to the engineer was the result of
+his reflection since he came down from the bridge. He had been
+cudgelling his brains to determine what the conspirators could possibly
+do when the decisive moment came, if it should happen to come as he
+neared the steamer in the fog, to derange the operations on board. It
+seemed to him before that all they could do was to leap on board of the
+enemy, if it came to boarding her, and reinforce her crew. He had talked
+over this matter with Flint and Baskirk, and there were three who would
+be ready to shoot either of them the instant their treachery should be
+apparent.
+
+Before it would be possible to board, a man as intelligent as Mulgrum,
+who had served as executive officer, could easily disable the engine.
+This idea had but just come to the commander, who thought before that he
+had closed every opening against the conspirators. He went on deck as
+soon as he had settled this matter. The fog seemed to be rather more
+dense than before, and when he went on the bridge, it was reported that
+the stranger could no longer be made out.
+
+"I have just received the roster of the 'Bronx Association,'" said
+Flint, as the captain joined him. "It is signed by every man on board,
+including the supernumeraries forward, except Spoors, Blocker, Veering,
+Packer, Pickford, and Runyon. I inquired why these men would not join,
+but could not learn that they had any reason except that they did not
+wish to be members. I have seen Mr. Lillyworth talking to all of these
+men, and I think we can be certain now who is white and who is black."
+
+"On the bridge!" came from the speaking tube, at this moment, and the
+captain was near enough to hear it. Mr. Sampson reported that he had
+steam enough to make at least ten knots an hour.
+
+The commander then instructed the first lieutenant to see that both
+divisions of boarders were armed with cutlass and revolver, in readiness
+for action. The second lieutenant was to attend to the working of the
+broadside guns, Mr. Baskirk was to lead the first division of boarders,
+and Mr. Giblock, the boatswain, the second. Flint went below to the deck
+to execute his orders, and the captain ordered the quartermaster to ring
+one bell.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIV
+
+THE CONFEDERATE STEAMER SCOTIAN
+
+
+One bell sounded on the gong in the engine room, and the Bronx began to
+go ahead. Christy felt that the most tremendous hour of his lifetime had
+come, and he struggled to keep down the excitement which agitated him;
+and he succeeded so far that he appeared to be the coolest man on board
+of the ship. When Flint came in the vicinity of the bridge, he called to
+him to join him. The men were procuring their revolvers and cutlasses,
+and he had a moment to spare. The captain instructed him to conceal the
+boarders so that they could not be seen on board the steamer in the fog
+when the Bronx came up with her. He added some other details to his
+orders.
+
+"If possible, I wish you to keep as near Lillyworth as you can,"
+continued Christy, "for I shall not have the opportunity to watch him.
+This war cannot be conducted on peace principles, and if that man
+attempts to defeat my orders in any manner, don't hesitate to put a ball
+from your revolver through his heart. Use reasonable care, Mr. Flint,
+but bear in mind that I am not to be defeated in the capture of that
+steamer, if she proves to be what I suppose she is, by the treachery of
+one who accepted a position as an officer on board of the Bronx." The
+commander was firm and decided in his manner, and Flint had served with
+him enough to know that he meant what he said.
+
+"I will obey your orders to the letter, Captain Passford, using all
+reasonable precautions in the discharge of my duty," replied Flint.
+"Mr. Lillyworth was in a state of mutiny just now, and spoke to me."
+
+"What did he say?"
+
+"He declared that he was second lieutenant of the ship, and it was his
+right to command the first division of boarders. He wouldn't stand it.
+I told him he was to be in command of the guns. He insisted that you did
+not intend to fire a gun if you could help it. I replied that we should
+not board the vessel either if we could help it. But I had no time to
+argue with him, and referred him to the captain. Then he moved towards
+the ladder of the bridge, and I forbade him to leave his station. That
+is the whole of it. I have seen him speak to each of the six men we now
+know to be his friends, to say nothing of Mulgrum. I left him then."
+
+"All right so far, Mr. Flint. Return to the deck, if you please, and be
+sure that the boarders are kept out of sight from this moment," added
+Christy. "Quartermaster, ring four bells," he added, turning to the
+pilot house.
+
+"Four bells, sir," repeated McSpindle, who was at the wheel.
+
+The Bronx soon began to feel the effect of this order, and the smoke
+poured out in increased volume from the smokestack, affected by the
+stronger draught produced by the additional speed.
+
+"On the topsail yard!" called the captain, directing his speaking
+trumpet aloft.
+
+"On the bridge, sir!" replied the man.
+
+"Can you make out the steamer?"
+
+"No, sir; only her topmasts and fore rigging."
+
+"How does she lie from the Bronx?"
+
+"Still on the starboard bow, sir."
+
+"Port the helm, quartermaster," added the captain.
+
+"Port, sir," replied McSpindle.
+
+For about five minutes more, the Bronx went ahead at full speed, and
+Christy was confident that she was again making fifteen knots.
+
+"On the bridge, sir!" called the man on the fore yard.
+
+"Aloft!"
+
+"I make her out now; she has the Confederate flag at the peak."
+
+"All right!" exclaimed Christy to himself, though he spoke out loud.
+
+The steamer had set her colors, and there was no longer any doubt in
+regard to her character. The flag also indicated that she was not a
+blockade runner in the ordinary sense of the word, but a Confederate
+man-of-war. Warnock reported that she had taken her armament on board
+from another vessel at some point south of England, and the colors also
+assured Christy that the steamer was one of the pair expected.
+
+Still the Bronx went ahead at full speed, and presently a gun was heard
+from the direction in which she lay, though the captain was unable to
+decide what it meant. It might be a signal of distress, but the man on
+the yard had not reported the colors as union down; and it might be
+simply a defiance. It was probable that the Scotian and Arran had put
+in at St. George, and it was more than possible that they had shipped
+a reinforcement to her reported small crew.
+
+"Aloft!" called the captain again.
+
+"On the bridge, sir!" replied the lookout.
+
+"Is the steamer under way?"
+
+"I think not, sir; but I can't make out her wake, it is so low."
+
+"Starboard a little, quartermaster."
+
+"Starboard, sir."
+
+Christy heard, or thought he heard, for he was not sure about it, the
+sound of a bell. A minute later the quartermaster in the pilot house
+struck seven bells, which was repeated on the top-gallant forecastle of
+the Bronx, and he was confident this was what he had heard on board of
+the stranger.
+
+"Quartermaster, strike one bell," he added.
+
+"One bell, sir;" and the gong resounded from the engine room, and the
+speed of the Bronx was immediately reduced.
+
+A minute later Christy obtained a full view of the steamer. She was
+headed to the southwest, and her propeller was not in motion. As the
+lookout had reported, she was the counterpart of the Bronx, though she
+was a larger vessel. He gave some further orders to the quartermaster at
+the wheel, for he had decided to board the steamer on her port side. The
+boarders had been concealed in proper places under this arrangement, and
+the captain had directed the course of the Bronx so that a shot from her
+could hardly do any harm, if she took it into her head to fire one.
+
+"Arran, ahoy!" shouted a hoarse voice through a speaking trumpet from
+the steamer.
+
+"On board the Scotian!" replied Christy through his trumpet.
+
+After the vessel had hailed the Arran, the captain had no difficulty
+in deciding that the other craft was the Scotian; and he was especially
+glad that the officer of that vessel had hailed him in this particular
+form. The single word spoken through that trumpet was the key to the
+entire enigma. Every possible doubt was removed by it. He was now
+assured, as he had not been before, that he had fallen in with one of
+the two vessels of which his father had given him information, and which
+his sealed orders required him to seek, even if he was detained a week
+or more. Christy spent no time in congratulating himself on the
+situation, but the tremendous idea passed through his whole being
+in an instant.
+
+"We are disabled!" shouted the officer on board of the Scotian through
+his trumpet. "Please send your engineer on board."
+
+"All right!" replied Christy. "Go ahead a little faster, Mr. Sampson.
+We are very near the steamer."
+
+The young commander cast his eyes over the deck of his vessel to assure
+himself that everything was ready for the important moment, though the
+situation did not indicate that a very sharp battle was to be fought.
+Everything was in order, and the first lieutenant was planking the deck,
+looking as though he felt quite at home, for he was as cool as a Jersey
+cucumber. Farther aft was Lillyworth, as uneasy as a caged tiger, for
+no doubt he realized that the Scotian was to fall a victim to the
+circumstances that beset her, rather than as the result of a spirited
+chase or a sharply fought battle. He looked about him for a moment, and
+the instant he turned his head, Mulgrum came out from behind the mast,
+and passed quite near him.
+
+The captain could not tell whether the second lieutenant had spoken to
+the deaf mute or not, but the latter hastened to the engine hatch, and
+descended to the engine room. The Bronx was within less than a cable's
+length of the Scotian, whose name could now be read on her stern, when
+Mulgrum, apparently ordered by Lillyworth to do so, had hastened to the
+engine hatch. Even on the bridge the noise of a scuffle could be heard
+in the engine room, and the captain was sure that Sampson had been
+obedient to his orders. Another minute or two would determine in what
+manner the Scotian was to be captured, and Christy hastened down the
+ladder to the deck.
+
+As soon as his foot pressed the planks, he hastened to the engine hatch.
+Calling to the engineer, he learned that the deaf mute had been knocked
+senseless by Sampson, and lay on the sofa. He waited to hear no more,
+but went forward where there were bell pulls on the deck, and rang two
+bells to stop her. Then he gave some orders to the quartermaster, and
+rang three bells to back her. The Bronx came alongside of the Scotian
+as handsomely as though she had been a river steamer making one of
+her usual landings. The hands who had been stationed for the purpose
+immediately used their grappling irons, and the two vessels were fast
+to each other.
+
+"Boarders!--" the first lieutenant shouted at a sign from the captain;
+but before he could complete the order, Pawcett, for we may now call him
+by his right name, leaped on the bulwarks of the Bronx.
+
+"This is a United States"--he began to say, but he was allowed to
+proceed no farther, for the first lieutenant raised the revolver he
+carried in his left hand, doubtless for this very purpose, and fired.
+
+Pawcett did not utter another word, but fell back upon the deck of the
+Bronx; where no one took any further notice of him.
+
+"Boarders, away!" shouted the first lieutenant.
+
+This time the sentence was finished, and the order was promptly
+executed. Hardly a half minute had been lost by the attempt of Pawcett
+to prepare the officers of the Scotian to do their duty; but he had said
+enough to enable the ship's company to understand what he would have
+said if he had finished his announcement. The officers and seamen were
+both surprised, and there was a panic among the latter, though the
+former rallied them in a moment. But they had lost all their chances,
+and after an insignificant struggle, the deck of the steamer was in
+possession of the boarders. The crew were driven forward by the
+victorious "Bronxies" as Giblock called them. "Do you surrender?"
+said Mr. Baskirk to the officer he took for the captain.
+
+"I do not see that I have any other alternative," replied the commander
+of the Scotian, politely enough, but it was evident that he was sorely
+afflicted, and even ashamed of himself. "I understand now that I am the
+victim of a Yankee trick."
+
+"Allow me to introduce you to Captain Passford, commander of the United
+States steamer Bronx," continued Mr. Baskirk, as Christy came on board
+of the prize.
+
+The captain of the Scotian retreated a pace as Christy stepped up
+in front of him, and gracefully lifted his cap to the unfortunate
+commander.
+
+"I beg your pardon, sir, but did I understand you to say that this young
+gentleman is the commander of the steamer alongside?" demanded the
+captain, looking at Christy from head to foot.
+
+"He is the commander, sir; Captain Passford," added Baskirk.
+
+"May I be allowed to ask whom I have the honor to address?" Christy
+began, lifting his cap again, as did the other also.
+
+"Captain Dinsmore, at your service."
+
+"I sincerely regret your personal misfortune while I rejoice at the
+result of this action, as a loyal citizen of the United States," replied
+Christy.
+
+Then he invited the captain to his cabin.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XV
+
+THE SCOTIAN BECOMES THE OCKLOCKONEE
+
+
+As he went to the deck of the Bronx, the young commander sent the first
+lieutenant on board of the prize to superintend the arrangements for
+disposing of the ship's company. Captain Dinsmore was requested to
+produce his papers, and Christy conducted him to his cabin. As his
+father had advised him always to be on such occasions, he was studiously
+polite, as in fact he was at all times. Whether the other captain was
+usually so or not, he was certainly courteous in every respect, though,
+with the heavy misfortune which had befallen him, it was vastly more
+difficult for him to control his feelings, and conduct himself in a
+gentlemanly manner. Captain Passford desired to understand in what
+capacity the Scotian was approaching the American coast before he made
+his final arrangements. After giving his guest, as he regarded him, or
+rather treated him, a chair in his cabin, Christy called Dave, who had
+followed him below.
+
+"Will you excuse me a moment or two while I attend to a necessary duty?"
+said he, turning to Captain Dinsmore, as he seated himself at the table.
+
+"Certainly, captain; I am not so much in a hurry as I have been at other
+times," replied the other with a rather sickly smile.
+
+"Keep a sharp lookout for the Arran," Christy wrote on a piece of paper,
+and handed it to the steward. "Give that to Mr. Flint."
+
+Captain Passford had observed when he visited the deck of the Scotian
+that she was well armed, and he had no doubt that her consort was
+similarly provided for the business of war. It was therefore of the
+highest importance that the Arran should not come unexpectedly upon the
+Bronx at a time when she was hardly in condition to meet an enemy.
+
+"Now, Captain Dinsmore, may I trouble you for your papers?" he
+continued, turning to his guest, as he preferred to regard him.
+
+"I admit your right to examine them under present circumstances,"
+replied Captain Dinsmore, as he delivered the package to him.
+
+"Perhaps we may simplify and abbreviate this examination to some extent,
+sir, if you are so disposed," added Christy, as he looked the other full
+in the face.
+
+"I shall be happy to have you do so, Captain Passford," replied the
+visitor in the cabin, with something like eagerness in his manner. "You
+conduct yourself like a gentleman, sir, and I am not at all disposed to
+embarrass you unnecessarily."
+
+"Thank you, sir; I appreciate your courtesy."
+
+"I am afraid it is not so much courtesy as it is desperation, for if I
+should act in accordance with my feelings, I should blow my brains out
+without any delay," said Captain Dinsmore. "I should not say as much as
+this to any but a generous enemy; but I feel that I am ruined, and that
+there is nothing more in the future for me."
+
+Christy really sympathized with him, and could not help thinking how
+he should feel if the situations were reversed. He realized that the
+commander of the Scotian had been very careless in the discharge of
+his duty in permitting any vessel to come alongside of her without
+considering that she might be an enemy. This inefficiency was doubtless
+the cause of his distress. Christy had kept uppermost in his mind the
+advice of his father at the last moment before he sailed, and he asked
+himself if, while the prisoner was thus exciting his sympathy and
+compassion, the latter was not expecting the Arran would appear and
+reverse the fortunes of war.
+
+"I am sorry you take such a severe view of your situation," added the
+captain of the Bronx. "But my first duty is to ascertain the character
+of the vessel which you surrender."
+
+"You shall have no doubt in regard to that, Captain Passford," answered
+the commander of the Scotian, proudly. "I am not a dickering merchant,
+trying to make money out of the situation of my country. The Scotian,
+as you call her, is the Confederate steamer Ocklockonee, and here is my
+commission as a lieutenant in the Confederate Navy," he added as he took
+the document from his pocket and tendered it to his captor.
+
+Christy looked at the paper, and then examined the other papers in
+the packet. They left no doubt in his mind as to the character of the
+Ocklockonee, if he had had any before. He folded up the commission and
+politely returned it to the owner. The examination was completed so far
+as he was concerned; but Captain Dinsmore did not seem to be satisfied,
+though he made no complaint that anything was wrong in the proceedings.
+He was evidently a very proud and high-strung man, and appeared to be
+unable to reconcile himself to the situation.
+
+"I am a ruined man!" he exclaimed several times; and when he looked at
+the commander of the Bronx, measuring him from head to foot, as he had
+already done several times, it seemed to increase his distress of mind,
+and make him more nervous than before.
+
+"While I regret that a brave man like yourself, captain, should be at
+war with the government which I honor and love, I hope that personally
+your future will be as bright as I am sure your merit deserves," said
+Christy.
+
+"If it had been a square and well-fought action, I should not feel
+as I do about it. You will pardon me, and understand that I mean no
+disrespect to you, captain, but I look upon myself as the victim of a
+Yankee trick," said Captain Dinsmore, bitterly. "But please to consider
+that I do not charge any blame or treachery upon you, sir."
+
+"I think I can understand your feelings, sir; but I cannot see that in
+resorting to strategy to save my men, my conduct has been in any manner
+dishonorable," replied Christy, holding his head a little higher than
+usual. "I should hold that I had been guilty of misconduct if I had
+failed to take advantage of the circumstances under which I have
+captured the Ocklockonee."
+
+"I quite agree with you, Captain Passford. I should have done the same
+thing myself if the opportunity had been presented to me," the guest
+hastened to say. "But that does not in the least degree relieve me from
+the consequences of my own negligence. When you are more at leisure,
+I hope you will permit me to make an explanation of the situation in
+which I was placed."
+
+"I shall be happy to listen to anything you may desire to say to me when
+I have the leisure to hear you."
+
+"Thank you, sir."
+
+Christy hastened on deck to attend to the many duties required of him.
+The first sight that presented itself when he reached the head of the
+companion way was the form of the second lieutenant, which remained as
+it had fallen from the rail. He sent for Dr. Spokely, and directed him
+to ascertain whether or not Pawcett was dead. While the surgeon was
+examining him, Mr. Sampson came up from below with a bolt in his hand,
+and touched his cap to the commander.
+
+"You are at work on the engine of the Ocklockonee, are you?" asked
+Christy, and this inquiry was one of the duties which had been on his
+mind before he left the cabin.
+
+"Yes, sir; and I have already examined her engine; I suppose you mean
+the Scotian, for that is the name on her stern, they tell me," replied
+the chief engineer.
+
+"Her new name is the Ocklockonee."
+
+"I have examined the engine," replied Sampson.
+
+"Is the damage very serious?" asked the captain anxiously.
+
+"Far from it; she has broken a bolt which disables her, and she ought to
+have had one to replace it without more than five minutes' delay, but it
+appears that they have not one on board; at least none could be found
+when it was wanted, and they were at work forging one when the Bronx
+came alongside."
+
+"All right; repair the damage as soon as possible. I heard a scuffle in
+the engine room just as we were running alongside the Ocklockonee," said
+the captain, looking inquiringly at the engineer.
+
+"Yes, sir; there was a scuffle there. Pink Mulgrum was rushing down the
+ladder when I stopped him. He tried to push by me when I made signs to
+him to return to the deck. Then he gave a spring at my throat, and as I
+saw that he had a revolver in his hand, I did not hesitate to hit him on
+the head with a bar of iron I had in my hand. He dropped on the deck.
+I put his revolver in my pocket, and stretched him out on the sofa.
+He did not move, and I left him there."
+
+"I will send the surgeon to him," added the captain, as he went on board
+of the prize, followed by Sampson.
+
+The first lieutenant had been busy on the deck of the vessel, but
+he had been able to accomplish but little in the absence of definite
+instructions from the captain. All the seamen were held in the forward
+part of the deck, and there were twenty-four of them, including the
+petty officers, but not the stokers, as the firemen were called. The
+engineers and all connected with their department remained below so far
+as could be learned. Two officers remained seated on the quarter deck;
+but they did not appear to be so thoroughly cast down as the captain,
+doubtless because they were not called upon to bear the responsibility
+of the capture.
+
+"Have you set a sharp lookout, Mr. Flint?" asked the captain.
+
+"The lookout remains the same on board of the Bronx, though I have
+cautioned the quartermaster on the fore yard to keep his eyes wide open;
+and I have stationed four men on board of the Scotian."
+
+"Very well; we are all right so far; but if the other vessel is as well
+armed as this one she is capable of giving us a great deal of trouble,"
+replied the captain.
+
+"I only hope we may find her," added Flint heartily.
+
+"We shall look for her at any rate. But we must get things regulated on
+board of both vessels at once, for I judge that the Arran cannot be far
+off, for the officers hailed us as the Arran when we were approaching,
+which shows that they were confident in regard to her identity, or they
+would not have given themselves away so readily."
+
+"We have made a lucky hit, and I hope we shall be able to reap the full
+benefit of it," added Flint.
+
+"We must provide for the immediate future without any delay," continued
+Christy. "Our first duty will be to search for the Arran, and we can use
+the Ocklockonee, which the captain says is her present name, to assist
+in the chase, for we have force enough to man both vessels, though we
+are not oversupplied with officers."
+
+"There are two more quartermasters who are nearly as good men as
+Baskirk," replied the first lieutenant.
+
+"I ask no better officer than Baskirk has proved himself to be. I shall
+retain him on board of the Bronx, and for the present I shall ask you to
+take command of the Ocklockonee; and you may select your own officers.
+The probability is that, if we find the Arran, we shall have a fight
+with her."
+
+"Then I shall make McSpindle my first lieutenant, and Luffard my
+second," added Flint, evidently pleased with the idea of having even
+a temporary command.
+
+"I shall appoint Baskirk in your place on board of the Bronx; but I need
+one more."
+
+"I recommend Amblen, though he is not as well qualified as the others I
+have named."
+
+"Send for these men at once," added the captain.
+
+One of them was on the topsail yard of the Bronx, but all of them soon
+appeared in the waist of the prize. They were informed of the honor
+which had been conferred upon them, and were immediately assigned to
+duty. The crew of the Ocklockonee were divided between the two steamers,
+and were put under guard below.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVI
+
+CAPTAIN PASSFORD'S FINAL ORDERS
+
+
+A tolerable state of order and regularity had been brought out of the
+confusion that prevailed on board of the Ocklockonee, and the newly
+appointed officers went to the stations where they belonged. Sampson
+reported the engine of the steamer as in good order, and ready for
+service.
+
+"Who is the chief engineer of the Ocklockonee, Mr. Sampson?" asked
+Captain Passford, after he had listened to the report.
+
+"His name is Bockburn; he is a Scotchman, and appears to be a very good
+fellow," replied the engineer of the Bronx.
+
+"Does he talk at all about what has just happened on board of his
+steamer?" asked the captain, deeply interested, for he had some
+difficulty in arranging the engineer's department on board of the
+prize, as he considered the new order of things.
+
+"Yes, sir; he talks at the rate of twenty knots an hour, and if his
+steamer can get ahead as well as his tongue, she is a fast one," replied
+Sampson, laughing.
+
+"Well, what does he say? I want to know how he stands affected by the
+present condition of affairs," continued the captain rather impatiently,
+for he was too busy to enjoy the humor of the engineer.
+
+"He is a thrifty Scotchman; and I don't believe he has any interest in
+anything under the sun except his wages; and he is a little sour on that
+account to find that his cruise is finished, as he puts it."
+
+"Send for him and his assistants, Mr. Sampson."
+
+The engineer went to the engine hatch, and called the men below.
+
+"Now send for Mr. Gawl," added the captain. "He is your first assistant;
+is he a competent man to run an engine?"
+
+"As competent as I am myself; and the engine of this steamer is exactly
+like that of the Bronx, so that he can have no trouble with it, if you
+think of retaining him on board of the Ocklockonee," replied Sampson.
+
+"I propose to make him chief engineer of her."
+
+"You could not find a better man," said Sampson, as he went to summon
+Gawl.
+
+The three engineers of the prize came on deck, and the captain took the
+chief aside.
+
+"Mr. Bockburn, I believe, the chief engineer of the Ocklockonee?" said
+Christy.
+
+"Of the Scotian, sir; for I know nothing of the jaw-cracking names
+that the officers in the cabin have given her," replied the engineer,
+shrugging his shoulders, and presenting a dissatisfied air.
+
+"Are you an engineer in the Confederate Navy, sir?" asked Christy,
+bringing the business to a head at once.
+
+"No, sir, I am not," answered the engineer very decidedly. "You see,
+captain, that the Scotian was sold to come across the water, and I was
+out of a job, with a family to support. They did not say anything about
+the service in which the Scotian was to be engaged, but I understood it.
+When they spoke to me about it, I was glad to keep my place as long as
+she did not make war on the United Kingdom. In truth, I may say that I
+did not care a fig about the quarrel in the States, and was as ready to
+run an engine on one side as the other as long as I got my wages, and
+was able to support my family handsomely, as, thank God, I have always
+done. I am not a student of politics, and I only read enough in the
+newspapers to know what is going on in the world. I always find that I
+get ahead better when I mind my own business, and it can't be said that
+Andy Bockburn ever--"
+
+"Precisely so, Mr. Bockburn; but I will hear the rest of your story at
+another time," interposed the captain when he found that the man was
+faithful to the description Sampson had given of his talking powers.
+
+"You understand perfectly what has transpired on board of the Scotian
+as you choose still to call her; in a word, that she is a prize to the
+United States steamer Bronx?"
+
+"I understand it all as clearly as though I read it in a book; and it
+was all on account of the want of a bolt that I was sure I put on board
+of the vessel before she sailed; and I am just as sure of it now as I
+ever was. But then, you see, captain, a man can't always be sure of the
+men under him, though he may be sure of himself. I have no doubt--"
+
+"Short yarns, if you please, Mr. Bockburn. You understand the situation,
+and I will add that I intend to use this vessel as well as the Bronx in
+the service of my government. Are you willing to do duty on board of her
+in any capacity in which I may place you in the engineer department,
+provided you receive the same wages as before?"
+
+"I am, sir; and I was paid a month in advance, so that I shall not lose
+anything," chuckled the careful Scotchman.
+
+"If you are regularly appointed, though I can only give you a temporary
+position, in addition to your wages, you will be entitled to your share
+in any prize we may hereafter capture."
+
+"Then I will take any position you will please to give me," answered the
+engineer, apparently delighted with the prospect thus held out to him.
+
+"I shall appoint you first assistant engineer of the Bronx," continued
+the captain, not a little to the astonishment of Flint, who wondered
+that he was not assigned to the Ocklockonee.
+
+"I am quite satisfied, captain," replied Bockburn, bowing and smiling,
+for wages were more than rank to him. "I will bring up my kit at once,
+sir. You see, captain, when a man has a family he--"
+
+"Precisely as you say, Mr. Bockburn," interrupted the captain. "You
+will report to Mr. Sampson in the engine room of the Bronx for further
+orders."
+
+"Thank you, sir; I supposed I was out of a job from this out, and I was
+feeling--"
+
+"Feel your way to the engine room of the Bronx. Mr. Gawl," the captain
+proceeded.
+
+"On duty, sir," replied the first assistant engineer of the Bronx,
+touching his cap as respectfully as though the commander had been forty
+years old.
+
+"You are appointed temporarily as chief engineer of the Ocklockonee, and
+you will take your place in the engine room as soon as possible," said
+the captain, as brusquely as though favors cost nothing.
+
+Mr. Gawl was taken to the engine room and introduced to the first and
+second assistants, Rowe and Leeds, and was kindly received by them,
+for, like their late chief, the question of wages was the only one that
+affected them. They promised to be faithful to the government they were
+to serve, and to discharge their duties faithfully under the direction
+of the new chief. The two officers on the quarter deck had watched all
+these proceedings with interest. They were the only persons remaining on
+board who had not been disposed of in some manner.
+
+Christy approached them while Captain Flint, as he was now to be called
+by courtesy, was making his final arrangements with the crew that had
+been assigned to the prize. Both of the officers bowed civilly to the
+commander as he presented himself on the quarter deck. They were older
+men than Captain Dinsmore, though neither was over forty-five. Christy
+suspected that they were not Confederate officers as soon as he had a
+chance to look them over.
+
+"May I ask, gentlemen, if you are officers of the Confederate Navy?"
+asked Christy, as he looked from one to the other of the men.
+
+"We are not, sir," replied the senior of them.
+
+"Of course you are aware that you are serving in a Confederate
+man-of-war?" added Christy.
+
+"I should say that was hardly true up to date. The captain holds a
+commission in the Confederate Navy, but the ship has never been into a
+Confederate port, Captain Passford," replied the senior, who had learned
+the commander's name.
+
+"As you call me by name, perhaps you will enable me to do as much with
+you," added Christy.
+
+"My name is Farley Lippard; I shipped as first officer of the Scotian,"
+replied the senior.
+
+"And mine is Edward Sangston; and I shipped as second officer of the
+steamer."
+
+"We shipped only for the voyage, and were told that we could not retain
+our situations after the ship's company was fully organized," added Mr.
+Lippard.
+
+"Then I hope you were paid in advance, as the engineers were," said
+Christy with a smile.
+
+"We were, sir, thank you," added the first officer. "Though we were told
+that we could not obtain any rank in the navy because there were more
+officers than ships, the agent said we should find plenty of employment
+on board of blockade runners coming out with cotton."
+
+"I suppose you are Englishmen?" said the captain.
+
+"Scotchmen, sir, but British subjects."
+
+"I cannot put you on shore and I may not have an opportunity to ship
+you to your homes by another vessel. I shall leave you on board of the
+Ocklockonee, and the acting commander will assign to you such quarters
+in the cabin as may be at his command," continued Christy. "It is only
+necessary that I should say I expect you to remain neutral, whatever
+occurs on board of the steamer."
+
+"That is understood," replied Mr. Lippard.
+
+"You will be regarded as passengers; but of course if you commit any act
+hostile to the government of the United States, you will be considered
+as enemies, and treated as prisoners of war," Christy proceeded. "I hope
+the situation is clearly understood."
+
+"Certainly, sir; we have no interest in the quarrel in the States, and
+we are not in the pay of the Confederacy, as they call it," replied Mr.
+Lippard.
+
+"Then there will be no trouble. Captain Flint," called the commander.
+
+Flint, who had been very busy appointing petty officers and organizing
+the new crew, came at the call and was introduced to the late officers
+of the prize. The understanding which had just been reached in regard to
+them was repeated for the benefit of the new captain. He was quite as
+pliable as his superior had always been, and there was no indication
+that any friction would result from their presence on board of the
+prize, now temporarily put into the service of the navy.
+
+"Have you made all your arrangements, Captain Flint?" asked Christy when
+he was all ready to return to the Bronx.
+
+"I have very nearly completed them, Captain Passford; and I can easily
+finish them after we get under way," replied Flint. "All I need before
+we part is my orders."
+
+"From all that I can learn, the Arran must be to the eastward of the
+Ocklockonee," said Christy, who had given this subject all the thought
+his time would permit. "The officers of the prize hailed the Bronx
+coming from that direction, and that indicates that she was expected
+from that quarter. Our coming from that way seems to have made Captain
+Dinsmore confident that the Bronx was the Arran. I shall lay the course
+of my ship to the northeast, while you will proceed to the southwest.
+After you have gone fifty miles in that direction, you will make a
+course due east, as I shall also after I have made the same distance.
+Having run due east twenty miles, you will run to the northeast, as I
+shall to the southwest. If you discover the Arran fire your midship gun,
+and I will do the same."
+
+Christy shook hands with Flint, and went on board of the Bronx. The
+order was given on board of both vessels to cast off the grapnels; the
+gong bell sounded in each engine room, and both vessels went ahead, the
+Bronx coming about to her new course.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVII
+
+A COUPLE OF ASTONISHED CONSPIRATORS
+
+
+The fog had been very variable in its density, and had been lifting and
+settling at times during the day of the capture. By the time the two
+vessels were ready to get under way, it had become more solid than
+before. The night had come, and the darkness with it, at about the same
+time. The lookouts were still in their places; but so far as seeing
+anything was concerned they might as well have been in the hold. If the
+Arran was still in the vicinity, as no doubt she was, the Bronx might
+run into her. Wherever she was, it was well assured that her officers
+knew nothing of the capture of the Ocklockonee, for not a great gun had
+been discharged, and the combat had been so quickly decided that there
+had been very little noise of any kind.
+
+Everything worked without friction on board of the Bronx; and Captain
+Passford felt even more elastic than usual. Doubtless the capture he had
+just made afforded him a good deal of inspiration; but the fact that the
+mystery of the deaf mute and the second lieutenant had been solved, and
+the unfathomable catastrophe which their presence on board threatened
+had been escaped was a great source of relief.
+
+The two conspirators were disabled and confined to the sick bay, and
+they were not likely to make any trouble at present. If they had had any
+definite plan on which they intended to act, they had certainly lost
+their opportunities, for the visit of Hungerford to the engine room of
+the Bronx, no doubt for the purpose of disabling the machinery, and the
+effort of Pawcett to warn the officers of the prize, had been simply
+acts of desperation, adopted after they had evidently failed in every
+other direction.
+
+Pawcett was not really a loyal officer, and his expression and
+manners had attracted the attention of both the captain and the first
+lieutenant. The deaf mute had been brought on board in order to obtain
+information, and he had been very diligent in carrying out his part of
+the programme. As Christy thought the matter over, seated at his supper
+in his cabin, he thought he owed more to the advice of his father at
+their parting than to anything else. He had kept his own counsel in
+spite of the difficulties, and had done more to blind the actors in the
+conspiracy than to enlighten them. He had hoped before he parted with
+the prize for the present to obtain some information in regard to the
+Arran; but he had too much self-respect to ask the officers of the
+Ocklockonee in regard to such matters.
+
+The seamen who had been spotted as adherents of the late second
+lieutenant had done nothing, for there had been nothing that they could
+do under the circumstances. Spoors and two others of them had been
+drafted into the other vessel, while the other three remained on board
+of the Bronx. They were not regarded as very dangerous enemies, and they
+were not in condition to undertake anything in the absence of their
+leaders.
+
+Christy had inquired in regard to the condition of Pawcett and
+Hungerford before he went to his cabin, and Dr. Spokeley informed him
+that neither of them would be in condition to do duty on either side for
+a considerable period. They were in no danger under careful treatment,
+but both of them were too seriously injured to trouble their heads with
+any exciting subjects.
+
+"Good evening, Captain Dinsmore," Christy said, when he went into his
+cabin, after he had attended to all the duties that required present
+attention. "I hope you are feeling better this evening."
+
+"Hardly better, Captain Passford, though I am trying to reconcile myself
+to my situation," replied the late captain of the Ocklockonee.
+
+"Supper is all ready, sir," interposed Dave, as he passed by the
+captain, after he had brought in the dishes from the galley.
+
+"Take a seat at the table, Captain Dinsmore," continued Christy, placing
+a chair for him, and looking over the table to see what cheer he had to
+offer to his guest.
+
+It looked as though the cook, aware that the commander had a guest, or
+thinking that he deserved a better supper than usual after the capture
+of a prize, had done his best in honor of the occasion. The broiled
+chickens looked especially inviting, and other dishes were quite
+tempting to a man who was two hours late at the meal.
+
+"Thank you, captain," replied the guest, as he took the seat assigned
+to him. "I can't say that I have a very fierce appetite after the
+misfortune that has befallen me; but I am none the less indebted to
+you for your courtesy and kindness."
+
+"I acknowledge that I am in condition to be very happy this evening,
+Captain Dinsmore, and I can hardly expect to be an agreeable companion
+to one with a burden on his mind; but I can assure you of my personal
+sympathy."
+
+"You are very kind, captain. I should like to ask if many of the
+officers of the old navy are young gentlemen like yourself?" inquired
+the guest, looking at his host very curiously.
+
+"There are a great many young officers in the navy at the present time,
+for the exigency has pushed forward the older ones, and there are not
+enough of them to take all the positions. But we shall all of us grow
+older," replied Christy good-naturedly, as he helped the officer to a
+piece of the chicken, which had just come from the galley fire.
+
+"Perhaps you are older than you appear to be," suggested the guest.
+"I should judge that you were not over twenty, or at least not much
+more."
+
+"I am eighteen, sir, though, unlike a lady, I try to make myself as old
+as I can."
+
+"Eighteen!" exclaimed Captain Dinsmore.
+
+But Christy told something of his experience on board of the Bellevite
+which had prepared him for his duties, and his case was rather
+exceptional.
+
+"You have physique enough for a man of twenty-five," added the guest.
+"And you have been more fortunate than I have."
+
+"And I have been as unfortunate as you are, for I have seen the inside
+of a Confederate prison, though I concluded not to remain there for any
+length of time," added Christy, laughing.
+
+"You are a fortunate young man, and I do not belong to that class,"
+said Captain Dinsmore, shaking his head. "I have lost my steamer, and
+I suppose that will finish my career."
+
+"Perhaps not;" but Christy was satisfied that he had lost his vessel by
+a want of care, and he could not waste any compliments upon him, though
+he had profited by the other's carelessness.
+
+"I was confident when the Bronx approached the Ocklockonee that she was
+another vessel," continued the guest.
+
+"What vessel did you take her to be?"
+
+"You will excuse me if I decline to go into particulars. I can only say
+that I was sure your steamer was another, and I had no suspicion that I
+was wrong till that man mounted the rail of the Bronx, and began to tell
+us to the contrary," replied Captain Dinsmore. "A bolt in the engine was
+broken, and the engineer could not find another on board. We expected to
+obtain one when the Bronx approached us. I was deceived; and that is the
+reason why I am here instead of in the cabin of my own ship."
+
+The guest seemed to feel a little better after he had made this
+explanation, though it contained nothing new to the commander of the
+Bronx. Possibly the excellent supper, of which he had partaken heartily
+in spite of his want of appetite, had influenced his mind through the
+body. He had certainly become more cheerful, though his burden was no
+lighter than when he came on board of the Bronx. Christy was also
+light-hearted, not alone because he had been so successful, but because
+he felt that he was no longer compelled to watch the conspirators.
+
+"I am sorry to be obliged to impose any restrictions upon you, Captain
+Dinsmore," said Christy, as he rose from the supper table. "The
+circumstances compel me to request you to remain in my cabin."
+
+"Of course I am subject to your will and pleasure, Captain Passford,"
+replied the guest.
+
+"You are a gentleman, sir, and if you will simply give me your word to
+remain here, there will be no occasion for any unpleasantness. It is
+possible that we may go into action at any time; and in that case you
+can remain where you please below."
+
+"I give you my word that I will remain below until I notify you of
+my intention to do otherwise," replied the prisoner, though Christy
+preferred to regard him as his guest.
+
+"I am entirely satisfied. I shall be obliged to berth you in the ward
+room, and you are at liberty to pass your time as you please in these
+two apartments. I shall be happy to introduce you to the first
+lieutenant," added the captain, as he led the way to the ward room.
+
+Mr. Baskirk received the prisoner very politely, a berth was assigned
+to him, and Christy went on deck. It was as dark as Egypt there, but Mr.
+Amblen, the new acting second lieutenant, on the bridge, said the wind
+was hauling to the westward, and he thought there would be a change of
+weather before morning. Mr. Baskirk had made all his appointments of
+petty officers rendered necessary by sending a portion of the seamen to
+the Ocklockonee. Everything was in good order on deck, and Christy next
+went down to the sick bay, where Hungerford and Pawcett were the only
+occupants. He found Dr. Spokeley there, and inquired in regard to the
+condition of the wounded men. The surgeon described the wounds of his
+patients, and pointed them out to the captain.
+
+"Does Mr. Hungerford talk any now?" asked Christy.
+
+"Who is Mr. Hungerford?" asked the doctor.
+
+"He is the deaf mute. He was the first officer of the Confederate
+steamer Yazoo when we captured her in the Bellevite last year," replied
+the captain, upon whom the eyes of the wounded man were fixed all the
+time.
+
+"He has not spoken yet in my hearing, though I have thought that he
+could hear."
+
+"His duty on board of the Bronx was to obtain information, and he
+procured a good deal of it, though not all of it was as reliable as
+it might have been."
+
+"Indeed! Then he was a traitor," added the surgeon.
+
+"He is a gentleman in spite of the role he has been playing, and I am
+sorry he has been injured, though Mr. Sampson obeyed my order when he
+struck him down in the engine room."
+
+"Struck me from behind like an assassin," added Hungerford feebly.
+
+"Did you expect to arrange a duel with him at such a time, Mr.
+Hungerford?" asked Christy. "You went into the engine room to disable
+the machine when you found you could do nothing else. If you had
+returned to the deck when the engineer told you to do so, he would not
+have disabled you. You crowded past him, and then he did his duty."
+
+"I have been in the habit of serving with men who were square and above
+board," muttered Hungerford.
+
+"Was that where you learned to listen at my cabin door, and to conceal
+yourself under the berth in my state room?" asked Christy, rather
+sharply for him. "Is that the reason why Mr. Pawcett wished to have
+you do the copying of my papers?"
+
+"I can only say that I tried to do my duty to my country and I have
+failed," added Hungerford, as he turned over in his berth, and showed
+his back to the captain.
+
+"May I ask, Captain Passford, who told you my name?" asked the late
+second lieutenant, who seemed to be confounded by what he had heard.
+
+"You called Mr. Hungerford by his real name, and he called you by yours,
+in the interview you had with him the first night out from New York.
+I have known you from the first," replied Christy.
+
+Pawcett was as disgusted as the other had been, and he turned his face
+to the ceiling of his berth. Christy was satisfied that these men would
+give him no more trouble at present.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVIII
+
+A TRIANGULAR ACTION WITH GREAT GUNS
+
+
+When Mr. Baskirk went on deck to take his watch at midnight, the fog
+had disappeared, and a fresh breeze was blowing from the westward. This
+change was reported to the captain, and he went on deck. No sail had
+been seen since the fog cleared off, and Christy returned to his state
+room, where he was soon asleep again. He was called, as he had directed,
+at four in the morning, but no change in the weather was reported, and
+no sail had been seen.
+
+At four bells in the morning watch two sails were reported to him, one
+dead ahead, and the other on the port beam. He hastened to the deck, and
+found Mr. Amblen using his spyglass, and trying to make out the distant
+sails. The one at the northeast of the Bronx was making a long streak of
+black smoke on the sky, and there was no such appearance over the other.
+Both were steamers.
+
+"The one ahead of us is the Ocklockonee," said Captain Passford, after
+he had used the spyglass. "I have no doubt the other is the Arran.
+Probably she has a new name by this time, but I have not heard it yet.
+Pass the word for Mr. Ambleton."
+
+This was the gunner, and he was directed to fire a single shot, blank,
+from the midship gun. This was immediately done, and was the signal
+agreed upon with Flint if either discovered the Arran. It was promptly
+answered by a similar discharge on board of the Ocklockonee, indicating
+that she had seen the steamer in question.
+
+"Now, make her course southeast, Mr. Amblen," said Christy, after the
+two signals had been made.
+
+"Southeast, sir," responded the second lieutenant, giving the course to
+the quartermaster at the wheel.
+
+The commander of the Ocklockonee changed his course as soon as the Bronx
+had done so. Both steamers were headed directly towards the sail in the
+southeast, and both were running for the apex of the triangle where the
+third steamer was located.
+
+The captain visited every part of the vessel, and gave orders to have
+breakfast served at once, for he expected there would be lively times
+before many hours. Everything was overhauled, and put in order. At eight
+bells, when Mr. Baskirk took the deck, the captain did not care how soon
+the battle began. Everything was ready and waiting, and he went below
+for his breakfast.
+
+From delicacy or some other motive Captain Dinsmore spent most of
+his time in the ward room; but he was called to breakfast with the
+commander. Both captains were as polite to each other as they had been
+the evening before, but it was evident to Christy that his guest was
+quite uneasy, as though he had discovered what had transpired on deck;
+and the movements there were quite enough to inform him without a word
+from any one. He had not asked a question of any person on board; and it
+was impossible for him to know that a sail supposed to be the Arran was
+in sight.
+
+"I have heard some firing this morning, Captain Passford," said he as he
+seated himself at the table, and watched the expression of his host's
+countenance.
+
+"Merely a couple of signals; the distant shot came from the
+Ocklockonee," replied Christy lightly.
+
+"I thought it possible that you had fallen in with another steamer,"
+added the guest.
+
+"I have considered it more than possible, and within the limits of
+probability, that we should fall in with another steamer ever since we
+ran so opportunely upon the Scotian, as she was formerly called."
+
+"Opportunely for you, but very inopportunely for me," added Captain
+Dinsmore with a faint smile.
+
+"I am happy to inform you that we have passed beyond both possibility
+and probability, and come into the region of fact," continued Christy.
+
+"Then you have made out a sail?" asked the guest anxiously.
+
+"We have; a steamer on our port beam; and I am reasonably confident it
+is the vessel you supposed was coming alongside the Ocklockonee last
+evening."
+
+"Indeed?" added the guest, as though he did not know just what to say,
+and did not mean to commit himself.
+
+"In other words, I am almost sure this steamer is the Arran, though
+doubtless you have changed her name," said Christy, as he helped the
+other from the choicest dish on the table.
+
+"The Arran?" repeated Captain Dinsmore, manifesting but not expressing
+his surprise that his companion in a different service from his own knew
+this name.
+
+"Perhaps you can give me her later name, as I have no doubt she is or
+will be called after some southern river, which is quite proper, and
+entirely patriotic. Perhaps she is called the Perdido, which is not
+very far from Perdition, where I shall do my best to send her unless she
+surrenders within a reasonable time, or runs away from me," said Captain
+Passford lightly. "Is your coffee quite right, Captain Dinsmore?"
+
+"It is very good indeed, captain, thank you."
+
+"Perhaps it is too strong for you, like the United States Navy, and you
+would prefer it weaker," suggested Christy.
+
+"It is quite right as it is, and, like the United States Navy of which
+you speak, it will be used up in a short time," replied the guest as
+pleasantly as the captain of the Bronx.
+
+"That is yet to be settled," laughed Christy.
+
+"Well, captain, the coffee is settled, and that is more than can be said
+of our navy, which will be as clear as this in due time."
+
+"I thought it best to inform you that we might be in action in the
+course of a couple of hours, and you were to notify me in case you
+wished to change your status on board," added Christy more seriously.
+
+"I am much obliged to you, Captain Passford, for your courtesy and
+kindness, but I see no reason to change my position. I will still
+confine myself to the cabin and ward room. I cannot wish you success in
+the action in which you are about to engage, for it would break my heart
+to have the Arran, as you call her, captured," added the guest.
+
+"I think you may fairly count upon such a result," replied Christy
+confidently.
+
+"You must excuse me, Captain Passford, but I think you are reckoning
+without your host, and therein your youth makes its only manifestation,"
+said the guest, shaking his head. "I can only say that, when you are a
+prisoner on board of the Escambia, I shall do my best to have you as
+handsomely treated as I have been in your cabin."
+
+"Thank you, captain; I assure you I shall appreciate any courtesy and
+kindness extended to me. The Escambia is her name then. That is not so
+near Perdition as the word I suggested, and I am glad it is not so long
+as the name you gave the Scotian. I shall expect to come across an
+Apalachicola in due time. They are all very good names, but we shall be
+compelled to change them when they fall into our hands," said Christy.
+
+"I have plenty of spare time on my hands just now, and perhaps I had
+better think up a new name for the Bronx; and Apalachicola would be as
+good as any other. I wonder you did not call her the Nutcracker, for her
+present name rather suggests that idea."
+
+"I have heard a similar remark before; but she is not big enough for
+such a long name as the one you suggest, and you would have to begin
+to pronounce it before breakfast in order to get it out before the dog
+watches," said Christy, as he rose from the table and went on deck.
+
+The first thing he noticed when he came on the bridge was that the
+Ocklockonee was headed to intercept the Bronx. Captain Flint signalled
+that he wished to speak to him, and he changed his course to comply with
+the request. At the end of another hour they came together, the Arran
+being still at least four miles distant, going very slowly if she was
+moving at all.
+
+Christy had written out his orders for Captain Flint in full. So far
+as he had been able to judge of the speed of the other steamer, it
+appeared to be about the same as that of the Bronx. He had directed the
+Ocklockonee to get to the southward of the Arran. A boat was sent to her
+with the orders, and Flint immediately proceeded to obey them. The Bronx
+slowed down her engines to enable the other to gain her position; but
+the Arran did not seem to be willing to permit her to do this, and gave
+chase to her at once.
+
+The commander of the Bronx met this change by one on his own part, and
+went ahead with all the speed he could get out of her. The Confederate
+steamer was farther to the eastward than either of the other two, and
+after the changes of position which Christy had brought about in
+speaking the Ocklockonee, the Arran was nearly southeast of both of the
+others. Flint went directly to the south, and Christy ran for the enemy.
+
+All hands had been beaten to quarters on board of the Bronx, and the
+captain was on the bridge, watching with the most intense interest the
+progress of the other two vessels. It was soon apparent to him that
+the Ocklockonee could not get into the position to which she had been
+ordered under present circumstances, for the enemy was giving his whole
+attention to her.
+
+"There goes a gun from the enemy!" exclaimed Mr. Amblen, as a puff of
+smoke rose from the forward deck of the Arran.
+
+"The shot struck in the water," added Christy a moment later; "but the
+two vessels are within range. There is the first shot from the
+Ocklockonee! Captain Flint is not asleep."
+
+The firing was done on both vessels with the heavy midship guns, and
+doubtless the calibre of the pieces was the same; but Flint was the more
+fortunate of the two, for his shot struck the smokestack of the enemy,
+or partly upset it. Christy thought it was time for him to take a hand
+in the game, and he ordered the midship gun to be fired, charged as it
+was with a solid shot. The gunner aimed the piece himself, and the shot
+was seen to tear up the water alongside of the enemy. He discharged the
+piece four times more with no better result. Evidently he had not got
+the hang of the gun, though he was improving at every trial.
+
+Three steamers were rushing towards each other with all the fury steam
+could give them, for the overthrow of the funnel of the enemy did not
+disable her, though it probably diminished the draught of her furnaces.
+Through the glass it could be seen that they were making an effort to
+restore the fallen smokestack to its position. All three of the steamers
+were delivering the fire of their midship guns very regularly, though
+with little effect, the distance was so great. The gunner of the Bronx
+was evidently greatly nettled at the number of solid shots he had
+wasted, though the gun of the Ocklockonee had done little better so far
+as could be seen. The three vessels were not much more than half a mile
+from each other, and the enemy had begun to use his broadside guns.
+
+"Good!" shouted Mr. Amblen suddenly after the gunner had just let off
+the great gun. "That shot overturned the midship piece of the Arran.
+Ambleton has fully redeemed himself." The announcement of the effect of
+this last shot sent up a volley of cheers from the crew.
+
+The Bronx and her consort had set the American flag at the beginning of
+the action, and the Confederate had promptly displayed her ensign, as
+though she scorned to go into action without having it fully understood
+what she was. She did not claim to be a blockade runner, and do her best
+to escape, but "faced the music," even when she realized that she had
+two enemies instead of one.
+
+Christy had evidently inherited some of the naval blood on his mother's
+side, and he was not satisfied with the slow progress of the action, for
+the shots from the broadside guns of the enemy were beginning to tell
+upon the Bronx, though she had received no serious injury. He caused the
+signal to prepare to board to be set as agreed upon with Captain Flint.
+The orders already given were to be carried out, and both vessels bore
+down on the Arran with all speed.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIX
+
+ON THE DECK OF THE ARRAN
+
+
+Captain Passford had carried out the programme agreed upon with Captain
+Flint, and the latter had been working to the southward since the Bronx
+came into the action, and as soon as the order to get ready to board
+was given, the Ocklockonee went ahead at full speed, headed in that
+direction. She had reached a position dead ahead of the Arran, so that
+she no longer suffered from the shots of the latter's broadside guns,
+and the Bronx was getting the entire benefit of them.
+
+Both vessels had kept up a full head of steam, and the coal passers
+were kept very busy at just this time. The Arran's midship gun had been
+disabled so that she could not make any very telling shots, but her crew
+had succeeded in righting her funnel, which had not gone entirely over,
+but had been held by the stays. Yet it could be seen that there was a
+big opening near the deck, for the smoke did not all pass through the
+smokestack.
+
+The broadside guns of the Arran were well served, and they were doing
+considerable mischief on board of the Bronx. Christy was obliged to hold
+back until her consort was in position to board the Arran on the port
+hand, and he manoeuvred the steamer so as to receive as little damage
+as possible from her guns. He was to board on the starboard hand of the
+enemy, and he was working nearer to her all the time. Mr. Ambleton the
+gunner had greatly improved his practice, and the commander was obliged
+to check his enthusiasm, or there would have been nothing left of the
+Arran in half an hour more. Christy considered the final result as fully
+assured, for he did not believe the present enemy was any more heavily
+manned than her consort had been, and he could throw double her force
+upon her deck as soon as the two steamers were in position to do so.
+
+"Are you doing all you can in the engine room, Mr. Sampson?" asked
+Christy, pausing at the engine hatch.
+
+"Everything, Captain Passford, and I think we must be making sixteen
+knots," replied the chief engineer.
+
+"Is Mr. Bockburn on duty?"
+
+"He is, sir; and if he were a Connecticut Yankee he could not do any
+better, or appear to be any more interested."
+
+"He seems to be entirely impartial; all he wants is his pay, and he is
+as willing to be on one side as the other if he only gets it," said
+Christy. "Has any damage been done to the engine?"
+
+"None at all, sir; a shot from one of those broadside guns went through
+the side, and passed just over the top of one of the boilers," replied
+the engineer. "Bockburn plugged the shot hole very skilfully, and said
+it would not be possible for a shot to come in low enough to hit the
+boilers. He knows all about the other two vessels, and has served as an
+engineer on board of the Arran on the other side of the Atlantic."
+
+Just at that moment a shot from the Arran struck the bridge and a
+splinter from the structure knocked two men over. One of them picked
+himself up, but said he was not much hurt, and refused to be sent below.
+The other man was Veering; he seemed to be unable to get up, and was
+carried down by order of the boatswain. This man was one of the
+adherents of Hungerford and Pawcett, though so far he had been of no
+service to them.
+
+Christy hastened forward to ascertain the extent of the damage done to
+the bridge. It was completely wrecked, and was no longer in condition to
+be occupied by an officer. But the pilot house was still in serviceable
+repair, and the quartermaster had not been disturbed. By this time, the
+Ocklockonee had obtained a position on the port bow of the Arran, and
+the commander directed the quartermaster at the wheel to run directly
+for the other side of the enemy.
+
+The time for decisive and final action had come. Mr. Baskirk placed
+the boarders in position to be thrown on board of the Arran. He was
+to command the first division himself, and Mr. Amblen the second. The
+Ocklockonee was rushing at all the speed she could command to the work
+before her.
+
+  [Illustration: The captain of the Arran.]
+
+For some reason not apparent the Arran had stopped her screw, though she
+had kept in motion till now, doing her best to secure the most favorable
+position for action. Possibly her commander believed a collision between
+the vessels at a high rate of speed would be more fatal to him than
+anything that could result from being boarded. It was soon discovered
+that she was backing, and it was evident then that her captain had some
+manoeuvre of his own in mind, though it was possible that he was only
+doing something to counteract the effect of a collision. Doubtless he
+thought the two vessels approaching him at such a rapid rate intended to
+crush the Arran between them, and that they desired only to sink him.
+
+He was not allowed many minutes more to carry out his policy, whatever
+it was, for the Ocklockonee came up alongside of the Arran, the grapnels
+were thrown out, and the whole boarding force of the steamer was hurled
+upon her decks. But the commander was a plucky man, however he regarded
+the chances for or against him, and his crew proceeded vigorously to
+repel boarders. Christy had timed the movements of the Bronx very
+carefully, and the Ocklockonee had hardly fastened to the Arran on
+one side before he had his steamer grappled on the other.
+
+"Boarders, away!" he shouted at the top of his lungs, and flourishing
+his sword over his head, not however with the intention of going into
+the fight himself, but as a demonstration to inspire the men.
+
+Baskirk and Amblen rushed forward with cutlasses in their hands, leaping
+upon the deck of the enemy. The crew was found to equal in numbers about
+the force that the Ocklockonee had brought to bear upon them. The
+boarders from the Bronx attacked them in the rear while they were fully
+occupied with the boarders in front of them. The officers of the enemy
+behaved with distinguished gallantry, and urged their men forward with
+the most desperate enthusiasm. They struck hard blows, and several of
+the boarders belonging to the consort had fallen, to say nothing of
+wounds that did not entirely disable others. Some of the men belonging
+to the Arran, doubtless shipped on the other side of the ocean or at the
+Bermudas, were disposed to shirk their duty, though their officers held
+them well up to the work.
+
+One of the brave officers who had done the boarders a good deal of
+mischief fell at a pistol shot from Mr. Amblen; this loss of his
+leadership caused a sensible giving way on the part of his division, and
+his men began to fall back. The other officers, including the captain,
+who fought with a heavy cutlass, held out for a short time longer; but
+Christy saw that it was slaughter.
+
+The captain of the Arran was the next to go down, though he was not
+killed. This event practically ended the contest for the deck of the
+steamer. The boarders crowded upon the crew and drove them to the bow of
+the vessel, where they yielded the deck, and submitted to the excess of
+numbers.
+
+"Don't butcher my men!" cried the captain of the Arran, raising himself
+partially from his place where he had fallen. "I surrender, for we are
+outnumbered two to one."
+
+But the fighting had ceased forward. Mr. Baskirk was as earnest to save
+any further slaughter as he had been to win the fight. Christy came on
+board of the prize, not greatly elated at the victory, for it had been a
+very unequal affair as to numbers. The Arran was captured; that was all
+that could be said of it. She had been bravely defended; and the "honors
+were even," though the fortunes of the day were against the Arran and
+her ship's company.
+
+"Allow me to introduce myself as the commander of the United States
+steamer Bronx," said Christy, approaching the fallen captain of the
+Arran. "I sincerely hope that you are not seriously injured, sir."
+
+"Who under the canopy are you?" demanded the commander of the prize,
+as he looked at the young officer with something like contempt in his
+expression.
+
+"I have just informed you who under the canopy I am," replied Christy,
+not pleased with the manner of the other. "To be a little more definite,
+I am Captain Christopher Passford, commander of the United States
+steamer Bronx, of which the Arran appears to be a prize."
+
+"The captain!" exclaimed the fallen man. "You are nothing but a boy!"
+
+"But I am old enough to try to be a gentleman. You are evidently old
+enough to be my father, though I have no comments to make," added
+Christy.
+
+"I beg your pardon, Captain Passford," said the captain of the Arran,
+attempting to rise from the deck, in which he was assisted by Christy
+and by Mr. Baskirk, who had just come aft. "I beg your pardon, Captain
+Passford, for I did not understand what you said at first, and I did not
+suspect that you were the captain."
+
+"I hope you are not seriously injured, sir," added Christy.
+
+"I don't know how seriously, but I have a cut on the hip, for which I
+exchanged one on the head, parrying the stroke so that it took me below
+the belt."
+
+"Have you a surgeon on board, Captain ---- I have not the pleasure of
+knowing your name, sir."
+
+"Captain Richfield, lieutenant in the Confederate Navy. We have a
+surgeon on board, and he is below attending to the wounded," replied
+the captain.
+
+"Allow me to assist you to your cabin, Captain Richfield," continued
+Christy, as he and Baskirk each took one of the wounded officer's arms.
+
+"Thank you, sir. I see that you have been doubly fortunate, Captain
+Passford, and you have both the Escambia and the Ocklockonee. I did the
+best I could to save my ship, but the day has gone against me."
+
+"And no one could have done any more than you have done. Your ship has
+been ably and bravely defended; but it was my good fortune to be able to
+outnumber you both in ships and in men."
+
+Captain Richfield was taken to his state room, and assisted into his
+berth. A steward was sent for the surgeon, and Christy and his first
+lieutenant retired from the cabin. The captured seamen of the Arran were
+all sent below, and everything was done that the occasion required.
+
+Christy asked Captain Flint to meet him in the cabin of the Bronx for a
+consultation over the situation, for the sealed orders of the commander
+had been carried out to the letter so far as the two expected steamers
+were concerned, and it only remained to report to the flag officer of
+the Eastern Gulf squadron. But with two prizes, and a considerable
+number of prisoners, the situation was not without its difficulties.
+
+"I hope you are quite comfortable, Captain Dinsmore," said Christy as he
+entered his cabin, and found his guest reading at the table.
+
+"Quite so, Captain Passford. I have heard a great deal of firing in the
+last hour, and I am rather surprised to find that you are not a prisoner
+on board of the Escambia, or perhaps you have come to your cabin for
+your clothes," replied the guest cheerfully.
+
+"I have not come on any such mission; and I have the pleasure of
+informing you that the Confederate steamer Escambia is a prize to the
+Bronx," replied Christy quite as cheerfully. "I am sorry to add that
+Captain Richfield was wounded in the hip, and that Mr. Berwick, the
+first lieutenant, was killed."
+
+The Confederate officer leaped out of his chair astonished at the news.
+He declared that he had confidently expected to be released by the
+capture of the Bronx. Christy gave a brief review of the action; and
+Captain Dinsmore was not surprised at the result when informed that the
+Ocklockonee had taken part in the capture. The commander then requested
+him to retire to the ward room, and Flint came in. They seated
+themselves at the table, and proceeded to figure up their resources and
+consider what was to be done. Mr. Baskirk was then sent for to assist in
+the conference.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XX
+
+THE NEW COMMANDER OF THE BRONX
+
+
+"Captain Flint, the first question to be settled is in regard to the
+engineer force," said Christy, as the three officers seated themselves
+at the table.
+
+"I think we shall have no difficulty on that score, Captain Passford,
+for I have already sounded those on board of the Arran, or the Escambia,
+as her officers call her. As long as their wages are paid, they don't
+care which side they serve. Mr. Pivotte is the chief, and he is as
+willing to go one way as the other."
+
+"Very well; then he shall retain his present position, and Bockburn
+shall be restored to the Ocklockonee. Of course the arrangements made
+after the capture of the first vessel were only temporary, and I propose
+to report to the flag officer with everything as nearly as possible in
+the condition in which we left New York," continued Christy.
+
+"Of course I expected to resume my former position on board of the Bronx
+as soon as we had disposed of the two steamers; and I can say that I
+shall not be sorry to do so," said Flint with a pleasant smile, as
+though he did not intend to grieve over the loss of his command.
+
+"In a few days more, we shall move down a peg, and I shall cease to have
+a command as well as yourself," added Christy.
+
+"And I suppose I shall be relegated to my position as a quartermaster,"
+said Baskirk; "but I shall be satisfied. I don't care to wear any spurs
+that I have not won, though I shall be glad to have a higher rank when I
+deserve it."
+
+"You deserve it now, Mr. Baskirk, and if you don't receive it, it will
+not be on account of any weakness in my report of the events of the last
+twenty-four hours," added Christy heartily.
+
+"Thank you, captain; I suppose I could have procured a better position
+than that of able seaman, but I preferred to work my way up."
+
+"It was wise not to begin too high up, and you have already won your
+spurs. Now, Mr. Baskirk, I shall ask you to take the deck, relieving Mr.
+Amblen," added Christy, who wished to talk with Flint alone.
+
+"I shall be really glad to get back into the Bronx, for I feel at home
+here with you, captain," said Flint.
+
+"You will be back to your berth here very soon. Now we have to send
+these two steamers to New York. They are fine vessels, and will be
+needed. We want two prize masters, and we must have able men. Have you
+any suggestion to make, Mr. Flint? I first thought of sending you as the
+principal one; but I cannot spare you, and the service in the Gulf needs
+you."
+
+"I am entirely willing to go where my duty calls me, without regard to
+personal preferences," replied Flint. "I have a suggestion to make:
+which is that Baskirk take one of the steamers."
+
+"That is exactly my own idea; from what I have seen of him, there is no
+more devoted officer in the service."
+
+"I have known him for many years, and I believe in him. McSpindle is
+almost as good, and has had a better education than Baskirk. I don't
+think you could find two better men in the navy for this duty."
+
+"Very well; then I will appoint them both."
+
+Flint was instructed to communicate their appointment to Baskirk and
+McSpindle, and make all the preparations for the departure of the
+Escambia and the Ocklockonee. Christy went to his state room, and wrote
+his report of the capture of the two steamers, in which he commended the
+two officers who were to go as prize masters, and then wrote a letter to
+his father, with a strong appeal in their favor. Then he wrote very
+careful instructions for the government of the officers to be sent away,
+in which he directed them to use all necessary precautions in regard to
+the prisoners. In a couple of hours after the capture of the Escambia,
+the two prizes sailed for New York. Captain Dinsmore expressed his
+thanks very warmly to Captain Passford for his courtesy and kindness
+at parting.
+
+Christy had visited every part of the two steamers, and talked with the
+officers and men, and especially with the engineers, and he discovered
+no elements of discord on board of either. Hungerford and Pawcett were
+transferred to the Escambia, and committed to the care of the surgeon
+of the ship. Both of them were suffering from fever, and they were not
+likely to give the prize master any trouble during the passage, which
+could only be three or four days in duration. Baskirk and McSpindle were
+required to make all the speed they could consistent with safety, though
+Christy hardly thought they would encounter any Confederate rover on the
+voyage, for they were not very plenty at this stage of the war.
+
+It seemed a little lonesome on board of the Bronx after the two steamers
+had disappeared in the distance, and the number of the crew had been
+so largely reduced by the drafts for the prizes. The steamer was hardly
+in condition to engage an enemy of any considerable force, and Sampson
+was directed to hurry as much as possible. Christy had heard of the
+Bellevite twice since he left her off Pensacola Bay. She had been sent
+to other stations on duty, and had captured two schooners loaded with
+cotton as prizes; but at the last accounts she had returned to the
+station where the Bronx had left her.
+
+Christy was not so anxious as he had been before the recent captures
+to fall in with an enemy, for with less than twenty seamen it would not
+be prudent to attack such a steamer as either of those he had captured,
+though he would not have objected to chase a blockade runner if he had
+discovered one pursued by the gunboats.
+
+It was a quiet time on board of the Bronx compared with the excitement
+of the earlier days of the voyage. In the very beginning of the trip,
+he had discovered the deaf mute at the cabin door, and his thought,
+his inquiries, and his action in defeating the treachery of the second
+lieutenant had kept him busy night and day. Now the weather was fine
+most of the time, and he had little to do beyond his routine duties. But
+he did a great deal of thinking in his cabin, though most of it was in
+relation to the events which had transpired on board of the Bronx.
+
+He had captured two valuable prizes; but he could not feel that he was
+entitled to any great credit for the achievements of his vessel, since
+he had been warned in the beginning to look out for the Scotian and the
+Arran. He had taken the first by surprise, and the result was due to the
+carelessness of her commander rather than to any great merit on his own
+part. The second he had taken with double the force of the enemy in
+ships and men; and the latter was not precisely the kind of a victory
+he was ambitious to win.
+
+At the same time, his self-respect assured him that he had done his duty
+faithfully, and that it had been possible for him to throw away his
+advantage by carelessness. If he had fallen in with both the Scotian and
+the Arran at the same time, the result might have been different, though
+he was sure that he should have fought his ship as long as there was
+anything left of her. In that case there would have been more room for
+manoeuvring and strategy, for he did not admit to himself that he
+should have been beaten.
+
+Amblen continued to hold his place as second lieutenant, and McLinn was
+appointed acting third lieutenant. The carpenter repaired the bridge,
+though Christy would not have been very sorry if it had been so
+thoroughly smashed as to be beyond restoration, for it was hardly a
+naval institution. The men who had been only slightly wounded in the
+action with the Escambia were progressing finely under the care of Dr.
+Spokeley, and when the Bronx was off the southern cape of Florida, they
+were able to return to duty. The latest information located the flag
+officer off Pensacola, and in due time Christy reported to him. The
+Bellevite was still there, and the commander went on board of her, where
+he received an ovation from the former officers and seamen with whom he
+had sailed. He did not take any pains to recite his experience, but it
+was soon known throughout the fleet.
+
+"Christy, I shall hardly dare to sail in command of a ship of which you
+are the executive officer," said Lieutenant Blowitt, who was to command
+the Bronx, with a laugh.
+
+"Why not? Is my reputation so bad as that?" asked Christy.
+
+"Bad! No, it is so good. The fact of it is, you are such a tremendous
+fellow, there will be no room for any other officer to shine in the same
+sky."
+
+"I have been in command for a few days, hardly more than a week, but I
+assure you that I can and shall obey the orders of my commander to the
+very letter," added Christy.
+
+"But you took two steamers, each of them of nearly twice the tonnage of
+your own ship, in mid ocean."
+
+"But I took them one at a time. If I had fallen in with both at the same
+time, the affair might have gone the other way. We captured the first
+one by accident, as it were, and the second with double the force of
+the enemy. I don't take much credit to myself for that sort of thing.
+I don't think it was half as much of an affair as bringing out the
+Teaser, for we had to use some science on that occasion," replied
+Christy quietly.
+
+"Science, is it?" laughed Mr. Blowitt. "Perhaps you can assist me to
+some of your science, when it is required."
+
+"I shall obey my superior officer, and not presume to advise him unless
+he asks me to do so."
+
+"Well, Christy, I think you are the most audacious young fellow I ever
+met," added the future commander of the Bronx.
+
+"I haven't anything about me that I call audacity, so far as I
+understand myself. When I am told to do any duty, I do it if it is
+possible; and whether it is possible often depends upon whether you
+think it is or not."
+
+"I should say that it was audacious for you to think of capturing two
+steamers, fitted out for war purposes, and twice the size of your own
+ship, with the Bronx," added Mr. Blowitt, still laughing, to take off
+the edge of his criticism.
+
+"Why did the Navy Department instruct me in my sealed orders to look out
+for these steamers, if I was to do so in a Pickwickian sense?" demanded
+Christy earnestly. "What would you have done, Mr. Blowitt?"
+
+"Perhaps I should have been as audacious as you were, Christy, if such
+had been my orders."
+
+This conversation took place on the deck of the Bellevite where Christy
+had come to see his friends; and it was interrupted by a boat from the
+flag ship which brought a big envelope for Mr. Blowitt. It instructed
+him to go on board of the Bronx, to the command of which he had been
+appointed. Another order required him to proceed to a point on the
+western coast of Florida, where the enemy were supposed to be loading
+vessels with cotton, and break up the depot established for the purpose,
+where it could be supplied by the Florida Railroad.
+
+The new commander packed his clothing, and he was sent with Christy in
+one of the Bellevite's boats to the Bronx. They went on board, where the
+late acting commander had already removed his own property to the ward
+room, and Captain Blowitt was conducted to his cabin and state room, of
+which he took formal possession. He seemed to be very much pleased with
+his accommodations since the government had put the vessel in order,
+though he had been on board of her, and fought a battle on her deck,
+while she was still the Teaser.
+
+"I am sure I could not ask for anything better than this cabin," said
+he, after he had invited his first lieutenant to come in.
+
+"I found it very comfortable," added Christy. "Flint is second
+lieutenant, and Sampson chief engineer; and that is all there are of
+those who were in the Bellevite. I will introduce you to the acting
+third lieutenant, Mr. Amblen, and you can retain him or not as you
+please."
+
+Mr. Amblen was called in and presented to the captain, and then Flint
+was ordered to get under way.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXI
+
+AN EXPEDITION IN THE GULF
+
+
+The Bronx had been three days on the station, Christy had made his
+report in full on her arrival, and the flag officer had visited the
+vessel in person, in order to ascertain her fitness for several
+enterprises he had in view. The Confederates were not sleepy or
+inactive, and resorted to every expedient within their means to
+counteract both morally and materially the efficiency of the blockade.
+
+The Bronx was admirably adapted to service in the shoal waters where the
+heavier vessels of the investing squadron could not go, and her arrival
+solved several problems then under consideration. Captain Blowitt and
+Christy had been sent for, and the late commander of the Bronx was
+questioned in regard to the steamer, her draught, her speed, and her
+ship's company. The damage done to her in the conflict with the Escambia
+had been fully repaired by the carpenter and his gang, and the steamer
+was in as good condition as when she sailed from New York.
+
+"In regard to the present officers, Mr. Passford, excepting present
+company, of course, they are excellent," said Captain McKeon, the flag
+officer. "For the service in which the Bronx is to be engaged, its
+success will depend upon the officers, though it is hardly exceptional
+in this respect. I understand that you sailed from New York rather
+short-handed abaft the mainmast."
+
+"Yes, sir, we did; but fortunately we had most excellent material of
+which to make officers, and we made them," replied Christy.
+
+"I should like to know something about them; I mean apart from Captain
+Blowitt and yourself, for you have already made your record, and yours,
+Mr. Passford, is rather a dazzling reputation for one so young."
+
+"I am willing to apologize for it, sir," replied Christy, blushing like
+a maiden, as he was in duty bound to do, for he could not control the
+crimson that rose to his browned cheeks.
+
+"Quite unnecessary," replied Captain McKeon, smiling. "As long as you do
+your duty nobody will be jealous of you, and you will be a fit officer
+for all our young men to emulate. You were the acting commander on the
+voyage of the Bronx from New York. Your executive officer is the present
+second lieutenant. Is he qualified for the peculiar duty before you?"
+
+"No one could be more so, sir," replied Christy with proper enthusiasm.
+
+"I can fully indorse this opinion of Mr. Passford," added Captain
+Blowitt. "In the capture and bringing out of the Teaser, Mr. Flint was
+the right hand man of the leader of the enterprise."
+
+"And I gave him the command of the Ocklockonee, after her capture, and
+she took an active part in the affair with the Escambia, sir," said
+Christy.
+
+"Then we will consider him the right man in the right place," replied
+the flag officer. "Who is the present third lieutenant?"
+
+"Mr. Amblen is acting in that capacity at present, and he is a very good
+officer, though he holds no rank," answered Christy.
+
+"Then I can hardly confirm him as second lieutenant," added Captain
+McKeon.
+
+"In my report of the affairs with the Ocklockonee and the Escambia,
+I have strongly recommended him and three other officers for promotion,
+for all of them are fitted by education and experience at sea to do duty
+on board of such vessels as the Bronx."
+
+"Have you any officer in mind who would acceptably fill the vacant
+place, Captain Blowitt?"
+
+"I know of no one at present who holds the rank to entitle him to such a
+position, and I shall appeal to Mr. Passford," replied the new
+commander.
+
+"You have named Mr. Amblen, Mr. Passford; is he just the officer you
+would select if the matter were left to you?" asked the flag officer.
+
+"No, sir, though he would do very well. Mr. Baskirk, who served as
+executive officer while Mr. Flint was away in the Ocklockonee, is better
+adapted for the place," said Christy. "He commanded the first division
+of boarders on board of the Escambia, and he fought like a hero and is a
+man of excellent judgment. I am confident that he will make his mark as
+an officer. I am willing to admit that I wrote a letter to my father
+especially requesting him to do what he could for the immediate
+promotion of Mr. Baskirk."
+
+"Then he will be immediately promoted," added Captain McKeon with an
+expressive smile.
+
+"I may add also that I was presumptive enough to suggest his appointment
+as third lieutenant of the Bronx," continued Christy.
+
+"Then he will be the third lieutenant of the Bronx; and what you say
+would have settled the matter in the first place as well as now," said
+the flag officer, as much pleased with the reticence of the young
+officer as with his modesty. "Amblen may remain on board till his
+commission comes, and you can retain him as third lieutenant, Captain
+Blowitt, if you are so disposed. I have ordered a draft of twelve seamen
+to the Bronx, which will give you a crew of thirty, and I cannot spare
+any more until more men are sent down. I may add that I have taken some
+of them from the Bellevite."
+
+"I am quite satisfied, sir, with the number, though ten more would be
+acceptable," replied the commander of the Bronx.
+
+The two officers were then dismissed and ordered on board of their ship.
+A little later the draft of seamen was sent on board, and among them
+Christy was not sorry to see Boxie, the old sheet-anchor man of the
+Bellevite, who had made him a sort of pet, and had done a great deal to
+instruct him in matters of seamanship, naval customs, and traditions not
+found in any books.
+
+The commander and the executive officer paid their final visit to the
+Bellevite the next day, and the order was given to weigh anchor. When
+all hands were called, Christy thought he had never seen a better set of
+men except on board of the Bellevite, and the expedition, whatever it
+was, commenced under the most favorable auspices.
+
+The Bronx sailed in the middle of the forenoon, and the flag officer was
+careful not to reveal the destination of the steamer to any one, for
+with the aid of the telegraph, the object of the expedition might reach
+the scene of operations in advance of the arrival of the force. At four
+o'clock in the afternoon Captain Blowitt opened his envelope in presence
+of the executive officer. He looked the paper through before he spoke,
+and then handed it to Christy, who read it with quite as much interest
+as the commander had.
+
+"Cedar Keys," said the captain, glancing at his associate.
+
+"That is not a long run from the station," added Christy. "We are very
+likely to be there before to-morrow morning."
+
+"It is about two hundred and eighty statute miles, I had occasion to
+ascertain a week ago when something was said about Cedar Keys," replied
+Captain Blowitt. "We have been making about fifteen knots, for the Bronx
+is a flyer, and we ought to be near our destination at about midnight.
+That would be an excellent time to arrive if we only had a pilot."
+
+"Perhaps we have one," added Christy with a smile.
+
+"Are you a pilot on this coast, Mr. Passford?" asked the commander,
+mistaking the smile.
+
+"No, sir, I am not; but I remember a conversation Mr. Flint and I had
+with Mr. Amblen, who was engaged in some sort of a speculation in
+Florida when the war came on. He was so provoked at the treatment he
+received that he shipped in the navy at once. I only know that he had a
+small steamer in these waters."
+
+"Send for Mr. Amblen at once!" exclaimed the commander, who appeared to
+have become suddenly excited. "There will be no moon to-night in these
+parts, and we may be able to hurry this matter up if we have a competent
+pilot."
+
+Christy called Dave, and sent him for the acting third lieutenant, for
+he knew that Mr. Flint had had the watch since four o'clock. Mr. Amblen
+was sunning himself on the quarter deck, and he promptly obeyed the
+summons.
+
+"I am glad to see you, Mr. Amblen, and I hope you will prove to be as
+useful a person as I have been led to believe you may be," said the
+captain.
+
+"I shall endeavor to do my duty, sir," replied the third lieutenant,
+who was always very ambitious to earn the good opinion of his superiors.
+"I mean to do the best I can to make myself useful, Captain Blowitt."
+
+"I know that very well; but the question now is what you know rather
+than what you can do as an officer. Mr. Passford informs me that you
+were formerly engaged in some kind of a speculation on the west coast
+of Florida."
+
+"Hardly a speculation, sir, for I was engaged in the fish business,"
+replied Mr. Amblen, laughing at the name which had been given to his
+calling. "When I sold a small coaster that belonged to me, I got in
+exchange a tug boat. I had been out of health a few years before; I
+spent six months at Cedar Keys and Tampa, and got well. Fish were plenty
+here, and of a kind that bring a good price farther north. I loaded my
+tug with ice, and came down here in her. I did a first-rate business
+buying from boats and in catching fish myself, and for a time I made
+money, though ice was so dear that I had to sell in the South."
+
+"Did you have a pilot on board of your tug?" asked the captain.
+
+"No, sir; I was my own pilot. I had the charts, and I studied out the
+bottom, so that I knew where I was in the darkest night."
+
+"Then you are just the person we want if you are a pilot in these
+waters."
+
+"What waters, sir? We are now off Cape St. Blas and Apalachicola Bay.
+I have been into the bay, but I am not a pilot in those waters, as you
+suggest."
+
+"I have just opened my orders, and I find we are ordered to Cedar Keys,"
+interposed the commander.
+
+"That is quite another thing, sir; and there isn't a foot of bottom
+within five miles of the Keys to which I have not been personally
+introduced. When I was down here for my health I was on the water more
+than half of the time, and I learned all about the bay and coast; and I
+have been up the Suwanee River, which flows into the Gulf eighteen miles
+north of the Keys."
+
+"I am exceedingly glad to find that we have such an excellent pilot on
+board. I am informed in my orders that schooners load with cotton at
+this place, and make an easy thing of getting to sea," added Captain
+Blowitt.
+
+"I should say that it was a capital port for the Confederates to use for
+that sort of business. Small steamers can bring cotton down the Suwanee
+River, the railroad from Fernandina terminates at the Key, and this road
+connects with that to Jacksonville and the whole of western Florida as
+far as Tallahassee."
+
+"We may find a steamer or two there."
+
+"You may, though not one any larger than the Bronx, for there is only
+eleven feet of water on the bar. Probably no blockaders have yet been
+stationed off the port, and it is a good place to run out cotton."
+
+"I am much obliged to you, Mr. Amblen, for the information you have
+given me, and your services will probably be in demand this very night,"
+added the commander, rising from his chair.
+
+"I am ready for duty at all times, sir," replied Mr. Amblen, as he
+retired from the cabin.
+
+The charts were then consulted, and sundry calculations were made. At
+one o'clock that night the Bronx was off Cedar Keys.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXII
+
+A NIGHT EXPEDITION IN THE BOATS
+
+
+During the evening Captain Blowitt had consulted his officers, and
+arranged his plans for operations, or at least for obtaining information
+in regard to the situation inside of North Key, where the landing place
+is situated. He had already arranged to give the command of the boat
+expedition to Christy, with the second lieutenant in another boat, Mr.
+Amblen being with the executive officer in the first.
+
+"Now, Mr. Passford, I do not expect you to capture the whole State of
+Florida, and if you should return without accomplishing anything at
+all, I shall not be disappointed, but I shall feel that you have done
+everything that could be done," said the captain, with a very cheerful
+smile, when all had been arranged.
+
+"I shall endeavor to obey my orders, Captain Blowitt, if I can do so in
+the exercise of a reasonable prudence," replied Christy, who took in all
+that his superior looked, as well as all that he said.
+
+"A reasonable prudence is decidedly good, coming from you, Mr.
+Passford," said the captain, laughing outright.
+
+"Why is it decidedly good from me rather than from anybody else?" asked
+Christy, somewhat nettled by the remark.
+
+"You objected once on board of the Bellevite when I mildly hinted that
+you might sometimes, under some circumstances, with a strong temptation
+before you, be just a little audacious," said the captain, still
+laughing, as though he were engaged in a mere joke.
+
+"That statement is certainly qualified in almost all directions, if you
+will excuse me for saying so, captain," replied Christy, who was fully
+determined not to take offence at anything his superior might say, for
+he had always regarded him as one of his best friends. "If I remember
+rightly the mild suggestion of a criticism which you gently and tenderly
+applied to me was after we had brought out the Teaser from Pensacola
+Bay."
+
+"That was the time. Captain Breaker sent you to ascertain, if you could,
+where the Teaser was, and you reported by bringing her out, which
+certainly no one expected you would do, and I believe this part of the
+programme carried out on that excursion was not mentioned in your
+orders."
+
+"It was not; but if I had a good chance to capture the steamer, was it
+my duty to pass over that chance, and run the risk of letting the vessel
+get out?"
+
+"On the contrary, it was your duty, if you got a good chance, to capture
+the steamer."
+
+"And that is precisely what I did. I did not lose a man, or have one
+wounded in the expedition; and I have only to be penitent for being
+audacious," laughed Christy; and he was laughing very earnestly, as
+though the extra cachinnation was assumed for a purpose. "I suppose
+I ought to dress myself in ash cloth and sashes, shut myself up in my
+state room always when off duty, and shed penitential tears from the
+rising of the sun to the going down of the same, and during the lone
+watches of the night, and in fortifying my soul against the monstrous
+sin of audacity. I will think of it."
+
+"I hope you have no feeling about this matter, Mr. Passford," said the
+captain, rising from his chair and taking Christy by the hand.
+
+"Not a particle, Captain Blowitt. I am absolutely sure that you would
+have done precisely what I did, if you had been in my situation,"
+protested Christy. "About the last thing my father talked about to me
+when we parted in this cabin in New York Harbor was the necessity of
+prudence and discretion in the discharge of my duties; and I am sure his
+advice saved me from falling into the traps set for me by Hungerford and
+Pawcett, and enabled me to capture two of the enemy's crack steamers."
+
+"I will never use the word audacity or the adjective audacious to you
+again, Christy. I see that it nettles you, to say the least," added the
+captain, pressing his hand with more earnestness.
+
+"I am perfectly willing you should apply both words to me when I
+deserve it. Audacity means boldness, impudence, according to Stormonth.
+Audacious means very bold, daring, impudent. It may have been bold to
+run out the Teaser, and the enemy would even call it impudent, for the
+meaning of a word sometimes depends upon which side you belong to. My
+father was quite as impudent as I was when he ran the Bellevite out of
+Mobile Bay, under the guns of Fort Morgan. He was audacious, wasn't he?"
+
+"We should hardly apply that word to him."
+
+"Why not? Simply because my father was forty-five years old when he told
+Captain Breaker to do it. If I were only thirty years old I should not
+be audacious. I am a boy, and therefore anything that I do is daring,
+audacious, impudent, imprudent."
+
+"I rather think you are right, Mr. Passford, and it is your age more
+than the results of your actions that is the basis of our judgment,"
+said Captain Blowitt.
+
+"I wish to add seriously, captain, as a friend and not as an officer,
+I do not claim that the command of this expedition should be given to
+me because I am first lieutenant of the Bronx, or for any other reason,"
+added Christy with an earnest expression. "Perhaps it would be better to
+give the command to the second lieutenant; and if you do so, I assure
+you, upon my honor, that it will not produce a particle of feeling in my
+mind. I shall honor, respect, and love you as I have always, Captain
+Blowitt."
+
+"My dear fellow, you are entirely misunderstanding me," protested the
+commander, as earnestly as his subordinate had spoken. "I give you the
+command of this expedition because I honestly and sincerely believe you
+are the very best person on board to whom I can commit such a
+responsibility."
+
+"That is enough, captain, and a great deal more than you were under
+any obligations to say to me; and I shall obey my orders with all the
+prudence and discretion I can bring to bear upon them," said Christy,
+taking the captain's offered hand. "If I fail it will not be because I
+do not try to be prudent."
+
+"There is such a thing as being too prudent, and I hope that nothing
+which has been said to you by your father or by me will drive you to the
+other extreme."
+
+Though this conversation had at times been very animated, Christy was
+glad that it had taken place, for it gave him a better insight into his
+own standing than he had before. He did not look upon it as a very great
+affair to command a couple of boats, in a night expedition, for he had
+recently commanded two steamers, and brought them off victorious. He
+had it in mind to ask the captain to send Flint in command of the
+expedition, though it would compel him, on account of his rank, to
+remain inactive on board of the Bronx; but he could not do this,
+after what had been said, without leaving some evidence that he was
+disaffected by what the commander had said to him about audacity.
+
+It was found after a calculation of the run very carefully made that the
+Bronx would arrive too soon at her destination, and she was slowed down
+as the evening came on. In the ward room, of which Christy was now the
+occupant of the forward berth on the starboard side, he studied the
+chart with Amblen a good part of the waiting hours, and the executive
+officer obtained all the information he could from the third lieutenant.
+There were three principal keys, or cays, one of which, called the North
+Key, was the nearest to the mainland, and was set in the mouth of a bay.
+This was the nearest to the peninsula at the end of which the railroad
+terminates. About southwest of it is the Seahorse Key, on which there is
+a light in peaceful times. To the south of the point is the Snake Key,
+and between the last two is the main channel to the port, which twists
+about like the track of a snake. There is a town, or rather a village,
+near the landing.
+
+Six bells struck on deck, and all the officers, including the captain,
+adjourned to the bridge, which was a useful institution on such
+occasions as the present. A sharp watch had been kept by Lieutenant
+Flint in charge; but though the night was clear, nothing had been made
+out in the direction of the shore. All lights on board had been put out,
+and the Bronx went along in the smooth sea as quietly as a lady on a
+fashionable promenade, and it was not believed that anything could be
+seen of her from the shore.
+
+About midnight the lookout man aloft reported that he could see a
+twinkling light. It was promptly investigated by Mr. Amblen, who went
+aloft for the purpose. He was satisfied that it was a light in some
+house in the village, probably in the upper story. It soon disappeared,
+and it was thought to be occasioned by the late retiring of some person.
+
+"I should say, Captain Blowitt, that we are not more than five miles
+outside of Seahorse Key," said Mr. Amblen, after he had interpreted the
+meaning of the light. "It is after midnight, and these people are not in
+the habit of sitting up so late."
+
+"If they are shipping much cotton from this port, it is not improbable
+that there is a force here to protect the vessels, whatever they are,"
+added the commander.
+
+"Of that, of course, I can know nothing; but I shall expect to find a
+Confederate battery somewhere on the point, and I know about where to
+look for it."
+
+"The place has never been of any great importance, and you can hardly
+expect to find a very strong force in it," added the captain.
+
+It has since become a place of more note, both as a resort for invalids
+and pleasure-seekers, and as the termination of the railroad from
+Fernandina and Jacksonville, and steamers have run regularly from the
+port to Havana and New Orleans.
+
+"If you will excuse me, Captain Blowitt, I should say that it was not
+advisable to take the Bronx nearer than within about four miles of the
+Seahorse Key," suggested Mr. Amblen.
+
+"I was just thinking that we had gone as far as it is prudent to go.
+Do you think you could take the Bronx up to the landing?" added the
+captain.
+
+"I am very sure that I could, for I have been in many a time on a darker
+night than this."
+
+"We will not go in to-night, but perhaps we may have occasion to do so
+to-morrow. We shall know better what to do when we get a report of the
+state of things in the place," replied the captain, as he gave the word
+through the speaking tube to stop the steamer.
+
+Christy had been given full powers to make all preparations for the boat
+expedition, and was allowed ten men to each of the quarter boats. He had
+selected the ones for his own boat, and had required Flint to pick his
+own crew for the other. The oars had been carefully muffled by the
+coxswains, for it was desirable that no alarm should be given in the
+place. The starboard quarter boat was the first cutter, pulled by six
+oars, and this was for Christy and Mr. Amblen, with the regular coxswain
+and three hands in the bow. The second cutter was in charge of Mr.
+Flint, and followed the other boat, keeping near enough to obtain her
+course in the twists of the channel.
+
+It was a long pull to the Seahorse Key, and a moderate stroke was taken
+as well not to tire the men as to avoid all possible noise. When the
+first cutter was abreast of the Key, the pilot pointed out the dark
+outline of the peninsula, which was less than a mile distant. No vessel
+could be seen; but the pilot thought they might be concealed by the
+railroad buildings on the point. Christy asked where the battery was
+which the pilot thought he could locate, and the spot was indicated to
+him. Christy wanted a nearer view of it, and the cutter was headed in
+that direction.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIII
+
+THE VISIT TO A SHORE BATTERY
+
+
+The first cutter reached the Seahorse Key closely followed by the
+second. It was within an hour of high tide, the ordinary rise and fall
+of which was two and a half feet. On the Key was a light house, and a
+cottage for the keeper of it; but the former was no longer illuminated,
+and the house was as dark as the head of the tower. So far as could be
+discovered there was no one on the Key, though the boats did not stop to
+investigate this matter. The crews still pulled a moderate stroke with
+their muffled oars, the men were not allowed to talk, and everything was
+as silent as the inside of a tomb.
+
+The pilot stood up in the stern sheets of the cutter, gazing intently
+in the direction of the point nearly a mile ahead. The outlines of the
+buildings could be discerned, and Amblen soon declared that he could
+make out the tops of the masts of several vessels to the westward of
+the point with which the peninsula terminated. This looked hopeful, and
+indicated that the information upon which the expedition had been sent
+out was correct. Christy began to think he should have a busy night
+before him when Amblen said there were at least three vessels at the
+port.
+
+The battery was first to be visited and cared for if there was one,
+and it was not probable that a place so open to the operations of
+the blockading force would be without one, especially if the people
+were actually engaged in loading cotton, as the masts of the vessels
+indicated, though the hulls could not yet be seen. As the first cutter
+approached nearer to the place the outlines became more distinct, and
+soon embodied themselves into definite objects. Both officers in the
+stern sheets watched with the most anxious vigilance for any moving
+object denoting the presence of life and intelligence.
+
+As the boats came nearer to the shore, a breeze sprang up, and cooled
+the air, for early as it was in the season, the weather was very warm,
+and it was not uncommon for the thermometer to rise above ninety. These
+breezes were usually present to cool the nights, and doubtless the
+inhabitants slept the sounder for the one which had just begun to fan
+the cheeks of the officers and seamen of the expedition.
+
+"There is a battery there, Mr. Passford," said the pilot in a very low
+tone. "I can make it out now, and it is just where I supposed it would
+be."
+
+"I can see something that seems like an earthwork at the right of the
+buildings," added Christy. "Can you make out anything that looks like a
+sentinel?"
+
+"I can see nothing that denotes the presence of a man. If there were
+a sentinel there, he would be on the top of the earthwork, or on the
+highest ground about it, so that he could see out into the bay, for
+there can be no danger from the land side of the place," added Amblen.
+
+"I can hardly imagine such a thing as a battery without a sentinel to
+give warning if anybody should try to carry it off. There must be a
+sentry somewhere in the vicinity."
+
+"I can't say there isn't, though I can't make out a man, or anything
+that looks like one," replied the pilot.
+
+"Very likely we shall soon wake him up, Mr. Amblen; and in that case it
+will be necessary for us to find a safer place than in front of the guns
+of the battery, for I do not feel at liberty to expose the men to the
+fire of the works, whatever they are."
+
+"All you have to do is to pull around to the other side of the point
+into the bay, where the vessels are. I am confident there is no battery
+on that side, and there can hardly be any need of one, for this one
+commands the channel, the only approach to the place for a vessel larger
+than a cutter."
+
+"I fancy this battery does not amount to much, and is probably nothing
+more than an earthwork, with a few field guns behind it. Suppose we
+should wake it up, and have to make for the bay, can we get out of it
+without putting the boats under the guns of the battery?"
+
+"Without any difficulty at all, sir. We have only to pull around the
+North Key, and pass out to the Gulf, beyond the reach of any field gun
+that can be brought to bear on us," replied Mr. Amblen.
+
+"If they have one or two field batteries here, they may hitch on the
+horses, and follow us," suggested Christy, who, in spite of the audacity
+with which he had been mildly charged, was not inclined to run into any
+trap from which he could not readily withdraw his force.
+
+"We shall have the short line, and if they pursue us with the guns, we
+can retire by the way of the channel, which they will leave uncovered."
+
+"We are getting quite near the shore," continued Christy. "How is the
+water under us?"
+
+"The bottom is sandy, and we shall take the ground before we reach the
+shore if we don't manage properly. But we can tell something by the
+mangroves that fringe the land," replied the pilot; "and I will go into
+the bow of the cutter and look out for them."
+
+Mr. Amblen made his way to the fore sheets, and asked Boxie, who was
+there, for the boathook, with which he proceeded to sound. When he had
+done so, he raised both his hands to a level with his shoulders, which
+was the signal to go ahead, and the men pulled a very slow stroke. He
+continued to sound, after he had selected the point for landing.
+
+When the first cutter was within three lengths of the shore, he elevated
+both his hands above his head, which was the signal to cease rowing,
+though the two bow oarsmen kept their oars in the water instead of
+boating them as the others did. Mr. Amblen continued to feel the way,
+and in a few minutes more, aided by the shoving of the two bow oarsmen,
+he brought the boat to the shore.
+
+Then he gave his attention to the second cutter, bringing it to the
+land alongside of the first. Stepping out on the sand himself, he
+was followed by all the crew, with cutlass in hand, and revolvers in
+readiness for use. The men were placed in order for an advance, and then
+required to lie down on the sand, so that they could not readily be seen
+if any stroller appeared on the ground.
+
+Leaving the force in charge of Mr. Flint, Christy and Amblen walked
+towards the battery, crouching behind such objects as they could
+find that would conceal them in whole or in part. The earthwork was
+semicircular in form, and was hardly more than a rifle pit. No sentinel
+could be discovered, and getting down upon the sand, the two officers
+crept cautiously towards the heaps of sand which formed the fort.
+
+Christy climbed up the slope with some difficulty, for the dry sand
+afforded a very weak foothold. On the top of it, which was about six
+feet wide, they found a solid path which had evidently been a promenade
+for sentinels or other persons. Behind it, on a wooden platform, were
+four field guns, with depressions in the earthwork in front of the
+muzzles.
+
+Christy led the way down the slope on the inside to the pieces, which
+were twelve-pounders. At a little distance from the platform was a sort
+of casemate, which might have been constructed for a magazine, or for a
+place of resort for the gunners if the fort should be bombarded. Not a
+man could be seen, and if there was any garrison for the place, they
+were certainly taking things very comfortably, for they must have been
+asleep at this unseemly hour for any ordinary occupation.
+
+Not far from the battery was a rude structure, hardly better than a
+shanty, which Christy concluded must be the barracks of the soldiers if
+there were any there. He walked over to it; but there was not a human
+being to be seen in the vicinity. It was half past one at night, when
+honest people ought to be abed and asleep, and the first lieutenant of
+the Bronx concluded that the garrison, if this shanty was their
+quarters, must be honest people.
+
+Christy walked very cautiously to the side of the building, for the
+entrance was at the end nearest to the fort, and found several windows
+there, from which the sashes seemed to have been removed, if there had
+ever been any. The bottom of each opening was no higher than his head,
+and he went to one of them and looked in.
+
+Extending along the middle of the interior was a row of berths. It was
+very dark inside, and he could not make out whether or not these bunks
+were occupied. The windows on the other side of the shanty enabled him
+to see that there were two rows of berths, each backing against the
+other. There were two in each tier, and he judged that the barrack would
+accommodate forty-eight men.
+
+He retained his place at the window in order to discover any movement
+made by a sleeper that would inform him whether or not the berths were
+occupied. If there were any soldiers there, they were as quiet as
+statues; but while he was watching for a movement, he heard a decided
+snore. There was at least one man there, and he continued to hear his
+sonorous breathing as long as he remained at the window, which was the
+first on the side of the shanty.
+
+  [Illustration: Christy walked the whole length of the shanty.]
+
+Christy decided to push the investigation still farther, and he went
+to a window in the middle of the building. He regarded the berths with
+attention for a few minutes, but he could perceive no movement. He could
+hear two snorers who seemed to be competing with each other to see who
+could make the most noise.
+
+If the berths were all occupied, three snorers were not a very great
+proportion in forty-eight. He was very anxious to ascertain if this was
+the number of soldiers in the place, but it was too dark in the shanty
+for him to determine whether or not the bunks were all in use. It was
+too many for him to encounter with his force of twenty men and three
+officers in the open field.
+
+Christy returned to the end of the building, and tried the door. It was
+not locked, and he decided to make use of a little of the audacity of
+which he was accused of having a good deal. Taking off his shoes, and
+passing his sword to Mr. Amblen, he entered the barrack on tiptoe.
+
+The boards of the floor began to creak under his weight; he stooped down
+and felt till he found the nail holes; then he knew that he was on a
+timber, and he walked the whole length of the shanty, returning on the
+opposite side, counting the occupied berths, for he passed within three
+feet of all of them. The count gave seventeen men as the number of
+sleepers, though this might not be all the force at the place.
+
+He had ascertained all he wished to know, and he walked back to the
+shore where the men were concealed. Apart from the men, he had a
+conference with Flint and Amblen, giving them the details of what he had
+discovered. Then he stated his plan, and the men were marched silently
+to the battery, and were posted behind the breastwork. Not a man was
+allowed to move, and Christy and Flint went to the casemate, which
+looked like a mound of sand.
+
+It was locked, but taking a bar of iron they found with some tools for
+digging, they tore off the padlock. A lantern had been brought from
+the steamer, which was lighted. The structure was found to be for the
+protection of the artillerists in the first instance; but the apartment
+was connected with the magazine, the lock of which was removed.
+
+Amblen was sent for ten men, and all the ammunition they could carry was
+removed. The rest of it was thrown into a pool of water made by recent
+rains. The powder, solid shot, and shells were carried to the boats. The
+rest of the men drew the four guns to the shore, where one was placed,
+with its carriage, in each of the cutters, and the other two put where
+they could be carried to the Bronx, or thrown overboard in deep water,
+as occasion might require.
+
+The seventeen soldiers, reinforced by any that might be in the town,
+were thus deprived of the power to do any mischief except in a
+hand-to-hand fight. If the place was not actually captured, it was
+practically lost to the enemy. The next business of the expedition was
+to examine the bay, and ascertain what vessels were at the landing
+place. The boats shoved off, and pulled around the point.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIV
+
+CAPTAIN LONLEY OF THE STEAMER HAVANA
+
+
+The two twelve-pounders in each boat were believed to weigh about six
+hundred pounds each, while the ordinary bronze boat gun of the same
+calibre weighs seven hundred and sixty pounds. The four guns, therefore,
+were rather too heavy a burden for the size of the cutters. But Christy
+was unwilling to throw the two without carriages overboard, for the
+water in this locality was so clear that they could have been seen at a
+depth of two or three fathoms. They were useless for the duty in which
+the expedition was engaged, and the commander of the expedition decided
+to land them on the Seahorse Key till he had completed his operations in
+the bay, when they could be taken off and transported to the Bronx as
+trophies, if for nothing better.
+
+Mr. Flint was disposed to object to this plan, on account of the time it
+would require; but he yielded the point when Christy informed him that
+it was only half past two, as he learned from the repeater he carried
+for its usefulness on just such duty as the present expedition.
+
+The guns and all that belonged to them were landed on the Key, and the
+boats shoved off, the lieutenants happy in the thought that they were no
+longer embarrassed by their weight, while they could not be brought to
+bear upon them.
+
+The boats had hardly left the little island behind them when the noise
+of paddle wheels ahead was reported by one of the trio in the bow of the
+first cutter. Christy listened with all his ears, and immediately heard
+the peculiar sounds caused by the slapping of the paddle wheels of a
+steamer upon the water.
+
+"We are in for something," said he to the pilot, as he listened to the
+sounds. "What might that be?"
+
+"It is a steamer without any doubt coming around the point, and she will
+be in sight in a moment or two," replied Mr. Amblen. "It may be a river
+steamer that has brought a load of cotton down the Suwanee, and is going
+out on this tide."
+
+"Then we may need those guns we have left on the key," suggested
+Christy.
+
+"If she is a river steamer, there is not much of a force on board of
+her," replied the pilot.
+
+"We might return to the island, and use the two guns with carriages
+there."
+
+"If she is a river steamer, we shall not need great guns to capture
+her."
+
+Christy had ordered the men to cease rowing, and the two cutters lay
+motionless on the full sea, for the tide was at its height by this time.
+Even in the darkness they could make out whether the approaching vessel
+was a river or a sea steamer as soon as she could be seen.
+
+"Whatever she is, we must capture her," said Christy, very decidedly.
+
+"If she is a river steamer, she will be of no use to the government,"
+added Mr. Amblen.
+
+"Of none at all." replied Christy. "In that case I shall burn her, for
+it would not be safe to send good men in such a craft to a port where
+she could be condemned. The next question is, shall we take her here,
+or nearer to the shore."
+
+"The farther from the shore the better, I should say, Mr. Passford.
+After she passes the Seahorse Key, she will be in deep water for a
+vessel coming out of that port; and until she gets to the Key, she will
+move very slowly, and we can board her better than when she is going at
+full speed," said Mr. Amblen.
+
+"You are doubtless quite right, Mr. Amblen, and I shall adopt your
+suggestion," replied Christy. "There she comes, and she is no river
+steamer."
+
+She had not the two tall funnels carried by river steamers, and that
+point was enough to settle her character. There could be no doubt she
+would have been a blockade runner, if there had been any blockade to
+run at the entrance to the port. Christy decided to board the steamer
+between the two keys, the channel passing between Snake and Seahorse.
+The first cutter fell back so that Christy could communicate with Mr.
+Flint, and he instructed him to take a position off the Snake Key, where
+his boat could not be discovered too soon, and board the steamer on the
+port side, though he did not expect any resistance. Each cutter took its
+position and awaited in silence the approach of the blockade runner. The
+only thing Christy feared was that she would come about and run back to
+the port, though this could only delay her capture.
+
+The steamer, as well as the officers could judge her in the distance,
+was hardly larger than the Bronx. They concluded that she must be loaded
+with cotton, and at this time it was about as valuable a cargo as could
+be put on board of her. She would be a rich prize, and the masts of the
+schooners were still to be seen over the tops of the buildings. She must
+have chosen this hour of the night to go out, not only on account of the
+tide, but because the darkness would enable her to get off the coast
+where a blockader occasionally wandered before the blockade was fully
+established. Her paddle wheels indicated that she had not been built
+very recently, for very nearly all sea steamers, including those of the
+United States, were propelled by the screw.
+
+As Mr. Amblen had predicted the steamer moved very slowly, and it was
+all of a quarter of an hour before she came to the Seahorse Key. At the
+right time Christy gave the word to the crew to "Give way lively!" and
+the first cutter shot out from the concealment of the little island,
+while Flint did the same on the other side of the channel. Almost in the
+twinkling of an eye the two boats had made fast to her, and seven men
+from each boat leaped on the deck of the steamer, cutlass in hand. No
+guns were to be seen, and the watch of not more than half a dozen men
+were on the forecastle; and perhaps this was the entire force of the
+sailing department.
+
+"What does all this mean?" demanded a man coming from the after part of
+the vessel, in a voice which Christy recognized as soon as he had heard
+half of the sentence.
+
+"Good morning, Captain Lonley," said Christy, in the pleasantest of
+tones. "You are up early, my friend, but I think we are a little ahead
+of you on this occasion."
+
+"Who are you, sir?" demanded Lonley; and Christy had at once jumped to
+the conclusion that he was the captain of the steamer. "I have heard
+your voice before, but I cannot place you, sir."
+
+"Fortunately for me, it is not necessary that you should place me this
+time," replied Christy. "It is equally fortunate that I am not compelled
+to place you again, as I felt obliged to do, on board of the Judith in
+Mobile Bay."
+
+"Passford!" exclaimed Captain Lonley, stepping back a pace in his
+astonishment.
+
+"Passford, late of the Bellevite, and now executive officer of the
+United States steamer Bronx, formerly the Teaser, privateer," answered
+Christy, in his usual cheerful tones. "May I inquire the name of this
+steamer?"
+
+"This steamer is the Havana," replied Captain Lonley. "May I ask you,
+Mr. Passford, in regard to your business on board of her?"
+
+"I have a little affair on board of her, and my duty compels me to
+demand her surrender as a prize to the Bronx."
+
+"Caught again!" exclaimed Captain Lonley, stamping violently on the deck
+in his disgust at his misfortune, and it was the third time that Christy
+had thrown him "out of a job."
+
+"The way of the transgressor is hard, Captain Lonley," added the
+commander of the expedition.
+
+"Transgressor, sir!" ejaculated the captain of the Havana. "What do you
+mean by that, Mr. Passford?"
+
+"Well, captain, you are in arms against the best government that the
+good God ever permitted to exist for eighty odd years; and that is the
+greatest transgression of which one can be guilty in a patriotic sense."
+
+"I hold no allegiance to that government."
+
+"So much the worse for you, Captain Lonley; but we will not talk
+politics. Do you surrender?"
+
+"This is not an armed steamer, and I have no force to resist; I am
+compelled to surrender," replied the captain as he glanced at the
+cutlasses of the men from the Bronx.
+
+"That is a correct, though not a cheerful view of the question on
+your part. I am very happy to relieve you from any further care of the
+Havana, and you may retire to your cabin, where I shall have the honor
+to wait upon you later."
+
+"One word, Mr. Passford, if you please," said Captain Lonley, taking
+Christy by the arm and leading him away from the rest of the boarding
+party. "This steamer and the cotton with which she is loaded are the
+property of your uncle, Homer Passford."
+
+"Indeed?" was all that Christy thought it necessary to say in reply.
+
+"You have already taken from him one valuable cargo of cotton; and it
+would be magnanimous in you, as well as very kind of a near relative,
+to allow me to pass on my way with the property of your uncle."
+
+"Would it have been kind on the part of a near relative to allow his own
+brother to pass out of Mobile Bay in the Bellevite?"
+
+"That would have been quite another thing, for the Bellevite was
+intended for the Federal navy," protested the Confederate captain. "It
+would have been sacrificing his country to his fraternal feelings. This
+is not a Confederate vessel, and is not intended as a war steamer,"
+argued Lonley.
+
+"Every pound of cotton my uncle sells is so much strength added to the
+cause he advocates; and I hope, with no unkind thoughts or feelings in
+regard to him, I shall be able to capture every vessel he sends out.
+That is my view of the matter, and I am just as strong on my side of the
+question as Uncle Homer is on his side. I would cut off my right hand
+before I would allow your vessel or any other to escape, for I have
+sworn allegiance to my government, and when I fail to do my duty at any
+sacrifice of personal feeling, it will be when I have lost my mind; and
+my uncle would do as much for his fractional government. We need not
+discuss such a subject as you suggest, captain."
+
+Captain Lonley said no more, and retired to his cabin. Christy was ready
+for the next question in order. Accompanied by Mr. Flint, he looked the
+steamer over. The mate had lighted his pipe and seated himself on a
+water cask; and he seemed to be the only officer besides the captain on
+board. The engineers were next visited. There were two of them, but they
+were red hot for the Confederacy, and nothing was said to them except to
+order them on deck, where they were placed with the crew, and a guard of
+seamen set over them. The firemen were negroes, and they were willing to
+serve under the new master, and doubtless were pleased with the change.
+The crew of the Bronx on board of the Havana were canvassed to find a
+man who had run an engine, but not one of them had any experience.
+
+"That's bad," said Flint, when they had finished the inquiry. "We have
+not an engineer on board, and we shall have to send off to the Bronx for
+one."
+
+"Not so bad as that, Mr. Flint," replied Christy. "There is one loyal
+engineer on board, and I am the one. You will take the deck, and Mr.
+Amblen will go into the pilot house. I am not quite ready to go off to
+the Bronx yet, for there are two or three cotton schooners in this port,
+and we are so fortunate as to have a steamer now to tow them out."
+
+"Very likely those soldiers have waked up by this time," said Flint.
+
+"Let them fire those guns at us, if they can find them," laughed
+Christy.
+
+Then he took Mr. Amblen into the engine room with him.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXV
+
+THE NEW ENGINEER OF THE PRIZE STEAMER
+
+
+While enthusiastically pursuing his studies as an engineer, Christy
+had visited a great many steamers with Paul Vapoor for the purpose of
+examining the engines, so that he could hardly expect to find one with
+whose construction he was not familiar, whether it was an American or a
+foreign built machine. At the first glance after he entered the engine
+room of the Havana, he knew the engine, and was ready to run it without
+spending any time in studying it. He had brought the pilot with him in
+order to come to an understanding in regard to the bells, for in the
+navy the signals differ from those in the commercial marine.
+
+"This steamer is provided with a gong and a jingling bell," said
+Christy, as he pointed them out to his companion.
+
+"My little steamer on this coast was run with just such bells," replied
+Mr. Amblen.
+
+"And so was the Bellevite, so that I am quite accustomed to the system
+of signals; but it is well to be sure that we understand each other
+perfectly if we expect to get this vessel out of the bay after we go
+up to the port," added Christy.
+
+"I agree with you entirely, sir. A single strong stroke on the gong is
+to start or to stop her according to the circumstances," said the pilot.
+
+"Precisely so; and two strokes are to back her," continued Christy.
+"Going at full speed, the jingler brings the engine down to half speed,
+or at half speed carries it up to full speed."
+
+"That is my understanding of the matter," replied Mr. Amblen.
+
+"Then we understand each other to a charm," continued the temporary
+engineer. "Report to Mr. Flint that we are ready to go ahead."
+
+Christy found a colored man who was on duty as an oiler, and four others
+in the fire room, who seemed to be engaged in an earnest discussion of
+the situation, for the capture of the Havana was a momentous event to
+all of them. The oiler was at work, and had thoroughly lubricated the
+machinery, as though he intended that any failure of the steamer should
+not be from any fault on his part.
+
+The new official set two of the firemen at work, though the boilers had
+a good head of steam. The gong bell gave one sharp stroke, and Christy
+started the engine.
+
+The Havana was headed out to sea when she was captured, and in the slack
+water she had not drifted at all. He went ahead slowly, and soon had the
+bell to stop her; but he expected this, for the channel was narrow, and
+it required considerable manoeuvring to get the steamer about. Then he
+happened to think of the guns on the Seahorse Key, and through the
+speaking tube he passed the word to Mr. Flint to have him land there
+in order to take the guns and ammunition on board.
+
+After a great deal of backing and going ahead, the Havana was headed
+for the key, where she was stopped as near to it as the depth of water
+would permit. The guns and other material were brought off, two of the
+firemen, the oiler, and other colored men of the crew of the Havana
+assisting in the work. The two guns that were provided with carriages
+were mounted, and placed on the forecastle. They were loaded and
+prepared for service by the trained gunners of the crew. Christy had
+directed all this to be done on account of the delay which had attended
+the good fortune of the expedition, for he might not get out of the bay
+before the daylight came to reveal the presence of the force he
+commanded to the people on the shore.
+
+The gong rang again when all these preparations had been made, and the
+Havana steamed slowly up the channel towards the bay. The oiler appeared
+to have finished his work for the present. He was a more intelligent man
+than the others of his color on board, and seemed to understand his
+duties. Christy spoke to him, for he said nothing unless he was spoken
+to, and he had learned that the commander of the expedition was doing
+duty as engineer in the absence of any other competent person.
+
+"How many schooners are there at the landing place at the keys?" asked
+Christy.
+
+"Only two schooners, sir," replied the man very respectfully.
+
+"Are they loaded, --what is your name?" asked the engineer.
+
+"My name is Dolly, sir."
+
+"Dolly? That is a girl's name."
+
+"My whole name is Adolphus, sir; but everybody calls me Dolly, and
+I can't help myself," replied the oiler soberly, as though he had a
+real grievance on account of the femininity of his nickname. "The two
+schooners are not quite loaded, sir, but they are very nearly full. They
+had some trouble here, among the hands."
+
+"Had some trouble, did they? I should think there were soldiers enough
+here to keep everything straight. How many artillerists or soldiers do
+they keep here?" added Christy.
+
+"They had about forty, but they don't have half that number now."
+
+"What has become of them?"
+
+"They were sent away to look for the hands that took to the woods. One
+of the officers and about half of the men were sent off yesterday,"
+replied Dolly, who seemed willing to tell all he knew.
+
+"Why did the men run off?" asked Christy curiously.
+
+"They brought about fifty hands, all slaves, down here to load the
+steamer and the schooners. They set them at work yesterday morning, and
+they had nearly put all the cotton into the schooners at dinner time.
+To make the niggers work harder, they gave them apple jack."
+
+"What is that?" asked the engineer, who never heard the name before.
+
+"It is liquor made out of apples, and it is very strong," answered
+Dolly; and he might have added that it was the vilest intoxicant to
+be found in the whole world, not even excepting Russian vodka.
+
+"And this liquor made the hands drunk, I suppose."
+
+"They did not give them enough for that, sir; but it made them kind of
+crazy, and they wanted more of it. That made the trouble; the hands
+struck for liquor before dinner, and when they didn't get it, they took
+to the woods, about fifty of them. The soldiers had to get their dinner
+before they would start out after them; and that is the reason the
+schooners are not full now, sir, and not a bale had been put into this
+steamer."
+
+"But she seems to be fully loaded now."
+
+"Yes, sir; Captain Lonley paid the soldiers that were left to load the
+Havana. They worked till eleven in the evening; they were not used to
+that kind of work, and they got mighty tired, I can tell you," said
+Dolly, with the first smile Christy had seen on his yellow face, for he
+appeared to enjoy the idea of a squad of white men doing niggers' work.
+
+"That was what made them sleep so soundly, and leave the battery on the
+point to take care of itself," said Christy. "Where were the officers?"
+
+"Two of them have gone on the hunt for the hands, and I reckon the
+captain is on a visit to a planter who has a daughter, about forty miles
+from here."
+
+"The soldiers were sleeping very soundly in the barrack about two this
+morning; and perhaps they were also stimulated with apple jack," added
+Christy. "Did you drink any of it, Dolly?"
+
+"No, sir, I never drink any liquor, for I am a preacher," replied the
+oiler, with a very serious and solemn expression on his face.
+
+"How do you happen to be a greaser on a steamer if you are a preacher?"
+
+"I worked on a steamer on the Alabama River before I became a preacher,
+and I took it up again. I was raised in a preacher's family, and worked
+in the house."
+
+He talked as though he had been educated, but he could neither read nor
+write, and had picked up all his learning by the assistance of his ears
+alone. But Christy had ascertained all he wished to know in regard to
+the schooners, and he was prepared to carry out his mission in the bay.
+At the fort it appeared that all the commissioned officers were absent
+from the post, and the men, after exhausting themselves at work to which
+they were unaccustomed, had taken to their bunks and were sleeping off
+the fatigue, and perhaps the effects of the apple jack. While he was
+thinking of the matter, the gong struck, and Christy stopped the engine.
+
+"Do you know anything about an engine, Dolly?" he asked, turning to the
+oiler.
+
+"Yes, sir; I run the engine of the Havana over here from Mobile,"
+replied Dolly. "I can do it as well as any one, if they will only trust
+me."
+
+"Then stand by the machine, and obey the bells if they are struck,"
+added Christy, as he went on deck.
+
+He found the second and third lieutenants standing on the rail engaged
+in examining the surroundings. The day was just beginning to show itself
+in the east, though it was not yet light enough to enable them to see
+clearly on shore. By the side of the railroad building was a pier, at
+which the two schooners lay. They could hear the sounds of some kind of
+a stir on shore, but were unable to make out what it meant.
+
+"We are losing time," said Christy, as he took in at a glance all he
+deemed it necessary to know in regard to the situation.
+
+"I was about to report to you, Mr. Passford; but Mr. Amblen wished to
+ascertain whether or not there is a battery on this side of the point,"
+said Flint.
+
+"Do you find anything, Mr. Amblen?"
+
+"No, sir; I can see nothing that looks like a battery," replied the
+pilot.
+
+"Then run in, and we will make fast to these schooners and haul them
+out," added Christy in hurried tones.
+
+The pilot went to the wheel, and rang one bell on the gong. Dolly
+started the engine before Christy could reach the machine. He said
+nothing to the oiler, but seated himself on the sofa, and observed his
+movements. A few minutes later came the bell to stop her, and then two
+bells to back her. Dolly managed the machine properly and promptly, and
+seemed to be at home in the engine room. The color of his skin was a
+sufficient guaranty of his loyalty, but Christy remained below long
+enough to satisfy himself that Dolly knew what he was about, and then
+went on deck.
+
+By this time the noise on shore had become more pronounced, and he saw
+the dark forms of several persons on the wharf. Flint and Amblen were
+making fast to the nearest schooner, and a couple of seamen had been
+sent on shore to cast off the fasts which held her to the wharf. This
+was the work of but a moment, and the two men returned to the steamer;
+but they were closely followed by two men, one of whom stepped on the
+deck of the schooner.
+
+"What are you about here?" demanded the foremost of the men, in a rude
+and impertinent manner.
+
+"About our business," replied Christy, with cool indifference.
+
+"Who are you, young man?" demanded the one on the deck.
+
+"I am yours truly; who are you?"
+
+"None of your business who I am! I asked you a question, and you will
+answer it if you know when you are well off," blustered the man, who was
+rather too fat to be dangerous; and by this time, Christy discovered
+that he wore something like a uniform.
+
+"I will try to find out when I am well off, and then I will answer you,"
+replied Christy.
+
+"All fast, sir," reported Flint.
+
+The commander of the expedition, turning his back to the fat man, went
+forward to the pilot house.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVI
+
+THE BATTLE WITH THE SOLDIERS
+
+
+Mr. Amblen went to the pilot house, and rang two bells. Dolly responded
+properly by starting the engine on the reverse, and the schooner
+alongside began to move away from the wharf, for the stern of the Havana
+pointed out into the bay.
+
+"Stop, there! What are you about?" shouted the fat man on the deck of
+the schooner.
+
+"About going," replied Christy.
+
+"These vessels are the property of a citizen of the Confederate States,
+and I command you to stop," yelled the fat man with all the voice he
+could muster.
+
+"All right," replied Christy, as the gong sounded to stop her. "Now, Mr.
+Flint, cast off the fasts, and let the schooner go astern," he added to
+the second lieutenant.
+
+"All clear, sir," replied Flint a moment later, and after the steamer
+lost her headway, the vessel continued to back, though the Havana was
+checked by the engine.
+
+The fat man went adrift in the schooner, but Christy gave no further
+attention to him. The steamer was started ahead again; her bow was run
+alongside of the other vessel at the wharf, and Flint proceeded in the
+same manner as with the first one.
+
+"Orderly!" shouted the fat man, evidently addressing the man who had
+come to the schooner with him, and had retreated to the wharf when the
+vessel began to move.
+
+"Captain Rowly!" replied the man, who was doubtless the orderly sergeant
+of the company.
+
+"Go to the barracks and have the men haul the four field pieces over to
+the wharf," yelled the fat captain.
+
+"All right, little one! Have them hauled over by all means," said
+Christy, as the men made fast to the other schooner, and cast off the
+fasts.
+
+But it was soon evident that the sleepy soldiers had been roused from
+their slumbers by some other agency than the orderly, though it was not
+quite possible for them to haul over the four guns, as they happened
+to be on the forward deck of the Havana. But the men were armed with
+muskets, and were capable of doing a great deal of mischief with them.
+Christy hurried up the men at the fasts, but they had about finished
+their task.
+
+"All clear, Mr. Passford," called Mr. Flint, as the soldiers
+double-quicked across the railroad to the wharf, upon which there was
+still a huge pile of bales of cotton.
+
+"Back her, Mr. Amblen," said Christy, as he hastened aft to avoid a
+collision with the other schooner.
+
+But the tide had begun to recede, and had carried the first vessel to a
+safe distance from the wharf.
+
+The soldiers reached the edge of the wharf, and were probably under the
+command of the orderly by this time. At any rate they marched farther
+down the pier, where they could be nearer to the Havana as she backed
+away. Then the troops fired a volley at the steamer; but in the darkness
+they did no serious injury to the party, though two seamen were slightly
+wounded.
+
+"Cast off the fasts!" shouted Christy, when he realized that some of his
+men were in a fair way to be shot down before they could get the two
+schooners alongside and properly secured for the trip to the Bronx, and
+the order was promptly obeyed. "Now, check her, Mr. Amblen;" and two
+bells were sounded on the gong, after one to stop her.
+
+The second schooner kept on her course out into the bay to join the
+first one cast loose; but Christy feared that they might get aground,
+and give them trouble. The seventeen soldiers whom he had counted in
+their bunks appeared to have been reinforced either by the return of the
+absent party, or by the civilians in the place, for they presented a
+more formidable front than the smaller number could make. Whatever the
+number of the defenders of the place, they could harass the expedition
+while the men were preparing for the final departure.
+
+"With what were those two guns charged, Mr. Flint?" asked Christy.
+
+"With solid shot, sir," replied the second lieutenant.
+
+"Open fire on the wharf, and then load with the shrapnel," added
+Christy.
+
+The two guns, which had been placed in proper position for use on the
+top-gallant forecastle, were aimed by Flint himself, and discharged. The
+report shook the steamer, and Christy, who retained his position on the
+quarter deck, heard a scream of terror, coming from a female, issue from
+the companion way, at the head of which a seaman had been placed as a
+sentinel over the officers below.
+
+"What was that, Neal?" asked the commander of the expedition.
+
+"It was the scream of a lady, sir, and that is all I know about it,"
+replied the man. "I haven't seen any lady, sir, and I think she must
+have been asleep so far. The captain tried to come on deck a while ago,
+but I sent him back, sir."
+
+By this time the two field pieces had been loaded again, and they were
+discharged. Christy watched the effect, and he had the pleasure of
+seeing the whole troop on the wharf retire behind the great pile of
+bales of cotton. A random fire was kept up from this defence, but the
+soldiers were safe behind their impenetrable breastwork. Flint continued
+to fire into it.
+
+At the report of the guns, nearly together, which made the Havana shake,
+and everything on board of her rattle, for she was not built to carry
+a battery of guns, another scream came forth from the companion way.
+A moment later, Christy saw a female form ascending the stairs. The
+sentinel placed his cutlass across the passage; but the lieutenant told
+him to let her come on deck if she desired to do so.
+
+It was light enough for the gallant young officer to see that she was
+young and fair, though she had evidently dressed herself in great haste.
+She looked around her with astonishment, perhaps to find that the
+steamer was no longer at the wharf. The guns on the forecastle were
+again discharged, and she shrunk back at the sound.
+
+"Do not be alarmed, miss," said Christy, in his gentlest tones. "But I
+must say that you will be safer in the cabin than on deck."
+
+"Will you please to tell me what has happened, sir, or what is going to
+happen?" asked the lady; and the listener thought he had never heard a
+sweeter voice, though he might not have thought so if he had heard it at
+Bonnydale, or anywhere else except in the midst of the din of pealing
+guns and the rattling of musketry.
+
+"I can tell you what has happened; but as I am not a prophet, I cannot
+so accurately inform you in regard to what is going to happen," he
+replied.
+
+"But what has occurred on board of the Havana?" she interposed, rather
+impatiently.
+
+"The Havana has been captured by an expedition, of which I have the
+honor to be in command, from the United States gunboat Bronx. Just now
+we are defending ourselves from an attack of the soldiers in the place.
+As to the future, miss, I have no reasonable doubt that we shall be able
+to get the steamer and two schooners we have also captured alongside
+the Bronx, where all the prizes will be subject to the order of her
+commander. Permit me to advise you to retire to the cabin, miss, and
+later, I shall be happy to give you all the information in my power,"
+said Christy, touching his cap to her, and pointing to the companion
+way.
+
+She accepted the advice, and went down the steps. The young officer had
+no time then to wonder who and what she was, for he realized that there
+was little hope of stopping the desultory firing from behind the cotton
+pile; and perhaps by this time the soldiers realized what had become of
+their four field pieces, for they knew that the Havana had not been
+armed when they loaded her with cotton.
+
+Christy went forward to set the officers at work in picking up the two
+prizes, and as he stopped to look down into the engine room, he felt
+his cap knocked off his head, and heard the whizzing of a bullet
+unpleasantly near his ears. He picked up his cap, and found a bullet
+hole through the top of it. If it had gone an inch or two lower, Mr.
+Flint would have succeeded to the command of the expedition without any
+ceremonies. Though there was no reason for it, this incident seemed to
+provoke him, for it assured him that he could not pick up his prizes
+without exposing his men to this nasty firing for some time longer.
+
+It was now light enough for him to make out the situation of the
+breastwork of cotton, and he saw that it was a long and narrow pile,
+probably near a siding of the railroad where the bales had been unloaded
+from the cars. Another glance at the surroundings in regard to the point
+enabled him to make up his mind what to do, and he did not lose a moment
+in putting his plan into execution. The firing of shot and shrapnel at
+the cotton pile seemed to produce no adequate effect, and he ordered
+Flint to cease his operations.
+
+"Back her, Mr. Amblen," he added to the pilot. "Back her at full speed."
+
+The schooners were doing very well; instead of wandering off into the
+bay, they had fallen into the channel, and were drifting with the tide.
+Several persons appeared on the deck of each of them, and it was plain
+that a portion of the crews had been asleep on board of them. While he
+was observing them, he discovered two boats coming out from behind the
+point, and making for the two vessels. This movement indicated an
+attempt to recapture the prizes.
+
+"Port the helm, Mr. Amblen, and circle around till the bow points in
+the direction of those boats coming out from beyond the point," said
+Christy. "Mr. Flint, man your guns again at once, and drop some solid
+shot into those boats."
+
+The Havana continued to back till the guns would bear on the boats, and
+then Flint delivered his fire. The headmost of the boats was smashed,
+and was a wreck on the bay. The other hastened to pick up the crew, and
+then pulled for the shore with all possible speed, though not till two
+other boats, apparently filled with soldiers, were discovered
+approaching the retreating boat.
+
+Christy did not wait to dispose of these, but mounted the top-gallant
+forecastle, and ordered the guns to be loaded with shells. Then he
+waited till the steamer reached a point off the end of the peninsula,
+when he gave the order to stop and back her. Sighting the first gun
+himself, he directed the man at the lockstring to fire. He waited a
+moment for the smoke to clear away, and then, with his glass, he saw
+several forms lying on the wharf by the side of the cotton pile. He had
+fired so as to rake the rear of this breastwork, and before the soldiers
+there understood what he was doing. Those who had not dropped before the
+fire were picking up their wounded companions, and retreating with all
+practicable haste.
+
+It was not necessary to discharge the other gun, and it was swung round
+and brought to bear on the two boats advancing towards the prizes, the
+men in which were pulling with the most desperate haste. Flint took
+careful aim this time, and the gun was discharged. The shrapnel with
+which it was charged did not knock the boat to pieces as a solid shot
+might have done, but two of the oars were seen to drop into the water,
+and both boats began to retreat, which was quite a proper thing for them
+to do in face of such a destructive fire.
+
+There was nothing more to detain the expedition at the place, and the
+two prizes were picked up, made fast, one on each side of the Havana,
+and then the bell to go ahead was sounded. The pilot then informed
+Christy that he had made out the Bronx approaching at a distance of not
+more than three miles beyond the Seahorse Key. Probably Captain Blowitt
+had heard the guns, and was coming in to assist in the fight.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVII
+
+THE INNOCENT CAPTAIN OF THE GARRISON
+
+
+The firing of the musketry was continued from the end of the point by
+a small squad of soldiers, though the most of them seemed to have gone
+over to the other side of the peninsula to take part in the attempt to
+recapture the schooners with boats, which had utterly failed. It was now
+fairly light, the battle had been fought, and the boat expedition had
+done all and more than all it had been expected to accomplish.
+
+Christy had hardly expected to do anything more than obtain information
+that would enable the Bronx to capture the schooners, and nothing had
+been said about the steamer that had been found there. It appeared from
+the statement of Captain Lonley that the Havana was the property of his
+uncle Homer Passford; and doubtless he had chosen Cedar Keys as a safer
+place, at this stage of the war, to send out his cotton than the
+vicinity of his plantation.
+
+Christy certainly had no desire to capture the property of his father's
+brother rather than that of any other Confederate planter, for he had
+had no knowledge of his operations in Florida. But he was quite as
+patriotic on his own side as his uncle was on the other side, and as it
+was his duty to take or destroy the goods of the enemy, he was not sorry
+he had been so fortunate, though he did regret that Homer Passford had
+been the principal sufferer from the visit of the Bronx to this coast.
+
+The planter had now lost three schooners and one steamer loaded with
+cotton; but Christy was satisfied that this would not abate by one jot
+or tittle his interest in the cause he had espoused. The young man did
+not think of such a thing as punishing him for taking part in the
+rebellion, for he knew that Homer would be all the more earnest in his
+faith because he had been a financial martyr on account of his devotion
+to it.
+
+The Havana, with one of the schooners on each side of her, was steaming
+slowly down the channel, and the Bronx was approaching at a distance
+of not more than three miles. For the first time since he obtained
+possession of the prizes, he had an opportunity to look them over, and
+collect his thoughts. From the very beginning of the enterprise he had
+been extremely anxious in regard to the result.
+
+His orders had been to obtain all the information he could in regard to
+the position of the vessels that were reported to be at this port, and
+to do anything the circumstances would permit without incurring too
+much risk. The adventure had been full of surprises from first to last.
+Something new and sometimes something strange had been continually
+exposed to him, and it looked to him just as though all the preparations
+to accomplish the result he had achieved had been made for his coming.
+
+Before the boats went around into the bay, he had been satisfied with
+the finding and carrying off of the twelve-pounders. He had hardly
+expected to do anything more, and he knew that Captain Blowitt would be
+amused as well as pleased at this rather singular feat. The removal of
+the four field pieces had rendered the capture of the schooners possible
+and even easy, as it would not have been if the order of Captain Rowly
+to drag them over to the wharf could have been carried out.
+
+The taking of the Havana had been rather a side incident, hardly
+connected with the rest of the affair. Everything had favored the
+young commander of the expedition, and he had made good use of his
+opportunities, though he had embraced some of them blindly, without
+being able to foresee the consequences of his action at the time it was
+taken. He had time now to review the events of the morning, and the
+result was in the highest degree pleasing to him.
+
+On board of the two schooners the crew had put in an appearance; but
+when he inquired of the negroes he learned that the captains of the
+vessels were not on board. The mate of each was on deck, and they were
+the only white men. On the rail of the one on the port side sat the fat
+captain of the garrison of the place. Thus far he had said nothing, and
+he appeared to be sitting figuratively on the stool of repentance, for
+he had not been faithful to the trust reposed in him.
+
+Dolly had said he had gone to visit a planter who had a daughter;
+but this statement did not appear to be true, for he had put in an
+appearance early, as the Havana was making fast to the first prize. He
+had left his men in the barrack to sleep off their fatigue and apple
+jack after their unaccustomed labor in loading the steamer. He had not
+so much as posted a sentinel, who might have enabled him to defeat the
+invaders of the port, even with his diminished force. If Homer Passford
+had been on the spot, his faith in the Providence that watched over his
+holy cause might have been shaken.
+
+"Good morning, Captain Rowly," said Christy cheerfully, as he walked up
+to the disconsolate captain. "I hope you are feeling quite well."
+
+"Not very well; things are mixed," replied the fat officer, looking down
+upon the planks of the deck.
+
+"Mixed, are they?" added Christy.
+
+"I can't see how it all happened," mused the military gentleman.
+
+"How what happened, Captain Rowly?" inquired Christy.
+
+"All the vessels in the place captured, and carried off!" exclaimed the
+late commander of the garrison.
+
+"I don't discover the least difficulty in explaining how it all
+happened. You were so very obliging as to allow your men to go to sleep
+in the barrack without even posting a sentinel at the battery. That made
+the whole thing as easy as tumbling off a sawhorse," replied the leader
+of the expedition, without trying to irritate the repentant captain of
+the forces.
+
+"And, like an infernal thieving Yankee, you went into the fort and stole
+the guns!" exclaimed Captain Rowly, beginning to boil with rage as he
+thought of his misfortune.
+
+"Well, it did not occur to me that I ought to have waked you and told
+you what I was about before taking the guns."
+
+"It was a nasty Yankee trick!" roared the soldier.
+
+"I suppose it was, captain; but we Yankees cannot very well help what
+was born in our blood; and I have heard that some of your honest and
+high-toned people have made bigger steals than this one. While I have
+carried off only four twelve-pounders, your folks have taken entire
+forts, including scores of guns of all calibres," replied Christy,
+amused at the view the fat gentleman took of his operations.
+
+"Our people took nothing that did not belong to them, for the forts were
+within our territory," retorted the soldier.
+
+  [Illustration: Captain Rowly protests.]
+
+"That was just my case. I have the honor to be an officer of the United
+States Navy, and as these guns happened to be within the territory of
+our government, of course it was all right that I should take them."
+
+"You stole the vessels after I ordered you to stop," muttered Captain
+Rowly.
+
+"Precisely so; but, being in a hurry just then, I hadn't time to stop,"
+laughed Christy.
+
+"Where are you going now? You knew I was on the deck of this schooner,
+and you have brought me off here where I didn't want to come. I am not
+used to the water, and I am afraid I shall get sea-sick," continued the
+fat officer.
+
+"Perhaps we may be able to provide a nurse for you if you are very
+sick."
+
+"Why don't you answer my question, and tell me where you are going?"
+demanded the soldier.
+
+"We are going out here a mile or two farther, just to take the air and
+get up an appetite for breakfast."
+
+"But I object!"
+
+"Do you indeed?"
+
+"And I protest!"
+
+"Against what?"
+
+"Against being carried off in this way. You knew I was on board of the
+schooner."
+
+"I confess that I did know you were on board, though I must add that it
+was your own fault."
+
+"I had a right on board of the vessel."
+
+"I don't deny it. You have a sword at your side; but as you neglected to
+use it, you will excuse me if I ask you to give it to me," added
+Christy, reaching out for the weapon.
+
+"Give you my sword!" exclaimed Captain Rowly.
+
+"It is a formality rather insisted upon on such occasions as the
+present."
+
+"I don't see it."
+
+"You don't? Then I must say that I think you are rather obtuse, Captain
+Rowly, and I shall be under the painful necessity of helping you to see
+it. As a prisoner of war--"
+
+"As what?" demanded the soldier.
+
+"I regard you as a prisoner of war, and I must trouble you to give me
+your sword in token of your surrender."
+
+"I was not taken in a battle."
+
+"Very true; your men fought the battle after you had left them. I have
+no more time to argue the question. Will you surrender your sword, or
+will you have the battle now? Two or three of my men will accommodate
+you with a fight on a small scale if you insist upon it."
+
+"Don't you intend to send me back to the Keys?" asked the captain, whose
+military education appeared to have been neglected, so that his ideas of
+a state of war were very vague.
+
+"I have not the remotest idea of doing anything of the sort. Your sword,
+if you please."
+
+"This sword was presented to me by the citizens of my town--"
+
+"Here, Boxie and Lanon, relieve this gentleman of his sword," added
+Christy, as he saw the young lady coming up the companion way.
+
+"Oh, I will give it up, if you really say so; but this is a queer state
+of things when my sword, presented to me by my fellow-citizens, is to be
+taken from me without any warrant of law," said Captain Rowly, as he
+handed the sword to Christy, who returned it when it had done its duty
+as a token of submission.
+
+The prisoner was marched to the forecastle of the Havana, and put under
+guard. Christy walked towards the young lady, who had evidently dressed
+herself for the occasion. She was not only young, but she was beautiful,
+and the young commander of the expedition was strongly impressed by her
+grace and loveliness. He had heard her speak in the gloom of the early
+morning, and she had a silvery voice. He could not but wonder what she
+was doing on board of a blockade runner.
+
+"Good morning, Miss ---- I have not the pleasure of being able to call
+you by name," Christy began as he touched his cap to her, and bowed his
+involuntary homage.
+
+"Miss Pembroke," she added.
+
+"I trust you are as comfortable as the circumstances will permit, Miss
+Pembroke. I hope you have ceased to be alarmed, as you were when I saw
+you before."
+
+"I am not alarmed, but I am exceedingly anxious in regard to the future,
+Mr. ----"
+
+"Mr. Passford."
+
+"I only wish to know what is to become of us, Mr. Passford."
+
+"You speak in the plural, Miss Pembroke, as though you were not alone."
+
+"I am not alone, sir; my father, who is an invalid, is in the cabin. The
+excitement of this morning has had a bad effect upon him."
+
+"I am sorry to hear it. I suppose you embarked in this steamer with the
+desire to reach some other place?"
+
+"We reside in the State of New York, and all that remain of our family
+are on board of this steamer, and all we desire is to get home. We have
+lived two years in Southern Georgia for my father's health."
+
+Christy thought they would be able to reach New York.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVIII
+
+THE BEARER OF DESPATCHES
+
+
+Christy had assured himself that the father of the beautiful young
+lady was a loyal citizen, and then he pointed out to her in what manner
+they might reach their home, which was at Newburgh on the Hudson. Mr.
+Pembroke was not a wealthy man, though he had the means of supporting
+what was left of his family comfortably. But Christy had to ask to be
+excused, as the Bronx was but a short distance from the Havana.
+
+He directed Mr. Amblen to stop her, so as to permit the gunboat to
+come alongside of her. As the Bronx came within hailing distance of
+the steamer towing the schooners, a hearty cheer burst from the crew on
+the forecastle of the former, for the prizes alongside of the Havana
+indicated the success of the expedition. The sea was smooth, and the
+naval steamer came alongside of the port schooner, and Christy, who had
+put himself in position to do so as soon as he understood her intention,
+sprang lightly on board of her.
+
+Captain Blowitt was on the quarter deck, and the commander of the
+expedition hastened into his presence. Of course Christy could not help
+realizing that he had been successful, however the circumstances had
+aided him, and he felt sure of his welcome.
+
+The commander of the Bronx was a man that weighed two hundred pounds,
+and his fat cheeks were immediately distended with laughter as soon as
+he saw his executive officer hastening towards him. He almost doubled
+himself up in his mirth as he looked into the young man's sober face,
+for Christy was struggling to appear as dignified as the importance of
+the occasion seemed to require of him. But the commander restrained
+himself as much as he could, and extended his hand to the first
+lieutenant, which the young man accepted, and received a pressure that
+was almost enough to crush his feebler paw. In spite of himself, he
+could not help laughing in sympathy with his superior.
+
+"I am sorry you did not bring it all off with you, Mr. Passford," said
+Captain Blowitt, as soon as he was able to speak, for his risibles
+seemed to have obtained complete control of him.
+
+"I have brought it all off with me, captain," replied Christy, though he
+had not yet got at the point of the joke, and spoke at a venture.
+
+"What, the whole State of Florida!" exclaimed the commander.
+
+"No, sir; I did not bring it all off with me, for I did not think it
+would be quite safe to do this, for it might set the Gulf Stream to
+running in a new course, and derange navigation by making all our charts
+useless," replied Christy, smoothing down the muscles of his face so
+that he looked as sober as before.
+
+"I thought from the appearance that you had brought it all off," added
+Captain Blowitt. "Did I instruct you to bring it off?"
+
+"No, sir; you were considerate enough to say that you did not expect me
+to capture the whole State, and therefore I have not done it."
+
+"But we heard heavy guns this morning," continued the commander, putting
+on his sober face, for he could be as serious as a judge, though his
+adipose structure compelled him to be a great joker at suitable times.
+"You had no boat guns."
+
+"No, sir; but we picked up four twelve-pounder field pieces, which you
+see, two of them on carriages, on the forecastle of that steamer. We
+found the garrison asleep, and we carried off the four guns with which
+the battery was mounted. We put them on the Seahorse Key, and went into
+the bay to see what was there, sir. We found two schooners, and on the
+way we took the steamer. When we were hauling out the two schooners, the
+garrison woke up, and attempted to drive us off with musketry. We beat
+them off and sunk two boats with the field pieces. This is my report in
+brief."
+
+"And a very good report it is, Mr. Passford. I did not expect you to do
+anything more than bring off full information in regard to the situation
+at the port," added Captain Blowitt.
+
+"But you ordered me to do anything I could to prepare the way for a
+visit from the Bronx," suggested Christy.
+
+"And you have prepared the way by bringing off everything at the port,
+so that there is nothing for the Bronx to do there," said the commander
+with a smile.
+
+"When I found that the garrison were all asleep, I thought it was
+my duty not to lose the opportunity that was thus presented to me.
+Everything was in our favor, and I was led to do one thing after another
+till there was nothing more to do. I found that Captain Lonley, the
+worthy gentleman who had made prisoners of Mr. Flint and myself on Santa
+Rosa Island, was in command of the steamer. He was not glad to see me;
+and from him I learned that the Havana, which is her name, belonged to
+my uncle Homer; and so did the schooners."
+
+"Then your uncle has a heavy charge against you, for you have now taken
+four of his vessels."
+
+"Possibly the Confederate government is behind him in this operation.
+I don't know; but I am sure that the loss of every dollar he has in the
+world would not change his views in regard to the justice of his cause.
+But, Captain Blowitt, there are on board of the Havana a gentleman and
+his daughter, who reside in Newburgh. He is an invalid and a loyal
+citizen," continued Christy, as he happened to see Miss Pembroke on the
+quarter deck of the steamer.
+
+"They wish to go home, I suppose, and there will soon be an opportunity
+for them to do so," replied the captain, as he went with his lieutenant
+to take a look at the prizes.
+
+He gave particular attention to the Havana, which it was said had been
+built to run between Cedar Keys and the port for which she had been
+named, in connection with the railroad. She appeared to be a good vessel
+of about four hundred tons, which was as large as the navigation of the
+channel to the port would permit. She was not fit for war purposes in
+her present condition, and Captain Blowitt decided to send her to New
+York. Most of the hands on board of the three prizes were negroes, who
+were too happy to go to the North.
+
+"Sail, ho!" shouted the lookout on board of the Bronx, while the
+commander was still discussing his plans with Christy.
+
+"Where away?" demanded the captain.
+
+"Coming down from the northwest," reported a quartermaster.
+
+Captain Blowitt hastened on board of the Bronx, for it did not yet
+appear whether the vessel was a friend or an enemy. She was a steamer,
+and she left a thin streak of black smoke in the sky, which indicated
+that her coal came from British territory.
+
+The Havana and the schooners were left in charge of Mr. Amblen, after
+the prisoners had been properly disposed of in safe places. Mr. Spinnet,
+the second assistant engineer, was sent on board of her, for the
+commander had not full confidence in Dolly, though he permitted him to
+remain as assistant. The boats used by the expedition were hoisted up to
+the davits, and the first and second lieutenants were ordered to return
+to the Bronx, and only six seamen were left on board to guard the
+prisoners, of whom Lonley was the only dangerous one, at all likely to
+make trouble.
+
+The Bronx steamed off at her best speed in the direction of the
+approaching steamer, which appeared to be fast, and to be of that
+peculiarly rakish class of vessels of which there were so many engaged
+in the business of blockade running. She was examined by the officers
+with their glasses; but they were unable to make her out. Her ensign was
+set on a stern pole; but they could not see whether it was the American
+or the Confederate flag.
+
+"What do you make of her, Mr. Passford?" asked the captain, as they
+watched her advance over the smooth sea.
+
+"She is or has been a blockade runner, and that is all I can make out of
+her," replied Christy.
+
+"She may have run the blockade, fitted in Mobile or some other port as a
+cruiser, and come out to do what mischief she can. We may have to fight
+for our prizes, but the splinters will fly before she gets them away
+from us," said Captain Blowitt, who watched the steamer with an anxious
+look on his face, resolute as he was in the discharge of his duty. "She
+is considerably larger than the Bronx."
+
+"As I make her out, she looks something like the Ocklockonee and the
+Escambia, which we sent to New York, though they had but one smokestack
+each while this one has two. They were about five hundred tons; and I
+should think this vessel was of very nearly the same size," added
+Christy.
+
+"Flies the American flag, sir," reported a quartermaster who had been
+sent into the main rigging to observe her.
+
+"That may be a trick," said the captain, "though I hardly think it is,
+for she is larger than the Bronx, and need not resort to tricks."
+
+A little later, she began to hoist her signals on the foremast where
+they could be plainly seen. Mr. Flint made them out to the effect that
+the steamer had orders for the Bronx. This settled the question, and
+there was no more anxiety in regard to her, and there was to be no sea
+fight for the possession of the prizes.
+
+In less than half an hour the two steamers were within hailing distance
+of each other, and the stranger sent off a boat with an officer as soon
+as both vessels had stopped their screws and lost their headway. As
+Christy watched the approaching boat, he recognized the chief engineer
+of the Bellevite in the stern sheets. It was Paul Vapoor, his old
+friend and crony, who waved his cap as soon as he discovered the
+first lieutenant. The boat came to the side, and Paul mounted the
+accommodation ladder. He was a demonstrative young man, and he embraced
+Christy as though he had been a Frenchman, as soon as he reached the
+deck. He touched his cap to Captain Blowitt, and then delivered several
+huge envelopes to him, and also a despatch bag.
+
+"Bearer of despatches, sir," said the chief engineer of the Bellevite.
+
+"I see you are, Mr. Vapoor. If you will make yourself at home on board
+of the Bronx, I will read these papers in my cabin," said the captain,
+as he went below.
+
+"I think Mr. Passford and I shall not waste any time while you are
+engaged, captain," replied Mr. Vapoor.
+
+Certain personal and social matters had to be spoken of, and Paul had
+to ask about Florry Passford first, and Christy's father and mother
+afterwards, though there was no news to tell.
+
+"What are those vessels off there, Christy?" asked Paul, pointing to the
+Havana and the schooners.
+
+"They are our prizes," replied the first lieutenant.
+
+"Did you have to fight for them?"
+
+"A little, not much. What steamer is that in which you came, Paul?"
+
+"Our prize," replied Paul, with a smile as though he knew more than he
+was permitted to tell. "We had an awful fight to get her; but we got her
+all the same. Poor Mr. Dashington was badly wounded, and he may not get
+over it."
+
+"I am sorry to hear that. Where was the fight?" asked Christy.
+
+"About a hundred miles off the entrance to Mobile Bay. We were sent to
+look out for her on account of our speed. She came out, and seemed to
+think she was going to have her own way. We overhauled her, and captured
+her by boarding."
+
+"Captain Blowitt wishes to see Lieutenant Passford and Mr. Vapoor in his
+cabin," said Dave, coming up to them at this moment; and both of them
+hastened to obey the summons.
+
+"Take seats, gentlemen," said the commander, as he pointed to chairs
+at the table at which he was seated. "I am ordered back to the Bellevite
+as first lieutenant, for poor Dashington has been seriously wounded.
+Mr. Passford is ordered to New York in the Vixen, which brings these
+despatches, for she must be condemned. Mr. Flint is ordered to the
+temporary command of the Bronx, though I am unable to understand why it
+is made temporary. You are to convoy several vessels at Key West in the
+Vixen, which is fully armed, and has a sufficient crew."
+
+Christy was never more astonished in all his life.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIX
+
+THE NEW COMMANDER OF THE VIXEN
+
+
+"Have I done anything to offend the flag-officer, or has he no
+confidence in me?" asked Christy, who heard in utter surprise that he
+was ordered to New York in command of the Vixen.
+
+"Certainly not, Mr. Passford," replied Captain Blowitt, with a
+deprecatory smile which was almost enough to satisfy the young officer.
+"What could have put such an idea as that into your head?"
+
+"It looked to me just as though I was sent away simply as a prize-master
+because my services were not needed down here where there is fighting,
+and is likely to be a great deal more of it," added Christy, not yet
+quite satisfied. "Perhaps I am banished for the crime of audacity."
+
+"That is a little too bad, Christy," said the commander, shaking his
+head. "I promised not to use that word again, and you ought not to twit
+me for it, for it was only a pleasantry on my part."
+
+"It was the farthest thing in the world from my mind to twit you for the
+word; I was only afraid that they considered me an imprudent officer on
+board of the flagship. I beg your pardon, Captain Blowitt, and I will
+never again remind you of the conversation we had on the subject of
+audacity," answered Christy, rising from his chair and taking the
+commander by the hand.
+
+"It is all right, Christy, my dear fellow," replied the captain, coming
+down from the dignified manner of the navy. "I think we understand each
+other perfectly, and I don't wish to part with the shadow of a shadow
+between us. We have sailed together too long to be anything but the best
+of friends; and the fate of poor Dashington reminds me that we may never
+meet again in this world."
+
+"Whatever you say and whatever you do, Captain Blowitt, we can never
+be anything but the best of friends, and, so far as you are concerned,
+I never had an instant of doubt or suspicion."
+
+"Now, Christy," interposed Paul Vapoor, "you entirely mistake the motive
+which has led to your appointment to the Vixen, for I happen to know
+something about it. You are not sent simply as a prize-master to New
+York, but you are put in temporary command of the Vixen because an able,
+vigilant, courageous officer was required."
+
+"Then I wonder all the more that I was selected," added Christy.
+
+"You wonder!" exclaimed Paul, looking intently into the brown face of
+the young officer, apparently to discover if there was not some
+affectation in this manifestation of modesty.
+
+There was nothing like affectation in the composition of Christy
+Passford, and whatever he had done to distinguish himself, he had done
+strictly in the line of his duty, and from the purest of patriotic
+motives. It was the most difficult thing in the world to make him
+believe that he had done "a big thing," though all others on board
+of his ship believed it with all their might. Paul Vapoor knew what
+everybody thought of his friend, and he was surprised that he should be
+so innocent and ignorant of the great reputation he had won.
+
+"I do wonder," replied Christy, earnestly and honestly. "I believe I
+am about the youngest officer in the fleet, and if this service requires
+an able officer, it seems very strange to me that I should have been
+selected."
+
+"Captain Breaker was consulted in regard to you, though he was not asked
+to name a commander, for the flag-officer had thought of you himself,
+and no doubt he had just been reading your report of your voyage to the
+Gulf in the Bronx," said Paul, laughing. "I don't see how he could do
+otherwise than select you, Christy."
+
+"You are chaffing me, Paul, as you do sometimes," said Christy with a
+smile.
+
+"Then the expression of my honest opinion, which is also the opinion
+of every other officer in the ship, is chaffing you," retorted the
+engineer.
+
+"I am satisfied; and I am sorry I said a word," added the subject of all
+these remarks.
+
+"It is a very important and responsible situation to which you are
+ordered, Mr. Passford," said Captain Blowitt, putting on his dignity
+again. "Not a few steamers fitted up in part for service as Confederate
+men-of-war, in spite of neutrality treaties, are expected on the coast.
+You have diminished the number by two, and I hope you will be able to
+make a still further reduction of that fleet. We have three vessels to
+send on for condemnation, and your orders will inform you that there
+are several others, including another steamer, at Key West; and a
+Confederate armed steamer could easily recapture the whole of them. You
+will have to protect a fleet of at least seven vessels; and this command
+ought to satisfy your ambition. You will also have charge of a despatch
+bag, to be forwarded to Washington at once; and this must not fall into
+the hands of the enemy. Sink or burn it if you are captured."
+
+"I don't intend to be captured," added Christy with a smile.
+
+"I remember that you were taken by the enemy on one occasion, and
+misfortunes may come to the best of officers. You must get ready to sail
+at once; but you must write your report of your expedition before you
+leave," added Captain Blowitt, as he rose from his chair, and the trio
+left the cabin.
+
+Christy gaped several times during the latter part of the interview, for
+he had not slept a wink during the preceding night. He went to the ward
+room and began to write his report, while the Bronx and the Vixen
+proceeded towards the three vessels which had been captured. It was well
+that they did so, for as they approached the Havana and her consorts
+they discovered quite a fleet of boats coming out from behind the
+Seahorse Key, evidently intending to recapture the prizes in the absence
+of the gunboat. They retired at once as she approached.
+
+Christy was a rapid writer, and his report was soon finished, for the
+subject was still very fresh in his mind, and he never attempted to
+do any "fine writing." He had packed his valises, and he took an
+affectionate farewell of the captain, Flint, and Sampson, as well as the
+ship's company in a more general way, though he said he expected to be
+back again in a few weeks. The Vixen's boat was waiting for him, and he
+embarked in it with Paul Vapoor. In a few minutes he ascended to the
+deck of the steamer, and the side was manned at his appearance. He was
+presented to the officers of the ship by the engineer, and all three of
+them were older men than Christy, though he was their senior in rank,
+for his commission had been dated back to his enlistment in the navy.
+
+Every one of the officers was a stranger to Christy, though there were a
+few men who had served in the Bellevite, but not in her original crew.
+With the customary proceedings he took command of the Vixen, and he
+found from sundry remarks made to him or dropped in his hearing that his
+reputation was already established on board. He directed the executive
+officer to follow the Bronx. In a short time the screw was stopped in
+the vicinity of the prizes. The Bronx reclaimed the men left on board of
+the Havana, and Captain Lonley was sent on board of the Vixen.
+
+Christy had been down into his cabin, and taken a hasty glance at the
+ward room. In addition to his own apartments like those on board of the
+Bronx, though they were larger, he found a state room opening from the
+foot of the companion way, and another from the passage way leading to
+his principal cabin. These two rooms he appropriated to the use of Mr.
+Pembroke and his daughter, though they were very well provided for on
+board of the Havana. They were invited on board, and gratefully accepted
+the accommodations tendered to them.
+
+Mr. Amblen was to retain the place assigned to him as prize-master, and
+two competent men were found to take charge of the schooners. All the
+arrangements were completed in a couple of hours, and the prizes of the
+Bronx were started at once. The negroes were employed in transferring
+the deckload of the Havana to the holds of the schooners, which were not
+quite full.
+
+The engineer of the Bellevite was to return to her in the Bronx, and he
+shook hands at parting with Christy, giving him a letter to Miss Florry
+Passford; and even her brother could not help seeing that he was greatly
+interested in her. Three rousing cheers went up from the Bronx as the
+screw of the Vixen began to turn, and she started on her voyage.
+
+The new commander, though he was very sleepy, gave his first moments
+to an examination of the vessel. The carpenter and his gang were still
+engaged in repairing the damage done to her in the engagement with the
+Bellevite. She was about the size of the two steamers captured by the
+Bronx, and coming out of the small steamer, she seemed quite large.
+She carried a midship gun of heavy calibre, and four broadside pieces.
+She had a crew of sixty men, besides those employed in the engineer's
+department, selected from the fleet, for the mission of the steamer was
+regarded as a very important one.
+
+"Your machine looks well, Mr. Caulbolt," said Christy, as he went to the
+engine room in making his round with the executive officer.
+
+"I fancy it is as good as can be built on the other side of the water,"
+replied the chief engineer.
+
+"Do you know anything in regard to the speed of the Vixen, for that may
+be a very important matter with us?" asked the commander.
+
+"I do not know very much yet, sir, but I think she is a fast steamer.
+Mr. Vapoor told me that the Bellevite made twenty-two knots in chasing
+her, and that no other vessel in the navy could have overhauled her.
+He gave me the figures," added Mr. Caulbolt, taking a paper from his
+pocket. "I think she is good for eighteen knots when driven hard."
+
+"I dare say that will do," replied Christy, finishing his examination
+and retiring to his cabin.
+
+He found Mr. Pembroke and his daughter there. The young lady presented
+him to her father, who appeared to be about fifty years of age. He was
+very gentlemanly in his manners, and thanked the captain heartily for
+the courtesy and kindness with which he had been treated. Later in the
+voyage he learned that Mr. Pembroke's wife and son had been killed some
+years before in a railroad accident, and that the money recovered from
+the corporation was about his only fortune. Miss Bertha, as her father
+called her, had been educated to become a teacher, but when his health
+failed, she had devoted herself wholly to him. They had gone to Georgia
+just before the war, and had lived in the pine woods nearly two years.
+
+"My health is very much improved, and the genial climate just suited my
+case; but in the present situation, I had rather die at home than live
+in the South," said the invalid in conclusion.
+
+"Father is ever so much better than when we came to Georgia," added
+Bertha.
+
+Christy looked at her, and he had never seen a young lady before who
+made such a decided impression upon him. Of course the reason for this
+was that she was so dutiful and devoted to her sick father, for not
+every young and beautiful maiden would have been so entirely unselfish
+as she was. The commander could not help looking at her till he made her
+blush by the intensity of his gaze, and after all, it is possible that
+Christy was as human as other young men of his age. He had never been so
+affected before, and he hardly knew what to make of it; but he concluded
+that it was not because she was so pretty, but because she was so good,
+and so devoted to her father.
+
+In due time the Vixen and her convoy reached Key West. He found only two
+schooners and a steamer, all loaded with cotton, awaiting his coming,
+for two others had been sent with another steamer. Christy went on board
+of them, and as the sea was smooth, he arranged them as he had the
+others, though tow lines were ready in case of need, and the fleet
+sailed for the North.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXX
+
+THE ACTION WITH A PRIVATEER STEAMER
+
+
+Christy had made up his lost sleep. On the first day out he had taken
+Captain Lonley's word that he would not interfere with anything on
+board, and had then given him a berth in the ward room, where he messed
+with the officers. Captain Rowly had also been taken on board, and as he
+was a captain in the Confederate army, innocent as he was, he demanded
+similar accommodations. His request was granted, but Christy decided to
+leave him at Key West, for the ward room was full.
+
+The fleet continued on its voyage after the call at the Florida port,
+and was soon in the Gulf Stream. It was an exceedingly quiet time in the
+little fleet of vessels, though the drill on board of the Vixen was
+closely followed up. On the second day they had a mild gale, and the
+schooners were cast off, and towed astern, one behind the other.
+
+Then the weather was fine again, though the sea was still too rough for
+the Havana and the Aleppo to tow the prizes alongside. Christy observed
+the drill a great deal of the time, and Bertha Pembroke was often his
+companion. He told her all about vessels in the navy, explained actions
+at sea, but hoped she would not be permitted to see one.
+
+Then he related to her the experience of the Bellevite as a yacht and
+_as_ a naval vessel, and no one ever had a more attentive listener.
+He could not conceal it from himself that he was deeply interested in
+the young lady, and observers would have said that she was not less
+interested in him. On the fifth day out from Key West, while they were
+thus agreeably occupied, there was a hail from the fore rigging.
+
+"Sail, ho!" shouted the lookout on the fore crosstrees, where the
+prudence of the commander required a hand to be stationed at all times,
+day and night.
+
+"Where away?" called Scopfield, the third lieutenant, who was the
+officer of the deck.
+
+"Broad on the starboard bow," replied the lookout.
+
+"Can you make it out?"
+
+"A steamer, sir; black smoke behind her," responded the lookout.
+
+Mr. Fillbrook had joined the third lieutenant by this time, and the
+former reported to the captain. Christy had heard all that had passed,
+and he immediately began to feel a heavy anxiety in regard to the sail.
+
+"What do you think of her, Mr. Fillbrook?" he asked, after the executive
+officer had reported to him.
+
+"There are so many steamers coming over from British ports about this
+time, bound to Confederate ports, that it is not very difficult to guess
+what she is," replied the first lieutenant. "She is either a blockade
+runner, or a steamer fitted out to prey upon the commerce of the United
+States."
+
+"That seems to be plain enough; and from the position in which we find
+her, she has come out of the Bermudas, or is bound there," added the
+commander. "Bring my glass from my state room," he continued to his
+cabin steward, who was sunning himself on the deck.
+
+When it was brought, the captain and the executive officer went forward
+and mounted the top-gallant forecastle. Mr. Fillbrook procured a glass
+from the pilot house, and both of them looked long and earnestly at the
+speck in the distance. The steamer was hull down, and they soon agreed
+that she was bound to the eastward.
+
+"We have no business with her at present," said Christy, as he shut up
+his glass.
+
+"But I have no doubt she has already run the blockade, and came out of
+Wilmington or Savannah. If that is the case, she must be loaded with
+cotton, which contains a fortune at the present time within a small
+compass," replied Mr. Fillbrook, who had not been as fortunate as some
+others in the matter of prizes.
+
+"Very likely," replied Christy, rather coldly, his companion thought.
+"I do not think I should be justified in giving chase to her, which
+could only be done by abandoning the convoy."
+
+"Could we not pick up the convoy after we had captured the steamer?"
+asked the first lieutenant.
+
+"Yes, if some Confederate cruiser does not pick it up in our absence,"
+replied Christy, with a significant smile.
+
+Mr. Fillbrook was evidently very much disappointed, not to say
+disgusted, with the decision of Captain Passford; but he was too good an
+officer to make a complaint, or utter a comment. The ship's company had
+become somewhat excited when it was announced that a sail, with black
+smoke painting a long streak on the blue sky, was made out. If it was a
+blockade runner, with a cargo of cotton, it meant a small fortune to
+each officer, seaman, and others on board.
+
+The new commander had a reputation as a daring leader, and the hopes of
+the officers and men ran high. They waited eagerly to have the steamer
+headed to the eastward; but no such order was given, and the chins of
+all hands began to drop down.
+
+Christy had no interest in the money value of a prize, and yet he could
+understand the feeling of his ship's company. He was an heir of a
+millionaire, and he had no occasion to trouble his head about the
+profits of a capture. He looked at the question from a purely patriotic
+point of view, and every prize secured was so much taken from the
+resources of the enemy.
+
+He saw the disappointment painted on the face of the first lieutenant,
+and he went to his cabin to consider his duty again, and review the
+reasoning that had influenced him; but he came to the conclusion he had
+reached in the beginning. He was in charge of six vessels loaded with
+cotton, and the ship's company of the Bronx and other vessels had an
+interest in their cargoes. The Vixen was less than a hundred and fifty
+miles from the coast, and a tug boat, with a bow gun and a crew of
+twenty-five, could come out and capture the whole fleet without the
+least difficulty. The risk was too great, and the commander was as firm
+as a rock.
+
+The next morning, before it was daylight, Mr. Bangs the second
+lieutenant, who had the mid watch, sent a messenger to the commander
+to inform him that a sail was made out, which appeared to be a steamer,
+on the starboard bow, very broad, nearly on the beam. Christy dressed
+himself in a great hurry, and hastened on deck. It was beginning to be a
+little light, and the steamer appeared to be about five miles to the
+eastward of the Vixen, and was headed towards her.
+
+Christy at once concluded that the vessel meant mischief, and he
+promptly gave the order to beat to quarters. He thought it must be the
+steamer seen the day before, as she could hardly be a blockade runner
+for the reason that she was headed towards the fleet. If she desired to
+break through the blockading squadron, she would be likely to keep as
+far as possible from anything that might be an armed vessel.
+
+Christy went to his state room to write an order for Mr. Amblen in the
+Havana, which was hardly a cable's length from the Vixen on the port
+side, the Aleppo being ahead of her. He had already given his general
+orders to the prize masters, but this was a special one. In the cabin he
+found Bertha, who had been awakened by the tramping of the men on deck.
+
+"Pray what is the matter, Captain Passford?" she asked, evidently
+somewhat alarmed.
+
+"Nothing is the matter yet, Miss Pembroke, but something may be the
+matter within an hour or two, for there is a sail making for us,"
+replied Christy with the smile he always wore when she spoke to him, or
+he to her. "In other words there may be an action, for I must defend my
+convoy."
+
+"Is there any danger?" she inquired.
+
+"Of course there is, for a shot may come through the side of the ship
+anywhere and at any time. But I have thought of this matter, and I
+propose to put you and your father on board of the Havana until after
+the danger is passed. Be kind enough to get ready as soon as possible."
+
+Christy wrote his order, and hastened on deck with it. Hailing the
+Havana, he ordered the prize-master to send a boat on board. When it
+came the two passengers were embarked in it and the order sent. The
+commander did not wait a moment to watch the receding form of the
+maiden, but immediately directed his attention to the steamer
+approaching the Vixen.
+
+"Run for that steamer, Mr. Fillbrook," said he, after his first glance.
+
+"Make the course east by north, Mr. Bangs," added the first lieutenant.
+
+"East by north," repeated the quartermaster at the wheel when the order
+reached him.
+
+"I have just been aloft, and she flies the Confederate flag, Captain
+Passford," said Mr. Fillbrook. "She is a large steamer, and she is by no
+means as jaunty as the Vixen."
+
+Both steamers were going at full speed, and it required but a short time
+to bring them near enough together for something to happen. She was well
+down in the water, and appeared as though she might be loaded with
+something besides the appliances of a man-of-war. She looked as though
+she might be twice as large as the Vixen, and it was soon evident that
+her speed was nothing to boast of. She certainly was not one of the
+high-flyer yachts which had been bought up for service in the
+Confederate navy.
+
+When the two vessels were not more than a mile apart, a column of smoke
+rose from her waist, as she swung around so that her great gun could be
+brought to bear, and a shot dropped into the water at least an eighth of
+a mile short of the Vixen.
+
+"Thank you, sir!" exclaimed Christy. "Half speed, if you please, Mr.
+Fillbrook."
+
+The commander went to the long English gun in the waist, to which he had
+already given a great deal of study, and sighted along the heavy piece.
+He had not forgotten when he pointed the gun on board of the Bellevite,
+the shot from which had disabled the Vampire, and he had some confidence
+in his ability to put a shot where he wished it to go, for he had
+brought all his mathematics and all his physics to bear on the matter,
+though the best gunners must sometimes fail. When he was ready he gave
+the word to fire. The ship was shaken by the heavy report, and every one
+waited with peculiar interest for the smoke to clear away, because the
+captain had pointed the gun.
+
+Christy had ordered the screw to be stopped, and had waited till the
+steamer lost her headway. She rolled but slightly, and he had allowed
+for everything. Glasses were in demand, and a moment later there was a
+shout went up from the men at the gun, followed by another from the rest
+of the crew. The shot had upset the great gun on the deck of the enemy.
+She was swinging round, and beginning to fire her broadside guns, but
+the shots came nowhere near the Vixen. Christy did not believe there was
+any naval officer on board of that steamer.
+
+"Keep up the fire with the long gun, Mr. Fillbrook," said the commander,
+in a low tone, and with no excitement apparent in his manner, for he
+always studied and labored to appear cool and self-possessed, whether he
+was so or not, and there was nothing in the present situation to try him
+in the least.
+
+For a full hour the long gun of the Vixen continued to pelt the enemy
+with solid shot, about every one of them hulling her or carrying away
+some of her spars. Her mainmast had gone by the board, and the
+resistance she was making was becoming very feeble.
+
+"She is full of men, Captain Passford," said Mr. Fillbrook, when the
+steamer seemed to be almost a wreck.
+
+"I observed that she had a large crew some time ago, and it is better to
+knock her to pieces than to board her," replied Christy. "Keep her as
+far off as she is now."
+
+The enemy tried to get nearer to the Vixen, but failed to do so.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXXI
+
+A SHORT VISIT TO BONNYDALE
+
+
+The firing was continued from the long gun, though only at intervals
+that would permit any signals to be seen on board of the enemy. When it
+looked as though there would soon be nothing left of her, she hauled
+down the Confederate flag at her fore, where she had hoisted it when the
+mainmast went over. The order to go ahead was given, and in a short time
+the Vixen was alongside of her.
+
+"Do you surrender?" asked Christy, mounting the rail of his ship.
+
+"We do; there is not much left of the steamer, and I am not justified
+in throwing away the lives of my men," replied a very spruce-looking
+officer.
+
+"You will board her, Mr. Fillbrook, with the first division, and take
+possession of her," said Christy, when he had received the captain's
+answer. "Ascertain her condition as soon as possible."
+
+The steamer proved to be the Pedee, formerly the Carnfield, Captain
+Linden. She had run the blockade with a valuable cargo, which more than
+paid the cost of the vessel, and was then loaded with cotton, and armed
+for her own protection, as well as to capture anything that fell in her
+way. She had a crew of eighty men to do her fighting, and the commander
+confidently expected to pick up a better steamer than the Pedee, to
+which the greater portion of the ship's company were to be transferred.
+
+"I saw your steamer yesterday afternoon," said the captain; "but she had
+several other vessels near her, and I thought she might have a whole
+blockading squadron with her. I kept off, and put about in the night.
+When I saw the Vixen early this morning, I thought she would just answer
+my purpose, and I wanted her. A nearer view of her assures me she is
+exactly the steamer I needed."
+
+"For your sake, captain, I am sorry I cannot accommodate you," replied
+Christy, laughing at the cheerful expressions of Captain Linden.
+"I presume you are an officer of the Confederate Navy?"
+
+"No, sir; I am not; but I am a Confederate to the backbone. It was my
+intention to set up a navy on my own hook. The Pedee was the first
+vessel, and I intended that the Vixen should be the second, and become
+my flag-ship."
+
+"Then you came out as a privateer?"
+
+"That's just the color of it. If you hadn't unhorsed my big gun I should
+have been as polite to you about this time as you are to me. The fact of
+it is, Captain Passford, you did not manage your ship just right."
+
+"Indeed? In what respect?" asked Christy.
+
+"Well, you see, you knocked my big gun all to pieces, and then, instead
+of running down and boarding the Pedee, you stood off out of range of my
+side guns, and knocked the starch all out of us. If you had only boarded
+us, I could have whipped you out of your boots, for I have got the
+greatest crowd of fighting dogs that was ever hitched up together."
+
+"Of course I was not aware of your views in regard to the manner in
+which I ought to have managed the affair on my own part, and therefore I
+could not handle my ship just as you desired," replied Christy. "As it
+is, I am afraid you will have to start your navy over again."
+
+Mr. Fillbrook had by this time driven the "fighting dogs" forward, and
+taken full possession of the prize. On examination, Christy found that,
+though the Pedee had been terribly battered in her upper works, she was
+not materially injured below the water line. He sent for Mr. Caulbolt,
+and required him to inspect the engine, which was not injured in any
+important part.
+
+Captain Linden had three times attempted to get nearer to the Vixen with
+the intention of boarding her, but Christy preferred to fight the battle
+at long range under the circumstances, and he had preserved his distance
+from the enemy. He had discovered that she had a large crew, and he was
+vastly more prudent than most of his critics gave him the credit of
+being. He was surprised, after examining the Pedee, that the captain had
+hauled down his flag, for the steamer could have stood a good deal more
+pounding without being used up. He concluded that Captain Linden was
+full of fight, but, for the want of a naval education, he had not fully
+comprehended his situation.
+
+It was deemed advisable to transfer one half of the Pedee's crew of
+"fighting dogs" to the Vixen, as she was not encumbered with any
+prisoners to speak of, and this was effected without any delay. Mr.
+Scopfield, the third lieutenant, was appointed prize-master, and
+instructed to keep as near as practicable to the Vixen on the voyage.
+Captain Linden and his principal officers were allowed to remain on
+board. An assistant engineer and two first-class firemen, on their way
+to New York for examination and promotion, were sent on board of the
+prize. The two steamers were soon under way, and then it was ascertained
+that the Pedee's ordinary rate of sailing did not exceed ten knots, and
+it was not probable that she would be bought into the navy.
+
+The fleet of prize vessels had continued on its course to the north, and
+was soon overhauled by the Vixen and her capture. The progress of the
+fleet was very slow, for the Aleppo, which was said to have a speed of
+ten knots, did very badly towing two steamers. Mr. Pembroke and Bertha
+were sent on board of the Vixen, and the young lady blushed beautifully
+when Christy welcomed her return.
+
+Possibly she had feared he might be killed in the action, and had
+worried about him till his return in safety, with the prize alongside
+his ship. Her father was very cordial in his congratulations to the
+young commander, and even said that he and his daughter had prayed that
+he might not be killed or injured in the conflict; and Bertha blushed
+all the more when he said it.
+
+Mr. Scopfield was instructed to take one of the schooners of the Aleppo
+in tow. Five men had been killed on board of the Pedee, and her surgeon
+had more than he could do with at least twenty wounded men. Dr. Appleton
+was sent on board of her to assist him. The fleet thus reorganized got
+under way, and it was found that the log gave better results after the
+change. Fortunately no enemy interfered with its progress, for Christy
+felt that his hands were already full.
+
+In the early days of the month of May, he sailed into New York harbor
+with his fleet of eight vessels, though only three of them were the
+prizes of the Bronx. He had been absent hardly a month; though he had
+something to show for the time he had been employed. The vessels were
+delivered over to the authorities, and the young commander obtained
+leave of absence to visit his mother and sister at Bonnydale, for his
+father came on board of the Vixen as soon as he heard the news of her
+arrival in command of his son.
+
+Captain Passford, Senior, was conducted to the cabin of Captain
+Passford, Junior, and the meeting of father and son was very
+affectionate and very demonstrative. Mr. Pembroke and his daughter
+were presented to the commander's father, and after they had talked over
+the incidents of the return voyage, the former owner of the Bellevite
+suspected that relations were altogether pleasant between Christy and
+Bertha.
+
+He was greatly pleased with the young lady, and whatever else he
+thought, he could not very well help indorsing his son's good taste. In
+the course of the subsequent conversation it appeared that Mr. Pembroke
+owned a small house at Newburgh, but that the occupant of it had a
+three-years' lease of the premises. Captain Passford immediately
+extended an invitation to the invalid and his daughter to visit
+Bonnydale, which became so pressing that it was finally accepted. In the
+afternoon the entire party took the train for the home of the captain.
+
+Christy's welcome was as hearty as though he had come home a commodore.
+The visitors were received with a sincere greeting, and Bertha and
+Florry were soon fast friends. Even if Christy's father had not dropped
+a hint to Mrs. Passford in regard to the fact that his son was at least
+tenderly inclined towards the lovely maiden from the South she could not
+have failed to notice his attentions to her. Later at night his father
+and mother had a long talk over the matter.
+
+"Christy, I have a couple of envelopes for you," said Captain Passford,
+as the party seated themselves in the drawing-room after supper.
+
+"Envelopes, father?" asked the young officer curiously. "Base ball or
+boat-club business?"
+
+"I should say neither; decidedly not," replied his father, taking the
+documents from his pocket, and handing them to him. "They have an
+official look, and bear the imprint of the Navy Department."
+
+"What business can the Navy Department have with me now? I have the
+honor to be the executive officer of the gunboat Bronx, with the rank of
+master, on detached duty as prize-master," added Christy, as he looked
+at the ponderous envelopes.
+
+"You can easily answer that question by reading the papers," replied his
+father.
+
+"A commission!" exclaimed Christy, as he opened the first one. "I am
+promoted to the rank of lieutenant!"
+
+"And, though you are my son, I must say that you deserve the promotion,"
+added Captain Passford. "I have read your report of the capture of the
+Ocklockonee and the Escambia, and you have won your spurs, my son. I did
+not ask for this promotion, or even suggest it to any one."
+
+"Well, I am astonished, confounded, overwhelmed!" exclaimed the young
+lieutenant, as we are now permitted to call him. "And the commission is
+dated back far enough to put me over the heads of not a few others of
+the same rank."
+
+"Perhaps it will please you quite as much when I inform you that the
+officers you recommended for appointment as masters have been promoted
+to that rank," added the captain.
+
+"I am even more pleased at their promotion than at my own," replied
+Christy, opening the other envelope, in which he was addressed as
+"Lieutenant Christopher Passford." "Ah, ha!" he exclaimed, leaping out
+of his chair in his excitement, to which he gave way on such an occasion
+as the present.
+
+"What in the world is the matter with you, Christy?" demanded his
+mother, astonished at such an unusual demonstration on the part of her
+son.
+
+"I am appointed to the command of the Bronx, in place of Lieutenant
+Blowitt, transferred to the Bellevite!" almost shouted the young
+officer. "If I could have selected a position for myself, this is the
+very one I should have chosen."
+
+"I heard you say as much as that when you were appointed to the
+temporary command of the Bronx, and I shall plead guilty of having
+inserted a hint where it would do the most good," added Captain
+Passford.
+
+"I am much obliged to you, father; for I don't object to that kind of
+influence, though I could have commanded the Bronx just as well as a
+master, which is the rank of her present temporary commander, Mr. Flint.
+I desire to win my own rank, and not get it by influence. I am ordered
+to proceed to the Gulf as soon as possible."
+
+In three days he obtained passage in a store-ship steamer; and he spent
+all this time at home, as perhaps he would not have done if Bertha
+Pembroke had not been there. Before he reported on board of the
+store-ship, he visited the Vixen, which was undergoing alterations and
+repairs, and took leave of his officers. Before dark he was on board of
+the vessel and on his voyage to the scene of his future operations,
+where we hope to find him again, doing his best for his whole country,
+and true to his motto from the beginning, "STAND BY THE UNION."
+
+
+
+
+OLIVER OPTIC'S BOOKS
+
++All-Over-the-World Library.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. First Series.
+    Illustrated. Price per volume, $1.25.
+
+  1. +A Missing Million+; or, The Adventures of Louis Belgrade.
+  2. +A Millionaire at Sixteen+; or, The cruise of the "Guardian
+        Mother."
+  3. +A Young Knight Errant+; or, Cruising in the West Indies.
+  4. +Strange Sights Abroad+; or, Adventures in European Waters.
+
+  No author has come before the public during the present generation
+  who has achieved a larger and more deserving popularity among young
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+  but they have been uniformly excellent in moral tone and literary
+  quality. As indicated in the general title, it is the author's
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+  a steamer which he names the "Guardian Mother," and with a number of
+  guests she proceeds on her voyage.--_Christian Work, N. Y._
+
+
++All-Over-the-World Library.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. Second Series.
+    Illustrated. Price per volume, $1.25.
+
+  1. +American Boys Afloat+; or, Cruising in the Orient.
+  2. +The Young Navigators+; or, The Foreign Cruise of the "Maud."
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+
+  The interest in these stories is continuous, and there is a great
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+  of dryness. Manly boys will welcome this volume as cordially as they
+  did its predecessors.--_Boston Gazette_.
+
+
++All-Over-the-World Library.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. Third Series.
+    Illustrated. Price per volume, $1.25.
+
+  1. +Across India+; or, Live Boys in the Far East.
+  2. +Half Round the World+; or, Among the Uncivilized.
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+  4. +Pacific Shores+; or, Adventures in Eastern Seas.
+
+  Amid such new and varied surroundings it would be surprising indeed
+  if the author, with his faculty of making even the commonplace
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+  adventure, as well as give much information in regard to the distant
+  countries through which our friends pass, and the strange peoples
+  with whom they are brought in contact. This book, and indeed the
+  whole series, is admirably adapted to reading aloud in the family
+  circle, each volume containing matter which will interest all the
+  members of the family.--_Boston Budget._
+
+
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+
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+OLIVER OPTIC'S BOOKS
+
++The Blue and the Gray--Afloat.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. Six volumes.
+  Illustrated. Beautiful binding in blue and gray, with emblematic dies.
+  Cloth. Any volume sold separate. Price per volume, $1.50.
+
+  1. +Taken by the Enemy.+
+  2. +Within the Enemy's Lines.+
+  3. +On the Blockade.+
+  4. +Stand by the Union.+
+  5. +Fighting for the Right.+
+  6. +A Victorious Union.+
+
++The Blue and the Gray--on Land.+
+
+  1. +Brother against Brother.+
+  2. +In the Saddle.+
+  3. +A Lieutenant at Eighteen.+
+  4. +On the Staff.+
+  5. +At the Front.+
+  6. +An Undivided Union.+
+
+  "There never has been a more interesting writer in the field of
+  juvenile literature than Mr. W. T. ADAMS, who, under his well-known
+  pseudonym, is known and admired by every boy and girl in the
+  country, and by thousands Who have long since passed the boundaries
+  of youth, yet who remember with pleasure the genial, interesting pen
+  that did so much to interest, instruct, and entertain their younger
+  years. 'The Blue and the Gray' is a title that is sufficiently
+  indicative of the nature and spirit of the latest series, while the
+  name of OLIVER OPTIC is sufficient warrant of the absorbing style of
+  narrative. This series is as bright and entertaining as any work
+  that Mr. ADAMS has yet put forth, and will be as eagerly perused as
+  any that has borne his name. It would not be fair to the prospective
+  reader to deprive him of the zest which comes from the unexpected by
+  entering into a synopsis of the story. A word, however, should be
+  said in regard to the beauty and appropriateness of the binding,
+  which makes it a most attractive volume."--_Boston Budget_.
+
+
++Woodville Stories.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. Six volumes. Illustrated.
+    Any volume sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25.
+
+  1. +Rich and Humble;+ or, The Mission of Bertha Grant.
+  2. +In School and Out;+ or, The Conquest of Richard Grant.
+  3. +Watch and Wait;+ or, The Young Fugitives.
+  4. +Work and Win;+ or, Noddy Newman on a Cruise.
+  5. +Hope and Have;+ or, Fanny Grant Among the Indians.
+  6. +Haste and Waste;+ or, The Young Pilot of Lake Champlain.
+
+  "Though we are not so young as we once were, we relished these
+  stories almost as much as the boys and girls for whom they were
+  written. They were really refreshing even to us. There is much in
+  them which is calculated to inspire a generous, healthy ambition,
+  and to make distasteful all reading tending to stimulate base
+  desires."--_Fitchburg Reveille_.
+
+
++The Starry Flag Series.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. In six volumes. Illustrated.
+    Any volume sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25.
+
+  1. +The Starry Flag;+ or, The Young Fisherman of Cape Ann.
+  2. +Breaking Away;+ or, The Fortunes of a Student.
+  3. +Seek and Find;+ or, The Adventures of a Smart Boy.
+  4. +Freaks of Fortune;+ or, Half Round the World.
+  5. +Make or Break;+ or, The Rich Man's Daughter.
+  6. +Down the River;+ or, Buck Bradford and the Tyrants.
+
+  "Mr. ADAMS, the celebrated and popular writer, familiarly known as
+  OLIVER OPTIC, seems to have inexhaustible funds for weaving together
+  the virtues of life; and, notwithstanding he has written scores of
+  books, the same freshness and novelty run through them all. Some
+  people think the sensational element predominates. Perhaps it does.
+  But a book for young people needs this, and so long as good
+  sentiments are inculcated such books ought to be read."
+
+
+LEE AND SHEPARD, BOSTON, SEND THEIR COMPLETE CATALOGUE FREE.
+
+
+OLIVER OPTIC'S BOOKS
+
++Army and Navy Stories.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. Six volumes. Illustrated.
+    Any volume sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25.
+
+  1. +The Soldier Boy+; or, Tom Somers in the Army.
+  2. +The Sailor Boy+; or, Jack Somers in the Navy.
+  3. +The Young Lieutenant+; or, Adventures of an Army Officer.
+  4. +The Yankee Middy+; or, Adventures of a Navy Officer.
+  5. +Fighting Joe+; or, The Fortunes of a Staff Officer.
+  6. +Brave Old Salt+; or, Life on the Quarter Deck.
+
+  "This series of six volumes recounts the adventures of two brothers,
+  Tom and Jack Somers, one in the army, the other in the navy, in
+  the great Civil War. The romantic narratives of the fortunes and
+  exploits of the brothers are thrilling in the extreme. Historical
+  accuracy in the recital of the great events of that period is
+  strictly followed, and the result is, not only a library of
+  entertaining volumes, but also the best history of the Civil War
+  for young people ever written."
+
+
++Boat Builders Series.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. In six volumes. Illustrated.
+    Any volume sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25.
+
+  1. +All Adrift+; or, The Goldwing Club.
+  2. +Snug Harbor+; or, The Champlain Mechanics.
+  3. +Square and Compasses+; or, Building the House.
+  4. +Stem to Stern+; or, Building the Boat.
+  5. +All Taut+; or, Rigging the Boat.
+  6. +Ready About+; or, Sailing the Boat.
+
+  "The series includes in six successive volumes the whole art of boat
+  building, boat rigging, boat managing, and practical hints to make
+  the ownership of a boat pay. A great deal of useful information
+  is given in this +Boat Builders Series+, and in each book a very
+  interesting story is interwoven with the information. Every reader
+  will be interested at once in Dory, the hero of 'All Adrift,' and
+  one of the characters retained in the subsequent volumes of the
+  series. His friends will not want to lose sight of him, and every
+  boy who makes his acquaintance in 'All Adrift' will become his
+  friend."
+
+
++Riverdale Story Books.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. Twelve volumes. Illustrated.
+    Illuminated covers. Price: cloth, per set, $3.60; per volume,
+    30 cents; paper, per set, $2.00.
+
+  1. +Little Merchant.+       7. +Proud and Lazy.+
+  2. +Young Voyagers.+        8. +Careless Kate.+
+  3. +Christmas Gift.+        9. +Robinson Crusoe, Jr.+
+  4. +Dolly and I.+          10. +The Picnic Party.+
+  5. +Uncle Ben.+            11. +The Gold Thimble.+
+  6. +Birthday Party.+       12. +The Do-Somethings.+
+
++Riverdale Story Books.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. Six volumes. Illustrated.
+    Fancy cloth and colors. Price per volume, 30 cents.
+
+  1. +Little Merchant.+       4. +Careless Kate.+
+  2. +Proud and Lazy.+        5. +Dolly and I.+
+  3. +Young Voyagers.+        6. +Robinson Crusoe, Jr.+
+
++Flora Lee Library.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. Six volumes. Illustrated.
+    Fancy cloth and colors. Price per volume, 30 cents.
+
+  1. +The Picnic Party.+      4. +Christmas Gift.+
+  2. +The Gold Thimble.+      5. +Uncle Ben.+
+  3. +The Do-Somethings.+     6. +Birthday Party.+
+
+  These are bright short stories for younger children who are unable
+  to comprehend the +Starry Flag Series+ or the +Army and Navy
+  Series+. But they all display the author's talent for pleasing
+  and interesting the little folks. They are all fresh and original,
+  preaching no sermons, but inculcating good lessons.
+
+
+LEE AND SHEPARD, BOSTON, SEND THEIR COMPLETE CATALOGUE FREE.
+
+
+OLIVER OPTIC'S BOOKS
+
++The Great Western Series.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. In six volumes.
+    Illustrated. Any volume sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25.
+
+  1. +Going West;+ or, The Perils of a Poor Boy.
+  2. +Out West;+ or, Roughing It on the Great Lakes.
+  3. +Lake Breezes;+ or, The Cruise of the Sylvania.
+  4. +Going South;+ or, Yachting on the Atlantic Coast.
+  5. +Down South;+ or, Yacht Adventures in Florida.
+  6. +Up the River;+ or, Yachting on the Mississippi.
+
+  "This is the latest series of books issued by this popular writer,
+  and deals with life on the Great Lakes, for which a careful study
+  was made by the author in a summer tour of the immense water sources
+  of America. The story, which carries the same hero through the six
+  books of the series, is always entertaining, novel scenes and varied
+  incidents giving a constantly changing yet always attractive aspect
+  to the narrative. OLIVER OPTIC has written nothing better."
+
+
++The Yacht Club Series.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. In six volumes. Illustrated.
+    Any volume sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25.
+
+  1. +Little Bobtail;+ or, The Wreck of the Penobscot.
+  2. +The Yacht Club;+ or, The Young Boat Builders.
+  3. +Money-Maker;+ or, The Victory of the Basilisk.
+  4. +The Coming Wave;+ or, The Treasure of High Rock.
+  5. +The Dorcas Club;+ or, Our Girls Afloat.
+  6. +Ocean Born;+ or, The Cruise of the Clubs.
+
+  "The series has this peculiarity, that all of its constituent
+  volumes are independent of one another, and therefore each story is
+  complete in itself. OLIVER OPTIC is, perhaps, the favorite author of
+  the boys and girls of this country, and he seems destined to enjoy
+  an endless popularity. He deserves his success, for he makes very
+  interesting stories, and inculcates none but the best sentiments,
+  and the 'Yacht Club' is no exception to this rule."--_New Haven
+  Journal and Courier_.
+
+
++Onward and Upward Series.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. In six volumes.
+    Illustrated. Any volume sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25.
+
+  1. +Field and Forest;+ or, The Fortunes of a Farmer.
+  2. +Plane and Plank;+ or, The Mishaps of a Mechanic.
+  3. +Desk and Debit;+ or, The Catastrophes of a Clerk.
+  4. +Cringle and Crosstree;+ or, The Sea Swashes of a Sailor.
+  5. +Bivouac and Battle;+ or, The Struggles of a Soldier.
+  6. +Sea and Shore;+ or, The Tramps of a Traveller.
+
+  "Paul Farringford, the hero of these tales, is, like most of this
+  author's heroes, a young man of high spirit, and of high aims and
+  correct principles, appearing in the different volumes as a farmer,
+  a captain, a bookkeeper, a soldier, a sailor, and a traveller. In
+  all of them the hero meets with very exciting adventures, told in
+  the graphic style for which the author is famous."
+
+
++The Lake Shore Series.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. In six volumes. Illustrated.
+    Any volume sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25.
+
+  1. +Through by Daylight;+ or, The Young Engineer of the Lake Shore
+        Railroad.
+  2. +Lightning Express;+ or, The Rival Academies.
+  3. +On Time;+ or, The Young Captain of the Ucayga Steamer.
+  4. +Switch Off;+ or, The War of the Students.
+  5. +Brake Up;+ or, The Young Peacemakers.
+  6. +Bear and Forbear;+ or, The Young Skipper of Lake Ucayga.
+
+  "OLIVER OPTIC is one of the most fascinating writers for youth, and
+  withal one of the best to be found in this or any past age. Troops
+  of young people hang over his vivid pages; and not one of them ever
+  learned to be mean, ignoble, cowardly, selfish, or to yield to any
+  vice from anything they ever read from his pen."--_Providence
+  Press_.
+
+
+LEE AND SHEPARD, BOSTON, SEND THEIR COMPLETE CATALOGUE FREE.
+
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+           *       *       *       *
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Errata Noted by Transcriber:
+
+Invisible punctuation has been silently supplied.
+
+... exclaimed the second lieutenant
+  _text reads "exclained"_
+... the lee side of the vessel.
+  _text reads "vesssel"_
+ash cloth and sashes
+  _so in original_
+
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of On The Blockade, by Oliver Optic
+
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+<title>The Project Gutenberg eBook of On the Blockade, by Oliver Optic</title>
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+<pre>
+
+The Project Gutenberg EBook of On The Blockade, by Oliver Optic
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: On The Blockade
+       SERIES: The Blue and the Gray Afloat
+
+Author: Oliver Optic
+
+Release Date: June 18, 2006 [EBook #18617]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ON THE BLOCKADE ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Louise Hope, David Garcia, Juliet Sutherland
+and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at
+http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images
+generously made available by The Kentuckiana Digital
+Library)
+
+
+
+
+
+
+</pre>
+
+
+<div class = "mynote">
+The Frontispiece ("Mulgrum and the Engineer") has been placed between
+the Preface and the <a href = "#toc">Table of Contents</a>.<br>
+Invisible punctuation has been silently supplied. Other typographical
+errors are marked in the text with <ins class = "correction" title =
+"like this">mouse-hover popups</ins>.
+</div>
+
+<p class = "illustration">
+<img src = "images/cover.jpg" width = "404" height = "609"
+alt = "book cover: The Blue and the Gray by Oliver Optic: On the Blockade"
+title = "The Blue and the Gray by Oliver Optic: On the Blockade">
+</p>
+
+
+<div class = "outline chapter">
+
+<h2 class = "ital">THE BLUE AND THE GRAY&mdash;AFLOAT</h2>
+
+<h5>Two colors cloth &nbsp; Emblematic Dies &nbsp; Illustrated<br>
+Price per volume $1.50</h5>
+
+<table>
+<tr><td>
+TAKEN BY THE ENEMY<br>
+WITHIN THE ENEMY'S LINES<br>
+ON THE BLOCKADE<br>
+STAND BY THE UNION<br>
+FIGHTING FOR THE RIGHT<br>
+A VICTORIOUS UNION
+</td></tr>
+</table>
+
+<hr class = "tiny">
+
+<h2 class = "ital">THE BLUE AND THE GRAY&mdash;ON LAND</h2>
+
+<h5>Two colors cloth &nbsp; Emblematic Dies &nbsp; Illustrated<br>
+Price per volume $1.50</h5>
+
+<table>
+<tr><td>
+BROTHER AGAINST BROTHER<br>
+IN THE SADDLE<br>
+A LIEUTENANT AT EIGHTEEN<br>
+ON THE STAFF<br>
+AT THE FRONT<br>
+AN UNDIVIDED UNION
+</td></tr>
+</table>
+
+<hr class = "tiny">
+
+<h5 class = "smallcaps">* &nbsp; * &nbsp; * &nbsp; Any Volume Sold
+Separately &nbsp; * &nbsp; * &nbsp; *</h5>
+
+<hr class = "tiny">
+
+<h3>LEE AND SHEPARD PUBLISHERS</h3>
+
+<h4>BOSTON</h4>
+
+</div>
+
+
+<p class = "illustration chapter">
+<img src = "images/titlepage.png" width = "323" height = "485"
+alt = "title page: The Blue and the Gray Series / by Oliver Optic / On the Blockade"
+title = "The Blue and the Gray Series / by Oliver Optic / On the Blockade">
+</p>
+
+
+<h4 class = "chapter ital">The Blue and the Gray Series</h4>
+
+<hr class = "tiny">
+
+<h2>ON THE BLOCKADE</h2>
+
+<h6>BY</h6>
+
+<h4>OLIVER OPTIC</h4>
+
+<h6>AUTHOR OF "THE ARMY AND NAVY SERIES" "YOUNG AMERICA ABROAD" "THE<br>
+GREAT WESTERN SERIES" "THE WOODVILLE STORIES" "THE STARRY<br>
+FLAG SERIES" "THE BOAT-CLUB STORIES" "THE ONWARD<br>
+AND UPWARD SERIES" "THE YACHT-CLUB SERIES"<br>
+"THE LAKE SHORE SERIES" "THE RIVERDALE<br>
+STORIES" "THE BOAT-BUILDER SERIES"<br>
+"TAKEN &nbsp; BY &nbsp; THE &nbsp; ENEMY"<br>
+"WITHIN THE ENEMY'S<br>
+LINES" ETC.</h6>
+
+<hr class = "tiny">
+
+<h5 class = "section extended">BOSTON</h5>
+
+<h5>LEE AND SHEPARD PUBLISHERS</h5>
+
+
+<h6 class = "chapter smallcaps">Copyright, 1890, by Lee and Shepard</h6>
+
+<hr class = "tiny">
+
+<h6 class = "ital">All rights reserved.</h6>
+
+<h6 class = "smallcaps">On the Blockade.</h6>
+
+
+
+<h6 class = "chapter">TO MY SON-IN-LAW,</h6>
+
+<h4 class = "extended">SOL SMITH RUSSELL,</h4>
+
+<h5 class = "smallcaps">of the united states of america,<br>
+though residing in minneapolis, minnesota,<br>
+who is always<br>
+"On the Blockade" against Melancholy, "The Blues,"<br>
+and all similar maladies,</h5>
+
+<h4 class = "boldf">This Volume</h4>
+
+<h5 class = "smallcaps">is affectionately dedicated.</h5>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">7</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter">PREFACE</h4>
+
+<hr class = "tiny">
+
+<p>"<span class = "smallcaps">On the Blockade</span>" is the third of
+"The Blue and the Gray Series." Like the first and second volumes, its
+incidents are dated back to the War of the Rebellion, and located in the
+midst of its most stirring scenes on the Southern coast, where the naval
+operations of the United States contributed their full share to the
+final result.</p>
+
+<p>The writer begs to remind his readers again that he has not felt
+called upon to invest his story with the dignity of history, or in all
+cases to mingle fiction with actual historic occurrences. He believes
+that all the scenes of the story are not only possible, but probable,
+and that just such events as he has narrated really and frequently
+occurred in the days of the Rebellion.</p>
+
+<p>The historian is forbidden to make his work more palatable or more
+interesting by the intermixture of fiction with fact, while the
+story-writer, though required to be reasonably consistent with the
+spirit
+<span class = "pagenum">8</span>
+and the truth of history, may wander from veritable details, and use his
+imagination in the creation of incidents upon which the grand result is
+reached. It would not be allowable to make the Rebellion a success, if
+the writer so desired, even on the pages of romance; and it would not be
+fair or just to ignore the bravery, the self-sacrifice, and the heroic
+endurance of the Southern people in a cause they believed to be holy and
+patriotic, as almost universally admitted at the present time, any more
+than it would be to lose sight of the magnificent spirit, the heroism,
+the courage, and the persistence, of the Northern people in
+accomplishing what they believed then, and still believe, was a holy and
+patriotic duty in the preservation of the Union.</p>
+
+<p>Incidents not inconsistent with the final result, or with the spirit
+of the people on either side in the great conflict are of comparatively
+little consequence. That General Lee or General Grant turned this or
+that corner in reaching Appomattox may be important, but the grand
+historical tableau is the Christian hero, noble in the midst of defeat,
+disaster, and ruin, formally rendering his sword to the impassible but
+magnanimous conqueror
+<span class = "pagenum">9</span>
+as the crowning event of a long and bloody war. The details are
+historically important, though overshadowed by the mighty result of the
+great conflict.</p>
+
+<p>Many of the personages of the preceding volumes have been introduced
+in the present one, and the central figure remains the same. The writer
+is willing to admit that his hero is an ideal character, though his
+lofty tone and patriotic spirit were fully paralleled by veritable
+individuals during the war; and he is not prepared to apologize for the
+abundant success which attended the career of Christy Passford. Those
+who really struggled as earnestly and faithfully deserved his good
+fortune, though they did not always obtain&nbsp;it.</p>
+
+<p class = "inset">
+<span class = "smallcaps">Dorchester, Mass.,</span> April 24, 1890.</p>
+
+
+<p class = "illustration section">
+<img src = "images/frontis.png" width = "373" height = "532"
+alt = "illustration of quoted scene"><br>
+<span class = "caption">
+<span class = "smallcaps">Mulgrum and the engineer</span>
+(Page 75)</span>
+</p>
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">11</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "toc">CONTENTS</a></h4>
+
+<table>
+<tr>
+<td></td>
+<td class = "number smallcaps" width = "20%">page</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapI">CHAPTER I.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">The United States Steamer Bronx</td>
+<td class = "number">15</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapII">CHAPTER II.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">A Dinner for the Confederacy</td>
+<td class = "number">26</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapIII">CHAPTER III.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">The Intruder at the Cabin Door</td>
+<td class = "number">37</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapIV">CHAPTER IV.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">A Deaf and Dumb Mystery</td>
+<td class = "number">48</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapV">CHAPTER V.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">A Confidential Steward</td>
+<td class = "number">59</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapVI">CHAPTER VI.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">A Mission up the Foremast</td>
+<td class = "number">70</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapVII">CHAPTER VII.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">An Interview on the Bridge</td>
+<td class = "number">81</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapVIII">CHAPTER VIII.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">Important Information, if True</td>
+<td class = "number">92</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapIX">CHAPTER IX.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">
+<span class = "pagenum">12</span>
+A Volunteer Captain's Clerk</td>
+<td class = "number">103</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapX">CHAPTER X.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">The Unexpected Orders</td>
+<td class = "number">114</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapXI">CHAPTER XI.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">Another Reading of the Sealed Orders</td>
+<td class = "number">125</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapXII">CHAPTER XII.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">A Sail on the Starboard Bow</td>
+<td class = "number">136</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapXIII">CHAPTER XIII.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">The Steamer in the Fog</td>
+<td class = "number">147</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapXIV">CHAPTER XIV.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">The Confederate Steamer Scotian</td>
+<td class = "number">158</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapXV">CHAPTER XV.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">The Scotian becomes the Ocklockonee</td>
+<td class = "number">169</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapXVI">CHAPTER XVI.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">Captain Passford's Final Orders</td>
+<td class = "number">180</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapXVII">CHAPTER XVII.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">A Couple of Astonished Conspirators</td>
+<td class = "number">191</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapXVIII">CHAPTER XVIII.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">A Triangular Action with Great Guns</td>
+<td class = "number">202</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapXIX">CHAPTER XIX.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">
+<span class = "pagenum">13</span>
+On the Deck of the Arran</td>
+<td class = "number">213</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapXX">CHAPTER XX.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">The New Commander of the Bronx</td>
+<td class = "number">224</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapXXI">CHAPTER XXI.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">An Expedition in the Gulf</td>
+<td class = "number">235</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapXXII">CHAPTER XXII.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">A Night Expedition in the Boats</td>
+<td class = "number">246</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapXXIII">CHAPTER XXIII.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">The Visit to a Shore Battery</td>
+<td class = "number">257</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapXXIV">CHAPTER XXIV.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">Captain Lonley of the Steamer Havana</td>
+<td class = "number">268</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapXXV">CHAPTER XXV.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">The New Engineer of the Prize Steamer</td>
+<td class = "number">279</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapXXVI">CHAPTER XXVI.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">The Battle with the Soldiers</td>
+<td class = "number">290</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapXXVII">CHAPTER XXVII.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">The Innocent Captain of the Garrison</td>
+<td class = "number">301</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapXXVIII">CHAPTER XXVIII.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">The Bearer of Despatches</td>
+<td class = "number">312</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapXXIX">CHAPTER XXIX.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">
+<span class = "pagenum">14</span>
+The New Commander of the Vixen</td>
+<td class = "number">323</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapXXX">CHAPTER XXX.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">The Action with a Privateer Steamer</td>
+<td class = "number">334</td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td class = "chapnum" colspan = "2">
+<a class = "plain" href = "#chapXXXI">CHAPTER XXXI.</a>
+</td></tr>
+<tr>
+<td class = "chapname">A Short Visit to Bonnydale</td>
+<td class = "number">345</td>
+</tr>
+</table>
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">15</span>
+<h3 class = "chapter">ON THE BLOCKADE</h3>
+
+<hr class = "mid">
+
+
+<h4 class = "section"><a name = "chapI">CHAPTER I</a></h4>
+
+<h6>THE UNITED STATES STEAMER BRONX</h6>
+
+
+<p><span class = "smallcaps">"She</span> is a fine little steamer,
+father, without the possibility of a doubt," said Lieutenant Passford,
+who was seated at the table with his father in the captain's cabin on
+board of the Bronx. "I don't feel quite at home here, and I don't quite
+like the idea of being taken out of the Bellevite."</p>
+
+<p>"You are not going to sea for the fun of it, my son," replied Captain
+Passford. "You are not setting out on a yachting excursion, but on the
+most serious business in the world."</p>
+
+<p>"I know and feel all that, father, but I have spent so many pleasant
+days, hours, weeks, and months on board of the Bellevite, that I am very
+sorry to leave her," added Christy Passford, who had put on his new
+uniform, which was that of
+<span class = "pagenum">16</span>
+master in the United States Navy; and he was as becoming to the uniform
+as the uniform was to&nbsp;him.</p>
+
+<p>"You cannot well help having some regrets at leaving the Bellevite;
+but you must remember that your life on board of her was mostly in the
+capacity of a pleasure-seeker, though you made a good use of your time
+and of your opportunities for improvement; and that is the reason why
+you have made such remarkable progress in your present profession."</p>
+
+<p>"I shall miss my friends on board of the Bellevite. I have sailed
+with all her officers, and Paul Vapoor and I have been cronies for
+years," continued Christy, with a shade of gloom on his bright face.</p>
+
+<p>"You will probably see them occasionally, and if your life is spared
+you may again find yourself an officer of the Bellevite. But I think you
+have no occasion to indulge in any regrets," said Captain Passford,
+imparting a cheerful expression to his dignified countenance. "Allow me
+to call your attention to the fact that you are the commander of this
+fine little steamer. Here you are in your own cabin, and you are still
+nothing but a boy, hardly eighteen years&nbsp;old."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">17</span>
+"If I have not earned my rank, it is not my fault that I have it,"
+answered Christy, hardly knowing whether to be glad or sorry for his
+rapid advancement. "I have never asked for anything; I did not ask or
+expect to be promoted. I was satisfied with my rank as a
+midshipman."</p>
+
+<p>"I did not ask for your promotion, though I could probably have
+procured for you the rank of master when you entered the navy. I do not
+like to ask favors for a member of my own family. I have wished you to
+feel that you were in the service of your country because it needs you,
+and not for glory or profit."</p>
+
+<p>"And I have tried to feel so, father."</p>
+
+<p>"I think you have felt so, my son; and I am prouder of the fact that
+you are a disinterested patriot than of the rank you have nobly and
+bravely won," said Captain Passford, as he took some letters from his
+pocket, from which he selected one bearing an English postage stamp. "I
+have a letter from one of my agents in England, which, I think, contains
+valuable information. I have called the attention of the government to
+these employes of mine, and they will soon pass from my service to that
+of the naval department.
+<span class = "pagenum">18</span>
+The information sent me has sometimes been very important."</p>
+
+<p>"I know that myself, for the information that came from that source
+enabled the Bellevite to capture the Killbright," added Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"The contents of the letter in my hand have been sent to the
+Secretary of the Navy; but it will do no harm for you to possess the
+information given to me," continued Captain Passford, as he opened the
+letter. "But I see a man at work at the foot of the companion way, and I
+don't care to post the whole ship's company on this subject."</p>
+
+<p>"That is Pink Mulgrum," said Christy with a smile on his face. "He is
+deaf and dumb, and he cannot make any use of what you&nbsp;say."</p>
+
+<p>"Don't be sure of anything, Christy, except your religion and your
+patriotism, in these times," added Captain Passford, as he rose and
+closed the door of the cabin.</p>
+
+<p>"I don't think there is much danger from a deaf mute, father," said
+the young commander of the Bronx laughing.</p>
+
+<p>"Perhaps not; but when you have war intelligence to communicate, it
+is best to believe that every person has ears, and that every door has a
+<span class = "pagenum">19</span>
+keyhole. I learn from this letter that the Scotian sailed from Glasgow,
+and the Arran from Leith. The agent is of the opinion that both these
+steamers are fitted out by the same owners, who have formed a company,
+apparently to furnish the South with gunboats for its navy, as well as
+with needed supplies. In his letter my correspondent gives me the reason
+for this belief on his part."</p>
+
+<p>"Does your agent give you any description of the vessels, father?"
+asked Christy, his eyes sparkling with the interest he felt in the
+information.</p>
+
+<p>"Not a very full description, my son, for no strangers were allowed
+on board of either of them, for very obvious reasons; but they are both
+of less than five hundred tons burthen, are of precisely the same model
+and build, evidently constructed in the same yard. Both had been
+pleasure yachts, though owned by different gentlemen. Both sailed on the
+same day, the Scotian from Greenock and the Arran from Leith,
+March&nbsp;3."</p>
+
+<p>Christy opened his pocket diary, and put his finger on the date
+mentioned, counting up the days that had elapsed from that time to the
+present. Captain Passford could not help smiling at
+<span class = "pagenum">20</span>
+the interest his son manifested in the intelligence he had brought to
+him. The acting commander of the Bronx went over his calculation
+again.</p>
+
+<p>"It is fourteen days since these vessels sailed," said he, looking at
+his father. "I doubt if your information will be of any value to me, for
+I suppose the steamers were selected on account of their great speed, as
+is the case with all blockade runners."</p>
+
+<p>"Undoubtedly they were chosen for their speed, for a slow vessel does
+not amount to much in this sort of service," replied Captain Passford.
+"I received my letter day before yesterday, when the two vessels had
+been out twelve days."</p>
+
+<p>"If they are fast steamers, they ought to be approaching the Southern
+coast by this time," suggested Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"This is a windy month, and a vessel bound to the westward would
+encounter strong westerly gales, so that she could hardly make a quick
+passage. Then these steamers will almost certainly put in at Nassau or
+the Bermudas, if not for coal and supplies, at least to obtain the
+latest intelligence from the blockaded coast, and to pick up a pilot for
+the port to which they are bound. The
+<span class = "pagenum">21</span>
+agent thinks it is possible that the Scotian and Arran will meet some
+vessel to the southward of the Isle of Wight that will put an armament
+on board of them. He had written to another of my agents at Southampton
+to look up this matter. It is a quick mail from the latter city to New
+York, and I may get another letter on this subject before you sail,
+Christy."</p>
+
+<p>"My orders may come off to me to-day," added the acting commander. "I
+am all ready to sail, and I am only waiting for them."</p>
+
+<p>"If these two steamers sail in company, as they are likely to do if
+they are about equal in speed, and if they take on board an armament, it
+will hardly be prudent for you to meddle with them," said Captain
+Passford with a smile, though he had as much confidence in the prudence
+as in the bravery of his&nbsp;son.</p>
+
+<p>"What shall I do, father, run away from them?" asked Christy, opening
+his eyes very wide.</p>
+
+<p>"Certainly, my son. There is as much patriotism in running away from
+a superior force as there is in fighting an equal, for if the government
+should lose your vessel and lose you and your ship's company, it would
+be a disaster of more or less consequence to your country."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">22</span>
+"I hardly think I shall fall in with the Scotian and the Arran, so I
+will not consider the question of running away from them," said Christy
+laughing.</p>
+
+<p>"You have not received your orders yet, but they will probably
+require you to report at once to the flag-officer in the Gulf, and
+perhaps they will not permit you to look up blockade runners on the high
+seas," suggested Captain Passford. "These vessels may be fully armed and
+manned, in charge of Confederate naval officers; and doubtless they will
+be as glad to pick up the Bronx as you would be to pick up the Scotian
+or the Arran. You don't know yet whether they will come as simple
+blockade runners, or as naval vessels flying the Confederate flag.
+Whatever your orders, Christy, don't allow yourself to be carried away
+by any Quixotic enthusiasm."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't think I have any more than half as much audacity as Captain
+Breaker said I had. As I look upon it, my first duty is to deliver my
+ship over to the flag-officer in the Gulf; and I suppose I shall be
+instructed to pick up a Confederate cruiser or a blockade runner, if one
+should cross my course."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">23</span>
+"Obey your orders, Christy, whatever they may be. Now, I should like to
+look over the Bronx before I go on shore," said Captain Passford. "I
+think you said she was of about two hundred tons."</p>
+
+<p>"That was what they said down south; but she is about three hundred
+tons," replied Christy, as he proceeded to show his father the cabin in
+which the conversation had taken place.</p>
+
+<p>The captain's cabin was in the stern of the vessel, according to the
+orthodox rule in naval vessels. Of course it was small, though it seemed
+large to Christy who had spent so much of his leisure time in the cabin
+of the Florence, his sailboat on the Hudson. It was substantially fitted
+up, with little superfluous ornamentation; but it was a complete parlor,
+as a landsman would regard it. From it, on the port side opened the
+captain's state room, which was quite ample for a vessel no larger than
+the Bronx. Between it and the pantry on the starboard side, was a
+gangway leading from the foot of the companion way, by which the
+captain's cabin and the ward room were accessible from the quarter
+deck.</p>
+
+<p>Crossing the gangway at the foot of the steps,
+<span class = "pagenum">24</span>
+Christy led the way into the ward room, where the principal officers
+were accommodated. It contained four berths, with porti&egrave;res in
+front of them, which could be drawn out so as to inclose each one in a
+temporary state room. The forward berth on the starboard side was
+occupied by the first lieutenant, and the after one by the second
+lieutenant, according to the custom in the navy. On the port side, the
+forward berth belonged to the chief engineer, and the after one to the
+surgeon. Forward of this was the steerage, in which the boatswain,
+gunner, carpenter, the assistant engineers, and the steward were
+berthed. Each of these apartments was provided with a table upon which
+the meals were served to the officers occupying it. The etiquette of a
+man-of-war is even more exacting than that of a drawing room on
+shore.</p>
+
+<p>Captain Passford was then conducted to the deck where he found the
+officers and seamen engaged in their various duties. Besides his son,
+the former owner of the Bellevite was acquainted with only two persons
+on board of the Bronx, Sampson, the engineer, and Flint, the acting
+first lieutenant, both of whom had served on board of the steam yacht.
+Christy's father gave them a
+<span class = "pagenum">25</span>
+hearty greeting, and both were as glad to see him as he was to greet
+them. Captain Passford then looked over the rest of the ship's company
+with a deeper interest than he cared to manifest, for they were to some
+extent bound up with the immediate future of his son. It was not such a
+ship's company as that which manned the Bellevite, though composed of
+much good material. The captain shook hands with his son, and went on
+board of his boat. Two hours later he came on board again.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">26</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapII">CHAPTER II</a></h4>
+
+<h6>A DINNER FOR THE CONFEDERACY</h6>
+
+
+<p>Christy Passford was not a little surprised to see his father so soon
+after his former visit, and he was confident that he had some good
+reason for coming. He conducted him at once to his cabin, where Captain
+Passford immediately seated himself at the table, and drew from his
+pocket a telegram.</p>
+
+<p>"I found this on my desk when I went to my office," said he, opening
+a cable message, and placing it before Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"'Mutton, three veal, four sea chickens,'" Christy read from the
+paper placed before him, laughing all the time as he thought it was a
+joke of some sort. "Signed 'Warnock.' It looks as though somebody was
+going to have a dinner, father. Mutton, veal, and four sea chickens seem
+to form the substantial of the feast, though I never ate any sea
+chickens."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">27</span>
+"Perhaps somebody will have a dinner, but I hope it will prove to be
+indigestible to those for whom it is provided," added Captain Passford,
+amused at the comments of his&nbsp;son.</p>
+
+<p>"The message is signed by Warnock. I don't happen to have the
+pleasure of his acquaintance, and I don't see why he has taken the
+trouble to send you this bill of fare," chuckled the commander of the
+Bronx.</p>
+
+<p>"This bill of fare is of more importance to me, and especially to
+you, than you seem to understand."</p>
+
+<p>"It is all Greek to me; and I wonder why Warnock, whoever he may be,
+has spent his money in sending you such a message, though I suppose you
+know who is to eat this dinner."</p>
+
+<p>"The expense of sending the cablegram is charged to me, though the
+dinner is prepared for the Confederate States of America. Of course I
+understand it, for if I could not, it would not have been sent to me,"
+replied Captain Passford, assuming a very serious expression. "You know
+Warnock, for he has often been at Bonnydale, though not under the name
+he signs to this message. My three agents, one in the north, one in the
+south,
+<span class = "pagenum">28</span>
+and one in the west of England, have each an assumed name. They are
+Otis, Barnes, and Wilson, and you know them all. They have been captains
+or mates in my employ; and they know all about a vessel when they
+see&nbsp;it."</p>
+
+<p>"I know them all very well, and they are all good friends of mine,"
+added Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"Warnock is Captain Barnes, and this message comes from him. Captain
+Otis signs himself Bixwell in his letters and cablegrams, and Mr.
+Wilson, who was formerly mate of the Manhattan, uses the name of
+Fleetley."</p>
+
+<p>"I begin to see into your system, father; and I suppose the
+government will carry out your plan."</p>
+
+<p>"Very likely; for it would hardly be proper to send such information
+as these men have to transmit in plain English, for there may be spies
+or operators bribed by Confederate agents to suppress such matter."</p>
+
+<p>"I see. I understand the system very well, father," said Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"It is simple enough," added his father, as he took a paper from his
+pocket-book.</p>
+
+<p>"If you only understand it, it is simple enough."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">29</span>
+"I can interpret the language of this message, and there is not another
+person on the western continent that can do so. Now, look at the
+cablegram, Christy," continued Captain Passford, as he opened the paper
+he held in his hand. "What is the first word?"</p>
+
+<p>"Mutton," replied the commander.</p>
+
+<p>"Mutton means armed; that is to say the Scotian and the Arran took an
+armament on board at some point south of England, as indicated by the
+fact that the intelligence comes from Warnock. In about a week the mail
+will bring me a letter from him in which he will explain how he obtained
+this information."</p>
+
+<p>"He must have chartered a steamer and cruised off the Isle of Wight
+to pick it up," suggested Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"He is instructed to do that when necessary. What is the next
+word?"</p>
+
+<p>"'Three,'" replied Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"One means large, two medium, and three small," explained his father.
+"Three what, does it&nbsp;say?"</p>
+
+<p>"'Three veal.'"</p>
+
+<p>"Veal means ship's company, or crew."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">30</span>
+"Putting the pieces together, then, 'three veal' means that the Scotian
+and the Arran have small crews," said Christy, intensely interested in
+the information.</p>
+
+<p>"Precisely so. Read the rest of the message," added Captain
+Passford.</p>
+
+<p>"'Four sea chickens,'" the commander read.</p>
+
+<p>"'Four' means some, a few, no great number; in other words, rather
+indefinite. Very likely Warnock could not obtain exact information. 'C'
+stands for Confederate, and 'sea' is written instead of the letter.
+'Chickens' means officers. 'Four sea chickens,' translated means 'some
+Confederate officers.'"</p>
+
+<p>Christy had written down on a piece of paper the solution of the
+enigma, as interpreted by his father, though not the symbol words of the
+cablegram. He continued to write for a little longer time, amplifying
+and filling in the wanting parts of the message. Then he read what he
+had written, as follows: "'The Scotian and the Arran are armed; there
+are some Confederate officers on board, but their ship's companies are
+small.' Is that it, father?"</p>
+
+<p>"That is the substance of it," replied Captain
+<span class = "pagenum">31</span>
+Passford, as he restored the key of the cipher to his pocket-book, and
+rose from his seat. "Now you know all that can be known on this side of
+the Atlantic in regard to the two steamers. The important information is
+that they are armed, and even with small crews they may be able to sink
+the Bronx, if you should happen to fall in with them, or if your orders
+required you to be on the lookout for them. There is a knock at the
+door."</p>
+
+<p>Christy opened the door, and found a naval officer waiting to see
+him. He handed him a formidable looking envelope, with a great seal upon
+it. The young commander looked at its address, and saw that it came from
+the Navy Department. With it was a letter, which he opened. It was an
+order for the immediate sailing of the Bronx, the sealed orders to be
+opened when she reached latitude 38&deg;&nbsp;N. The messenger spoke
+some pleasant words, and then took his leave. Christy returned to the
+cabin, and showed the ponderous envelope to his father.</p>
+
+<p>"Sealed orders, as I supposed you would have," said Captain
+Passford.</p>
+
+<p>"And this is my order to sail immediately on receipt of it," added
+Christy.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">32</span>
+"Then I must leave you, my son; and may the blessing of God go with you
+wherever your duty calls you!" exclaimed the father, not a little shaken
+by his paternal feelings. "Be brave, be watchful; but be prudent under
+all circumstances. Bravery and Prudence ought to be twin sisters, and I
+hope you will always have one of them on each side of you. I am not
+afraid that you will be a poltroon, a coward; but I do fear that your
+enthusiasm may carry you farther than you ought to&nbsp;go."</p>
+
+<p>"I hope not, father; and your last words to me shall be remembered.
+When I am about to engage in any important enterprise, I will recall
+your admonition, and ask myself if I am heeding&nbsp;it."</p>
+
+<p>"That satisfies me. I wish you had such a ship's company as we had on
+board of the Bellevite; but you have a great deal of good material, and
+I am confident that you will make the best use of it. Remember that you
+are fighting for your country and the best government God ever gave to
+the nations of the earth. Be brave, be prudent; but be a Christian, and
+let no mean, cruel or unworthy action stain your record."</p>
+
+<p>Captain Passford took the hand of his son, and though neither of them
+wept, both of them were
+<span class = "pagenum">33</span>
+under the influence of the strongest emotions. Christy accompanied his
+father to the accommodation ladder, and shook hands with him again as he
+embarked in his boat. His mother and his sister had been on board that
+day, and the young commander had parted from them with quite as much
+emotion as on the present occasion. The members of the family were
+devotedly attached to each other, and in some respects the event seemed
+like a funeral to all of them, and not less to Christy than to the
+others, though he was entering upon a very exalted duty for one of his
+years.</p>
+
+<p>"Pass the word for Mr. Flint," said Christy, after he had watched the
+receding boat that bore away his father for a few minutes.</p>
+
+<p>"On duty, Captain Passford," said the first lieutenant, touching his
+cap to him a few minutes later.</p>
+
+<p>"Heave short the anchor, and make ready to get under way," added the
+commander.</p>
+
+<p>"Heave short, sir," replied Mr. Flint, as he touched his cap and
+retired. "Pass the word for Mr. Giblock."</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Giblock was the boatswain of the ship,
+<span class = "pagenum">34</span>
+though he had only the rank of a boatswain's mate. He was an old sailor,
+as salt as a barrel of pickled pork, and knew his duty from keel to
+truck. In a few moments his pipe was heard, and the seamen began to walk
+around the capstan.</p>
+
+<p>"Cable up and down, sir," said the boatswain, reporting to the second
+lieutenant on the forecastle.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Lillyworth was the acting second lieutenant, though he was not to
+be attached to the Bronx after she reached her destination in the Gulf.
+He repeated the report from the boatswain to the first lieutenant. The
+steamer was rigged as a topsail schooner; but the wind was contrary, and
+no sail was set before getting under way. The capstan was manned again,
+and as soon as the report came from the second lieutenant that the
+anchor was aweigh, the first lieutenant gave the order to strike one
+bell, which meant that the steamer was to go "ahead slow."</p>
+
+<p>The Bronx had actually started on her mission, and the heart of
+Christy swelled in his bosom as he looked over the vessel, and realized
+that he was in command, though not for more than a week or two. All the
+courtesies and ceremonies were duly
+<span class = "pagenum">35</span>
+attended to, and the steamer, as soon as the anchor had been catted and
+fished, at the stroke of four bells, went ahead at full speed, though,
+as the fires had been banked in the furnaces, the engine was not working
+up to its capacity. In a couple of hours more she was outside of Sandy
+Hook, and on the broad ocean. The ship's company had been drilled to
+their duties, and everything worked to the entire satisfaction of the
+young commander.</p>
+
+<p>The wind was ahead and light. All hands had been stationed, and at
+four in the afternoon, the first dog watch was on duty, and there was
+not much that could be called work for any one to do. Mr. Lillyworth,
+the second lieutenant, had the deck, and Christy had retired to his
+cabin to think over the events of the day, especially those relating to
+the Scotian and the Arran. He had not yet read his orders, and he could
+not decide what he should do, even if he discovered the two steamers in
+his track. He sat in his arm chair with the door of the cabin open, and
+when he saw the first lieutenant on his way to the ward room, he called
+him&nbsp;in.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, Mr. Flint, what do you think of our crew?" asked the captain,
+after he had seated his guest.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">36</span>
+"I have hardly seen enough of the men to be able to form an opinion,"
+replied Flint. "I am afraid we have some hard material on board, though
+there are a good many first-class fellows among them."</p>
+
+<p>"Of course we can not expect to get such a crew as we had in the
+Bellevite. How do you like Mr. Lillyworth?" asked the commander, looking
+sharply into the eye of his subordinate.</p>
+
+<p>"I don't like him," replied Flint, bluntly. "You and I have been in
+some tight places together, and it is best to speak our minds
+squarely."</p>
+
+<p>"That's right, Mr. Flint. We will talk of him another time. I have
+another matter on my mind just now," added Christy.</p>
+
+<p>He proceeded to tell the first lieutenant something about the two
+steamers.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">37</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapIII">CHAPTER III</a></h4>
+
+<h6>THE INTRUDER AT THE CABIN DOOR</h6>
+
+
+<p>Before he said anything about the Scotian and the Arran, Christy,
+mindful of the injunction of his father, had closed the cabin door, the
+porti&egrave;re remaining drawn as it was before. When he had taken this
+precaution, he related some of the particulars which had been given to
+him earlier in the&nbsp;day.</p>
+
+<p>"It is hardly worth while to talk about the matter yet awhile," added
+Christy. "I have my sealed orders, and I can not open the envelope until
+we are in latitude 38, and that will be sometime to-morrow
+forenoon."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't think that Captain Folkner, who expected to be in command of
+the Teaser, as she was called before we put our hands upon her,
+overestimated her speed," replied Lieutenant Flint, consulting his
+watch. "We are making fifteen knots an hour just now, and Mr. Sampson is
+not
+<span class = "pagenum">38</span>
+hurrying her. I have been watching her very closely since we left Sandy
+Hook, and I really believe she will make eighteen knots with a little
+crowding."</p>
+
+<p>"What makes you think so, Flint?" asked Christy, much interested in
+the statement of the first lieutenant.</p>
+
+<p>"I suppose it is natural for a sailor to fall in love with his ship,
+and that is my condition in regard to the Bronx," replied Flint, with a
+smile which was intended as a mild apology for his weakness. "I used to
+be in love with the coasting schooner I owned and commanded, and I
+almost cried when I had to sell&nbsp;her."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't think you need to be ashamed of this sentiment, or that an
+inanimate structure should call it into being," said the young
+commander. "I am sure I have not ceased to love the Bellevite; and in my
+eyes she is handsomer than any young lady I ever saw. I have not been
+able to transfer my affections to the Bronx as yet, and she will have to
+do something very remarkable before I do so. But about the speed of our
+ship?"</p>
+
+<p>"I have noticed particularly how easily and
+<span class = "pagenum">39</span>
+gracefully she makes her way through the water when she is going fifteen
+knots. Why that is faster than most of the ocean passenger steamers
+travel."</p>
+
+<p>"Very true; but like many of these blockade runners and other vessels
+which the Confederate government and rich men at the South have
+purchased in the United Kingdom, she was doubtless built on the Clyde.
+Not a few of them have been constructed for private yachts, and I have
+no doubt, from what I have seen, that the Bronx is one of the number.
+The Scotian and the Arran belonged to wealthy Britishers; and of course
+they were built in the very best manner, and were intended to attain the
+very highest rate of speed."</p>
+
+<p>"I shall count on eighteen knots at least on the part of the Bronx
+when the situation shall require her to do her best. By the way, Captain
+Passford, don't you think that a rather queer name has been given to our
+steamer? Bronx! I am willing to confess that I don't know what the word
+means, or whether it is fish, flesh or fowl," continued Flint.</p>
+
+<p>"It is not fish, flesh or fowl," replied Christy, laughing. "My
+father suggested the name to
+<span class = "pagenum">40</span>
+the Department, and it was adopted. He talked with me about a name, as
+he thought I had some interest in her, for the reason that I had done
+something in picking her&nbsp;up."</p>
+
+<p>"Done something? I should say that you had done it all," added
+Flint.</p>
+
+<p>"I did my share. The vessels of the navy have generally been named
+after a system, though it has often been varied. Besides the names of
+states and cities, the names of rivers have been given to vessels. The
+Bronx is the name of a small stream, hardly more than a brook, in West
+Chester County, New York. When I was a small boy, my father had a
+country place on its banks, and I did my first paddling in the water in
+the Bronx. I liked the name, and my father recommended&nbsp;it."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't object to the name, though somehow it makes me think of a
+walnut cracked in your teeth when I hear it pronounced," added Flint.
+"Now that I know what it is and what it means, I shall take more kindly
+to it, though I am afraid we shall get to calling her the Bronxy before
+we have done with her, especially if she gets to be a pet, for the name
+seems to need another syllable."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">41</span>
+"Young men fall in love with girls without regard to their names."</p>
+
+<p>"That's so. A friend of mine in our town in Maine fell in love with a
+young lady by the name of Leatherbee; but she was a very pretty girl and
+her name was all the objection I had to her," said Flint, chuckling.</p>
+
+<p>"But that was an objection which your friend evidently intended to
+remove at no very distant day," suggested Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"Very true; and he did remove it some years ago. What was that
+noise?" asked the first lieutenant, suddenly rising from his seat.</p>
+
+<p>Christy heard the sounds at the same moment. He and his companion in
+the cabin had been talking about the Scotian and the Arran, and what his
+father had said to him about prudence in speaking of his movements came
+to his mind. The noise was continued, and he hastened to the door of his
+state room, and threw it open. In the room he found Dave hard at work on
+the furniture; he had taken out the berth sack, and was brushing out the
+inside of the berth. The noise had been made by the shaking of the slats
+on which the mattress rested. Davis Talbot, the cabin steward
+<span class = "pagenum">42</span>
+of the Bronx, had been captured in the vessel when she was run out of
+Pensacola Bay some months before. As he was a very intelligent colored
+man, or rather mulatto, though they were all the same at the South, the
+young commander had selected him for his present service; and he never
+had occasion to regret the choice. Dave had passed his time since the
+Teaser arrived at New York at Bonnydale, and he had become a great
+favorite, not only with Christy, but with all the members of the
+family.</p>
+
+<p>"What are you about, Dave?" demanded Christy, not a little astonished
+to find the steward in his room.</p>
+
+<p>"I am putting the room in order for the captain, sir," replied Dave
+with a cheerful smile, such as he always wore in the presence of his
+superiors. "I found something in this berth I did not like to see about
+a bed in which a gentleman is to sleep, and I have been through it with
+poison and a feather; and I will give you the whole southern Confederacy
+if you find a single redback in the berth after this."</p>
+
+<p>"I am very glad you have attended to this matter at once, Dave."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">43</span>
+"Yes, sir; Captain Folkner never let me attend to it properly, for he
+was afraid I would read some of his papers on the desk. He was willing
+to sleep six in a bed with redbacks," chuckled Dave.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, I am not, or even two in a bed with such companions. How long
+have you been in my room, Dave?" added Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"More than two hours, I think; and I have been mighty
+busy&nbsp;too."</p>
+
+<p>"Did you hear me when I came into the cabin?"</p>
+
+<p>"No, sir, I did not; but I heard you talking with somebody a
+while&nbsp;ago."</p>
+
+<p>"What did I say to the other person?"</p>
+
+<p>"I don't know, sir; I could not make out a word, and I didn't stop in
+my work to listen. I have been very busy, Captain Passford," answered
+Dave, beginning to think he had been doing something that was not
+altogether regular.</p>
+
+<p>"Don't you know what we were talking about, Dave?"</p>
+
+<p>"No, sir; I did not make out a single word you said," protested the
+steward, really troubled to find that he had done something wrong,
+though he had not the least idea what it was. "I did not mean to do
+anything out of the way, Captain Passford."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">44</span>
+"I have no fault to find this time, Dave."</p>
+
+<p>"I should hope not, sir," added Dave, looking as solemn as a sleepy
+owl. "I would jump overboard before I would offend you, Massa
+Christy."</p>
+
+<p>"You need not jump overboard just yet," replied the captain, with a
+pleasant smile, intended to remove the fears of the steward. "But I want
+to make a new rule for you, Dave."</p>
+
+<p>"Thank you, sir; if you sit up nights to make rules for me, I will
+obey all of them; and I would give you the whole State of Florida before
+I would break one of them on purpose, Massa Christy."</p>
+
+<p>"Massa Christy!" exclaimed the captain, laughing.</p>
+
+<p>"Massa Captain Passford!" shouted Dave, hastening to correct his
+over-familiarity.</p>
+
+<p>"I don't object to your calling me Christy when we are alone, for I
+look upon you as my friend, and I have tried to treat you as a
+gentleman, though you are a subordinate. But are you going to be a
+nigger again, and call white men 'Massa?' I told you not to use that
+word."</p>
+
+<p>"I done forget it when I got excited because I was afraid I had
+offended you," pleaded the steward.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">45</span>
+"Your education is vastly superior to most people of your class, and you
+should not belittle yourself. This is my cabin; and I shall sometimes
+have occasion to talk confidentially with my officers. Do you understand
+what I mean, Dave?"</p>
+
+<p>"Perfectly, Captain Passford: I know what it is to talk confidently
+and what it is to talk confidentially, and you do both, sir," replied
+the steward.</p>
+
+<p>"But I am sometimes more confidential than confident. Now you must do
+all your work in my state room when I am not in the cabin, and this is
+the new rule," said Christy, as he went out of the room. "I know that I
+can trust you, Dave; but when I tell a secret I want to know to how many
+persons I am telling it. You may finish your work now;" and he closed
+the door.</p>
+
+<p>Christy could not have explained why he did so if it had been
+required of him, but he went directly to the door leading out into the
+companion way, and suddenly threw it wide open, drawing the
+porti&egrave;re aside at the same time. Not a little to his surprise,
+for he had not expected it, he found a man there; and the intruder was
+down
+<span class = "pagenum">46</span>
+on his knees, as if in position to place his ear at the keyhole. This
+time the young commander was indignant, and without stopping to consider
+as long as the precepts of his father required, he seized the man by the
+collar, and dragged him into the cabin.</p>
+
+<p>"What are you doing there?" demanded Christy in the heat of his
+indignation.</p>
+
+<p>The intruder, who was a rather stout man, began to shake his head
+with all his might, and to put the fore finger of his right hand on his
+mouth and one of his ears. He was big enough to have given the young
+commander a deal of trouble if he had chosen to resist the force used
+upon him; but he appeared to be tame and submissive. He did not speak,
+but he seemed to be exerting himself to the utmost to make himself
+understood. Flint had resumed his seat at the table, facing the door,
+and in spite of himself, apparently, he began to laugh.</p>
+
+<p>"That is Pink Mulgrum, Captain Passford," said he, evidently to
+prevent his superior from misinterpreting the lightness of his conduct.
+"As you are aware, he is deaf and dumb."</p>
+
+<p class = "illustration">
+<img src = "images/pic46.png" width = "337" height = "533"
+alt = "illustration of quoted scene"><br>
+<span class = "caption smallcaps">
+Mulgrum at the captain's door.</span>
+</p>
+
+
+<p>"I see who he is now," replied Christy, who
+<span class = "pagenum">47</span>
+had just identified the man. "He may be deaf and dumb, but he seems to
+have a great deal of business at the door of my cabin."</p>
+
+<p>"I have no doubt he is as deaf as the keel of the ship, and I have
+not yet heard him speak a word," added the first lieutenant. "But he is
+a stout fellow, very patriotic, and willing to work."</p>
+
+<p>"All that may be, but I have found him once before hanging around
+that door to-day."</p>
+
+<p>At this moment Mulgrum took from his pocket a tablet of paper and a
+pencil, and wrote upon it, "I am a deaf mute, and I don't know what you
+are talking about." Christy read it, and then wrote, "What were you
+doing at the door?" He replied that he had been sent by Mr. Lillyworth
+to clean the brasses on the door. He was then dismissed.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">48</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapIV">CHAPTER IV</a></h4>
+
+<h6>A DEAF AND DUMB MYSTERY</h6>
+
+
+<p>As he dismissed Mulgrum, Christy tore off the leaf from the tablet on
+which both of them had written before he handed it back to the owner.
+For a few moments, he said nothing, and had his attention fixed on the
+paper in his hand, which he seemed to be studying for some reason of
+his&nbsp;own.</p>
+
+<p>"That man writes a very good hand for one in his position," said he,
+looking at the first lieutenant.</p>
+
+<p>"I had noticed that before," replied Flint, as the commander handed
+him the paper, which he looked over with interest. "I had some talk with
+him on his tablet the day he came on board. He strikes me as a very
+intelligent and well-educated&nbsp;man."</p>
+
+<p>"Was he born a deaf mute?" asked Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"I did not think to ask him that question; but I judged from the
+language he used and his rapid
+<span class = "pagenum">49</span>
+writing that he was well educated. There is character in his handwriting
+too; and that is hardly to be expected from a deaf mute," replied
+Flint.</p>
+
+<p>"Being a deaf mute, he can not have been shipped as a seaman, or even
+as an ordinary steward," suggested the captain.</p>
+
+<p>"Of course not; he was employed as a sort of scullion to be worked
+wherever he could make himself useful. Mr. Nawood engaged him on the
+recommendation of Mr. Lillyworth," added Flint, with something like a
+frown on his brow, as though he had just sounded a new idea.</p>
+
+<p>"Have you asked Mr. Lillyworth anything about him?"</p>
+
+<p>"I have not; for somehow Mr. Lillyworth and I don't seem to be very
+affectionate towards each other, though we get along very well together.
+But Mulgrum wrote out for me that he was born in Cherryfield, Maine, and
+obtained his education as a deaf mute in Hartford. I learned the deaf
+and dumb alphabet when I was a schoolmaster, as a pastime, and I had
+some practice with it in the house where I boarded."</p>
+
+<p>"Then you can talk in that way with Mulgrum."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">50</span>
+"Not a bit of it; he knows nothing at all about the deaf and dumb
+alphabet, and could not spell out a single word I gave&nbsp;him."</p>
+
+<p>"That is very odd," added the captain musing.</p>
+
+<p>"So I thought; but he explained it by saying that at the school they
+were changing this method of communication for that of actually speaking
+and understanding what was said by observing the vocal organs. He had
+not remained long enough to master this method; in fact he had done all
+his talking with his tablets."</p>
+
+<p>"It is a little strange that he should not have learned either method
+of communication."</p>
+
+<p>"I thought so myself, and said as much to him; but he told me that he
+had inherited considerable property at the death of his father, and he
+was not inclined to learn new tricks," said Flint. "He is intensely
+patriotic, and said that he was willing to give himself and all his
+property for the salvation of his country. He had endeavored to obtain a
+position as captain's clerk, or something of that sort, in the navy; but
+failing of this, he had been willing to go to the war as a scullion. He
+says he shall fight, whatever his situation, when he has the
+opportunity; and that is all I know about&nbsp;him."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">51</span>
+Christy looked on the floor, and seemed to be considering the facts he
+had just learned. He had twice discovered Mulgrum at the door of his
+cabin, though his presence there had been satisfactorily explained; or
+at least a reason had been given. This man had been brought on board by
+the influence of Mr. Lillyworth, who had been ordered to the Gulf for
+duty, and was on board as a substitute for Mr. Flint, who was acting in
+Christy's place, as the latter was in that of Mr. Blowitt, who outranked
+them all. Flint had not been favorably impressed with the acting second
+lieutenant, and he had not hesitated to speak his mind in regard to him
+to the captain. Though Christy had been more reserved in speech, he had
+the feeling that Mr. Lillyworth must establish a reputation for
+patriotism and fidelity to the government before he could trust him as
+he did the first lieutenant, though he was determined to manifest
+nothing like suspicion in regard to&nbsp;him.</p>
+
+<p>At this stage of the war, that is to say in the earlier years of it,
+the government was obliged to accept such men as it could obtain for
+officers, for the number in demand greatly exceeded the supply of
+regularly educated naval officers. There were
+<span class = "pagenum">52</span>
+a great many applicants for positions, and candidates were examined in
+regard to their professional qualifications rather than their motives
+for entering the service. If a man desired to enter the army or the
+navy, the simple wish was regarded as a sufficient guaranty of his
+patriotism, especially in connection with his oath of allegiance. With
+the deaf mute's leaf in his hand Christy was thinking over this matter
+of the motives of officers. He was not satisfied in regard to either
+Lillyworth or Mulgrum, and besides the regular quota of officers and
+seamen permanently attached to the Bronx, there were eighteen seamen and
+petty officers berthed forward, who were really passengers, though they
+were doing duty.</p>
+
+<p>"Where did you say this man Mulgrum was born, Mr. Flint?" asked the
+captain, after he had mused for quite a time.</p>
+
+<p>"In Cherryfield, Maine," replied the first lieutenant; and he could
+not help feeling that the commander had not been silent so long for
+nothing.</p>
+
+<p>"You are a Maine man, Flint: were you ever in this town?"</p>
+
+<p>"I have been; I taught school there for six
+<span class = "pagenum">53</span>
+months; and it was the last place I filled before I went to sea."</p>
+
+<p>"I am glad to hear it, for it will save me from looking any further
+for the man I want just now. If this deaf mute was born and brought up
+in Cherryfield, he must know something about the place," added Christy
+as he touched a bell on his table, to which Dave instantly
+responded.</p>
+
+<p>"Do you know Mulgrum, Dave?" asked the captain.</p>
+
+<p>"No, sir; never heard of him before," replied the steward.</p>
+
+<p>"You don't know him! The man who has been cleaning the brass work on
+the doors?" exclaimed Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh! Pink, we all call him," said the steward.</p>
+
+<p>"His name is Pinkney Mulgrum," Flint explained.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, sir; I know him, though we never had any long talks together,"
+added Dave with a rich smile on his face.</p>
+
+<p>"Go on deck, and tell Mulgrum to come into my cabin," said
+Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"If I tell him that, he won't hear me," suggested Dave.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">54</span>
+"Show him this paper," interposed the first lieutenant, handing him a
+card on which he had written the order.</p>
+
+<p>Dave left the cabin to deliver the message, and the captain
+immediately instructed Flint to question the man in regard to the
+localities and other matters in Cherryfield, suggesting that he should
+conduct his examination so as not to excite any suspicion. Pink Mulgrum
+appeared promptly, and was placed at the table where both of the
+officers could observe his expression. Then Flint began to write on a
+sheet of paper, and passed his first question to the man. It was: "Don't
+you remember me?" Mulgrum wrote that he did not. Then the inquisitor
+asked when he had left Cherryfield to attend the school at Hartford; and
+the date he gave placed him there at the very time when Flint had been
+the master of the school for four months. On the question of locality,
+he could place the church, the schoolhouse and the hotel; and he seemed
+to have no further knowledge of the town. When asked where his father
+lived, he described a white house next to the church; but Flint knew
+that this had been owned and occupied by the minister for many
+years.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">55</span>
+"This man is a humbug," was the next sentence the first lieutenant
+wrote, but he passed it to the captain. Christy wrote under it: "Tell
+him that we are perfectly satisfied with his replies, and thank him for
+his attendance;" which was done at once, and the captain smiled upon him
+as though he had conducted himself with distinguished ability.</p>
+
+<p>"Mulgrum has been in Cherryfield; but he could not have remained
+there more than a day or two," said Flint, when the door had closed
+behind the deaf mute.</p>
+
+<p>The captain made a gesture to impose silence upon his companion.</p>
+
+<p>"Mulgrum is all right in every respect," said he in a loud tone, so
+that if the subject of the examination had stopped at the keyhole of the
+door, he would not be made any the wiser for what he heard there.</p>
+
+<p>"He knows Cherryfield as well as he knows the deck of the Bronx, and
+as you say, Captain Passford, he is all right in every respect," added
+the first lieutenant in the same loud tone. "Mulgrum is a well educated
+man, captain, and you will have a great deal of writing to do: I suggest
+that you
+<span class = "pagenum">56</span>
+bring him into your cabin, and make him your clerk."</p>
+
+<p>"That is a capital idea, Mr. Flint, and I shall consider it,"
+returned the commander, making sure that the man at the door should hear
+him, if Mulgrum lingered there. "I have a number of letters sent over
+from England relating to blockade runners that I wish to have copied for
+the use of any naval officers with whom I may fall in; and I have not
+the time to do it myself."</p>
+
+<p>"Mulgrum writes a very handsome hand, and no one could do the work
+any better than&nbsp;he."</p>
+
+<p>Christy thought enough had been said to satisfy the curiosity of
+Mulgrum if he was still active in seeking information, and both of the
+officers were silent. The captain had enough to think of to last him a
+long while. The result of the inquiry into the auditory and vocal powers
+of the scullion, as Flint called him, had convinced him that the deaf
+mute was a fraud. He had no doubt that he could both speak and hear as
+well as the rest of the ship's company. But the puzzling question was in
+relation to the reason why he pretended to be deaf and dumb. If he was
+desirous of serving his country in the navy, and especially in the
+<span class = "pagenum">57</span>
+Bronx, it was not necessary to pretend to be deaf and dumb in order to
+obtain a fighting berth on board of her. It looked like a first class
+mystery to the young commander, but he was satisfied that the presence
+of Mulgrum meant mischief. He could not determine at once what it was
+best to do to solve the mystery; but he decided that the most extreme
+watchfulness was required of him and his first lieutenant. This was all
+he could do, and he touched his bell again.</p>
+
+<p>"Dave," said he when the cabin steward presented himself before him,
+"go on deck and ask Mr. Lillyworth to report to me the log and the
+weather."</p>
+
+<p>"The log and the weather, sir," replied Dave, as he hastened out of
+the cabin.</p>
+
+<p>Christy watched him closely as he went out at the door, and he was
+satisfied that Mulgrum was not in the passage, if he had stopped there
+at all. His present purpose was to disarm all the suspicions of the
+subject of the mystery, but he would have been glad to know whether or
+not the man had lingered at the door to hear what was said in regard to
+him. He was not anxious in regard to the weather, or even the log, and
+he sent Dave on
+<span class = "pagenum">58</span>
+his errand in order to make sure that Mulgrum was not still doing duty
+as a listener.</p>
+
+<p>"Wind south south west, log last time fifteen knots and a half,"
+reported Dave, as he came in after knocking at the door.</p>
+
+<p>"I can not imagine why that man pretended to be deaf and dumb in
+order to get a position on board of the Bronx. He is plainly a fraud,"
+said the captain when Dave had gone back to his work in the state
+room.</p>
+
+<p>"I don't believe he pretended to be a deaf mute in order to get a
+place on board, for that would ordinarily be enough to prevent him from
+getting it. I should put it that he had obtained his place in spite of
+being deaf and dumb. But the mystery exists just the same."</p>
+
+<p>The captain went on deck, and the first lieutenant to the ward
+room.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">59</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapV">CHAPTER V</a></h4>
+
+<h6>A CONFIDENTIAL STEWARD</h6>
+
+
+<p>The wind still came from the southward, and it was very light. The
+sea was comparatively smooth, and the Bronx continued on her course. At
+the last bi-hourly heaving of the log, she was making sixteen knots an
+hour. The captain went into the engine room, where he found Mr. Gawl,
+one of the chief's two assistants, on duty. This officer informed him
+that no effort had been made to increase the speed of the steamer, and
+that she was under no strain whatever. The engine had been thoroughly
+overhauled, as well as every other part of the vessel, and every
+improvement that talent and experience suggested had been made. It now
+appeared that the engine had been greatly benefited by whatever changes
+had been made. These improvements had been explained to the commander by
+Mr. Sampson the day before; but Christy had not given much attention
+<span class = "pagenum">60</span>
+to the matter, for he preferred to let the speed of the vessel speak for
+itself; and this was what it appeared to be doing at the present
+time.</p>
+
+<p>Christy walked the deck for some time, observing everything that
+presented itself, and taking especial notice of the working of the
+vessel. Though he made no claims to any superior skill, he was really an
+expert, and the many days and months he had passed in the companionship
+of Paul Vapoor in studying the movements of engines and hulls had made
+him wiser and more skilful than it had even been suspected that he was.
+He was fully competent for the position he was temporarily filling; but
+he had made himself so by years of study and practice.</p>
+
+<p>Christy had not yet obtained all the experience he required as a
+naval officer, and he was fully aware that this was what he needed to
+enable him to discharge his duty in the best manner. He was in command
+of a small steamer, a position of responsibility which he had not
+coveted in this early stage of his career, though it was only for a week
+or less, as the present speed of the Bronx indicated. He had ambition
+enough to hope that he should be able to distinguish himself in this
+<span class = "pagenum">61</span>
+brief period, for it might be years before he again obtained such an
+opportunity. His youth was against him, and he was aware that he had
+been selected to take the steamer to the Gulf because there was a
+scarcity of officers of the proper grade, and his rank gave him the
+position.</p>
+
+<p>The motion of the Bronx exactly suited him, and he judged that in a
+heavy sea she would behave very well. He had made one voyage in her from
+the Gulf to New York, and the steamer had done very well, though she had
+been greatly improved at the navy yard. Certainly her motion was better,
+and the connection between the engine and the inert material of which
+the steamer was constructed, seemed to be made without any straining or
+jerking. There was very little shaking and trembling as the powerful
+machinery drove her ahead over the quiet sea. There had been no very
+severe weather during his first cruise in the Bronx, and she had not
+been tested in a storm under his management, though she had doubtless
+encountered severe gales in crossing the Atlantic in a breezy season of
+the year.</p>
+
+<p>While Christy was planking the deck, four bells were struck on the
+ship's great bell on the
+<span class = "pagenum">62</span>
+top-gallant forecastle. It was the beginning of the second dog watch, or
+six o'clock in the afternoon, and the watch which had been on duty since
+four o'clock was relieved. Mr. Flint ascended the bridge, and took the
+place of Mr. Lillyworth, the second lieutenant. Under this bridge was
+the pilot-house, and in spite of her small size, the steamer was steered
+by steam. The ship had been at sea but a few hours, and the crew were
+not inclined to leave the deck. The number of men on board was nearly
+doubled by the addition of those sent down to fill vacancies in other
+vessels on the blockade. Christy went on the bridge soon after, more to
+take a survey inboard than for any other purpose.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Lillyworth had gone aft, but when he met Mulgrum coming up from
+the galley, he stopped and looked around him. With the exception of
+himself nearly the whole ship's company were forward. The commander
+watched him with interest when he stopped in the vicinity of the deaf
+mute, who also halted in the presence of the second lieutenant. Then
+they walked together towards the companion way, and disappeared behind
+the mainmast. Christy had not before
+<span class = "pagenum">63</span>
+noticed any intercourse between the lieutenant and the scullion, though
+he thought it a little odd that the officer should set the man at work
+cleaning the brasses about the door of the captain's cabin, a matter
+that belonged to the steward's department. He had learned from Flint
+that Mulgrum had been recommended to the chief steward by Lillyworth, so
+that it was evident enough that they had been acquainted before either
+of them came on board. But he could not see them behind the mast, and he
+desired very much to know what they were doing.</p>
+
+<p>Flint had taken his supper before he went on duty on the bridge, and
+the table was waiting for the other ward room officers who had just been
+relieved. It was time for Lillyworth to go to the meal, but he did not
+go, and he seemed to be otherwise engaged. After a while, Christy looked
+at his watch, and found that a quarter of an hour had elapsed since the
+second lieutenant had left the bridge, and he had spent nearly all this
+time abaft the mainmast with the scullion. The commander had become
+absolutely absorbed in his efforts to fathom the deaf and dumb mystery,
+and fortunately there was nothing else to occupy his
+<span class = "pagenum">64</span>
+attention, for Flint had drilled the crew, including the men for other
+vessels, and had billeted and stationed them during the several days he
+had been on board. Everything was working as though the Bronx had been
+at sea a month instead of less than half a&nbsp;day.</p>
+
+<p>Christy was exceedingly anxious to ascertain what, if anything, was
+passing between Lillyworth and Mulgrum; but he could see no way to
+obtain any information on the subject. He had no doubt he was watched as
+closely as he was watching the second lieutenant. If he went aft, that
+would at once end the conference, if one was in progress. He could not
+call upon a seaman to report on such a delicate question without
+betraying himself, and he had not yet learned whom to trust in such a
+matter, and it was hardly proper to call upon a foremast hand to watch
+one of his officers.</p>
+
+<p>The only person on board besides the first lieutenant in whom he felt
+that he could repose entire confidence was Dave. He knew him thoroughly,
+and his color was almost enough to guarantee his loyalty to the country
+and his officers, and especially to himself, for the steward possessed a
+rather extravagant admiration for the one who
+<span class = "pagenum">65</span>
+had "brought him out of bondage," as he expressed it, and had treated
+him like a gentleman from first to last. He could trust Dave even on the
+most delicate mission; but Dave was attending to the table in the ward
+room, and he did not care to call him from his duty.</p>
+
+<p>At the end of another five minutes, Christy saw Mulgrum come from
+abaft the mainmast, and descend the ladder to the galley. He saw no more
+of Lillyworth, and he concluded that, keeping himself in the shadow of
+the mast, he had gone below. He remained on the bridge a while longer
+considering what he should do. He said nothing to Flint, for he did not
+like to take up the attention of any officer on duty. The commander
+thought that Dave could render him the assistance he required better
+than any other person on board, for being only a steward and a colored
+man at that, less notice would be taken of him than of one in a higher
+position. He was about to descend from the bridge when Flint spoke to
+him in regard to the weather, though he could have guessed to a point
+what the captain was thinking about, perhaps because the same subject
+occupied his own thoughts.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">66</span>
+"I think we shall have a change of weather before morning, Captain
+Passford. The wind is drawing a little more to the southward, and we are
+likely to have wind and rain," said the first lieutenant.</p>
+
+<p>"Wind and rain will not trouble us, and I am more afraid that we
+shall be bothered with fog on this cruise," added Christy as he
+descended the ladder to the main deck.</p>
+
+<p>He walked about the deck for a few minutes, observing the various
+occupations of the men, who were generally engaged in amusing
+themselves, or in "reeling off sea yarns." Then he went below. At the
+foot of the stairs in the companion way, the door of the ward room was
+open, and he saw that Lillyworth was seated at the table. He sat at the
+foot of it, the head being the place of the first lieutenant, and the
+captain could see only his back. He was slightly bald at the apex of his
+head, for he was an older man than either the captain or the first
+lieutenant, but inferior to them in rank, though all of them were
+masters, and seniority depended upon the date of the commissions; and
+even a single day settled the degree in these days of multiplied
+appointments. Christy
+<span class = "pagenum">67</span>
+went into his cabin, where the table was set for his own supper.</p>
+
+<p>The commander looked at his barometer, and his reading of it assured
+him that Flint was correct in regard to his prognostics of the weather.
+But the young officer had faced the winter gales of the Atlantic, and
+the approach of any ordinary storm did not disturb him in the least
+degree. On the contrary he rather liked a lively sea, for it was less
+monotonous than a calm. He did not brood over a storm, therefore, but
+continued to consider the subject which had so deeply interested him
+since he discovered Mulgrum on his knees at the door, with a rag and a
+saucer of rottenstone in his hands. He had a curiosity to examine the
+brass knob of his door at that moment, and it did not appear to have
+been very severely rubbed.</p>
+
+<p>"Quarter of seven, sir," said Dave, presenting himself at the door
+while Christy was still musing over the incidents already detailed.</p>
+
+<p>"All right, Dave; I will have my supper now," replied Christy,
+indifferently, for though he was generally blessed with a good appetite
+the mystery was too absorbing to permit the necessary duty of eating to
+drive it out of his mind.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">68</span>
+Dave retired, and soon brought in a tray from the galley, the dishes
+from which he arranged on the table. It was an excellent supper, though
+he had not given any especial orders in regard to its preparation. He
+seated himself and began to eat in a rather mechanical manner, and no
+one who saw him would have mistaken him for an epicure. Dave stationed
+himself in front of the commander, so that he was between the table and
+the door. He watched Christy, keeping his eyes fixed on him without
+intermitting his gaze for a single instant. Once in a while he tendered
+a dish to him at the table, but there was but one object in existence
+for Christy at that moment.</p>
+
+<p>"Dave," said the captain, after he had disposed of a portion of his
+supper.</p>
+
+<p>"Here, sir, on duty," replied the steward.</p>
+
+<p>"Open the door behind you, quick!"</p>
+
+<p>Dave obeyed instantly, and threw the door back so that it was wide
+open, though he seemed to be amazed at the strangeness of the order.</p>
+
+<p>"All right, Dave; close it," added Christy, when he saw there was no
+one in the passage; and he concluded that Mulgrum was not likely to be
+practising his vocation when there was no one in the cabin but himself
+and the steward.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">69</span>
+Dave obeyed the order like a machine, and then renewed his gaze at the
+commander.</p>
+
+<p>"Are you a Freemason, Dave?" asked Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"No, sir," replied the steward with a magnificent smile.</p>
+
+<p>"A Knight of Pythias, of Pythagoras, or anything of that sort?"</p>
+
+<p>"No, sir; nothing of the sort."</p>
+
+<p>"Then you can't keep a secret?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, sir, I can. If I have a secret to keep, I will give the whole
+Alabama River to any one that can get it out of&nbsp;me."</p>
+
+<p>Christy felt sure of his man without this protestation.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">70</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapVI">CHAPTER VI</a></h4>
+
+<h6>A MISSION UP THE FOREMAST</h6>
+
+
+<p>Christy spent some time in delivering a lecture on naval etiquette to
+his single auditor. Probably he was not the highest authority on the
+subject of his discourse; but he was sufficiently learned to meet the
+requirements of the present occasion.</p>
+
+<p>"You say you can keep a secret, Dave?" continued the commander.</p>
+
+<p>"I don't take any secrets to keep from everybody, Captain Passford;
+and I don't much like to carry them about with me," replied the steward,
+looking a little more grave than usual, though he still wore a cheerful
+smile.</p>
+
+<p>"Then you don't wish me to confide a secret to you?"</p>
+
+<p>"I don't say that, Captain Passford. I don't want any man's secrets,
+and I don't run after them, except for the good of the service. I was a
+slave once, but I know what I am working for
+<span class = "pagenum">71</span>
+now. If you have a secret I ought to know, Captain Passford, I will take
+it in and bury it away down at the bottom of my bosom; and I will give
+the whole state of Louisiana to any one that will dig it out
+of&nbsp;me."</p>
+
+<p>"That's enough, Dave; and I am willing to trust you without any oath
+on the Bible, and without even a Quaker's affirmation. I believe you
+will be prudent, discreet, and silent for my sake."</p>
+
+<p>"Certainly I will be all that, Captain Passford, for I think you are
+a bigger man than Jeff Davis," protested Dave.</p>
+
+<p>"That is because you do not know the President of the Confederate
+States, and you do know me; but Mr. Davis is a man of transcendent
+ability, and I am only sorry that he is engaged in a bad cause, though
+he believes with all his heart and soul that it is a good cause."</p>
+
+<p>"He never treated me like a gentleman, as you have, sir."</p>
+
+<p>"And he never treated you unkindly, I am very sure."</p>
+
+<p>"He never treated me any way, for I never saw him; and I would not
+walk a hundred miles barefooted
+<span class = "pagenum">72</span>
+to see him, either. I am no gentleman or anything of that sort,
+Massa&mdash; Captain Passford, but if I ever go back on you by the
+breadth of a hair, then the Alabama River will run up hill."</p>
+
+<p>"I am satisfied with you, Dave; and here is my hand," added Christy,
+extending it to the steward, who shook it warmly, displaying a good deal
+of emotion as he did so. "Now, Dave, you know Mulgrum, or Pink, as you
+call&nbsp;him?"</p>
+
+<p>"Well, sir, I know him as I do the rest of the people on board; but
+we are not sworn friends yet," replied Dave, rather puzzled to know what
+duty was required of him in connection with the scullion.</p>
+
+<p>"You know him; that is enough. What do you think of him?"</p>
+
+<p>"I haven't had any long talks with him, sir, and I don't know what to
+think of&nbsp;him."</p>
+
+<p>"You know that he is dumb?"</p>
+
+<p>"I expect he is, sir; but he never said anything to me about it,"
+replied Dave. "He never told me he couldn't speak, and I never heard him
+speak to any one on board."</p>
+
+<p>"Did you ever speak to him?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, sir; I spoke to him when he first came
+<span class = "pagenum">73</span>
+on board; but he didn't answer me, or take any notice of me when I spoke
+to him, and I got tired of&nbsp;it."</p>
+
+<p>"Open that door quickly, Dave," said the captain suddenly.</p>
+
+<p>The steward promptly obeyed the order, and Christy saw that there was
+no one in the passage. He told his companion to close the door, and Dave
+was puzzled to know what this movement could mean.</p>
+
+<p>"I beg your pardon, Captain Passford, and I have no right to ask any
+question; but I should like to know why you make me open that door two
+or three times for nothing," said Dave, in the humblest of tones.</p>
+
+<p>"I told you to open it so that I could see if there was anybody at
+the door. This is my secret, Dave. I have twice found Mulgrum at that
+door while I was talking to the first lieutenant. He pretended to be
+cleaning the brass work."</p>
+
+<p>"What was he there for? When a man is as deaf as the foremast of the
+ship what would he be doing at the door?"</p>
+
+<p>"He was down on his knees, and his ear was not a great way from the
+keyhole of the door."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">74</span>
+"But he could not hear anything."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't know: that is what I want to find out. The mission I have
+for you, Dave, is to watch Mulgrum. In a word, I have my doubts in
+regard to his deafness and his dumbness."</p>
+
+<p>"You don't believe he is deaf and dumb, Captain Passford!" exclaimed
+the steward, opening his eyes very wide, and looking as though an
+earthquake had just shaken him&nbsp;up.</p>
+
+<p>"I don't say that, my man. I am in doubt. He may be a deaf mute, as
+he represents himself to be. I wish you to ascertain whether or not he
+can speak and hear. You are a shrewd fellow, Dave, I discovered some
+time ago; in fact the first time I ever saw you. You may do this job in
+any manner you please; but remember that your mission is my secret, and
+you must not betray it to Mulgrum, or to any other person."</p>
+
+<p>"Be sure I won't do that, Captain Passford."</p>
+
+<p>"If you obtain any satisfactory information, convey it to me
+immediately. You must be very careful not to let any one suspect that
+you are watching him, and least of all to let Mulgrum know it. Do you
+understand me perfectly, Dave?"</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">75</span>
+"Yes, sir; perfectly. Nobody takes any notice of me but you, and it
+won't be a hard job. I think I can manage it without any trouble. I am
+nothing but a nigger, and of no account."</p>
+
+<p>"I have chosen you for this mission because you can do it better than
+any other person, Dave. Don't call yourself a nigger; I don't like the
+word, and you are ninety degrees in the shade above the lower class of
+negroes in the South."</p>
+
+<p>"Thank you, sir," replied the steward with an expansive smile.</p>
+
+<p>"There is one thing I wish you to understand particularly, Dave. I
+have not set you to watch any officer of the ship," said Christy
+impressively.</p>
+
+<p>"No, sir; I reckon Pink Mulgrum is not an officer any more than
+I&nbsp;am."</p>
+
+<p>"But you may discover, if you find that Mulgrum can speak and hear,
+that he is talking to an officer," added the captain in a low tone.</p>
+
+<p>"What officer, Captain Passford?" asked the steward, opening his eyes
+to their utmost capacity, and looking as bewildered as an owl in the
+gaslight.</p>
+
+<p>"I repeat that I do not set you to watch an officer; and I leave it
+to you to ascertain with
+<span class = "pagenum">76</span>
+whom Mulgrum has any talk, if with any one. Now I warn you that, if you
+accomplish anything in this mission, you will do it at night and not in
+the daytime. That is all that need be said at the present time, Dave,
+and you will attend to your duty as usual. If you lose much sleep, you
+may make it up in the forenoon watch."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't care for the sleep, Captain Passford, and I can keep awake
+all night."</p>
+
+<p>"One thing more, Dave; between eight bells and eight bells to-night,
+during the first watch, you may get at something, but you must keep out
+of sight as much as you can," added Christy, as he rose from his
+armchair, and went into his state room.</p>
+
+<p>Dave busied himself in clearing the table, but he was in a very
+thoughtful mood all the time. Loading up his tray with dishes, he
+carried them through the steerage to the galley, where he found Mulgrum
+engaged in washing those from the ward room, which he had brought out
+some time before. The steward looked at the deaf mute with more interest
+than he had regarded him before. He was a supernumerary on board, and
+any one who had anything to do called Pink to do it.
+<span class = "pagenum">77</span>
+Another waiter was greatly needed, and Mr. Nawood, the chief steward,
+had engaged one, but he had failed to come on board before the steamer
+sailed. Pink had been pressed into service for the steerage; but he was
+of little use, and the work seemed very distasteful, if not disgusting,
+to him. He carried in the food, but that was about all he was
+good&nbsp;for.</p>
+
+<p>Dave watched him for a few minutes as he washed and wiped the dishes,
+and saw that he was very awkward at it; it was plain to him that he was
+not an experienced hand at the business. But he was doing the steward's
+work, and Dave took hold and helped him. Pink was as solemn as an owl,
+and did his work in a very mechanical manner, and without the slightest
+interest in it. The cabin steward had a mission, and he was profoundly
+interested in its execution.</p>
+
+<p>By the side of the galley, or range, was a sink at which they were at
+work. Dave thought he might as well begin then and there to test the
+hearing powers of his companion. Picking up one of the large blowers of
+the range, he placed himself so that Pink could not see what he was
+about, and then banged the sheet iron against the
+<span class = "pagenum">78</span>
+cast iron of the great stove. He kept his eye fixed all the time on the
+scullion. The noise was enough for the big midship gun on deck, or even
+for a small earthquake. Pink was evidently startled by the prodigious
+sound, and turned towards the steward, who was satisfied that he had
+heard it; but the fellow was cunning, and realizing that he had
+committed himself, he picked up one of his feet, and began to rub it as
+though he had been hit by the falling blower. At the same time, he
+pretended to be very angry, and demonstrated very earnestly against his
+companion.</p>
+
+<p>Dave felt that he had made a point, and he did not carry his
+investigation of the auditory capacity of the scullion any farther that
+night. He finished his work below, and then went on deck. He lounged
+about in a very careless manner till eight bells were struck. Mr. Flint
+on the bridge was relieved by Mr. Lillyworth, and the port watch came on
+duty for the next four hours, or until midnight. This was the time the
+captain had indicated to Dave as a favorable one for the discharge of
+his special duty. Taking advantage of the absence of any person from the
+vicinity of the foremast, he adroitly curled himself up in the
+<span class = "pagenum">79</span>
+folds of the foresail, which was brailed up to the mast. He had his head
+in such a position that he could see without being seen by any casual
+passer-by.</p>
+
+<p>He waited in this position over an hour, and during that time Pink
+went back and forth several times, and seemed to be looking up at the
+bridge, which was just forward of the foremast. On the top-gallant
+forecastle were two men on the lookout; in the waist was a
+quartermaster, who was doing the duty that belonged to the third
+lieutenant, if the scarcity of officers had permitted the Bronx to have
+one. The body of the port watch were spinning yarns on the forecastle,
+and none of them were very near the foremast. After a while, as Pink was
+approaching the forecastle, Dave saw the second lieutenant gesticulating
+to him very earnestly to come on the bridge. The supernumerary ascended
+the ladder, and the officer set him at work to lace on the sailcloth to
+the railing of the bridge, to shelter those on duty there from the force
+of the sea blast.</p>
+
+<p>Dave listened with all his ears for any sound from the bridge; but he
+soon realized that if there was any, he was too far off to hear it. With
+the
+<span class = "pagenum">80</span>
+aid of the lashings of the foresail, he succeeded in climbing up on the
+mast to a point on a level with the bridge, and at the same time to make
+the mast conceal him from the eyes of Mr. Lillyworth and the scullion.
+The latter pretended to be at work, and occasionally the second
+lieutenant "jawed" at him for his clumsiness in lacing the sailcloth.
+Between these growls, they spoke together in a low tone, but Dave was
+near enough to hear what they said. Though he had never heard the voice
+of Pink Mulgrum before, he knew that of the second lieutenant, and he
+was in no danger of confounding the two. Pink used excellent language,
+as the steward was capable of judging, and it was plain enough that he
+was not what he had appeared to&nbsp;be.</p>
+
+<p class = "illustration">
+<img src = "images/pic80.png" width = "346" height = "530"
+alt = "illustration of quoted scene"><br>
+<span class = "caption smallcaps">
+Lillyworth and Mulgrum on the bridge.</span>
+</p>
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">81</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapVII">CHAPTER VII</a></h4>
+
+<h6>AN INTERVIEW ON THE BRIDGE</h6>
+
+
+<p>Although Mr. Lillyworth knew very well that Pink Mulgrum was deaf and
+dumb, he "jawed" at him as though his hearing was as perfect as his own,
+doubtless forgetting for the moment his infirmity.</p>
+
+<p>"Draw up the bight, and lace it tighter," exclaimed the second
+lieutenant, intermixing an expletive at each end of the sentence. "Oh,
+you can't hear me!" he shouted, as though the fact that the scullion
+could not hear him had suddenly come to his mind. "Well, it is a nice
+thing to talk to a deaf man!"</p>
+
+<p>Dave could see that Mulgrum also seemed to forget that his ears were
+closed to all sounds, for he redoubled his efforts to haul the screen
+into its place.</p>
+
+<p>"I could not hear anything that was of any consequence," the steward
+heard the deaf mute say in a lower tone than his companion used.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">082</span>
+"Couldn't you hear anything?" asked Mr. Lillyworth, making a spring at
+the canvas as though he was disgusted with the operations of his
+companion on the bridge.</p>
+
+<p>"Only what I have just told you," replied Mulgrum.</p>
+
+<p>"But you were at the door when the captain and the first lieutenant
+were talking together in the cabin," continued the officer in a low
+tone.</p>
+
+<p>"But they were talking about me, as I told you before," answered the
+scullion, rather impatiently, as though he too had a mind of
+his&nbsp;own.</p>
+
+<p>"Wasn't anything said about the operations of the future?" demanded
+Mr. Lillyworth.</p>
+
+<p>"Not a word; but you know as well as I do that the captain has sealed
+orders which he will not see before to-morrow. I heard him tell his
+father that he was to open the envelope in latitude 38," said the
+supernumerary.</p>
+
+<p>"You must contrive some way to hear the captain when he reads his
+orders," continued the second lieutenant. "He will be likely to have Mr.
+Flint with him when he opens the envelope."</p>
+
+<p>"It will be difficult," replied Mulgrum, and Dave could imagine that
+he saw him shake his
+<span class = "pagenum">083</span>
+head. "The captain has found me cleaning the brasses on his door twice,
+and it will hardly do to be found at the door again."</p>
+
+<p>"Isn't there any place in his cabin where you can conceal yourself?"
+inquired Mr. Lillyworth.</p>
+
+<p>"I don't know of any place, unless it is his state room; and the
+cabin steward has been at work there almost all the time since we got
+under way. Dave seems to be a sort of confidant of the captain,"
+suggested Mulgrum; and it looked as though the deaf mute had not held
+his tongue and kept his ears open for nothing; but the steward could not
+understand how he had got this idea into his head, for he had received
+his instructions while the commander was at supper, and he was sure, as
+he had thrown the door open several times, that the scullion was not on
+the other side of&nbsp;it.</p>
+
+<p>"A nigger for his confidant!" <ins class = "correction" title =
+"text reads 'exclained'">exclaimed</ins> the second lieutenant, as he
+interpolated a little jaw for the benefit of the seamen and petty
+officers within earshot of him. "What can we expect when a mere boy is
+put in command of a steamer like this&nbsp;one?"</p>
+
+<p>"I think you need not complain, Pawcett, for you are on board of this
+vessel, and so am I,
+<span class = "pagenum">84</span>
+because she is under the command of a boy. But he is a tremendous smart
+boy, and he is older than many men of double his age," added
+Mulgrum.</p>
+
+<p>Dave realized that the supernumerary was well informed in regard to
+current history in connection with naval matters, and he was willing to
+believe that he was quite as shrewd as the officer at his side.</p>
+
+<p>"The boy is well enough, though he is abominably overrated, as you
+will see before I have done with him," said Mr. Lillyworth
+contemptuously. "It is galling for one who has seen some service to
+touch his cap to this boy and call him captain."</p>
+
+<p>"I hope you are not forgetting yourself, Pawcett&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Don't mention my name on board of this vessel, Hungerford,"
+interposed the officer.</p>
+
+<p>"And you will not mention mine," added the scullion promptly. "We are
+both careless in this matter, and we must do better. I think I ought to
+caution you not to neglect any outside tokens of respect to the captain.
+You can have your own opinions, but I think you do not treat him with
+sufficient deference."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">85</span>
+"Perhaps I don't, for it is not an easy thing to do," replied the second
+lieutenant. "But I think the captain has no cause to complain of me. We
+must find out something about these orders, and you must be on the
+lookout for your chances at meridian to-morrow. If you can stow yourself
+away under the captain's berth in his state room, you may be able to
+hear him read them to the first lieutenant, as he will be sure
+to&nbsp;do."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't believe in doing that," replied Mulgrum. "If I am
+discovered, no explanation could be made as to why I was concealed
+there."</p>
+
+<p>"But we must take some risks," persisted Mr. Lillyworth. "After what
+you told me in the first of our talk, it may not be necessary to conceal
+yourself. I shall say something to the captain on the subject at which
+you hinted as soon as I get a chance. You may be in a situation to hear
+all that is said without danger."</p>
+
+<p>Dave wondered what could be meant by this remark, for he had not
+heard the conversation between the captain and the first lieutenant
+which was intended as a "blind" to the listener, known to be at the
+door.</p>
+
+<p>"I am willing to take any risk that will not
+<span class = "pagenum">86</span>
+ruin our enterprise," Mulgrum responded to the remark of his
+companion.</p>
+
+<p>"At noon to-morrow I shall come on deck in charge, and the first
+lieutenant will be relieved, so that he will be at liberty to visit the
+captain in his cabin. That will be your time, and you must
+improve&nbsp;it."</p>
+
+<p>"But I shall meet you again to-morrow, and I will look about me, and
+see what can be done," said Mulgrum, as he made a new demonstration at
+the canvas screen.</p>
+
+<p>"I will keep my eyes open, and you must do the same. How is it with
+our men forward?" asked the officer.</p>
+
+<p>"I have had no chance to speak with any of them, for they are all the
+time in the midst of the rest of the seamen," replied the deaf mute.
+"But I have no doubt they are all right."</p>
+
+<p>"But you must have some way to communicate with them, or they might
+as well be on shore. As there are six of them, I should say you might
+get a chance to speak to one of them whenever you desire."</p>
+
+<p>"I have had nothing to say to them so far, and I have not considered
+the matter of communicating with them."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">87</span>
+"It is time to know how you can do so."</p>
+
+<p>"I can manage it in some way when the time comes," replied Mulgrum
+confidently. "I am sure the captain and the first lieutenant have no
+suspicion that I am not what I seem to be. The executive officer put me
+through a full examination, especially in regard to Cherryfield, where I
+told him I used to live. I came off with flying colors, and I am certain
+that I am all right&nbsp;now."</p>
+
+<p>Dave knew nothing about the examination to which Mr. Flint had
+subjected the deaf mute. It is evident that Mulgrum took an entirely
+different view of the result of the test from that taken by the examiner
+and the captain; but both of the latter had taken extreme pains to
+conceal their opinion from the subject of the test.</p>
+
+<p>"I think we had better not say anything more to-night, and you have
+been on the bridge long enough," said Mr. Lillyworth, walking to the
+windward end of the bridge, and peering out into the gloom of the
+night.</p>
+
+<p>He had hardly looked in the direction of the deaf mute while he was
+on the bridge, but had busied himself with the lashing of the screen,
+and done everything he could to make it appear that
+<span class = "pagenum">88</span>
+he was not talking to his companion. Mulgrum, overhauling the screen as
+he proceeded, made his way to the steps by the side of the foremast. But
+he did not go down, as he had evidently intended to do, and waited till
+the second lieutenant came over to the lee side of the <ins class =
+"correction" title = "text reads 'vesssel'">vessel</ins>.</p>
+
+<p>"Perhaps the man at the wheel has been listening to our
+conversation," said the deaf mute, plainly alarmed at the situation. "I
+did not think of&nbsp;him."</p>
+
+<p>"I did," replied Mr. Lillyworth; "but it is all right, and the man at
+the wheel is Spoors, one of our number."</p>
+
+<p>"All right," added Mulgrum, and he descended the steps.</p>
+
+<p>Dave kept his place in the folds of the foresail, and hardly breathed
+as the scullion passed him. With the greatest caution, and after he had
+satisfied himself that no one was near enough to see him, he descended
+to the deck. He wandered about for a while, and saw that the
+supernumerary went to the galley, where, in the scarcity of
+accommodations for the extra persons on board, he was obliged to sleep
+on the floor. He was not likely to extend his operations any farther
+that
+<span class = "pagenum">89</span>
+night, and Dave went to the companion way, descended the steps, and
+knocked at the door of the captain's cabin.</p>
+
+<p>"Come in," called the occupant, who had been writing at his desk in
+the state room, though the door was open.</p>
+
+<p>Dave presented himself before the commander, who was very glad to see
+him. Christy wiped the perspiration from his forehead, for he had
+evidently been working very hard all the evening. Four bells had just
+struck, indicating that it was ten o'clock in the evening. Flint's
+prediction in regard to the weather seemed to be in the way of
+fulfilment, for the Bronx had been leaping mildly on a head sea for the
+last hour. But everything was going well, and the motion of the vessel
+was as satisfactory to the commander in rough water as it had been in a
+smooth&nbsp;sea.</p>
+
+<p>"I am glad to see you, Dave," said Christy, as the steward presented
+himself at the door of the state room. "I suppose from your coming
+to-night that you have something to tell&nbsp;me."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, sir; I have; and I will give you the whole Gulf of Mexico if it
+isn't a big thing," replied Dave with his most expansive smile.
+<span class = "pagenum">090</span>
+"You done get into a hornet's nest, Captain Passford."</p>
+
+<p>"Not so bad as that, I hope," replied Christy, laughing.</p>
+
+<p>"Bad enough, sir, at any rate," added Dave. "Pink Mulgrum has been
+talking and listening to the second lieutenant all the evening."</p>
+
+<p>"Then he is not a deaf mute, I take it."</p>
+
+<p>"Not a bit of it; he can talk faster than I can, and he knows all
+about his grammar and dictionary. You have just eight traitors on board
+of the Bronx, Captain Passford," said Dave very impressively.</p>
+
+<p>"Only eight?"</p>
+
+<p>"That's all I know about; and I think that is enough for one cruise
+in a Yankee ship."</p>
+
+<p>"Eight will do very well, Dave; but who are they?" asked the captain
+with interest.</p>
+
+<p>"I know just three of them. One is the second lieutenant; Pink
+Mulgrum is another, and Spoors, one of the quartermasters, is the third.
+They didn't mention any more of them."</p>
+
+<p>"All right, Dave; now sit down on that stool, and tell me the whole
+story," said Christy, pointing to the seat.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">091</span>
+The steward, believing that he had done a "big thing" that evening, did
+not hesitate to seat himself in the presence of the commander, and
+proceeded at once to relate all that he had done, and all that he had
+seen and heard on the bridge. When Dave had finished his story, and
+answered the questions put to him, the commander was willing to believe
+that he had done a big thing; though he said nothing beyond a few words
+of general commendation to the steward. Then he dismissed him, and,
+locking his desk, he went on deck. After taking an observation of the
+weather he mounted the bridge.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">092</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapVIII">CHAPTER VIII</a></h4>
+
+<h6>IMPORTANT INFORMATION, IF TRUE</h6>
+
+
+<p>"Good evening, Mr. Lillyworth," said Captain Passford, when he
+reached the bridge.</p>
+
+<p>"Good evening, Captain Passford," replied the second lieutenant, as
+he touched his cap to his superior, galling as the act was, according to
+his own statement.</p>
+
+<p>"It looks as though we should have some wind," added the captain.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, sir; and we shall have a nasty time of it across the Gulf
+Stream."</p>
+
+<p>"If there is any decided change in the weather during your watch, you
+will oblige me by having me called," added the captain; "I think I am
+tired enough to turn in, for I have been very busy all the evening,
+copying letters and papers. I think I need a clerk almost as much as the
+captain of a frigate."</p>
+
+<p>"I think you ought to have one, sir," added
+<span class = "pagenum">093</span>
+Mr. Lillyworth, manifesting a deep interest in this matter.</p>
+
+<p>"As the matter now stands I have to use a good deal of my time in
+copying documents. By the way, if we fall in with any United States
+man-of-war, I wish to communicate with&nbsp;her."</p>
+
+<p>"Of course I shall report to you, sir, if one comes in sight during
+my watch," replied the second lieutenant, with a greater manifestation
+of zeal than he had before displayed in his relations with his
+commander, evidently profiting by the suggestion made to him by Pink
+Mulgrum.</p>
+
+<p>"But I hope we shall not fall in with one before day after tomorrow,
+for I have not copied all the letters I desire to use if such an
+occasion offers," said Captain Passford, who was really playing out a
+baited hook for the benefit of the second lieutenant, in regard to whose
+intentions he had no doubt since the revelations of the steward.</p>
+
+<p>"By the way, Captain Passford, what you say in regard to the amount
+of writing imposed upon you reminds me that there is a man on board who
+might afford you some relief from this drudgery. Possibly you may have
+noticed this man, though he is doing duty as a mere scullion."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">94</span>
+"Do you mean the man I have seen cleaning brass work about the cabin?"
+asked Christy, glad to have the other take hold of the baited hook.</p>
+
+<p>"That is the one; he is deaf and dumb, but he has received a good
+education, and writes a good hand, and is rapid about it," added the
+second lieutenant, with some eagerness in his manner, though he tried to
+conceal&nbsp;it.</p>
+
+<p>"But my writing is of a confidential nature," replied the
+captain.</p>
+
+<p>"I have known this man, whose name is Pink Mulgrum, for some time. He
+is deaf and dumb, and you must have noticed&nbsp;him."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, yes; I have seen him, and he had an interview with Mr. Flint in
+my presence. I observed that he wrote a good hand, and wrote very
+rapidly."</p>
+
+<p>"I am very confident that you can trust him with your papers, Captain
+Passford. He could not go into the service as a soldier or a sailor on
+account of his infirmity; but he desired to do something for his
+country. He was determined to go to the war, as he called it, in any
+capacity, even if it was as a scullion. He wrote me a letter to this
+effect, and Mr. Nawood consented to take
+<span class = "pagenum">95</span>
+him as a man of all work. If he ever gets into an action, you will find
+that he is a fighting character."</p>
+
+<p>"That is the kind of men we want, and at the present time, when we
+are hardly in a fighting latitude, perhaps I can use him as a copyist,
+if he will agree to make no use whatever of any information he may
+obtain in that capacity. I will speak to Mr. Nawood about the
+matter."</p>
+
+<p>"Thank you, Captain Passford. Mulgrum is a very worthy man, patriotic
+in every fibre of his frame, and in every drop of his blood. I should be
+glad to obtain some permanent occupation for him in the service of his
+country, for nothing else will suit him in the present exciting times.
+Perhaps when you have tested his qualifications, this will make an
+opening for&nbsp;him."</p>
+
+<p>"I will consider the subject tomorrow," said Christy, as he descended
+from the bridge.</p>
+
+<p>The commander was satisfied that the portion of the conversation
+which had taken place between the aspirant for the position of captain's
+clerk and the second lieutenant and which had been finished before the
+steward had reached his perch on the foremast, related to this matter.
+Mulgrum had
+<span class = "pagenum">96</span>
+heard the conversation between the first lieutenant and himself, which
+was intended to blind the listener, and he had reported it to his
+confederate. It was only another confirmation, if any were needed, in
+regard to the character of the conspirators.</p>
+
+<p>Christy had no doubt in regard to the disloyalty of these two men;
+but nothing in respect to their ultimate intentions had yet been
+revealed. They had brought six seamen on board with them, and they
+appeared to have influence enough in some quarter to have had these men
+drafted into the Bronx. Eight men, even if two of them were officers,
+was an insignificant force, though he was willing to believe that they
+intended to obtain possession of the vessel in some manner. The captain
+returned to his cabin, and resumed his work in the state room.</p>
+
+<p>Though Christy had spent several hours at his desk, he had really
+produced but a single letter, and had not yet finished it. When he heard
+eight bells strike, he left his state room, and seated himself at the
+table in the middle of his cabin. The door was open into the companion
+way. Mr. Flint presently appeared, and went on deck to
+<span class = "pagenum">97</span>
+relieve the second lieutenant, who came below a few minutes later,
+though the captain did not allow himself to be seen by him. Then he
+closed the cabin door, and turned in, for he began to realize that he
+needed some rest. He went to sleep at once, and he did not wake till
+four bells struck in the morning. The Bronx was pitching heavily, though
+she still maintained her reputation as an easy-going ship in spite of
+the head sea. He dressed himself, and seated himself at his desk at
+once, devoting himself to the letter upon which he had been engaged the
+evening before. The second lieutenant was on duty at this time, and the
+first was doubtless asleep in his berth, but he had been below six hours
+during the night, and, calling Dave with his bell, he sent him for Mr.
+Flint, who presented himself a few minutes later.</p>
+
+<p>"Good morning, Captain Passford; you have turned out early, sir,"
+said the first lieutenant.</p>
+
+<p>"Not very early, and I am sorry to wake you so soon. I did not turn
+in till after you had gone on deck to take the midwatch. I have been
+very busy since we parted, and I need your advice and assistance,"
+replied the commander. "I have got at something."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">98</span>
+"Indeed! I am glad to hear it," added Mr. Flint.</p>
+
+<p>Without the loss of any time, the captain called Dave, who was at
+work in the ward room, and told him to see that no one came near the
+door of his cabin. The steward understood him perfectly, and Christy
+resumed his place at the table with the executive officer, and proceeded
+to detail to him as briefly as he could all the information he had
+obtained through Dave, and the manner of obtaining it. It required some
+time to do this, and the first lieutenant was intensely interested in
+the narrative.</p>
+
+<p>"I am not greatly surprised so far as Lillyworth is concerned, for
+there has been something about him that I could not fathom since both of
+us came on board," said Mr. Flint.</p>
+
+<p>"Of course these men are on board for a purpose, though I acknowledge
+that I cannot fathom this purpose, unless it be treason in a general
+sense; but I am inclined to believe that they have some specific
+object," added the captain. "Of course you will be willing to believe
+that both of these men are sailing under false colors."</p>
+
+<p>"Undoubtedly. It has occurred to me that the
+<span class = "pagenum">99</span>
+second lieutenant invented the name that represents him on the ship's
+books. Lillyworth is a little strained; if he had called himself Smith
+or Brown, it would have been less suspicious."</p>
+
+<p>"In the conversation to which Dave listened on the bridge, both of
+them blundered, and let out their real names, though each of them
+reproved the other for doing so. The second lieutenant's real name is
+Pawcett, and that of the deaf mute is Hungerford."</p>
+
+<p>"The last is decidedly a southern name, and the other may be for
+aught I know. Hungerford, Hungerford," said Mr. Flint, repeating the
+name several times. "It means something to me, but I can't make it
+out&nbsp;yet."</p>
+
+<p>The first lieutenant cudgelled his brains for a minute or two as
+though he was trying to connect the name with some event in the past.
+The captain waited for him to sound his memory; but it was done in vain;
+Flint could not place him. He was confident, however, that the
+connection would be made in his mind at some other moment.</p>
+
+<p>"The interesting question to us just now is to determine why these
+men, eight in number, are on board of the Bronx at all, and why they are
+on
+<span class = "pagenum">100</span>
+board at the present time," said the captain. "I happen to know that
+Lillyworth was offered a better position than the one he now fills
+temporarily; but my father says he insisted on going in the Bronx."</p>
+
+<p>"Certainly he is not here on a fool's errand. He has business on
+board of this particular steamer," replied Flint, speaking out of his
+musing mind. "Ah! now I have it!" he suddenly exclaimed. "Hungerford was
+the executive officer of the Killbright, or the Yazoo, as they called
+her afterwards. I had a very slight inkling that I had seen the face of
+the deaf mute before; but he has shaved off his beard, and stained his
+face, so that it is no wonder I did not identify him; but the name
+satisfies me that he was the first officer of the Yazoo."</p>
+
+<p>"That means then that he is a regular officer of the Confederate
+navy," suggested the captain; "and probably Lillyworth is also. The only
+other name Dave was able to obtain was that of Spoors, one of the
+quartermasters; and very likely he is also another."</p>
+
+<p>"We have almost a double crew on board, Captain Passford, and what
+can eight men do to capture this vessel?" asked Flint.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">101</span>
+"I don't know what they intend to do, and I must give it up. Now I want
+to read a letter to you that I have written; and you can tell me what
+you think of it." The commander then read as follows from the sheet in
+his hand, upon which appeared no end of changes and corrections:</p>
+
+<p class = "letter">
+"<span class = "smallcaps">To the Commander of any United States Ship of
+War</span>, <i>Sir</i>:&mdash; The undersigned, master in the United
+States Navy, in temporary command of the United States Steamer Bronx,
+bound to the Gulf of Mexico, respectfully informs you that he has
+information, just received, of the approach to the coast of the southern
+states of two steamers, the Scotian and the Arran, believed to be fitted
+out as cruisers for the Confederate Navy. They will be due in these
+waters about March 17. They are of about five hundred tons each. A
+letter from the confidential agent of my father, Captain Horatio
+Passford, an agent in whom he has perfect confidence, both on account of
+his loyalty to his country undivided, and because of his skill as a
+shipmaster, contains this statement, which is submitted to you for your
+guidance: 'I have put twelve loyal American seamen, with an officer, on
+board of each of the steamers mentioned above; and they comprise about
+one-half of the crew of each vessel; and they will take possession of
+each of the two steamers when supported by any United States man-of-war.
+<span class = "smallcaps">Warnock</span>.'</p>
+
+<p class = "letter">
+<span class = "padded">&nbsp; </span>Respectfully yours,</p>
+
+<p class = "letter">
+<span class = "padded">&nbsp; &nbsp; </span>CHRISTOPHER PASSFORD,</p>
+
+<p class = "letter">
+<span class = "padded">&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; </span><i>Master
+Commanding</i>."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">102</span>
+"I beg your pardon, Captain Passford, but what under the canopy is that
+letter for?" asked Flint, not a little excited.</p>
+
+<p>"It is for Pink Mulgrum to copy," replied the captain. "That is all
+the use I intend to make of&nbsp;it."</p>
+
+<p>Flint leaned back in his chair and laughed heartily, and the
+commander could not help joining&nbsp;him.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">103</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapIX">CHAPTER IX</a></h4>
+
+<h6>A VOLUNTEER CAPTAIN'S CLERK</h6>
+
+
+<p>Mr. Flint was really amused at the plan of the commander of the
+Bronx, as indicated in the letter he had just read, and he was not
+laughing out of mere compliment to his superior officer, as some
+subordinates feel obliged to do even when they feel more like weeping.
+Perhaps no one knew Christy Passford so well as his executive officer,
+not even his own father, for Flint had been with him in the most
+difficult and trying ordeals of his life. He had been the young leader's
+second in command in the capture of the Teaser, whose cabin they now
+occupied, and they had been prisoners together. He had been amazed at
+his young companion's audacity, but he had always justified his action
+in the end. They had become excellent friends as well as associates in
+the navy, and there was a hearty sympathy between them.</p>
+
+<p>Christy laughed almost in spite of himself, for
+<span class = "pagenum">104</span>
+he had been giving very serious attention to the situation on board of
+the Bronx. In the ship's company were at least two officers on the other
+side of the great question of the day, both of them doubtless men of
+great experience in their profession, more mature in years than their
+opponent on this chess-board of fate, and they had come on board of the
+steamer to accomplish some important purpose. The game at which they
+were engaged had already become quite exciting, especially as it looked
+as if the final result was to be determined by strategy rather than hard
+fighting, for Pawcett and Hungerford could hardly expect to capture the
+Bronx with only a force of eight&nbsp;men.</p>
+
+<p>"Mulgrum is to copy this letter," said Flint, suppressing his
+laughter.</p>
+
+<p>"I have written the letter in order to have something for him to
+copy, and at the same time to give him and his confederate something to
+think about," replied Christy; and he could hardly help chuckling when
+he thought of the effect the contents of the letter would produce in the
+minds of those for whom the missive was really intended.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">105</span>
+"Do you think they will swallow this fiction, Captain Passford?" asked
+the first lieutenant.</p>
+
+<p>"Why shouldn't they swallow it, hook, bait, and sinker? They are
+Confederate agents beyond the possibility of a doubt; and they are
+looking for a ship in which they intend to ravage the commerce of the
+United States," replied Christy; and the question had done something to
+stimulate his reasoning powers. "They want a vessel, and the Bronx would
+suit them very well."</p>
+
+<p>"But they will not attempt to capture her under present
+circumstances, I am very confident. They know that we have about twenty
+seamen extra on board."</p>
+
+<p>"They know that certainly; but possibly they know some things in this
+connection that we do not know," added Christy, as he put his hand on
+his forehead, and leaned over the table, as though his mind were
+strongly exercised by some serious question he was unable to answer
+satisfactorily to himself.</p>
+
+<p>"What can they know that we don't know in regard to this vessel?"
+demanded Flint, looking quite as serious as the commander.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">106</span>
+"Whether our extra men are loyal or not," answered Christy, dropping his
+hand, and looking his companion full in the face.</p>
+
+<p>"Do you think there is any doubt in regard to them?"</p>
+
+<p>"I confess that I have not had a doubt till this moment," said the
+captain, wiping the perspiration from his brow, for the terrible
+possibility that any considerable portion of the extra men were in the
+employ of the two Confederates had almost overcome&nbsp;him.</p>
+
+<p>For a few moments he was silent as he thought of this tremendous
+idea. It was appalling to think of going into action with the Scotian or
+the Arran, or both of them, and have a part of his own force turn
+against him on his own deck. This was possible, but he could hardly
+believe it was probable. Dave had reported very faithfully to him all
+the details of the conversation between the Confederates, and they had
+claimed only six men. If they had any hold on the extra men on board,
+they would have been likely to say so, or at least to speak more
+indefinitely than they had of their expectations.</p>
+
+<p>"Have you any friends on board, Mr. Flint,
+<span class = "pagenum">107</span>
+among the crew?" asked Christy suddenly, as though a solution of the
+difficult question of the loyalty of the men had suggested itself
+to&nbsp;him.</p>
+
+<p>"I have at least half a dozen whom I worked hard to have drafted into
+the Bronx, for I know that they are good and true men, though they may
+not be able to pass the technical examination of the naval officers,"
+replied the first lieutenant promptly. "I can trust every one of them as
+far as I could trust myself. One of them was the mate of my vessel at
+the time I sold her, and he has since been in command of&nbsp;her."</p>
+
+<p>"Who is he?"</p>
+
+<p>"His name is Baskirk; and he is a quartermaster now. I wrote to him,
+and promised to do the best I could to advance him. He is not a graduate
+of a college, but he is a well-informed man, well read, sober, honest,
+and a man of good common-sense."</p>
+
+<p>"The others?"</p>
+
+<p>"McSpindle was a classmate of mine in college, and he is a capital
+fellow. Unfortunately, he got into the habit of drinking more than was
+good for him, and spoiled his immediate future. He has made two foreign
+voyages, and he is a good seaman.
+<span class = "pagenum">108</span>
+He came home second mate of an Indiaman, promoted on his merit. He is
+also a quartermaster," said Flint, who was evidently very deeply
+interested in the persons he described.</p>
+
+<p>"Any more?"</p>
+
+<p>"Luffard is a quartermaster, for I selected the best men I had for
+these positions. He is a young fellow, and the son of a rich man in
+Portland. He is a regular water bird, though he is not over eighteen
+years&nbsp;old."</p>
+
+<p>"His age is no objection," added Christy with a smile.</p>
+
+<p>"I suppose not; but I have taken Luffard on his bright promise rather
+than for anything he has ever done, though I have seen him sail a
+forty-footer in a race and win the first prize. The other men I happen
+to think of just now have been sailors on board of my coaster. They are
+good men, and I can vouch for their loyalty, though not for their
+education. They are all petty officers."</p>
+
+<p>"I have a mission for your men, to be undertaken at once, and I shall
+be likely to want the first three you named for important positions, if
+my orders do not fetter me too closely," said
+<span class = "pagenum">109</span>
+Christy. "As the matter stands just now, Mr. Flint, it would hardly be
+expedient for us to capture a schooner running the blockade for the want
+of an officer to act as prize master."</p>
+
+<p>"The three quartermasters I named are competent for this duty, for
+they are navigators, and all of them have handled a vessel."</p>
+
+<p>"I am glad to hear it; we are better off than I supposed we were. My
+father told me that several vessels had been sent to the South short of
+officers, and we are no worse off than some others, though what you say
+makes us all right."</p>
+
+<p>"I can find three officers on board who are as competent as I am,
+though that is not saying much," added Flint.</p>
+
+<p>"I can ask no better officers, then. But to return to this letter. I
+have spent a considerable part of my time at Bonnydale in talking with
+my father. He is in the confidence of the naval department."</p>
+
+<p>"He ought to be, for he gave to the navy one of its best steamers, to
+say the least."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't want to brag of my father," suggested Christy, laughing; "I
+only wanted to show that he is posted. Coming to the point at once,
+putting
+<span class = "pagenum">110</span>
+this and that together of what I learned on shore, and of what I have
+discovered on board of the Bronx, I am inclined to believe that Pawcett
+and Hungerford have their mission on board of this steamer in connection
+with the Scotian and the Arran. I will not stop now to explain why I
+have this idea, for I shall obtain more evidence as we proceed. At any
+rate, I thought I would put the ghost of a stumbling-block in the path
+of these conspirators; and this is the reason why I have put thirteen
+American seamen on board of each of the expected steamers. If my
+conjectures are wrong the stumbling-block will be nothing but a ghost;
+if I am right, it will make our men somewhat cautious as to what they do
+if we should be so fortunate as to fall in with the two vessels."</p>
+
+<p>"I understand you perfectly, Captain Passford. You said that you had
+something for my men to do at once; but you did not explain what this
+duty was," said Flint. "If you require their services at once, I will
+instruct them."</p>
+
+<p>"I did not explain, for I have so many irons in the fire that I am
+afraid I am getting them mixed, and I forgot to tell you what they were
+to do. But I shall leave the details to be settled in your
+<span class = "pagenum">111</span>
+own way. I want to know who are loyal men and who are not. There are at
+least six men, according to the report of Dave, who are followers of
+Pawcett and Hungerford. We don't know who they are; but doubtless they
+have been selected for their shrewdness. Probably they will be looking
+for information among the men. Spoors is one of them, and by watching
+him some clew may be obtained to the others."</p>
+
+<p>"I am confident my men can find out all you want to know," added the
+first lieutenant.</p>
+
+<p>"It should be done as soon as possible," replied the commander.</p>
+
+<p>"Not a moment shall be lost. I have the deck at eight this morning,
+and one of the quartermasters will be at the wheel. I will begin
+with&nbsp;him."</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Flint left the cabin, for his breakfast was waiting for him in
+the ward room. Christy walked through to the steerage, where he found
+Mulgrum attending to the wants of the warrant officers as well as he
+could. He looked at this man with vastly more interest than before he
+had listened to Dave's report. It was easy to see that he was not an
+ordinary man such as one would
+<span class = "pagenum">112</span>
+find in menial positions; but it was not prudent for him to make a study
+of the man, for his quick eye was taking in everything that occurred
+near&nbsp;him.</p>
+
+<p>Eight bells struck, and Mr. Flint hastened on deck to relieve the
+second lieutenant. Christy took his morning meal at a later hour, and
+when he had finished it, he sent for Pink Mulgrum. Of course the
+conversation had to be written, and the captain placed the scullion
+opposite himself at the table.</p>
+
+<p>"I learn from Mr. Lillyworth that you are a good writer, and that you
+are well educated," Christy wrote on a piece of paper, passing it to the
+deaf mute.</p>
+
+<p>Mulgrum read the sentence, and nodded his head with something like a
+smile. If Christy was a judge of his expression, he was certainly
+pleased, evidently to find that his confederate's plan was working
+well.</p>
+
+<p>"I have a letter of which I desire several copies. Can I trust you to
+make these copies?" Christy wrote.</p>
+
+<p>The man read and nodded his head eagerly.</p>
+
+<p>"Will you promise on your honor as a man that
+<span class = "pagenum">113</span>
+you will not reveal what you write to any person whatever?" Christy
+proceeded. Mulgrum read, and nodded his head earnestly several
+times.</p>
+
+<p>The commander procured paper and other writing materials for him, and
+placed them before him. Then he seated himself again opposite the
+copyist, and fixed his gaze upon him; unfolding the letter, of which he
+had made a fair copy himself, he placed it under the eyes of the deaf
+mute. Mulgrum had retained his smile till this moment. He had arranged
+his paper and taken a pen in his hand. Then he began to read; as he
+proceeded the smile deserted his face. He was plainly startled.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">114</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapX">CHAPTER X</a></h4>
+
+<h6>THE UNEXPECTED ORDERS</h6>
+
+
+<p>Christy sat for some minutes watching the expression of Mulgrum as he
+read the letter he was to copy. Like a careful man, he was evidently
+taking a glance at it as a whole. The interested observer could see that
+he fixed his gaze upon the last part of the letter, the extract from the
+missive of Warnock, relating to the twelve loyal American seamen and
+their officer. In fact, he seemed to be paralyzed by what he read.</p>
+
+<p>The commander was satisfied with what he had seen, and he rose from
+his chair. His movement seemed to restore the self-possession of the
+deaf mute, and he began to write very rapidly. Christy went into his
+state room, where he kept all his important papers in his desk. He gave
+himself up to a consideration of the situation in which he was placed.
+He had partly closed the door. But
+<span class = "pagenum">115</span>
+he had not been in the room half an hour before he heard a knock.</p>
+
+<p>"Come in," said he, supposing the caller was Dave.</p>
+
+<p>The door was pushed open, and Mulgrum came in with his tablet in his
+hand. The deaf mute had certainly heard his reply to the knock, for he
+had heeded it instantly, and he smiled at the manner in which the
+conspirator had "given himself away." The scullion presented his tablet
+to the captain with a very deferential&nbsp;bow.</p>
+
+<p>"There is an error in the copy of the letter you gave me&mdash;in the
+extract. If you will give me the original letter from Mr. Warnock, I
+will correct the mistake," Christy read on the tablet. It was not
+impossible that he had made a mistake in copying his letter; but the
+object of Mulgrum in desiring to see the original of the letter from
+England was sufficiently apparent. "Bring me my copy of the letter," he
+wrote on the tablet, and handed it back to the owner.</p>
+
+<p>The captain took from his desk a bundle of letters and selected one,
+which he opened and laid on the table, though not where his copyist
+could see it. Mulgrum returned and presented
+<span class = "pagenum">116</span>
+him the letter, pointing out the mistake he had discovered. He looked at
+the blind letter, and then at the other. There was certainly an error,
+for his letter said "and they comprise about one of crew of each
+vessel." This was nonsense, for he had accidentally omitted the word
+"half" after "one." He inserted the word above the line in its proper
+place, and gave it back to the copyist. It was clear enough that Mulgrum
+was disappointed in the result of this interview; but he took the letter
+and returned to the table.</p>
+
+<p>At the end of another quarter of an hour, he brought the first copy
+of the letter. He knocked as before, and though Christy told him in a
+loud tone to come in, he did not do so. He repeated the words, but the
+conspirator, possibly aware of the blunder he had made before, did not
+make it again. Then he wrote on his tablet, after the captain had
+approved his work, that he found the table very uncomfortable to write
+upon while the ship was pitching so smartly, and suggested that he
+should be allowed to make the rest of the copies on the desk in the
+state room, if the captain did not desire to use it himself.
+Unfortunately for the writer, he did desire to use it himself, and
+<span class = "pagenum">117</span>
+he could not help smiling at the enterprise of the deaf mute in his
+attempt to obtain an opportunity to forage among the papers in his
+drawers.</p>
+
+<p>Mulgrum certainly did his work nicely and expeditiously, for he had
+finished it at three bells in the forenoon watch. He was dismissed then,
+for his presence was not particularly agreeable to the commander.
+Christy locked his desk and all the drawers that contained papers, not
+as against a thief or a burglar, but against one who would scorn to
+appropriate anything of value that did not belong to him, for he had no
+doubt now that Mulgrum was a gentleman who was trying to serve what he
+regarded as his country, though it was nothing but a fraction
+of&nbsp;it.</p>
+
+<p>In fact, inheriting, as it were, the broad and generous policy of his
+father, Christy had no personal prejudices against this enemy of his
+country, and he felt just as he would if he had been sailing a boat
+against him, or playing a game of whist with him. He was determined to
+beat him if he could. But he was not satisfied with locking his papers
+up; he called Dave, and set him as a watch over them. If the conspirator
+overhauled his papers, he would have been more
+<span class = "pagenum">118</span>
+concerned about what he did not find than in relation to what he did
+find, for the absence of the original of Warnock's letter would go far
+to convince him that the extract from it was an invention.</p>
+
+<p>When he had taken these precautions he went on deck. The wind was
+blowing a moderate gale; but the Bronx was doing exceedingly well,
+lifting herself very lightly over the foaming billows, and conveying to
+one walking her deck the impression of solidity and strength. The
+captain went to the bridge after a while, though not till he had noticed
+that something was going on among the crew; but he was not disposed to
+inquire into the matter, possibly regarding it as beneath the dignity of
+a commander to do&nbsp;so.</p>
+
+<p>Christy mounted the steps to the bridge. This structure is hardly a
+man-of-war appendage. It had been there, and it had been permitted to
+remain. The first shot in action might carry it away, and this
+contingency had been provided for, as she was provided with a duplicate
+steam-steering apparatus, as well as a hand wheel at the stern. The
+proper position of the officer of the watch, who is practically in
+command for the time
+<span class = "pagenum">119</span>
+being, is on the quarter deck, though he is required during his watch to
+visit all parts of the deck. On board of the Bronx this officer was
+placed on the bridge, where he could overlook all parts of the ship.</p>
+
+<p>The first lieutenant, who had the forenoon watch, saluted him, but
+there was nothing of interest to report. Christy asked the meaning of
+the movement he had observed among the seamen and petty officers, and
+was told that Baskirk was getting up an association on board, the first
+requirement to which was for all who wished to become members to sign
+the oath of allegiance to the United States government, "as represented
+by and presided over by the President at Washington." It was to be a
+secret society, and Flint added that it was really a branch of the Union
+League. Christy did not think it wise to ask any more questions, but he
+understood that this was really a movement to ascertain the sentiments
+of the members of the ship's company as to the extent of their duty in
+supporting the government.</p>
+
+<p>"Mr. Flint, I am not a little dissatisfied with the manner in which
+we are compelled to carry on our duty on board of the Bronx, though no
+blame
+<span class = "pagenum">120</span>
+is to be attached to the naval department on account of it," said
+Christy, after he had walked the bridge for a time.</p>
+
+<p>"Is anything going wrong, Captain Passford?" asked the first
+lieutenant anxiously.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, no: I have no fault to find with any one, and least of all with
+you," added the captain promptly. "The trouble is that we are short of
+officers, though all that could be spared for this vessel were sent on
+board of her. As the matter now stands, Dr. Spokeley and I are the only
+idlers on board in the cabin and ward room. The first lieutenant has to
+keep a watch, which is not at all regular, and I foresee that this
+arrangement will be a very great disadvantage to me. It could not be
+helped, and the Bronx was evidently regarded as of no great importance,
+for she is little more than a storeship just now, though the flag
+officer in the Gulf will doubtless make something more of&nbsp;her."</p>
+
+<p>"We have a big crew for this vessel, but we are short of officers,"
+added Flint.</p>
+
+<p>"From the best calculations I have been able to make, with my father
+to help me, we ought to fall in with the Scotian and the Arran; and in
+view of
+<span class = "pagenum">121</span>
+such an event, I propose to prepare for the emergency by appointing a
+temporary third lieutenant."</p>
+
+<p>"I think that would be a very wise step to take," added Flint very
+cordially.</p>
+
+<p>"Of the men you mentioned to me, who is the best one for this
+position?" asked Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"I have no hesitation in saying that Baskirk is the right man for the
+position."</p>
+
+<p>"Very well; he shall be appointed," added Christy, as he left the
+bridge. But in a few minutes he returned, and handed an order to the
+first lieutenant.</p>
+
+<p>Baskirk was sent for, and the captain had a long talk with him. He
+found that the candidate had more knowledge of naval discipline than he
+had supposed, and he was pleased with the man. He was the leading
+quartermaster in rank, having been appointed first. After another talk
+with Flint, the latter gave the order to pass the word for Mr. Giblock,
+who was the acting boatswain, though in rank he was only a boatswain's
+mate. He was directed to call all hands. When the ship's company were
+assembled on the forward deck, though this is not the usual place for
+such a gathering, the first lieutenant read the order of
+<span class = "pagenum">122</span>
+the commander appointing George Baskirk as acting third lieutenant of
+the Bronx, and directing that he should be respected and obeyed as such.
+A smart cheer followed the announcement, though the second lieutenant,
+who had taken a place on the bridge, looked as though he did not approve
+the step the captain had taken. The officer of the deck next appointed
+Thomas McLinn a quartermaster. The ship's company were then
+dismissed.</p>
+
+<p>Just before noon by the clocks, Lieutenant Baskirk appeared on the
+bridge, dressed in a brand-new uniform, with a sextant in his hands.
+Christy, who did not depend upon his pay for the extent of his wardrobe,
+had not less than three new suits, and he had presented one of them to
+the newly appointed officer, for there was no material difference in the
+size of the two persons. All the officers who kept watches were required
+to "take the sun," and at the moment the meridian was crossed, the
+captain gave the word to "make it noon," and the great bell sounded out
+eight bells. The officers proceeded to figure up the results of the
+observations. The longitude and latitude were entered on the log slate,
+to be
+<span class = "pagenum">123</span>
+transferred to the log book. Baskirk was directed to take the starboard
+watch, and he was formally presented to the second lieutenant by the
+captain; and whatever his feeling or opinions in regard to the step
+which had just been taken, he accepted the hand of the new officer and
+treated him with proper courtesy.</p>
+
+<p>"Latitude 37&deg; 52'," said the captain significantly, as he led the
+way down from the bridge, attended by the first and third
+lieutenants.</p>
+
+<p>They followed him to the captain's cabin. Christy gave them seats at
+the table, and then went into his state room for the ponderous envelope
+which contained his orders. He seated himself between his two officers;
+but before he broke the great seal, he discovered Dave in the passageway
+making energetic signs to him. He hastened to him, and followed him into
+the ward room.</p>
+
+<p>"Pink is under your berth in the state room," whispered the steward
+in the most impressive manner.</p>
+
+<p>"All right, Dave; you have been faithful to your duty," said Christy,
+as he hastened back into his cabin.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">124</span>
+Resuming his place at the table, he broke the seal of the huge envelope.
+He unfolded the inclosed instructions, and ran over them without
+speaking a word.</p>
+
+<p>"We have nothing to do on this cruise," said he, apparently taking
+his idea from the paper in his hand. "I will read the material parts of
+it," he continued in a much louder tone than the size of the cabin and
+the nearness of his auditors seemed to demand. "'You will proceed with
+all reasonable despatch to the Gulf of Mexico, and report to the flag
+officer, or his representative, of the eastern Gulf Squadron. You will
+attempt no operations on your passage, and if an enemy appears you will
+avoid her if possible with honor.' That's all, gentlemen."</p>
+
+<p>The two listeners seemed to be utterly confounded.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">125</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapXI">CHAPTER XI</a></h4>
+
+<h6>ANOTHER READING OF THE SEALED ORDERS</h6>
+
+
+<p>Christy finished the reading of the orders, folded up the document,
+and put it in his pocket. But he immediately took it out and unfolded it
+again, as though a new thought had struck him. Flint watched him with
+the utmost attention, and he realized that the bearing of the commander
+was quite different from his usual manner; but he attributed it to the
+very unexpected nature of the orders he had just read. He was distinctly
+directed to attempt no operations on the passage, and to proceed to the
+destination indicated with all reasonable despatch.</p>
+
+<p>The wording of the order was rather peculiar, and somewhat clumsy,
+Flint thought; but then he had been a schoolmaster, and perhaps he was
+inclined to be over-critical. But the meaning of the first clause could
+not be mistaken, however, though the word "operations" seemed to
+indicate
+<span class = "pagenum">126</span>
+something on a grander scale and more prolonged than an encounter with a
+blockade-runner, or a Confederate man-of-war; something in the nature of
+a campaign on shore, or a thorough scouring of the ocean in search of
+the vessels of the enemy.</p>
+
+<p>But any such interpretation of the order was rendered impossible by
+what followed. The commander was distinctly forbidden to engage the
+enemy if such an encounter could be avoided "with honor." The first
+lieutenant knew that a combat could be easily avoided simply by not
+following up any suspicious craft, unless a fully manned and armed
+Confederate cruiser presented herself, and then it might be honorable to
+run away from her. There was no mistaking the meaning of the orders, and
+there was no chance to strain a point, and fall upon one or both of the
+expected steamers.</p>
+
+<p>The captain was strictly enjoined from meddling with them, even if
+they came in his way. If they chased the Bronx, she would be justified
+in defending herself under the orders; and that was the most she could
+do. Flint was terribly disappointed, and he regarded the commander with
+the deepest interest to learn what interpretation he
+<span class = "pagenum">127</span>
+would give to the orders, though there seemed to him to be no room even
+to take advantage of any fortunate circumstance.</p>
+
+<p>The appearance of the commander did not throw any new light upon the
+contents of the document. After he had finished the reading of the
+paper, Christy sat in his chair, apparently still looking it over, as
+though he did not fully comprehend its meaning. But he made no sign and
+indulged in no remark of any kind, and in a few moments folded the order
+and put it back into his pocket. Undoubtedly he was thinking very
+energetically of something, but he did not reveal the nature of his
+reflections.</p>
+
+<p>Flint concluded that he was utterly dissatisfied with his orders, and
+even regarded them as a slight upon himself as the commander of the
+steamer for the time being. It was not customary to direct captains to
+avoid the enemy under all circumstances that were likely to be
+presented. The first lieutenant began to realize the disadvantage of
+sailing with a captain so young, for it looked to him as though the
+strange order had been issued on account of the youth of the
+commander.</p>
+
+<p>When Christy had restored the paper to his
+<span class = "pagenum">128</span>
+pocket, he rose from his seat, and thus indicated that there was to be
+no consultation with the officers in regard to the unusual instructions.
+The two officers rose at the same time, and closely observed the face of
+the commander; but this time Flint could find nothing there as serious
+as he had observed before; in fact, there was a twinkle in his eye that
+looked promising.</p>
+
+<p>"Gentlemen, it is dinner time in the ward room, and I will not detain
+you any longer," said Christy, as politely as he usually spoke to his
+officers, though the opera of "Pinafore" had not been written at that
+time.</p>
+
+<p>Flint bowed to his captain, and left the cabin; and his example was
+followed by Baskirk. Christy certainly did not look as though he were
+embarrassed by his orders, or as if he were disappointed at the
+restrictions they imposed upon him. He left the cabin so that Dave could
+prepare his table for dinner as he had the time to do so. He left the
+cabin; but in the passage he called the steward to him, and whispered a
+brief sentence to&nbsp;him.</p>
+
+<p>He then ascended to the deck, and proceeded to take a
+"constitutional" on the windward side of the quarter deck. The gale had
+moderated very
+<span class = "pagenum">129</span>
+sensibly, though the wind was still from the southward. The sea was
+still quite rough, though it was likely to subside very soon. After the
+captain had walked as long as he cared to do, he mounted the bridge.</p>
+
+<p>"What do you think of the weather, Mr. Lillyworth?" he asked of the
+officer of the deck, after he had politely returned his salute.</p>
+
+<p>"I don't believe we shall have any more wind today," replied the
+second lieutenant, as he looked wisely at the weather indications the
+sky presented. "But it don't look much like fairing off, and I shall
+look for fog as long as the wind holds where it&nbsp;is."</p>
+
+<p>"I have been expecting to be buried in fog," added the captain, as he
+took a survey of the deck beneath him. "I see by the log slate that we
+are making fifteen knots an hour, and we certainly are not
+driving&nbsp;her."</p>
+
+<p>"There can be no doubt that this is a very fast vessel," said Mr.
+Lillyworth. "Well, she ought to be, for I understand that she was built
+for a nobleman's yacht, and such men want speed, and are willing to pay
+for&nbsp;it."</p>
+
+<p>"By tomorrow, we shall be in the latitude of
+<span class = "pagenum">130</span>
+the Bermudas, and most of the blockade runners put in there, or some
+more southern port, to get the news, and obtain a pilot, if they don't
+happen to have one on board."</p>
+
+<p>"That seems to be the way they do it."</p>
+
+<p>"This fog is favorable to blockade runners if they have a skilful
+pilot on board; and they all contrive to have such a one," added the
+captain, as he moved towards the steps to the deck.</p>
+
+<p>"I suppose you have opened your sealed orders, Captain Passford,"
+said the second lieutenant, who seemed to be interested in this subject.
+"We have crossed the thirty-eighth parallel."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes; I have opened the envelope, and found the orders very peculiar
+and very disappointing," replied the captain as he took a step on the
+ladder. "But you will excuse me now from speaking of them, for I have
+another matter on my mind."</p>
+
+<p>Christy thought Pink Mulgrum might as well tell him about the orders
+and he could at least save his breath if he had no other motive for
+leaving the second lieutenant in the dark for the present. He went to
+the deck, and then down into the cabin. His breakfast was ready, but
+Dave was not there, and he walked forward into
+<span class = "pagenum">131</span>
+the ward room, from which he saw Mulgrum replenishing the table in the
+steerage. He had evacuated his place under the berth in the state room,
+and the captain went to his breakfast in his cabin. Dave soon appeared
+with the hot dishes from the galley, for he had seen Christy take his
+place at the table.</p>
+
+<p>"What's the news, Dave?" asked the captain.</p>
+
+<p>"No news, sir, except that I gave Pink a chance to get out of that
+state room," replied the steward, spreading out his broadest smile. "I
+spoke out loud just like I was calling to some one in the ward room,
+'No, sir, I can't go now; I have to go to the galley for the dishes.'
+Then I left the cabin, and went forward; when I came back, I looked
+under your berth, sir, and Pink wasn't there then."</p>
+
+<p>"How did you know he was under the berth in the first place,
+Dave?"</p>
+
+<p>"Just before eight bells I saw him cleaning the brasses on the door.
+I think he will wear those door knobs all out before the cruise is up. I
+knew he was up to something, and I just watched him. He went out of
+sight and I did not know where he was. Then I took the feather duster,
+and worked
+<span class = "pagenum">132</span>
+about the cabin; but I couldn't find him. Then I dusted the state room,
+and then I did find&nbsp;him."</p>
+
+<p>"You have rendered good service, Dave, and I shall not forget it,"
+added Christy. "Where are Mr. Flint and Mr. Baskirk?"</p>
+
+<p>"In the ward room, sir."</p>
+
+<p>"Give my compliments to them, and say that I wish to see them in my
+cabin in about ten minutes," continued the captain.</p>
+
+<p>Dave left the cabin, and Christy devoted himself to his breakfast;
+and in his haste to meet the officers indicated, he hurried the meal
+more than was prudent for the digestion. The steward reported that he
+had delivered the message, and Christy finished his hasty collation.</p>
+
+<p>The table was hurriedly cleared by the steward, and the captain paid
+a visit to his state room, during which he did not fail to look under
+his berth. He had a trunk there, and he saw that it had been moved to
+the front of the space, so that there was room enough for the
+conspirator to conceal his body behind it, though his was a good-sized
+body. Returning to the cabin, he took his usual seat at the table,
+facing the door. In a few minutes more Mr. Flint and Mr. Baskirk came to
+<span class = "pagenum">133</span>
+the door and were invited to come in. Dave had returned from the galley,
+and he was instructed to watch that door as he was told to
+close&nbsp;it.</p>
+
+<p class = "illustration">
+<img src = "images/pic132.png" width = "336" height = "525"
+alt = "illustration of quoted scene"><br>
+<span class = "caption smallcaps">
+Dave finds Mulgrum under the berth.</span>
+</p>
+
+<p>Flint took the seat assigned to him, and Baskirk was placed opposite
+to him. The first lieutenant appeared to be a great deal more
+dissatisfied than the captain; but then he was a poor man, and next to
+his duty to his country, he was as anxious as the average officer to
+make all the money he could out of the prizes captured by his ship. It
+looked to him as though all his chances had slipped beyond his reach for
+the present.</p>
+
+<p>Flint had taken no little stock in the two steamers that were
+expected on the coast at this time, and in spite of the treachery
+anticipated he had counted upon a share in at least one of them. He knew
+very well that the commander, from sharp experience at his side some
+months before, would not pass by an opportunity to strike a blow, even
+in the face of any reasonable risk. But now, as he looked at it, the
+wings of the young captain had been clipped by the authorities at
+Washington, in the sealed orders.</p>
+
+<p>"I am glad to meet you again, gentlemen; indeed I may say that I am
+particularly glad to
+<span class = "pagenum">134</span>
+see you," said Christy in his most cheerful tones, as he looked about
+the cabin, and especially at the ports, to see if there was a spy
+looking in at one of them.</p>
+
+<p>The thought came to him then and there that it was possible for a man
+to hang over the rail, and place one of his ears at an opening and
+listen to what was going on; and besides there were, besides Mulgrum,
+six others who were capable of doing such a thing. He sent Mr. Baskirk
+on deck to see that no man was at work over the side. He returned and
+reported that no one was in a position to hear what was said in the
+cabin.</p>
+
+<p>Flint did not seem to be as much interested in the proceedings as on
+former occasions, for he had had time to consider the effect of the
+orders, and he saw no way to evade them. They might pick up some cotton
+schooners, but no such prizes as the Scotian and the Arran were likely
+to be taken when the steamer reached her station, wherever it might be,
+and the whole squadron shared the proceeds of the captures.</p>
+
+<p>"You listened to the orders I read this noon," began Christy, with a
+pronounced twinkling of his eyes.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">135</span>
+"Yes, sir; and, Captain Passford, I have felt as if the gates of honor
+and profit had been closed against the Bronx," added Flint.</p>
+
+<p>"Perhaps a second reading of the orders will put a different aspect
+on the gates," said the captain with a significant smile, the force of
+which, however, the first lieutenant failed to comprehend.</p>
+
+<p>"Under these orders there seems to be no alternative but to hasten to
+the Gulf of Mexico, and run away from any blockade runner we may happen
+to see," growled Flint.</p>
+
+<p>"You are not as amiable as usual, Mr. Flint."</p>
+
+<p>"How can one be amiable under such orders?" added Flint, trying to
+smile.</p>
+
+<p>"I will read them over again, now that we have not as many auditors
+as before," said the captain.</p>
+
+<p>Christy proceeded to read the document as it was written.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">136</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapXII">CHAPTER XII</a></h4>
+
+<h6>A SAIL ON THE STARBOARD BOW</h6>
+
+
+<p>Before Captain Passford had read two lines of the document in his
+hands, a noise as of a scuffle was heard in the passage way to the ward
+room. Mr. Baskirk was sent to ascertain the cause of the disturbance,
+and he threw the door wide open. Dave was there, blocking the passage
+way, and Pink Mulgrum was trying to force his way towards the cabin
+door. The steward declared that no one must go to the cabin; it was the
+order of the captain himself. Mulgrum found it convenient not to hear on
+this occasion. The moment Baskirk appeared, the deaf mute exhibited a
+paper, which he passed to the new lieutenant, evidently satisfied that
+he could get no nearer to the door. When he had delivered the paper, he
+hastened up the ladder to the deck. Dave came into the cabin and
+explained that Mulgrum had tried to force him out of the way, and he had
+resisted. The
+<span class = "pagenum">137</span>
+intruder did not exhibit any paper till the third lieutenant appeared at
+the door.</p>
+
+<p>"That man is very persevering in his efforts to procure information,"
+said Christy, as he unfolded the paper. "'The fog is very dense ahead,
+and we shall soon be shut in by it,'" he read from the paper. "Mr.
+Lillyworth might have found a man that could speak for his messenger,"
+he continued, "but of course he wanted to assist his confederate to
+obtain more information."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't see what he wants to know now, for Mulgrum has told him the
+contents of the sealed envelope before this time, and he knows that the
+gates are closed against us," added Flint. "It is plain enough that they
+have had their heads together."</p>
+
+<p>"Certainly they have; but Mr. Lillyworth may not be any better
+satisfied with his information than you are, Mr. Flint," replied the
+captain, with an expressive smile, though he felt that his fellow
+officer had been tantalized long enough by the circumstances. "I have
+read and studied my orders very attentively. They direct me to proceed
+with all reasonable despatch to the Gulf of Mexico, and report to the
+flag officer of the Eastern Gulf Squadron, or his representative."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">138</span>
+"'But information has been received,'" continued Christy, reading what
+he had not read before, "'that two steamers, probably fitted out for
+service in the Confederate navy, are approaching the coast of the
+Southern States, and it is very important that they should be
+intercepted. Both of these vessels are reported to have small crews, but
+they are said to be fast. The department regrets that it has not a
+suitable steamer available to send in search of these two vessels; but
+relying upon your well-known patriotism and the excellent record you
+have already made, you are instructed to intercept them, even if you are
+delayed a week or more by any hopeful circumstances.' That is the
+material portion of my orders," added Christy, as he read the last
+sentence. "But I beg you to bear in mind that I did not write the
+commendatory expressions in the paper."</p>
+
+<p>"But they are as true as the holy Gospels!" exclaimed Flint,
+springing out of his chair in the heat of the excitement which the new
+reading of the orders produced in his mind. "But I thought you had read
+the sealed orders to us before, Captain Passford."</p>
+
+<p>"I read but a very small part of them before;
+<span class = "pagenum">139</span>
+and as I had to improvise the greater part of what I read, or rather did
+not read, but simply uttered, the language was not all well chosen,"
+replied Christy, laughing in spite of all his attempts to maintain his
+dignity. "The fact is, Mr. Flint, I had too many listeners when I read
+the paper before."</p>
+
+<p>"There was no one in the cabin but Mr. Baskirk and myself, and Dave
+had been stationed at the door; or at least he was there, for he
+beckoned you out into the gangway just as you were beginning to read the
+orders," argued Flint. "Possibly I should have understood the first
+reading better if I had not seen for myself that you had taken all
+precautions against any listener. You went out when Dave called you; but
+you were not gone half a minute; and that was not long enough for the
+steward to spin any long yarn."</p>
+
+<p>"But it was long enough for Dave to tell me that Pink Mulgrum was
+under my berth, with the state room door open," replied Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"Just so; I comprehend the whole matter now," said Flint, joining the
+captain in the laugh.</p>
+
+<p>"Now you know what my instructions are, gentlemen," continued the
+commander, "and I
+<span class = "pagenum">140</span>
+hope and believe that Mr. Lillyworth and his right hand man do not know
+them. I think you have been already posted, Mr. Baskirk, in regard to
+the anomalous state of affairs on board of the Bronx," added the
+captain.</p>
+
+<p>"Not fully, Captain Passford; but Mr. Flint has told me something
+about the situation," replied the third lieutenant.</p>
+
+<p>"It may not be necessary, gentlemen, that I should say it, but not a
+word of what passes in my cabin is to be repeated in any other part of
+the ship; not even in the ward room when you believe you are entirely
+alone," said the captain, very earnestly and impressively. "If the doors
+and keyholes do not have ears, there may be ears behind them, as some of
+us have learned to our entire satisfaction."</p>
+
+<p>"Not a word from me, Captain Passford," added Baskirk.</p>
+
+<p>"And not one from me," repeated Flint.</p>
+
+<p>"Unquestionably the curiosity of Mr. Lillyworth and his confederate
+are and will continue to be excited to the highest pitch," continued
+Christy. "I shall have occasion to change the course of the ship, and
+head her more to the eastward.
+<span class = "pagenum">141</span>
+Of course the second lieutenant will observe this, and will understand
+that I am not following the orders reported to him by Mulgrum. You are
+my only confidants on board, and it will be necessary for you to refer
+Mr. Lillyworth to me when he asks for further information."</p>
+
+<p>"Perfectly understood," replied Flint, who was now in most excellent
+humor.</p>
+
+<p>"Now, gentlemen, I will leave you in my cabin that Mr. Baskirk may be
+more fully instructed in regard to the matters which have passed between
+Mr. Flint and myself. I have great expectations in regard to you, Mr.
+Baskirk, and I am confident that you will realize them."</p>
+
+<p>Saying this, Christy bowed to his companions, and left the cabin,
+retiring to his state room and closing the door. He had on board a full
+supply of charts and nautical instruments of his own, in addition to
+those belonging to the ship. Spreading out the chart of the South
+Atlantic on the desk, he went to work with his dividers and parallel
+rule. He made his figures on a piece of paper, and then laid off a
+course on the chart with a pencil, to be deepened in red ink at another
+time.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">142</span>
+Writing "southeast by east" on a slip of paper, he restored his charts
+and instruments to their places and left the state room. The two
+lieutenants were still in his cabin, but he did not disturb them and
+went on deck. Before he reached the bridge, six bells struck, or three
+o'clock in the afternoon. He then ascended the ladder to the bridge. The
+fog which the second lieutenant had predicted had not yet enveloped the
+ship; on the contrary, it looked more like clearing off, and some
+patches of blue sky could be seen.</p>
+
+<p>"Mr. Lillyworth, you will make the course southeast by east," said
+Christy, looking at the officer of the deck.</p>
+
+<p>"Southeast by east!" exclaimed the second lieutenant; and his remark
+needed an exclamation point after it, for though it was customary to
+repeat an order to make sure that it was understood, he did so in such a
+tone and in such a manner as to manifest very clearly his astonishment
+at the nature of the order. The former course had been south by
+west.</p>
+
+<p>One thing was fully evident from this surprise&mdash;that the officer
+of the deck gave full faith to the
+<span class = "pagenum">143</span>
+bogus instructions which had been imparted to him by Mulgrum. He
+believed that the Bronx was to hasten to the Gulf, as the former course
+indicated. It was plain enough to Lillyworth that the captain was
+disregarding his instructions; but his lips were sealed in regard to
+this disobedience, for he could not indicate in any manner that he knew
+the purport of the sealed orders; and doubtless it did not occur to him
+that the deaf mute had been blinded, in addition to his other
+infirmities. The course was given out to the quartermaster at the wheel.
+The steamer promptly fell off, and began to ride quartering over the
+smart billows, brought out by the wind from the south-southwest, as it
+had blown for the last hour or more.</p>
+
+<p>Christy believed that he had put everything in train for
+accomplishing the mission of the Bronx on the new course he had just
+ordered. There were no more orders to be read, and he did not see that
+the conspirators could do anything more to derange the plans of the
+loyal officers and seamen on board. All they had attempted so far was to
+obtain information in regard to the movements of the vessel; and Christy
+had taken care
+<span class = "pagenum">144</span>
+that they should receive all the information they wanted, though not as
+reliable as it might have been. He was satisfied with the situation as
+it must remain till some decided event should call for energetic
+action.</p>
+
+<p>The captain and the two ward-room officers in his confidence were
+obliged to conduct themselves with the utmost caution and discretion in
+order not to undo anything which had been done in blinding the eyes of
+the conspirators. Christy had an abundance of writing to do, and it was
+of a kind that would not betray any of his secrets; he called upon
+Mulgrum to do this work, in order to keep up appearances. He did not
+call any more conferences with his friends in the cabin, for there was
+no need of any, and entire silence was the more prudent.</p>
+
+<p>The Bronx proceeded on the course the captain had given out until the
+twentieth of the month, when the steamer was a little to the southward
+of the Bermudas. She had not been near enough to the islands to be made
+out from the shore. On this day, when the Bronx was three days from
+Sandy Hook, the fog which Mr. Lillyworth had been predicting settled
+down on the steamer, not
+<span class = "pagenum">145</span>
+as dense as it might be, but thick enough to prevent those on board of
+her from seeing anything at any great distance from her. The second
+lieutenant, in charge of the deck, suggested to the captain that the
+whistle should be blown; but Christy answered very emphatically that no
+whistles were to be blown; though he ordered the lookouts to be doubled,
+and the steamer to proceed at half speed.</p>
+
+<p>In the middle of the second dog watch, in charge of Mr. Baskirk, the
+lookout on the topsail yard made himself heard, and the others aloft
+repeated the call.</p>
+
+<p>"Sail on the starboard bow, sir!" said the first lookout from the
+yard, hailing the bridge.</p>
+
+<p>Captain Passford heard the hail from aloft, for he was planking the
+deck with the first lieutenant. Both of them rushed forward at a pace
+rather undignified for a commander.</p>
+
+<p>"Silence, aloft!" shouted the captain. "We have made her out. Mr.
+Flint, you will take the deck, and call all hands without any
+unnecessary noise."</p>
+
+<p>This order was given to Giblock, the boatswain, and in a minute or
+two every man on board was in
+<span class = "pagenum">146</span>
+his station. The first lieutenant remained on the bridge, but the second
+took his place in the waist, and the third forward, though this
+arrangement of the officers was not sanctioned by ancient usage. Silence
+was commanded, and the engine, working at half speed, made hardly any
+noise. The captain had spoken to Sampson, the chief engineer, and he had
+done his best to avoid all noise in his department.</p>
+
+<p>The captain and the first lieutenant remained on the bridge,
+anxiously sighting in the direction in which the sail had been reported
+to be. As the captain had instructed the engineer to do, he had caused
+the fires to be reduced and a change of fuel used so that the smokestack
+of the Bronx was just beginning to send up volumes of black smoke. The
+bunkers contained a small portion of soft coal for this purpose.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">147</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapXIII">CHAPTER XIII</a></h4>
+
+<h6>THE STEAMER IN THE FOG</h6>
+
+
+<p>The Bronx was slowly approaching the steamer in the fog, which
+appeared to have stopped her propeller, and to be resting motionless on
+the long swells, hardly disturbed by a breath of air. By this time the
+smokestack of the Bronx was vomiting forth dense clouds of black smoke.
+The steamers of the navy used anthracite coal, which burns without any
+great volume of smoke, and blockade runners had already begun to lay in
+whatever stock of it they were able to procure to be used as they
+approached the coast where they were to steal through the national
+fleet. The attention of the naval department of the United States had
+already been given to this subject, and the first steps had been taken
+to prevent the sale of this comparatively smokeless coal where it could
+be obtained by the blockade runners.</p>
+
+<p>Christy had been on the blockade; and he had
+<span class = "pagenum">148</span>
+been in action with a steamer from the other side of the ocean; and he
+knew that this black smoke of the soft coal, exclusively used by English
+steamers, was a telltale in regard to such vessels. It had been an idea
+of his own to take in a supply of this kind of fuel, for while its smoke
+betrayed the character of vessels intending to run the blockade, the
+absence of it betrayed the loyalty of the national steamers to the
+blockade runners. It was a poor rule that would not work both ways, and
+the commander of the Bronx had determined to adopt the scheme he had now
+put in force on board of his vessel. Although the craft on the starboard
+bow could hardly be distinguished in the fog, Christy had sent a trusty
+seaman aloft to report on the color of the smoke that issued from her
+funnel.</p>
+
+<p>This man had reported by swinging his cap in the air, as the captain
+had instructed him to do if he found that the smoke was that of soft
+coal. If there was no black smoke, he was to return to the deck without
+making any sign. The moment therefore that the man had been able to see
+the quality of the smoke, the commander was made as wise as though he
+had seen it himself. The information
+<span class = "pagenum">149</span>
+left him no doubt that the steamer was intended to run the blockade; but
+whether or not she was one of the expected pair, of course he could form
+no opinion, for already this part of the ocean had begun to swarm with
+vessels in this service.</p>
+
+<p>"I am beginning to make her out a little better," said Flint, who had
+been straining his eyes to the utmost capacity, as everybody else on
+board was doing, to obtain the best and earliest information in regard
+to the stranger on the starboard&nbsp;bow.</p>
+
+<p>"What do you make out, Mr. Flint?" asked Christy, who was too busily
+employed in watching the movements of the officers and seamen on his own
+deck to give especial attention to the character of the other
+steamer.</p>
+
+<p>"I can't see well enough yet to say anything in regard to details,"
+replied the first lieutenant. "I can only make out her form and size;
+and she seems to be as nearly like the Bronx as one pea is like another,
+though I should say that she was longer."</p>
+
+<p>"Is she in motion?" asked the captain with interest.</p>
+
+<p>"She appears to be at rest, though it is possible
+<span class = "pagenum">150</span>
+that she is moving very slowly; but if she has not stopped her screw,
+she is not going more than four knots."</p>
+
+<p>"You say that she is built like the Bronx, Mr. Flint?" asked Christy
+anxiously.</p>
+
+<p>"Just like her; I should say that both hulls came out of the same
+mould."</p>
+
+<p>"That very nearly settles the question in my mind. Probably she was
+designed by the same naval architect, and constructed by the same
+builders, as the Bronx," replied Christy, gazing intently at the dim
+outlines of the steamer in the fog. "When a designer has made a great
+reputation for fast ships, men with piles of money, like the former
+owners of the Bronx, the Scotian, and the Arran, employ him to furnish
+the plans for their steam yachts. From what we have learned so far,
+though it is very little indeed, I feel reasonably sure that this
+steamer ahead of us is the Scotian or the Arran, and I don't care much
+which it is. But why has she stopped her screw, or reduced her speed to
+four knots?"</p>
+
+<p>"That is a question that can only be answered an hour or two hence,
+if ever," replied the first lieutenant.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">151</span>
+"But it is a very important question all the same," added Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"I doubt if the Bronx is making four knots at the present moment,"
+said Flint, as he went to the end of the bridge, and looked down into
+the water.</p>
+
+<p>"In changing the fires in the furnaces, Mr. Sampson had been obliged
+to clear them out in part, and that has reduced the pressure of steam;
+but we shall soon have the usual head," said Christy, as he went to the
+speaking tube and communicated with the chief engineer.</p>
+
+<p>He was informed that his explanation was correct in regard to the
+coal, and that in a very short time the boilers would have a full head
+of steam. Christy spent the next few minutes in an earnest study of the
+scarcely perceptible outline of the steamer in the fog. He was hardly
+wiser when he had finished his examination than before. The hull and
+lower masts of the vessel could be indistinctly made out, and that was
+all. Sampson informed him that he had not been using all the steam he
+had, and that the screw was hardly turning at all. He ordered him to
+stop it entirely.</p>
+
+<p>Impatient as he was to follow up the discovery
+<span class = "pagenum">152</span>
+that had been made, he realized that it would be very imprudent to
+expose his ship to possible danger when he had not steam enough to work
+her to the best advantage. He could only wait; but he was satisfied that
+he had done the best possible thing in changing the coal, for the black
+smoke would effectually blind the officers of the other vessel. They
+were not engaged in a chase, and the exciting question could be settled
+a few hours hence as well as at the present time.</p>
+
+<p>"If the steamer ahead is the Scotian or the Arran, as I fully believe
+she is, probably her consort is somewhere in these waters," said the
+commander.</p>
+
+<p>"Probably she lost sight of her in this fog," added Flint. "But,
+Captain Passford, we are in the face of something, though we do not yet
+know precisely what. I suppose you have your eye on Mr. Lillyworth?"</p>
+
+<p>"I have kept him in sight all the time. He is on the quarter deck
+now, as he has been since all hands were called," replied Christy, who
+had not failed to look at him for a full minute since the discovery of
+the sail on the starboard. "He seems to be perplexed by the situation,
+and his
+<span class = "pagenum">153</span>
+time for action, if he intends to act, has not yet come."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't see Pink Mulgrum anywhere about the deck."</p>
+
+<p>"I saw him a few minutes since," added Christy. "He passed several
+times quite near Mr. Lillyworth, and very likely something was said
+between them; but they had no long talk."</p>
+
+<p>Christy had charged Dave to watch Mulgrum if he went below, and to
+follow him up closely; but the deaf mute had been on deck most of the
+time. There was nothing that he could do, and nothing that the second
+lieutenant could do, to embarrass the operations of the ship while she
+remained at rest. The captain then descended to the deck, and personally
+looked into the condition of everything. In the course of his round he
+came to the quarter deck where the second lieutenant was stationed. He
+could see that he was nervous and uneasy about something, and it was not
+difficult to divine what perplexed him. He could hardly see the black
+smoke from the funnel of the steamer in the fog, for his place on the
+deck did not permit him to obtain as good a view of her as could be had
+from the bridge, and especially from aloft.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">154</span>
+"Do you make out what that vessel is, Captain Passford?" asked
+Lillyworth, as Christy passed near&nbsp;him.</p>
+
+<p>"Not yet, Mr. Lillyworth," replied the captain, not caring to
+converse with the conspirator.</p>
+
+<p>"The fog does not seem to be very dense, and I should think the
+vessel might be made out from aloft," added the second lieutenant,
+evidently very anxious to know more about the sail ahead.</p>
+
+<p>"Not very clearly," replied Christy, as he went forward to the engine
+hatch.</p>
+
+<p>He descended to the engine room, and while he was listening to the
+roar of the flames in the furnaces, so different from the action of
+anthracite coal, Sampson came up from the fire room.</p>
+
+<p>"We shall have a sufficient head of steam in a few minutes to justify
+you in going ahead, Captain Passford," said the engineer without waiting
+to be questioned.</p>
+
+<p>"I am glad to hear it, though we are in no special hurry at present,
+in spite of our impatience to know what is before us," replied the
+captain. "Do you know the man who passes under the name of Mulgrum, Mr.
+Sampson?"</p>
+
+<p>"You mean Pink, the deaf mute? Mr. Nawood
+<span class = "pagenum">155</span>
+pointed him out to me, and I have seen him about the deck or in the
+steerage several times."</p>
+
+<p>"Has he been in the engine room at any time since we sailed?" asked
+Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"He may have been; but I have not noticed him anywhere in my
+department," replied Sampson.</p>
+
+<p>"You will not allow him in the engine or fire room," continued the
+captain. "Send him out, drive him out, if necessary, at once."</p>
+
+<p>"Being deaf and dumb, I should suppose he were harmless wherever he
+happened to be. Is he&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Never mind what he is just now, Mr. Sampson," interposed Christy.
+"Be very particular to obey my order in regard to him to the letter;
+that's all now. Inform me at once when you are ready to go ahead, and I
+shall be on the bridge."</p>
+
+<p>The order which Christy had just given to the engineer was the result
+of his reflection since he came down from the bridge. He had been
+cudgelling his brains to determine what the conspirators could possibly
+do when the decisive moment came, if it should happen to come as he
+neared the steamer in the fog, to derange the operations on board. It
+seemed to him before that all they
+<span class = "pagenum">156</span>
+could do was to leap on board of the enemy, if it came to boarding her,
+and reinforce her crew. He had talked over this matter with Flint and
+Baskirk, and there were three who would be ready to shoot either of them
+the instant their treachery should be apparent.</p>
+
+<p>Before it would be possible to board, a man as intelligent as
+Mulgrum, who had served as executive officer, could easily disable the
+engine. This idea had but just come to the commander, who thought before
+that he had closed every opening against the conspirators. He went on
+deck as soon as he had settled this matter. The fog seemed to be rather
+more dense than before, and when he went on the bridge, it was reported
+that the stranger could no longer be made&nbsp;out.</p>
+
+<p>"I have just received the roster of the 'Bronx Association,'" said
+Flint, as the captain joined him. "It is signed by every man on board,
+including the supernumeraries forward, except Spoors, Blocker, Veering,
+Packer, Pickford, and Runyon. I inquired why these men would not join,
+but could not learn that they had any reason except that they did not
+wish to be members. I have seen Mr. Lillyworth talking to all of these
+<span class = "pagenum">157</span>
+men, and I think we can be certain now who is white and who is
+black."</p>
+
+<p>"On the bridge!" came from the speaking tube, at this moment, and the
+captain was near enough to hear it. Mr. Sampson reported that he had
+steam enough to make at least ten knots an hour.</p>
+
+<p>The commander then instructed the first lieutenant to see that both
+divisions of boarders were armed with cutlass and revolver, in readiness
+for action. The second lieutenant was to attend to the working of the
+broadside guns, Mr. Baskirk was to lead the first division of boarders,
+and Mr. Giblock, the boatswain, the second. Flint went below to the deck
+to execute his orders, and the captain ordered the quartermaster to ring
+one bell.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">158</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapXIV">CHAPTER XIV</a></h4>
+
+<h6>THE CONFEDERATE STEAMER SCOTIAN</h6>
+
+
+<p>One bell sounded on the gong in the engine room, and the Bronx began
+to go ahead. Christy felt that the most tremendous hour of his lifetime
+had come, and he struggled to keep down the excitement which agitated
+him; and he succeeded so far that he appeared to be the coolest man on
+board of the ship. When Flint came in the vicinity of the bridge, he
+called to him to join him. The men were procuring their revolvers and
+cutlasses, and he had a moment to spare. The captain instructed him to
+conceal the boarders so that they could not be seen on board the steamer
+in the fog when the Bronx came up with her. He added some other details
+to his orders.</p>
+
+<p>"If possible, I wish you to keep as near Lillyworth as you can,"
+continued Christy, "for I shall not have the opportunity to watch him.
+This war cannot be conducted on peace principles, and if
+<span class = "pagenum">159</span>
+that man attempts to defeat my orders in any manner, don't hesitate to
+put a ball from your revolver through his heart. Use reasonable care,
+Mr. Flint, but bear in mind that I am not to be defeated in the capture
+of that steamer, if she proves to be what I suppose she is, by the
+treachery of one who accepted a position as an officer on board of the
+Bronx." The commander was firm and decided in his manner, and Flint had
+served with him enough to know that he meant what he said.</p>
+
+<p>"I will obey your orders to the letter, Captain Passford, using all
+reasonable precautions in the discharge of my duty," replied Flint. "Mr.
+Lillyworth was in a state of mutiny just now, and spoke to&nbsp;me."</p>
+
+<p>"What did he say?"</p>
+
+<p>"He declared that he was second lieutenant of the ship, and it was
+his right to command the first division of boarders. He wouldn't stand
+it. I told him he was to be in command of the guns. He insisted that you
+did not intend to fire a gun if you could help it. I replied that we
+should not board the vessel either if we could help it. But I had no
+time to argue with him, and referred
+<span class = "pagenum">160</span>
+him to the captain. Then he moved towards the ladder of the bridge, and
+I forbade him to leave his station. That is the whole of it. I have seen
+him speak to each of the six men we now know to be his friends, to say
+nothing of Mulgrum. I left him then."</p>
+
+<p>"All right so far, Mr. Flint. Return to the deck, if you please, and
+be sure that the boarders are kept out of sight from this moment," added
+Christy. "Quartermaster, ring four bells," he added, turning to the
+pilot house.</p>
+
+<p>"Four bells, sir," repeated McSpindle, who was at the wheel.</p>
+
+<p>The Bronx soon began to feel the effect of this order, and the smoke
+poured out in increased volume from the smokestack, affected by the
+stronger draught produced by the additional speed.</p>
+
+<p>"On the topsail yard!" called the captain, directing his speaking
+trumpet aloft.</p>
+
+<p>"On the bridge, sir!" replied the man.</p>
+
+<p>"Can you make out the steamer?"</p>
+
+<p>"No, sir; only her topmasts and fore rigging."</p>
+
+<p>"How does she lie from the Bronx?"</p>
+
+<p>"Still on the starboard bow, sir."</p>
+
+<p>"Port the helm, quartermaster," added the captain.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">161</span>
+"Port, sir," replied McSpindle.</p>
+
+<p>For about five minutes more, the Bronx went ahead at full speed, and
+Christy was confident that she was again making fifteen knots.</p>
+
+<p>"On the bridge, sir!" called the man on the fore yard.</p>
+
+<p>"Aloft!"</p>
+
+<p>"I make her out now; she has the Confederate flag at the peak."</p>
+
+<p>"All right!" exclaimed Christy to himself, though he spoke out
+loud.</p>
+
+<p>The steamer had set her colors, and there was no longer any doubt in
+regard to her character. The flag also indicated that she was not a
+blockade runner in the ordinary sense of the word, but a Confederate
+man-of-war. Warnock reported that she had taken her armament on board
+from another vessel at some point south of England, and the colors also
+assured Christy that the steamer was one of the pair expected.</p>
+
+<p>Still the Bronx went ahead at full speed, and presently a gun was
+heard from the direction in which she lay, though the captain was unable
+to decide what it meant. It might be a signal of distress, but the man
+on the yard had not reported
+<span class = "pagenum">162</span>
+the colors as union down; and it might be simply a defiance. It was
+probable that the Scotian and Arran had put in at St. George, and it was
+more than possible that they had shipped a reinforcement to her reported
+small crew.</p>
+
+<p>"Aloft!" called the captain again.</p>
+
+<p>"On the bridge, sir!" replied the lookout.</p>
+
+<p>"Is the steamer under way?"</p>
+
+<p>"I think not, sir; but I can't make out her wake, it is
+so&nbsp;low."</p>
+
+<p>"Starboard a little, quartermaster."</p>
+
+<p>"Starboard, sir."</p>
+
+<p>Christy heard, or thought he heard, for he was not sure about it, the
+sound of a bell. A minute later the quartermaster in the pilot house
+struck seven bells, which was repeated on the top-gallant forecastle of
+the Bronx, and he was confident this was what he had heard on board of
+the stranger.</p>
+
+<p>"Quartermaster, strike one bell," he added.</p>
+
+<p>"One bell, sir;" and the gong resounded from the engine room, and the
+speed of the Bronx was immediately reduced.</p>
+
+<p>A minute later Christy obtained a full view of the steamer. She was
+headed to the southwest, and her propeller was not in motion. As the
+<span class = "pagenum">163</span>
+lookout had reported, she was the counterpart of the Bronx, though she
+was a larger vessel. He gave some further orders to the quartermaster at
+the wheel, for he had decided to board the steamer on her port side. The
+boarders had been concealed in proper places under this arrangement, and
+the captain had directed the course of the Bronx so that a shot from her
+could hardly do any harm, if she took it into her head to
+fire&nbsp;one.</p>
+
+<p>"Arran, ahoy!" shouted a hoarse voice through a speaking trumpet from
+the steamer.</p>
+
+<p>"On board the Scotian!" replied Christy through his trumpet.</p>
+
+<p>After the vessel had hailed the Arran, the captain had no difficulty
+in deciding that the other craft was the Scotian; and he was especially
+glad that the officer of that vessel had hailed him in this particular
+form. The single word spoken through that trumpet was the key to the
+entire enigma. Every possible doubt was removed by it. He was now
+assured, as he had not been before, that he had fallen in with one of
+the two vessels of which his father had given him information, and which
+his sealed orders required him to seek, even if he was detained a week
+or more.
+<span class = "pagenum">164</span>
+Christy spent no time in congratulating himself on the situation, but
+the tremendous idea passed through his whole being in an instant.</p>
+
+<p>"We are disabled!" shouted the officer on board of the Scotian
+through his trumpet. "Please send your engineer on board."</p>
+
+<p>"All right!" replied Christy. "Go ahead a little faster, Mr. Sampson.
+We are very near the steamer."</p>
+
+<p>The young commander cast his eyes over the deck of his vessel to
+assure himself that everything was ready for the important moment,
+though the situation did not indicate that a very sharp battle was to be
+fought. Everything was in order, and the first lieutenant was planking
+the deck, looking as though he felt quite at home, for he was as cool as
+a Jersey cucumber. Farther aft was Lillyworth, as uneasy as a caged
+tiger, for no doubt he realized that the Scotian was to fall a victim to
+the circumstances that beset her, rather than as the result of a
+spirited chase or a sharply fought battle. He looked about him for a
+moment, and the instant he turned his head, Mulgrum came out from behind
+the mast, and passed quite near&nbsp;him.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">165</span>
+The captain could not tell whether the second lieutenant had spoken to
+the deaf mute or not, but the latter hastened to the engine hatch, and
+descended to the engine room. The Bronx was within less than a cable's
+length of the Scotian, whose name could now be read on her stern, when
+Mulgrum, apparently ordered by Lillyworth to do so, had hastened to the
+engine hatch. Even on the bridge the noise of a scuffle could be heard
+in the engine room, and the captain was sure that Sampson had been
+obedient to his orders. Another minute or two would determine in what
+manner the Scotian was to be captured, and Christy hastened down the
+ladder to the deck.</p>
+
+<p>As soon as his foot pressed the planks, he hastened to the engine
+hatch. Calling to the engineer, he learned that the deaf mute had been
+knocked senseless by Sampson, and lay on the sofa. He waited to hear no
+more, but went forward where there were bell pulls on the deck, and rang
+two bells to stop her. Then he gave some orders to the quartermaster,
+and rang three bells to back her. The Bronx came alongside of the
+Scotian as handsomely as though she had been a river steamer making one
+of her usual landings.
+<span class = "pagenum">166</span>
+The hands who had been stationed for the purpose immediately used their
+grappling irons, and the two vessels were fast to each other.</p>
+
+<p>"Boarders!&mdash;" the first lieutenant shouted at a sign from the
+captain; but before he could complete the order, Pawcett, for we may now
+call him by his right name, leaped on the bulwarks of the Bronx.</p>
+
+<p>"This is a United States"&mdash;he began to say, but he was allowed
+to proceed no farther, for the first lieutenant raised the revolver he
+carried in his left hand, doubtless for this very purpose, and
+fired.</p>
+
+<p>Pawcett did not utter another word, but fell back upon the deck of
+the Bronx; where no one took any further notice of&nbsp;him.</p>
+
+<p>"Boarders, away!" shouted the first lieutenant.</p>
+
+<p>This time the sentence was finished, and the order was promptly
+executed. Hardly a half minute had been lost by the attempt of Pawcett
+to prepare the officers of the Scotian to do their duty; but he had said
+enough to enable the ship's company to understand what he would have
+said if he had finished his announcement. The officers and seamen were
+both surprised, and there was a
+<span class = "pagenum">167</span>
+panic among the latter, though the former rallied them in a moment. But
+they had lost all their chances, and after an insignificant struggle,
+the deck of the steamer was in possession of the boarders. The crew were
+driven forward by the victorious "Bronxies" as Giblock called them. "Do
+you surrender?" said Mr. Baskirk to the officer he took for the
+captain.</p>
+
+<p>"I do not see that I have any other alternative," replied the
+commander of the Scotian, politely enough, but it was evident that he
+was sorely afflicted, and even ashamed of himself. "I understand now
+that I am the victim of a Yankee trick."</p>
+
+<p>"Allow me to introduce you to Captain Passford, commander of the
+United States steamer Bronx," continued Mr. Baskirk, as Christy came on
+board of the prize.</p>
+
+<p>The captain of the Scotian retreated a pace as Christy stepped up in
+front of him, and gracefully lifted his cap to the unfortunate
+commander.</p>
+
+<p>"I beg your pardon, sir, but did I understand you to say that this
+young gentleman is the commander of the steamer alongside?" demanded the
+captain, looking at Christy from head to foot.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">168</span>
+"He is the commander, sir; Captain Passford," added Baskirk.</p>
+
+<p>"May I be allowed to ask whom I have the honor to address?" Christy
+began, lifting his cap again, as did the other also.</p>
+
+<p>"Captain Dinsmore, at your service."</p>
+
+<p>"I sincerely regret your personal misfortune while I rejoice at the
+result of this action, as a loyal citizen of the United States," replied
+Christy.</p>
+
+<p>Then he invited the captain to his cabin.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">169</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapXV">CHAPTER XV</a></h4>
+
+<h6>THE SCOTIAN BECOMES THE OCKLOCKONEE</h6>
+
+
+<p>As he went to the deck of the Bronx, the young commander sent the
+first lieutenant on board of the prize to superintend the arrangements
+for disposing of the ship's company. Captain Dinsmore was requested to
+produce his papers, and Christy conducted him to his cabin. As his
+father had advised him always to be on such occasions, he was studiously
+polite, as in fact he was at all times. Whether the other captain was
+usually so or not, he was certainly courteous in every respect, though,
+with the heavy misfortune which had befallen him, it was vastly more
+difficult for him to control his feelings, and conduct himself in a
+gentlemanly manner. Captain Passford desired to understand in what
+capacity the Scotian was approaching the American coast before he made
+his final arrangements. After giving his guest, as he regarded him, or
+rather treated him,
+<span class = "pagenum">170</span>
+a chair in his cabin, Christy called Dave, who had followed him
+below.</p>
+
+<p>"Will you excuse me a moment or two while I attend to a necessary
+duty?" said he, turning to Captain Dinsmore, as he seated himself at the
+table.</p>
+
+<p>"Certainly, captain; I am not so much in a hurry as I have been at
+other times," replied the other with a rather sickly smile.</p>
+
+<p>"Keep a sharp lookout for the Arran," Christy wrote on a piece of
+paper, and handed it to the steward. "Give that to Mr. Flint."</p>
+
+<p>Captain Passford had observed when he visited the deck of the Scotian
+that she was well armed, and he had no doubt that her consort was
+similarly provided for the business of war. It was therefore of the
+highest importance that the Arran should not come unexpectedly upon the
+Bronx at a time when she was hardly in condition to meet an enemy.</p>
+
+<p>"Now, Captain Dinsmore, may I trouble you for your papers?" he
+continued, turning to his guest, as he preferred to regard&nbsp;him.</p>
+
+<p>"I admit your right to examine them under present circumstances,"
+replied Captain Dinsmore, as he delivered the package to&nbsp;him.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">171</span>
+"Perhaps we may simplify and abbreviate this examination to some extent,
+sir, if you are so disposed," added Christy, as he looked the other full
+in the face.</p>
+
+<p>"I shall be happy to have you do so, Captain Passford," replied the
+visitor in the cabin, with something like eagerness in his manner. "You
+conduct yourself like a gentleman, sir, and I am not at all disposed to
+embarrass you unnecessarily."</p>
+
+<p>"Thank you, sir; I appreciate your courtesy."</p>
+
+<p>"I am afraid it is not so much courtesy as it is desperation, for if
+I should act in accordance with my feelings, I should blow my brains out
+without any delay," said Captain Dinsmore. "I should not say as much as
+this to any but a generous enemy; but I feel that I am ruined, and that
+there is nothing more in the future for&nbsp;me."</p>
+
+<p>Christy really sympathized with him, and could not help thinking how
+he should feel if the situations were reversed. He realized that the
+commander of the Scotian had been very careless in the discharge of his
+duty in permitting any vessel to come alongside of her without
+considering that she might be an enemy. This inefficiency was doubtless
+the cause of his distress. Christy had
+<span class = "pagenum">172</span>
+kept uppermost in his mind the advice of his father at the last moment
+before he sailed, and he asked himself if, while the prisoner was thus
+exciting his sympathy and compassion, the latter was not expecting the
+Arran would appear and reverse the fortunes of&nbsp;war.</p>
+
+<p>"I am sorry you take such a severe view of your situation," added the
+captain of the Bronx. "But my first duty is to ascertain the character
+of the vessel which you surrender."</p>
+
+<p>"You shall have no doubt in regard to that, Captain Passford,"
+answered the commander of the Scotian, proudly. "I am not a dickering
+merchant, trying to make money out of the situation of my country. The
+Scotian, as you call her, is the Confederate steamer Ocklockonee, and
+here is my commission as a lieutenant in the Confederate Navy," he added
+as he took the document from his pocket and tendered it to his
+captor.</p>
+
+<p>Christy looked at the paper, and then examined the other papers in
+the packet. They left no doubt in his mind as to the character of the
+Ocklockonee, if he had had any before. He folded up the commission and
+politely returned it to the owner. The examination was completed so far
+as he was
+<span class = "pagenum">173</span>
+concerned; but Captain Dinsmore did not seem to be satisfied, though he
+made no complaint that anything was wrong in the proceedings. He was
+evidently a very proud and high-strung man, and appeared to be unable to
+reconcile himself to the situation.</p>
+
+<p>"I am a ruined man!" he exclaimed several times; and when he looked
+at the commander of the Bronx, measuring him from head to foot, as he
+had already done several times, it seemed to increase his distress of
+mind, and make him more nervous than before.</p>
+
+<p>"While I regret that a brave man like yourself, captain, should be at
+war with the government which I honor and love, I hope that personally
+your future will be as bright as I am sure your merit deserves," said
+Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"If it had been a square and well-fought action, I should not feel as
+I do about it. You will pardon me, and understand that I mean no
+disrespect to you, captain, but I look upon myself as the victim of a
+Yankee trick," said Captain Dinsmore, bitterly. "But please to consider
+that I do not charge any blame or treachery upon you,&nbsp;sir."</p>
+
+<p>"I think I can understand your feelings, sir;
+<span class = "pagenum">174</span>
+but I cannot see that in resorting to strategy to save my men, my
+conduct has been in any manner dishonorable," replied Christy, holding
+his head a little higher than usual. "I should hold that I had been
+guilty of misconduct if I had failed to take advantage of the
+circumstances under which I have captured the Ocklockonee."</p>
+
+<p>"I quite agree with you, Captain Passford. I should have done the
+same thing myself if the opportunity had been presented to me," the
+guest hastened to say. "But that does not in the least degree relieve me
+from the consequences of my own negligence. When you are more at
+leisure, I hope you will permit me to make an explanation of the
+situation in which I was placed."</p>
+
+<p>"I shall be happy to listen to anything you may desire to say to me
+when I have the leisure to hear&nbsp;you."</p>
+
+<p>"Thank you, sir."</p>
+
+<p>Christy hastened on deck to attend to the many duties required of
+him. The first sight that presented itself when he reached the head of
+the companion way was the form of the second lieutenant, which remained
+as it had fallen from the rail. He sent for Dr. Spokely, and directed
+him
+<span class = "pagenum">175</span>
+to ascertain whether or not Pawcett was dead. While the surgeon was
+examining him, Mr. Sampson came up from below with a bolt in his hand,
+and touched his cap to the commander.</p>
+
+<p>"You are at work on the engine of the Ocklockonee, are you?" asked
+Christy, and this inquiry was one of the duties which had been on his
+mind before he left the cabin.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, sir; and I have already examined her engine; I suppose you mean
+the Scotian, for that is the name on her stern, they tell me," replied
+the chief engineer.</p>
+
+<p>"Her new name is the Ocklockonee."</p>
+
+<p>"I have examined the engine," replied Sampson.</p>
+
+<p>"Is the damage very serious?" asked the captain anxiously.</p>
+
+<p>"Far from it; she has broken a bolt which disables her, and she ought
+to have had one to replace it without more than five minutes' delay, but
+it appears that they have not one on board; at least none could be found
+when it was wanted, and they were at work forging one when the Bronx
+came alongside."</p>
+
+<p>"All right; repair the damage as soon as possible. I heard a scuffle
+in the engine room just as
+<span class = "pagenum">176</span>
+we were running alongside the Ocklockonee," said the captain, looking
+inquiringly at the engineer.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, sir; there was a scuffle there. Pink Mulgrum was rushing down
+the ladder when I stopped him. He tried to push by me when I made signs
+to him to return to the deck. Then he gave a spring at my throat, and as
+I saw that he had a revolver in his hand, I did not hesitate to hit him
+on the head with a bar of iron I had in my hand. He dropped on the deck.
+I put his revolver in my pocket, and stretched him out on the sofa. He
+did not move, and I left him there."</p>
+
+<p>"I will send the surgeon to him," added the captain, as he went on
+board of the prize, followed by Sampson.</p>
+
+<p>The first lieutenant had been busy on the deck of the vessel, but he
+had been able to accomplish but little in the absence of definite
+instructions from the captain. All the seamen were held in the forward
+part of the deck, and there were twenty-four of them, including the
+petty officers, but not the stokers, as the firemen were called. The
+engineers and all connected with their department remained below so far
+as could be learned. Two officers remained seated on the quarter deck;
+<span class = "pagenum">177</span>
+but they did not appear to be so thoroughly cast down as the captain,
+doubtless because they were not called upon to bear the responsibility
+of the capture.</p>
+
+<p>"Have you set a sharp lookout, Mr. Flint?" asked the captain.</p>
+
+<p>"The lookout remains the same on board of the Bronx, though I have
+cautioned the quartermaster on the fore yard to keep his eyes wide open;
+and I have stationed four men on board of the Scotian."</p>
+
+<p>"Very well; we are all right so far; but if the other vessel is as
+well armed as this one she is capable of giving us a great deal of
+trouble," replied the captain.</p>
+
+<p>"I only hope we may find her," added Flint heartily.</p>
+
+<p>"We shall look for her at any rate. But we must get things regulated
+on board of both vessels at once, for I judge that the Arran cannot be
+far off, for the officers hailed us as the Arran when we were
+approaching, which shows that they were confident in regard to her
+identity, or they would not have given themselves away so readily."</p>
+
+<p>"We have made a lucky hit, and I hope we
+<span class = "pagenum">178</span>
+shall be able to reap the full benefit of it," added Flint.</p>
+
+<p>"We must provide for the immediate future without any delay,"
+continued Christy. "Our first duty will be to search for the Arran, and
+we can use the Ocklockonee, which the captain says is her present name,
+to assist in the chase, for we have force enough to man both vessels,
+though we are not oversupplied with officers."</p>
+
+<p>"There are two more quartermasters who are nearly as good men as
+Baskirk," replied the first lieutenant.</p>
+
+<p>"I ask no better officer than Baskirk has proved himself to be. I
+shall retain him on board of the Bronx, and for the present I shall ask
+you to take command of the Ocklockonee; and you may select your own
+officers. The probability is that, if we find the Arran, we shall have a
+fight with&nbsp;her."</p>
+
+<p>"Then I shall make McSpindle my first lieutenant, and Luffard my
+second," added Flint, evidently pleased with the idea of having even a
+temporary command.</p>
+
+<p>"I shall appoint Baskirk in your place on board of the Bronx; but I
+need one more."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">179</span>
+"I recommend Amblen, though he is not as well qualified as the others I
+have named."</p>
+
+<p>"Send for these men at once," added the captain.</p>
+
+<p>One of them was on the topsail yard of the Bronx, but all of them
+soon appeared in the waist of the prize. They were informed of the honor
+which had been conferred upon them, and were immediately assigned to
+duty. The crew of the Ocklockonee were divided between the two steamers,
+and were put under guard below.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">180</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapXVI">CHAPTER XVI</a></h4>
+
+<h6>CAPTAIN PASSFORD'S FINAL ORDERS</h6>
+
+
+<p>A tolerable state of order and regularity had been brought out of the
+confusion that prevailed on board of the Ocklockonee, and the newly
+appointed officers went to the stations where they belonged. Sampson
+reported the engine of the steamer as in good order, and ready for
+service.</p>
+
+<p>"Who is the chief engineer of the Ocklockonee, Mr. Sampson?" asked
+Captain Passford, after he had listened to the report.</p>
+
+<p>"His name is Bockburn; he is a Scotchman, and appears to be a very
+good fellow," replied the engineer of the Bronx.</p>
+
+<p>"Does he talk at all about what has just happened on board of his
+steamer?" asked the captain, deeply interested, for he had some
+difficulty in arranging the engineer's department on board of the prize,
+as he considered the new order of things.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">181</span>
+"Yes, sir; he talks at the rate of twenty knots an hour, and if his
+steamer can get ahead as well as his tongue, she is a fast one," replied
+Sampson, laughing.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, what does he say? I want to know how he stands affected by the
+present condition of affairs," continued the captain rather impatiently,
+for he was too busy to enjoy the humor of the engineer.</p>
+
+<p>"He is a thrifty Scotchman; and I don't believe he has any interest
+in anything under the sun except his wages; and he is a little sour on
+that account to find that his cruise is finished, as he
+puts&nbsp;it."</p>
+
+<p>"Send for him and his assistants, Mr. Sampson."</p>
+
+<p>The engineer went to the engine hatch, and called the men below.</p>
+
+<p>"Now send for Mr. Gawl," added the captain. "He is your first
+assistant; is he a competent man to run an engine?"</p>
+
+<p>"As competent as I am myself; and the engine of this steamer is
+exactly like that of the Bronx, so that he can have no trouble with it,
+if you think of retaining him on board of the Ocklockonee," replied
+Sampson.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">182</span>
+"I propose to make him chief engineer of her."</p>
+
+<p>"You could not find a better man," said Sampson, as he went to summon
+Gawl.</p>
+
+<p>The three engineers of the prize came on deck, and the captain took
+the chief aside.</p>
+
+<p>"Mr. Bockburn, I believe, the chief engineer of the Ocklockonee?"
+said Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"Of the Scotian, sir; for I know nothing of the jaw-cracking names
+that the officers in the cabin have given her," replied the engineer,
+shrugging his shoulders, and presenting a dissatisfied&nbsp;air.</p>
+
+<p>"Are you an engineer in the Confederate Navy, sir?" asked Christy,
+bringing the business to a head at once.</p>
+
+<p>"No, sir, I am not," answered the engineer very decidedly. "You see,
+captain, that the Scotian was sold to come across the water, and I was
+out of a job, with a family to support. They did not say anything about
+the service in which the Scotian was to be engaged, but I understood it.
+When they spoke to me about it, I was glad to keep my place as long as
+she did not make war on the United Kingdom. In truth, I may say that I
+did not care a fig about the quarrel in the States, and was as ready to
+run an engine on one side as
+<span class = "pagenum">183</span>
+the other as long as I got my wages, and was able to support my family
+handsomely, as, thank God, I have always done. I am not a student of
+politics, and I only read enough in the newspapers to know what is going
+on in the world. I always find that I get ahead better when I mind my
+own business, and it can't be said that Andy Bockburn ever&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Precisely so, Mr. Bockburn; but I will hear the rest of your story
+at another time," interposed the captain when he found that the man was
+faithful to the description Sampson had given of his talking powers.</p>
+
+<p>"You understand perfectly what has transpired on board of the Scotian
+as you choose still to call her; in a word, that she is a prize to the
+United States steamer Bronx?"</p>
+
+<p>"I understand it all as clearly as though I read it in a book; and it
+was all on account of the want of a bolt that I was sure I put on board
+of the vessel before she sailed; and I am just as sure of it now as I
+ever was. But then, you see, captain, a man can't always be sure of the
+men under him, though he may be sure of himself. I have no
+doubt&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">184</span>
+"Short yarns, if you please, Mr. Bockburn. You understand the situation,
+and I will add that I intend to use this vessel as well as the Bronx in
+the service of my government. Are you willing to do duty on board of her
+in any capacity in which I may place you in the engineer department,
+provided you receive the same wages as before?"</p>
+
+<p>"I am, sir; and I was paid a month in advance, so that I shall not
+lose anything," chuckled the careful Scotchman.</p>
+
+<p>"If you are regularly appointed, though I can only give you a
+temporary position, in addition to your wages, you will be entitled to
+your share in any prize we may hereafter capture."</p>
+
+<p>"Then I will take any position you will please to give me," answered
+the engineer, apparently delighted with the prospect thus held out
+to&nbsp;him.</p>
+
+<p>"I shall appoint you first assistant engineer of the Bronx,"
+continued the captain, not a little to the astonishment of Flint, who
+wondered that he was not assigned to the Ocklockonee.</p>
+
+<p>"I am quite satisfied, captain," replied Bockburn, bowing and
+smiling, for wages were more
+<span class = "pagenum">185</span>
+than rank to him. "I will bring up my kit at once, sir. You see,
+captain, when a man has a family he&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Precisely as you say, Mr. Bockburn," interrupted the captain. "You
+will report to Mr. Sampson in the engine room of the Bronx for further
+orders."</p>
+
+<p>"Thank you, sir; I supposed I was out of a job from this out, and I
+was feeling&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Feel your way to the engine room of the Bronx. Mr. Gawl," the
+captain proceeded.</p>
+
+<p>"On duty, sir," replied the first assistant engineer of the Bronx,
+touching his cap as respectfully as though the commander had been forty
+years&nbsp;old.</p>
+
+<p>"You are appointed temporarily as chief engineer of the Ocklockonee,
+and you will take your place in the engine room as soon as possible,"
+said the captain, as brusquely as though favors cost nothing.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Gawl was taken to the engine room and introduced to the first and
+second assistants, Rowe and Leeds, and was kindly received by them, for,
+like their late chief, the question of wages was the only one that
+affected them. They promised to be faithful to the government they were
+to serve,
+<span class = "pagenum">186</span>
+and to discharge their duties faithfully under the direction of the new
+chief. The two officers on the quarter deck had watched all these
+proceedings with interest. They were the only persons remaining on board
+who had not been disposed of in some manner.</p>
+
+<p>Christy approached them while Captain Flint, as he was now to be
+called by courtesy, was making his final arrangements with the crew that
+had been assigned to the prize. Both of the officers bowed civilly to
+the commander as he presented himself on the quarter deck. They were
+older men than Captain Dinsmore, though neither was over forty-five.
+Christy suspected that they were not Confederate officers as soon as he
+had a chance to look them over.</p>
+
+<p>"May I ask, gentlemen, if you are officers of the Confederate Navy?"
+asked Christy, as he looked from one to the other of the&nbsp;men.</p>
+
+<p>"We are not, sir," replied the senior of them.</p>
+
+<p>"Of course you are aware that you are serving in a Confederate
+man-of-war?" added Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"I should say that was hardly true up to date. The captain holds a
+commission in the Confederate Navy, but the ship has never been into a
+Confederate
+<span class = "pagenum">187</span>
+port, Captain Passford," replied the senior, who had learned the
+commander's name.</p>
+
+<p>"As you call me by name, perhaps you will enable me to do as much
+with you," added Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"My name is Farley Lippard; I shipped as first officer of the
+Scotian," replied the senior.</p>
+
+<p>"And mine is Edward Sangston; and I shipped as second officer of the
+steamer."</p>
+
+<p>"We shipped only for the voyage, and were told that we could not
+retain our situations after the ship's company was fully organized,"
+added Mr. Lippard.</p>
+
+<p>"Then I hope you were paid in advance, as the engineers were," said
+Christy with a smile.</p>
+
+<p>"We were, sir, thank you," added the first officer. "Though we were
+told that we could not obtain any rank in the navy because there were
+more officers than ships, the agent said we should find plenty of
+employment on board of blockade runners coming out with cotton."</p>
+
+<p>"I suppose you are Englishmen?" said the captain.</p>
+
+<p>"Scotchmen, sir, but British subjects."</p>
+
+<p>"I cannot put you on shore and I may not have
+<span class = "pagenum">188</span>
+an opportunity to ship you to your homes by another vessel. I shall
+leave you on board of the Ocklockonee, and the acting commander will
+assign to you such quarters in the cabin as may be at his command,"
+continued Christy. "It is only necessary that I should say I expect you
+to remain neutral, whatever occurs on board of the steamer."</p>
+
+<p>"That is understood," replied Mr. Lippard.</p>
+
+<p>"You will be regarded as passengers; but of course if you commit any
+act hostile to the government of the United States, you will be
+considered as enemies, and treated as prisoners of war," Christy
+proceeded. "I hope the situation is clearly understood."</p>
+
+<p>"Certainly, sir; we have no interest in the quarrel in the States,
+and we are not in the pay of the Confederacy, as they call it," replied
+Mr. Lippard.</p>
+
+<p>"Then there will be no trouble. Captain Flint," called the
+commander.</p>
+
+<p>Flint, who had been very busy appointing petty officers and
+organizing the new crew, came at the call and was introduced to the late
+officers of the prize. The understanding which had just been reached in
+regard to them was repeated for
+<span class = "pagenum">189</span>
+the benefit of the new captain. He was quite as pliable as his superior
+had always been, and there was no indication that any friction would
+result from their presence on board of the prize, now temporarily put
+into the service of the navy.</p>
+
+<p>"Have you made all your arrangements, Captain Flint?" asked Christy
+when he was all ready to return to the Bronx.</p>
+
+<p>"I have very nearly completed them, Captain Passford; and I can
+easily finish them after we get under way," replied Flint. "All I need
+before we part is my orders."</p>
+
+<p>"From all that I can learn, the Arran must be to the eastward of the
+Ocklockonee," said Christy, who had given this subject all the thought
+his time would permit. "The officers of the prize hailed the Bronx
+coming from that direction, and that indicates that she was expected
+from that quarter. Our coming from that way seems to have made Captain
+Dinsmore confident that the Bronx was the Arran. I shall lay the course
+of my ship to the northeast, while you will proceed to the southwest.
+After you have gone fifty miles in that direction, you will make a
+course due east, as I shall also after I have made the same distance.
+Having run
+<span class = "pagenum">190</span>
+due east twenty miles, you will run to the northeast, as I shall to the
+southwest. If you discover the Arran fire your midship gun, and I will
+do the same."</p>
+
+<p>Christy shook hands with Flint, and went on board of the Bronx. The
+order was given on board of both vessels to cast off the grapnels; the
+gong bell sounded in each engine room, and both vessels went ahead, the
+Bronx coming about to her new course.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">191</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapXVII">CHAPTER XVII</a></h4>
+
+<h6>A COUPLE OF ASTONISHED CONSPIRATORS</h6>
+
+
+<p>The fog had been very variable in its density, and had been lifting
+and settling at times during the day of the capture. By the time the two
+vessels were ready to get under way, it had become more solid than
+before. The night had come, and the darkness with it, at about the same
+time. The lookouts were still in their places; but so far as seeing
+anything was concerned they might as well have been in the hold. If the
+Arran was still in the vicinity, as no doubt she was, the Bronx might
+run into her. Wherever she was, it was well assured that her officers
+knew nothing of the capture of the Ocklockonee, for not a great gun had
+been discharged, and the combat had been so quickly decided that there
+had been very little noise of any kind.</p>
+
+<p>Everything worked without friction on board of the Bronx; and Captain
+Passford felt even
+<span class = "pagenum">192</span>
+more elastic than usual. Doubtless the capture he had just made afforded
+him a good deal of inspiration; but the fact that the mystery of the
+deaf mute and the second lieutenant had been solved, and the
+unfathomable catastrophe which their presence on board threatened had
+been escaped was a great source of relief.</p>
+
+<p>The two conspirators were disabled and confined to the sick bay, and
+they were not likely to make any trouble at present. If they had had any
+definite plan on which they intended to act, they had certainly lost
+their opportunities, for the visit of Hungerford to the engine room of
+the Bronx, no doubt for the purpose of disabling the machinery, and the
+effort of Pawcett to warn the officers of the prize, had been simply
+acts of desperation, adopted after they had evidently failed in every
+other direction.</p>
+
+<p>Pawcett was not really a loyal officer, and his expression and
+manners had attracted the attention of both the captain and the first
+lieutenant. The deaf mute had been brought on board in order to obtain
+information, and he had been very diligent in carrying out his part of
+the programme. As Christy thought the matter over, seated at his
+<span class = "pagenum">193</span>
+supper in his cabin, he thought he owed more to the advice of his father
+at their parting than to anything else. He had kept his own counsel in
+spite of the difficulties, and had done more to blind the actors in the
+conspiracy than to enlighten them. He had hoped before he parted with
+the prize for the present to obtain some information in regard to the
+Arran; but he had too much self-respect to ask the officers of the
+Ocklockonee in regard to such matters.</p>
+
+<p>The seamen who had been spotted as adherents of the late second
+lieutenant had done nothing, for there had been nothing that they could
+do under the circumstances. Spoors and two others of them had been
+drafted into the other vessel, while the other three remained on board
+of the Bronx. They were not regarded as very dangerous enemies, and they
+were not in condition to undertake anything in the absence of their
+leaders.</p>
+
+<p>Christy had inquired in regard to the condition of Pawcett and
+Hungerford before he went to his cabin, and Dr. Spokeley informed him
+that neither of them would be in condition to do duty on either side for
+a considerable period. They were in no
+<span class = "pagenum">194</span>
+danger under careful treatment, but both of them were too seriously
+injured to trouble their heads with any exciting subjects.</p>
+
+<p>"Good evening, Captain Dinsmore," Christy said, when he went into his
+cabin, after he had attended to all the duties that required present
+attention. "I hope you are feeling better this evening."</p>
+
+<p>"Hardly better, Captain Passford, though I am trying to reconcile
+myself to my situation," replied the late captain of the
+Ocklockonee.</p>
+
+<p>"Supper is all ready, sir," interposed Dave, as he passed by the
+captain, after he had brought in the dishes from the galley.</p>
+
+<p>"Take a seat at the table, Captain Dinsmore," continued Christy,
+placing a chair for him, and looking over the table to see what cheer he
+had to offer to his guest.</p>
+
+<p>It looked as though the cook, aware that the commander had a guest,
+or thinking that he deserved a better supper than usual after the
+capture of a prize, had done his best in honor of the occasion. The
+broiled chickens looked especially inviting, and other dishes were quite
+tempting to a man who was two hours late at the meal.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">195</span>
+"Thank you, captain," replied the guest, as he took the seat assigned to
+him. "I can't say that I have a very fierce appetite after the
+misfortune that has befallen me; but I am none the less indebted to you
+for your courtesy and kindness."</p>
+
+<p>"I acknowledge that I am in condition to be very happy this evening,
+Captain Dinsmore, and I can hardly expect to be an agreeable companion
+to one with a burden on his mind; but I can assure you of my personal
+sympathy."</p>
+
+<p>"You are very kind, captain. I should like to ask if many of the
+officers of the old navy are young gentlemen like yourself?" inquired
+the guest, looking at his host very curiously.</p>
+
+<p>"There are a great many young officers in the navy at the present
+time, for the exigency has pushed forward the older ones, and there are
+not enough of them to take all the positions. But we shall all of us
+grow older," replied Christy good-naturedly, as he helped the officer to
+a piece of the chicken, which had just come from the galley fire.</p>
+
+<p>"Perhaps you are older than you appear to be," suggested the guest.
+"I should judge that you were not over twenty, or at least not much
+more."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">196</span>
+"I am eighteen, sir, though, unlike a lady, I try to make myself as old
+as I&nbsp;can."</p>
+
+<p>"Eighteen!" exclaimed Captain Dinsmore.</p>
+
+<p>But Christy told something of his experience on board of the
+Bellevite which had prepared him for his duties, and his case was rather
+exceptional.</p>
+
+<p>"You have physique enough for a man of twenty-five," added the guest.
+"And you have been more fortunate than I have."</p>
+
+<p>"And I have been as unfortunate as you are, for I have seen the
+inside of a Confederate prison, though I concluded not to remain there
+for any length of time," added Christy, laughing.</p>
+
+<p>"You are a fortunate young man, and I do not belong to that class,"
+said Captain Dinsmore, shaking his head. "I have lost my steamer, and I
+suppose that will finish my career."</p>
+
+<p>"Perhaps not;" but Christy was satisfied that he had lost his vessel
+by a want of care, and he could not waste any compliments upon him,
+though he had profited by the other's carelessness.</p>
+
+<p>"I was confident when the Bronx approached the Ocklockonee that she
+was another vessel," continued the guest.</p>
+
+<p>"What vessel did you take her to be?"</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">197</span>
+"You will excuse me if I decline to go into particulars. I can only say
+that I was sure your steamer was another, and I had no suspicion that I
+was wrong till that man mounted the rail of the Bronx, and began to tell
+us to the contrary," replied Captain Dinsmore. "A bolt in the engine was
+broken, and the engineer could not find another on board. We expected to
+obtain one when the Bronx approached us. I was deceived; and that is the
+reason why I am here instead of in the cabin of my own ship."</p>
+
+<p>The guest seemed to feel a little better after he had made this
+explanation, though it contained nothing new to the commander of the
+Bronx. Possibly the excellent supper, of which he had partaken heartily
+in spite of his want of appetite, had influenced his mind through the
+body. He had certainly become more cheerful, though his burden was no
+lighter than when he came on board of the Bronx. Christy was also
+light-hearted, not alone because he had been so successful, but because
+he felt that he was no longer compelled to watch the conspirators.</p>
+
+<p>"I am sorry to be obliged to impose any restrictions upon you,
+Captain Dinsmore," said Christy,
+<span class = "pagenum">198</span>
+as he rose from the supper table. "The circumstances compel me to
+request you to remain in my cabin."</p>
+
+<p>"Of course I am subject to your will and pleasure, Captain Passford,"
+replied the guest.</p>
+
+<p>"You are a gentleman, sir, and if you will simply give me your word
+to remain here, there will be no occasion for any unpleasantness. It is
+possible that we may go into action at any time; and in that case you
+can remain where you please below."</p>
+
+<p>"I give you my word that I will remain below until I notify you of my
+intention to do otherwise," replied the prisoner, though Christy
+preferred to regard him as his guest.</p>
+
+<p>"I am entirely satisfied. I shall be obliged to berth you in the ward
+room, and you are at liberty to pass your time as you please in these
+two apartments. I shall be happy to introduce you to the first
+lieutenant," added the captain, as he led the way to the ward room.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Baskirk received the prisoner very politely, a berth was assigned
+to him, and Christy went on deck. It was as dark as Egypt there, but Mr.
+Amblen, the new acting second lieutenant,
+<span class = "pagenum">199</span>
+on the bridge, said the wind was hauling to the westward, and he thought
+there would be a change of weather before morning. Mr. Baskirk had made
+all his appointments of petty officers rendered necessary by sending a
+portion of the seamen to the Ocklockonee. Everything was in good order
+on deck, and Christy next went down to the sick bay, where Hungerford
+and Pawcett were the only occupants. He found Dr. Spokeley there, and
+inquired in regard to the condition of the wounded men. The surgeon
+described the wounds of his patients, and pointed them out to the
+captain.</p>
+
+<p>"Does Mr. Hungerford talk any now?" asked Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"Who is Mr. Hungerford?" asked the doctor.</p>
+
+<p>"He is the deaf mute. He was the first officer of the Confederate
+steamer Yazoo when we captured her in the Bellevite last year," replied
+the captain, upon whom the eyes of the wounded man were fixed all the
+time.</p>
+
+<p>"He has not spoken yet in my hearing, though I have thought that he
+could hear."</p>
+
+<p>"His duty on board of the Bronx was to obtain information, and he
+procured a good deal of it,
+<span class = "pagenum">200</span>
+though not all of it was as reliable as it might have been."</p>
+
+<p>"Indeed! Then he was a traitor," added the surgeon.</p>
+
+<p>"He is a gentleman in spite of the role he has been playing, and I am
+sorry he has been injured, though Mr. Sampson obeyed my order when he
+struck him down in the engine room."</p>
+
+<p>"Struck me from behind like an assassin," added Hungerford
+feebly.</p>
+
+<p>"Did you expect to arrange a duel with him at such a time, Mr.
+Hungerford?" asked Christy. "You went into the engine room to disable
+the machine when you found you could do nothing else. If you had
+returned to the deck when the engineer told you to do so, he would not
+have disabled you. You crowded past him, and then he did his duty."</p>
+
+<p>"I have been in the habit of serving with men who were square and
+above board," muttered Hungerford.</p>
+
+<p>"Was that where you learned to listen at my cabin door, and to
+conceal yourself under the berth in my state room?" asked Christy,
+rather sharply for him. "Is that the reason why Mr.
+<span class = "pagenum">201</span>
+Pawcett wished to have you do the copying of my papers?"</p>
+
+<p>"I can only say that I tried to do my duty to my country and I have
+failed," added Hungerford, as he turned over in his berth, and showed
+his back to the captain.</p>
+
+<p>"May I ask, Captain Passford, who told you my name?" asked the late
+second lieutenant, who seemed to be confounded by what he had heard.</p>
+
+<p>"You called Mr. Hungerford by his real name, and he called you by
+yours, in the interview you had with him the first night out from New
+York. I have known you from the first," replied Christy.</p>
+
+<p>Pawcett was as disgusted as the other had been, and he turned his
+face to the ceiling of his berth. Christy was satisfied that these men
+would give him no more trouble at present.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">202</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapXVIII">CHAPTER XVIII</a></h4>
+
+<h6>A TRIANGULAR ACTION WITH GREAT GUNS</h6>
+
+
+<p>When Mr. Baskirk went on deck to take his watch at midnight, the fog
+had disappeared, and a fresh breeze was blowing from the westward. This
+change was reported to the captain, and he went on deck. No sail had
+been seen since the fog cleared off, and Christy returned to his state
+room, where he was soon asleep again. He was called, as he had directed,
+at four in the morning, but no change in the weather was reported, and
+no sail had been seen.</p>
+
+<p>At four bells in the morning watch two sails were reported to him,
+one dead ahead, and the other on the port beam. He hastened to the deck,
+and found Mr. Amblen using his spyglass, and trying to make out the
+distant sails. The one at the northeast of the Bronx was making a long
+streak of black smoke on the sky, and there was
+<span class = "pagenum">203</span>
+no such appearance over the other. Both were steamers.</p>
+
+<p>"The one ahead of us is the Ocklockonee," said Captain Passford,
+after he had used the spyglass. "I have no doubt the other is the Arran.
+Probably she has a new name by this time, but I have not heard it yet.
+Pass the word for Mr. Ambleton."</p>
+
+<p>This was the gunner, and he was directed to fire a single shot,
+blank, from the midship gun. This was immediately done, and was the
+signal agreed upon with Flint if either discovered the Arran. It was
+promptly answered by a similar discharge on board of the Ocklockonee,
+indicating that she had seen the steamer in question.</p>
+
+<p>"Now, make her course southeast, Mr. Amblen," said Christy, after the
+two signals had been made.</p>
+
+<p>"Southeast, sir," responded the second lieutenant, giving the course
+to the quartermaster at the wheel.</p>
+
+<p>The commander of the Ocklockonee changed his course as soon as the
+Bronx had done so. Both steamers were headed directly towards the sail
+in the southeast, and both were running for the apex of the triangle
+where the third steamer was located.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">204</span>
+The captain visited every part of the vessel, and gave orders to have
+breakfast served at once, for he expected there would be lively times
+before many hours. Everything was overhauled, and put in order. At eight
+bells, when Mr. Baskirk took the deck, the captain did not care how soon
+the battle began. Everything was ready and waiting, and he went below
+for his breakfast.</p>
+
+<p>From delicacy or some other motive Captain Dinsmore spent most of his
+time in the ward room; but he was called to breakfast with the
+commander. Both captains were as polite to each other as they had been
+the evening before, but it was evident to Christy that his guest was
+quite uneasy, as though he had discovered what had transpired on deck;
+and the movements there were quite enough to inform him without a word
+from any one. He had not asked a question of any person on board; and it
+was impossible for him to know that a sail supposed to be the Arran was
+in sight.</p>
+
+<p>"I have heard some firing this morning, Captain Passford," said he as
+he seated himself at the table, and watched the expression of his host's
+countenance.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">205</span>
+"Merely a couple of signals; the distant shot came from the
+Ocklockonee," replied Christy lightly.</p>
+
+<p>"I thought it possible that you had fallen in with another steamer,"
+added the guest.</p>
+
+<p>"I have considered it more than possible, and within the limits of
+probability, that we should fall in with another steamer ever since we
+ran so opportunely upon the Scotian, as she was formerly called."</p>
+
+<p>"Opportunely for you, but very inopportunely for me," added Captain
+Dinsmore with a faint smile.</p>
+
+<p>"I am happy to inform you that we have passed beyond both possibility
+and probability, and come into the region of fact," continued
+Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"Then you have made out a sail?" asked the guest anxiously.</p>
+
+<p>"We have; a steamer on our port beam; and I am reasonably confident
+it is the vessel you supposed was coming alongside the Ocklockonee last
+evening."</p>
+
+<p>"Indeed?" added the guest, as though he did not know just what to
+say, and did not mean to commit himself.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">206</span>
+"In other words, I am almost sure this steamer is the Arran, though
+doubtless you have changed her name," said Christy, as he helped the
+other from the choicest dish on the table.</p>
+
+<p>"The Arran?" repeated Captain Dinsmore, manifesting but not
+expressing his surprise that his companion in a different service from
+his own knew this name.</p>
+
+<p>"Perhaps you can give me her later name, as I have no doubt she is or
+will be called after some southern river, which is quite proper, and
+entirely patriotic. Perhaps she is called the Perdido, which is not very
+far from Perdition, where I shall do my best to send her unless she
+surrenders within a reasonable time, or runs away from me," said Captain
+Passford lightly. "Is your coffee quite right, Captain Dinsmore?"</p>
+
+<p>"It is very good indeed, captain, thank you."</p>
+
+<p>"Perhaps it is too strong for you, like the United States Navy, and
+you would prefer it weaker," suggested Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"It is quite right as it is, and, like the United States Navy of
+which you speak, it will be used up in a short time," replied the guest
+as pleasantly as the captain of the Bronx.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">207</span>
+"That is yet to be settled," laughed Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, captain, the coffee is settled, and that is more than can be
+said of our navy, which will be as clear as this in due time."</p>
+
+<p>"I thought it best to inform you that we might be in action in the
+course of a couple of hours, and you were to notify me in case you
+wished to change your status on board," added Christy more
+seriously.</p>
+
+<p>"I am much obliged to you, Captain Passford, for your courtesy and
+kindness, but I see no reason to change my position. I will still
+confine myself to the cabin and ward room. I cannot wish you success in
+the action in which you are about to engage, for it would break my heart
+to have the Arran, as you call her, captured," added the guest.</p>
+
+<p>"I think you may fairly count upon such a result," replied Christy
+confidently.</p>
+
+<p>"You must excuse me, Captain Passford, but I think you are reckoning
+without your host, and therein your youth makes its only manifestation,"
+said the guest, shaking his head. "I can only say that, when you are a
+prisoner on board of the Escambia, I shall do my best to have you
+<span class = "pagenum">208</span>
+as handsomely treated as I have been in your cabin."</p>
+
+<p>"Thank you, captain; I assure you I shall appreciate any courtesy and
+kindness extended to me. The Escambia is her name then. That is not so
+near Perdition as the word I suggested, and I am glad it is not so long
+as the name you gave the Scotian. I shall expect to come across an
+Apalachicola in due time. They are all very good names, but we shall be
+compelled to change them when they fall into our hands," said
+Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"I have plenty of spare time on my hands just now, and perhaps I had
+better think up a new name for the Bronx; and Apalachicola would be as
+good as any other. I wonder you did not call her the Nutcracker, for her
+present name rather suggests that idea."</p>
+
+<p>"I have heard a similar remark before; but she is not big enough for
+such a long name as the one you suggest, and you would have to begin to
+pronounce it before breakfast in order to get it out before the dog
+watches," said Christy, as he rose from the table and went on deck.</p>
+
+<p>The first thing he noticed when he came on the
+<span class = "pagenum">209</span>
+bridge was that the Ocklockonee was headed to intercept the Bronx.
+Captain Flint signalled that he wished to speak to him, and he changed
+his course to comply with the request. At the end of another hour they
+came together, the Arran being still at least four miles distant, going
+very slowly if she was moving at&nbsp;all.</p>
+
+<p>Christy had written out his orders for Captain Flint in full. So far
+as he had been able to judge of the speed of the other steamer, it
+appeared to be about the same as that of the Bronx. He had directed the
+Ocklockonee to get to the southward of the Arran. A boat was sent to her
+with the orders, and Flint immediately proceeded to obey them. The Bronx
+slowed down her engines to enable the other to gain her position; but
+the Arran did not seem to be willing to permit her to do this, and gave
+chase to her at once.</p>
+
+<p>The commander of the Bronx met this change by one on his own part,
+and went ahead with all the speed he could get out of her. The
+Confederate steamer was farther to the eastward than either of the other
+two, and after the changes of position which Christy had brought about
+in speaking the Ocklockonee, the Arran was nearly southeast of
+<span class = "pagenum">210</span>
+both of the others. Flint went directly to the south, and Christy ran
+for the enemy.</p>
+
+<p>All hands had been beaten to quarters on board of the Bronx, and the
+captain was on the bridge, watching with the most intense interest the
+progress of the other two vessels. It was soon apparent to him that the
+Ocklockonee could not get into the position to which she had been
+ordered under present circumstances, for the enemy was giving his whole
+attention to&nbsp;her.</p>
+
+<p>"There goes a gun from the enemy!" exclaimed Mr. Amblen, as a puff of
+smoke rose from the forward deck of the Arran.</p>
+
+<p>"The shot struck in the water," added Christy a moment later; "but
+the two vessels are within range. There is the first shot from the
+Ocklockonee! Captain Flint is not asleep."</p>
+
+<p>The firing was done on both vessels with the heavy midship guns, and
+doubtless the calibre of the pieces was the same; but Flint was the more
+fortunate of the two, for his shot struck the smokestack of the enemy,
+or partly upset it. Christy thought it was time for him to take a hand
+in the game, and he ordered the midship gun to be fired, charged as it
+was with a solid
+<span class = "pagenum">211</span>
+shot. The gunner aimed the piece himself, and the shot was seen to tear
+up the water alongside of the enemy. He discharged the piece four times
+more with no better result. Evidently he had not got the hang of the
+gun, though he was improving at every trial.</p>
+
+<p>Three steamers were rushing towards each other with all the fury
+steam could give them, for the overthrow of the funnel of the enemy did
+not disable her, though it probably diminished the draught of her
+furnaces. Through the glass it could be seen that they were making an
+effort to restore the fallen smokestack to its position. All three of
+the steamers were delivering the fire of their midship guns very
+regularly, though with little effect, the distance was so great. The
+gunner of the Bronx was evidently greatly nettled at the number of solid
+shots he had wasted, though the gun of the Ocklockonee had done little
+better so far as could be seen. The three vessels were not much more
+than half a mile from each other, and the enemy had begun to use his
+broadside guns.</p>
+
+<p>"Good!" shouted Mr. Amblen suddenly after the gunner had just let off
+the great gun. "That
+<span class = "pagenum">212</span>
+shot overturned the midship piece of the Arran. Ambleton has fully
+redeemed himself." The announcement of the effect of this last shot sent
+up a volley of cheers from the crew.</p>
+
+<p>The Bronx and her consort had set the American flag at the beginning
+of the action, and the Confederate had promptly displayed her ensign, as
+though she scorned to go into action without having it fully understood
+what she was. She did not claim to be a blockade runner, and do her best
+to escape, but "faced the music," even when she realized that she had
+two enemies instead of&nbsp;one.</p>
+
+<p>Christy had evidently inherited some of the naval blood on his
+mother's side, and he was not satisfied with the slow progress of the
+action, for the shots from the broadside guns of the enemy were
+beginning to tell upon the Bronx, though she had received no serious
+injury. He caused the signal to prepare to board to be set as agreed
+upon with Captain Flint. The orders already given were to be carried
+out, and both vessels bore down on the Arran with all speed.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">213</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapXIX">CHAPTER XIX</a></h4>
+
+<h6>ON THE DECK OF THE ARRAN</h6>
+
+
+<p>Captain Passford had carried out the programme agreed upon with
+Captain Flint, and the latter had been working to the southward since
+the Bronx came into the action, and as soon as the order to get ready to
+board was given, the Ocklockonee went ahead at full speed, headed in
+that direction. She had reached a position dead ahead of the Arran, so
+that she no longer suffered from the shots of the latter's broadside
+guns, and the Bronx was getting the entire benefit of them.</p>
+
+<p>Both vessels had kept up a full head of steam, and the coal passers
+were kept very busy at just this time. The Arran's midship gun had been
+disabled so that she could not make any very telling shots, but her crew
+had succeeded in righting her funnel, which had not gone entirely over,
+but had been held by the stays. Yet it could be seen that there was a
+big opening near the deck, for the smoke did not all pass through the
+smokestack.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">214</span>
+The broadside guns of the Arran were well served, and they were doing
+considerable mischief on board of the Bronx. Christy was obliged to hold
+back until her consort was in position to board the Arran on the port
+hand, and he man&oelig;uvred the steamer so as to receive as little
+damage as possible from her guns. He was to board on the starboard hand
+of the enemy, and he was working nearer to her all the time. Mr.
+Ambleton the gunner had greatly improved his practice, and the commander
+was obliged to check his enthusiasm, or there would have been nothing
+left of the Arran in half an hour more. Christy considered the final
+result as fully assured, for he did not believe the present enemy was
+any more heavily manned than her consort had been, and he could throw
+double her force upon her deck as soon as the two steamers were in
+position to do&nbsp;so.</p>
+
+<p>"Are you doing all you can in the engine room, Mr. Sampson?" asked
+Christy, pausing at the engine hatch.</p>
+
+<p>"Everything, Captain Passford, and I think we must be making sixteen
+knots," replied the chief engineer.</p>
+
+<p>"Is Mr. Bockburn on duty?"</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">215</span>
+"He is, sir; and if he were a Connecticut Yankee he could not do any
+better, or appear to be any more interested."</p>
+
+<p>"He seems to be entirely impartial; all he wants is his pay, and he
+is as willing to be on one side as the other if he only gets it," said
+Christy. "Has any damage been done to the engine?"</p>
+
+<p>"None at all, sir; a shot from one of those broadside guns went
+through the side, and passed just over the top of one of the boilers,"
+replied the engineer. "Bockburn plugged the shot hole very skilfully,
+and said it would not be possible for a shot to come in low enough to
+hit the boilers. He knows all about the other two vessels, and has
+served as an engineer on board of the Arran on the other side of the
+Atlantic."</p>
+
+<p>Just at that moment a shot from the Arran struck the bridge and a
+splinter from the structure knocked two men over. One of them picked
+himself up, but said he was not much hurt, and refused to be sent below.
+The other man was Veering; he seemed to be unable to get up, and was
+carried down by order of the boatswain. This man was one of the
+adherents of Hungerford and Pawcett, though so far he had been of no
+service to them.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">216</span>
+Christy hastened forward to ascertain the extent of the damage done to
+the bridge. It was completely wrecked, and was no longer in condition to
+be occupied by an officer. But the pilot house was still in serviceable
+repair, and the quartermaster had not been disturbed. By this time, the
+Ocklockonee had obtained a position on the port bow of the Arran, and
+the commander directed the quartermaster at the wheel to run directly
+for the other side of the enemy.</p>
+
+<p>The time for decisive and final action had come. Mr. Baskirk placed
+the boarders in position to be thrown on board of the Arran. He was to
+command the first division himself, and Mr. Amblen the second. The
+Ocklockonee was rushing at all the speed she could command to the work
+before&nbsp;her.</p>
+
+<p class = "illustration">
+<img src = "images/pic216.png" width = "360" height = "506"
+alt = "illustration of quoted scene"><br>
+<span class = "caption smallcaps">
+The captain of the Arran.</span>
+</p>
+
+<p>For some reason not apparent the Arran had stopped her screw, though
+she had kept in motion till now, doing her best to secure the most
+favorable position for action. Possibly her commander believed a
+collision between the vessels at a high rate of speed would be more
+fatal to him than anything that could result from being boarded. It was
+soon discovered that she was backing, and
+<span class = "pagenum">217</span>
+it was evident then that her captain had some man&oelig;uvre of his own
+in mind, though it was possible that he was only doing something to
+counteract the effect of a collision. Doubtless he thought the two
+vessels approaching him at such a rapid rate intended to crush the Arran
+between them, and that they desired only to sink&nbsp;him.</p>
+
+<p>He was not allowed many minutes more to carry out his policy,
+whatever it was, for the Ocklockonee came up alongside of the Arran, the
+grapnels were thrown out, and the whole boarding force of the steamer
+was hurled upon her decks. But the commander was a plucky man, however
+he regarded the chances for or against him, and his crew proceeded
+vigorously to repel boarders. Christy had timed the movements of the
+Bronx very carefully, and the Ocklockonee had hardly fastened to the
+Arran on one side before he had his steamer grappled on the other.</p>
+
+<p>"Boarders, away!" he shouted at the top of his lungs, and flourishing
+his sword over his head, not however with the intention of going into
+the fight himself, but as a demonstration to inspire the&nbsp;men.</p>
+
+<p>Baskirk and Amblen rushed forward with cutlasses in their hands,
+leaping upon the deck of the
+<span class = "pagenum">218</span>
+enemy. The crew was found to equal in numbers about the force that the
+Ocklockonee had brought to bear upon them. The boarders from the Bronx
+attacked them in the rear while they were fully occupied with the
+boarders in front of them. The officers of the enemy behaved with
+distinguished gallantry, and urged their men forward with the most
+desperate enthusiasm. They struck hard blows, and several of the
+boarders belonging to the consort had fallen, to say nothing of wounds
+that did not entirely disable others. Some of the men belonging to the
+Arran, doubtless shipped on the other side of the ocean or at the
+Bermudas, were disposed to shirk their duty, though their officers held
+them well up to the work.</p>
+
+<p>One of the brave officers who had done the boarders a good deal of
+mischief fell at a pistol shot from Mr. Amblen; this loss of his
+leadership caused a sensible giving way on the part of his division, and
+his men began to fall back. The other officers, including the captain,
+who fought with a heavy cutlass, held out for a short time longer; but
+Christy saw that it was slaughter.</p>
+
+<p>The captain of the Arran was the next to go down, though he was not
+killed. This event
+<span class = "pagenum">219</span>
+practically ended the contest for the deck of the steamer. The boarders
+crowded upon the crew and drove them to the bow of the vessel, where
+they yielded the deck, and submitted to the excess of numbers.</p>
+
+<p>"Don't butcher my men!" cried the captain of the Arran, raising
+himself partially from his place where he had fallen. "I surrender, for
+we are outnumbered two to&nbsp;one."</p>
+
+<p>But the fighting had ceased forward. Mr. Baskirk was as earnest to
+save any further slaughter as he had been to win the fight. Christy came
+on board of the prize, not greatly elated at the victory, for it had
+been a very unequal affair as to numbers. The Arran was captured; that
+was all that could be said of it. She had been bravely defended; and the
+"honors were even," though the fortunes of the day were against the
+Arran and her ship's company.</p>
+
+<p>"Allow me to introduce myself as the commander of the United States
+steamer Bronx," said Christy, approaching the fallen captain of the
+Arran. "I sincerely hope that you are not seriously
+injured,&nbsp;sir."</p>
+
+<p>"Who under the canopy are you?" demanded
+<span class = "pagenum">220</span>
+the commander of the prize, as he looked at the young officer with
+something like contempt in his expression.</p>
+
+<p>"I have just informed you who under the canopy I am," replied
+Christy, not pleased with the manner of the other. "To be a little more
+definite, I am Captain Christopher Passford, commander of the United
+States steamer Bronx, of which the Arran appears to be a prize."</p>
+
+<p>"The captain!" exclaimed the fallen man. "You are nothing but a
+boy!"</p>
+
+<p>"But I am old enough to try to be a gentleman. You are evidently old
+enough to be my father, though I have no comments to make," added
+Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"I beg your pardon, Captain Passford," said the captain of the Arran,
+attempting to rise from the deck, in which he was assisted by Christy
+and by Mr. Baskirk, who had just come aft. "I beg your pardon, Captain
+Passford, for I did not understand what you said at first, and I did not
+suspect that you were the captain."</p>
+
+<p>"I hope you are not seriously injured, sir," added Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"I don't know how seriously, but I have a cut
+<span class = "pagenum">221</span>
+on the hip, for which I exchanged one on the head, parrying the stroke
+so that it took me below the belt."</p>
+
+<p>"Have you a surgeon on board, Captain &mdash;&mdash; I have not the
+pleasure of knowing your name,&nbsp;sir."</p>
+
+<p>"Captain Richfield, lieutenant in the Confederate Navy. We have a
+surgeon on board, and he is below attending to the wounded," replied the
+captain.</p>
+
+<p>"Allow me to assist you to your cabin, Captain Richfield," continued
+Christy, as he and Baskirk each took one of the wounded officer's
+arms.</p>
+
+<p>"Thank you, sir. I see that you have been doubly fortunate, Captain
+Passford, and you have both the Escambia and the Ocklockonee. I did the
+best I could to save my ship, but the day has gone against&nbsp;me."</p>
+
+<p>"And no one could have done any more than you have done. Your ship
+has been ably and bravely defended; but it was my good fortune to be
+able to outnumber you both in ships and in&nbsp;men."</p>
+
+<p>Captain Richfield was taken to his state room, and assisted into his
+berth. A steward was sent for the surgeon, and Christy and his first
+lieutenant
+<span class = "pagenum">222</span>
+retired from the cabin. The captured seamen of the Arran were all sent
+below, and everything was done that the occasion required.</p>
+
+<p>Christy asked Captain Flint to meet him in the cabin of the Bronx for
+a consultation over the situation, for the sealed orders of the
+commander had been carried out to the letter so far as the two expected
+steamers were concerned, and it only remained to report to the flag
+officer of the Eastern Gulf squadron. But with two prizes, and a
+considerable number of prisoners, the situation was not without its
+difficulties.</p>
+
+<p>"I hope you are quite comfortable, Captain Dinsmore," said Christy as
+he entered his cabin, and found his guest reading at the table.</p>
+
+<p>"Quite so, Captain Passford. I have heard a great deal of firing in
+the last hour, and I am rather surprised to find that you are not a
+prisoner on board of the Escambia, or perhaps you have come to your
+cabin for your clothes," replied the guest cheerfully.</p>
+
+<p>"I have not come on any such mission; and I have the pleasure of
+informing you that the Confederate steamer Escambia is a prize to the
+Bronx," replied Christy quite as cheerfully. "I
+<span class = "pagenum">223</span>
+am sorry to add that Captain Richfield was wounded in the hip, and that
+Mr. Berwick, the first lieutenant, was killed."</p>
+
+<p>The Confederate officer leaped out of his chair astonished at the
+news. He declared that he had confidently expected to be released by the
+capture of the Bronx. Christy gave a brief review of the action; and
+Captain Dinsmore was not surprised at the result when informed that the
+Ocklockonee had taken part in the capture. The commander then requested
+him to retire to the ward room, and Flint came in. They seated
+themselves at the table, and proceeded to figure up their resources and
+consider what was to be done. Mr. Baskirk was then sent for to assist in
+the conference.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">224</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapXX">CHAPTER XX</a></h4>
+
+<h6>THE NEW COMMANDER OF THE BRONX</h6>
+
+
+<p>"Captain Flint, the first question to be settled is in regard to the
+engineer force," said Christy, as the three officers seated themselves
+at the table.</p>
+
+<p>"I think we shall have no difficulty on that score, Captain Passford,
+for I have already sounded those on board of the Arran, or the Escambia,
+as her officers call her. As long as their wages are paid, they don't
+care which side they serve. Mr. Pivotte is the chief, and he is as
+willing to go one way as the other."</p>
+
+<p>"Very well; then he shall retain his present position, and Bockburn
+shall be restored to the Ocklockonee. Of course the arrangements made
+after the capture of the first vessel were only temporary, and I propose
+to report to the flag officer with everything as nearly as possible in
+the condition in which we left New York," continued Christy.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">225</span>
+"Of course I expected to resume my former position on board of the Bronx
+as soon as we had disposed of the two steamers; and I can say that I
+shall not be sorry to do so," said Flint with a pleasant smile, as
+though he did not intend to grieve over the loss of his command.</p>
+
+<p>"In a few days more, we shall move down a peg, and I shall cease to
+have a command as well as yourself," added Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"And I suppose I shall be relegated to my position as a
+quartermaster," said Baskirk; "but I shall be satisfied. I don't care to
+wear any spurs that I have not won, though I shall be glad to have a
+higher rank when I deserve&nbsp;it."</p>
+
+<p>"You deserve it now, Mr. Baskirk, and if you don't receive it, it
+will not be on account of any weakness in my report of the events of the
+last twenty-four hours," added Christy heartily.</p>
+
+<p>"Thank you, captain; I suppose I could have procured a better
+position than that of able seaman, but I preferred to work my
+way&nbsp;up."</p>
+
+<p>"It was wise not to begin too high up, and you have already won your
+spurs. Now, Mr. Baskirk, I shall ask you to take the deck, relieving Mr.
+Amblen," added Christy, who wished to talk with Flint alone.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">226</span>
+"I shall be really glad to get back into the Bronx, for I feel at home
+here with you, captain," said Flint.</p>
+
+<p>"You will be back to your berth here very soon. Now we have to send
+these two steamers to New York. They are fine vessels, and will be
+needed. We want two prize masters, and we must have able men. Have you
+any suggestion to make, Mr. Flint? I first thought of sending you as the
+principal one; but I cannot spare you, and the service in the Gulf
+needs&nbsp;you."</p>
+
+<p>"I am entirely willing to go where my duty calls me, without regard
+to personal preferences," replied Flint. "I have a suggestion to make:
+which is that Baskirk take one of the steamers."</p>
+
+<p>"That is exactly my own idea; from what I have seen of him, there is
+no more devoted officer in the service."</p>
+
+<p>"I have known him for many years, and I believe in him. McSpindle is
+almost as good, and has had a better education than Baskirk. I don't
+think you could find two better men in the navy for this duty."</p>
+
+<p>"Very well; then I will appoint them both."</p>
+
+<p>Flint was instructed to communicate their appointment
+<span class = "pagenum">227</span>
+to Baskirk and McSpindle, and make all the preparations for the
+departure of the Escambia and the Ocklockonee. Christy went to his state
+room, and wrote his report of the capture of the two steamers, in which
+he commended the two officers who were to go as prize masters, and then
+wrote a letter to his father, with a strong appeal in their favor. Then
+he wrote very careful instructions for the government of the officers to
+be sent away, in which he directed them to use all necessary precautions
+in regard to the prisoners. In a couple of hours after the capture of
+the Escambia, the two prizes sailed for New York. Captain Dinsmore
+expressed his thanks very warmly to Captain Passford for his courtesy
+and kindness at parting.</p>
+
+<p>Christy had visited every part of the two steamers, and talked with
+the officers and men, and especially with the engineers, and he
+discovered no elements of discord on board of either. Hungerford and
+Pawcett were transferred to the Escambia, and committed to the care of
+the surgeon of the ship. Both of them were suffering from fever, and
+they were not likely to give the prize master any trouble during the
+<span class = "pagenum">228</span>
+passage, which could only be three or four days in duration. Baskirk and
+McSpindle were required to make all the speed they could consistent with
+safety, though Christy hardly thought they would encounter any
+Confederate rover on the voyage, for they were not very plenty at this
+stage of the&nbsp;war.</p>
+
+<p>It seemed a little lonesome on board of the Bronx after the two
+steamers had disappeared in the distance, and the number of the crew had
+been so largely reduced by the drafts for the prizes. The steamer was
+hardly in condition to engage an enemy of any considerable force, and
+Sampson was directed to hurry as much as possible. Christy had heard of
+the Bellevite twice since he left her off Pensacola Bay. She had been
+sent to other stations on duty, and had captured two schooners loaded
+with cotton as prizes; but at the last accounts she had returned to the
+station where the Bronx had left&nbsp;her.</p>
+
+<p>Christy was not so anxious as he had been before the recent captures
+to fall in with an enemy, for with less than twenty seamen it would not
+be prudent to attack such a steamer as either of those he had captured,
+though he would not have objected
+<span class = "pagenum">229</span>
+to chase a blockade runner if he had discovered one pursued by the
+gunboats.</p>
+
+<p>It was a quiet time on board of the Bronx compared with the
+excitement of the earlier days of the voyage. In the very beginning of
+the trip, he had discovered the deaf mute at the cabin door, and his
+thought, his inquiries, and his action in defeating the treachery of the
+second lieutenant had kept him busy night and day. Now the weather was
+fine most of the time, and he had little to do beyond his routine
+duties. But he did a great deal of thinking in his cabin, though most of
+it was in relation to the events which had transpired on board of the
+Bronx.</p>
+
+<p>He had captured two valuable prizes; but he could not feel that he
+was entitled to any great credit for the achievements of his vessel,
+since he had been warned in the beginning to look out for the Scotian
+and the Arran. He had taken the first by surprise, and the result was
+due to the carelessness of her commander rather than to any great merit
+on his own part. The second he had taken with double the force of the
+enemy in ships and men; and the latter was not precisely the kind of a
+victory he was ambitious to&nbsp;win.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">230</span>
+At the same time, his self-respect assured him that he had done his duty
+faithfully, and that it had been possible for him to throw away his
+advantage by carelessness. If he had fallen in with both the Scotian and
+the Arran at the same time, the result might have been different, though
+he was sure that he should have fought his ship as long as there was
+anything left of her. In that case there would have been more room for
+man&oelig;uvring and strategy, for he did not admit to himself that he
+should have been beaten.</p>
+
+<p>Amblen continued to hold his place as second lieutenant, and McLinn
+was appointed acting third lieutenant. The carpenter repaired the
+bridge, though Christy would not have been very sorry if it had been so
+thoroughly smashed as to be beyond restoration, for it was hardly a
+naval institution. The men who had been only slightly wounded in the
+action with the Escambia were progressing finely under the care of Dr.
+Spokeley, and when the Bronx was off the southern cape of Florida, they
+were able to return to duty. The latest information located the flag
+officer off Pensacola, and in due time Christy reported to him. The
+Bellevite was still there, and the commander
+<span class = "pagenum">231</span>
+went on board of her, where he received an ovation from the former
+officers and seamen with whom he had sailed. He did not take any pains
+to recite his experience, but it was soon known throughout the
+fleet.</p>
+
+<p>"Christy, I shall hardly dare to sail in command of a ship of which
+you are the executive officer," said Lieutenant Blowitt, who was to
+command the Bronx, with a laugh.</p>
+
+<p>"Why not? Is my reputation so bad as that?" asked Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"Bad! No, it is so good. The fact of it is, you are such a tremendous
+fellow, there will be no room for any other officer to shine in the
+same&nbsp;sky."</p>
+
+<p>"I have been in command for a few days, hardly more than a week, but
+I assure you that I can and shall obey the orders of my commander to the
+very letter," added Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"But you took two steamers, each of them of nearly twice the tonnage
+of your own ship, in mid ocean."</p>
+
+<p>"But I took them one at a time. If I had fallen in with both at the
+same time, the affair might have gone the other way. We captured the
+first one
+<span class = "pagenum">232</span>
+by accident, as it were, and the second with double the force of the
+enemy. I don't take much credit to myself for that sort of thing. I
+don't think it was half as much of an affair as bringing out the Teaser,
+for we had to use some science on that occasion," replied Christy
+quietly.</p>
+
+<p>"Science, is it?" laughed Mr. Blowitt. "Perhaps you can assist me to
+some of your science, when it is required."</p>
+
+<p>"I shall obey my superior officer, and not presume to advise him
+unless he asks me to do&nbsp;so."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, Christy, I think you are the most audacious young fellow I
+ever met," added the future commander of the Bronx.</p>
+
+<p>"I haven't anything about me that I call audacity, so far as I
+understand myself. When I am told to do any duty, I do it if it is
+possible; and whether it is possible often depends upon whether you
+think it is or&nbsp;not."</p>
+
+<p>"I should say that it was audacious for you to think of capturing two
+steamers, fitted out for war purposes, and twice the size of your own
+ship, with the Bronx," added Mr. Blowitt, still laughing, to take off
+the edge of his criticism.</p>
+
+<p>"Why did the Navy Department instruct me
+<span class = "pagenum">233</span>
+in my sealed orders to look out for these steamers, if I was to do so in
+a Pickwickian sense?" demanded Christy earnestly. "What would you have
+done, Mr. Blowitt?"</p>
+
+<p>"Perhaps I should have been as audacious as you were, Christy, if
+such had been my orders."</p>
+
+<p>This conversation took place on the deck of the Bellevite where
+Christy had come to see his friends; and it was interrupted by a boat
+from the flag ship which brought a big envelope for Mr. Blowitt. It
+instructed him to go on board of the Bronx, to the command of which he
+had been appointed. Another order required him to proceed to a point on
+the western coast of Florida, where the enemy were supposed to be
+loading vessels with cotton, and break up the depot established for the
+purpose, where it could be supplied by the Florida Railroad.</p>
+
+<p>The new commander packed his clothing, and he was sent with Christy
+in one of the Bellevite's boats to the Bronx. They went on board, where
+the late acting commander had already removed his own property to the
+ward room, and Captain Blowitt was conducted to his cabin and state
+room, of which he took formal possession. He seemed to
+<span class = "pagenum">234</span>
+be very much pleased with his accommodations since the government had
+put the vessel in order, though he had been on board of her, and fought
+a battle on her deck, while she was still the Teaser.</p>
+
+<p>"I am sure I could not ask for anything better than this cabin," said
+he, after he had invited his first lieutenant to come&nbsp;in.</p>
+
+<p>"I found it very comfortable," added Christy. "Flint is second
+lieutenant, and Sampson chief engineer; and that is all there are of
+those who were in the Bellevite. I will introduce you to the acting
+third lieutenant, Mr. Amblen, and you can retain him or not as you
+please."</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Amblen was called in and presented to the captain, and then Flint
+was ordered to get under&nbsp;way.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">235</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapXXI">CHAPTER XXI</a></h4>
+
+<h6>AN EXPEDITION IN THE GULF</h6>
+
+
+<p>The Bronx had been three days on the station, Christy had made his
+report in full on her arrival, and the flag officer had visited the
+vessel in person, in order to ascertain her fitness for several
+enterprises he had in view. The Confederates were not sleepy or
+inactive, and resorted to every expedient within their means to
+counteract both morally and materially the efficiency of the
+blockade.</p>
+
+<p>The Bronx was admirably adapted to service in the shoal waters where
+the heavier vessels of the investing squadron could not go, and her
+arrival solved several problems then under consideration. Captain
+Blowitt and Christy had been sent for, and the late commander of the
+Bronx was questioned in regard to the steamer, her draught, her speed,
+and her ship's company. The damage done to her in the conflict with the
+Escambia had been
+<span class = "pagenum">236</span>
+fully repaired by the carpenter and his gang, and the steamer was in as
+good condition as when she sailed from New York.</p>
+
+<p>"In regard to the present officers, Mr. Passford, excepting present
+company, of course, they are excellent," said Captain McKeon, the flag
+officer. "For the service in which the Bronx is to be engaged, its
+success will depend upon the officers, though it is hardly exceptional
+in this respect. I understand that you sailed from New York rather
+short-handed abaft the mainmast."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, sir, we did; but fortunately we had most excellent material of
+which to make officers, and we made them," replied Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"I should like to know something about them; I mean apart from
+Captain Blowitt and yourself, for you have already made your record, and
+yours, Mr. Passford, is rather a dazzling reputation for one so
+young."</p>
+
+<p>"I am willing to apologize for it, sir," replied Christy, blushing
+like a maiden, as he was in duty bound to do, for he could not control
+the crimson that rose to his browned cheeks.</p>
+
+<p>"Quite unnecessary," replied Captain McKeon, smiling. "As long as you
+do your duty nobody
+<span class = "pagenum">237</span>
+will be jealous of you, and you will be a fit officer for all our young
+men to emulate. You were the acting commander on the voyage of the Bronx
+from New York. Your executive officer is the present second lieutenant.
+Is he qualified for the peculiar duty before&nbsp;you?"</p>
+
+<p>"No one could be more so, sir," replied Christy with proper
+enthusiasm.</p>
+
+<p>"I can fully indorse this opinion of Mr. Passford," added Captain
+Blowitt. "In the capture and bringing out of the Teaser, Mr. Flint was
+the right hand man of the leader of the enterprise."</p>
+
+<p>"And I gave him the command of the Ocklockonee, after her capture,
+and she took an active part in the affair with the Escambia, sir," said
+Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"Then we will consider him the right man in the right place," replied
+the flag officer. "Who is the present third lieutenant?"</p>
+
+<p>"Mr. Amblen is acting in that capacity at present, and he is a very
+good officer, though he holds no rank," answered Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"Then I can hardly confirm him as second lieutenant," added Captain
+McKeon.</p>
+
+<p>"In my report of the affairs with the Ocklockonee
+<span class = "pagenum">238</span>
+and the Escambia, I have strongly recommended him and three other
+officers for promotion, for all of them are fitted by education and
+experience at sea to do duty on board of such vessels as the Bronx."</p>
+
+<p>"Have you any officer in mind who would acceptably fill the vacant
+place, Captain Blowitt?"</p>
+
+<p>"I know of no one at present who holds the rank to entitle him to
+such a position, and I shall appeal to Mr. Passford," replied the new
+commander.</p>
+
+<p>"You have named Mr. Amblen, Mr. Passford; is he just the officer you
+would select if the matter were left to you?" asked the flag
+officer.</p>
+
+<p>"No, sir, though he would do very well. Mr. Baskirk, who served as
+executive officer while Mr. Flint was away in the Ocklockonee, is better
+adapted for the place," said Christy. "He commanded the first division
+of boarders on board of the Escambia, and he fought like a hero and is a
+man of excellent judgment. I am confident that he will make his mark as
+an officer. I am willing to admit that I wrote a letter to my father
+especially requesting him to do what he could for the immediate
+promotion of Mr. Baskirk."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">239</span>
+"Then he will be immediately promoted," added Captain McKeon with an
+expressive smile.</p>
+
+<p>"I may add also that I was presumptive enough to suggest his
+appointment as third lieutenant of the Bronx," continued Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"Then he will be the third lieutenant of the Bronx; and what you say
+would have settled the matter in the first place as well as now," said
+the flag officer, as much pleased with the reticence of the young
+officer as with his modesty. "Amblen may remain on board till his
+commission comes, and you can retain him as third lieutenant, Captain
+Blowitt, if you are so disposed. I have ordered a draft of twelve seamen
+to the Bronx, which will give you a crew of thirty, and I cannot spare
+any more until more men are sent down. I may add that I have taken some
+of them from the Bellevite."</p>
+
+<p>"I am quite satisfied, sir, with the number, though ten more would be
+acceptable," replied the commander of the Bronx.</p>
+
+<p>The two officers were then dismissed and ordered on board of their
+ship. A little later the draft of seamen was sent on board, and among
+them Christy was not sorry to see Boxie, the old
+<span class = "pagenum">240</span>
+sheet-anchor man of the Bellevite, who had made him a sort of pet, and
+had done a great deal to instruct him in matters of seamanship, naval
+customs, and traditions not found in any books.</p>
+
+<p>The commander and the executive officer paid their final visit to the
+Bellevite the next day, and the order was given to weigh anchor. When
+all hands were called, Christy thought he had never seen a better set of
+men except on board of the Bellevite, and the expedition, whatever it
+was, commenced under the most favorable auspices.</p>
+
+<p>The Bronx sailed in the middle of the forenoon, and the flag officer
+was careful not to reveal the destination of the steamer to any one, for
+with the aid of the telegraph, the object of the expedition might reach
+the scene of operations in advance of the arrival of the force. At four
+o'clock in the afternoon Captain Blowitt opened his envelope in presence
+of the executive officer. He looked the paper through before he spoke,
+and then handed it to Christy, who read it with quite as much interest
+as the commander&nbsp;had.</p>
+
+<p>"Cedar Keys," said the captain, glancing at his associate.</p>
+
+<p>"That is not a long run from the station,"
+<span class = "pagenum">241</span>
+added Christy. "We are very likely to be there before to-morrow
+morning."</p>
+
+<p>"It is about two hundred and eighty statute miles, I had occasion to
+ascertain a week ago when something was said about Cedar Keys," replied
+Captain Blowitt. "We have been making about fifteen knots, for the Bronx
+is a flyer, and we ought to be near our destination at about midnight.
+That would be an excellent time to arrive if we only had a pilot."</p>
+
+<p>"Perhaps we have one," added Christy with a smile.</p>
+
+<p>"Are you a pilot on this coast, Mr. Passford?" asked the commander,
+mistaking the smile.</p>
+
+<p>"No, sir, I am not; but I remember a conversation Mr. Flint and I had
+with Mr. Amblen, who was engaged in some sort of a speculation in
+Florida when the war came on. He was so provoked at the treatment he
+received that he shipped in the navy at once. I only know that he had a
+small steamer in these waters."</p>
+
+<p>"Send for Mr. Amblen at once!" exclaimed the commander, who appeared
+to have become suddenly excited. "There will be no moon to-night in
+these parts, and we may be able to
+<span class = "pagenum">242</span>
+hurry this matter up if we have a competent pilot."</p>
+
+<p>Christy called Dave, and sent him for the acting third lieutenant,
+for he knew that Mr. Flint had had the watch since four o'clock. Mr.
+Amblen was sunning himself on the quarter deck, and he promptly obeyed
+the summons.</p>
+
+<p>"I am glad to see you, Mr. Amblen, and I hope you will prove to be as
+useful a person as I have been led to believe you may be," said the
+captain.</p>
+
+<p>"I shall endeavor to do my duty, sir," replied the third lieutenant,
+who was always very ambitious to earn the good opinion of his superiors.
+"I mean to do the best I can to make myself useful, Captain
+Blowitt."</p>
+
+<p>"I know that very well; but the question now is what you know rather
+than what you can do as an officer. Mr. Passford informs me that you
+were formerly engaged in some kind of a speculation on the west coast of
+Florida."</p>
+
+<p>"Hardly a speculation, sir, for I was engaged in the fish business,"
+replied Mr. Amblen, laughing at the name which had been given to his
+calling. "When I sold a small coaster that belonged to me, I got in
+exchange a tug boat. I had been out of
+<span class = "pagenum">243</span>
+health a few years before; I spent six months at Cedar Keys and Tampa,
+and got well. Fish were plenty here, and of a kind that bring a good
+price farther north. I loaded my tug with ice, and came down here in
+her. I did a first-rate business buying from boats and in catching fish
+myself, and for a time I made money, though ice was so dear that I had
+to sell in the South."</p>
+
+<p>"Did you have a pilot on board of your tug?" asked the captain.</p>
+
+<p>"No, sir; I was my own pilot. I had the charts, and I studied out the
+bottom, so that I knew where I was in the darkest night."</p>
+
+<p>"Then you are just the person we want if you are a pilot in these
+waters."</p>
+
+<p>"What waters, sir? We are now off Cape St. Blas and Apalachicola Bay.
+I have been into the bay, but I am not a pilot in those waters, as you
+suggest."</p>
+
+<p>"I have just opened my orders, and I find we are ordered to Cedar
+Keys," interposed the commander.</p>
+
+<p>"That is quite another thing, sir; and there isn't a foot of bottom
+within five miles of the Keys to which I have not been personally
+introduced.
+<span class = "pagenum">244</span>
+When I was down here for my health I was on the water more than half of
+the time, and I learned all about the bay and coast; and I have been up
+the Suwanee River, which flows into the Gulf eighteen miles north of the
+Keys."</p>
+
+<p>"I am exceedingly glad to find that we have such an excellent pilot
+on board. I am informed in my orders that schooners load with cotton at
+this place, and make an easy thing of getting to sea," added Captain
+Blowitt.</p>
+
+<p>"I should say that it was a capital port for the Confederates to use
+for that sort of business. Small steamers can bring cotton down the
+Suwanee River, the railroad from Fernandina terminates at the Key, and
+this road connects with that to Jacksonville and the whole of western
+Florida as far as Tallahassee."</p>
+
+<p>"We may find a steamer or two there."</p>
+
+<p>"You may, though not one any larger than the Bronx, for there is only
+eleven feet of water on the bar. Probably no blockaders have yet been
+stationed off the port, and it is a good place to run out cotton."</p>
+
+<p>"I am much obliged to you, Mr. Amblen, for the information you have
+given me, and your services
+<span class = "pagenum">245</span>
+will probably be in demand this very night," added the commander, rising
+from his chair.</p>
+
+<p>"I am ready for duty at all times, sir," replied Mr. Amblen, as he
+retired from the cabin.</p>
+
+<p>The charts were then consulted, and sundry calculations were made. At
+one o'clock that night the Bronx was off Cedar Keys.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">246</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapXXII">CHAPTER XXII</a></h4>
+
+<h6>A NIGHT EXPEDITION IN THE BOATS</h6>
+
+
+<p>During the evening Captain Blowitt had consulted his officers, and
+arranged his plans for operations, or at least for obtaining information
+in regard to the situation inside of North Key, where the landing place
+is situated. He had already arranged to give the command of the boat
+expedition to Christy, with the second lieutenant in another boat, Mr.
+Amblen being with the executive officer in the first.</p>
+
+<p>"Now, Mr. Passford, I do not expect you to capture the whole State of
+Florida, and if you should return without accomplishing anything at all,
+I shall not be disappointed, but I shall feel that you have done
+everything that could be done," said the captain, with a very cheerful
+smile, when all had been arranged.</p>
+
+<p>"I shall endeavor to obey my orders, Captain Blowitt, if I can do so
+in the exercise of a reasonable
+<span class = "pagenum">247</span>
+prudence," replied Christy, who took in all that his superior looked, as
+well as all that he said.</p>
+
+<p>"A reasonable prudence is decidedly good, coming from you, Mr.
+Passford," said the captain, laughing outright.</p>
+
+<p>"Why is it decidedly good from me rather than from anybody else?"
+asked Christy, somewhat nettled by the remark.</p>
+
+<p>"You objected once on board of the Bellevite when I mildly hinted
+that you might sometimes, under some circumstances, with a strong
+temptation before you, be just a little audacious," said the captain,
+still laughing, as though he were engaged in a mere joke.</p>
+
+<p>"That statement is certainly qualified in almost all directions, if
+you will excuse me for saying so, captain," replied Christy, who was
+fully determined not to take offence at anything his superior might say,
+for he had always regarded him as one of his best friends. "If I
+remember rightly the mild suggestion of a criticism which you gently and
+tenderly applied to me was after we had brought out the Teaser from
+Pensacola&nbsp;Bay."</p>
+
+<p>"That was the time. Captain Breaker sent you to ascertain, if you
+could, where the Teaser was,
+<span class = "pagenum">248</span>
+and you reported by bringing her out, which certainly no one expected
+you would do, and I believe this part of the programme carried out on
+that excursion was not mentioned in your orders."</p>
+
+<p>"It was not; but if I had a good chance to capture the steamer, was
+it my duty to pass over that chance, and run the risk of letting the
+vessel get&nbsp;out?"</p>
+
+<p>"On the contrary, it was your duty, if you got a good chance, to
+capture the steamer."</p>
+
+<p>"And that is precisely what I did. I did not lose a man, or have one
+wounded in the expedition; and I have only to be penitent for being
+audacious," laughed Christy; and he was laughing very earnestly, as
+though the extra cachinnation was assumed for a purpose. "I suppose I
+ought to dress myself in <ins class = "correction" title =
+"so in original">ash cloth and sashes</ins>, shut myself up in my state
+room always when off duty, and shed penitential tears from the rising of
+the sun to the going down of the same, and during the lone watches of
+the night, and in fortifying my soul against the monstrous sin of
+audacity. I&nbsp;will think of&nbsp;it."</p>
+
+<p>"I hope you have no feeling about this matter,
+<span class = "pagenum">249</span>
+Mr. Passford," said the captain, rising from his chair and taking
+Christy by the hand.</p>
+
+<p>"Not a particle, Captain Blowitt. I am absolutely sure that you would
+have done precisely what I did, if you had been in my situation,"
+protested Christy. "About the last thing my father talked about to me
+when we parted in this cabin in New York Harbor was the necessity of
+prudence and discretion in the discharge of my duties; and I am sure his
+advice saved me from falling into the traps set for me by Hungerford and
+Pawcett, and enabled me to capture two of the enemy's crack
+steamers."</p>
+
+<p>"I will never use the word audacity or the adjective audacious to you
+again, Christy. I see that it nettles you, to say the least," added the
+captain, pressing his hand with more earnestness.</p>
+
+<p>"I am perfectly willing you should apply both words to me when I
+deserve it. Audacity means boldness, impudence, according to Stormonth.
+Audacious means very bold, daring, impudent. It may have been bold to
+run out the Teaser, and the enemy would even call it impudent, for the
+meaning of a word sometimes depends upon which side you belong to. My
+father was quite as impudent
+<span class = "pagenum">250</span>
+as I was when he ran the Bellevite out of Mobile Bay, under the guns of
+Fort Morgan. He was audacious, wasn't&nbsp;he?"</p>
+
+<p>"We should hardly apply that word to him."</p>
+
+<p>"Why not? Simply because my father was forty-five years old when he
+told Captain Breaker to do it. If I were only thirty years old I should
+not be audacious. I am a boy, and therefore anything that I do is
+daring, audacious, impudent, imprudent."</p>
+
+<p>"I rather think you are right, Mr. Passford, and it is your age more
+than the results of your actions that is the basis of our judgment,"
+said Captain Blowitt.</p>
+
+<p>"I wish to add seriously, captain, as a friend and not as an officer,
+I do not claim that the command of this expedition should be given to me
+because I am first lieutenant of the Bronx, or for any other reason,"
+added Christy with an earnest expression. "Perhaps it would be better to
+give the command to the second lieutenant; and if you do so, I assure
+you, upon my honor, that it will not produce a particle of feeling in my
+mind. I shall honor, respect, and love you as I have always, Captain
+Blowitt."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">251</span>
+"My dear fellow, you are entirely misunderstanding me," protested the
+commander, as earnestly as his subordinate had spoken. "I give you the
+command of this expedition because I honestly and sincerely believe you
+are the very best person on board to whom I can commit such a
+responsibility."</p>
+
+<p>"That is enough, captain, and a great deal more than you were under
+any obligations to say to me; and I shall obey my orders with all the
+prudence and discretion I can bring to bear upon them," said Christy,
+taking the captain's offered hand. "If I fail it will not be because I
+do not try to be prudent."</p>
+
+<p>"There is such a thing as being too prudent, and I hope that nothing
+which has been said to you by your father or by me will drive you to the
+other extreme."</p>
+
+<p>Though this conversation had at times been very animated, Christy was
+glad that it had taken place, for it gave him a better insight into his
+own standing than he had before. He did not look upon it as a very great
+affair to command a couple of boats, in a night expedition, for he had
+recently commanded two steamers, and brought them off
+<span class = "pagenum">252</span>
+victorious. He had it in mind to ask the captain to send Flint in
+command of the expedition, though it would compel him, on account of his
+rank, to remain inactive on board of the Bronx; but he could not do
+this, after what had been said, without leaving some evidence that he
+was disaffected by what the commander had said to him about
+audacity.</p>
+
+<p>It was found after a calculation of the run very carefully made that
+the Bronx would arrive too soon at her destination, and she was slowed
+down as the evening came on. In the ward room, of which Christy was now
+the occupant of the forward berth on the starboard side, he studied the
+chart with Amblen a good part of the waiting hours, and the executive
+officer obtained all the information he could from the third lieutenant.
+There were three principal keys, or cays, one of which, called the North
+Key, was the nearest to the mainland, and was set in the mouth of a bay.
+This was the nearest to the peninsula at the end of which the railroad
+terminates. About southwest of it is the Seahorse Key, on which there is
+a light in peaceful times. To the south of the point is the Snake Key,
+and between the last two is the
+<span class = "pagenum">253</span>
+main channel to the port, which twists about like the track of a snake.
+There is a town, or rather a village, near the landing.</p>
+
+<p>Six bells struck on deck, and all the officers, including the
+captain, adjourned to the bridge, which was a useful institution on such
+occasions as the present. A sharp watch had been kept by Lieutenant
+Flint in charge; but though the night was clear, nothing had been made
+out in the direction of the shore. All lights on board had been put out,
+and the Bronx went along in the smooth sea as quietly as a lady on a
+fashionable promenade, and it was not believed that anything could be
+seen of her from the shore.</p>
+
+<p>About midnight the lookout man aloft reported that he could see a
+twinkling light. It was promptly investigated by Mr. Amblen, who went
+aloft for the purpose. He was satisfied that it was a light in some
+house in the village, probably in the upper story. It soon disappeared,
+and it was thought to be occasioned by the late retiring of some
+person.</p>
+
+<p>"I should say, Captain Blowitt, that we are not more than five miles
+outside of Seahorse Key," said Mr. Amblen, after he had interpreted the
+<span class = "pagenum">254</span>
+meaning of the light. "It is after midnight, and these people are not in
+the habit of sitting up so late."</p>
+
+<p>"If they are shipping much cotton from this port, it is not
+improbable that there is a force here to protect the vessels, whatever
+they are," added the commander.</p>
+
+<p>"Of that, of course, I can know nothing; but I shall expect to find a
+Confederate battery somewhere on the point, and I know about where to
+look for&nbsp;it."</p>
+
+<p>"The place has never been of any great importance, and you can hardly
+expect to find a very strong force in it," added the captain.</p>
+
+<p>It has since become a place of more note, both as a resort for
+invalids and pleasure-seekers, and as the termination of the railroad
+from Fernandina and Jacksonville, and steamers have run regularly from
+the port to Havana and New Orleans.</p>
+
+<p>"If you will excuse me, Captain Blowitt, I should say that it was not
+advisable to take the Bronx nearer than within about four miles of the
+Seahorse Key," suggested Mr. Amblen.</p>
+
+<p>"I was just thinking that we had gone as far as
+<span class = "pagenum">255</span>
+it is prudent to go. Do you think you could take the Bronx up to the
+landing?" added the captain.</p>
+
+<p>"I am very sure that I could, for I have been in many a time on a
+darker night than this."</p>
+
+<p>"We will not go in to-night, but perhaps we may have occasion to do
+so to-morrow. We shall know better what to do when we get a report of
+the state of things in the place," replied the captain, as he gave the
+word through the speaking tube to stop the steamer.</p>
+
+<p>Christy had been given full powers to make all preparations for the
+boat expedition, and was allowed ten men to each of the quarter boats.
+He had selected the ones for his own boat, and had required Flint to
+pick his own crew for the other. The oars had been carefully muffled by
+the coxswains, for it was desirable that no alarm should be given in the
+place. The starboard quarter boat was the first cutter, pulled by six
+oars, and this was for Christy and Mr. Amblen, with the regular coxswain
+and three hands in the bow. The second cutter was in charge of Mr.
+Flint, and followed the other boat, keeping near enough to obtain her
+course in the twists of the channel.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">256</span>
+It was a long pull to the Seahorse Key, and a moderate stroke was taken
+as well not to tire the men as to avoid all possible noise. When the
+first cutter was abreast of the Key, the pilot pointed out the dark
+outline of the peninsula, which was less than a mile distant. No vessel
+could be seen; but the pilot thought they might be concealed by the
+railroad buildings on the point. Christy asked where the battery was
+which the pilot thought he could locate, and the spot was indicated to
+him. Christy wanted a nearer view of it, and the cutter was headed in
+that direction.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">257</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapXXIII">CHAPTER XXIII</a></h4>
+
+<h6>THE VISIT TO A SHORE BATTERY</h6>
+
+
+<p>The first cutter reached the Seahorse Key closely followed by the
+second. It was within an hour of high tide, the ordinary rise and fall
+of which was two and a half feet. On the Key was a light house, and a
+cottage for the keeper of it; but the former was no longer illuminated,
+and the house was as dark as the head of the tower. So far as could be
+discovered there was no one on the Key, though the boats did not stop to
+investigate this matter. The crews still pulled a moderate stroke with
+their muffled oars, the men were not allowed to talk, and everything was
+as silent as the inside of a tomb.</p>
+
+<p>The pilot stood up in the stern sheets of the cutter, gazing intently
+in the direction of the point nearly a mile ahead. The outlines of the
+buildings could be discerned, and Amblen soon declared that he could
+make out the tops of the
+<span class = "pagenum">258</span>
+masts of several vessels to the westward of the point with which the
+peninsula terminated. This looked hopeful, and indicated that the
+information upon which the expedition had been sent out was correct.
+Christy began to think he should have a busy night before him when
+Amblen said there were at least three vessels at the port.</p>
+
+<p>The battery was first to be visited and cared for if there was one,
+and it was not probable that a place so open to the operations of the
+blockading force would be without one, especially if the people were
+actually engaged in loading cotton, as the masts of the vessels
+indicated, though the hulls could not yet be seen. As the first cutter
+approached nearer to the place the outlines became more distinct, and
+soon embodied themselves into definite objects. Both officers in the
+stern sheets watched with the most anxious vigilance for any moving
+object denoting the presence of life and intelligence.</p>
+
+<p>As the boats came nearer to the shore, a breeze sprang up, and cooled
+the air, for early as it was in the season, the weather was very warm,
+and it was not uncommon for the thermometer to rise above ninety. These
+breezes were usually present
+<span class = "pagenum">259</span>
+to cool the nights, and doubtless the inhabitants slept the sounder for
+the one which had just begun to fan the cheeks of the officers and
+seamen of the expedition.</p>
+
+<p>"There is a battery there, Mr. Passford," said the pilot in a very
+low tone. "I can make it out now, and it is just where I supposed it
+would&nbsp;be."</p>
+
+<p>"I can see something that seems like an earthwork at the right of the
+buildings," added Christy. "Can you make out anything that looks like a
+sentinel?"</p>
+
+<p>"I can see nothing that denotes the presence of a man. If there were
+a sentinel there, he would be on the top of the earthwork, or on the
+highest ground about it, so that he could see out into the bay, for
+there can be no danger from the land side of the place," added
+Amblen.</p>
+
+<p>"I can hardly imagine such a thing as a battery without a sentinel to
+give warning if anybody should try to carry it off. There must be a
+sentry somewhere in the vicinity."</p>
+
+<p>"I can't say there isn't, though I can't make out a man, or anything
+that looks like one," replied the pilot.</p>
+
+<p>"Very likely we shall soon wake him up, Mr.
+<span class = "pagenum">260</span>
+Amblen; and in that case it will be necessary for us to find a safer
+place than in front of the guns of the battery, for I do not feel at
+liberty to expose the men to the fire of the works, whatever
+they&nbsp;are."</p>
+
+<p>"All you have to do is to pull around to the other side of the point
+into the bay, where the vessels are. I am confident there is no battery
+on that side, and there can hardly be any need of one, for this one
+commands the channel, the only approach to the place for a vessel larger
+than a cutter."</p>
+
+<p>"I fancy this battery does not amount to much, and is probably
+nothing more than an earthwork, with a few field guns behind it. Suppose
+we should wake it up, and have to make for the bay, can we get out of it
+without putting the boats under the guns of the battery?"</p>
+
+<p>"Without any difficulty at all, sir. We have only to pull around the
+North Key, and pass out to the Gulf, beyond the reach of any field gun
+that can be brought to bear on us," replied Mr. Amblen.</p>
+
+<p>"If they have one or two field batteries here, they may hitch on the
+horses, and follow us," suggested Christy, who, in spite of the audacity
+with
+<span class = "pagenum">261</span>
+which he had been mildly charged, was not inclined to run into any trap
+from which he could not readily withdraw his force.</p>
+
+<p>"We shall have the short line, and if they pursue us with the guns,
+we can retire by the way of the channel, which they will leave
+uncovered."</p>
+
+<p>"We are getting quite near the shore," continued Christy. "How is the
+water under&nbsp;us?"</p>
+
+<p>"The bottom is sandy, and we shall take the ground before we reach
+the shore if we don't manage properly. But we can tell something by the
+mangroves that fringe the land," replied the pilot; "and I will go into
+the bow of the cutter and look out for them."</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Amblen made his way to the fore sheets, and asked Boxie, who was
+there, for the boathook, with which he proceeded to sound. When he had
+done so, he raised both his hands to a level with his shoulders, which
+was the signal to go ahead, and the men pulled a very slow stroke. He
+continued to sound, after he had selected the point for landing.</p>
+
+<p>When the first cutter was within three lengths of the shore, he
+elevated both his hands above his head, which was the signal to cease
+rowing, though
+<span class = "pagenum">262</span>
+the two bow oarsmen kept their oars in the water instead of boating them
+as the others did. Mr. Amblen continued to feel the way, and in a few
+minutes more, aided by the shoving of the two bow oarsmen, he brought
+the boat to the shore.</p>
+
+<p>Then he gave his attention to the second cutter, bringing it to the
+land alongside of the first. Stepping out on the sand himself, he was
+followed by all the crew, with cutlass in hand, and revolvers in
+readiness for use. The men were placed in order for an advance, and then
+required to lie down on the sand, so that they could not readily be seen
+if any stroller appeared on the ground.</p>
+
+<p>Leaving the force in charge of Mr. Flint, Christy and Amblen walked
+towards the battery, crouching behind such objects as they could find
+that would conceal them in whole or in part. The earthwork was
+semicircular in form, and was hardly more than a rifle pit. No sentinel
+could be discovered, and getting down upon the sand, the two officers
+crept cautiously towards the heaps of sand which formed the fort.</p>
+
+<p>Christy climbed up the slope with some difficulty, for the dry sand
+afforded a very weak foothold. On the top of it, which was about six
+feet
+<span class = "pagenum">263</span>
+wide, they found a solid path which had evidently been a promenade for
+sentinels or other persons. Behind it, on a wooden platform, were four
+field guns, with depressions in the earthwork in front of the
+muzzles.</p>
+
+<p>Christy led the way down the slope on the inside to the pieces, which
+were twelve-pounders. At a little distance from the platform was a sort
+of casemate, which might have been constructed for a magazine, or for a
+place of resort for the gunners if the fort should be bombarded. Not a
+man could be seen, and if there was any garrison for the place, they
+were certainly taking things very comfortably, for they must have been
+asleep at this unseemly hour for any ordinary occupation.</p>
+
+<p>Not far from the battery was a rude structure, hardly better than a
+shanty, which Christy concluded must be the barracks of the soldiers if
+there were any there. He walked over to it; but there was not a human
+being to be seen in the vicinity. It was half past one at night, when
+honest people ought to be abed and asleep, and the first lieutenant of
+the Bronx concluded that the garrison, if this shanty was their
+quarters, must be honest people.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">264</span>
+Christy walked very cautiously to the side of the building, for the
+entrance was at the end nearest to the fort, and found several windows
+there, from which the sashes seemed to have been removed, if there had
+ever been any. The bottom of each opening was no higher than his head,
+and he went to one of them and looked&nbsp;in.</p>
+
+<p>Extending along the middle of the interior was a row of berths. It
+was very dark inside, and he could not make out whether or not these
+bunks were occupied. The windows on the other side of the shanty enabled
+him to see that there were two rows of berths, each backing against the
+other. There were two in each tier, and he judged that the barrack would
+accommodate forty-eight&nbsp;men.</p>
+
+<p>He retained his place at the window in order to discover any movement
+made by a sleeper that would inform him whether or not the berths were
+occupied. If there were any soldiers there, they were as quiet as
+statues; but while he was watching for a movement, he heard a decided
+snore. There was at least one man there, and he continued to hear his
+sonorous breathing as long as he remained at the window, which was the
+first on the side of the shanty.</p>
+
+<p class = "illustration">
+<img src = "images/pic264.png" width = "371" height = "531"
+alt = "illustration of quoted scene"><br>
+<span class = "caption smallcaps">
+Christy walked the whole length of the shanty.</span>
+</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">265</span>
+Christy decided to push the investigation still farther, and he went to
+a window in the middle of the building. He regarded the berths with
+attention for a few minutes, but he could perceive no movement. He could
+hear two snorers who seemed to be competing with each other to see who
+could make the most noise.</p>
+
+<p>If the berths were all occupied, three snorers were not a very great
+proportion in forty-eight. He was very anxious to ascertain if this was
+the number of soldiers in the place, but it was too dark in the shanty
+for him to determine whether or not the bunks were all in use. It was
+too many for him to encounter with his force of twenty men and three
+officers in the open field.</p>
+
+<p>Christy returned to the end of the building, and tried the door. It
+was not locked, and he decided to make use of a little of the audacity
+of which he was accused of having a good deal. Taking off his shoes, and
+passing his sword to Mr. Amblen, he entered the barrack on tiptoe.</p>
+
+<p>The boards of the floor began to creak under his weight; he stooped
+down and felt till he found the nail holes; then he knew that he was on
+a timber, and he walked the whole length of the shanty,
+<span class = "pagenum">266</span>
+returning on the opposite side, counting the occupied berths, for he
+passed within three feet of all of them. The count gave seventeen men as
+the number of sleepers, though this might not be all the force at the
+place.</p>
+
+<p>He had ascertained all he wished to know, and he walked back to the
+shore where the men were concealed. Apart from the men, he had a
+conference with Flint and Amblen, giving them the details of what he had
+discovered. Then he stated his plan, and the men were marched silently
+to the battery, and were posted behind the breastwork. Not a man was
+allowed to move, and Christy and Flint went to the casemate, which
+looked like a mound of sand.</p>
+
+<p>It was locked, but taking a bar of iron they found with some tools
+for digging, they tore off the padlock. A lantern had been brought from
+the steamer, which was lighted. The structure was found to be for the
+protection of the artillerists in the first instance; but the apartment
+was connected with the magazine, the lock of which was removed.</p>
+
+<p>Amblen was sent for ten men, and all the ammunition they could carry
+was removed. The
+<span class = "pagenum">267</span>
+rest of it was thrown into a pool of water made by recent rains. The
+powder, solid shot, and shells were carried to the boats. The rest of
+the men drew the four guns to the shore, where one was placed, with its
+carriage, in each of the cutters, and the other two put where they could
+be carried to the Bronx, or thrown overboard in deep water, as occasion
+might require.</p>
+
+<p>The seventeen soldiers, reinforced by any that might be in the town,
+were thus deprived of the power to do any mischief except in a
+hand-to-hand fight. If the place was not actually captured, it was
+practically lost to the enemy. The next business of the expedition was
+to examine the bay, and ascertain what vessels were at the landing
+place. The boats shoved off, and pulled around the point.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">268</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapXXIV">CHAPTER XXIV</a></h4>
+
+<h6>CAPTAIN LONLEY OF THE STEAMER HAVANA</h6>
+
+
+<p>The two twelve-pounders in each boat were believed to weigh about six
+hundred pounds each, while the ordinary bronze boat gun of the same
+calibre weighs seven hundred and sixty pounds. The four guns, therefore,
+were rather too heavy a burden for the size of the cutters. But Christy
+was unwilling to throw the two without carriages overboard, for the
+water in this locality was so clear that they could have been seen at a
+depth of two or three fathoms. They were useless for the duty in which
+the expedition was engaged, and the commander of the expedition decided
+to land them on the Seahorse Key till he had completed his operations in
+the bay, when they could be taken off and transported to the Bronx as
+trophies, if for nothing better.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Flint was disposed to object to this plan, on account of the time
+it would require; but he
+<span class = "pagenum">269</span>
+yielded the point when Christy informed him that it was only half past
+two, as he learned from the repeater he carried for its usefulness on
+just such duty as the present expedition.</p>
+
+<p>The guns and all that belonged to them were landed on the Key, and
+the boats shoved off, the lieutenants happy in the thought that they
+were no longer embarrassed by their weight, while they could not be
+brought to bear upon them.</p>
+
+<p>The boats had hardly left the little island behind them when the
+noise of paddle wheels ahead was reported by one of the trio in the bow
+of the first cutter. Christy listened with all his ears, and immediately
+heard the peculiar sounds caused by the slapping of the paddle wheels of
+a steamer upon the water.</p>
+
+<p>"We are in for something," said he to the pilot, as he listened to
+the sounds. "What might that&nbsp;be?"</p>
+
+<p>"It is a steamer without any doubt coming around the point, and she
+will be in sight in a moment or two," replied Mr. Amblen. "It may be a
+river steamer that has brought a load of cotton down the Suwanee, and is
+going out on this tide."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">270</span>
+"Then we may need those guns we have left on the key," suggested
+Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"If she is a river steamer, there is not much of a force on board of
+her," replied the pilot.</p>
+
+<p>"We might return to the island, and use the two guns with carriages
+there."</p>
+
+<p>"If she is a river steamer, we shall not need great guns to
+capture&nbsp;her."</p>
+
+<p>Christy had ordered the men to cease rowing, and the two cutters lay
+motionless on the full sea, for the tide was at its height by this time.
+Even in the darkness they could make out whether the approaching vessel
+was a river or a sea steamer as soon as she could be seen.</p>
+
+<p>"Whatever she is, we must capture her," said Christy, very
+decidedly.</p>
+
+<p>"If she is a river steamer, she will be of no use to the government,"
+added Mr. Amblen.</p>
+
+<p>"Of none at all." replied Christy. "In that case I shall burn her,
+for it would not be safe to send good men in such a craft to a port
+where she could be condemned. The next question is, shall we take her
+here, or nearer to the shore."</p>
+
+<p>"The farther from the shore the better, I should say, Mr. Passford.
+After she passes the
+<span class = "pagenum">271</span>
+Seahorse Key, she will be in deep water for a vessel coming out of that
+port; and until she gets to the Key, she will move very slowly, and we
+can board her better than when she is going at full speed," said Mr.
+Amblen.</p>
+
+<p>"You are doubtless quite right, Mr. Amblen, and I shall adopt your
+suggestion," replied Christy. "There she comes, and she is no river
+steamer."</p>
+
+<p>She had not the two tall funnels carried by river steamers, and that
+point was enough to settle her character. There could be no doubt she
+would have been a blockade runner, if there had been any blockade to run
+at the entrance to the port. Christy decided to board the steamer
+between the two keys, the channel passing between Snake and Seahorse.
+The first cutter fell back so that Christy could communicate with Mr.
+Flint, and he instructed him to take a position off the Snake Key, where
+his boat could not be discovered too soon, and board the steamer on the
+port side, though he did not expect any resistance. Each cutter took its
+position and awaited in silence the approach of the blockade runner. The
+only thing Christy feared was that she would
+<span class = "pagenum">272</span>
+come about and run back to the port, though this could only delay her
+capture.</p>
+
+<p>The steamer, as well as the officers could judge her in the distance,
+was hardly larger than the Bronx. They concluded that she must be loaded
+with cotton, and at this time it was about as valuable a cargo as could
+be put on board of her. She would be a rich prize, and the masts of the
+schooners were still to be seen over the tops of the buildings. She must
+have chosen this hour of the night to go out, not only on account of the
+tide, but because the darkness would enable her to get off the coast
+where a blockader occasionally wandered before the blockade was fully
+established. Her paddle wheels indicated that she had not been built
+very recently, for very nearly all sea steamers, including those of the
+United States, were propelled by the screw.</p>
+
+<p>As Mr. Amblen had predicted the steamer moved very slowly, and it was
+all of a quarter of an hour before she came to the Seahorse Key. At the
+right time Christy gave the word to the crew to "Give way lively!" and
+the first cutter shot out from the concealment of the little island,
+while Flint did the same on the other side of the
+<span class = "pagenum">273</span>
+channel. Almost in the twinkling of an eye the two boats had made fast
+to her, and seven men from each boat leaped on the deck of the steamer,
+cutlass in hand. No guns were to be seen, and the watch of not more than
+half a dozen men were on the forecastle; and perhaps this was the entire
+force of the sailing department.</p>
+
+<p>"What does all this mean?" demanded a man coming from the after part
+of the vessel, in a voice which Christy recognized as soon as he had
+heard half of the sentence.</p>
+
+<p>"Good morning, Captain Lonley," said Christy, in the pleasantest of
+tones. "You are up early, my friend, but I think we are a little ahead
+of you on this occasion."</p>
+
+<p>"Who are you, sir?" demanded Lonley; and Christy had at once jumped
+to the conclusion that he was the captain of the steamer. "I have heard
+your voice before, but I cannot place you,&nbsp;sir."</p>
+
+<p>"Fortunately for me, it is not necessary that you should place me
+this time," replied Christy. "It is equally fortunate that I am not
+compelled to place you again, as I felt obliged to do, on board of the
+Judith in Mobile&nbsp;Bay."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">274</span>
+"Passford!" exclaimed Captain Lonley, stepping back a pace in his
+astonishment.</p>
+
+<p>"Passford, late of the Bellevite, and now executive officer of the
+United States steamer Bronx, formerly the Teaser, privateer," answered
+Christy, in his usual cheerful tones. "May I inquire the name of this
+steamer?"</p>
+
+<p>"This steamer is the Havana," replied Captain Lonley. "May I ask you,
+Mr. Passford, in regard to your business on board of&nbsp;her?"</p>
+
+<p>"I have a little affair on board of her, and my duty compels me to
+demand her surrender as a prize to the Bronx."</p>
+
+<p>"Caught again!" exclaimed Captain Lonley, stamping violently on the
+deck in his disgust at his misfortune, and it was the third time that
+Christy had thrown him "out of a&nbsp;job."</p>
+
+<p>"The way of the transgressor is hard, Captain Lonley," added the
+commander of the expedition.</p>
+
+<p>"Transgressor, sir!" ejaculated the captain of the Havana. "What do
+you mean by that, Mr. Passford?"</p>
+
+<p>"Well, captain, you are in arms against the best government that the
+good God ever permitted to exist for eighty odd years; and that is the
+<span class = "pagenum">275</span>
+greatest transgression of which one can be guilty in a patriotic
+sense."</p>
+
+<p>"I hold no allegiance to that government."</p>
+
+<p>"So much the worse for you, Captain Lonley; but we will not talk
+politics. Do you surrender?"</p>
+
+<p>"This is not an armed steamer, and I have no force to resist; I am
+compelled to surrender," replied the captain as he glanced at the
+cutlasses of the men from the Bronx.</p>
+
+<p>"That is a correct, though not a cheerful view of the question on
+your part. I am very happy to relieve you from any further care of the
+Havana, and you may retire to your cabin, where I shall have the honor
+to wait upon you later."</p>
+
+<p>"One word, Mr. Passford, if you please," said Captain Lonley, taking
+Christy by the arm and leading him away from the rest of the boarding
+party. "This steamer and the cotton with which she is loaded are the
+property of your uncle, Homer Passford."</p>
+
+<p>"Indeed?" was all that Christy thought it necessary to say in
+reply.</p>
+
+<p>"You have already taken from him one valuable cargo of cotton; and it
+would be magnanimous in you, as well as very kind of a near relative, to
+<span class = "pagenum">276</span>
+allow me to pass on my way with the property of your uncle."</p>
+
+<p>"Would it have been kind on the part of a near relative to allow his
+own brother to pass out of Mobile Bay in the Bellevite?"</p>
+
+<p>"That would have been quite another thing, for the Bellevite was
+intended for the Federal navy," protested the Confederate captain. "It
+would have been sacrificing his country to his fraternal feelings. This
+is not a Confederate vessel, and is not intended as a war steamer,"
+argued Lonley.</p>
+
+<p>"Every pound of cotton my uncle sells is so much strength added to
+the cause he advocates; and I hope, with no unkind thoughts or feelings
+in regard to him, I shall be able to capture every vessel he sends out.
+That is my view of the matter, and I am just as strong on my side of the
+question as Uncle Homer is on his side. I would cut off my right hand
+before I would allow your vessel or any other to escape, for I have
+sworn allegiance to my government, and when I fail to do my duty at any
+sacrifice of personal feeling, it will be when I have lost my mind; and
+my uncle would do as much for his fractional government. We need not
+discuss such a subject as you suggest, captain."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">277</span>
+Captain Lonley said no more, and retired to his cabin. Christy was ready
+for the next question in order. Accompanied by Mr. Flint, he looked the
+steamer over. The mate had lighted his pipe and seated himself on a
+water cask; and he seemed to be the only officer besides the captain on
+board. The engineers were next visited. There were two of them, but they
+were red hot for the Confederacy, and nothing was said to them except to
+order them on deck, where they were placed with the crew, and a guard of
+seamen set over them. The firemen were negroes, and they were willing to
+serve under the new master, and doubtless were pleased with the change.
+The crew of the Bronx on board of the Havana were canvassed to find a
+man who had run an engine, but not one of them had any experience.</p>
+
+<p>"That's bad," said Flint, when they had finished the inquiry. "We
+have not an engineer on board, and we shall have to send off to the
+Bronx for&nbsp;one."</p>
+
+<p>"Not so bad as that, Mr. Flint," replied Christy. "There is one loyal
+engineer on board, and I am the one. You will take the deck, and Mr.
+Amblen will go into the pilot house. I am not quite ready
+<span class = "pagenum">278</span>
+to go off to the Bronx yet, for there are two or three cotton schooners
+in this port, and we are so fortunate as to have a steamer now to tow
+them&nbsp;out."</p>
+
+<p>"Very likely those soldiers have waked up by this time," said
+Flint.</p>
+
+<p>"Let them fire those guns at us, if they can find them," laughed
+Christy.</p>
+
+<p>Then he took Mr. Amblen into the engine room with him.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">279</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapXXV">CHAPTER XXV</a></h4>
+
+<h6>THE NEW ENGINEER OF THE PRIZE STEAMER</h6>
+
+
+<p>While enthusiastically pursuing his studies as an engineer, Christy
+had visited a great many steamers with Paul Vapoor for the purpose of
+examining the engines, so that he could hardly expect to find one with
+whose construction he was not familiar, whether it was an American or a
+foreign built machine. At the first glance after he entered the engine
+room of the Havana, he knew the engine, and was ready to run it without
+spending any time in studying it. He had brought the pilot with him in
+order to come to an understanding in regard to the bells, for in the
+navy the signals differ from those in the commercial marine.</p>
+
+<p>"This steamer is provided with a gong and a jingling bell," said
+Christy, as he pointed them out to his companion.</p>
+
+<p>"My little steamer on this coast was run with just such bells,"
+replied Mr. Amblen.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">280</span>
+"And so was the Bellevite, so that I am quite accustomed to the system
+of signals; but it is well to be sure that we understand each other
+perfectly if we expect to get this vessel out of the bay after we go up
+to the port," added Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"I agree with you entirely, sir. A single strong stroke on the gong
+is to start or to stop her according to the circumstances," said the
+pilot.</p>
+
+<p>"Precisely so; and two strokes are to back her," continued Christy.
+"Going at full speed, the jingler brings the engine down to half speed,
+or at half speed carries it up to full speed."</p>
+
+<p>"That is my understanding of the matter," replied Mr. Amblen.</p>
+
+<p>"Then we understand each other to a charm," continued the temporary
+engineer. "Report to Mr. Flint that we are ready to go ahead."</p>
+
+<p>Christy found a colored man who was on duty as an oiler, and four
+others in the fire room, who seemed to be engaged in an earnest
+discussion of the situation, for the capture of the Havana was a
+momentous event to all of them. The oiler was at work, and had
+thoroughly lubricated the machinery, as though he intended that any
+failure of the steamer should not be from any fault on his part.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">281</span>
+The new official set two of the firemen at work, though the boilers had
+a good head of steam. The gong bell gave one sharp stroke, and Christy
+started the engine.</p>
+
+<p>The Havana was headed out to sea when she was captured, and in the
+slack water she had not drifted at all. He went ahead slowly, and soon
+had the bell to stop her; but he expected this, for the channel was
+narrow, and it required considerable man&oelig;uvring to get the steamer
+about. Then he happened to think of the guns on the Seahorse Key, and
+through the speaking tube he passed the word to Mr. Flint to have him
+land there in order to take the guns and ammunition on board.</p>
+
+<p>After a great deal of backing and going ahead, the Havana was headed
+for the key, where she was stopped as near to it as the depth of water
+would permit. The guns and other material were brought off, two of the
+firemen, the oiler, and other colored men of the crew of the Havana
+assisting in the work. The two guns that were provided with carriages
+were mounted, and placed on the forecastle. They were loaded and
+prepared for service by the trained gunners of the
+<span class = "pagenum">282</span>
+crew. Christy had directed all this to be done on account of the delay
+which had attended the good fortune of the expedition, for he might not
+get out of the bay before the daylight came to reveal the presence of
+the force he commanded to the people on the shore.</p>
+
+<p>The gong rang again when all these preparations had been made, and
+the Havana steamed slowly up the channel towards the bay. The oiler
+appeared to have finished his work for the present. He was a more
+intelligent man than the others of his color on board, and seemed to
+understand his duties. Christy spoke to him, for he said nothing unless
+he was spoken to, and he had learned that the commander of the
+expedition was doing duty as engineer in the absence of any other
+competent person.</p>
+
+<p>"How many schooners are there at the landing place at the keys?"
+asked Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"Only two schooners, sir," replied the man very respectfully.</p>
+
+<p>"Are they loaded, &mdash;what is your name?" asked the engineer.</p>
+
+<p>"My name is Dolly, sir."</p>
+
+<p>"Dolly? That is a girl's name."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">283</span>
+"My whole name is Adolphus, sir; but everybody calls me Dolly, and I
+can't help myself," replied the oiler soberly, as though he had a real
+grievance on account of the femininity of his nickname. "The two
+schooners are not quite loaded, sir, but they are very nearly full. They
+had some trouble here, among the hands."</p>
+
+<p>"Had some trouble, did they? I should think there were soldiers
+enough here to keep everything straight. How many artillerists or
+soldiers do they keep here?" added Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"They had about forty, but they don't have half that
+number&nbsp;now."</p>
+
+<p>"What has become of them?"</p>
+
+<p>"They were sent away to look for the hands that took to the woods.
+One of the officers and about half of the men were sent off yesterday,"
+replied Dolly, who seemed willing to tell all he knew.</p>
+
+<p>"Why did the men run off?" asked Christy curiously.</p>
+
+<p>"They brought about fifty hands, all slaves, down here to load the
+steamer and the schooners. They set them at work yesterday morning, and
+they had nearly put all the cotton into the schooners
+<span class = "pagenum">284</span>
+at dinner time. To make the niggers work harder, they gave them apple
+jack."</p>
+
+<p>"What is that?" asked the engineer, who never heard the name
+before.</p>
+
+<p>"It is liquor made out of apples, and it is very strong," answered
+Dolly; and he might have added that it was the vilest intoxicant to be
+found in the whole world, not even excepting Russian vodka.</p>
+
+<p>"And this liquor made the hands drunk, I suppose."</p>
+
+<p>"They did not give them enough for that, sir; but it made them kind
+of crazy, and they wanted more of it. That made the trouble; the hands
+struck for liquor before dinner, and when they didn't get it, they took
+to the woods, about fifty of them. The soldiers had to get their dinner
+before they would start out after them; and that is the reason the
+schooners are not full now, sir, and not a bale had been put into this
+steamer."</p>
+
+<p>"But she seems to be fully loaded now."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, sir; Captain Lonley paid the soldiers that were left to load
+the Havana. They worked till eleven in the evening; they were not used
+to that kind of work, and they got mighty tired, I
+<span class = "pagenum">285</span>
+can tell you," said Dolly, with the first smile Christy had seen on his
+yellow face, for he appeared to enjoy the idea of a squad of white men
+doing niggers' work.</p>
+
+<p>"That was what made them sleep so soundly, and leave the battery on
+the point to take care of itself," said Christy. "Where were the
+officers?"</p>
+
+<p>"Two of them have gone on the hunt for the hands, and I reckon the
+captain is on a visit to a planter who has a daughter, about forty miles
+from here."</p>
+
+<p>"The soldiers were sleeping very soundly in the barrack about two
+this morning; and perhaps they were also stimulated with apple jack,"
+added Christy. "Did you drink any of it, Dolly?"</p>
+
+<p>"No, sir, I never drink any liquor, for I am a preacher," replied the
+oiler, with a very serious and solemn expression on his face.</p>
+
+<p>"How do you happen to be a greaser on a steamer if you are a
+preacher?"</p>
+
+<p>"I worked on a steamer on the Alabama River before I became a
+preacher, and I took it up again. I was raised in a preacher's family,
+and worked in the house."</p>
+
+<p>He talked as though he had been educated, but
+<span class = "pagenum">286</span>
+he could neither read nor write, and had picked up all his learning by
+the assistance of his ears alone. But Christy had ascertained all he
+wished to know in regard to the schooners, and he was prepared to carry
+out his mission in the bay. At the fort it appeared that all the
+commissioned officers were absent from the post, and the men, after
+exhausting themselves at work to which they were unaccustomed, had taken
+to their bunks and were sleeping off the fatigue, and perhaps the
+effects of the apple jack. While he was thinking of the matter, the gong
+struck, and Christy stopped the engine.</p>
+
+<p>"Do you know anything about an engine, Dolly?" he asked, turning to
+the oiler.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, sir; I run the engine of the Havana over here from Mobile,"
+replied Dolly. "I can do it as well as any one, if they will only
+trust&nbsp;me."</p>
+
+<p>"Then stand by the machine, and obey the bells if they are struck,"
+added Christy, as he went on deck.</p>
+
+<p>He found the second and third lieutenants standing on the rail
+engaged in examining the surroundings. The day was just beginning to
+show itself in the east, though it was not yet light enough to
+<span class = "pagenum">287</span>
+enable them to see clearly on shore. By the side of the railroad
+building was a pier, at which the two schooners lay. They could hear the
+sounds of some kind of a stir on shore, but were unable to make out what
+it meant.</p>
+
+<p>"We are losing time," said Christy, as he took in at a glance all he
+deemed it necessary to know in regard to the situation.</p>
+
+<p>"I was about to report to you, Mr. Passford; but Mr. Amblen wished to
+ascertain whether or not there is a battery on this side of the point,"
+said Flint.</p>
+
+<p>"Do you find anything, Mr. Amblen?"</p>
+
+<p>"No, sir; I can see nothing that looks like a battery," replied the
+pilot.</p>
+
+<p>"Then run in, and we will make fast to these schooners and haul them
+out," added Christy in hurried tones.</p>
+
+<p>The pilot went to the wheel, and rang one bell on the gong. Dolly
+started the engine before Christy could reach the machine. He said
+nothing to the oiler, but seated himself on the sofa, and observed his
+movements. A few minutes later came the bell to stop her, and then two
+bells to back her. Dolly managed the machine properly
+<span class = "pagenum">288</span>
+and promptly, and seemed to be at home in the engine room. The color of
+his skin was a sufficient guaranty of his loyalty, but Christy remained
+below long enough to satisfy himself that Dolly knew what he was about,
+and then went on deck.</p>
+
+<p>By this time the noise on shore had become more pronounced, and he
+saw the dark forms of several persons on the wharf. Flint and Amblen
+were making fast to the nearest schooner, and a couple of seamen had
+been sent on shore to cast off the fasts which held her to the wharf.
+This was the work of but a moment, and the two men returned to the
+steamer; but they were closely followed by two men, one of whom stepped
+on the deck of the schooner.</p>
+
+<p>"What are you about here?" demanded the foremost of the men, in a
+rude and impertinent manner.</p>
+
+<p>"About our business," replied Christy, with cool indifference.</p>
+
+<p>"Who are you, young man?" demanded the one on the deck.</p>
+
+<p>"I am yours truly; who are you?"</p>
+
+<p>"None of your business who I am! I asked you a question, and you will
+answer it if you know
+<span class = "pagenum">289</span>
+when you are well off," blustered the man, who was rather too fat to be
+dangerous; and by this time, Christy discovered that he wore something
+like a uniform.</p>
+
+<p>"I will try to find out when I am well off, and then I will answer
+you," replied Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"All fast, sir," reported Flint.</p>
+
+<p>The commander of the expedition, turning his back to the fat man,
+went forward to the pilot house.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">290</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapXXVI">CHAPTER XXVI</a></h4>
+
+<h6>THE BATTLE WITH THE SOLDIERS</h6>
+
+
+<p>Mr. Amblen went to the pilot house, and rang two bells. Dolly
+responded properly by starting the engine on the reverse, and the
+schooner alongside began to move away from the wharf, for the stern of
+the Havana pointed out into the&nbsp;bay.</p>
+
+<p>"Stop, there! What are you about?" shouted the fat man on the deck of
+the schooner.</p>
+
+<p>"About going," replied Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"These vessels are the property of a citizen of the Confederate
+States, and I command you to stop," yelled the fat man with all the
+voice he could muster.</p>
+
+<p>"All right," replied Christy, as the gong sounded to stop her. "Now,
+Mr. Flint, cast off the fasts, and let the schooner go astern," he added
+to the second lieutenant.</p>
+
+<p>"All clear, sir," replied Flint a moment later, and after the steamer
+lost her headway, the vessel
+<span class = "pagenum">291</span>
+continued to back, though the Havana was checked by the engine.</p>
+
+<p>The fat man went adrift in the schooner, but Christy gave no further
+attention to him. The steamer was started ahead again; her bow was run
+alongside of the other vessel at the wharf, and Flint proceeded in the
+same manner as with the first&nbsp;one.</p>
+
+<p>"Orderly!" shouted the fat man, evidently addressing the man who had
+come to the schooner with him, and had retreated to the wharf when the
+vessel began to move.</p>
+
+<p>"Captain Rowly!" replied the man, who was doubtless the orderly
+sergeant of the company.</p>
+
+<p>"Go to the barracks and have the men haul the four field pieces over
+to the wharf," yelled the fat captain.</p>
+
+<p>"All right, little one! Have them hauled over by all means," said
+Christy, as the men made fast to the other schooner, and cast off the
+fasts.</p>
+
+<p>But it was soon evident that the sleepy soldiers had been roused from
+their slumbers by some other agency than the orderly, though it was not
+quite possible for them to haul over the four guns, as they happened to
+be on the forward deck
+<span class = "pagenum">292</span>
+of the Havana. But the men were armed with muskets, and were capable of
+doing a great deal of mischief with them. Christy hurried up the men at
+the fasts, but they had about finished their task.</p>
+
+<p>"All clear, Mr. Passford," called Mr. Flint, as the soldiers
+double-quicked across the railroad to the wharf, upon which there was
+still a huge pile of bales of cotton.</p>
+
+<p>"Back her, Mr. Amblen," said Christy, as he hastened aft to avoid a
+collision with the other schooner.</p>
+
+<p>But the tide had begun to recede, and had carried the first vessel to
+a safe distance from the wharf.</p>
+
+<p>The soldiers reached the edge of the wharf, and were probably under
+the command of the orderly by this time. At any rate they marched
+farther down the pier, where they could be nearer to the Havana as she
+backed away. Then the troops fired a volley at the steamer; but in the
+darkness they did no serious injury to the party, though two seamen were
+slightly wounded.</p>
+
+<p>"Cast off the fasts!" shouted Christy, when he realized that some of
+his men were in a fair way to
+<span class = "pagenum">293</span>
+be shot down before they could get the two schooners alongside and
+properly secured for the trip to the Bronx, and the order was promptly
+obeyed. "Now, check her, Mr. Amblen;" and two bells were sounded on the
+gong, after one to stop&nbsp;her.</p>
+
+<p>The second schooner kept on her course out into the bay to join the
+first one cast loose; but Christy feared that they might get aground,
+and give them trouble. The seventeen soldiers whom he had counted in
+their bunks appeared to have been reinforced either by the return of the
+absent party, or by the civilians in the place, for they presented a
+more formidable front than the smaller number could make. Whatever the
+number of the defenders of the place, they could harass the expedition
+while the men were preparing for the final departure.</p>
+
+<p>"With what were those two guns charged, Mr. Flint?" asked
+Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"With solid shot, sir," replied the second lieutenant.</p>
+
+<p>"Open fire on the wharf, and then load with the shrapnel," added
+Christy.</p>
+
+<p>The two guns, which had been placed in proper position for use on the
+top-gallant forecastle, were
+<span class = "pagenum">294</span>
+aimed by Flint himself, and discharged. The report shook the steamer,
+and Christy, who retained his position on the quarter deck, heard a
+scream of terror, coming from a female, issue from the companion way, at
+the head of which a seaman had been placed as a sentinel over the
+officers below.</p>
+
+<p>"What was that, Neal?" asked the commander of the expedition.</p>
+
+<p>"It was the scream of a lady, sir, and that is all I know about it,"
+replied the man. "I haven't seen any lady, sir, and I think she must
+have been asleep so far. The captain tried to come on deck a while ago,
+but I sent him back,&nbsp;sir."</p>
+
+<p>By this time the two field pieces had been loaded again, and they
+were discharged. Christy watched the effect, and he had the pleasure of
+seeing the whole troop on the wharf retire behind the great pile of
+bales of cotton. A random fire was kept up from this defence, but the
+soldiers were safe behind their impenetrable breastwork. Flint continued
+to fire into&nbsp;it.</p>
+
+<p>At the report of the guns, nearly together, which made the Havana
+shake, and everything on board of her rattle, for she was not built to
+carry
+<span class = "pagenum">295</span>
+a battery of guns, another scream came forth from the companion way. A
+moment later, Christy saw a female form ascending the stairs. The
+sentinel placed his cutlass across the passage; but the lieutenant told
+him to let her come on deck if she desired to do&nbsp;so.</p>
+
+<p>It was light enough for the gallant young officer to see that she was
+young and fair, though she had evidently dressed herself in great haste.
+She looked around her with astonishment, perhaps to find that the
+steamer was no longer at the wharf. The guns on the forecastle were
+again discharged, and she shrunk back at the sound.</p>
+
+<p>"Do not be alarmed, miss," said Christy, in his gentlest tones. "But
+I must say that you will be safer in the cabin than on deck."</p>
+
+<p>"Will you please to tell me what has happened, sir, or what is going
+to happen?" asked the lady; and the listener thought he had never heard
+a sweeter voice, though he might not have thought so if he had heard it
+at Bonnydale, or anywhere else except in the midst of the din of pealing
+guns and the rattling of musketry.</p>
+
+<p>"I can tell you what has happened; but as I
+<span class = "pagenum">296</span>
+am not a prophet, I cannot so accurately inform you in regard to what is
+going to happen," he replied.</p>
+
+<p>"But what has occurred on board of the Havana?" she interposed,
+rather impatiently.</p>
+
+<p>"The Havana has been captured by an expedition, of which I have the
+honor to be in command, from the United States gunboat Bronx. Just now
+we are defending ourselves from an attack of the soldiers in the place.
+As to the future, miss, I have no reasonable doubt that we shall be able
+to get the steamer and two schooners we have also captured alongside the
+Bronx, where all the prizes will be subject to the order of her
+commander. Permit me to advise you to retire to the cabin, miss, and
+later, I shall be happy to give you all the information in my power,"
+said Christy, touching his cap to her, and pointing to the
+companion&nbsp;way.</p>
+
+<p>She accepted the advice, and went down the steps. The young officer
+had no time then to wonder who and what she was, for he realized that
+there was little hope of stopping the desultory firing from behind the
+cotton pile; and perhaps by this time the soldiers realized what had
+<span class = "pagenum">297</span>
+become of their four field pieces, for they knew that the Havana had not
+been armed when they loaded her with cotton.</p>
+
+<p>Christy went forward to set the officers at work in picking up the
+two prizes, and as he stopped to look down into the engine room, he felt
+his cap knocked off his head, and heard the whizzing of a bullet
+unpleasantly near his ears. He picked up his cap, and found a bullet
+hole through the top of it. If it had gone an inch or two lower, Mr.
+Flint would have succeeded to the command of the expedition without any
+ceremonies. Though there was no reason for it, this incident seemed to
+provoke him, for it assured him that he could not pick up his prizes
+without exposing his men to this nasty firing for some time longer.</p>
+
+<p>It was now light enough for him to make out the situation of the
+breastwork of cotton, and he saw that it was a long and narrow pile,
+probably near a siding of the railroad where the bales had been unloaded
+from the cars. Another glance at the surroundings in regard to the point
+enabled him to make up his mind what to do, and he did not lose a moment
+in putting his plan into execution. The firing of shot and shrapnel at
+the cotton
+<span class = "pagenum">298</span>
+pile seemed to produce no adequate effect, and he ordered Flint to cease
+his operations.</p>
+
+<p>"Back her, Mr. Amblen," he added to the pilot. "Back her at full
+speed."</p>
+
+<p>The schooners were doing very well; instead of wandering off into the
+bay, they had fallen into the channel, and were drifting with the tide.
+Several persons appeared on the deck of each of them, and it was plain
+that a portion of the crews had been asleep on board of them. While he
+was observing them, he discovered two boats coming out from behind the
+point, and making for the two vessels. This movement indicated an
+attempt to recapture the prizes.</p>
+
+<p>"Port the helm, Mr. Amblen, and circle around till the bow points in
+the direction of those boats coming out from beyond the point," said
+Christy. "Mr. Flint, man your guns again at once, and drop some solid
+shot into those boats."</p>
+
+<p>The Havana continued to back till the guns would bear on the boats,
+and then Flint delivered his fire. The headmost of the boats was
+smashed, and was a wreck on the bay. The other hastened to pick up the
+crew, and then pulled for the shore with all possible speed, though not
+till two other
+<span class = "pagenum">299</span>
+boats, apparently filled with soldiers, were discovered approaching the
+retreating boat.</p>
+
+<p>Christy did not wait to dispose of these, but mounted the top-gallant
+forecastle, and ordered the guns to be loaded with shells. Then he
+waited till the steamer reached a point off the end of the peninsula,
+when he gave the order to stop and back her. Sighting the first gun
+himself, he directed the man at the lockstring to fire. He waited a
+moment for the smoke to clear away, and then, with his glass, he saw
+several forms lying on the wharf by the side of the cotton pile. He had
+fired so as to rake the rear of this breastwork, and before the soldiers
+there understood what he was doing. Those who had not dropped before the
+fire were picking up their wounded companions, and retreating with all
+practicable haste.</p>
+
+<p>It was not necessary to discharge the other gun, and it was swung
+round and brought to bear on the two boats advancing towards the prizes,
+the men in which were pulling with the most desperate haste. Flint took
+careful aim this time, and the gun was discharged. The shrapnel with
+which it was charged did not knock the boat to pieces as a solid shot
+might have done, but two of the oars
+<span class = "pagenum">300</span>
+were seen to drop into the water, and both boats began to retreat, which
+was quite a proper thing for them to do in face of such a destructive
+fire.</p>
+
+<p>There was nothing more to detain the expedition at the place, and the
+two prizes were picked up, made fast, one on each side of the Havana,
+and then the bell to go ahead was sounded. The pilot then informed
+Christy that he had made out the Bronx approaching at a distance of not
+more than three miles beyond the Seahorse Key. Probably Captain Blowitt
+had heard the guns, and was coming in to assist in the fight.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">301</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapXXVII">CHAPTER XXVII</a></h4>
+
+<h6>THE INNOCENT CAPTAIN OF THE GARRISON</h6>
+
+
+<p>The firing of the musketry was continued from the end of the point by
+a small squad of soldiers, though the most of them seemed to have gone
+over to the other side of the peninsula to take part in the attempt to
+recapture the schooners with boats, which had utterly failed. It was now
+fairly light, the battle had been fought, and the boat expedition had
+done all and more than all it had been expected to accomplish.</p>
+
+<p>Christy had hardly expected to do anything more than obtain
+information that would enable the Bronx to capture the schooners, and
+nothing had been said about the steamer that had been found there. It
+appeared from the statement of Captain Lonley that the Havana was the
+property of his uncle Homer Passford; and doubtless he had chosen Cedar
+Keys as a safer place, at this stage of the war, to send out his cotton
+than the vicinity of his plantation.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">302</span>
+Christy certainly had no desire to capture the property of his father's
+brother rather than that of any other Confederate planter, for he had
+had no knowledge of his operations in Florida. But he was quite as
+patriotic on his own side as his uncle was on the other side, and as it
+was his duty to take or destroy the goods of the enemy, he was not sorry
+he had been so fortunate, though he did regret that Homer Passford had
+been the principal sufferer from the visit of the Bronx to this
+coast.</p>
+
+<p>The planter had now lost three schooners and one steamer loaded with
+cotton; but Christy was satisfied that this would not abate by one jot
+or tittle his interest in the cause he had espoused. The young man did
+not think of such a thing as punishing him for taking part in the
+rebellion, for he knew that Homer would be all the more earnest in his
+faith because he had been a financial martyr on account of his devotion
+to&nbsp;it.</p>
+
+<p>The Havana, with one of the schooners on each side of her, was
+steaming slowly down the channel, and the Bronx was approaching at a
+distance of not more than three miles. For the first time since he
+obtained possession of the prizes, he had
+<span class = "pagenum">303</span>
+an opportunity to look them over, and collect his thoughts. From the
+very beginning of the enterprise he had been extremely anxious in regard
+to the result.</p>
+
+<p>His orders had been to obtain all the information he could in regard
+to the position of the vessels that were reported to be at this port,
+and to do anything the circumstances would permit without incurring too
+much risk. The adventure had been full of surprises from first to last.
+Something new and sometimes something strange had been continually
+exposed to him, and it looked to him just as though all the preparations
+to accomplish the result he had achieved had been made for his
+coming.</p>
+
+<p>Before the boats went around into the bay, he had been satisfied with
+the finding and carrying off of the twelve-pounders. He had hardly
+expected to do anything more, and he knew that Captain Blowitt would be
+amused as well as pleased at this rather singular feat. The removal of
+the four field pieces had rendered the capture of the schooners possible
+and even easy, as it would not have been if the order of Captain Rowly
+to drag them over to the wharf could have been carried&nbsp;out.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">304</span>
+The taking of the Havana had been rather a side incident, hardly
+connected with the rest of the affair. Everything had favored the young
+commander of the expedition, and he had made good use of his
+opportunities, though he had embraced some of them blindly, without
+being able to foresee the consequences of his action at the time it was
+taken. He had time now to review the events of the morning, and the
+result was in the highest degree pleasing to&nbsp;him.</p>
+
+<p>On board of the two schooners the crew had put in an appearance; but
+when he inquired of the negroes he learned that the captains of the
+vessels were not on board. The mate of each was on deck, and they were
+the only white men. On the rail of the one on the port side sat the fat
+captain of the garrison of the place. Thus far he had said nothing, and
+he appeared to be sitting figuratively on the stool of repentance, for
+he had not been faithful to the trust reposed in&nbsp;him.</p>
+
+<p>Dolly had said he had gone to visit a planter who had a daughter; but
+this statement did not appear to be true, for he had put in an
+appearance early, as the Havana was making fast to the first prize. He
+had left his men in the barrack to
+<span class = "pagenum">305</span>
+sleep off their fatigue and apple jack after their unaccustomed labor in
+loading the steamer. He had not so much as posted a sentinel, who might
+have enabled him to defeat the invaders of the port, even with his
+diminished force. If Homer Passford had been on the spot, his faith in
+the Providence that watched over his holy cause might have been
+shaken.</p>
+
+<p>"Good morning, Captain Rowly," said Christy cheerfully, as he walked
+up to the disconsolate captain. "I hope you are feeling quite well."</p>
+
+<p>"Not very well; things are mixed," replied the fat officer, looking
+down upon the planks of the deck.</p>
+
+<p>"Mixed, are they?" added Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"I can't see how it all happened," mused the military gentleman.</p>
+
+<p>"How what happened, Captain Rowly?" inquired Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"All the vessels in the place captured, and carried off!" exclaimed
+the late commander of the garrison.</p>
+
+<p>"I don't discover the least difficulty in explaining how it all
+happened. You were so very obliging as to allow your men to go to sleep
+in the
+<span class = "pagenum">306</span>
+barrack without even posting a sentinel at the battery. That made the
+whole thing as easy as tumbling off a sawhorse," replied the leader of
+the expedition, without trying to irritate the repentant captain of the
+forces.</p>
+
+<p>"And, like an infernal thieving Yankee, you went into the fort and
+stole the guns!" exclaimed Captain Rowly, beginning to boil with rage as
+he thought of his misfortune.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, it did not occur to me that I ought to have waked you and told
+you what I was about before taking the guns."</p>
+
+<p>"It was a nasty Yankee trick!" roared the soldier.</p>
+
+<p>"I suppose it was, captain; but we Yankees cannot very well help what
+was born in our blood; and I have heard that some of your honest and
+high-toned people have made bigger steals than this one. While I have
+carried off only four twelve-pounders, your folks have taken entire
+forts, including scores of guns of all calibres," replied Christy,
+amused at the view the fat gentleman took of his operations.</p>
+
+<p>"Our people took nothing that did not belong to them, for the forts
+were within our territory," retorted the soldier.</p>
+
+<p class = "illustration">
+<img src = "images/pic306.png" width = "369" height = "530"
+alt = "illustration of quoted scene"><br>
+<span class = "caption smallcaps">
+Captain Rowly protests.</span>
+</p>
+
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">307</span>
+"That was just my case. I have the honor to be an officer of the United
+States Navy, and as these guns happened to be within the territory of
+our government, of course it was all right that I should take them."</p>
+
+<p>"You stole the vessels after I ordered you to stop," muttered Captain
+Rowly.</p>
+
+<p>"Precisely so; but, being in a hurry just then, I hadn't time to
+stop," laughed Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"Where are you going now? You knew I was on the deck of this
+schooner, and you have brought me off here where I didn't want to come.
+I am not used to the water, and I am afraid I shall get sea-sick,"
+continued the fat officer.</p>
+
+<p>"Perhaps we may be able to provide a nurse for you if you are very
+sick."</p>
+
+<p>"Why don't you answer my question, and tell me where you are going?"
+demanded the soldier.</p>
+
+<p>"We are going out here a mile or two farther, just to take the air
+and get up an appetite for breakfast."</p>
+
+<p>"But I object!"</p>
+
+<p>"Do you indeed?"</p>
+
+<p>"And I protest!"</p>
+
+<p>"Against what?"</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">308</span>
+"Against being carried off in this way. You knew I was on board of the
+schooner."</p>
+
+<p>"I confess that I did know you were on board, though I must add that
+it was your own fault."</p>
+
+<p>"I had a right on board of the vessel."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't deny it. You have a sword at your side; but as you neglected
+to use it, you will excuse me if I ask you to give it to me," added
+Christy, reaching out for the weapon.</p>
+
+<p>"Give you my sword!" exclaimed Captain Rowly.</p>
+
+<p>"It is a formality rather insisted upon on such occasions as the
+present."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't see it."</p>
+
+<p>"You don't? Then I must say that I think you are rather obtuse,
+Captain Rowly, and I shall be under the painful necessity of helping you
+to see it. As a prisoner of war&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"As what?" demanded the soldier.</p>
+
+<p>"I regard you as a prisoner of war, and I must trouble you to give me
+your sword in token of your surrender."</p>
+
+<p>"I was not taken in a battle."</p>
+
+<p>"Very true; your men fought the battle after you had left them. I
+have no more time to argue
+<span class = "pagenum">309</span>
+the question. Will you surrender your sword, or will you have the battle
+now? Two or three of my men will accommodate you with a fight on a small
+scale if you insist upon&nbsp;it."</p>
+
+<p>"Don't you intend to send me back to the Keys?" asked the captain,
+whose military education appeared to have been neglected, so that his
+ideas of a state of war were very vague.</p>
+
+<p>"I have not the remotest idea of doing anything of the sort. Your
+sword, if you please."</p>
+
+<p>"This sword was presented to me by the citizens of my
+town&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Here, Boxie and Lanon, relieve this gentleman of his sword," added
+Christy, as he saw the young lady coming up the companion&nbsp;way.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, I will give it up, if you really say so; but this is a queer
+state of things when my sword, presented to me by my fellow-citizens, is
+to be taken from me without any warrant of law," said Captain Rowly, as
+he handed the sword to Christy, who returned it when it had done its
+duty as a token of submission.</p>
+
+<p>The prisoner was marched to the forecastle of the Havana, and put
+under guard. Christy walked towards the young lady, who had evidently
+<span class = "pagenum">310</span>
+dressed herself for the occasion. She was not only young, but she was
+beautiful, and the young commander of the expedition was strongly
+impressed by her grace and loveliness. He had heard her speak in the
+gloom of the early morning, and she had a silvery voice. He could not
+but wonder what she was doing on board of a blockade runner.</p>
+
+<p>"Good morning, Miss &mdash;&mdash; I have not the pleasure of being
+able to call you by name," Christy began as he touched his cap to her,
+and bowed his involuntary homage.</p>
+
+<p>"Miss Pembroke," she added.</p>
+
+<p>"I trust you are as comfortable as the circumstances will permit,
+Miss Pembroke. I hope you have ceased to be alarmed, as you were when I
+saw you before."</p>
+
+<p>"I am not alarmed, but I am exceedingly anxious in regard to the
+future, Mr.&nbsp;&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Mr. Passford."</p>
+
+<p>"I only wish to know what is to become of us, Mr. Passford."</p>
+
+<p>"You speak in the plural, Miss Pembroke, as though you were not
+alone."</p>
+
+<p>"I am not alone, sir; my father, who is an
+<span class = "pagenum">311</span>
+invalid, is in the cabin. The excitement of this morning has had a bad
+effect upon&nbsp;him."</p>
+
+<p>"I am sorry to hear it. I suppose you embarked in this steamer with
+the desire to reach some other place?"</p>
+
+<p>"We reside in the State of New York, and all that remain of our
+family are on board of this steamer, and all we desire is to get home.
+We have lived two years in Southern Georgia for my father's health."</p>
+
+<p>Christy thought they would be able to reach New York.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">312</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapXXVIII">CHAPTER XXVIII</a></h4>
+
+<h6>THE BEARER OF DESPATCHES</h6>
+
+
+<p>Christy had assured himself that the father of the beautiful young
+lady was a loyal citizen, and then he pointed out to her in what manner
+they might reach their home, which was at Newburgh on the Hudson. Mr.
+Pembroke was not a wealthy man, though he had the means of supporting
+what was left of his family comfortably. But Christy had to ask to be
+excused, as the Bronx was but a short distance from the Havana.</p>
+
+<p>He directed Mr. Amblen to stop her, so as to permit the gunboat to
+come alongside of her. As the Bronx came within hailing distance of the
+steamer towing the schooners, a hearty cheer burst from the crew on the
+forecastle of the former, for the prizes alongside of the Havana
+indicated the success of the expedition. The sea was smooth, and the
+naval steamer came alongside of the port schooner, and Christy, who had
+put
+<span class = "pagenum">313</span>
+himself in position to do so as soon as he understood her intention,
+sprang lightly on board of&nbsp;her.</p>
+
+<p>Captain Blowitt was on the quarter deck, and the commander of the
+expedition hastened into his presence. Of course Christy could not help
+realizing that he had been successful, however the circumstances had
+aided him, and he felt sure of his welcome.</p>
+
+<p>The commander of the Bronx was a man that weighed two hundred pounds,
+and his fat cheeks were immediately distended with laughter as soon as
+he saw his executive officer hastening towards him. He almost doubled
+himself up in his mirth as he looked into the young man's sober face,
+for Christy was struggling to appear as dignified as the importance of
+the occasion seemed to require of him. But the commander restrained
+himself as much as he could, and extended his hand to the first
+lieutenant, which the young man accepted, and received a pressure that
+was almost enough to crush his feebler paw. In spite of himself, he
+could not help laughing in sympathy with his superior.</p>
+
+<p>"I am sorry you did not bring it all off with you, Mr. Passford,"
+said Captain Blowitt, as soon
+<span class = "pagenum">314</span>
+as he was able to speak, for his risibles seemed to have obtained
+complete control of&nbsp;him.</p>
+
+<p>"I have brought it all off with me, captain," replied Christy, though
+he had not yet got at the point of the joke, and spoke at a venture.</p>
+
+<p>"What, the whole State of Florida!" exclaimed the commander.</p>
+
+<p>"No, sir; I did not bring it all off with me, for I did not think it
+would be quite safe to do this, for it might set the Gulf Stream to
+running in a new course, and derange navigation by making all our charts
+useless," replied Christy, smoothing down the muscles of his face so
+that he looked as sober as before.</p>
+
+<p>"I thought from the appearance that you had brought it all off,"
+added Captain Blowitt. "Did I instruct you to bring it&nbsp;off?"</p>
+
+<p>"No, sir; you were considerate enough to say that you did not expect
+me to capture the whole State, and therefore I have not
+done&nbsp;it."</p>
+
+<p>"But we heard heavy guns this morning," continued the commander,
+putting on his sober face, for he could be as serious as a judge, though
+his adipose structure compelled him to be a great joker at suitable
+times. "You had no boat guns."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">315</span>
+"No, sir; but we picked up four twelve-pounder field pieces, which you
+see, two of them on carriages, on the forecastle of that steamer. We
+found the garrison asleep, and we carried off the four guns with which
+the battery was mounted. We put them on the Seahorse Key, and went into
+the bay to see what was there, sir. We found two schooners, and on the
+way we took the steamer. When we were hauling out the two schooners, the
+garrison woke up, and attempted to drive us off with musketry. We beat
+them off and sunk two boats with the field pieces. This is my report in
+brief."</p>
+
+<p>"And a very good report it is, Mr. Passford. I did not expect you to
+do anything more than bring off full information in regard to the
+situation at the port," added Captain Blowitt.</p>
+
+<p>"But you ordered me to do anything I could to prepare the way for a
+visit from the Bronx," suggested Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"And you have prepared the way by bringing off everything at the
+port, so that there is nothing for the Bronx to do there," said the
+commander with a smile.</p>
+
+<p>"When I found that the garrison were all asleep,
+<span class = "pagenum">316</span>
+I thought it was my duty not to lose the opportunity that was thus
+presented to me. Everything was in our favor, and I was led to do one
+thing after another till there was nothing more to do. I found that
+Captain Lonley, the worthy gentleman who had made prisoners of Mr. Flint
+and myself on Santa Rosa Island, was in command of the steamer. He was
+not glad to see me; and from him I learned that the Havana, which is her
+name, belonged to my uncle Homer; and so did the schooners."</p>
+
+<p>"Then your uncle has a heavy charge against you, for you have now
+taken four of his vessels."</p>
+
+<p>"Possibly the Confederate government is behind him in this operation.
+I don't know; but I am sure that the loss of every dollar he has in the
+world would not change his views in regard to the justice of his cause.
+But, Captain Blowitt, there are on board of the Havana a gentleman and
+his daughter, who reside in Newburgh. He is an invalid and a loyal
+citizen," continued Christy, as he happened to see Miss Pembroke on the
+quarter deck of the steamer.</p>
+
+<p>"They wish to go home, I suppose, and there will soon be an
+opportunity for them to do so,"
+<span class = "pagenum">317</span>
+replied the captain, as he went with his lieutenant to take a look at
+the prizes.</p>
+
+<p>He gave particular attention to the Havana, which it was said had
+been built to run between Cedar Keys and the port for which she had been
+named, in connection with the railroad. She appeared to be a good vessel
+of about four hundred tons, which was as large as the navigation of the
+channel to the port would permit. She was not fit for war purposes in
+her present condition, and Captain Blowitt decided to send her to New
+York. Most of the hands on board of the three prizes were negroes, who
+were too happy to go to the North.</p>
+
+<p>"Sail, ho!" shouted the lookout on board of the Bronx, while the
+commander was still discussing his plans with Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"Where away?" demanded the captain.</p>
+
+<p>"Coming down from the northwest," reported a quartermaster.</p>
+
+<p>Captain Blowitt hastened on board of the Bronx, for it did not yet
+appear whether the vessel was a friend or an enemy. She was a steamer,
+and she left a thin streak of black smoke in the sky, which indicated
+that her coal came from British territory.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">318</span>
+The Havana and the schooners were left in charge of Mr. Amblen, after
+the prisoners had been properly disposed of in safe places. Mr. Spinnet,
+the second assistant engineer, was sent on board of her, for the
+commander had not full confidence in Dolly, though he permitted him to
+remain as assistant. The boats used by the expedition were hoisted up to
+the davits, and the first and second lieutenants were ordered to return
+to the Bronx, and only six seamen were left on board to guard the
+prisoners, of whom Lonley was the only dangerous one, at all likely to
+make trouble.</p>
+
+<p>The Bronx steamed off at her best speed in the direction of the
+approaching steamer, which appeared to be fast, and to be of that
+peculiarly rakish class of vessels of which there were so many engaged
+in the business of blockade running. She was examined by the officers
+with their glasses; but they were unable to make her out. Her ensign was
+set on a stern pole; but they could not see whether it was the American
+or the Confederate flag.</p>
+
+<p>"What do you make of her, Mr. Passford?" asked the captain, as they
+watched her advance over the smooth&nbsp;sea.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">319</span>
+"She is or has been a blockade runner, and that is all I can make out of
+her," replied Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"She may have run the blockade, fitted in Mobile or some other port
+as a cruiser, and come out to do what mischief she can. We may have to
+fight for our prizes, but the splinters will fly before she gets them
+away from us," said Captain Blowitt, who watched the steamer with an
+anxious look on his face, resolute as he was in the discharge of his
+duty. "She is considerably larger than the Bronx."</p>
+
+<p>"As I make her out, she looks something like the Ocklockonee and the
+Escambia, which we sent to New York, though they had but one smokestack
+each while this one has two. They were about five hundred tons; and I
+should think this vessel was of very nearly the same size," added
+Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"Flies the American flag, sir," reported a quartermaster who had been
+sent into the main rigging to observe&nbsp;her.</p>
+
+<p>"That may be a trick," said the captain, "though I hardly think it
+is, for she is larger than the Bronx, and need not resort to
+tricks."</p>
+
+<p>A little later, she began to hoist her signals on
+<span class = "pagenum">320</span>
+the foremast where they could be plainly seen. Mr. Flint made them out
+to the effect that the steamer had orders for the Bronx. This settled
+the question, and there was no more anxiety in regard to her, and there
+was to be no sea fight for the possession of the prizes.</p>
+
+<p>In less than half an hour the two steamers were within hailing
+distance of each other, and the stranger sent off a boat with an officer
+as soon as both vessels had stopped their screws and lost their headway.
+As Christy watched the approaching boat, he recognized the chief
+engineer of the Bellevite in the stern sheets. It was Paul Vapoor, his
+old friend and crony, who waved his cap as soon as he discovered the
+first lieutenant. The boat came to the side, and Paul mounted the
+accommodation ladder. He was a demonstrative young man, and he embraced
+Christy as though he had been a Frenchman, as soon as he reached the
+deck. He touched his cap to Captain Blowitt, and then delivered several
+huge envelopes to him, and also a despatch&nbsp;bag.</p>
+
+<p>"Bearer of despatches, sir," said the chief engineer of the
+Bellevite.</p>
+
+<p>"I see you are, Mr. Vapoor. If you will make
+<span class = "pagenum">321</span>
+yourself at home on board of the Bronx, I will read these papers in my
+cabin," said the captain, as he went below.</p>
+
+<p>"I think Mr. Passford and I shall not waste any time while you are
+engaged, captain," replied Mr. Vapoor.</p>
+
+<p>Certain personal and social matters had to be spoken of, and Paul had
+to ask about Florry Passford first, and Christy's father and mother
+afterwards, though there was no news to tell.</p>
+
+<p>"What are those vessels off there, Christy?" asked Paul, pointing to
+the Havana and the schooners.</p>
+
+<p>"They are our prizes," replied the first lieutenant.</p>
+
+<p>"Did you have to fight for them?"</p>
+
+<p>"A little, not much. What steamer is that in which you came,
+Paul?"</p>
+
+<p>"Our prize," replied Paul, with a smile as though he knew more than
+he was permitted to tell. "We had an awful fight to get her; but we got
+her all the same. Poor Mr. Dashington was badly wounded, and he may not
+get over&nbsp;it."</p>
+
+<p>"I am sorry to hear that. Where was the fight?" asked Christy.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">322</span>
+"About a hundred miles off the entrance to Mobile Bay. We were sent to
+look out for her on account of our speed. She came out, and seemed to
+think she was going to have her own way. We overhauled her, and captured
+her by boarding."</p>
+
+<p>"Captain Blowitt wishes to see Lieutenant Passford and Mr. Vapoor in
+his cabin," said Dave, coming up to them at this moment; and both of
+them hastened to obey the summons.</p>
+
+<p>"Take seats, gentlemen," said the commander, as he pointed to chairs
+at the table at which he was seated. "I am ordered back to the Bellevite
+as first lieutenant, for poor Dashington has been seriously wounded. Mr.
+Passford is ordered to New York in the Vixen, which brings these
+despatches, for she must be condemned. Mr. Flint is ordered to the
+temporary command of the Bronx, though I am unable to understand why it
+is made temporary. You are to convoy several vessels at Key West in the
+Vixen, which is fully armed, and has a sufficient crew."</p>
+
+<p>Christy was never more astonished in all his life.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">323</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapXXIX">CHAPTER XXIX</a></h4>
+
+<h6>THE NEW COMMANDER OF THE VIXEN</h6>
+
+
+<p>"Have I done anything to offend the flag-officer, or has he no
+confidence in me?" asked Christy, who heard in utter surprise that he
+was ordered to New York in command of the Vixen.</p>
+
+<p>"Certainly not, Mr. Passford," replied Captain Blowitt, with a
+deprecatory smile which was almost enough to satisfy the young officer.
+"What could have put such an idea as that into your head?"</p>
+
+<p>"It looked to me just as though I was sent away simply as a
+prize-master because my services were not needed down here where there
+is fighting, and is likely to be a great deal more of it," added
+Christy, not yet quite satisfied. "Perhaps I am banished for the crime
+of audacity."</p>
+
+<p>"That is a little too bad, Christy," said the commander, shaking his
+head. "I promised not to use that word again, and you ought not to twit
+<span class = "pagenum">324</span>
+me for it, for it was only a pleasantry on my part."</p>
+
+<p>"It was the farthest thing in the world from my mind to twit you for
+the word; I was only afraid that they considered me an imprudent officer
+on board of the flagship. I beg your pardon, Captain Blowitt, and I will
+never again remind you of the conversation we had on the subject of
+audacity," answered Christy, rising from his chair and taking the
+commander by the hand.</p>
+
+<p>"It is all right, Christy, my dear fellow," replied the captain,
+coming down from the dignified manner of the navy. "I think we
+understand each other perfectly, and I don't wish to part with the
+shadow of a shadow between us. We have sailed together too long to be
+anything but the best of friends; and the fate of poor Dashington
+reminds me that we may never meet again in this world."</p>
+
+<p>"Whatever you say and whatever you do, Captain Blowitt, we can never
+be anything but the best of friends, and, so far as you are concerned, I
+never had an instant of doubt or suspicion."</p>
+
+<p>"Now, Christy," interposed Paul Vapoor, "you entirely mistake the
+motive which has led to your
+<span class = "pagenum">325</span>
+appointment to the Vixen, for I happen to know something about it. You
+are not sent simply as a prize-master to New York, but you are put in
+temporary command of the Vixen because an able, vigilant, courageous
+officer was required."</p>
+
+<p>"Then I wonder all the more that I was selected," added Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"You wonder!" exclaimed Paul, looking intently into the brown face of
+the young officer, apparently to discover if there was not some
+affectation in this manifestation of modesty.</p>
+
+<p>There was nothing like affectation in the composition of Christy
+Passford, and whatever he had done to distinguish himself, he had done
+strictly in the line of his duty, and from the purest of patriotic
+motives. It was the most difficult thing in the world to make him
+believe that he had done "a big thing," though all others on board of
+his ship believed it with all their might. Paul Vapoor knew what
+everybody thought of his friend, and he was surprised that he should be
+so innocent and ignorant of the great reputation he had&nbsp;won.</p>
+
+<p>"I do wonder," replied Christy, earnestly and honestly. "I believe I
+am about the youngest
+<span class = "pagenum">326</span>
+officer in the fleet, and if this service requires an able officer, it
+seems very strange to me that I should have been selected."</p>
+
+<p>"Captain Breaker was consulted in regard to you, though he was not
+asked to name a commander, for the flag-officer had thought of you
+himself, and no doubt he had just been reading your report of your
+voyage to the Gulf in the Bronx," said Paul, laughing. "I don't see how
+he could do otherwise than select you, Christy."</p>
+
+<p>"You are chaffing me, Paul, as you do sometimes," said Christy with a
+smile.</p>
+
+<p>"Then the expression of my honest opinion, which is also the opinion
+of every other officer in the ship, is chaffing you," retorted the
+engineer.</p>
+
+<p>"I am satisfied; and I am sorry I said a word," added the subject of
+all these remarks.</p>
+
+<p>"It is a very important and responsible situation to which you are
+ordered, Mr. Passford," said Captain Blowitt, putting on his dignity
+again. "Not a few steamers fitted up in part for service as Confederate
+men-of-war, in spite of neutrality treaties, are expected on the coast.
+You have diminished the number by two, and I hope you will be able to
+make a still further reduction of
+<span class = "pagenum">327</span>
+that fleet. We have three vessels to send on for condemnation, and your
+orders will inform you that there are several others, including another
+steamer, at Key West; and a Confederate armed steamer could easily
+recapture the whole of them. You will have to protect a fleet of at
+least seven vessels; and this command ought to satisfy your ambition.
+You will also have charge of a despatch bag, to be forwarded to
+Washington at once; and this must not fall into the hands of the enemy.
+Sink or burn it if you are captured."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't intend to be captured," added Christy with a smile.</p>
+
+<p>"I remember that you were taken by the enemy on one occasion, and
+misfortunes may come to the best of officers. You must get ready to sail
+at once; but you must write your report of your expedition before you
+leave," added Captain Blowitt, as he rose from his chair, and the trio
+left the cabin.</p>
+
+<p>Christy gaped several times during the latter part of the interview,
+for he had not slept a wink during the preceding night. He went to the
+ward room and began to write his report, while the Bronx and the Vixen
+proceeded towards the
+<span class = "pagenum">328</span>
+three vessels which had been captured. It was well that they did so, for
+as they approached the Havana and her consorts they discovered quite a
+fleet of boats coming out from behind the Seahorse Key, evidently
+intending to recapture the prizes in the absence of the gunboat. They
+retired at once as she approached.</p>
+
+<p>Christy was a rapid writer, and his report was soon finished, for the
+subject was still very fresh in his mind, and he never attempted to do
+any "fine writing." He had packed his valises, and he took an
+affectionate farewell of the captain, Flint, and Sampson, as well as the
+ship's company in a more general way, though he said he expected to be
+back again in a few weeks. The Vixen's boat was waiting for him, and he
+embarked in it with Paul Vapoor. In a few minutes he ascended to the
+deck of the steamer, and the side was manned at his appearance. He was
+presented to the officers of the ship by the engineer, and all three of
+them were older men than Christy, though he was their senior in rank,
+for his commission had been dated back to his enlistment in the
+navy.</p>
+
+<p>Every one of the officers was a stranger to Christy, though there
+were a few men who had
+<span class = "pagenum">329</span>
+served in the Bellevite, but not in her original crew. With the
+customary proceedings he took command of the Vixen, and he found from
+sundry remarks made to him or dropped in his hearing that his reputation
+was already established on board. He directed the executive officer to
+follow the Bronx. In a short time the screw was stopped in the vicinity
+of the prizes. The Bronx reclaimed the men left on board of the Havana,
+and Captain Lonley was sent on board of the Vixen.</p>
+
+<p>Christy had been down into his cabin, and taken a hasty glance at the
+ward room. In addition to his own apartments like those on board of the
+Bronx, though they were larger, he found a state room opening from the
+foot of the companion way, and another from the passage way leading to
+his principal cabin. These two rooms he appropriated to the use of Mr.
+Pembroke and his daughter, though they were very well provided for on
+board of the Havana. They were invited on board, and gratefully accepted
+the accommodations tendered to them.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Amblen was to retain the place assigned to him as prize-master,
+and two competent men were found to take charge of the schooners. All
+<span class = "pagenum">330</span>
+the arrangements were completed in a couple of hours, and the prizes of
+the Bronx were started at once. The negroes were employed in
+transferring the deckload of the Havana to the holds of the schooners,
+which were not quite full.</p>
+
+<p>The engineer of the Bellevite was to return to her in the Bronx, and
+he shook hands at parting with Christy, giving him a letter to Miss
+Florry Passford; and even her brother could not help seeing that he was
+greatly interested in her. Three rousing cheers went up from the Bronx
+as the screw of the Vixen began to turn, and she started on her
+voyage.</p>
+
+<p>The new commander, though he was very sleepy, gave his first moments
+to an examination of the vessel. The carpenter and his gang were still
+engaged in repairing the damage done to her in the engagement with the
+Bellevite. She was about the size of the two steamers captured by the
+Bronx, and coming out of the small steamer, she seemed quite large. She
+carried a midship gun of heavy calibre, and four broadside pieces. She
+had a crew of sixty men, besides those employed in the engineer's
+department, selected from the fleet, for the mission of the steamer was
+regarded as a very important&nbsp;one.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">331</span>
+"Your machine looks well, Mr. Caulbolt," said Christy, as he went to the
+engine room in making his round with the executive officer.</p>
+
+<p>"I fancy it is as good as can be built on the other side of the
+water," replied the chief engineer.</p>
+
+<p>"Do you know anything in regard to the speed of the Vixen, for that
+may be a very important matter with us?" asked the commander.</p>
+
+<p>"I do not know very much yet, sir, but I think she is a fast steamer.
+Mr. Vapoor told me that the Bellevite made twenty-two knots in chasing
+her, and that no other vessel in the navy could have overhauled her. He
+gave me the figures," added Mr. Caulbolt, taking a paper from his
+pocket. "I think she is good for eighteen knots when driven hard."</p>
+
+<p>"I dare say that will do," replied Christy, finishing his examination
+and retiring to his cabin.</p>
+
+<p>He found Mr. Pembroke and his daughter there. The young lady
+presented him to her father, who appeared to be about fifty years of
+age. He was very gentlemanly in his manners, and thanked the captain
+heartily for the courtesy and kindness with which he had been treated.
+<span class = "pagenum">332</span>
+Later in the voyage he learned that Mr. Pembroke's wife and son had been
+killed some years before in a railroad accident, and that the money
+recovered from the corporation was about his only fortune. Miss Bertha,
+as her father called her, had been educated to become a teacher, but
+when his health failed, she had devoted herself wholly to him. They had
+gone to Georgia just before the war, and had lived in the pine woods
+nearly two years.</p>
+
+<p>"My health is very much improved, and the genial climate just suited
+my case; but in the present situation, I had rather die at home than
+live in the South," said the invalid in conclusion.</p>
+
+<p>"Father is ever so much better than when we came to Georgia," added
+Bertha.</p>
+
+<p>Christy looked at her, and he had never seen a young lady before who
+made such a decided impression upon him. Of course the reason for this
+was that she was so dutiful and devoted to her sick father, for not
+every young and beautiful maiden would have been so entirely unselfish
+as she was. The commander could not help looking at her till he made her
+blush by the intensity of his gaze, and after all, it is possible that
+Christy
+<span class = "pagenum">333</span>
+was as human as other young men of his age. He had never been so
+affected before, and he hardly knew what to make of it; but he concluded
+that it was not because she was so pretty, but because she was so good,
+and so devoted to her father.</p>
+
+<p>In due time the Vixen and her convoy reached Key West. He found only
+two schooners and a steamer, all loaded with cotton, awaiting his
+coming, for two others had been sent with another steamer. Christy went
+on board of them, and as the sea was smooth, he arranged them as he had
+the others, though tow lines were ready in case of need, and the fleet
+sailed for the North.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">334</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapXXX">CHAPTER XXX</a></h4>
+
+<h6>THE ACTION WITH A PRIVATEER STEAMER</h6>
+
+
+<p>Christy had made up his lost sleep. On the first day out he had taken
+Captain Lonley's word that he would not interfere with anything on
+board, and had then given him a berth in the ward room, where he messed
+with the officers. Captain Rowly had also been taken on board, and as he
+was a captain in the Confederate army, innocent as he was, he demanded
+similar accommodations. His request was granted, but Christy decided to
+leave him at Key West, for the ward room was full.</p>
+
+<p>The fleet continued on its voyage after the call at the Florida port,
+and was soon in the Gulf Stream. It was an exceedingly quiet time in the
+little fleet of vessels, though the drill on board of the Vixen was
+closely followed up. On the second day they had a mild gale, and the
+schooners were cast off, and towed astern, one behind the other.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">335</span>
+Then the weather was fine again, though the sea was still too rough for
+the Havana and the Aleppo to tow the prizes alongside. Christy observed
+the drill a great deal of the time, and Bertha Pembroke was often his
+companion. He told her all about vessels in the navy, explained actions
+at sea, but hoped she would not be permitted to see&nbsp;one.</p>
+
+<p>Then he related to her the experience of the Bellevite as a yacht and
+<i>as</i> a naval vessel, and no one ever had a more attentive listener.
+He could not conceal it from himself that he was deeply interested in
+the young lady, and observers would have said that she was not less
+interested in him. On the fifth day out from Key West, while they were
+thus agreeably occupied, there was a hail from the fore rigging.</p>
+
+<p>"Sail, ho!" shouted the lookout on the fore crosstrees, where the
+prudence of the commander required a hand to be stationed at all times,
+day and night.</p>
+
+<p>"Where away?" called Scopfield, the third lieutenant, who was the
+officer of the deck.</p>
+
+<p>"Broad on the starboard bow," replied the lookout.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">336</span>
+"Can you make it out?"</p>
+
+<p>"A steamer, sir; black smoke behind her," responded the lookout.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Fillbrook had joined the third lieutenant by this time, and the
+former reported to the captain. Christy had heard all that had passed,
+and he immediately began to feel a heavy anxiety in regard to the
+sail.</p>
+
+<p>"What do you think of her, Mr. Fillbrook?" he asked, after the
+executive officer had reported to&nbsp;him.</p>
+
+<p>"There are so many steamers coming over from British ports about this
+time, bound to Confederate ports, that it is not very difficult to guess
+what she is," replied the first lieutenant. "She is either a blockade
+runner, or a steamer fitted out to prey upon the commerce of the United
+States."</p>
+
+<p>"That seems to be plain enough; and from the position in which we
+find her, she has come out of the Bermudas, or is bound there," added
+the commander. "Bring my glass from my state room," he continued to his
+cabin steward, who was sunning himself on the deck.</p>
+
+<p>When it was brought, the captain and the executive officer went
+forward and mounted the top-gallant
+<span class = "pagenum">337</span>
+forecastle. Mr. Fillbrook procured a glass from the pilot house, and
+both of them looked long and earnestly at the speck in the distance. The
+steamer was hull down, and they soon agreed that she was bound to the
+eastward.</p>
+
+<p>"We have no business with her at present," said Christy, as he shut
+up his glass.</p>
+
+<p>"But I have no doubt she has already run the blockade, and came out
+of Wilmington or Savannah. If that is the case, she must be loaded with
+cotton, which contains a fortune at the present time within a small
+compass," replied Mr. Fillbrook, who had not been as fortunate as some
+others in the matter of prizes.</p>
+
+<p>"Very likely," replied Christy, rather coldly, his companion thought.
+"I do not think I should be justified in giving chase to her, which
+could only be done by abandoning the convoy."</p>
+
+<p>"Could we not pick up the convoy after we had captured the steamer?"
+asked the first lieutenant.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, if some Confederate cruiser does not pick it up in our
+absence," replied Christy, with a significant smile.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Fillbrook was evidently very much disappointed,
+<span class = "pagenum">338</span>
+not to say disgusted, with the decision of Captain Passford; but he was
+too good an officer to make a complaint, or utter a comment. The ship's
+company had become somewhat excited when it was announced that a sail,
+with black smoke painting a long streak on the blue sky, was made out.
+If it was a blockade runner, with a cargo of cotton, it meant a small
+fortune to each officer, seaman, and others on board.</p>
+
+<p>The new commander had a reputation as a daring leader, and the hopes
+of the officers and men ran high. They waited eagerly to have the
+steamer headed to the eastward; but no such order was given, and the
+chins of all hands began to drop down.</p>
+
+<p>Christy had no interest in the money value of a prize, and yet he
+could understand the feeling of his ship's company. He was an heir of a
+millionaire, and he had no occasion to trouble his head about the
+profits of a capture. He looked at the question from a purely patriotic
+point of view, and every prize secured was so much taken from the
+resources of the enemy.</p>
+
+<p>He saw the disappointment painted on the face of the first
+lieutenant, and he went to his cabin to
+<span class = "pagenum">339</span>
+consider his duty again, and review the reasoning that had influenced
+him; but he came to the conclusion he had reached in the beginning. He
+was in charge of six vessels loaded with cotton, and the ship's company
+of the Bronx and other vessels had an interest in their cargoes. The
+Vixen was less than a hundred and fifty miles from the coast, and a tug
+boat, with a bow gun and a crew of twenty-five, could come out and
+capture the whole fleet without the least difficulty. The risk was too
+great, and the commander was as firm as a rock.</p>
+
+<p>The next morning, before it was daylight, Mr. Bangs the second
+lieutenant, who had the mid watch, sent a messenger to the commander to
+inform him that a sail was made out, which appeared to be a steamer, on
+the starboard bow, very broad, nearly on the beam. Christy dressed
+himself in a great hurry, and hastened on deck. It was beginning to be a
+little light, and the steamer appeared to be about five miles to the
+eastward of the Vixen, and was headed towards&nbsp;her.</p>
+
+<p>Christy at once concluded that the vessel meant mischief, and he
+promptly gave the order to beat to quarters. He thought it must be the
+steamer
+<span class = "pagenum">340</span>
+seen the day before, as she could hardly be a blockade runner for the
+reason that she was headed towards the fleet. If she desired to break
+through the blockading squadron, she would be likely to keep as far as
+possible from anything that might be an armed vessel.</p>
+
+<p>Christy went to his state room to write an order for Mr. Amblen in
+the Havana, which was hardly a cable's length from the Vixen on the port
+side, the Aleppo being ahead of her. He had already given his general
+orders to the prize masters, but this was a special one. In the cabin he
+found Bertha, who had been awakened by the tramping of the men on
+deck.</p>
+
+<p>"Pray what is the matter, Captain Passford?" she asked, evidently
+somewhat alarmed.</p>
+
+<p>"Nothing is the matter yet, Miss Pembroke, but something may be the
+matter within an hour or two, for there is a sail making for us,"
+replied Christy with the smile he always wore when she spoke to him, or
+he to her. "In other words there may be an action, for I must defend my
+convoy."</p>
+
+<p>"Is there any danger?" she inquired.</p>
+
+<p>"Of course there is, for a shot may come through
+<span class = "pagenum">341</span>
+the side of the ship anywhere and at any time. But I have thought of
+this matter, and I propose to put you and your father on board of the
+Havana until after the danger is passed. Be kind enough to get ready as
+soon as possible."</p>
+
+<p>Christy wrote his order, and hastened on deck with it. Hailing the
+Havana, he ordered the prize-master to send a boat on board. When it
+came the two passengers were embarked in it and the order sent. The
+commander did not wait a moment to watch the receding form of the
+maiden, but immediately directed his attention to the steamer
+approaching the Vixen.</p>
+
+<p>"Run for that steamer, Mr. Fillbrook," said he, after his first
+glance.</p>
+
+<p>"Make the course east by north, Mr. Bangs," added the first
+lieutenant.</p>
+
+<p>"East by north," repeated the quartermaster at the wheel when the
+order reached&nbsp;him.</p>
+
+<p>"I have just been aloft, and she flies the Confederate flag, Captain
+Passford," said Mr. Fillbrook. "She is a large steamer, and she is by no
+means as jaunty as the Vixen."</p>
+
+<p>Both steamers were going at full speed, and it required but a short
+time to bring them near
+<span class = "pagenum">342</span>
+enough together for something to happen. She was well down in the water,
+and appeared as though she might be loaded with something besides the
+appliances of a man-of-war. She looked as though she might be twice as
+large as the Vixen, and it was soon evident that her speed was nothing
+to boast of. She certainly was not one of the high-flyer yachts which
+had been bought up for service in the Confederate navy.</p>
+
+<p>When the two vessels were not more than a mile apart, a column of
+smoke rose from her waist, as she swung around so that her great gun
+could be brought to bear, and a shot dropped into the water at least an
+eighth of a mile short of the Vixen.</p>
+
+<p>"Thank you, sir!" exclaimed Christy. "Half speed, if you please, Mr.
+Fillbrook."</p>
+
+<p>The commander went to the long English gun in the waist, to which he
+had already given a great deal of study, and sighted along the heavy
+piece. He had not forgotten when he pointed the gun on board of the
+Bellevite, the shot from which had disabled the Vampire, and he had some
+confidence in his ability to put a shot where he wished it to go, for he
+had brought all his mathematics and all his physics to bear on the
+matter, though the best
+<span class = "pagenum">343</span>
+gunners must sometimes fail. When he was ready he gave the word to fire.
+The ship was shaken by the heavy report, and every one waited with
+peculiar interest for the smoke to clear away, because the captain had
+pointed the&nbsp;gun.</p>
+
+<p>Christy had ordered the screw to be stopped, and had waited till the
+steamer lost her headway. She rolled but slightly, and he had allowed
+for everything. Glasses were in demand, and a moment later there was a
+shout went up from the men at the gun, followed by another from the rest
+of the crew. The shot had upset the great gun on the deck of the enemy.
+She was swinging round, and beginning to fire her broadside guns, but
+the shots came nowhere near the Vixen. Christy did not believe there was
+any naval officer on board of that steamer.</p>
+
+<p>"Keep up the fire with the long gun, Mr. Fillbrook," said the
+commander, in a low tone, and with no excitement apparent in his manner,
+for he always studied and labored to appear cool and self-possessed,
+whether he was so or not, and there was nothing in the present situation
+to try him in the least.</p>
+
+<p>For a full hour the long gun of the Vixen continued
+<span class = "pagenum">344</span>
+to pelt the enemy with solid shot, about every one of them hulling her
+or carrying away some of her spars. Her mainmast had gone by the board,
+and the resistance she was making was becoming very feeble.</p>
+
+<p>"She is full of men, Captain Passford," said Mr. Fillbrook, when the
+steamer seemed to be almost a wreck.</p>
+
+<p>"I observed that she had a large crew some time ago, and it is better
+to knock her to pieces than to board her," replied Christy. "Keep her as
+far off as she is&nbsp;now."</p>
+
+<p>The enemy tried to get nearer to the Vixen, but failed to
+do&nbsp;so.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<span class = "pagenum">345</span>
+<h4 class = "chapter"><a name = "chapXXXI">CHAPTER XXXI</a></h4>
+
+<h6>A SHORT VISIT TO BONNYDALE</h6>
+
+
+<p>The firing was continued from the long gun, though only at intervals
+that would permit any signals to be seen on board of the enemy. When it
+looked as though there would soon be nothing left of her, she hauled
+down the Confederate flag at her fore, where she had hoisted it when the
+mainmast went over. The order to go ahead was given, and in a short time
+the Vixen was alongside of&nbsp;her.</p>
+
+<p>"Do you surrender?" asked Christy, mounting the rail of his ship.</p>
+
+<p>"We do; there is not much left of the steamer, and I am not justified
+in throwing away the lives of my men," replied a very spruce-looking
+officer.</p>
+
+<p>"You will board her, Mr. Fillbrook, with the first division, and take
+possession of her," said Christy, when he had received the captain's
+answer. "Ascertain her condition as soon as possible."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">346</span>
+The steamer proved to be the Pedee, formerly the Carnfield, Captain
+Linden. She had run the blockade with a valuable cargo, which more than
+paid the cost of the vessel, and was then loaded with cotton, and armed
+for her own protection, as well as to capture anything that fell in her
+way. She had a crew of eighty men to do her fighting, and the commander
+confidently expected to pick up a better steamer than the Pedee, to
+which the greater portion of the ship's company were to be
+transferred.</p>
+
+<p>"I saw your steamer yesterday afternoon," said the captain; "but she
+had several other vessels near her, and I thought she might have a whole
+blockading squadron with her. I kept off, and put about in the night.
+When I saw the Vixen early this morning, I thought she would just answer
+my purpose, and I wanted her. A nearer view of her assures me she is
+exactly the steamer I needed."</p>
+
+<p>"For your sake, captain, I am sorry I cannot accommodate you,"
+replied Christy, laughing at the cheerful expressions of Captain Linden.
+"I presume you are an officer of the Confederate Navy?"</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">347</span>
+"No, sir; I am not; but I am a Confederate to the backbone. It was my
+intention to set up a navy on my own hook. The Pedee was the first
+vessel, and I intended that the Vixen should be the second, and become
+my flag-ship."</p>
+
+<p>"Then you came out as a privateer?"</p>
+
+<p>"That's just the color of it. If you hadn't unhorsed my big gun I
+should have been as polite to you about this time as you are to me. The
+fact of it is, Captain Passford, you did not manage your ship just
+right."</p>
+
+<p>"Indeed? In what respect?" asked Christy.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, you see, you knocked my big gun all to pieces, and then,
+instead of running down and boarding the Pedee, you stood off out of
+range of my side guns, and knocked the starch all out of us. If you had
+only boarded us, I could have whipped you out of your boots, for I have
+got the greatest crowd of fighting dogs that was ever hitched up
+together."</p>
+
+<p>"Of course I was not aware of your views in regard to the manner in
+which I ought to have managed the affair on my own part, and therefore I
+could not handle my ship just as you desired," replied Christy. "As it
+is, I am afraid you will have to start your navy over again."</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">348</span>
+Mr. Fillbrook had by this time driven the "fighting dogs" forward, and
+taken full possession of the prize. On examination, Christy found that,
+though the Pedee had been terribly battered in her upper works, she was
+not materially injured below the water line. He sent for Mr. Caulbolt,
+and required him to inspect the engine, which was not injured in any
+important part.</p>
+
+<p>Captain Linden had three times attempted to get nearer to the Vixen
+with the intention of boarding her, but Christy preferred to fight the
+battle at long range under the circumstances, and he had preserved his
+distance from the enemy. He had discovered that she had a large crew,
+and he was vastly more prudent than most of his critics gave him the
+credit of being. He was surprised, after examining the Pedee, that the
+captain had hauled down his flag, for the steamer could have stood a
+good deal more pounding without being used up. He concluded that Captain
+Linden was full of fight, but, for the want of a naval education, he had
+not fully comprehended his situation.</p>
+
+<p>It was deemed advisable to transfer one half of the Pedee's crew of
+"fighting dogs" to the Vixen,
+<span class = "pagenum">349</span>
+as she was not encumbered with any prisoners to speak of, and this was
+effected without any delay. Mr. Scopfield, the third lieutenant, was
+appointed prize-master, and instructed to keep as near as practicable to
+the Vixen on the voyage. Captain Linden and his principal officers were
+allowed to remain on board. An assistant engineer and two first-class
+firemen, on their way to New York for examination and promotion, were
+sent on board of the prize. The two steamers were soon under way, and
+then it was ascertained that the Pedee's ordinary rate of sailing did
+not exceed ten knots, and it was not probable that she would be bought
+into the navy.</p>
+
+<p>The fleet of prize vessels had continued on its course to the north,
+and was soon overhauled by the Vixen and her capture. The progress of
+the fleet was very slow, for the Aleppo, which was said to have a speed
+of ten knots, did very badly towing two steamers. Mr. Pembroke and
+Bertha were sent on board of the Vixen, and the young lady blushed
+beautifully when Christy welcomed her return.</p>
+
+<p>Possibly she had feared he might be killed in the action, and had
+worried about him till his return
+<span class = "pagenum">350</span>
+in safety, with the prize alongside his ship. Her father was very
+cordial in his congratulations to the young commander, and even said
+that he and his daughter had prayed that he might not be killed or
+injured in the conflict; and Bertha blushed all the more when he
+said&nbsp;it.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Scopfield was instructed to take one of the schooners of the
+Aleppo in tow. Five men had been killed on board of the Pedee, and her
+surgeon had more than he could do with at least twenty wounded men. Dr.
+Appleton was sent on board of her to assist him. The fleet thus
+reorganized got under way, and it was found that the log gave better
+results after the change. Fortunately no enemy interfered with its
+progress, for Christy felt that his hands were already full.</p>
+
+<p>In the early days of the month of May, he sailed into New York harbor
+with his fleet of eight vessels, though only three of them were the
+prizes of the Bronx. He had been absent hardly a month; though he had
+something to show for the time he had been employed. The vessels were
+delivered over to the authorities, and the young commander obtained
+leave of absence to visit his mother and sister at Bonnydale, for his
+<span class = "pagenum">351</span>
+father came on board of the Vixen as soon as he heard the news of her
+arrival in command of his&nbsp;son.</p>
+
+<p>Captain Passford, Senior, was conducted to the cabin of Captain
+Passford, Junior, and the meeting of father and son was very
+affectionate and very demonstrative. Mr. Pembroke and his daughter were
+presented to the commander's father, and after they had talked over the
+incidents of the return voyage, the former owner of the Bellevite
+suspected that relations were altogether pleasant between Christy and
+Bertha.</p>
+
+<p>He was greatly pleased with the young lady, and whatever else he
+thought, he could not very well help indorsing his son's good taste. In
+the course of the subsequent conversation it appeared that Mr. Pembroke
+owned a small house at Newburgh, but that the occupant of it had a
+three-years' lease of the premises. Captain Passford immediately
+extended an invitation to the invalid and his daughter to visit
+Bonnydale, which became so pressing that it was finally accepted. In the
+afternoon the entire party took the train for the home of the
+captain.</p>
+
+<p>Christy's welcome was as hearty as though he
+<span class = "pagenum">352</span>
+had come home a commodore. The visitors were received with a sincere
+greeting, and Bertha and Florry were soon fast friends. Even if
+Christy's father had not dropped a hint to Mrs. Passford in regard to
+the fact that his son was at least tenderly inclined towards the lovely
+maiden from the South she could not have failed to notice his attentions
+to her. Later at night his father and mother had a long talk over the
+matter.</p>
+
+<p>"Christy, I have a couple of envelopes for you," said Captain
+Passford, as the party seated themselves in the drawing-room after
+supper.</p>
+
+<p>"Envelopes, father?" asked the young officer curiously. "Base ball or
+boat-club business?"</p>
+
+<p>"I should say neither; decidedly not," replied his father, taking the
+documents from his pocket, and handing them to him. "They have an
+official look, and bear the imprint of the Navy Department."</p>
+
+<p>"What business can the Navy Department have with me now? I have the
+honor to be the executive officer of the gunboat Bronx, with the rank of
+master, on detached duty as prize-master," added Christy, as he looked
+at the ponderous envelopes.</p>
+
+<p><span class = "pagenum">353</span>
+"You can easily answer that question by reading the papers," replied his
+father.</p>
+
+<p>"A commission!" exclaimed Christy, as he opened the first one. "I am
+promoted to the rank of lieutenant!"</p>
+
+<p>"And, though you are my son, I must say that you deserve the
+promotion," added Captain Passford. "I have read your report of the
+capture of the Ocklockonee and the Escambia, and you have won your
+spurs, my son. I did not ask for this promotion, or even suggest it to
+any&nbsp;one."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, I am astonished, confounded, overwhelmed!" exclaimed the young
+lieutenant, as we are now permitted to call him. "And the commission is
+dated back far enough to put me over the heads of not a few others of
+the same rank."</p>
+
+<p>"Perhaps it will please you quite as much when I inform you that the
+officers you recommended for appointment as masters have been promoted
+to that rank," added the captain.</p>
+
+<p>"I am even more pleased at their promotion than at my own," replied
+Christy, opening the other envelope, in which he was addressed as
+"Lieutenant Christopher Passford." "Ah, ha!" he
+<span class = "pagenum">354</span>
+exclaimed, leaping out of his chair in his excitement, to which he gave
+way on such an occasion as the present.</p>
+
+<p>"What in the world is the matter with you, Christy?" demanded his
+mother, astonished at such an unusual demonstration on the part of
+her&nbsp;son.</p>
+
+<p>"I am appointed to the command of the Bronx, in place of Lieutenant
+Blowitt, transferred to the Bellevite!" almost shouted the young
+officer. "If I could have selected a position for myself, this is the
+very one I should have chosen."</p>
+
+<p>"I heard you say as much as that when you were appointed to the
+temporary command of the Bronx, and I shall plead guilty of having
+inserted a hint where it would do the most good," added Captain
+Passford.</p>
+
+<p>"I am much obliged to you, father; for I don't object to that kind of
+influence, though I could have commanded the Bronx just as well as a
+master, which is the rank of her present temporary commander, Mr. Flint.
+I desire to win my own rank, and not get it by influence. I am ordered
+to proceed to the Gulf as soon as possible."</p>
+
+<p>In three days he obtained passage in a store-ship
+<span class = "pagenum">355</span>
+steamer; and he spent all this time at home, as perhaps he would not
+have done if Bertha Pembroke had not been there. Before he reported on
+board of the store-ship, he visited the Vixen, which was undergoing
+alterations and repairs, and took leave of his officers. Before dark he
+was on board of the vessel and on his voyage to the scene of his future
+operations, where we hope to find him again, doing his best for his
+whole country, and true to his motto from the beginning, "<span class =
+"smallcaps">Stand by the Union</span>."</p>
+
+
+<!--ADVERTISING-->
+
+<h3 class = "chapter">OLIVER OPTIC'S BOOKS</h3>
+
+<hr class = "tiny">
+
+<p class = "hanging">
+<span class = "bigger">All-Over-the-World Library.</span> By <span class
+= "smallcaps">Oliver Optic</span>. First Series. Illustrated. Price per
+volume, $1.25.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">1. A Missing Million</span>; <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, The Adventures of Louis Belgrade.</span></p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">2. A Millionaire at Sixteen</span>; <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, The cruise of the "Guardian Mother."</span></p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">3. A Young Knight Errant</span>; <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, Cruising in the West Indies.</span></p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">4. Strange Sights Abroad</span>; <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, Adventures in European Waters.</span></p>
+
+<p class = "advert">
+No author has come before the public during the present generation who
+has achieved a larger and more deserving popularity among young people
+than "Oliver Optic." His stories have been very numerous, but they have
+been uniformly excellent in moral tone and literary quality. As
+indicated in the general title, it is the author's intention to conduct
+the readers of this entertaining series "around the world." As a means
+to this end, the hero of the story purchases a steamer which he names
+the "Guardian Mother," and with a number of guests she proceeds on her
+voyage.&mdash;<i>Christian Work, N.&nbsp;Y.</i>
+</p>
+
+<p class = "hanging">
+<span class = "bigger">All-Over-the-World Library.</span> By <span class
+= "smallcaps">Oliver Optic</span>. Second Series. Illustrated. Price per
+volume, $1.25.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">1. American Boys Afloat</span>; <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, Cruising in the Orient.</span></p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">2. The Young Navigators</span>; <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, The Foreign Cruise of the "Maud."</span></p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">3. Up and Down the Nile</span>; <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, Young Adventurers in Africa.</span></p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">4. Asiatic Breezes</span>; or, <span class =
+"smallcaps">Students on the Wing.</span></p>
+
+<p class = "advert">
+The interest in these stories is continuous, and there is a great
+variety of exciting incident woven into the solid information which the
+book imparts so generously and without the slightest suspicion of
+dryness. Manly boys will welcome this volume as cordially as they did
+its predecessors.&mdash;<i>Boston Gazette</i>.</p>
+
+<p class = "hanging">
+<span class = "bigger">All-Over-the-World Library.</span> By <span class
+= "smallcaps">Oliver Optic</span>. Third Series. Illustrated. Price per
+volume, $1.25.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">1. Across India</span>; <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, Live Boys in the Far East.</span></p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">2. Half Round the World</span>; <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, Among the Uncivilized.</span></p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">3. Four Young Explorers</span>; <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, Sight-Seeing in the Tropics.</span></p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">4. Pacific Shores</span>; <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, Adventures in Eastern Seas.</span></p>
+
+<p class = "advert">
+Amid such new and varied surroundings it would be surprising indeed if
+the author, with his faculty of making even the commonplace attractive,
+did not tell an intensely interesting story of adventure, as well as
+give much information in regard to the distant countries through which
+our friends pass, and the strange peoples with whom they are brought in
+contact. This book, and indeed the whole series, is admirably adapted to
+reading aloud in the family circle, each volume containing matter which
+will interest all the members of the family.&mdash;<i>Boston
+Budget.</i></p>
+
+<h5 class = "sans space">LEE AND SHEPARD, BOSTON, SEND THEIR COMPLETE
+CATALOGUE FREE.</h5>
+
+
+
+<h4 class = "section">OLIVER OPTIC'S BOOKS</h4>
+
+<p class = "hanging">
+<span class = "bigger">The Blue and the Gray&mdash;Afloat.</span> By
+<span class = "smallcaps">Oliver Optic</span>. Six volumes. Illustrated.
+Beautiful binding in blue and gray, with emblematic dies. Cloth. Any
+volume sold separate. Price per volume, $1.50.</p>
+
+<table>
+<tr>
+<td class = "boldbook" width = "40%">
+1. Taken by the Enemy.<br>
+2. Within the Enemy's Lines.<br>
+3. On the Blockade.
+</td>
+<td width = "20%"></td>
+<td class = "boldbook">
+4. Stand by the Union.<br>
+5. Fighting for the Right.<br>
+6. A Victorious Union.
+</td>
+</tr>
+</table>
+
+<p class = "hanging">
+<span class = "bigger">The Blue and the Gray&mdash;on Land.</span></p>
+
+<table>
+<tr>
+<td class = "boldbook" width = "40%">
+1. Brother against Brother.<br>
+2. In the Saddle.<br>
+3. A Lieutenant at Eighteen.
+</td>
+<td width = "20%"></td>
+<td class = "boldbook">
+4. On the Staff.<br>
+5. At the Front.<br>
+6. An Undivided Union.
+</td>
+</tr>
+</table>
+
+<p class = "advert">
+"There never has been a more interesting writer in the field of juvenile
+literature than Mr. <span class = "smallcaps">W.&nbsp;T. Adams</span>,
+who, under his well-known pseudonym, is known and admired by every boy
+and girl in the country, and by thousands Who have long since passed the
+boundaries of youth, yet who remember with pleasure the genial,
+interesting pen that did so much to interest, instruct, and entertain
+their younger years. 'The Blue and the Gray' is a title that is
+sufficiently indicative of the nature and spirit of the latest series,
+while the name of <span class = "smallcaps">Oliver Optic</span> is
+sufficient warrant of the absorbing style of narrative. This series is
+as bright and entertaining as any work that Mr. <span class =
+"smallcaps">Adams</span> has yet put forth, and will be as eagerly
+perused as any that has borne his name. It would not be fair to the
+prospective reader to deprive him of the zest which comes from the
+unexpected by entering into a synopsis of the story. A word, however,
+should be said in regard to the beauty and appropriateness of the
+binding, which makes it a most attractive volume."&mdash;<i>Boston
+Budget</i>.</p>
+
+<p class = "hanging">
+<span class = "bigger">Woodville Stories.</span> By <span class =
+"smallcaps">Oliver Optic</span>. Six volumes. Illustrated. Any volume
+sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">1. Rich and Humble;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, The Mission of Bertha Grant.</span></p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">2. In School and Out;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, The Conquest of Richard Grant.</span></p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">3. Watch and Wait;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, The Young Fugitives.</span></p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">4. Work and Win;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, Noddy Newman on a Cruise.</span></p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">5. Hope and Have;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, Fanny Grant Among the Indians.</span></p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">6. Haste and Waste;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, The Young Pilot of Lake Champlain.</span></p>
+
+<p class = "advert">
+"Though we are not so young as we once were, we relished these stories
+almost as much as the boys and girls for whom they were written. They
+were really refreshing even to us. There is much in them which is
+calculated to inspire a generous, healthy ambition, and to make
+distasteful all reading tending to stimulate base
+desires."&mdash;<i>Fitchburg Reveille</i>.</p>
+
+<p class = "hanging">
+<span class = "bigger">The Starry Flag Series.</span> By <span class =
+"smallcaps">Oliver Optic</span>. In six volumes. Illustrated. Any volume
+sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">1. The Starry Flag;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, The Young Fisherman of Cape&nbsp;Ann.</span></p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">2. Breaking Away;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, The Fortunes of a Student.</span></p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">3. Seek and Find;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, The Adventures of a Smart&nbsp;Boy.</span></p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">4. Freaks of Fortune;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, Half Round the World.</span></p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">5. Make or Break;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, The Rich Man's Daughter.</span></p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">6. Down the River;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, Buck Bradford and the Tyrants.</span></p>
+
+<p class = "advert">
+"Mr. <span class = "smallcaps">Adams</span>, the celebrated and popular
+writer, familiarly known as <span class = "smallcaps">Oliver
+Optic</span>, seems to have inexhaustible funds for weaving together the
+virtues of life; and, notwithstanding he has written scores of books,
+the same freshness and novelty run through them all. Some people think
+the sensational element predominates. Perhaps it does. But a book for
+young people needs this, and so long as good sentiments are inculcated
+such books ought to be read."</p>
+
+<h5 class = "sans space">LEE AND SHEPARD, BOSTON, SEND THEIR COMPLETE
+CATALOGUE FREE.</h5>
+
+
+<h4 class = "section">OLIVER OPTIC'S BOOKS</h4>
+
+<p class = "hanging">
+<span class = "bigger">Army and Navy Stories.</span> By <span class =
+"smallcaps">Oliver Optic</span>. Six volumes. Illustrated. Any volume
+sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">1. The Soldier Boy</span>; or, <span class =
+"smallcaps">Tom Somers in the Army</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">2. The Sailor Boy</span>; or, <span class =
+"smallcaps">Jack Somers in the Navy</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">3. The Young Lieutenant</span>; or, <span class =
+"smallcaps">Adventures of an Army Officer</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">4. The Yankee Middy</span>; or, <span class =
+"smallcaps">Adventures of a Navy Officer</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">5. Fighting Joe</span>; or, <span class =
+"smallcaps">The Fortunes of a Staff Officer</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">6. Brave Old Salt</span>; or, <span class =
+"smallcaps">Life on the Quarter Deck</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert">
+"This series of six volumes recounts the adventures of two brothers, Tom
+and Jack Somers, one in the army, the other in the navy, in the great
+Civil War. The romantic narratives of the fortunes and exploits of the
+brothers are thrilling in the extreme. Historical accuracy in the
+recital of the great events of that period is strictly followed, and the
+result is, not only a library of entertaining volumes, but also the best
+history of the Civil War for young people ever written."</p>
+<p class = "hanging">
+<span class = "bigger">Boat Builders Series.</span> By <span class =
+"smallcaps">Oliver Optic</span>. In six volumes. Illustrated. Any volume
+sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">1. All Adrift</span>; or, <span class =
+"smallcaps">The Goldwing Club</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">2. Snug Harbor</span>; or, <span class =
+"smallcaps">The Champlain Mechanics</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">3. Square and Compasses</span>; or, <span class =
+"smallcaps">Building the House</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">4. Stem to Stern</span>; or, <span class =
+"smallcaps">Building the Boat</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">5. All Taut</span>; or, <span class =
+"smallcaps">Rigging the Boat</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">6. Ready About</span>; or, <span class =
+"smallcaps">Sailing the Boat</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert">
+"The series includes in six successive volumes the whole art of boat
+building, boat rigging, boat managing, and practical hints to make the
+ownership of a boat pay. A great deal of useful information is given in
+this <b>Boat Builders Series</b>, and in each book a very interesting
+story is interwoven with the information. Every reader will be
+interested at once in Dory, the hero of 'All Adrift,' and one of the
+characters retained in the subsequent volumes of the series. His friends
+will not want to lose sight of him, and every boy who makes his
+acquaintance in 'All Adrift' will become his friend."</p>
+
+<p class = "hanging">
+<span class = "bigger">Riverdale Story Books.</span> By <span class =
+"smallcaps">Oliver Optic</span>. Twelve volumes. Illustrated.
+Illuminated covers. Price: cloth, per set, $3.60; per volume, 30 cents;
+paper, per set, $2.00.</p>
+
+<table>
+<tr>
+<td class = "boldbook" width = "40%">
+1. Little Merchant.<br>
+2. Young Voyagers.<br>
+3. Christmas Gift.<br>
+4. Dolly and I.<br>
+5. Uncle Ben.<br>
+6. Birthday Party.
+</td>
+<td width = "20%"></td>
+<td class = "boldbook">
+&nbsp; 7. Proud and Lazy.<br>
+&nbsp; 8. Careless Kate.<br>
+&nbsp;&nbsp;9.&nbsp;Robinson&nbsp;Crusoe,&nbsp;Jr.<br>
+10. The Picnic Party.<br>
+11. The Gold Thimble.<br>
+12. The Do-Somethings.
+</td>
+</tr>
+</table>
+
+<p class = "hanging">
+<span class = "bigger">Riverdale Story Books.</span> By <span class =
+"smallcaps">Oliver Optic</span>. Six volumes. Illustrated. Fancy cloth
+and colors. Price per volume, 30 cents.</p>
+
+<table>
+<tr>
+<td class = "boldbook" width = "40%">
+1. Little Merchant.<br>
+2. Proud and Lazy.<br>
+3. Young Voyagers.
+</td>
+<td width = "20%"></td>
+<td class = "boldbook">
+4. Careless Kate.<br>
+5. Dolly and I.<br>
+6.&nbsp;Robinson&nbsp;Crusoe,&nbsp;Jr.
+</td>
+</tr>
+</table>
+
+<p class = "hanging">
+<span class = "bigger">Flora Lee Library.</span> By <span class =
+"smallcaps">Oliver Optic</span>. Six volumes. Illustrated. Fancy cloth
+and colors. Price per volume, 30 cents.</p>
+
+<table>
+<tr>
+<td class = "boldbook" width = "40%">
+1. The Picnic Party.<br>
+2. The Gold Thimble.<br>
+3. The Do-Somethings.
+</td>
+<td width = "20%"></td>
+<td class = "boldbook">
+4. Christmas Gift.<br>
+5. Uncle Ben.<br>
+6. Birthday Party.
+</td>
+</tr>
+</table>
+
+<p class = "advert">
+These are bright short stories for younger children who are unable to
+comprehend the <b>Starry Flag Series</b> or the <b>Army and Navy
+Series</b>. But they all display the author's talent for pleasing and
+interesting the little folks. They are all fresh and original, preaching
+no sermons, but inculcating good lessons.</p>
+
+<h5 class = "sans space">LEE AND SHEPARD, BOSTON, SEND THEIR COMPLETE
+CATALOGUE FREE.</h5>
+
+
+<h4 class = "section">OLIVER OPTIC'S BOOKS</h4>
+
+<p class = "hanging">
+<span class = "bigger">The Great Western Series.</span> By <span class =
+"smallcaps">Oliver Optic</span>. In six volumes. Illustrated. Any volume
+sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">1. Going West;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, The Perils of a Poor Boy</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">2. Out West;</span> <span class = "smallcaps">or,
+Roughing It on the Great Lakes</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">3. Lake Breezes;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, The Cruise of the Sylvania</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">4. Going South;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, Yachting on the Atlantic Coast</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">5. Down South;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, Yacht Adventures in Florida</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">6. Up the River;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, Yachting on the Mississippi</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert">
+"This is the latest series of books issued by this popular writer, and
+deals with life on the Great Lakes, for which a careful study was made
+by the author in a summer tour of the immense water sources of America.
+The story, which carries the same hero through the six books of the
+series, is always entertaining, novel scenes and varied incidents giving
+a constantly changing yet always attractive aspect to the narrative.
+<span class = "smallcaps">Oliver Optic</span> has written nothing
+better."</p>
+
+<p class = "hanging">
+<span class = "bigger">The Yacht Club Series.</span> By <span class =
+"smallcaps">Oliver Optic</span>. In six volumes. Illustrated. Any volume
+sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">1. Little Bobtail;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, The Wreck of the Penobscot</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">2. The Yacht Club;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, The Young Boat Builders</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">3. Money-Maker;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, The Victory of the Basilisk</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">4. The Coming Wave;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, The Treasure of High Rock</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">5. The Dorcas Club;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, Our Girls Afloat</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">6. Ocean Born;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, The Cruise of the Clubs</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert">
+"The series has this peculiarity, that all of its constituent volumes
+are independent of one another, and therefore each story is complete in
+itself. <span class = "smallcaps">Oliver Optic</span> is, perhaps, the
+favorite author of the boys and girls of this country, and he seems
+destined to enjoy an endless popularity. He deserves his success, for he
+makes very interesting stories, and inculcates none but the best
+sentiments, and the 'Yacht Club' is no exception to this
+rule."&mdash;<i>New Haven Journal and Courier</i>.</p>
+
+<p class = "hanging">
+<span class = "bigger">Onward and Upward Series.</span> By <span class =
+"smallcaps">Oliver Optic</span>. In six volumes. Illustrated. Any volume
+sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">1. Field and Forest;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, The Fortunes of a Farmer</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">2. Plane and Plank;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, The Mishaps of a Mechanic</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">3. Desk and Debit;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, The Catastrophes of a Clerk</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">4. Cringle and Crosstree;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, The Sea Swashes of a Sailor</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">5. Bivouac and Battle;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, The Struggles of a Soldier</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">6. Sea and Shore;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, The Tramps of a Traveller</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert">
+"Paul Farringford, the hero of these tales, is, like most of this
+author's heroes, a young man of high spirit, and of high aims and
+correct principles, appearing in the different volumes as a farmer, a
+captain, a bookkeeper, a soldier, a sailor, and a traveller. In all of
+them the hero meets with very exciting adventures, told in the graphic
+style for which the author is famous."</p>
+
+<p class = "hanging">
+<span class = "bigger">The Lake Shore Series.</span> By <span class =
+"smallcaps">Oliver Optic</span>. In six volumes. Illustrated. Any volume
+sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">1. Through by Daylight;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, The Young Engineer of the Lake Shore
+Railroad</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">2. Lightning Express;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, The Rival Academies</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">3. On Time;</span> <span class = "smallcaps">or,
+The Young Captain of the Ucayga Steamer</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">4. Switch Off;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, The War of the Students</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">5. Brake Up;</span> <span class = "smallcaps">or,
+The Young Peacemakers</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert title">
+<span class = "bigger">6. Bear and Forbear;</span> <span class =
+"smallcaps">or, The Young Skipper of Lake Ucayga</span>.</p>
+
+<p class = "advert">
+"<span class = "smallcaps">Oliver Optic</span> is one of the most
+fascinating writers for youth, and withal one of the best to be found in
+this or any past age. Troops of young people hang over his vivid pages;
+and not one of them ever learned to be mean, ignoble, cowardly, selfish,
+or to yield to any vice from anything they ever read from his
+pen."&mdash;<i>Providence Press</i>.</p>
+
+<h5 class = "sans space">LEE AND SHEPARD, BOSTON, SEND THEIR COMPLETE
+CATALOGUE FREE.</h5>
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+<pre>
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of On The Blockade, by Oliver Optic
+
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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of On The Blockade, by Oliver Optic
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: On The Blockade
+       SERIES: The Blue and the Gray Afloat
+
+Author: Oliver Optic
+
+Release Date: June 18, 2006 [EBook #18617]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ON THE BLOCKADE ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Louise Hope, David Garcia, Juliet Sutherland
+and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at
+http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images
+generously made available by The Kentuckiana Digital
+Library)
+
+
+
+
+
+
+THE BLUE AND THE GRAY--AFLOAT
+
+Two colors cloth  Emblematic Dies  Illustrated
+Price per volume $1.50
+
+  TAKEN BY THE ENEMY
+  WITHIN THE ENEMY'S LINES
+  ON THE BLOCKADE
+  STAND BY THE UNION
+  FIGHTING FOR THE RIGHT
+  A VICTORIOUS UNION
+
+THE BLUE AND THE GRAY--ON LAND
+
+Two colors cloth  Emblematic Dies  Illustrated
+Price per volume $1.50
+
+  BROTHER AGAINST BROTHER
+  IN THE SADDLE
+  A LIEUTENANT AT EIGHTEEN
+  ON THE STAFF
+  AT THE FRONT
+  AN UNDIVIDED UNION
+
+Any Volume Sold Separately
+
+Lee and Shepard Publishers
+  BOSTON
+
+
+
+
+  [Illustration: Mulgrum and the engineer.]
+
+
+
+
+                      The
+
+               BLUE AND THE GRAY
+
+                     Series
+
+                 [Illustration]
+
+                By Oliver Optic
+
+                ON THE BLOCKADE
+
+
+
+
+         _The Blue and the Gray Series_
+
+                ON THE BLOCKADE
+
+                       by
+                  OLIVER OPTIC
+
+                   Author of
+"The Army and Navy Series" "Young America Abroad"
+"The Great Western Series" "The Woodville Stories"
+"The Starry Flag Series" "The Boat-Club Stories"
+"The Onward and Upward Series" "The Yacht-Club Series"
+"The Lake Shore Series" "The Riverdale Series"
+"The Boat-Builder Series" "Taken by the Enemy"
+        "Within the Enemy's Lines" etc.
+
+
+                     BOSTON
+
+          LEE AND SHEPARD  Publishers
+
+
+
+
+      Copyright, 1890, by Lee and Shepard
+             _All rights reserved._
+
+                On the Blockade.
+
+
+
+
+               To my Son-in-Law,
+
+               SOL SMITH RUSSELL,
+
+        of the United States of America,
+   though Residing in Minneapolis, Minnesota,
+
+                 who is always
+"On the Blockade" against Melancholy, "The Blues,"
+           and all similar maladies,
+
+                  This Volume
+          is affectionately dedicated.
+
+
+
+
+PREFACE
+
+
+"ON THE BLOCKADE" is the third of "The Blue and the Gray Series." Like
+the first and second volumes, its incidents are dated back to the War
+of the Rebellion, and located in the midst of its most stirring scenes
+on the Southern coast, where the naval operations of the United States
+contributed their full share to the final result.
+
+The writer begs to remind his readers again that he has not felt called
+upon to invest his story with the dignity of history, or in all cases
+to mingle fiction with actual historic occurrences. He believes that all
+the scenes of the story are not only possible, but probable, and that
+just such events as he has narrated really and frequently occurred in
+the days of the Rebellion.
+
+The historian is forbidden to make his work more palatable or more
+interesting by the intermixture of fiction with fact, while the
+story-writer, though required to be reasonably consistent with the
+spirit and the truth of history, may wander from veritable details, and
+use his imagination in the creation of incidents upon which the grand
+result is reached. It would not be allowable to make the Rebellion a
+success, if the writer so desired, even on the pages of romance; and it
+would not be fair or just to ignore the bravery, the self-sacrifice, and
+the heroic endurance of the Southern people in a cause they believed to
+be holy and patriotic, as almost universally admitted at the present
+time, any more than it would be to lose sight of the magnificent spirit,
+the heroism, the courage, and the persistence, of the Northern people in
+accomplishing what they believed then, and still believe, was a holy and
+patriotic duty in the preservation of the Union.
+
+Incidents not inconsistent with the final result, or with the spirit
+of the people on either side in the great conflict are of comparatively
+little consequence. That General Lee or General Grant turned this or
+that corner in reaching Appomattox may be important, but the grand
+historical tableau is the Christian hero, noble in the midst of defeat,
+disaster, and ruin, formally rendering his sword to the impassible but
+magnanimous conqueror as the crowning event of a long and bloody war.
+The details are historically important, though overshadowed by the
+mighty result of the great conflict.
+
+Many of the personages of the preceding volumes have been introduced in
+the present one, and the central figure remains the same. The writer is
+willing to admit that his hero is an ideal character, though his lofty
+tone and patriotic spirit were fully paralleled by veritable individuals
+during the war; and he is not prepared to apologize for the abundant
+success which attended the career of Christy Passford. Those who really
+struggled as earnestly and faithfully deserved his good fortune, though
+they did not always obtain it.
+
+  Dorchester, Mass., April 24, 1890.
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+                                              Page
+CHAPTER I.
+The United States Steamer Bronx                 15
+
+CHAPTER II.
+A Dinner for the Confederacy                    26
+
+CHAPTER III.
+The Intruder at the Cabin Door                  37
+
+CHAPTER IV.
+A Deaf and Dumb Mystery                         48
+
+CHAPTER V.
+A Confidential Steward                          59
+
+CHAPTER VI.
+A Mission up the Foremast                       70
+
+CHAPTER VII.
+An Interview on the Bridge                      81
+
+CHAPTER VIII.
+Important Information, if True                  92
+
+CHAPTER IX.
+A Volunteer Captain's Clerk                    103
+
+CHAPTER X.
+The Unexpected Orders                          114
+
+CHAPTER XI.
+Another Reading of the Sealed Orders           125
+
+CHAPTER XII.
+A Sail on the Starboard Bow                    136
+
+CHAPTER XIII.
+The Steamer in the Fog                         147
+
+CHAPTER XIV.
+The Confederate Steamer Scotian                158
+
+CHAPTER XV.
+The Scotian becomes the Ocklockonee            169
+
+CHAPTER XVI.
+Captain Passford's Final Orders                180
+
+CHAPTER XVII.
+A Couple of Astonished Conspirators            191
+
+CHAPTER XVIII.
+A Triangular Action with Great Guns            202
+
+CHAPTER XIX.
+On the Deck of the Arran                       213
+
+CHAPTER XX.
+The New Commander of the Bronx                 224
+
+CHAPTER XXI.
+An Expedition in the Gulf                      235
+
+CHAPTER XXII.
+A Night Expedition in the Boats                246
+
+CHAPTER XXIII.
+The Visit to a Shore Battery                   257
+
+CHAPTER XXIV.
+Captain Lonley of the Steamer Havana           268
+
+CHAPTER XXV.
+The New Engineer of the Prize Steamer          279
+
+CHAPTER XXVI.
+The Battle with the Soldiers                   290
+
+CHAPTER XXVII.
+The Innocent Captain of the Garrison           301
+
+CHAPTER XXVIII.
+The Bearer of Despatches                       312
+
+CHAPTER XXIX.
+The New Commander of the Vixen                 323
+
+CHAPTER XXX.
+The Action with a Privateer Steamer            334
+
+CHAPTER XXXI.
+A Short Visit to Bonnydale                     345
+
+
+
+
+ON THE BLOCKADE
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER I
+
+THE UNITED STATES STEAMER BRONX
+
+
+"She is a fine little steamer, father, without the possibility of a
+doubt," said Lieutenant Passford, who was seated at the table with his
+father in the captain's cabin on board of the Bronx. "I don't feel quite
+at home here, and I don't quite like the idea of being taken out of the
+Bellevite."
+
+"You are not going to sea for the fun of it, my son," replied Captain
+Passford. "You are not setting out on a yachting excursion, but on the
+most serious business in the world."
+
+"I know and feel all that, father, but I have spent so many pleasant
+days, hours, weeks, and months on board of the Bellevite, that I am
+very sorry to leave her," added Christy Passford, who had put on his new
+uniform, which was that of master in the United States Navy; and he was
+as becoming to the uniform as the uniform was to him.
+
+"You cannot well help having some regrets at leaving the Bellevite;
+but you must remember that your life on board of her was mostly in the
+capacity of a pleasure-seeker, though you made a good use of your time
+and of your opportunities for improvement; and that is the reason why
+you have made such remarkable progress in your present profession."
+
+"I shall miss my friends on board of the Bellevite. I have sailed with
+all her officers, and Paul Vapoor and I have been cronies for years,"
+continued Christy, with a shade of gloom on his bright face.
+
+"You will probably see them occasionally, and if your life is spared
+you may again find yourself an officer of the Bellevite. But I think
+you have no occasion to indulge in any regrets," said Captain Passford,
+imparting a cheerful expression to his dignified countenance. "Allow me
+to call your attention to the fact that you are the commander of this
+fine little steamer. Here you are in your own cabin, and you are still
+nothing but a boy, hardly eighteen years old."
+
+"If I have not earned my rank, it is not my fault that I have it,"
+answered Christy, hardly knowing whether to be glad or sorry for his
+rapid advancement. "I have never asked for anything; I did not ask or
+expect to be promoted. I was satisfied with my rank as a midshipman."
+
+"I did not ask for your promotion, though I could probably have procured
+for you the rank of master when you entered the navy. I do not like to
+ask favors for a member of my own family. I have wished you to feel that
+you were in the service of your country because it needs you, and not
+for glory or profit."
+
+"And I have tried to feel so, father."
+
+"I think you have felt so, my son; and I am prouder of the fact that you
+are a disinterested patriot than of the rank you have nobly and bravely
+won," said Captain Passford, as he took some letters from his pocket,
+from which he selected one bearing an English postage stamp. "I have
+a letter from one of my agents in England, which, I think, contains
+valuable information. I have called the attention of the government to
+these employes of mine, and they will soon pass from my service to that
+of the naval department. The information sent me has sometimes been very
+important."
+
+"I know that myself, for the information that came from that source
+enabled the Bellevite to capture the Killbright," added Christy.
+
+"The contents of the letter in my hand have been sent to the Secretary
+of the Navy; but it will do no harm for you to possess the information
+given to me," continued Captain Passford, as he opened the letter. "But
+I see a man at work at the foot of the companion way, and I don't care
+to post the whole ship's company on this subject."
+
+"That is Pink Mulgrum," said Christy with a smile on his face. "He is
+deaf and dumb, and he cannot make any use of what you say."
+
+"Don't be sure of anything, Christy, except your religion and your
+patriotism, in these times," added Captain Passford, as he rose and
+closed the door of the cabin.
+
+"I don't think there is much danger from a deaf mute, father," said the
+young commander of the Bronx laughing.
+
+"Perhaps not; but when you have war intelligence to communicate, it is
+best to believe that every person has ears, and that every door has a
+keyhole. I learn from this letter that the Scotian sailed from Glasgow,
+and the Arran from Leith. The agent is of the opinion that both these
+steamers are fitted out by the same owners, who have formed a company,
+apparently to furnish the South with gunboats for its navy, as well as
+with needed supplies. In his letter my correspondent gives me the reason
+for this belief on his part."
+
+"Does your agent give you any description of the vessels, father?" asked
+Christy, his eyes sparkling with the interest he felt in the
+information.
+
+"Not a very full description, my son, for no strangers were allowed on
+board of either of them, for very obvious reasons; but they are both of
+less than five hundred tons burthen, are of precisely the same model and
+build, evidently constructed in the same yard. Both had been pleasure
+yachts, though owned by different gentlemen. Both sailed on the same
+day, the Scotian from Greenock and the Arran from Leith, March 3."
+
+Christy opened his pocket diary, and put his finger on the date
+mentioned, counting up the days that had elapsed from that time to the
+present. Captain Passford could not help smiling at the interest his son
+manifested in the intelligence he had brought to him. The acting
+commander of the Bronx went over his calculation again.
+
+"It is fourteen days since these vessels sailed," said he, looking at
+his father. "I doubt if your information will be of any value to me, for
+I suppose the steamers were selected on account of their great speed, as
+is the case with all blockade runners."
+
+"Undoubtedly they were chosen for their speed, for a slow vessel does
+not amount to much in this sort of service," replied Captain Passford.
+"I received my letter day before yesterday, when the two vessels had
+been out twelve days."
+
+"If they are fast steamers, they ought to be approaching the Southern
+coast by this time," suggested Christy.
+
+"This is a windy month, and a vessel bound to the westward would
+encounter strong westerly gales, so that she could hardly make a quick
+passage. Then these steamers will almost certainly put in at Nassau or
+the Bermudas, if not for coal and supplies, at least to obtain the
+latest intelligence from the blockaded coast, and to pick up a pilot for
+the port to which they are bound. The agent thinks it is possible that
+the Scotian and Arran will meet some vessel to the southward of the Isle
+of Wight that will put an armament on board of them. He had written to
+another of my agents at Southampton to look up this matter. It is a
+quick mail from the latter city to New York, and I may get another
+letter on this subject before you sail, Christy."
+
+"My orders may come off to me to-day," added the acting commander. "I am
+all ready to sail, and I am only waiting for them."
+
+"If these two steamers sail in company, as they are likely to do if they
+are about equal in speed, and if they take on board an armament, it will
+hardly be prudent for you to meddle with them," said Captain Passford
+with a smile, though he had as much confidence in the prudence as in the
+bravery of his son.
+
+"What shall I do, father, run away from them?" asked Christy, opening
+his eyes very wide.
+
+"Certainly, my son. There is as much patriotism in running away from a
+superior force as there is in fighting an equal, for if the government
+should lose your vessel and lose you and your ship's company, it would
+be a disaster of more or less consequence to your country."
+
+"I hardly think I shall fall in with the Scotian and the Arran, so I
+will not consider the question of running away from them," said Christy
+laughing.
+
+"You have not received your orders yet, but they will probably require
+you to report at once to the flag-officer in the Gulf, and perhaps
+they will not permit you to look up blockade runners on the high seas,"
+suggested Captain Passford. "These vessels may be fully armed and
+manned, in charge of Confederate naval officers; and doubtless they will
+be as glad to pick up the Bronx as you would be to pick up the Scotian
+or the Arran. You don't know yet whether they will come as simple
+blockade runners, or as naval vessels flying the Confederate flag.
+Whatever your orders, Christy, don't allow yourself to be carried away
+by any Quixotic enthusiasm."
+
+"I don't think I have any more than half as much audacity as Captain
+Breaker said I had. As I look upon it, my first duty is to deliver my
+ship over to the flag-officer in the Gulf; and I suppose I shall be
+instructed to pick up a Confederate cruiser or a blockade runner, if
+one should cross my course."
+
+"Obey your orders, Christy, whatever they may be. Now, I should like
+to look over the Bronx before I go on shore," said Captain Passford.
+"I think you said she was of about two hundred tons."
+
+"That was what they said down south; but she is about three hundred
+tons," replied Christy, as he proceeded to show his father the cabin
+in which the conversation had taken place.
+
+The captain's cabin was in the stern of the vessel, according to the
+orthodox rule in naval vessels. Of course it was small, though it seemed
+large to Christy who had spent so much of his leisure time in the cabin
+of the Florence, his sailboat on the Hudson. It was substantially fitted
+up, with little superfluous ornamentation; but it was a complete parlor,
+as a landsman would regard it. From it, on the port side opened the
+captain's state room, which was quite ample for a vessel no larger
+than the Bronx. Between it and the pantry on the starboard side, was
+a gangway leading from the foot of the companion way, by which the
+captain's cabin and the ward room were accessible from the quarter deck.
+
+Crossing the gangway at the foot of the steps, Christy led the way
+into the ward room, where the principal officers were accommodated.
+It contained four berths, with portieres in front of them, which could
+be drawn out so as to inclose each one in a temporary state room.
+The forward berth on the starboard side was occupied by the first
+lieutenant, and the after one by the second lieutenant, according to the
+custom in the navy. On the port side, the forward berth belonged to the
+chief engineer, and the after one to the surgeon. Forward of this was
+the steerage, in which the boatswain, gunner, carpenter, the assistant
+engineers, and the steward were berthed. Each of these apartments was
+provided with a table upon which the meals were served to the officers
+occupying it. The etiquette of a man-of-war is even more exacting than
+that of a drawing room on shore.
+
+Captain Passford was then conducted to the deck where he found the
+officers and seamen engaged in their various duties. Besides his son,
+the former owner of the Bellevite was acquainted with only two persons
+on board of the Bronx, Sampson, the engineer, and Flint, the acting
+first lieutenant, both of whom had served on board of the steam yacht.
+Christy's father gave them a hearty greeting, and both were as glad to
+see him as he was to greet them. Captain Passford then looked over the
+rest of the ship's company with a deeper interest than he cared to
+manifest, for they were to some extent bound up with the immediate
+future of his son. It was not such a ship's company as that which manned
+the Bellevite, though composed of much good material. The captain shook
+hands with his son, and went on board of his boat. Two hours later he
+came on board again.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II
+
+A DINNER FOR THE CONFEDERACY
+
+
+Christy Passford was not a little surprised to see his father so soon
+after his former visit, and he was confident that he had some good
+reason for coming. He conducted him at once to his cabin, where Captain
+Passford immediately seated himself at the table, and drew from his
+pocket a telegram.
+
+"I found this on my desk when I went to my office," said he, opening a
+cable message, and placing it before Christy.
+
+"'Mutton, three veal, four sea chickens,'" Christy read from the paper
+placed before him, laughing all the time as he thought it was a joke of
+some sort. "Signed 'Warnock.' It looks as though somebody was going to
+have a dinner, father. Mutton, veal, and four sea chickens seem to form
+the substantial of the feast, though I never ate any sea chickens."
+
+"Perhaps somebody will have a dinner, but I hope it will prove to be
+indigestible to those for whom it is provided," added Captain Passford,
+amused at the comments of his son.
+
+"The message is signed by Warnock. I don't happen to have the pleasure
+of his acquaintance, and I don't see why he has taken the trouble to
+send you this bill of fare," chuckled the commander of the Bronx.
+
+"This bill of fare is of more importance to me, and especially to you,
+than you seem to understand."
+
+"It is all Greek to me; and I wonder why Warnock, whoever he may be, has
+spent his money in sending you such a message, though I suppose you know
+who is to eat this dinner."
+
+"The expense of sending the cablegram is charged to me, though the
+dinner is prepared for the Confederate States of America. Of course I
+understand it, for if I could not, it would not have been sent to me,"
+replied Captain Passford, assuming a very serious expression. "You know
+Warnock, for he has often been at Bonnydale, though not under the name
+he signs to this message. My three agents, one in the north, one in the
+south, and one in the west of England, have each an assumed name. They
+are Otis, Barnes, and Wilson, and you know them all. They have been
+captains or mates in my employ; and they know all about a vessel when
+they see it."
+
+"I know them all very well, and they are all good friends of mine,"
+added Christy.
+
+"Warnock is Captain Barnes, and this message comes from him. Captain
+Otis signs himself Bixwell in his letters and cablegrams, and Mr.
+Wilson, who was formerly mate of the Manhattan, uses the name of
+Fleetley."
+
+"I begin to see into your system, father; and I suppose the government
+will carry out your plan."
+
+"Very likely; for it would hardly be proper to send such information as
+these men have to transmit in plain English, for there may be spies or
+operators bribed by Confederate agents to suppress such matter."
+
+"I see. I understand the system very well, father," said Christy.
+
+"It is simple enough," added his father, as he took a paper from his
+pocket-book.
+
+"If you only understand it, it is simple enough."
+
+"I can interpret the language of this message, and there is not another
+person on the western continent that can do so. Now, look at the
+cablegram, Christy," continued Captain Passford, as he opened the
+paper he held in his hand. "What is the first word?"
+
+"Mutton," replied the commander.
+
+"Mutton means armed; that is to say the Scotian and the Arran took an
+armament on board at some point south of England, as indicated by the
+fact that the intelligence comes from Warnock. In about a week the mail
+will bring me a letter from him in which he will explain how he obtained
+this information."
+
+"He must have chartered a steamer and cruised off the Isle of Wight to
+pick it up," suggested Christy.
+
+"He is instructed to do that when necessary. What is the next word?"
+
+"'Three,'" replied Christy.
+
+"One means large, two medium, and three small," explained his father.
+"Three what, does it say?"
+
+"'Three veal.'"
+
+"Veal means ship's company, or crew."
+
+"Putting the pieces together, then, 'three veal' means that the Scotian
+and the Arran have small crews," said Christy, intensely interested in
+the information.
+
+"Precisely so. Read the rest of the message," added Captain Passford.
+
+"'Four sea chickens,'" the commander read.
+
+"'Four' means some, a few, no great number; in other words, rather
+indefinite. Very likely Warnock could not obtain exact information.
+'C' stands for Confederate, and 'sea' is written instead of the letter.
+'Chickens' means officers. 'Four sea chickens,' translated means 'some
+Confederate officers.'"
+
+Christy had written down on a piece of paper the solution of the enigma,
+as interpreted by his father, though not the symbol words of the
+cablegram. He continued to write for a little longer time, amplifying
+and filling in the wanting parts of the message. Then he read what he
+had written, as follows: "'The Scotian and the Arran are armed; there
+are some Confederate officers on board, but their ship's companies are
+small.' Is that it, father?"
+
+"That is the substance of it," replied Captain Passford, as he restored
+the key of the cipher to his pocket-book, and rose from his seat. "Now
+you know all that can be known on this side of the Atlantic in regard to
+the two steamers. The important information is that they are armed, and
+even with small crews they may be able to sink the Bronx, if you should
+happen to fall in with them, or if your orders required you to be on the
+lookout for them. There is a knock at the door."
+
+Christy opened the door, and found a naval officer waiting to see him.
+He handed him a formidable looking envelope, with a great seal upon it.
+The young commander looked at its address, and saw that it came from the
+Navy Department. With it was a letter, which he opened. It was an order
+for the immediate sailing of the Bronx, the sealed orders to be opened
+when she reached latitude 38 deg. N. The messenger spoke some pleasant
+words, and then took his leave. Christy returned to the cabin, and
+showed the ponderous envelope to his father.
+
+"Sealed orders, as I supposed you would have," said Captain Passford.
+
+"And this is my order to sail immediately on receipt of it," added
+Christy.
+
+"Then I must leave you, my son; and may the blessing of God go with you
+wherever your duty calls you!" exclaimed the father, not a little shaken
+by his paternal feelings. "Be brave, be watchful; but be prudent under
+all circumstances. Bravery and Prudence ought to be twin sisters, and
+I hope you will always have one of them on each side of you. I am not
+afraid that you will be a poltroon, a coward; but I do fear that your
+enthusiasm may carry you farther than you ought to go."
+
+"I hope not, father; and your last words to me shall be remembered. When
+I am about to engage in any important enterprise, I will recall your
+admonition, and ask myself if I am heeding it."
+
+"That satisfies me. I wish you had such a ship's company as we had on
+board of the Bellevite; but you have a great deal of good material, and
+I am confident that you will make the best use of it. Remember that you
+are fighting for your country and the best government God ever gave to
+the nations of the earth. Be brave, be prudent; but be a Christian, and
+let no mean, cruel or unworthy action stain your record."
+
+Captain Passford took the hand of his son, and though neither of them
+wept, both of them were under the influence of the strongest emotions.
+Christy accompanied his father to the accommodation ladder, and shook
+hands with him again as he embarked in his boat. His mother and his
+sister had been on board that day, and the young commander had parted
+from them with quite as much emotion as on the present occasion. The
+members of the family were devotedly attached to each other, and in some
+respects the event seemed like a funeral to all of them, and not less to
+Christy than to the others, though he was entering upon a very exalted
+duty for one of his years.
+
+"Pass the word for Mr. Flint," said Christy, after he had watched the
+receding boat that bore away his father for a few minutes.
+
+"On duty, Captain Passford," said the first lieutenant, touching his cap
+to him a few minutes later.
+
+"Heave short the anchor, and make ready to get under way," added the
+commander.
+
+"Heave short, sir," replied Mr. Flint, as he touched his cap and
+retired. "Pass the word for Mr. Giblock."
+
+Mr. Giblock was the boatswain of the ship, though he had only the rank
+of a boatswain's mate. He was an old sailor, as salt as a barrel of
+pickled pork, and knew his duty from keel to truck. In a few moments his
+pipe was heard, and the seamen began to walk around the capstan.
+
+"Cable up and down, sir," said the boatswain, reporting to the second
+lieutenant on the forecastle.
+
+Mr. Lillyworth was the acting second lieutenant, though he was not to
+be attached to the Bronx after she reached her destination in the Gulf.
+He repeated the report from the boatswain to the first lieutenant. The
+steamer was rigged as a topsail schooner; but the wind was contrary, and
+no sail was set before getting under way. The capstan was manned again,
+and as soon as the report came from the second lieutenant that the
+anchor was aweigh, the first lieutenant gave the order to strike one
+bell, which meant that the steamer was to go "ahead slow."
+
+The Bronx had actually started on her mission, and the heart of Christy
+swelled in his bosom as he looked over the vessel, and realized that
+he was in command, though not for more than a week or two. All the
+courtesies and ceremonies were duly attended to, and the steamer, as
+soon as the anchor had been catted and fished, at the stroke of four
+bells, went ahead at full speed, though, as the fires had been banked in
+the furnaces, the engine was not working up to its capacity. In a couple
+of hours more she was outside of Sandy Hook, and on the broad ocean. The
+ship's company had been drilled to their duties, and everything worked
+to the entire satisfaction of the young commander.
+
+The wind was ahead and light. All hands had been stationed, and at four
+in the afternoon, the first dog watch was on duty, and there was not
+much that could be called work for any one to do. Mr. Lillyworth, the
+second lieutenant, had the deck, and Christy had retired to his cabin
+to think over the events of the day, especially those relating to the
+Scotian and the Arran. He had not yet read his orders, and he could not
+decide what he should do, even if he discovered the two steamers in
+his track. He sat in his arm chair with the door of the cabin open,
+and when he saw the first lieutenant on his way to the ward room,
+he called him in.
+
+"Well, Mr. Flint, what do you think of our crew?" asked the captain,
+after he had seated his guest.
+
+"I have hardly seen enough of the men to be able to form an opinion,"
+replied Flint. "I am afraid we have some hard material on board, though
+there are a good many first-class fellows among them."
+
+"Of course we can not expect to get such a crew as we had in the
+Bellevite. How do you like Mr. Lillyworth?" asked the commander, looking
+sharply into the eye of his subordinate.
+
+"I don't like him," replied Flint, bluntly. "You and I have been in some
+tight places together, and it is best to speak our minds squarely."
+
+"That's right, Mr. Flint. We will talk of him another time. I have
+another matter on my mind just now," added Christy.
+
+He proceeded to tell the first lieutenant something about the two
+steamers.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III
+
+THE INTRUDER AT THE CABIN DOOR
+
+
+Before he said anything about the Scotian and the Arran, Christy,
+mindful of the injunction of his father, had closed the cabin door,
+the portiere remaining drawn as it was before. When he had taken this
+precaution, he related some of the particulars which had been given to
+him earlier in the day.
+
+"It is hardly worth while to talk about the matter yet awhile," added
+Christy. "I have my sealed orders, and I can not open the envelope until
+we are in latitude 38, and that will be sometime to-morrow forenoon."
+
+"I don't think that Captain Folkner, who expected to be in command
+of the Teaser, as she was called before we put our hands upon her,
+overestimated her speed," replied Lieutenant Flint, consulting his
+watch. "We are making fifteen knots an hour just now, and Mr. Sampson
+is not hurrying her. I have been watching her very closely since we left
+Sandy Hook, and I really believe she will make eighteen knots with a
+little crowding."
+
+"What makes you think so, Flint?" asked Christy, much interested in the
+statement of the first lieutenant.
+
+"I suppose it is natural for a sailor to fall in love with his ship,
+and that is my condition in regard to the Bronx," replied Flint, with
+a smile which was intended as a mild apology for his weakness. "I used
+to be in love with the coasting schooner I owned and commanded, and I
+almost cried when I had to sell her."
+
+"I don't think you need to be ashamed of this sentiment, or that
+an inanimate structure should call it into being," said the young
+commander. "I am sure I have not ceased to love the Bellevite; and in
+my eyes she is handsomer than any young lady I ever saw. I have not been
+able to transfer my affections to the Bronx as yet, and she will have to
+do something very remarkable before I do so. But about the speed of our
+ship?"
+
+"I have noticed particularly how easily and gracefully she makes her way
+through the water when she is going fifteen knots. Why that is faster
+than most of the ocean passenger steamers travel."
+
+"Very true; but like many of these blockade runners and other vessels
+which the Confederate government and rich men at the South have
+purchased in the United Kingdom, she was doubtless built on the Clyde.
+Not a few of them have been constructed for private yachts, and I have
+no doubt, from what I have seen, that the Bronx is one of the number.
+The Scotian and the Arran belonged to wealthy Britishers; and of course
+they were built in the very best manner, and were intended to attain the
+very highest rate of speed."
+
+"I shall count on eighteen knots at least on the part of the Bronx when
+the situation shall require her to do her best. By the way, Captain
+Passford, don't you think that a rather queer name has been given to our
+steamer? Bronx! I am willing to confess that I don't know what the word
+means, or whether it is fish, flesh or fowl," continued Flint.
+
+"It is not fish, flesh or fowl," replied Christy, laughing. "My father
+suggested the name to the Department, and it was adopted. He talked with
+me about a name, as he thought I had some interest in her, for the
+reason that I had done something in picking her up."
+
+"Done something? I should say that you had done it all," added Flint.
+
+"I did my share. The vessels of the navy have generally been named after
+a system, though it has often been varied. Besides the names of states
+and cities, the names of rivers have been given to vessels. The Bronx is
+the name of a small stream, hardly more than a brook, in West Chester
+County, New York. When I was a small boy, my father had a country place
+on its banks, and I did my first paddling in the water in the Bronx.
+I liked the name, and my father recommended it."
+
+"I don't object to the name, though somehow it makes me think of a
+walnut cracked in your teeth when I hear it pronounced," added Flint.
+"Now that I know what it is and what it means, I shall take more kindly
+to it, though I am afraid we shall get to calling her the Bronxy before
+we have done with her, especially if she gets to be a pet, for the name
+seems to need another syllable."
+
+"Young men fall in love with girls without regard to their names."
+
+"That's so. A friend of mine in our town in Maine fell in love with a
+young lady by the name of Leatherbee; but she was a very pretty girl and
+her name was all the objection I had to her," said Flint, chuckling.
+
+"But that was an objection which your friend evidently intended to
+remove at no very distant day," suggested Christy.
+
+"Very true; and he did remove it some years ago. What was that noise?"
+asked the first lieutenant, suddenly rising from his seat.
+
+Christy heard the sounds at the same moment. He and his companion in the
+cabin had been talking about the Scotian and the Arran, and what his
+father had said to him about prudence in speaking of his movements came
+to his mind. The noise was continued, and he hastened to the door of his
+state room, and threw it open. In the room he found Dave hard at work on
+the furniture; he had taken out the berth sack, and was brushing out the
+inside of the berth. The noise had been made by the shaking of the slats
+on which the mattress rested. Davis Talbot, the cabin steward of the
+Bronx, had been captured in the vessel when she was run out of Pensacola
+Bay some months before. As he was a very intelligent colored man, or
+rather mulatto, though they were all the same at the South, the young
+commander had selected him for his present service; and he never had
+occasion to regret the choice. Dave had passed his time since the Teaser
+arrived at New York at Bonnydale, and he had become a great favorite,
+not only with Christy, but with all the members of the family.
+
+"What are you about, Dave?" demanded Christy, not a little astonished to
+find the steward in his room.
+
+"I am putting the room in order for the captain, sir," replied Dave
+with a cheerful smile, such as he always wore in the presence of his
+superiors. "I found something in this berth I did not like to see about
+a bed in which a gentleman is to sleep, and I have been through it with
+poison and a feather; and I will give you the whole southern Confederacy
+if you find a single redback in the berth after this."
+
+"I am very glad you have attended to this matter at once, Dave."
+
+"Yes, sir; Captain Folkner never let me attend to it properly, for he
+was afraid I would read some of his papers on the desk. He was willing
+to sleep six in a bed with redbacks," chuckled Dave.
+
+"Well, I am not, or even two in a bed with such companions. How long
+have you been in my room, Dave?" added Christy.
+
+"More than two hours, I think; and I have been mighty busy too."
+
+"Did you hear me when I came into the cabin?"
+
+"No, sir, I did not; but I heard you talking with somebody a while ago."
+
+"What did I say to the other person?"
+
+"I don't know, sir; I could not make out a word, and I didn't stop in my
+work to listen. I have been very busy, Captain Passford," answered Dave,
+beginning to think he had been doing something that was not altogether
+regular.
+
+"Don't you know what we were talking about, Dave?"
+
+"No, sir; I did not make out a single word you said," protested the
+steward, really troubled to find that he had done something wrong,
+though he had not the least idea what it was. "I did not mean to do
+anything out of the way, Captain Passford."
+
+"I have no fault to find this time, Dave."
+
+"I should hope not, sir," added Dave, looking as solemn as a sleepy owl.
+"I would jump overboard before I would offend you, Massa Christy."
+
+"You need not jump overboard just yet," replied the captain, with a
+pleasant smile, intended to remove the fears of the steward. "But I want
+to make a new rule for you, Dave."
+
+"Thank you, sir; if you sit up nights to make rules for me, I will obey
+all of them; and I would give you the whole State of Florida before I
+would break one of them on purpose, Massa Christy."
+
+"Massa Christy!" exclaimed the captain, laughing.
+
+"Massa Captain Passford!" shouted Dave, hastening to correct his
+over-familiarity.
+
+"I don't object to your calling me Christy when we are alone, for I look
+upon you as my friend, and I have tried to treat you as a gentleman,
+though you are a subordinate. But are you going to be a nigger again,
+and call white men 'Massa?' I told you not to use that word."
+
+"I done forget it when I got excited because I was afraid I had offended
+you," pleaded the steward.
+
+"Your education is vastly superior to most people of your class, and you
+should not belittle yourself. This is my cabin; and I shall sometimes
+have occasion to talk confidentially with my officers. Do you understand
+what I mean, Dave?"
+
+"Perfectly, Captain Passford: I know what it is to talk confidently and
+what it is to talk confidentially, and you do both, sir," replied the
+steward.
+
+"But I am sometimes more confidential than confident. Now you must do
+all your work in my state room when I am not in the cabin, and this is
+the new rule," said Christy, as he went out of the room. "I know that I
+can trust you, Dave; but when I tell a secret I want to know to how many
+persons I am telling it. You may finish your work now;" and he closed
+the door.
+
+Christy could not have explained why he did so if it had been required
+of him, but he went directly to the door leading out into the companion
+way, and suddenly threw it wide open, drawing the portiere aside at the
+same time. Not a little to his surprise, for he had not expected it,
+he found a man there; and the intruder was down on his knees, as if in
+position to place his ear at the keyhole. This time the young commander
+was indignant, and without stopping to consider as long as the precepts
+of his father required, he seized the man by the collar, and dragged him
+into the cabin.
+
+"What are you doing there?" demanded Christy in the heat of his
+indignation.
+
+The intruder, who was a rather stout man, began to shake his head with
+all his might, and to put the fore finger of his right hand on his mouth
+and one of his ears. He was big enough to have given the young commander
+a deal of trouble if he had chosen to resist the force used upon him;
+but he appeared to be tame and submissive. He did not speak, but he
+seemed to be exerting himself to the utmost to make himself understood.
+Flint had resumed his seat at the table, facing the door, and in spite
+of himself, apparently, he began to laugh.
+
+"That is Pink Mulgrum, Captain Passford," said he, evidently to prevent
+his superior from misinterpreting the lightness of his conduct. "As you
+are aware, he is deaf and dumb."
+
+  [Illustration: Mulgrum at the captain's door.]
+
+"I see who he is now," replied Christy, who had just identified the man.
+"He may be deaf and dumb, but he seems to have a great deal of business
+at the door of my cabin."
+
+"I have no doubt he is as deaf as the keel of the ship, and I have not
+yet heard him speak a word," added the first lieutenant. "But he is a
+stout fellow, very patriotic, and willing to work."
+
+"All that may be, but I have found him once before hanging around that
+door to-day."
+
+At this moment Mulgrum took from his pocket a tablet of paper and a
+pencil, and wrote upon it, "I am a deaf mute, and I don't know what you
+are talking about." Christy read it, and then wrote, "What were you
+doing at the door?" He replied that he had been sent by Mr. Lillyworth
+to clean the brasses on the door. He was then dismissed.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IV
+
+A DEAF AND DUMB MYSTERY
+
+
+As he dismissed Mulgrum, Christy tore off the leaf from the tablet on
+which both of them had written before he handed it back to the owner.
+For a few moments, he said nothing, and had his attention fixed on the
+paper in his hand, which he seemed to be studying for some reason of his
+own.
+
+"That man writes a very good hand for one in his position," said he,
+looking at the first lieutenant.
+
+"I had noticed that before," replied Flint, as the commander handed
+him the paper, which he looked over with interest. "I had some talk with
+him on his tablet the day he came on board. He strikes me as a very
+intelligent and well-educated man."
+
+"Was he born a deaf mute?" asked Christy.
+
+"I did not think to ask him that question; but I judged from the
+language he used and his rapid writing that he was well educated. There
+is character in his handwriting too; and that is hardly to be expected
+from a deaf mute," replied Flint.
+
+"Being a deaf mute, he can not have been shipped as a seaman, or even as
+an ordinary steward," suggested the captain.
+
+"Of course not; he was employed as a sort of scullion to be worked
+wherever he could make himself useful. Mr. Nawood engaged him on the
+recommendation of Mr. Lillyworth," added Flint, with something like a
+frown on his brow, as though he had just sounded a new idea.
+
+"Have you asked Mr. Lillyworth anything about him?"
+
+"I have not; for somehow Mr. Lillyworth and I don't seem to be very
+affectionate towards each other, though we get along very well together.
+But Mulgrum wrote out for me that he was born in Cherryfield, Maine, and
+obtained his education as a deaf mute in Hartford. I learned the deaf
+and dumb alphabet when I was a schoolmaster, as a pastime, and I had
+some practice with it in the house where I boarded."
+
+"Then you can talk in that way with Mulgrum."
+
+"Not a bit of it; he knows nothing at all about the deaf and dumb
+alphabet, and could not spell out a single word I gave him."
+
+"That is very odd," added the captain musing.
+
+"So I thought; but he explained it by saying that at the school they
+were changing this method of communication for that of actually speaking
+and understanding what was said by observing the vocal organs. He had
+not remained long enough to master this method; in fact he had done all
+his talking with his tablets."
+
+"It is a little strange that he should not have learned either method of
+communication."
+
+"I thought so myself, and said as much to him; but he told me that he
+had inherited considerable property at the death of his father, and he
+was not inclined to learn new tricks," said Flint. "He is intensely
+patriotic, and said that he was willing to give himself and all his
+property for the salvation of his country. He had endeavored to obtain
+a position as captain's clerk, or something of that sort, in the navy;
+but failing of this, he had been willing to go to the war as a scullion.
+He says he shall fight, whatever his situation, when he has the
+opportunity; and that is all I know about him."
+
+Christy looked on the floor, and seemed to be considering the facts he
+had just learned. He had twice discovered Mulgrum at the door of his
+cabin, though his presence there had been satisfactorily explained; or
+at least a reason had been given. This man had been brought on board by
+the influence of Mr. Lillyworth, who had been ordered to the Gulf for
+duty, and was on board as a substitute for Mr. Flint, who was acting in
+Christy's place, as the latter was in that of Mr. Blowitt, who outranked
+them all. Flint had not been favorably impressed with the acting second
+lieutenant, and he had not hesitated to speak his mind in regard to him
+to the captain. Though Christy had been more reserved in speech, he had
+the feeling that Mr. Lillyworth must establish a reputation for
+patriotism and fidelity to the government before he could trust him
+as he did the first lieutenant, though he was determined to manifest
+nothing like suspicion in regard to him.
+
+At this stage of the war, that is to say in the earlier years of it,
+the government was obliged to accept such men as it could obtain for
+officers, for the number in demand greatly exceeded the supply of
+regularly educated naval officers. There were a great many applicants
+for positions, and candidates were examined in regard to their
+professional qualifications rather than their motives for entering the
+service. If a man desired to enter the army or the navy, the simple wish
+was regarded as a sufficient guaranty of his patriotism, especially in
+connection with his oath of allegiance. With the deaf mute's leaf in his
+hand Christy was thinking over this matter of the motives of officers.
+He was not satisfied in regard to either Lillyworth or Mulgrum, and
+besides the regular quota of officers and seamen permanently attached
+to the Bronx, there were eighteen seamen and petty officers berthed
+forward, who were really passengers, though they were doing duty.
+
+"Where did you say this man Mulgrum was born, Mr. Flint?" asked the
+captain, after he had mused for quite a time.
+
+"In Cherryfield, Maine," replied the first lieutenant; and he could not
+help feeling that the commander had not been silent so long for nothing.
+
+"You are a Maine man, Flint: were you ever in this town?"
+
+"I have been; I taught school there for six months; and it was the last
+place I filled before I went to sea."
+
+"I am glad to hear it, for it will save me from looking any further for
+the man I want just now. If this deaf mute was born and brought up in
+Cherryfield, he must know something about the place," added Christy as
+he touched a bell on his table, to which Dave instantly responded.
+
+"Do you know Mulgrum, Dave?" asked the captain.
+
+"No, sir; never heard of him before," replied the steward.
+
+"You don't know him! The man who has been cleaning the brass work on the
+doors?" exclaimed Christy.
+
+"Oh! Pink, we all call him," said the steward.
+
+"His name is Pinkney Mulgrum," Flint explained.
+
+"Yes, sir; I know him, though we never had any long talks together,"
+added Dave with a rich smile on his face.
+
+"Go on deck, and tell Mulgrum to come into my cabin," said Christy.
+
+"If I tell him that, he won't hear me," suggested Dave.
+
+"Show him this paper," interposed the first lieutenant, handing him a
+card on which he had written the order.
+
+Dave left the cabin to deliver the message, and the captain immediately
+instructed Flint to question the man in regard to the localities and
+other matters in Cherryfield, suggesting that he should conduct his
+examination so as not to excite any suspicion. Pink Mulgrum appeared
+promptly, and was placed at the table where both of the officers could
+observe his expression. Then Flint began to write on a sheet of paper,
+and passed his first question to the man. It was: "Don't you remember
+me?" Mulgrum wrote that he did not. Then the inquisitor asked when he
+had left Cherryfield to attend the school at Hartford; and the date he
+gave placed him there at the very time when Flint had been the master of
+the school for four months. On the question of locality, he could place
+the church, the schoolhouse and the hotel; and he seemed to have no
+further knowledge of the town. When asked where his father lived, he
+described a white house next to the church; but Flint knew that this had
+been owned and occupied by the minister for many years.
+
+"This man is a humbug," was the next sentence the first lieutenant
+wrote, but he passed it to the captain. Christy wrote under it: "Tell
+him that we are perfectly satisfied with his replies, and thank him for
+his attendance;" which was done at once, and the captain smiled upon him
+as though he had conducted himself with distinguished ability.
+
+"Mulgrum has been in Cherryfield; but he could not have remained there
+more than a day or two," said Flint, when the door had closed behind the
+deaf mute.
+
+The captain made a gesture to impose silence upon his companion.
+
+"Mulgrum is all right in every respect," said he in a loud tone, so
+that if the subject of the examination had stopped at the keyhole of the
+door, he would not be made any the wiser for what he heard there.
+
+"He knows Cherryfield as well as he knows the deck of the Bronx, and as
+you say, Captain Passford, he is all right in every respect," added the
+first lieutenant in the same loud tone. "Mulgrum is a well educated man,
+captain, and you will have a great deal of writing to do: I suggest that
+you bring him into your cabin, and make him your clerk."
+
+"That is a capital idea, Mr. Flint, and I shall consider it," returned
+the commander, making sure that the man at the door should hear him,
+if Mulgrum lingered there. "I have a number of letters sent over from
+England relating to blockade runners that I wish to have copied for the
+use of any naval officers with whom I may fall in; and I have not the
+time to do it myself."
+
+"Mulgrum writes a very handsome hand, and no one could do the work any
+better than he."
+
+Christy thought enough had been said to satisfy the curiosity of Mulgrum
+if he was still active in seeking information, and both of the officers
+were silent. The captain had enough to think of to last him a long
+while. The result of the inquiry into the auditory and vocal powers of
+the scullion, as Flint called him, had convinced him that the deaf mute
+was a fraud. He had no doubt that he could both speak and hear as well
+as the rest of the ship's company. But the puzzling question was in
+relation to the reason why he pretended to be deaf and dumb. If he was
+desirous of serving his country in the navy, and especially in the
+Bronx, it was not necessary to pretend to be deaf and dumb in order to
+obtain a fighting berth on board of her. It looked like a first class
+mystery to the young commander, but he was satisfied that the presence
+of Mulgrum meant mischief. He could not determine at once what it was
+best to do to solve the mystery; but he decided that the most extreme
+watchfulness was required of him and his first lieutenant. This was all
+he could do, and he touched his bell again.
+
+"Dave," said he when the cabin steward presented himself before him, "go
+on deck and ask Mr. Lillyworth to report to me the log and the weather."
+
+"The log and the weather, sir," replied Dave, as he hastened out of the
+cabin.
+
+Christy watched him closely as he went out at the door, and he was
+satisfied that Mulgrum was not in the passage, if he had stopped there
+at all. His present purpose was to disarm all the suspicions of the
+subject of the mystery, but he would have been glad to know whether or
+not the man had lingered at the door to hear what was said in regard to
+him. He was not anxious in regard to the weather, or even the log, and
+he sent Dave on his errand in order to make sure that Mulgrum was not
+still doing duty as a listener.
+
+"Wind south south west, log last time fifteen knots and a half,"
+reported Dave, as he came in after knocking at the door.
+
+"I can not imagine why that man pretended to be deaf and dumb in order
+to get a position on board of the Bronx. He is plainly a fraud," said
+the captain when Dave had gone back to his work in the state room.
+
+"I don't believe he pretended to be a deaf mute in order to get a place
+on board, for that would ordinarily be enough to prevent him from
+getting it. I should put it that he had obtained his place in spite of
+being deaf and dumb. But the mystery exists just the same."
+
+The captain went on deck, and the first lieutenant to the ward room.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER V
+
+A CONFIDENTIAL STEWARD
+
+
+The wind still came from the southward, and it was very light. The sea
+was comparatively smooth, and the Bronx continued on her course. At the
+last bi-hourly heaving of the log, she was making sixteen knots an hour.
+The captain went into the engine room, where he found Mr. Gawl, one of
+the chief's two assistants, on duty. This officer informed him that no
+effort had been made to increase the speed of the steamer, and that she
+was under no strain whatever. The engine had been thoroughly overhauled,
+as well as every other part of the vessel, and every improvement that
+talent and experience suggested had been made. It now appeared that the
+engine had been greatly benefited by whatever changes had been made.
+These improvements had been explained to the commander by Mr. Sampson
+the day before; but Christy had not given much attention to the matter,
+for he preferred to let the speed of the vessel speak for itself; and
+this was what it appeared to be doing at the present time.
+
+Christy walked the deck for some time, observing everything that
+presented itself, and taking especial notice of the working of the
+vessel. Though he made no claims to any superior skill, he was really an
+expert, and the many days and months he had passed in the companionship
+of Paul Vapoor in studying the movements of engines and hulls had made
+him wiser and more skilful than it had even been suspected that he was.
+He was fully competent for the position he was temporarily filling; but
+he had made himself so by years of study and practice.
+
+Christy had not yet obtained all the experience he required as a naval
+officer, and he was fully aware that this was what he needed to enable
+him to discharge his duty in the best manner. He was in command of a
+small steamer, a position of responsibility which he had not coveted in
+this early stage of his career, though it was only for a week or less,
+as the present speed of the Bronx indicated. He had ambition enough to
+hope that he should be able to distinguish himself in this brief period,
+for it might be years before he again obtained such an opportunity. His
+youth was against him, and he was aware that he had been selected to
+take the steamer to the Gulf because there was a scarcity of officers of
+the proper grade, and his rank gave him the position.
+
+The motion of the Bronx exactly suited him, and he judged that in a
+heavy sea she would behave very well. He had made one voyage in her from
+the Gulf to New York, and the steamer had done very well, though she had
+been greatly improved at the navy yard. Certainly her motion was better,
+and the connection between the engine and the inert material of which
+the steamer was constructed, seemed to be made without any straining
+or jerking. There was very little shaking and trembling as the powerful
+machinery drove her ahead over the quiet sea. There had been no very
+severe weather during his first cruise in the Bronx, and she had not
+been tested in a storm under his management, though she had doubtless
+encountered severe gales in crossing the Atlantic in a breezy season of
+the year.
+
+While Christy was planking the deck, four bells were struck on the
+ship's great bell on the top-gallant forecastle. It was the beginning
+of the second dog watch, or six o'clock in the afternoon, and the watch
+which had been on duty since four o'clock was relieved. Mr. Flint
+ascended the bridge, and took the place of Mr. Lillyworth, the second
+lieutenant. Under this bridge was the pilot-house, and in spite of her
+small size, the steamer was steered by steam. The ship had been at sea
+but a few hours, and the crew were not inclined to leave the deck. The
+number of men on board was nearly doubled by the addition of those sent
+down to fill vacancies in other vessels on the blockade. Christy went on
+the bridge soon after, more to take a survey inboard than for any other
+purpose.
+
+Mr. Lillyworth had gone aft, but when he met Mulgrum coming up from the
+galley, he stopped and looked around him. With the exception of himself
+nearly the whole ship's company were forward. The commander watched him
+with interest when he stopped in the vicinity of the deaf mute, who
+also halted in the presence of the second lieutenant. Then they walked
+together towards the companion way, and disappeared behind the mainmast.
+Christy had not before noticed any intercourse between the lieutenant
+and the scullion, though he thought it a little odd that the officer
+should set the man at work cleaning the brasses about the door of the
+captain's cabin, a matter that belonged to the steward's department. He
+had learned from Flint that Mulgrum had been recommended to the chief
+steward by Lillyworth, so that it was evident enough that they had been
+acquainted before either of them came on board. But he could not see
+them behind the mast, and he desired very much to know what they were
+doing.
+
+Flint had taken his supper before he went on duty on the bridge, and the
+table was waiting for the other ward room officers who had just been
+relieved. It was time for Lillyworth to go to the meal, but he did not
+go, and he seemed to be otherwise engaged. After a while, Christy looked
+at his watch, and found that a quarter of an hour had elapsed since the
+second lieutenant had left the bridge, and he had spent nearly all this
+time abaft the mainmast with the scullion. The commander had become
+absolutely absorbed in his efforts to fathom the deaf and dumb mystery,
+and fortunately there was nothing else to occupy his attention, for
+Flint had drilled the crew, including the men for other vessels, and
+had billeted and stationed them during the several days he had been on
+board. Everything was working as though the Bronx had been at sea a
+month instead of less than half a day.
+
+Christy was exceedingly anxious to ascertain what, if anything, was
+passing between Lillyworth and Mulgrum; but he could see no way to
+obtain any information on the subject. He had no doubt he was watched as
+closely as he was watching the second lieutenant. If he went aft, that
+would at once end the conference, if one was in progress. He could
+not call upon a seaman to report on such a delicate question without
+betraying himself, and he had not yet learned whom to trust in such a
+matter, and it was hardly proper to call upon a foremast hand to watch
+one of his officers.
+
+The only person on board besides the first lieutenant in whom he felt
+that he could repose entire confidence was Dave. He knew him thoroughly,
+and his color was almost enough to guarantee his loyalty to the country
+and his officers, and especially to himself, for the steward possessed a
+rather extravagant admiration for the one who had "brought him out of
+bondage," as he expressed it, and had treated him like a gentleman from
+first to last. He could trust Dave even on the most delicate mission;
+but Dave was attending to the table in the ward room, and he did not
+care to call him from his duty.
+
+At the end of another five minutes, Christy saw Mulgrum come from abaft
+the mainmast, and descend the ladder to the galley. He saw no more of
+Lillyworth, and he concluded that, keeping himself in the shadow of
+the mast, he had gone below. He remained on the bridge a while longer
+considering what he should do. He said nothing to Flint, for he did
+not like to take up the attention of any officer on duty. The commander
+thought that Dave could render him the assistance he required better
+than any other person on board, for being only a steward and a colored
+man at that, less notice would be taken of him than of one in a higher
+position. He was about to descend from the bridge when Flint spoke to
+him in regard to the weather, though he could have guessed to a point
+what the captain was thinking about, perhaps because the same subject
+occupied his own thoughts.
+
+"I think we shall have a change of weather before morning, Captain
+Passford. The wind is drawing a little more to the southward, and we are
+likely to have wind and rain," said the first lieutenant.
+
+"Wind and rain will not trouble us, and I am more afraid that we shall
+be bothered with fog on this cruise," added Christy as he descended the
+ladder to the main deck.
+
+He walked about the deck for a few minutes, observing the various
+occupations of the men, who were generally engaged in amusing
+themselves, or in "reeling off sea yarns." Then he went below. At the
+foot of the stairs in the companion way, the door of the ward room was
+open, and he saw that Lillyworth was seated at the table. He sat at the
+foot of it, the head being the place of the first lieutenant, and the
+captain could see only his back. He was slightly bald at the apex of
+his head, for he was an older man than either the captain or the first
+lieutenant, but inferior to them in rank, though all of them were
+masters, and seniority depended upon the date of the commissions;
+and even a single day settled the degree in these days of multiplied
+appointments. Christy went into his cabin, where the table was set for
+his own supper.
+
+The commander looked at his barometer, and his reading of it assured him
+that Flint was correct in regard to his prognostics of the weather. But
+the young officer had faced the winter gales of the Atlantic, and the
+approach of any ordinary storm did not disturb him in the least degree.
+On the contrary he rather liked a lively sea, for it was less monotonous
+than a calm. He did not brood over a storm, therefore, but continued
+to consider the subject which had so deeply interested him since he
+discovered Mulgrum on his knees at the door, with a rag and a saucer of
+rottenstone in his hands. He had a curiosity to examine the brass knob
+of his door at that moment, and it did not appear to have been very
+severely rubbed.
+
+"Quarter of seven, sir," said Dave, presenting himself at the door while
+Christy was still musing over the incidents already detailed.
+
+"All right, Dave; I will have my supper now," replied Christy,
+indifferently, for though he was generally blessed with a good appetite
+the mystery was too absorbing to permit the necessary duty of eating to
+drive it out of his mind.
+
+Dave retired, and soon brought in a tray from the galley, the dishes
+from which he arranged on the table. It was an excellent supper, though
+he had not given any especial orders in regard to its preparation. He
+seated himself and began to eat in a rather mechanical manner, and no
+one who saw him would have mistaken him for an epicure. Dave stationed
+himself in front of the commander, so that he was between the table and
+the door. He watched Christy, keeping his eyes fixed on him without
+intermitting his gaze for a single instant. Once in a while he tendered
+a dish to him at the table, but there was but one object in existence
+for Christy at that moment.
+
+"Dave," said the captain, after he had disposed of a portion of his
+supper.
+
+"Here, sir, on duty," replied the steward.
+
+"Open the door behind you, quick!"
+
+Dave obeyed instantly, and threw the door back so that it was wide open,
+though he seemed to be amazed at the strangeness of the order.
+
+"All right, Dave; close it," added Christy, when he saw there was no
+one in the passage; and he concluded that Mulgrum was not likely to be
+practising his vocation when there was no one in the cabin but himself
+and the steward.
+
+Dave obeyed the order like a machine, and then renewed his gaze at the
+commander.
+
+"Are you a Freemason, Dave?" asked Christy.
+
+"No, sir," replied the steward with a magnificent smile.
+
+"A Knight of Pythias, of Pythagoras, or anything of that sort?"
+
+"No, sir; nothing of the sort."
+
+"Then you can't keep a secret?"
+
+"Yes, sir, I can. If I have a secret to keep, I will give the whole
+Alabama River to any one that can get it out of me."
+
+Christy felt sure of his man without this protestation.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VI
+
+A MISSION UP THE FOREMAST
+
+
+Christy spent some time in delivering a lecture on naval etiquette to
+his single auditor. Probably he was not the highest authority on the
+subject of his discourse; but he was sufficiently learned to meet the
+requirements of the present occasion.
+
+"You say you can keep a secret, Dave?" continued the commander.
+
+"I don't take any secrets to keep from everybody, Captain Passford; and
+I don't much like to carry them about with me," replied the steward,
+looking a little more grave than usual, though he still wore a cheerful
+smile.
+
+"Then you don't wish me to confide a secret to you?"
+
+"I don't say that, Captain Passford. I don't want any man's secrets,
+and I don't run after them, except for the good of the service. I was a
+slave once, but I know what I am working for now. If you have a secret I
+ought to know, Captain Passford, I will take it in and bury it away down
+at the bottom of my bosom; and I will give the whole state of Louisiana
+to any one that will dig it out of me."
+
+"That's enough, Dave; and I am willing to trust you without any oath on
+the Bible, and without even a Quaker's affirmation. I believe you will
+be prudent, discreet, and silent for my sake."
+
+"Certainly I will be all that, Captain Passford, for I think you are a
+bigger man than Jeff Davis," protested Dave.
+
+"That is because you do not know the President of the Confederate
+States, and you do know me; but Mr. Davis is a man of transcendent
+ability, and I am only sorry that he is engaged in a bad cause, though
+he believes with all his heart and soul that it is a good cause."
+
+"He never treated me like a gentleman, as you have, sir."
+
+"And he never treated you unkindly, I am very sure."
+
+"He never treated me any way, for I never saw him; and I would not walk
+a hundred miles barefooted to see him, either. I am no gentleman or
+anything of that sort, Massa-- Captain Passford, but if I ever go back
+on you by the breadth of a hair, then the Alabama River will run up
+hill."
+
+"I am satisfied with you, Dave; and here is my hand," added Christy,
+extending it to the steward, who shook it warmly, displaying a good deal
+of emotion as he did so. "Now, Dave, you know Mulgrum, or Pink, as you
+call him?"
+
+"Well, sir, I know him as I do the rest of the people on board; but we
+are not sworn friends yet," replied Dave, rather puzzled to know what
+duty was required of him in connection with the scullion.
+
+"You know him; that is enough. What do you think of him?"
+
+"I haven't had any long talks with him, sir, and I don't know what to
+think of him."
+
+"You know that he is dumb?"
+
+"I expect he is, sir; but he never said anything to me about it,"
+replied Dave. "He never told me he couldn't speak, and I never heard
+him speak to any one on board."
+
+"Did you ever speak to him?"
+
+"Yes, sir; I spoke to him when he first came on board; but he didn't
+answer me, or take any notice of me when I spoke to him, and I got tired
+of it."
+
+"Open that door quickly, Dave," said the captain suddenly.
+
+The steward promptly obeyed the order, and Christy saw that there was
+no one in the passage. He told his companion to close the door, and Dave
+was puzzled to know what this movement could mean.
+
+"I beg your pardon, Captain Passford, and I have no right to ask any
+question; but I should like to know why you make me open that door two
+or three times for nothing," said Dave, in the humblest of tones.
+
+"I told you to open it so that I could see if there was anybody at the
+door. This is my secret, Dave. I have twice found Mulgrum at that door
+while I was talking to the first lieutenant. He pretended to be cleaning
+the brass work."
+
+"What was he there for? When a man is as deaf as the foremast of the
+ship what would he be doing at the door?"
+
+"He was down on his knees, and his ear was not a great way from the
+keyhole of the door."
+
+"But he could not hear anything."
+
+"I don't know: that is what I want to find out. The mission I have for
+you, Dave, is to watch Mulgrum. In a word, I have my doubts in regard to
+his deafness and his dumbness."
+
+"You don't believe he is deaf and dumb, Captain Passford!" exclaimed the
+steward, opening his eyes very wide, and looking as though an earthquake
+had just shaken him up.
+
+"I don't say that, my man. I am in doubt. He may be a deaf mute, as he
+represents himself to be. I wish you to ascertain whether or not he can
+speak and hear. You are a shrewd fellow, Dave, I discovered some time
+ago; in fact the first time I ever saw you. You may do this job in any
+manner you please; but remember that your mission is my secret, and you
+must not betray it to Mulgrum, or to any other person."
+
+"Be sure I won't do that, Captain Passford."
+
+"If you obtain any satisfactory information, convey it to me
+immediately. You must be very careful not to let any one suspect that
+you are watching him, and least of all to let Mulgrum know it. Do you
+understand me perfectly, Dave?"
+
+"Yes, sir; perfectly. Nobody takes any notice of me but you, and it
+won't be a hard job. I think I can manage it without any trouble. I am
+nothing but a nigger, and of no account."
+
+"I have chosen you for this mission because you can do it better than
+any other person, Dave. Don't call yourself a nigger; I don't like the
+word, and you are ninety degrees in the shade above the lower class of
+negroes in the South."
+
+"Thank you, sir," replied the steward with an expansive smile.
+
+"There is one thing I wish you to understand particularly, Dave. I have
+not set you to watch any officer of the ship," said Christy
+impressively.
+
+"No, sir; I reckon Pink Mulgrum is not an officer any more than I am."
+
+"But you may discover, if you find that Mulgrum can speak and hear, that
+he is talking to an officer," added the captain in a low tone.
+
+"What officer, Captain Passford?" asked the steward, opening his eyes
+to their utmost capacity, and looking as bewildered as an owl in the
+gaslight.
+
+"I repeat that I do not set you to watch an officer; and I leave it to
+you to ascertain with whom Mulgrum has any talk, if with any one. Now I
+warn you that, if you accomplish anything in this mission, you will do
+it at night and not in the daytime. That is all that need be said at the
+present time, Dave, and you will attend to your duty as usual. If you
+lose much sleep, you may make it up in the forenoon watch."
+
+"I don't care for the sleep, Captain Passford, and I can keep awake all
+night."
+
+"One thing more, Dave; between eight bells and eight bells to-night,
+during the first watch, you may get at something, but you must keep
+out of sight as much as you can," added Christy, as he rose from his
+armchair, and went into his state room.
+
+Dave busied himself in clearing the table, but he was in a very
+thoughtful mood all the time. Loading up his tray with dishes, he
+carried them through the steerage to the galley, where he found Mulgrum
+engaged in washing those from the ward room, which he had brought out
+some time before. The steward looked at the deaf mute with more interest
+than he had regarded him before. He was a supernumerary on board, and
+any one who had anything to do called Pink to do it. Another waiter was
+greatly needed, and Mr. Nawood, the chief steward, had engaged one, but
+he had failed to come on board before the steamer sailed. Pink had been
+pressed into service for the steerage; but he was of little use, and the
+work seemed very distasteful, if not disgusting, to him. He carried in
+the food, but that was about all he was good for.
+
+Dave watched him for a few minutes as he washed and wiped the dishes,
+and saw that he was very awkward at it; it was plain to him that he was
+not an experienced hand at the business. But he was doing the steward's
+work, and Dave took hold and helped him. Pink was as solemn as an owl,
+and did his work in a very mechanical manner, and without the slightest
+interest in it. The cabin steward had a mission, and he was profoundly
+interested in its execution.
+
+By the side of the galley, or range, was a sink at which they were at
+work. Dave thought he might as well begin then and there to test the
+hearing powers of his companion. Picking up one of the large blowers
+of the range, he placed himself so that Pink could not see what he was
+about, and then banged the sheet iron against the cast iron of the great
+stove. He kept his eye fixed all the time on the scullion. The noise was
+enough for the big midship gun on deck, or even for a small earthquake.
+Pink was evidently startled by the prodigious sound, and turned towards
+the steward, who was satisfied that he had heard it; but the fellow was
+cunning, and realizing that he had committed himself, he picked up one
+of his feet, and began to rub it as though he had been hit by the
+falling blower. At the same time, he pretended to be very angry, and
+demonstrated very earnestly against his companion.
+
+Dave felt that he had made a point, and he did not carry his
+investigation of the auditory capacity of the scullion any farther that
+night. He finished his work below, and then went on deck. He lounged
+about in a very careless manner till eight bells were struck. Mr. Flint
+on the bridge was relieved by Mr. Lillyworth, and the port watch came on
+duty for the next four hours, or until midnight. This was the time the
+captain had indicated to Dave as a favorable one for the discharge of
+his special duty. Taking advantage of the absence of any person from the
+vicinity of the foremast, he adroitly curled himself up in the folds of
+the foresail, which was brailed up to the mast. He had his head in such
+a position that he could see without being seen by any casual passer-by.
+
+He waited in this position over an hour, and during that time Pink went
+back and forth several times, and seemed to be looking up at the bridge,
+which was just forward of the foremast. On the top-gallant forecastle
+were two men on the lookout; in the waist was a quartermaster, who was
+doing the duty that belonged to the third lieutenant, if the scarcity of
+officers had permitted the Bronx to have one. The body of the port watch
+were spinning yarns on the forecastle, and none of them were very near
+the foremast. After a while, as Pink was approaching the forecastle,
+Dave saw the second lieutenant gesticulating to him very earnestly to
+come on the bridge. The supernumerary ascended the ladder, and the
+officer set him at work to lace on the sailcloth to the railing of the
+bridge, to shelter those on duty there from the force of the sea blast.
+
+Dave listened with all his ears for any sound from the bridge; but he
+soon realized that if there was any, he was too far off to hear it. With
+the aid of the lashings of the foresail, he succeeded in climbing up on
+the mast to a point on a level with the bridge, and at the same time to
+make the mast conceal him from the eyes of Mr. Lillyworth and the
+scullion. The latter pretended to be at work, and occasionally the
+second lieutenant "jawed" at him for his clumsiness in lacing the
+sailcloth. Between these growls, they spoke together in a low tone, but
+Dave was near enough to hear what they said. Though he had never heard
+the voice of Pink Mulgrum before, he knew that of the second lieutenant,
+and he was in no danger of confounding the two. Pink used excellent
+language, as the steward was capable of judging, and it was plain enough
+that he was not what he had appeared to be.
+
+  [Illustration: Lillyworth and Mulgrum on the bridge.]
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII
+
+AN INTERVIEW ON THE BRIDGE
+
+
+Although Mr. Lillyworth knew very well that Pink Mulgrum was deaf and
+dumb, he "jawed" at him as though his hearing was as perfect as his own,
+doubtless forgetting for the moment his infirmity.
+
+"Draw up the bight, and lace it tighter," exclaimed the second
+lieutenant, intermixing an expletive at each end of the sentence. "Oh,
+you can't hear me!" he shouted, as though the fact that the scullion
+could not hear him had suddenly come to his mind. "Well, it is a nice
+thing to talk to a deaf man!"
+
+Dave could see that Mulgrum also seemed to forget that his ears were
+closed to all sounds, for he redoubled his efforts to haul the screen
+into its place.
+
+"I could not hear anything that was of any consequence," the steward
+heard the deaf mute say in a lower tone than his companion used.
+
+"Couldn't you hear anything?" asked Mr. Lillyworth, making a spring
+at the canvas as though he was disgusted with the operations of his
+companion on the bridge.
+
+"Only what I have just told you," replied Mulgrum.
+
+"But you were at the door when the captain and the first lieutenant were
+talking together in the cabin," continued the officer in a low tone.
+
+"But they were talking about me, as I told you before," answered the
+scullion, rather impatiently, as though he too had a mind of his own.
+
+"Wasn't anything said about the operations of the future?" demanded Mr.
+Lillyworth.
+
+"Not a word; but you know as well as I do that the captain has sealed
+orders which he will not see before to-morrow. I heard him tell his
+father that he was to open the envelope in latitude 38," said the
+supernumerary.
+
+"You must contrive some way to hear the captain when he reads his
+orders," continued the second lieutenant. "He will be likely to have
+Mr. Flint with him when he opens the envelope."
+
+"It will be difficult," replied Mulgrum, and Dave could imagine that he
+saw him shake his head. "The captain has found me cleaning the brasses
+on his door twice, and it will hardly do to be found at the door again."
+
+"Isn't there any place in his cabin where you can conceal yourself?"
+inquired Mr. Lillyworth.
+
+"I don't know of any place, unless it is his state room; and the cabin
+steward has been at work there almost all the time since we got under
+way. Dave seems to be a sort of confidant of the captain," suggested
+Mulgrum; and it looked as though the deaf mute had not held his tongue
+and kept his ears open for nothing; but the steward could not understand
+how he had got this idea into his head, for he had received his
+instructions while the commander was at supper, and he was sure, as
+he had thrown the door open several times, that the scullion was not
+on the other side of it.
+
+"A nigger for his confidant!" exclaimed the second lieutenant, as he
+interpolated a little jaw for the benefit of the seamen and petty
+officers within earshot of him. "What can we expect when a mere boy
+is put in command of a steamer like this one?"
+
+"I think you need not complain, Pawcett, for you are on board of this
+vessel, and so am I, because she is under the command of a boy. But he
+is a tremendous smart boy, and he is older than many men of double his
+age," added Mulgrum.
+
+Dave realized that the supernumerary was well informed in regard to
+current history in connection with naval matters, and he was willing to
+believe that he was quite as shrewd as the officer at his side.
+
+"The boy is well enough, though he is abominably overrated, as you will
+see before I have done with him," said Mr. Lillyworth contemptuously.
+"It is galling for one who has seen some service to touch his cap to
+this boy and call him captain."
+
+"I hope you are not forgetting yourself, Pawcett--"
+
+"Don't mention my name on board of this vessel, Hungerford," interposed
+the officer.
+
+"And you will not mention mine," added the scullion promptly. "We are
+both careless in this matter, and we must do better. I think I ought to
+caution you not to neglect any outside tokens of respect to the captain.
+You can have your own opinions, but I think you do not treat him with
+sufficient deference."
+
+"Perhaps I don't, for it is not an easy thing to do," replied the second
+lieutenant. "But I think the captain has no cause to complain of me.
+We must find out something about these orders, and you must be on the
+lookout for your chances at meridian to-morrow. If you can stow yourself
+away under the captain's berth in his state room, you may be able to
+hear him read them to the first lieutenant, as he will be sure to do."
+
+"I don't believe in doing that," replied Mulgrum. "If I am discovered,
+no explanation could be made as to why I was concealed there."
+
+"But we must take some risks," persisted Mr. Lillyworth. "After what you
+told me in the first of our talk, it may not be necessary to conceal
+yourself. I shall say something to the captain on the subject at which
+you hinted as soon as I get a chance. You may be in a situation to hear
+all that is said without danger."
+
+Dave wondered what could be meant by this remark, for he had not heard
+the conversation between the captain and the first lieutenant which was
+intended as a "blind" to the listener, known to be at the door.
+
+"I am willing to take any risk that will not ruin our enterprise,"
+Mulgrum responded to the remark of his companion.
+
+"At noon to-morrow I shall come on deck in charge, and the first
+lieutenant will be relieved, so that he will be at liberty to visit the
+captain in his cabin. That will be your time, and you must improve it."
+
+"But I shall meet you again to-morrow, and I will look about me, and see
+what can be done," said Mulgrum, as he made a new demonstration at the
+canvas screen.
+
+"I will keep my eyes open, and you must do the same. How is it with our
+men forward?" asked the officer.
+
+"I have had no chance to speak with any of them, for they are all the
+time in the midst of the rest of the seamen," replied the deaf mute.
+"But I have no doubt they are all right."
+
+"But you must have some way to communicate with them, or they might as
+well be on shore. As there are six of them, I should say you might get a
+chance to speak to one of them whenever you desire."
+
+"I have had nothing to say to them so far, and I have not considered the
+matter of communicating with them."
+
+"It is time to know how you can do so."
+
+"I can manage it in some way when the time comes," replied Mulgrum
+confidently. "I am sure the captain and the first lieutenant have no
+suspicion that I am not what I seem to be. The executive officer put me
+through a full examination, especially in regard to Cherryfield, where I
+told him I used to live. I came off with flying colors, and I am certain
+that I am all right now."
+
+Dave knew nothing about the examination to which Mr. Flint had subjected
+the deaf mute. It is evident that Mulgrum took an entirely different
+view of the result of the test from that taken by the examiner and the
+captain; but both of the latter had taken extreme pains to conceal their
+opinion from the subject of the test.
+
+"I think we had better not say anything more to-night, and you have been
+on the bridge long enough," said Mr. Lillyworth, walking to the windward
+end of the bridge, and peering out into the gloom of the night.
+
+He had hardly looked in the direction of the deaf mute while he was on
+the bridge, but had busied himself with the lashing of the screen, and
+done everything he could to make it appear that he was not talking to
+his companion. Mulgrum, overhauling the screen as he proceeded, made his
+way to the steps by the side of the foremast. But he did not go down, as
+he had evidently intended to do, and waited till the second lieutenant
+came over to the lee side of the vessel.
+
+"Perhaps the man at the wheel has been listening to our conversation,"
+said the deaf mute, plainly alarmed at the situation. "I did not think
+of him."
+
+"I did," replied Mr. Lillyworth; "but it is all right, and the man at
+the wheel is Spoors, one of our number."
+
+"All right," added Mulgrum, and he descended the steps.
+
+Dave kept his place in the folds of the foresail, and hardly breathed
+as the scullion passed him. With the greatest caution, and after he had
+satisfied himself that no one was near enough to see him, he descended
+to the deck. He wandered about for a while, and saw that the
+supernumerary went to the galley, where, in the scarcity of
+accommodations for the extra persons on board, he was obliged to sleep
+on the floor. He was not likely to extend his operations any farther
+that night, and Dave went to the companion way, descended the steps,
+and knocked at the door of the captain's cabin.
+
+"Come in," called the occupant, who had been writing at his desk in the
+state room, though the door was open.
+
+Dave presented himself before the commander, who was very glad to see
+him. Christy wiped the perspiration from his forehead, for he had
+evidently been working very hard all the evening. Four bells had just
+struck, indicating that it was ten o'clock in the evening. Flint's
+prediction in regard to the weather seemed to be in the way of
+fulfilment, for the Bronx had been leaping mildly on a head sea for the
+last hour. But everything was going well, and the motion of the vessel
+was as satisfactory to the commander in rough water as it had been in a
+smooth sea.
+
+"I am glad to see you, Dave," said Christy, as the steward presented
+himself at the door of the state room. "I suppose from your coming
+to-night that you have something to tell me."
+
+"Yes, sir; I have; and I will give you the whole Gulf of Mexico if it
+isn't a big thing," replied Dave with his most expansive smile. "You
+done get into a hornet's nest, Captain Passford."
+
+"Not so bad as that, I hope," replied Christy, laughing.
+
+"Bad enough, sir, at any rate," added Dave. "Pink Mulgrum has been
+talking and listening to the second lieutenant all the evening."
+
+"Then he is not a deaf mute, I take it."
+
+"Not a bit of it; he can talk faster than I can, and he knows all about
+his grammar and dictionary. You have just eight traitors on board of the
+Bronx, Captain Passford," said Dave very impressively.
+
+"Only eight?"
+
+"That's all I know about; and I think that is enough for one cruise in a
+Yankee ship."
+
+"Eight will do very well, Dave; but who are they?" asked the captain
+with interest.
+
+"I know just three of them. One is the second lieutenant; Pink Mulgrum
+is another, and Spoors, one of the quartermasters, is the third. They
+didn't mention any more of them."
+
+"All right, Dave; now sit down on that stool, and tell me the whole
+story," said Christy, pointing to the seat.
+
+The steward, believing that he had done a "big thing" that evening, did
+not hesitate to seat himself in the presence of the commander, and
+proceeded at once to relate all that he had done, and all that he had
+seen and heard on the bridge. When Dave had finished his story, and
+answered the questions put to him, the commander was willing to believe
+that he had done a big thing; though he said nothing beyond a few words
+of general commendation to the steward. Then he dismissed him, and,
+locking his desk, he went on deck. After taking an observation of the
+weather he mounted the bridge.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VIII
+
+IMPORTANT INFORMATION, IF TRUE
+
+
+"Good evening, Mr. Lillyworth," said Captain Passford, when he reached
+the bridge.
+
+"Good evening, Captain Passford," replied the second lieutenant, as he
+touched his cap to his superior, galling as the act was, according to
+his own statement.
+
+"It looks as though we should have some wind," added the captain.
+
+"Yes, sir; and we shall have a nasty time of it across the Gulf Stream."
+
+"If there is any decided change in the weather during your watch, you
+will oblige me by having me called," added the captain; "I think I am
+tired enough to turn in, for I have been very busy all the evening,
+copying letters and papers. I think I need a clerk almost as much as
+the captain of a frigate."
+
+"I think you ought to have one, sir," added Mr. Lillyworth, manifesting
+a deep interest in this matter.
+
+"As the matter now stands I have to use a good deal of my time in
+copying documents. By the way, if we fall in with any United States
+man-of-war, I wish to communicate with her."
+
+"Of course I shall report to you, sir, if one comes in sight during my
+watch," replied the second lieutenant, with a greater manifestation of
+zeal than he had before displayed in his relations with his commander,
+evidently profiting by the suggestion made to him by Pink Mulgrum.
+
+"But I hope we shall not fall in with one before day after tomorrow, for
+I have not copied all the letters I desire to use if such an occasion
+offers," said Captain Passford, who was really playing out a baited hook
+for the benefit of the second lieutenant, in regard to whose intentions
+he had no doubt since the revelations of the steward.
+
+"By the way, Captain Passford, what you say in regard to the amount of
+writing imposed upon you reminds me that there is a man on board who
+might afford you some relief from this drudgery. Possibly you may have
+noticed this man, though he is doing duty as a mere scullion."
+
+"Do you mean the man I have seen cleaning brass work about the cabin?"
+asked Christy, glad to have the other take hold of the baited hook.
+
+"That is the one; he is deaf and dumb, but he has received a good
+education, and writes a good hand, and is rapid about it," added the
+second lieutenant, with some eagerness in his manner, though he tried
+to conceal it.
+
+"But my writing is of a confidential nature," replied the captain.
+
+"I have known this man, whose name is Pink Mulgrum, for some time. He is
+deaf and dumb, and you must have noticed him."
+
+"Oh, yes; I have seen him, and he had an interview with Mr. Flint in my
+presence. I observed that he wrote a good hand, and wrote very rapidly."
+
+"I am very confident that you can trust him with your papers, Captain
+Passford. He could not go into the service as a soldier or a sailor
+on account of his infirmity; but he desired to do something for his
+country. He was determined to go to the war, as he called it, in any
+capacity, even if it was as a scullion. He wrote me a letter to this
+effect, and Mr. Nawood consented to take him as a man of all work.
+If he ever gets into an action, you will find that he is a fighting
+character."
+
+"That is the kind of men we want, and at the present time, when we are
+hardly in a fighting latitude, perhaps I can use him as a copyist, if he
+will agree to make no use whatever of any information he may obtain in
+that capacity. I will speak to Mr. Nawood about the matter."
+
+"Thank you, Captain Passford. Mulgrum is a very worthy man, patriotic in
+every fibre of his frame, and in every drop of his blood. I should be
+glad to obtain some permanent occupation for him in the service of his
+country, for nothing else will suit him in the present exciting times.
+Perhaps when you have tested his qualifications, this will make an
+opening for him."
+
+"I will consider the subject tomorrow," said Christy, as he descended
+from the bridge.
+
+The commander was satisfied that the portion of the conversation which
+had taken place between the aspirant for the position of captain's clerk
+and the second lieutenant and which had been finished before the steward
+had reached his perch on the foremast, related to this matter. Mulgrum
+had heard the conversation between the first lieutenant and himself,
+which was intended to blind the listener, and he had reported it to his
+confederate. It was only another confirmation, if any were needed, in
+regard to the character of the conspirators.
+
+Christy had no doubt in regard to the disloyalty of these two men; but
+nothing in respect to their ultimate intentions had yet been revealed.
+They had brought six seamen on board with them, and they appeared to
+have influence enough in some quarter to have had these men drafted
+into the Bronx. Eight men, even if two of them were officers, was an
+insignificant force, though he was willing to believe that they intended
+to obtain possession of the vessel in some manner. The captain returned
+to his cabin, and resumed his work in the state room.
+
+Though Christy had spent several hours at his desk, he had really
+produced but a single letter, and had not yet finished it. When he heard
+eight bells strike, he left his state room, and seated himself at the
+table in the middle of his cabin. The door was open into the companion
+way. Mr. Flint presently appeared, and went on deck to relieve the
+second lieutenant, who came below a few minutes later, though the
+captain did not allow himself to be seen by him. Then he closed the
+cabin door, and turned in, for he began to realize that he needed some
+rest. He went to sleep at once, and he did not wake till four bells
+struck in the morning. The Bronx was pitching heavily, though she still
+maintained her reputation as an easy-going ship in spite of the head
+sea. He dressed himself, and seated himself at his desk at once,
+devoting himself to the letter upon which he had been engaged the
+evening before. The second lieutenant was on duty at this time, and the
+first was doubtless asleep in his berth, but he had been below six hours
+during the night, and, calling Dave with his bell, he sent him for Mr.
+Flint, who presented himself a few minutes later.
+
+"Good morning, Captain Passford; you have turned out early, sir," said
+the first lieutenant.
+
+"Not very early, and I am sorry to wake you so soon. I did not turn in
+till after you had gone on deck to take the midwatch. I have been very
+busy since we parted, and I need your advice and assistance," replied
+the commander. "I have got at something."
+
+"Indeed! I am glad to hear it," added Mr. Flint.
+
+Without the loss of any time, the captain called Dave, who was at work
+in the ward room, and told him to see that no one came near the door of
+his cabin. The steward understood him perfectly, and Christy resumed his
+place at the table with the executive officer, and proceeded to detail
+to him as briefly as he could all the information he had obtained
+through Dave, and the manner of obtaining it. It required some time
+to do this, and the first lieutenant was intensely interested in the
+narrative.
+
+"I am not greatly surprised so far as Lillyworth is concerned, for there
+has been something about him that I could not fathom since both of us
+came on board," said Mr. Flint.
+
+"Of course these men are on board for a purpose, though I acknowledge
+that I cannot fathom this purpose, unless it be treason in a general
+sense; but I am inclined to believe that they have some specific
+object," added the captain. "Of course you will be willing to believe
+that both of these men are sailing under false colors."
+
+"Undoubtedly. It has occurred to me that the second lieutenant invented
+the name that represents him on the ship's books. Lillyworth is a little
+strained; if he had called himself Smith or Brown, it would have been
+less suspicious."
+
+"In the conversation to which Dave listened on the bridge, both of them
+blundered, and let out their real names, though each of them reproved
+the other for doing so. The second lieutenant's real name is Pawcett,
+and that of the deaf mute is Hungerford."
+
+"The last is decidedly a southern name, and the other may be for aught
+I know. Hungerford, Hungerford," said Mr. Flint, repeating the name
+several times. "It means something to me, but I can't make it out yet."
+
+The first lieutenant cudgelled his brains for a minute or two as though
+he was trying to connect the name with some event in the past. The
+captain waited for him to sound his memory; but it was done in vain;
+Flint could not place him. He was confident, however, that the
+connection would be made in his mind at some other moment.
+
+"The interesting question to us just now is to determine why these men,
+eight in number, are on board of the Bronx at all, and why they are on
+board at the present time," said the captain. "I happen to know that
+Lillyworth was offered a better position than the one he now fills
+temporarily; but my father says he insisted on going in the Bronx."
+
+"Certainly he is not here on a fool's errand. He has business on board
+of this particular steamer," replied Flint, speaking out of his musing
+mind. "Ah! now I have it!" he suddenly exclaimed. "Hungerford was the
+executive officer of the Killbright, or the Yazoo, as they called her
+afterwards. I had a very slight inkling that I had seen the face of the
+deaf mute before; but he has shaved off his beard, and stained his face,
+so that it is no wonder I did not identify him; but the name satisfies
+me that he was the first officer of the Yazoo."
+
+"That means then that he is a regular officer of the Confederate
+navy," suggested the captain; "and probably Lillyworth is also. The
+only other name Dave was able to obtain was that of Spoors, one of the
+quartermasters; and very likely he is also another."
+
+"We have almost a double crew on board, Captain Passford, and what can
+eight men do to capture this vessel?" asked Flint.
+
+"I don't know what they intend to do, and I must give it up. Now I want
+to read a letter to you that I have written; and you can tell me what
+you think of it." The commander then read as follows from the sheet in
+his hand, upon which appeared no end of changes and corrections:
+
+  "TO THE COMMANDER OF ANY UNITED STATES SHIP OF WAR, _Sir_:-- The
+  undersigned, master in the United States Navy, in temporary command
+  of the United States Steamer Bronx, bound to the Gulf of Mexico,
+  respectfully informs you that he has information, just received,
+  of the approach to the coast of the southern states of two steamers,
+  the Scotian and the Arran, believed to be fitted out as cruisers for
+  the Confederate Navy. They will be due in these waters about March
+  17. They are of about five hundred tons each. A letter from the
+  confidential agent of my father, Captain Horatio Passford, an agent
+  in whom he has perfect confidence, both on account of his loyalty
+  to his country undivided, and because of his skill as a shipmaster,
+  contains this statement, which is submitted to you for your
+  guidance: 'I have put twelve loyal American seamen, with an officer,
+  on board of each of the steamers mentioned above; and they comprise
+  about one-half of the crew of each vessel; and they will take
+  possession of each of the two steamers when supported by any United
+  States man-of-war. WARNOCK.'
+
+    Respectfully yours,
+      CHRISTOPHER PASSFORD,
+        _Master Commanding_."
+
+"I beg your pardon, Captain Passford, but what under the canopy is that
+letter for?" asked Flint, not a little excited.
+
+"It is for Pink Mulgrum to copy," replied the captain. "That is all the
+use I intend to make of it."
+
+Flint leaned back in his chair and laughed heartily, and the commander
+could not help joining him.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX
+
+A VOLUNTEER CAPTAIN'S CLERK
+
+
+Mr. Flint was really amused at the plan of the commander of the Bronx,
+as indicated in the letter he had just read, and he was not laughing out
+of mere compliment to his superior officer, as some subordinates feel
+obliged to do even when they feel more like weeping. Perhaps no one knew
+Christy Passford so well as his executive officer, not even his own
+father, for Flint had been with him in the most difficult and trying
+ordeals of his life. He had been the young leader's second in command in
+the capture of the Teaser, whose cabin they now occupied, and they had
+been prisoners together. He had been amazed at his young companion's
+audacity, but he had always justified his action in the end. They had
+become excellent friends as well as associates in the navy, and there
+was a hearty sympathy between them.
+
+Christy laughed almost in spite of himself, for he had been giving very
+serious attention to the situation on board of the Bronx. In the ship's
+company were at least two officers on the other side of the great
+question of the day, both of them doubtless men of great experience
+in their profession, more mature in years than their opponent on this
+chess-board of fate, and they had come on board of the steamer to
+accomplish some important purpose. The game at which they were engaged
+had already become quite exciting, especially as it looked as if the
+final result was to be determined by strategy rather than hard fighting,
+for Pawcett and Hungerford could hardly expect to capture the Bronx with
+only a force of eight men.
+
+"Mulgrum is to copy this letter," said Flint, suppressing his laughter.
+
+"I have written the letter in order to have something for him to copy,
+and at the same time to give him and his confederate something to think
+about," replied Christy; and he could hardly help chuckling when he
+thought of the effect the contents of the letter would produce in the
+minds of those for whom the missive was really intended.
+
+"Do you think they will swallow this fiction, Captain Passford?" asked
+the first lieutenant.
+
+"Why shouldn't they swallow it, hook, bait, and sinker? They are
+Confederate agents beyond the possibility of a doubt; and they are
+looking for a ship in which they intend to ravage the commerce of the
+United States," replied Christy; and the question had done something to
+stimulate his reasoning powers. "They want a vessel, and the Bronx would
+suit them very well."
+
+"But they will not attempt to capture her under present circumstances,
+I am very confident. They know that we have about twenty seamen extra
+on board."
+
+"They know that certainly; but possibly they know some things in this
+connection that we do not know," added Christy, as he put his hand on
+his forehead, and leaned over the table, as though his mind were
+strongly exercised by some serious question he was unable to answer
+satisfactorily to himself.
+
+"What can they know that we don't know in regard to this vessel?"
+demanded Flint, looking quite as serious as the commander.
+
+"Whether our extra men are loyal or not," answered Christy, dropping his
+hand, and looking his companion full in the face.
+
+"Do you think there is any doubt in regard to them?"
+
+"I confess that I have not had a doubt till this moment," said the
+captain, wiping the perspiration from his brow, for the terrible
+possibility that any considerable portion of the extra men were in the
+employ of the two Confederates had almost overcome him.
+
+For a few moments he was silent as he thought of this tremendous idea.
+It was appalling to think of going into action with the Scotian or the
+Arran, or both of them, and have a part of his own force turn against
+him on his own deck. This was possible, but he could hardly believe it
+was probable. Dave had reported very faithfully to him all the details
+of the conversation between the Confederates, and they had claimed only
+six men. If they had any hold on the extra men on board, they would have
+been likely to say so, or at least to speak more indefinitely than they
+had of their expectations.
+
+"Have you any friends on board, Mr. Flint, among the crew?" asked
+Christy suddenly, as though a solution of the difficult question of the
+loyalty of the men had suggested itself to him.
+
+"I have at least half a dozen whom I worked hard to have drafted into
+the Bronx, for I know that they are good and true men, though they may
+not be able to pass the technical examination of the naval officers,"
+replied the first lieutenant promptly. "I can trust every one of them as
+far as I could trust myself. One of them was the mate of my vessel at
+the time I sold her, and he has since been in command of her."
+
+"Who is he?"
+
+"His name is Baskirk; and he is a quartermaster now. I wrote to him, and
+promised to do the best I could to advance him. He is not a graduate of
+a college, but he is a well-informed man, well read, sober, honest, and
+a man of good common-sense."
+
+"The others?"
+
+"McSpindle was a classmate of mine in college, and he is a capital
+fellow. Unfortunately, he got into the habit of drinking more than was
+good for him, and spoiled his immediate future. He has made two foreign
+voyages, and he is a good seaman. He came home second mate of an
+Indiaman, promoted on his merit. He is also a quartermaster," said
+Flint, who was evidently very deeply interested in the persons he
+described.
+
+"Any more?"
+
+"Luffard is a quartermaster, for I selected the best men I had for these
+positions. He is a young fellow, and the son of a rich man in Portland.
+He is a regular water bird, though he is not over eighteen years old."
+
+"His age is no objection," added Christy with a smile.
+
+"I suppose not; but I have taken Luffard on his bright promise rather
+than for anything he has ever done, though I have seen him sail a
+forty-footer in a race and win the first prize. The other men I happen
+to think of just now have been sailors on board of my coaster. They are
+good men, and I can vouch for their loyalty, though not for their
+education. They are all petty officers."
+
+"I have a mission for your men, to be undertaken at once, and I shall
+be likely to want the first three you named for important positions, if
+my orders do not fetter me too closely," said Christy. "As the matter
+stands just now, Mr. Flint, it would hardly be expedient for us to
+capture a schooner running the blockade for the want of an officer to
+act as prize master."
+
+"The three quartermasters I named are competent for this duty, for they
+are navigators, and all of them have handled a vessel."
+
+"I am glad to hear it; we are better off than I supposed we were. My
+father told me that several vessels had been sent to the South short of
+officers, and we are no worse off than some others, though what you say
+makes us all right."
+
+"I can find three officers on board who are as competent as I am, though
+that is not saying much," added Flint.
+
+"I can ask no better officers, then. But to return to this letter.
+I have spent a considerable part of my time at Bonnydale in talking
+with my father. He is in the confidence of the naval department."
+
+"He ought to be, for he gave to the navy one of its best steamers, to
+say the least."
+
+"I don't want to brag of my father," suggested Christy, laughing;
+"I only wanted to show that he is posted. Coming to the point at once,
+putting this and that together of what I learned on shore, and of what
+I have discovered on board of the Bronx, I am inclined to believe that
+Pawcett and Hungerford have their mission on board of this steamer in
+connection with the Scotian and the Arran. I will not stop now to
+explain why I have this idea, for I shall obtain more evidence as
+we proceed. At any rate, I thought I would put the ghost of a
+stumbling-block in the path of these conspirators; and this is the
+reason why I have put thirteen American seamen on board of each of the
+expected steamers. If my conjectures are wrong the stumbling-block will
+be nothing but a ghost; if I am right, it will make our men somewhat
+cautious as to what they do if we should be so fortunate as to fall in
+with the two vessels."
+
+"I understand you perfectly, Captain Passford. You said that you had
+something for my men to do at once; but you did not explain what this
+duty was," said Flint. "If you require their services at once, I will
+instruct them."
+
+"I did not explain, for I have so many irons in the fire that I am
+afraid I am getting them mixed, and I forgot to tell you what they were
+to do. But I shall leave the details to be settled in your own way.
+I want to know who are loyal men and who are not. There are at least
+six men, according to the report of Dave, who are followers of Pawcett
+and Hungerford. We don't know who they are; but doubtless they have
+been selected for their shrewdness. Probably they will be looking for
+information among the men. Spoors is one of them, and by watching him
+some clew may be obtained to the others."
+
+"I am confident my men can find out all you want to know," added the
+first lieutenant.
+
+"It should be done as soon as possible," replied the commander.
+
+"Not a moment shall be lost. I have the deck at eight this morning, and
+one of the quartermasters will be at the wheel. I will begin with him."
+
+Mr. Flint left the cabin, for his breakfast was waiting for him in
+the ward room. Christy walked through to the steerage, where he found
+Mulgrum attending to the wants of the warrant officers as well as he
+could. He looked at this man with vastly more interest than before he
+had listened to Dave's report. It was easy to see that he was not an
+ordinary man such as one would find in menial positions; but it was not
+prudent for him to make a study of the man, for his quick eye was taking
+in everything that occurred near him.
+
+Eight bells struck, and Mr. Flint hastened on deck to relieve the second
+lieutenant. Christy took his morning meal at a later hour, and when he
+had finished it, he sent for Pink Mulgrum. Of course the conversation
+had to be written, and the captain placed the scullion opposite himself
+at the table.
+
+"I learn from Mr. Lillyworth that you are a good writer, and that you
+are well educated," Christy wrote on a piece of paper, passing it to the
+deaf mute.
+
+Mulgrum read the sentence, and nodded his head with something like
+a smile. If Christy was a judge of his expression, he was certainly
+pleased, evidently to find that his confederate's plan was working well.
+
+"I have a letter of which I desire several copies. Can I trust you to
+make these copies?" Christy wrote.
+
+The man read and nodded his head eagerly.
+
+"Will you promise on your honor as a man that you will not reveal what
+you write to any person whatever?" Christy proceeded. Mulgrum read, and
+nodded his head earnestly several times.
+
+The commander procured paper and other writing materials for him,
+and placed them before him. Then he seated himself again opposite the
+copyist, and fixed his gaze upon him; unfolding the letter, of which he
+had made a fair copy himself, he placed it under the eyes of the deaf
+mute. Mulgrum had retained his smile till this moment. He had arranged
+his paper and taken a pen in his hand. Then he began to read; as he
+proceeded the smile deserted his face. He was plainly startled.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X
+
+THE UNEXPECTED ORDERS
+
+
+Christy sat for some minutes watching the expression of Mulgrum as he
+read the letter he was to copy. Like a careful man, he was evidently
+taking a glance at it as a whole. The interested observer could see that
+he fixed his gaze upon the last part of the letter, the extract from the
+missive of Warnock, relating to the twelve loyal American seamen and
+their officer. In fact, he seemed to be paralyzed by what he read.
+
+The commander was satisfied with what he had seen, and he rose from his
+chair. His movement seemed to restore the self-possession of the deaf
+mute, and he began to write very rapidly. Christy went into his state
+room, where he kept all his important papers in his desk. He gave
+himself up to a consideration of the situation in which he was placed.
+He had partly closed the door. But he had not been in the room half an
+hour before he heard a knock.
+
+"Come in," said he, supposing the caller was Dave.
+
+The door was pushed open, and Mulgrum came in with his tablet in his
+hand. The deaf mute had certainly heard his reply to the knock, for
+he had heeded it instantly, and he smiled at the manner in which the
+conspirator had "given himself away." The scullion presented his tablet
+to the captain with a very deferential bow.
+
+"There is an error in the copy of the letter you gave me--in the
+extract. If you will give me the original letter from Mr. Warnock,
+I will correct the mistake," Christy read on the tablet. It was not
+impossible that he had made a mistake in copying his letter; but the
+object of Mulgrum in desiring to see the original of the letter from
+England was sufficiently apparent. "Bring me my copy of the letter,"
+he wrote on the tablet, and handed it back to the owner.
+
+The captain took from his desk a bundle of letters and selected one,
+which he opened and laid on the table, though not where his copyist
+could see it. Mulgrum returned and presented him the letter, pointing
+out the mistake he had discovered. He looked at the blind letter, and
+then at the other. There was certainly an error, for his letter said
+"and they comprise about one of crew of each vessel." This was nonsense,
+for he had accidentally omitted the word "half" after "one." He inserted
+the word above the line in its proper place, and gave it back to the
+copyist. It was clear enough that Mulgrum was disappointed in the result
+of this interview; but he took the letter and returned to the table.
+
+At the end of another quarter of an hour, he brought the first copy of
+the letter. He knocked as before, and though Christy told him in a loud
+tone to come in, he did not do so. He repeated the words, but the
+conspirator, possibly aware of the blunder he had made before, did
+not make it again. Then he wrote on his tablet, after the captain had
+approved his work, that he found the table very uncomfortable to write
+upon while the ship was pitching so smartly, and suggested that he
+should be allowed to make the rest of the copies on the desk in
+the state room, if the captain did not desire to use it himself.
+Unfortunately for the writer, he did desire to use it himself, and he
+could not help smiling at the enterprise of the deaf mute in his attempt
+to obtain an opportunity to forage among the papers in his drawers.
+
+Mulgrum certainly did his work nicely and expeditiously, for he had
+finished it at three bells in the forenoon watch. He was dismissed
+then, for his presence was not particularly agreeable to the commander.
+Christy locked his desk and all the drawers that contained papers, not
+as against a thief or a burglar, but against one who would scorn to
+appropriate anything of value that did not belong to him, for he had no
+doubt now that Mulgrum was a gentleman who was trying to serve what he
+regarded as his country, though it was nothing but a fraction of it.
+
+In fact, inheriting, as it were, the broad and generous policy of his
+father, Christy had no personal prejudices against this enemy of his
+country, and he felt just as he would if he had been sailing a boat
+against him, or playing a game of whist with him. He was determined to
+beat him if he could. But he was not satisfied with locking his papers
+up; he called Dave, and set him as a watch over them. If the conspirator
+overhauled his papers, he would have been more concerned about what he
+did not find than in relation to what he did find, for the absence of
+the original of Warnock's letter would go far to convince him that the
+extract from it was an invention.
+
+When he had taken these precautions he went on deck. The wind was
+blowing a moderate gale; but the Bronx was doing exceedingly well,
+lifting herself very lightly over the foaming billows, and conveying
+to one walking her deck the impression of solidity and strength. The
+captain went to the bridge after a while, though not till he had noticed
+that something was going on among the crew; but he was not disposed to
+inquire into the matter, possibly regarding it as beneath the dignity of
+a commander to do so.
+
+Christy mounted the steps to the bridge. This structure is hardly
+a man-of-war appendage. It had been there, and it had been permitted
+to remain. The first shot in action might carry it away, and this
+contingency had been provided for, as she was provided with a duplicate
+steam-steering apparatus, as well as a hand wheel at the stern. The
+proper position of the officer of the watch, who is practically in
+command for the time being, is on the quarter deck, though he is
+required during his watch to visit all parts of the deck. On board of
+the Bronx this officer was placed on the bridge, where he could overlook
+all parts of the ship.
+
+The first lieutenant, who had the forenoon watch, saluted him, but there
+was nothing of interest to report. Christy asked the meaning of the
+movement he had observed among the seamen and petty officers, and was
+told that Baskirk was getting up an association on board, the first
+requirement to which was for all who wished to become members to sign
+the oath of allegiance to the United States government, "as represented
+by and presided over by the President at Washington." It was to be a
+secret society, and Flint added that it was really a branch of the Union
+League. Christy did not think it wise to ask any more questions, but he
+understood that this was really a movement to ascertain the sentiments
+of the members of the ship's company as to the extent of their duty in
+supporting the government.
+
+"Mr. Flint, I am not a little dissatisfied with the manner in which we
+are compelled to carry on our duty on board of the Bronx, though no
+blame is to be attached to the naval department on account of it," said
+Christy, after he had walked the bridge for a time.
+
+"Is anything going wrong, Captain Passford?" asked the first lieutenant
+anxiously.
+
+"Oh, no: I have no fault to find with any one, and least of all with
+you," added the captain promptly. "The trouble is that we are short of
+officers, though all that could be spared for this vessel were sent on
+board of her. As the matter now stands, Dr. Spokeley and I are the only
+idlers on board in the cabin and ward room. The first lieutenant has to
+keep a watch, which is not at all regular, and I foresee that this
+arrangement will be a very great disadvantage to me. It could not be
+helped, and the Bronx was evidently regarded as of no great importance,
+for she is little more than a storeship just now, though the flag
+officer in the Gulf will doubtless make something more of her."
+
+"We have a big crew for this vessel, but we are short of officers,"
+added Flint.
+
+"From the best calculations I have been able to make, with my father to
+help me, we ought to fall in with the Scotian and the Arran; and in view
+of such an event, I propose to prepare for the emergency by appointing a
+temporary third lieutenant."
+
+"I think that would be a very wise step to take," added Flint very
+cordially.
+
+"Of the men you mentioned to me, who is the best one for this position?"
+asked Christy.
+
+"I have no hesitation in saying that Baskirk is the right man for the
+position."
+
+"Very well; he shall be appointed," added Christy, as he left the
+bridge. But in a few minutes he returned, and handed an order to the
+first lieutenant.
+
+Baskirk was sent for, and the captain had a long talk with him. He
+found that the candidate had more knowledge of naval discipline than
+he had supposed, and he was pleased with the man. He was the leading
+quartermaster in rank, having been appointed first. After another talk
+with Flint, the latter gave the order to pass the word for Mr. Giblock,
+who was the acting boatswain, though in rank he was only a boatswain's
+mate. He was directed to call all hands. When the ship's company were
+assembled on the forward deck, though this is not the usual place for
+such a gathering, the first lieutenant read the order of the commander
+appointing George Baskirk as acting third lieutenant of the Bronx, and
+directing that he should be respected and obeyed as such. A smart cheer
+followed the announcement, though the second lieutenant, who had taken
+a place on the bridge, looked as though he did not approve the step the
+captain had taken. The officer of the deck next appointed Thomas McLinn
+a quartermaster. The ship's company were then dismissed.
+
+Just before noon by the clocks, Lieutenant Baskirk appeared on the
+bridge, dressed in a brand-new uniform, with a sextant in his hands.
+Christy, who did not depend upon his pay for the extent of his wardrobe,
+had not less than three new suits, and he had presented one of them to
+the newly appointed officer, for there was no material difference in the
+size of the two persons. All the officers who kept watches were required
+to "take the sun," and at the moment the meridian was crossed, the
+captain gave the word to "make it noon," and the great bell sounded out
+eight bells. The officers proceeded to figure up the results of the
+observations. The longitude and latitude were entered on the log slate,
+to be transferred to the log book. Baskirk was directed to take the
+starboard watch, and he was formally presented to the second lieutenant
+by the captain; and whatever his feeling or opinions in regard to the
+step which had just been taken, he accepted the hand of the new officer
+and treated him with proper courtesy.
+
+"Latitude 37 deg. 52'," said the captain significantly, as he led the way
+down from the bridge, attended by the first and third lieutenants.
+
+They followed him to the captain's cabin. Christy gave them seats at
+the table, and then went into his state room for the ponderous envelope
+which contained his orders. He seated himself between his two officers;
+but before he broke the great seal, he discovered Dave in the passageway
+making energetic signs to him. He hastened to him, and followed him into
+the ward room.
+
+"Pink is under your berth in the state room," whispered the steward in
+the most impressive manner.
+
+"All right, Dave; you have been faithful to your duty," said Christy,
+as he hastened back into his cabin.
+
+Resuming his place at the table, he broke the seal of the huge envelope.
+He unfolded the inclosed instructions, and ran over them without
+speaking a word.
+
+"We have nothing to do on this cruise," said he, apparently taking his
+idea from the paper in his hand. "I will read the material parts of it,"
+he continued in a much louder tone than the size of the cabin and the
+nearness of his auditors seemed to demand. "'You will proceed with all
+reasonable despatch to the Gulf of Mexico, and report to the flag
+officer, or his representative, of the eastern Gulf Squadron. You will
+attempt no operations on your passage, and if an enemy appears you will
+avoid her if possible with honor.' That's all, gentlemen."
+
+The two listeners seemed to be utterly confounded.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XI
+
+ANOTHER READING OF THE SEALED ORDERS
+
+
+Christy finished the reading of the orders, folded up the document, and
+put it in his pocket. But he immediately took it out and unfolded it
+again, as though a new thought had struck him. Flint watched him with
+the utmost attention, and he realized that the bearing of the commander
+was quite different from his usual manner; but he attributed it to the
+very unexpected nature of the orders he had just read. He was distinctly
+directed to attempt no operations on the passage, and to proceed to the
+destination indicated with all reasonable despatch.
+
+The wording of the order was rather peculiar, and somewhat clumsy,
+Flint thought; but then he had been a schoolmaster, and perhaps he
+was inclined to be over-critical. But the meaning of the first clause
+could not be mistaken, however, though the word "operations" seemed
+to indicate something on a grander scale and more prolonged than an
+encounter with a blockade-runner, or a Confederate man-of-war; something
+in the nature of a campaign on shore, or a thorough scouring of the
+ocean in search of the vessels of the enemy.
+
+But any such interpretation of the order was rendered impossible by what
+followed. The commander was distinctly forbidden to engage the enemy if
+such an encounter could be avoided "with honor." The first lieutenant
+knew that a combat could be easily avoided simply by not following up
+any suspicious craft, unless a fully manned and armed Confederate
+cruiser presented herself, and then it might be honorable to run away
+from her. There was no mistaking the meaning of the orders, and there
+was no chance to strain a point, and fall upon one or both of the
+expected steamers.
+
+The captain was strictly enjoined from meddling with them, even if they
+came in his way. If they chased the Bronx, she would be justified in
+defending herself under the orders; and that was the most she could do.
+Flint was terribly disappointed, and he regarded the commander with the
+deepest interest to learn what interpretation he would give to the
+orders, though there seemed to him to be no room even to take advantage
+of any fortunate circumstance.
+
+The appearance of the commander did not throw any new light upon the
+contents of the document. After he had finished the reading of the
+paper, Christy sat in his chair, apparently still looking it over, as
+though he did not fully comprehend its meaning. But he made no sign and
+indulged in no remark of any kind, and in a few moments folded the order
+and put it back into his pocket. Undoubtedly he was thinking very
+energetically of something, but he did not reveal the nature of his
+reflections.
+
+Flint concluded that he was utterly dissatisfied with his orders, and
+even regarded them as a slight upon himself as the commander of the
+steamer for the time being. It was not customary to direct captains
+to avoid the enemy under all circumstances that were likely to be
+presented. The first lieutenant began to realize the disadvantage of
+sailing with a captain so young, for it looked to him as though the
+strange order had been issued on account of the youth of the commander.
+
+When Christy had restored the paper to his pocket, he rose from his
+seat, and thus indicated that there was to be no consultation with the
+officers in regard to the unusual instructions. The two officers rose at
+the same time, and closely observed the face of the commander; but this
+time Flint could find nothing there as serious as he had observed
+before; in fact, there was a twinkle in his eye that looked promising.
+
+"Gentlemen, it is dinner time in the ward room, and I will not detain
+you any longer," said Christy, as politely as he usually spoke to his
+officers, though the opera of "Pinafore" had not been written at that
+time.
+
+Flint bowed to his captain, and left the cabin; and his example was
+followed by Baskirk. Christy certainly did not look as though he were
+embarrassed by his orders, or as if he were disappointed at the
+restrictions they imposed upon him. He left the cabin so that Dave could
+prepare his table for dinner as he had the time to do so. He left the
+cabin; but in the passage he called the steward to him, and whispered a
+brief sentence to him.
+
+He then ascended to the deck, and proceeded to take a "constitutional"
+on the windward side of the quarter deck. The gale had moderated very
+sensibly, though the wind was still from the southward. The sea was
+still quite rough, though it was likely to subside very soon. After the
+captain had walked as long as he cared to do, he mounted the bridge.
+
+"What do you think of the weather, Mr. Lillyworth?" he asked of the
+officer of the deck, after he had politely returned his salute.
+
+"I don't believe we shall have any more wind today," replied the second
+lieutenant, as he looked wisely at the weather indications the sky
+presented. "But it don't look much like fairing off, and I shall look
+for fog as long as the wind holds where it is."
+
+"I have been expecting to be buried in fog," added the captain, as he
+took a survey of the deck beneath him. "I see by the log slate that we
+are making fifteen knots an hour, and we certainly are not driving her."
+
+"There can be no doubt that this is a very fast vessel," said Mr.
+Lillyworth. "Well, she ought to be, for I understand that she was built
+for a nobleman's yacht, and such men want speed, and are willing to pay
+for it."
+
+"By tomorrow, we shall be in the latitude of the Bermudas, and most of
+the blockade runners put in there, or some more southern port, to get
+the news, and obtain a pilot, if they don't happen to have one on
+board."
+
+"That seems to be the way they do it."
+
+"This fog is favorable to blockade runners if they have a skilful pilot
+on board; and they all contrive to have such a one," added the captain,
+as he moved towards the steps to the deck.
+
+"I suppose you have opened your sealed orders, Captain Passford," said
+the second lieutenant, who seemed to be interested in this subject. "We
+have crossed the thirty-eighth parallel."
+
+"Yes; I have opened the envelope, and found the orders very peculiar
+and very disappointing," replied the captain as he took a step on the
+ladder. "But you will excuse me now from speaking of them, for I have
+another matter on my mind."
+
+Christy thought Pink Mulgrum might as well tell him about the orders and
+he could at least save his breath if he had no other motive for leaving
+the second lieutenant in the dark for the present. He went to the deck,
+and then down into the cabin. His breakfast was ready, but Dave was not
+there, and he walked forward into the ward room, from which he saw
+Mulgrum replenishing the table in the steerage. He had evacuated his
+place under the berth in the state room, and the captain went to his
+breakfast in his cabin. Dave soon appeared with the hot dishes from the
+galley, for he had seen Christy take his place at the table.
+
+"What's the news, Dave?" asked the captain.
+
+"No news, sir, except that I gave Pink a chance to get out of that state
+room," replied the steward, spreading out his broadest smile. "I spoke
+out loud just like I was calling to some one in the ward room, 'No, sir,
+I can't go now; I have to go to the galley for the dishes.' Then I left
+the cabin, and went forward; when I came back, I looked under your
+berth, sir, and Pink wasn't there then."
+
+"How did you know he was under the berth in the first place, Dave?"
+
+"Just before eight bells I saw him cleaning the brasses on the door.
+I think he will wear those door knobs all out before the cruise is up.
+I knew he was up to something, and I just watched him. He went out of
+sight and I did not know where he was. Then I took the feather duster,
+and worked about the cabin; but I couldn't find him. Then I dusted the
+state room, and then I did find him."
+
+"You have rendered good service, Dave, and I shall not forget it," added
+Christy. "Where are Mr. Flint and Mr. Baskirk?"
+
+"In the ward room, sir."
+
+"Give my compliments to them, and say that I wish to see them in my
+cabin in about ten minutes," continued the captain.
+
+Dave left the cabin, and Christy devoted himself to his breakfast; and
+in his haste to meet the officers indicated, he hurried the meal more
+than was prudent for the digestion. The steward reported that he had
+delivered the message, and Christy finished his hasty collation.
+
+The table was hurriedly cleared by the steward, and the captain paid a
+visit to his state room, during which he did not fail to look under his
+berth. He had a trunk there, and he saw that it had been moved to the
+front of the space, so that there was room enough for the conspirator to
+conceal his body behind it, though his was a good-sized body. Returning
+to the cabin, he took his usual seat at the table, facing the door. In a
+few minutes more Mr. Flint and Mr. Baskirk came to the door and were
+invited to come in. Dave had returned from the galley, and he was
+instructed to watch that door as he was told to close it.
+
+  [Illustration: Dave finds Mulgrum under the berth.]
+
+Flint took the seat assigned to him, and Baskirk was placed opposite to
+him. The first lieutenant appeared to be a great deal more dissatisfied
+than the captain; but then he was a poor man, and next to his duty to
+his country, he was as anxious as the average officer to make all the
+money he could out of the prizes captured by his ship. It looked to him
+as though all his chances had slipped beyond his reach for the present.
+
+Flint had taken no little stock in the two steamers that were expected
+on the coast at this time, and in spite of the treachery anticipated he
+had counted upon a share in at least one of them. He knew very well that
+the commander, from sharp experience at his side some months before,
+would not pass by an opportunity to strike a blow, even in the face of
+any reasonable risk. But now, as he looked at it, the wings of the young
+captain had been clipped by the authorities at Washington, in the sealed
+orders.
+
+"I am glad to meet you again, gentlemen; indeed I may say that I am
+particularly glad to see you," said Christy in his most cheerful tones,
+as he looked about the cabin, and especially at the ports, to see if
+there was a spy looking in at one of them.
+
+The thought came to him then and there that it was possible for a man to
+hang over the rail, and place one of his ears at an opening and listen
+to what was going on; and besides there were, besides Mulgrum, six
+others who were capable of doing such a thing. He sent Mr. Baskirk on
+deck to see that no man was at work over the side. He returned and
+reported that no one was in a position to hear what was said in the
+cabin.
+
+Flint did not seem to be as much interested in the proceedings as on
+former occasions, for he had had time to consider the effect of the
+orders, and he saw no way to evade them. They might pick up some cotton
+schooners, but no such prizes as the Scotian and the Arran were likely
+to be taken when the steamer reached her station, wherever it might be,
+and the whole squadron shared the proceeds of the captures.
+
+"You listened to the orders I read this noon," began Christy, with a
+pronounced twinkling of his eyes.
+
+"Yes, sir; and, Captain Passford, I have felt as if the gates of honor
+and profit had been closed against the Bronx," added Flint.
+
+"Perhaps a second reading of the orders will put a different aspect on
+the gates," said the captain with a significant smile, the force of
+which, however, the first lieutenant failed to comprehend.
+
+"Under these orders there seems to be no alternative but to hasten to
+the Gulf of Mexico, and run away from any blockade runner we may happen
+to see," growled Flint.
+
+"You are not as amiable as usual, Mr. Flint."
+
+"How can one be amiable under such orders?" added Flint, trying to
+smile.
+
+"I will read them over again, now that we have not as many auditors as
+before," said the captain.
+
+Christy proceeded to read the document as it was written.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XII
+
+A SAIL ON THE STARBOARD BOW
+
+
+Before Captain Passford had read two lines of the document in his hands,
+a noise as of a scuffle was heard in the passage way to the ward room.
+Mr. Baskirk was sent to ascertain the cause of the disturbance, and he
+threw the door wide open. Dave was there, blocking the passage way, and
+Pink Mulgrum was trying to force his way towards the cabin door. The
+steward declared that no one must go to the cabin; it was the order of
+the captain himself. Mulgrum found it convenient not to hear on this
+occasion. The moment Baskirk appeared, the deaf mute exhibited a paper,
+which he passed to the new lieutenant, evidently satisfied that he could
+get no nearer to the door. When he had delivered the paper, he hastened
+up the ladder to the deck. Dave came into the cabin and explained that
+Mulgrum had tried to force him out of the way, and he had resisted. The
+intruder did not exhibit any paper till the third lieutenant appeared at
+the door.
+
+"That man is very persevering in his efforts to procure information,"
+said Christy, as he unfolded the paper. "'The fog is very dense ahead,
+and we shall soon be shut in by it,'" he read from the paper. "Mr.
+Lillyworth might have found a man that could speak for his messenger,"
+he continued, "but of course he wanted to assist his confederate to
+obtain more information."
+
+"I don't see what he wants to know now, for Mulgrum has told him the
+contents of the sealed envelope before this time, and he knows that the
+gates are closed against us," added Flint. "It is plain enough that they
+have had their heads together."
+
+"Certainly they have; but Mr. Lillyworth may not be any better satisfied
+with his information than you are, Mr. Flint," replied the captain, with
+an expressive smile, though he felt that his fellow officer had been
+tantalized long enough by the circumstances. "I have read and studied my
+orders very attentively. They direct me to proceed with all reasonable
+despatch to the Gulf of Mexico, and report to the flag officer of the
+Eastern Gulf Squadron, or his representative."
+
+"'But information has been received,'" continued Christy, reading what
+he had not read before, "'that two steamers, probably fitted out for
+service in the Confederate navy, are approaching the coast of the
+Southern States, and it is very important that they should be
+intercepted. Both of these vessels are reported to have small crews,
+but they are said to be fast. The department regrets that it has not a
+suitable steamer available to send in search of these two vessels; but
+relying upon your well-known patriotism and the excellent record you
+have already made, you are instructed to intercept them, even if you
+are delayed a week or more by any hopeful circumstances.' That is the
+material portion of my orders," added Christy, as he read the last
+sentence. "But I beg you to bear in mind that I did not write the
+commendatory expressions in the paper."
+
+"But they are as true as the holy Gospels!" exclaimed Flint, springing
+out of his chair in the heat of the excitement which the new reading of
+the orders produced in his mind. "But I thought you had read the sealed
+orders to us before, Captain Passford."
+
+"I read but a very small part of them before; and as I had to improvise
+the greater part of what I read, or rather did not read, but simply
+uttered, the language was not all well chosen," replied Christy,
+laughing in spite of all his attempts to maintain his dignity. "The fact
+is, Mr. Flint, I had too many listeners when I read the paper before."
+
+"There was no one in the cabin but Mr. Baskirk and myself, and Dave had
+been stationed at the door; or at least he was there, for he beckoned
+you out into the gangway just as you were beginning to read the orders,"
+argued Flint. "Possibly I should have understood the first reading
+better if I had not seen for myself that you had taken all precautions
+against any listener. You went out when Dave called you; but you were
+not gone half a minute; and that was not long enough for the steward to
+spin any long yarn."
+
+"But it was long enough for Dave to tell me that Pink Mulgrum was under
+my berth, with the state room door open," replied Christy.
+
+"Just so; I comprehend the whole matter now," said Flint, joining the
+captain in the laugh.
+
+"Now you know what my instructions are, gentlemen," continued the
+commander, "and I hope and believe that Mr. Lillyworth and his right
+hand man do not know them. I think you have been already posted, Mr.
+Baskirk, in regard to the anomalous state of affairs on board of the
+Bronx," added the captain.
+
+"Not fully, Captain Passford; but Mr. Flint has told me something about
+the situation," replied the third lieutenant.
+
+"It may not be necessary, gentlemen, that I should say it, but not a
+word of what passes in my cabin is to be repeated in any other part of
+the ship; not even in the ward room when you believe you are entirely
+alone," said the captain, very earnestly and impressively. "If the doors
+and keyholes do not have ears, there may be ears behind them, as some of
+us have learned to our entire satisfaction."
+
+"Not a word from me, Captain Passford," added Baskirk.
+
+"And not one from me," repeated Flint.
+
+"Unquestionably the curiosity of Mr. Lillyworth and his confederate
+are and will continue to be excited to the highest pitch," continued
+Christy. "I shall have occasion to change the course of the ship, and
+head her more to the eastward. Of course the second lieutenant will
+observe this, and will understand that I am not following the orders
+reported to him by Mulgrum. You are my only confidants on board, and it
+will be necessary for you to refer Mr. Lillyworth to me when he asks for
+further information."
+
+"Perfectly understood," replied Flint, who was now in most excellent
+humor.
+
+"Now, gentlemen, I will leave you in my cabin that Mr. Baskirk may be
+more fully instructed in regard to the matters which have passed between
+Mr. Flint and myself. I have great expectations in regard to you, Mr.
+Baskirk, and I am confident that you will realize them."
+
+Saying this, Christy bowed to his companions, and left the cabin,
+retiring to his state room and closing the door. He had on board a full
+supply of charts and nautical instruments of his own, in addition to
+those belonging to the ship. Spreading out the chart of the South
+Atlantic on the desk, he went to work with his dividers and parallel
+rule. He made his figures on a piece of paper, and then laid off a
+course on the chart with a pencil, to be deepened in red ink at another
+time.
+
+Writing "southeast by east" on a slip of paper, he restored his charts
+and instruments to their places and left the state room. The two
+lieutenants were still in his cabin, but he did not disturb them and
+went on deck. Before he reached the bridge, six bells struck, or three
+o'clock in the afternoon. He then ascended the ladder to the bridge. The
+fog which the second lieutenant had predicted had not yet enveloped the
+ship; on the contrary, it looked more like clearing off, and some
+patches of blue sky could be seen.
+
+"Mr. Lillyworth, you will make the course southeast by east," said
+Christy, looking at the officer of the deck.
+
+"Southeast by east!" exclaimed the second lieutenant; and his remark
+needed an exclamation point after it, for though it was customary to
+repeat an order to make sure that it was understood, he did so in such
+a tone and in such a manner as to manifest very clearly his astonishment
+at the nature of the order. The former course had been south by west.
+
+One thing was fully evident from this surprise--that the officer of the
+deck gave full faith to the bogus instructions which had been imparted
+to him by Mulgrum. He believed that the Bronx was to hasten to the Gulf,
+as the former course indicated. It was plain enough to Lillyworth that
+the captain was disregarding his instructions; but his lips were sealed
+in regard to this disobedience, for he could not indicate in any manner
+that he knew the purport of the sealed orders; and doubtless it did not
+occur to him that the deaf mute had been blinded, in addition to his
+other infirmities. The course was given out to the quartermaster at the
+wheel. The steamer promptly fell off, and began to ride quartering over
+the smart billows, brought out by the wind from the south-southwest, as
+it had blown for the last hour or more.
+
+Christy believed that he had put everything in train for accomplishing
+the mission of the Bronx on the new course he had just ordered. There
+were no more orders to be read, and he did not see that the conspirators
+could do anything more to derange the plans of the loyal officers and
+seamen on board. All they had attempted so far was to obtain information
+in regard to the movements of the vessel; and Christy had taken care
+that they should receive all the information they wanted, though not as
+reliable as it might have been. He was satisfied with the situation as
+it must remain till some decided event should call for energetic action.
+
+The captain and the two ward-room officers in his confidence were
+obliged to conduct themselves with the utmost caution and discretion in
+order not to undo anything which had been done in blinding the eyes of
+the conspirators. Christy had an abundance of writing to do, and it was
+of a kind that would not betray any of his secrets; he called upon
+Mulgrum to do this work, in order to keep up appearances. He did not
+call any more conferences with his friends in the cabin, for there was
+no need of any, and entire silence was the more prudent.
+
+The Bronx proceeded on the course the captain had given out until the
+twentieth of the month, when the steamer was a little to the southward
+of the Bermudas. She had not been near enough to the islands to be made
+out from the shore. On this day, when the Bronx was three days from
+Sandy Hook, the fog which Mr. Lillyworth had been predicting settled
+down on the steamer, not as dense as it might be, but thick enough to
+prevent those on board of her from seeing anything at any great distance
+from her. The second lieutenant, in charge of the deck, suggested to the
+captain that the whistle should be blown; but Christy answered very
+emphatically that no whistles were to be blown; though he ordered the
+lookouts to be doubled, and the steamer to proceed at half speed.
+
+In the middle of the second dog watch, in charge of Mr. Baskirk, the
+lookout on the topsail yard made himself heard, and the others aloft
+repeated the call.
+
+"Sail on the starboard bow, sir!" said the first lookout from the yard,
+hailing the bridge.
+
+Captain Passford heard the hail from aloft, for he was planking the deck
+with the first lieutenant. Both of them rushed forward at a pace rather
+undignified for a commander.
+
+"Silence, aloft!" shouted the captain. "We have made her out. Mr. Flint,
+you will take the deck, and call all hands without any unnecessary
+noise."
+
+This order was given to Giblock, the boatswain, and in a minute or two
+every man on board was in his station. The first lieutenant remained on
+the bridge, but the second took his place in the waist, and the third
+forward, though this arrangement of the officers was not sanctioned by
+ancient usage. Silence was commanded, and the engine, working at half
+speed, made hardly any noise. The captain had spoken to Sampson, the
+chief engineer, and he had done his best to avoid all noise in his
+department.
+
+The captain and the first lieutenant remained on the bridge, anxiously
+sighting in the direction in which the sail had been reported to be. As
+the captain had instructed the engineer to do, he had caused the fires
+to be reduced and a change of fuel used so that the smokestack of the
+Bronx was just beginning to send up volumes of black smoke. The bunkers
+contained a small portion of soft coal for this purpose.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIII
+
+THE STEAMER IN THE FOG
+
+
+The Bronx was slowly approaching the steamer in the fog, which appeared
+to have stopped her propeller, and to be resting motionless on the long
+swells, hardly disturbed by a breath of air. By this time the smokestack
+of the Bronx was vomiting forth dense clouds of black smoke. The
+steamers of the navy used anthracite coal, which burns without any
+great volume of smoke, and blockade runners had already begun to lay
+in whatever stock of it they were able to procure to be used as they
+approached the coast where they were to steal through the national
+fleet. The attention of the naval department of the United States had
+already been given to this subject, and the first steps had been taken
+to prevent the sale of this comparatively smokeless coal where it could
+be obtained by the blockade runners.
+
+Christy had been on the blockade; and he had been in action with a
+steamer from the other side of the ocean; and he knew that this black
+smoke of the soft coal, exclusively used by English steamers, was a
+telltale in regard to such vessels. It had been an idea of his own to
+take in a supply of this kind of fuel, for while its smoke betrayed the
+character of vessels intending to run the blockade, the absence of it
+betrayed the loyalty of the national steamers to the blockade runners.
+It was a poor rule that would not work both ways, and the commander of
+the Bronx had determined to adopt the scheme he had now put in force on
+board of his vessel. Although the craft on the starboard bow could
+hardly be distinguished in the fog, Christy had sent a trusty seaman
+aloft to report on the color of the smoke that issued from her funnel.
+
+This man had reported by swinging his cap in the air, as the captain had
+instructed him to do if he found that the smoke was that of soft coal.
+If there was no black smoke, he was to return to the deck without making
+any sign. The moment therefore that the man had been able to see the
+quality of the smoke, the commander was made as wise as though he had
+seen it himself. The information left him no doubt that the steamer was
+intended to run the blockade; but whether or not she was one of the
+expected pair, of course he could form no opinion, for already this part
+of the ocean had begun to swarm with vessels in this service.
+
+"I am beginning to make her out a little better," said Flint, who had
+been straining his eyes to the utmost capacity, as everybody else on
+board was doing, to obtain the best and earliest information in regard
+to the stranger on the starboard bow.
+
+"What do you make out, Mr. Flint?" asked Christy, who was too busily
+employed in watching the movements of the officers and seamen on his own
+deck to give especial attention to the character of the other steamer.
+
+"I can't see well enough yet to say anything in regard to details,"
+replied the first lieutenant. "I can only make out her form and size;
+and she seems to be as nearly like the Bronx as one pea is like another,
+though I should say that she was longer."
+
+"Is she in motion?" asked the captain with interest.
+
+"She appears to be at rest, though it is possible that she is moving
+very slowly; but if she has not stopped her screw, she is not going more
+than four knots."
+
+"You say that she is built like the Bronx, Mr. Flint?" asked Christy
+anxiously.
+
+"Just like her; I should say that both hulls came out of the same
+mould."
+
+"That very nearly settles the question in my mind. Probably she was
+designed by the same naval architect, and constructed by the same
+builders, as the Bronx," replied Christy, gazing intently at the dim
+outlines of the steamer in the fog. "When a designer has made a great
+reputation for fast ships, men with piles of money, like the former
+owners of the Bronx, the Scotian, and the Arran, employ him to furnish
+the plans for their steam yachts. From what we have learned so far,
+though it is very little indeed, I feel reasonably sure that this
+steamer ahead of us is the Scotian or the Arran, and I don't care much
+which it is. But why has she stopped her screw, or reduced her speed to
+four knots?"
+
+"That is a question that can only be answered an hour or two hence, if
+ever," replied the first lieutenant.
+
+"But it is a very important question all the same," added Christy.
+
+"I doubt if the Bronx is making four knots at the present moment," said
+Flint, as he went to the end of the bridge, and looked down into the
+water.
+
+"In changing the fires in the furnaces, Mr. Sampson had been obliged to
+clear them out in part, and that has reduced the pressure of steam; but
+we shall soon have the usual head," said Christy, as he went to the
+speaking tube and communicated with the chief engineer.
+
+He was informed that his explanation was correct in regard to the coal,
+and that in a very short time the boilers would have a full head of
+steam. Christy spent the next few minutes in an earnest study of the
+scarcely perceptible outline of the steamer in the fog. He was hardly
+wiser when he had finished his examination than before. The hull and
+lower masts of the vessel could be indistinctly made out, and that was
+all. Sampson informed him that he had not been using all the steam he
+had, and that the screw was hardly turning at all. He ordered him to
+stop it entirely.
+
+Impatient as he was to follow up the discovery that had been made, he
+realized that it would be very imprudent to expose his ship to possible
+danger when he had not steam enough to work her to the best advantage.
+He could only wait; but he was satisfied that he had done the best
+possible thing in changing the coal, for the black smoke would
+effectually blind the officers of the other vessel. They were not
+engaged in a chase, and the exciting question could be settled a few
+hours hence as well as at the present time.
+
+"If the steamer ahead is the Scotian or the Arran, as I fully believe
+she is, probably her consort is somewhere in these waters," said the
+commander.
+
+"Probably she lost sight of her in this fog," added Flint. "But, Captain
+Passford, we are in the face of something, though we do not yet know
+precisely what. I suppose you have your eye on Mr. Lillyworth?"
+
+"I have kept him in sight all the time. He is on the quarter deck now,
+as he has been since all hands were called," replied Christy, who had
+not failed to look at him for a full minute since the discovery of the
+sail on the starboard. "He seems to be perplexed by the situation, and
+his time for action, if he intends to act, has not yet come."
+
+"I don't see Pink Mulgrum anywhere about the deck."
+
+"I saw him a few minutes since," added Christy. "He passed several times
+quite near Mr. Lillyworth, and very likely something was said between
+them; but they had no long talk."
+
+Christy had charged Dave to watch Mulgrum if he went below, and to
+follow him up closely; but the deaf mute had been on deck most of the
+time. There was nothing that he could do, and nothing that the second
+lieutenant could do, to embarrass the operations of the ship while she
+remained at rest. The captain then descended to the deck, and personally
+looked into the condition of everything. In the course of his round he
+came to the quarter deck where the second lieutenant was stationed. He
+could see that he was nervous and uneasy about something, and it was not
+difficult to divine what perplexed him. He could hardly see the black
+smoke from the funnel of the steamer in the fog, for his place on the
+deck did not permit him to obtain as good a view of her as could be had
+from the bridge, and especially from aloft.
+
+"Do you make out what that vessel is, Captain Passford?" asked
+Lillyworth, as Christy passed near him.
+
+"Not yet, Mr. Lillyworth," replied the captain, not caring to converse
+with the conspirator.
+
+"The fog does not seem to be very dense, and I should think the vessel
+might be made out from aloft," added the second lieutenant, evidently
+very anxious to know more about the sail ahead.
+
+"Not very clearly," replied Christy, as he went forward to the engine
+hatch.
+
+He descended to the engine room, and while he was listening to the roar
+of the flames in the furnaces, so different from the action of
+anthracite coal, Sampson came up from the fire room.
+
+"We shall have a sufficient head of steam in a few minutes to justify
+you in going ahead, Captain Passford," said the engineer without waiting
+to be questioned.
+
+"I am glad to hear it, though we are in no special hurry at present, in
+spite of our impatience to know what is before us," replied the captain.
+"Do you know the man who passes under the name of Mulgrum, Mr. Sampson?"
+
+"You mean Pink, the deaf mute? Mr. Nawood pointed him out to me, and I
+have seen him about the deck or in the steerage several times."
+
+"Has he been in the engine room at any time since we sailed?" asked
+Christy.
+
+"He may have been; but I have not noticed him anywhere in my
+department," replied Sampson.
+
+"You will not allow him in the engine or fire room," continued the
+captain. "Send him out, drive him out, if necessary, at once."
+
+"Being deaf and dumb, I should suppose he were harmless wherever he
+happened to be. Is he--"
+
+"Never mind what he is just now, Mr. Sampson," interposed Christy. "Be
+very particular to obey my order in regard to him to the letter; that's
+all now. Inform me at once when you are ready to go ahead, and I shall
+be on the bridge."
+
+The order which Christy had just given to the engineer was the result of
+his reflection since he came down from the bridge. He had been
+cudgelling his brains to determine what the conspirators could possibly
+do when the decisive moment came, if it should happen to come as he
+neared the steamer in the fog, to derange the operations on board. It
+seemed to him before that all they could do was to leap on board of the
+enemy, if it came to boarding her, and reinforce her crew. He had talked
+over this matter with Flint and Baskirk, and there were three who would
+be ready to shoot either of them the instant their treachery should be
+apparent.
+
+Before it would be possible to board, a man as intelligent as Mulgrum,
+who had served as executive officer, could easily disable the engine.
+This idea had but just come to the commander, who thought before that he
+had closed every opening against the conspirators. He went on deck as
+soon as he had settled this matter. The fog seemed to be rather more
+dense than before, and when he went on the bridge, it was reported that
+the stranger could no longer be made out.
+
+"I have just received the roster of the 'Bronx Association,'" said
+Flint, as the captain joined him. "It is signed by every man on board,
+including the supernumeraries forward, except Spoors, Blocker, Veering,
+Packer, Pickford, and Runyon. I inquired why these men would not join,
+but could not learn that they had any reason except that they did not
+wish to be members. I have seen Mr. Lillyworth talking to all of these
+men, and I think we can be certain now who is white and who is black."
+
+"On the bridge!" came from the speaking tube, at this moment, and the
+captain was near enough to hear it. Mr. Sampson reported that he had
+steam enough to make at least ten knots an hour.
+
+The commander then instructed the first lieutenant to see that both
+divisions of boarders were armed with cutlass and revolver, in readiness
+for action. The second lieutenant was to attend to the working of the
+broadside guns, Mr. Baskirk was to lead the first division of boarders,
+and Mr. Giblock, the boatswain, the second. Flint went below to the deck
+to execute his orders, and the captain ordered the quartermaster to ring
+one bell.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIV
+
+THE CONFEDERATE STEAMER SCOTIAN
+
+
+One bell sounded on the gong in the engine room, and the Bronx began to
+go ahead. Christy felt that the most tremendous hour of his lifetime had
+come, and he struggled to keep down the excitement which agitated him;
+and he succeeded so far that he appeared to be the coolest man on board
+of the ship. When Flint came in the vicinity of the bridge, he called to
+him to join him. The men were procuring their revolvers and cutlasses,
+and he had a moment to spare. The captain instructed him to conceal the
+boarders so that they could not be seen on board the steamer in the fog
+when the Bronx came up with her. He added some other details to his
+orders.
+
+"If possible, I wish you to keep as near Lillyworth as you can,"
+continued Christy, "for I shall not have the opportunity to watch him.
+This war cannot be conducted on peace principles, and if that man
+attempts to defeat my orders in any manner, don't hesitate to put a ball
+from your revolver through his heart. Use reasonable care, Mr. Flint,
+but bear in mind that I am not to be defeated in the capture of that
+steamer, if she proves to be what I suppose she is, by the treachery of
+one who accepted a position as an officer on board of the Bronx." The
+commander was firm and decided in his manner, and Flint had served with
+him enough to know that he meant what he said.
+
+"I will obey your orders to the letter, Captain Passford, using all
+reasonable precautions in the discharge of my duty," replied Flint.
+"Mr. Lillyworth was in a state of mutiny just now, and spoke to me."
+
+"What did he say?"
+
+"He declared that he was second lieutenant of the ship, and it was his
+right to command the first division of boarders. He wouldn't stand it.
+I told him he was to be in command of the guns. He insisted that you did
+not intend to fire a gun if you could help it. I replied that we should
+not board the vessel either if we could help it. But I had no time to
+argue with him, and referred him to the captain. Then he moved towards
+the ladder of the bridge, and I forbade him to leave his station. That
+is the whole of it. I have seen him speak to each of the six men we now
+know to be his friends, to say nothing of Mulgrum. I left him then."
+
+"All right so far, Mr. Flint. Return to the deck, if you please, and be
+sure that the boarders are kept out of sight from this moment," added
+Christy. "Quartermaster, ring four bells," he added, turning to the
+pilot house.
+
+"Four bells, sir," repeated McSpindle, who was at the wheel.
+
+The Bronx soon began to feel the effect of this order, and the smoke
+poured out in increased volume from the smokestack, affected by the
+stronger draught produced by the additional speed.
+
+"On the topsail yard!" called the captain, directing his speaking
+trumpet aloft.
+
+"On the bridge, sir!" replied the man.
+
+"Can you make out the steamer?"
+
+"No, sir; only her topmasts and fore rigging."
+
+"How does she lie from the Bronx?"
+
+"Still on the starboard bow, sir."
+
+"Port the helm, quartermaster," added the captain.
+
+"Port, sir," replied McSpindle.
+
+For about five minutes more, the Bronx went ahead at full speed, and
+Christy was confident that she was again making fifteen knots.
+
+"On the bridge, sir!" called the man on the fore yard.
+
+"Aloft!"
+
+"I make her out now; she has the Confederate flag at the peak."
+
+"All right!" exclaimed Christy to himself, though he spoke out loud.
+
+The steamer had set her colors, and there was no longer any doubt in
+regard to her character. The flag also indicated that she was not a
+blockade runner in the ordinary sense of the word, but a Confederate
+man-of-war. Warnock reported that she had taken her armament on board
+from another vessel at some point south of England, and the colors also
+assured Christy that the steamer was one of the pair expected.
+
+Still the Bronx went ahead at full speed, and presently a gun was heard
+from the direction in which she lay, though the captain was unable to
+decide what it meant. It might be a signal of distress, but the man on
+the yard had not reported the colors as union down; and it might be
+simply a defiance. It was probable that the Scotian and Arran had put
+in at St. George, and it was more than possible that they had shipped
+a reinforcement to her reported small crew.
+
+"Aloft!" called the captain again.
+
+"On the bridge, sir!" replied the lookout.
+
+"Is the steamer under way?"
+
+"I think not, sir; but I can't make out her wake, it is so low."
+
+"Starboard a little, quartermaster."
+
+"Starboard, sir."
+
+Christy heard, or thought he heard, for he was not sure about it, the
+sound of a bell. A minute later the quartermaster in the pilot house
+struck seven bells, which was repeated on the top-gallant forecastle of
+the Bronx, and he was confident this was what he had heard on board of
+the stranger.
+
+"Quartermaster, strike one bell," he added.
+
+"One bell, sir;" and the gong resounded from the engine room, and the
+speed of the Bronx was immediately reduced.
+
+A minute later Christy obtained a full view of the steamer. She was
+headed to the southwest, and her propeller was not in motion. As the
+lookout had reported, she was the counterpart of the Bronx, though she
+was a larger vessel. He gave some further orders to the quartermaster at
+the wheel, for he had decided to board the steamer on her port side. The
+boarders had been concealed in proper places under this arrangement, and
+the captain had directed the course of the Bronx so that a shot from her
+could hardly do any harm, if she took it into her head to fire one.
+
+"Arran, ahoy!" shouted a hoarse voice through a speaking trumpet from
+the steamer.
+
+"On board the Scotian!" replied Christy through his trumpet.
+
+After the vessel had hailed the Arran, the captain had no difficulty
+in deciding that the other craft was the Scotian; and he was especially
+glad that the officer of that vessel had hailed him in this particular
+form. The single word spoken through that trumpet was the key to the
+entire enigma. Every possible doubt was removed by it. He was now
+assured, as he had not been before, that he had fallen in with one of
+the two vessels of which his father had given him information, and which
+his sealed orders required him to seek, even if he was detained a week
+or more. Christy spent no time in congratulating himself on the
+situation, but the tremendous idea passed through his whole being
+in an instant.
+
+"We are disabled!" shouted the officer on board of the Scotian through
+his trumpet. "Please send your engineer on board."
+
+"All right!" replied Christy. "Go ahead a little faster, Mr. Sampson.
+We are very near the steamer."
+
+The young commander cast his eyes over the deck of his vessel to assure
+himself that everything was ready for the important moment, though the
+situation did not indicate that a very sharp battle was to be fought.
+Everything was in order, and the first lieutenant was planking the deck,
+looking as though he felt quite at home, for he was as cool as a Jersey
+cucumber. Farther aft was Lillyworth, as uneasy as a caged tiger, for
+no doubt he realized that the Scotian was to fall a victim to the
+circumstances that beset her, rather than as the result of a spirited
+chase or a sharply fought battle. He looked about him for a moment, and
+the instant he turned his head, Mulgrum came out from behind the mast,
+and passed quite near him.
+
+The captain could not tell whether the second lieutenant had spoken to
+the deaf mute or not, but the latter hastened to the engine hatch, and
+descended to the engine room. The Bronx was within less than a cable's
+length of the Scotian, whose name could now be read on her stern, when
+Mulgrum, apparently ordered by Lillyworth to do so, had hastened to the
+engine hatch. Even on the bridge the noise of a scuffle could be heard
+in the engine room, and the captain was sure that Sampson had been
+obedient to his orders. Another minute or two would determine in what
+manner the Scotian was to be captured, and Christy hastened down the
+ladder to the deck.
+
+As soon as his foot pressed the planks, he hastened to the engine hatch.
+Calling to the engineer, he learned that the deaf mute had been knocked
+senseless by Sampson, and lay on the sofa. He waited to hear no more,
+but went forward where there were bell pulls on the deck, and rang two
+bells to stop her. Then he gave some orders to the quartermaster, and
+rang three bells to back her. The Bronx came alongside of the Scotian
+as handsomely as though she had been a river steamer making one of
+her usual landings. The hands who had been stationed for the purpose
+immediately used their grappling irons, and the two vessels were fast
+to each other.
+
+"Boarders!--" the first lieutenant shouted at a sign from the captain;
+but before he could complete the order, Pawcett, for we may now call him
+by his right name, leaped on the bulwarks of the Bronx.
+
+"This is a United States"--he began to say, but he was allowed to
+proceed no farther, for the first lieutenant raised the revolver he
+carried in his left hand, doubtless for this very purpose, and fired.
+
+Pawcett did not utter another word, but fell back upon the deck of the
+Bronx; where no one took any further notice of him.
+
+"Boarders, away!" shouted the first lieutenant.
+
+This time the sentence was finished, and the order was promptly
+executed. Hardly a half minute had been lost by the attempt of Pawcett
+to prepare the officers of the Scotian to do their duty; but he had said
+enough to enable the ship's company to understand what he would have
+said if he had finished his announcement. The officers and seamen were
+both surprised, and there was a panic among the latter, though the
+former rallied them in a moment. But they had lost all their chances,
+and after an insignificant struggle, the deck of the steamer was in
+possession of the boarders. The crew were driven forward by the
+victorious "Bronxies" as Giblock called them. "Do you surrender?"
+said Mr. Baskirk to the officer he took for the captain.
+
+"I do not see that I have any other alternative," replied the commander
+of the Scotian, politely enough, but it was evident that he was sorely
+afflicted, and even ashamed of himself. "I understand now that I am the
+victim of a Yankee trick."
+
+"Allow me to introduce you to Captain Passford, commander of the United
+States steamer Bronx," continued Mr. Baskirk, as Christy came on board
+of the prize.
+
+The captain of the Scotian retreated a pace as Christy stepped up
+in front of him, and gracefully lifted his cap to the unfortunate
+commander.
+
+"I beg your pardon, sir, but did I understand you to say that this young
+gentleman is the commander of the steamer alongside?" demanded the
+captain, looking at Christy from head to foot.
+
+"He is the commander, sir; Captain Passford," added Baskirk.
+
+"May I be allowed to ask whom I have the honor to address?" Christy
+began, lifting his cap again, as did the other also.
+
+"Captain Dinsmore, at your service."
+
+"I sincerely regret your personal misfortune while I rejoice at the
+result of this action, as a loyal citizen of the United States," replied
+Christy.
+
+Then he invited the captain to his cabin.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XV
+
+THE SCOTIAN BECOMES THE OCKLOCKONEE
+
+
+As he went to the deck of the Bronx, the young commander sent the first
+lieutenant on board of the prize to superintend the arrangements for
+disposing of the ship's company. Captain Dinsmore was requested to
+produce his papers, and Christy conducted him to his cabin. As his
+father had advised him always to be on such occasions, he was studiously
+polite, as in fact he was at all times. Whether the other captain was
+usually so or not, he was certainly courteous in every respect, though,
+with the heavy misfortune which had befallen him, it was vastly more
+difficult for him to control his feelings, and conduct himself in a
+gentlemanly manner. Captain Passford desired to understand in what
+capacity the Scotian was approaching the American coast before he made
+his final arrangements. After giving his guest, as he regarded him, or
+rather treated him, a chair in his cabin, Christy called Dave, who had
+followed him below.
+
+"Will you excuse me a moment or two while I attend to a necessary duty?"
+said he, turning to Captain Dinsmore, as he seated himself at the table.
+
+"Certainly, captain; I am not so much in a hurry as I have been at other
+times," replied the other with a rather sickly smile.
+
+"Keep a sharp lookout for the Arran," Christy wrote on a piece of paper,
+and handed it to the steward. "Give that to Mr. Flint."
+
+Captain Passford had observed when he visited the deck of the Scotian
+that she was well armed, and he had no doubt that her consort was
+similarly provided for the business of war. It was therefore of the
+highest importance that the Arran should not come unexpectedly upon the
+Bronx at a time when she was hardly in condition to meet an enemy.
+
+"Now, Captain Dinsmore, may I trouble you for your papers?" he
+continued, turning to his guest, as he preferred to regard him.
+
+"I admit your right to examine them under present circumstances,"
+replied Captain Dinsmore, as he delivered the package to him.
+
+"Perhaps we may simplify and abbreviate this examination to some extent,
+sir, if you are so disposed," added Christy, as he looked the other full
+in the face.
+
+"I shall be happy to have you do so, Captain Passford," replied the
+visitor in the cabin, with something like eagerness in his manner. "You
+conduct yourself like a gentleman, sir, and I am not at all disposed to
+embarrass you unnecessarily."
+
+"Thank you, sir; I appreciate your courtesy."
+
+"I am afraid it is not so much courtesy as it is desperation, for if I
+should act in accordance with my feelings, I should blow my brains out
+without any delay," said Captain Dinsmore. "I should not say as much as
+this to any but a generous enemy; but I feel that I am ruined, and that
+there is nothing more in the future for me."
+
+Christy really sympathized with him, and could not help thinking how
+he should feel if the situations were reversed. He realized that the
+commander of the Scotian had been very careless in the discharge of
+his duty in permitting any vessel to come alongside of her without
+considering that she might be an enemy. This inefficiency was doubtless
+the cause of his distress. Christy had kept uppermost in his mind the
+advice of his father at the last moment before he sailed, and he asked
+himself if, while the prisoner was thus exciting his sympathy and
+compassion, the latter was not expecting the Arran would appear and
+reverse the fortunes of war.
+
+"I am sorry you take such a severe view of your situation," added the
+captain of the Bronx. "But my first duty is to ascertain the character
+of the vessel which you surrender."
+
+"You shall have no doubt in regard to that, Captain Passford," answered
+the commander of the Scotian, proudly. "I am not a dickering merchant,
+trying to make money out of the situation of my country. The Scotian,
+as you call her, is the Confederate steamer Ocklockonee, and here is my
+commission as a lieutenant in the Confederate Navy," he added as he took
+the document from his pocket and tendered it to his captor.
+
+Christy looked at the paper, and then examined the other papers in
+the packet. They left no doubt in his mind as to the character of the
+Ocklockonee, if he had had any before. He folded up the commission and
+politely returned it to the owner. The examination was completed so far
+as he was concerned; but Captain Dinsmore did not seem to be satisfied,
+though he made no complaint that anything was wrong in the proceedings.
+He was evidently a very proud and high-strung man, and appeared to be
+unable to reconcile himself to the situation.
+
+"I am a ruined man!" he exclaimed several times; and when he looked at
+the commander of the Bronx, measuring him from head to foot, as he had
+already done several times, it seemed to increase his distress of mind,
+and make him more nervous than before.
+
+"While I regret that a brave man like yourself, captain, should be at
+war with the government which I honor and love, I hope that personally
+your future will be as bright as I am sure your merit deserves," said
+Christy.
+
+"If it had been a square and well-fought action, I should not feel
+as I do about it. You will pardon me, and understand that I mean no
+disrespect to you, captain, but I look upon myself as the victim of a
+Yankee trick," said Captain Dinsmore, bitterly. "But please to consider
+that I do not charge any blame or treachery upon you, sir."
+
+"I think I can understand your feelings, sir; but I cannot see that in
+resorting to strategy to save my men, my conduct has been in any manner
+dishonorable," replied Christy, holding his head a little higher than
+usual. "I should hold that I had been guilty of misconduct if I had
+failed to take advantage of the circumstances under which I have
+captured the Ocklockonee."
+
+"I quite agree with you, Captain Passford. I should have done the same
+thing myself if the opportunity had been presented to me," the guest
+hastened to say. "But that does not in the least degree relieve me from
+the consequences of my own negligence. When you are more at leisure,
+I hope you will permit me to make an explanation of the situation in
+which I was placed."
+
+"I shall be happy to listen to anything you may desire to say to me when
+I have the leisure to hear you."
+
+"Thank you, sir."
+
+Christy hastened on deck to attend to the many duties required of him.
+The first sight that presented itself when he reached the head of the
+companion way was the form of the second lieutenant, which remained as
+it had fallen from the rail. He sent for Dr. Spokely, and directed him
+to ascertain whether or not Pawcett was dead. While the surgeon was
+examining him, Mr. Sampson came up from below with a bolt in his hand,
+and touched his cap to the commander.
+
+"You are at work on the engine of the Ocklockonee, are you?" asked
+Christy, and this inquiry was one of the duties which had been on his
+mind before he left the cabin.
+
+"Yes, sir; and I have already examined her engine; I suppose you mean
+the Scotian, for that is the name on her stern, they tell me," replied
+the chief engineer.
+
+"Her new name is the Ocklockonee."
+
+"I have examined the engine," replied Sampson.
+
+"Is the damage very serious?" asked the captain anxiously.
+
+"Far from it; she has broken a bolt which disables her, and she ought to
+have had one to replace it without more than five minutes' delay, but it
+appears that they have not one on board; at least none could be found
+when it was wanted, and they were at work forging one when the Bronx
+came alongside."
+
+"All right; repair the damage as soon as possible. I heard a scuffle in
+the engine room just as we were running alongside the Ocklockonee," said
+the captain, looking inquiringly at the engineer.
+
+"Yes, sir; there was a scuffle there. Pink Mulgrum was rushing down the
+ladder when I stopped him. He tried to push by me when I made signs to
+him to return to the deck. Then he gave a spring at my throat, and as I
+saw that he had a revolver in his hand, I did not hesitate to hit him on
+the head with a bar of iron I had in my hand. He dropped on the deck.
+I put his revolver in my pocket, and stretched him out on the sofa.
+He did not move, and I left him there."
+
+"I will send the surgeon to him," added the captain, as he went on board
+of the prize, followed by Sampson.
+
+The first lieutenant had been busy on the deck of the vessel, but
+he had been able to accomplish but little in the absence of definite
+instructions from the captain. All the seamen were held in the forward
+part of the deck, and there were twenty-four of them, including the
+petty officers, but not the stokers, as the firemen were called. The
+engineers and all connected with their department remained below so far
+as could be learned. Two officers remained seated on the quarter deck;
+but they did not appear to be so thoroughly cast down as the captain,
+doubtless because they were not called upon to bear the responsibility
+of the capture.
+
+"Have you set a sharp lookout, Mr. Flint?" asked the captain.
+
+"The lookout remains the same on board of the Bronx, though I have
+cautioned the quartermaster on the fore yard to keep his eyes wide open;
+and I have stationed four men on board of the Scotian."
+
+"Very well; we are all right so far; but if the other vessel is as well
+armed as this one she is capable of giving us a great deal of trouble,"
+replied the captain.
+
+"I only hope we may find her," added Flint heartily.
+
+"We shall look for her at any rate. But we must get things regulated on
+board of both vessels at once, for I judge that the Arran cannot be far
+off, for the officers hailed us as the Arran when we were approaching,
+which shows that they were confident in regard to her identity, or they
+would not have given themselves away so readily."
+
+"We have made a lucky hit, and I hope we shall be able to reap the full
+benefit of it," added Flint.
+
+"We must provide for the immediate future without any delay," continued
+Christy. "Our first duty will be to search for the Arran, and we can use
+the Ocklockonee, which the captain says is her present name, to assist
+in the chase, for we have force enough to man both vessels, though we
+are not oversupplied with officers."
+
+"There are two more quartermasters who are nearly as good men as
+Baskirk," replied the first lieutenant.
+
+"I ask no better officer than Baskirk has proved himself to be. I shall
+retain him on board of the Bronx, and for the present I shall ask you to
+take command of the Ocklockonee; and you may select your own officers.
+The probability is that, if we find the Arran, we shall have a fight
+with her."
+
+"Then I shall make McSpindle my first lieutenant, and Luffard my
+second," added Flint, evidently pleased with the idea of having even
+a temporary command.
+
+"I shall appoint Baskirk in your place on board of the Bronx; but I need
+one more."
+
+"I recommend Amblen, though he is not as well qualified as the others I
+have named."
+
+"Send for these men at once," added the captain.
+
+One of them was on the topsail yard of the Bronx, but all of them soon
+appeared in the waist of the prize. They were informed of the honor
+which had been conferred upon them, and were immediately assigned to
+duty. The crew of the Ocklockonee were divided between the two steamers,
+and were put under guard below.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVI
+
+CAPTAIN PASSFORD'S FINAL ORDERS
+
+
+A tolerable state of order and regularity had been brought out of the
+confusion that prevailed on board of the Ocklockonee, and the newly
+appointed officers went to the stations where they belonged. Sampson
+reported the engine of the steamer as in good order, and ready for
+service.
+
+"Who is the chief engineer of the Ocklockonee, Mr. Sampson?" asked
+Captain Passford, after he had listened to the report.
+
+"His name is Bockburn; he is a Scotchman, and appears to be a very good
+fellow," replied the engineer of the Bronx.
+
+"Does he talk at all about what has just happened on board of his
+steamer?" asked the captain, deeply interested, for he had some
+difficulty in arranging the engineer's department on board of the
+prize, as he considered the new order of things.
+
+"Yes, sir; he talks at the rate of twenty knots an hour, and if his
+steamer can get ahead as well as his tongue, she is a fast one," replied
+Sampson, laughing.
+
+"Well, what does he say? I want to know how he stands affected by the
+present condition of affairs," continued the captain rather impatiently,
+for he was too busy to enjoy the humor of the engineer.
+
+"He is a thrifty Scotchman; and I don't believe he has any interest in
+anything under the sun except his wages; and he is a little sour on that
+account to find that his cruise is finished, as he puts it."
+
+"Send for him and his assistants, Mr. Sampson."
+
+The engineer went to the engine hatch, and called the men below.
+
+"Now send for Mr. Gawl," added the captain. "He is your first assistant;
+is he a competent man to run an engine?"
+
+"As competent as I am myself; and the engine of this steamer is exactly
+like that of the Bronx, so that he can have no trouble with it, if you
+think of retaining him on board of the Ocklockonee," replied Sampson.
+
+"I propose to make him chief engineer of her."
+
+"You could not find a better man," said Sampson, as he went to summon
+Gawl.
+
+The three engineers of the prize came on deck, and the captain took the
+chief aside.
+
+"Mr. Bockburn, I believe, the chief engineer of the Ocklockonee?" said
+Christy.
+
+"Of the Scotian, sir; for I know nothing of the jaw-cracking names
+that the officers in the cabin have given her," replied the engineer,
+shrugging his shoulders, and presenting a dissatisfied air.
+
+"Are you an engineer in the Confederate Navy, sir?" asked Christy,
+bringing the business to a head at once.
+
+"No, sir, I am not," answered the engineer very decidedly. "You see,
+captain, that the Scotian was sold to come across the water, and I was
+out of a job, with a family to support. They did not say anything about
+the service in which the Scotian was to be engaged, but I understood it.
+When they spoke to me about it, I was glad to keep my place as long as
+she did not make war on the United Kingdom. In truth, I may say that I
+did not care a fig about the quarrel in the States, and was as ready to
+run an engine on one side as the other as long as I got my wages, and
+was able to support my family handsomely, as, thank God, I have always
+done. I am not a student of politics, and I only read enough in the
+newspapers to know what is going on in the world. I always find that I
+get ahead better when I mind my own business, and it can't be said that
+Andy Bockburn ever--"
+
+"Precisely so, Mr. Bockburn; but I will hear the rest of your story at
+another time," interposed the captain when he found that the man was
+faithful to the description Sampson had given of his talking powers.
+
+"You understand perfectly what has transpired on board of the Scotian
+as you choose still to call her; in a word, that she is a prize to the
+United States steamer Bronx?"
+
+"I understand it all as clearly as though I read it in a book; and it
+was all on account of the want of a bolt that I was sure I put on board
+of the vessel before she sailed; and I am just as sure of it now as I
+ever was. But then, you see, captain, a man can't always be sure of the
+men under him, though he may be sure of himself. I have no doubt--"
+
+"Short yarns, if you please, Mr. Bockburn. You understand the situation,
+and I will add that I intend to use this vessel as well as the Bronx in
+the service of my government. Are you willing to do duty on board of her
+in any capacity in which I may place you in the engineer department,
+provided you receive the same wages as before?"
+
+"I am, sir; and I was paid a month in advance, so that I shall not lose
+anything," chuckled the careful Scotchman.
+
+"If you are regularly appointed, though I can only give you a temporary
+position, in addition to your wages, you will be entitled to your share
+in any prize we may hereafter capture."
+
+"Then I will take any position you will please to give me," answered the
+engineer, apparently delighted with the prospect thus held out to him.
+
+"I shall appoint you first assistant engineer of the Bronx," continued
+the captain, not a little to the astonishment of Flint, who wondered
+that he was not assigned to the Ocklockonee.
+
+"I am quite satisfied, captain," replied Bockburn, bowing and smiling,
+for wages were more than rank to him. "I will bring up my kit at once,
+sir. You see, captain, when a man has a family he--"
+
+"Precisely as you say, Mr. Bockburn," interrupted the captain. "You
+will report to Mr. Sampson in the engine room of the Bronx for further
+orders."
+
+"Thank you, sir; I supposed I was out of a job from this out, and I was
+feeling--"
+
+"Feel your way to the engine room of the Bronx. Mr. Gawl," the captain
+proceeded.
+
+"On duty, sir," replied the first assistant engineer of the Bronx,
+touching his cap as respectfully as though the commander had been forty
+years old.
+
+"You are appointed temporarily as chief engineer of the Ocklockonee, and
+you will take your place in the engine room as soon as possible," said
+the captain, as brusquely as though favors cost nothing.
+
+Mr. Gawl was taken to the engine room and introduced to the first and
+second assistants, Rowe and Leeds, and was kindly received by them,
+for, like their late chief, the question of wages was the only one that
+affected them. They promised to be faithful to the government they were
+to serve, and to discharge their duties faithfully under the direction
+of the new chief. The two officers on the quarter deck had watched all
+these proceedings with interest. They were the only persons remaining on
+board who had not been disposed of in some manner.
+
+Christy approached them while Captain Flint, as he was now to be called
+by courtesy, was making his final arrangements with the crew that had
+been assigned to the prize. Both of the officers bowed civilly to the
+commander as he presented himself on the quarter deck. They were older
+men than Captain Dinsmore, though neither was over forty-five. Christy
+suspected that they were not Confederate officers as soon as he had a
+chance to look them over.
+
+"May I ask, gentlemen, if you are officers of the Confederate Navy?"
+asked Christy, as he looked from one to the other of the men.
+
+"We are not, sir," replied the senior of them.
+
+"Of course you are aware that you are serving in a Confederate
+man-of-war?" added Christy.
+
+"I should say that was hardly true up to date. The captain holds a
+commission in the Confederate Navy, but the ship has never been into a
+Confederate port, Captain Passford," replied the senior, who had learned
+the commander's name.
+
+"As you call me by name, perhaps you will enable me to do as much with
+you," added Christy.
+
+"My name is Farley Lippard; I shipped as first officer of the Scotian,"
+replied the senior.
+
+"And mine is Edward Sangston; and I shipped as second officer of the
+steamer."
+
+"We shipped only for the voyage, and were told that we could not retain
+our situations after the ship's company was fully organized," added Mr.
+Lippard.
+
+"Then I hope you were paid in advance, as the engineers were," said
+Christy with a smile.
+
+"We were, sir, thank you," added the first officer. "Though we were told
+that we could not obtain any rank in the navy because there were more
+officers than ships, the agent said we should find plenty of employment
+on board of blockade runners coming out with cotton."
+
+"I suppose you are Englishmen?" said the captain.
+
+"Scotchmen, sir, but British subjects."
+
+"I cannot put you on shore and I may not have an opportunity to ship
+you to your homes by another vessel. I shall leave you on board of the
+Ocklockonee, and the acting commander will assign to you such quarters
+in the cabin as may be at his command," continued Christy. "It is only
+necessary that I should say I expect you to remain neutral, whatever
+occurs on board of the steamer."
+
+"That is understood," replied Mr. Lippard.
+
+"You will be regarded as passengers; but of course if you commit any act
+hostile to the government of the United States, you will be considered
+as enemies, and treated as prisoners of war," Christy proceeded. "I hope
+the situation is clearly understood."
+
+"Certainly, sir; we have no interest in the quarrel in the States, and
+we are not in the pay of the Confederacy, as they call it," replied Mr.
+Lippard.
+
+"Then there will be no trouble. Captain Flint," called the commander.
+
+Flint, who had been very busy appointing petty officers and organizing
+the new crew, came at the call and was introduced to the late officers
+of the prize. The understanding which had just been reached in regard to
+them was repeated for the benefit of the new captain. He was quite as
+pliable as his superior had always been, and there was no indication
+that any friction would result from their presence on board of the
+prize, now temporarily put into the service of the navy.
+
+"Have you made all your arrangements, Captain Flint?" asked Christy when
+he was all ready to return to the Bronx.
+
+"I have very nearly completed them, Captain Passford; and I can easily
+finish them after we get under way," replied Flint. "All I need before
+we part is my orders."
+
+"From all that I can learn, the Arran must be to the eastward of the
+Ocklockonee," said Christy, who had given this subject all the thought
+his time would permit. "The officers of the prize hailed the Bronx
+coming from that direction, and that indicates that she was expected
+from that quarter. Our coming from that way seems to have made Captain
+Dinsmore confident that the Bronx was the Arran. I shall lay the course
+of my ship to the northeast, while you will proceed to the southwest.
+After you have gone fifty miles in that direction, you will make a
+course due east, as I shall also after I have made the same distance.
+Having run due east twenty miles, you will run to the northeast, as I
+shall to the southwest. If you discover the Arran fire your midship gun,
+and I will do the same."
+
+Christy shook hands with Flint, and went on board of the Bronx. The
+order was given on board of both vessels to cast off the grapnels; the
+gong bell sounded in each engine room, and both vessels went ahead, the
+Bronx coming about to her new course.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVII
+
+A COUPLE OF ASTONISHED CONSPIRATORS
+
+
+The fog had been very variable in its density, and had been lifting and
+settling at times during the day of the capture. By the time the two
+vessels were ready to get under way, it had become more solid than
+before. The night had come, and the darkness with it, at about the same
+time. The lookouts were still in their places; but so far as seeing
+anything was concerned they might as well have been in the hold. If the
+Arran was still in the vicinity, as no doubt she was, the Bronx might
+run into her. Wherever she was, it was well assured that her officers
+knew nothing of the capture of the Ocklockonee, for not a great gun had
+been discharged, and the combat had been so quickly decided that there
+had been very little noise of any kind.
+
+Everything worked without friction on board of the Bronx; and Captain
+Passford felt even more elastic than usual. Doubtless the capture he had
+just made afforded him a good deal of inspiration; but the fact that the
+mystery of the deaf mute and the second lieutenant had been solved, and
+the unfathomable catastrophe which their presence on board threatened
+had been escaped was a great source of relief.
+
+The two conspirators were disabled and confined to the sick bay, and
+they were not likely to make any trouble at present. If they had had any
+definite plan on which they intended to act, they had certainly lost
+their opportunities, for the visit of Hungerford to the engine room of
+the Bronx, no doubt for the purpose of disabling the machinery, and the
+effort of Pawcett to warn the officers of the prize, had been simply
+acts of desperation, adopted after they had evidently failed in every
+other direction.
+
+Pawcett was not really a loyal officer, and his expression and
+manners had attracted the attention of both the captain and the first
+lieutenant. The deaf mute had been brought on board in order to obtain
+information, and he had been very diligent in carrying out his part of
+the programme. As Christy thought the matter over, seated at his supper
+in his cabin, he thought he owed more to the advice of his father at
+their parting than to anything else. He had kept his own counsel in
+spite of the difficulties, and had done more to blind the actors in the
+conspiracy than to enlighten them. He had hoped before he parted with
+the prize for the present to obtain some information in regard to the
+Arran; but he had too much self-respect to ask the officers of the
+Ocklockonee in regard to such matters.
+
+The seamen who had been spotted as adherents of the late second
+lieutenant had done nothing, for there had been nothing that they could
+do under the circumstances. Spoors and two others of them had been
+drafted into the other vessel, while the other three remained on board
+of the Bronx. They were not regarded as very dangerous enemies, and they
+were not in condition to undertake anything in the absence of their
+leaders.
+
+Christy had inquired in regard to the condition of Pawcett and
+Hungerford before he went to his cabin, and Dr. Spokeley informed him
+that neither of them would be in condition to do duty on either side for
+a considerable period. They were in no danger under careful treatment,
+but both of them were too seriously injured to trouble their heads with
+any exciting subjects.
+
+"Good evening, Captain Dinsmore," Christy said, when he went into his
+cabin, after he had attended to all the duties that required present
+attention. "I hope you are feeling better this evening."
+
+"Hardly better, Captain Passford, though I am trying to reconcile myself
+to my situation," replied the late captain of the Ocklockonee.
+
+"Supper is all ready, sir," interposed Dave, as he passed by the
+captain, after he had brought in the dishes from the galley.
+
+"Take a seat at the table, Captain Dinsmore," continued Christy, placing
+a chair for him, and looking over the table to see what cheer he had to
+offer to his guest.
+
+It looked as though the cook, aware that the commander had a guest, or
+thinking that he deserved a better supper than usual after the capture
+of a prize, had done his best in honor of the occasion. The broiled
+chickens looked especially inviting, and other dishes were quite
+tempting to a man who was two hours late at the meal.
+
+"Thank you, captain," replied the guest, as he took the seat assigned
+to him. "I can't say that I have a very fierce appetite after the
+misfortune that has befallen me; but I am none the less indebted to
+you for your courtesy and kindness."
+
+"I acknowledge that I am in condition to be very happy this evening,
+Captain Dinsmore, and I can hardly expect to be an agreeable companion
+to one with a burden on his mind; but I can assure you of my personal
+sympathy."
+
+"You are very kind, captain. I should like to ask if many of the
+officers of the old navy are young gentlemen like yourself?" inquired
+the guest, looking at his host very curiously.
+
+"There are a great many young officers in the navy at the present time,
+for the exigency has pushed forward the older ones, and there are not
+enough of them to take all the positions. But we shall all of us grow
+older," replied Christy good-naturedly, as he helped the officer to a
+piece of the chicken, which had just come from the galley fire.
+
+"Perhaps you are older than you appear to be," suggested the guest.
+"I should judge that you were not over twenty, or at least not much
+more."
+
+"I am eighteen, sir, though, unlike a lady, I try to make myself as old
+as I can."
+
+"Eighteen!" exclaimed Captain Dinsmore.
+
+But Christy told something of his experience on board of the Bellevite
+which had prepared him for his duties, and his case was rather
+exceptional.
+
+"You have physique enough for a man of twenty-five," added the guest.
+"And you have been more fortunate than I have."
+
+"And I have been as unfortunate as you are, for I have seen the inside
+of a Confederate prison, though I concluded not to remain there for any
+length of time," added Christy, laughing.
+
+"You are a fortunate young man, and I do not belong to that class,"
+said Captain Dinsmore, shaking his head. "I have lost my steamer, and
+I suppose that will finish my career."
+
+"Perhaps not;" but Christy was satisfied that he had lost his vessel by
+a want of care, and he could not waste any compliments upon him, though
+he had profited by the other's carelessness.
+
+"I was confident when the Bronx approached the Ocklockonee that she was
+another vessel," continued the guest.
+
+"What vessel did you take her to be?"
+
+"You will excuse me if I decline to go into particulars. I can only say
+that I was sure your steamer was another, and I had no suspicion that I
+was wrong till that man mounted the rail of the Bronx, and began to tell
+us to the contrary," replied Captain Dinsmore. "A bolt in the engine was
+broken, and the engineer could not find another on board. We expected to
+obtain one when the Bronx approached us. I was deceived; and that is the
+reason why I am here instead of in the cabin of my own ship."
+
+The guest seemed to feel a little better after he had made this
+explanation, though it contained nothing new to the commander of the
+Bronx. Possibly the excellent supper, of which he had partaken heartily
+in spite of his want of appetite, had influenced his mind through the
+body. He had certainly become more cheerful, though his burden was no
+lighter than when he came on board of the Bronx. Christy was also
+light-hearted, not alone because he had been so successful, but because
+he felt that he was no longer compelled to watch the conspirators.
+
+"I am sorry to be obliged to impose any restrictions upon you, Captain
+Dinsmore," said Christy, as he rose from the supper table. "The
+circumstances compel me to request you to remain in my cabin."
+
+"Of course I am subject to your will and pleasure, Captain Passford,"
+replied the guest.
+
+"You are a gentleman, sir, and if you will simply give me your word to
+remain here, there will be no occasion for any unpleasantness. It is
+possible that we may go into action at any time; and in that case you
+can remain where you please below."
+
+"I give you my word that I will remain below until I notify you of
+my intention to do otherwise," replied the prisoner, though Christy
+preferred to regard him as his guest.
+
+"I am entirely satisfied. I shall be obliged to berth you in the ward
+room, and you are at liberty to pass your time as you please in these
+two apartments. I shall be happy to introduce you to the first
+lieutenant," added the captain, as he led the way to the ward room.
+
+Mr. Baskirk received the prisoner very politely, a berth was assigned
+to him, and Christy went on deck. It was as dark as Egypt there, but Mr.
+Amblen, the new acting second lieutenant, on the bridge, said the wind
+was hauling to the westward, and he thought there would be a change of
+weather before morning. Mr. Baskirk had made all his appointments of
+petty officers rendered necessary by sending a portion of the seamen to
+the Ocklockonee. Everything was in good order on deck, and Christy next
+went down to the sick bay, where Hungerford and Pawcett were the only
+occupants. He found Dr. Spokeley there, and inquired in regard to the
+condition of the wounded men. The surgeon described the wounds of his
+patients, and pointed them out to the captain.
+
+"Does Mr. Hungerford talk any now?" asked Christy.
+
+"Who is Mr. Hungerford?" asked the doctor.
+
+"He is the deaf mute. He was the first officer of the Confederate
+steamer Yazoo when we captured her in the Bellevite last year," replied
+the captain, upon whom the eyes of the wounded man were fixed all the
+time.
+
+"He has not spoken yet in my hearing, though I have thought that he
+could hear."
+
+"His duty on board of the Bronx was to obtain information, and he
+procured a good deal of it, though not all of it was as reliable as
+it might have been."
+
+"Indeed! Then he was a traitor," added the surgeon.
+
+"He is a gentleman in spite of the role he has been playing, and I am
+sorry he has been injured, though Mr. Sampson obeyed my order when he
+struck him down in the engine room."
+
+"Struck me from behind like an assassin," added Hungerford feebly.
+
+"Did you expect to arrange a duel with him at such a time, Mr.
+Hungerford?" asked Christy. "You went into the engine room to disable
+the machine when you found you could do nothing else. If you had
+returned to the deck when the engineer told you to do so, he would not
+have disabled you. You crowded past him, and then he did his duty."
+
+"I have been in the habit of serving with men who were square and above
+board," muttered Hungerford.
+
+"Was that where you learned to listen at my cabin door, and to conceal
+yourself under the berth in my state room?" asked Christy, rather
+sharply for him. "Is that the reason why Mr. Pawcett wished to have
+you do the copying of my papers?"
+
+"I can only say that I tried to do my duty to my country and I have
+failed," added Hungerford, as he turned over in his berth, and showed
+his back to the captain.
+
+"May I ask, Captain Passford, who told you my name?" asked the late
+second lieutenant, who seemed to be confounded by what he had heard.
+
+"You called Mr. Hungerford by his real name, and he called you by yours,
+in the interview you had with him the first night out from New York.
+I have known you from the first," replied Christy.
+
+Pawcett was as disgusted as the other had been, and he turned his face
+to the ceiling of his berth. Christy was satisfied that these men would
+give him no more trouble at present.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVIII
+
+A TRIANGULAR ACTION WITH GREAT GUNS
+
+
+When Mr. Baskirk went on deck to take his watch at midnight, the fog
+had disappeared, and a fresh breeze was blowing from the westward. This
+change was reported to the captain, and he went on deck. No sail had
+been seen since the fog cleared off, and Christy returned to his state
+room, where he was soon asleep again. He was called, as he had directed,
+at four in the morning, but no change in the weather was reported, and
+no sail had been seen.
+
+At four bells in the morning watch two sails were reported to him, one
+dead ahead, and the other on the port beam. He hastened to the deck, and
+found Mr. Amblen using his spyglass, and trying to make out the distant
+sails. The one at the northeast of the Bronx was making a long streak of
+black smoke on the sky, and there was no such appearance over the other.
+Both were steamers.
+
+"The one ahead of us is the Ocklockonee," said Captain Passford, after
+he had used the spyglass. "I have no doubt the other is the Arran.
+Probably she has a new name by this time, but I have not heard it yet.
+Pass the word for Mr. Ambleton."
+
+This was the gunner, and he was directed to fire a single shot, blank,
+from the midship gun. This was immediately done, and was the signal
+agreed upon with Flint if either discovered the Arran. It was promptly
+answered by a similar discharge on board of the Ocklockonee, indicating
+that she had seen the steamer in question.
+
+"Now, make her course southeast, Mr. Amblen," said Christy, after the
+two signals had been made.
+
+"Southeast, sir," responded the second lieutenant, giving the course to
+the quartermaster at the wheel.
+
+The commander of the Ocklockonee changed his course as soon as the Bronx
+had done so. Both steamers were headed directly towards the sail in the
+southeast, and both were running for the apex of the triangle where the
+third steamer was located.
+
+The captain visited every part of the vessel, and gave orders to have
+breakfast served at once, for he expected there would be lively times
+before many hours. Everything was overhauled, and put in order. At eight
+bells, when Mr. Baskirk took the deck, the captain did not care how soon
+the battle began. Everything was ready and waiting, and he went below
+for his breakfast.
+
+From delicacy or some other motive Captain Dinsmore spent most of
+his time in the ward room; but he was called to breakfast with the
+commander. Both captains were as polite to each other as they had been
+the evening before, but it was evident to Christy that his guest was
+quite uneasy, as though he had discovered what had transpired on deck;
+and the movements there were quite enough to inform him without a word
+from any one. He had not asked a question of any person on board; and it
+was impossible for him to know that a sail supposed to be the Arran was
+in sight.
+
+"I have heard some firing this morning, Captain Passford," said he as he
+seated himself at the table, and watched the expression of his host's
+countenance.
+
+"Merely a couple of signals; the distant shot came from the
+Ocklockonee," replied Christy lightly.
+
+"I thought it possible that you had fallen in with another steamer,"
+added the guest.
+
+"I have considered it more than possible, and within the limits of
+probability, that we should fall in with another steamer ever since we
+ran so opportunely upon the Scotian, as she was formerly called."
+
+"Opportunely for you, but very inopportunely for me," added Captain
+Dinsmore with a faint smile.
+
+"I am happy to inform you that we have passed beyond both possibility
+and probability, and come into the region of fact," continued Christy.
+
+"Then you have made out a sail?" asked the guest anxiously.
+
+"We have; a steamer on our port beam; and I am reasonably confident it
+is the vessel you supposed was coming alongside the Ocklockonee last
+evening."
+
+"Indeed?" added the guest, as though he did not know just what to say,
+and did not mean to commit himself.
+
+"In other words, I am almost sure this steamer is the Arran, though
+doubtless you have changed her name," said Christy, as he helped the
+other from the choicest dish on the table.
+
+"The Arran?" repeated Captain Dinsmore, manifesting but not expressing
+his surprise that his companion in a different service from his own knew
+this name.
+
+"Perhaps you can give me her later name, as I have no doubt she is or
+will be called after some southern river, which is quite proper, and
+entirely patriotic. Perhaps she is called the Perdido, which is not
+very far from Perdition, where I shall do my best to send her unless she
+surrenders within a reasonable time, or runs away from me," said Captain
+Passford lightly. "Is your coffee quite right, Captain Dinsmore?"
+
+"It is very good indeed, captain, thank you."
+
+"Perhaps it is too strong for you, like the United States Navy, and you
+would prefer it weaker," suggested Christy.
+
+"It is quite right as it is, and, like the United States Navy of which
+you speak, it will be used up in a short time," replied the guest as
+pleasantly as the captain of the Bronx.
+
+"That is yet to be settled," laughed Christy.
+
+"Well, captain, the coffee is settled, and that is more than can be said
+of our navy, which will be as clear as this in due time."
+
+"I thought it best to inform you that we might be in action in the
+course of a couple of hours, and you were to notify me in case you
+wished to change your status on board," added Christy more seriously.
+
+"I am much obliged to you, Captain Passford, for your courtesy and
+kindness, but I see no reason to change my position. I will still
+confine myself to the cabin and ward room. I cannot wish you success in
+the action in which you are about to engage, for it would break my heart
+to have the Arran, as you call her, captured," added the guest.
+
+"I think you may fairly count upon such a result," replied Christy
+confidently.
+
+"You must excuse me, Captain Passford, but I think you are reckoning
+without your host, and therein your youth makes its only manifestation,"
+said the guest, shaking his head. "I can only say that, when you are a
+prisoner on board of the Escambia, I shall do my best to have you as
+handsomely treated as I have been in your cabin."
+
+"Thank you, captain; I assure you I shall appreciate any courtesy and
+kindness extended to me. The Escambia is her name then. That is not so
+near Perdition as the word I suggested, and I am glad it is not so long
+as the name you gave the Scotian. I shall expect to come across an
+Apalachicola in due time. They are all very good names, but we shall be
+compelled to change them when they fall into our hands," said Christy.
+
+"I have plenty of spare time on my hands just now, and perhaps I had
+better think up a new name for the Bronx; and Apalachicola would be as
+good as any other. I wonder you did not call her the Nutcracker, for her
+present name rather suggests that idea."
+
+"I have heard a similar remark before; but she is not big enough for
+such a long name as the one you suggest, and you would have to begin
+to pronounce it before breakfast in order to get it out before the dog
+watches," said Christy, as he rose from the table and went on deck.
+
+The first thing he noticed when he came on the bridge was that the
+Ocklockonee was headed to intercept the Bronx. Captain Flint signalled
+that he wished to speak to him, and he changed his course to comply with
+the request. At the end of another hour they came together, the Arran
+being still at least four miles distant, going very slowly if she was
+moving at all.
+
+Christy had written out his orders for Captain Flint in full. So far
+as he had been able to judge of the speed of the other steamer, it
+appeared to be about the same as that of the Bronx. He had directed the
+Ocklockonee to get to the southward of the Arran. A boat was sent to her
+with the orders, and Flint immediately proceeded to obey them. The Bronx
+slowed down her engines to enable the other to gain her position; but
+the Arran did not seem to be willing to permit her to do this, and gave
+chase to her at once.
+
+The commander of the Bronx met this change by one on his own part, and
+went ahead with all the speed he could get out of her. The Confederate
+steamer was farther to the eastward than either of the other two, and
+after the changes of position which Christy had brought about in
+speaking the Ocklockonee, the Arran was nearly southeast of both of the
+others. Flint went directly to the south, and Christy ran for the enemy.
+
+All hands had been beaten to quarters on board of the Bronx, and the
+captain was on the bridge, watching with the most intense interest the
+progress of the other two vessels. It was soon apparent to him that
+the Ocklockonee could not get into the position to which she had been
+ordered under present circumstances, for the enemy was giving his whole
+attention to her.
+
+"There goes a gun from the enemy!" exclaimed Mr. Amblen, as a puff of
+smoke rose from the forward deck of the Arran.
+
+"The shot struck in the water," added Christy a moment later; "but the
+two vessels are within range. There is the first shot from the
+Ocklockonee! Captain Flint is not asleep."
+
+The firing was done on both vessels with the heavy midship guns, and
+doubtless the calibre of the pieces was the same; but Flint was the more
+fortunate of the two, for his shot struck the smokestack of the enemy,
+or partly upset it. Christy thought it was time for him to take a hand
+in the game, and he ordered the midship gun to be fired, charged as it
+was with a solid shot. The gunner aimed the piece himself, and the shot
+was seen to tear up the water alongside of the enemy. He discharged the
+piece four times more with no better result. Evidently he had not got
+the hang of the gun, though he was improving at every trial.
+
+Three steamers were rushing towards each other with all the fury steam
+could give them, for the overthrow of the funnel of the enemy did not
+disable her, though it probably diminished the draught of her furnaces.
+Through the glass it could be seen that they were making an effort to
+restore the fallen smokestack to its position. All three of the steamers
+were delivering the fire of their midship guns very regularly, though
+with little effect, the distance was so great. The gunner of the Bronx
+was evidently greatly nettled at the number of solid shots he had
+wasted, though the gun of the Ocklockonee had done little better so far
+as could be seen. The three vessels were not much more than half a mile
+from each other, and the enemy had begun to use his broadside guns.
+
+"Good!" shouted Mr. Amblen suddenly after the gunner had just let off
+the great gun. "That shot overturned the midship piece of the Arran.
+Ambleton has fully redeemed himself." The announcement of the effect of
+this last shot sent up a volley of cheers from the crew.
+
+The Bronx and her consort had set the American flag at the beginning of
+the action, and the Confederate had promptly displayed her ensign, as
+though she scorned to go into action without having it fully understood
+what she was. She did not claim to be a blockade runner, and do her best
+to escape, but "faced the music," even when she realized that she had
+two enemies instead of one.
+
+Christy had evidently inherited some of the naval blood on his mother's
+side, and he was not satisfied with the slow progress of the action, for
+the shots from the broadside guns of the enemy were beginning to tell
+upon the Bronx, though she had received no serious injury. He caused the
+signal to prepare to board to be set as agreed upon with Captain Flint.
+The orders already given were to be carried out, and both vessels bore
+down on the Arran with all speed.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIX
+
+ON THE DECK OF THE ARRAN
+
+
+Captain Passford had carried out the programme agreed upon with Captain
+Flint, and the latter had been working to the southward since the Bronx
+came into the action, and as soon as the order to get ready to board
+was given, the Ocklockonee went ahead at full speed, headed in that
+direction. She had reached a position dead ahead of the Arran, so that
+she no longer suffered from the shots of the latter's broadside guns,
+and the Bronx was getting the entire benefit of them.
+
+Both vessels had kept up a full head of steam, and the coal passers
+were kept very busy at just this time. The Arran's midship gun had been
+disabled so that she could not make any very telling shots, but her crew
+had succeeded in righting her funnel, which had not gone entirely over,
+but had been held by the stays. Yet it could be seen that there was a
+big opening near the deck, for the smoke did not all pass through the
+smokestack.
+
+The broadside guns of the Arran were well served, and they were doing
+considerable mischief on board of the Bronx. Christy was obliged to hold
+back until her consort was in position to board the Arran on the port
+hand, and he manoeuvred the steamer so as to receive as little damage
+as possible from her guns. He was to board on the starboard hand of the
+enemy, and he was working nearer to her all the time. Mr. Ambleton the
+gunner had greatly improved his practice, and the commander was obliged
+to check his enthusiasm, or there would have been nothing left of the
+Arran in half an hour more. Christy considered the final result as fully
+assured, for he did not believe the present enemy was any more heavily
+manned than her consort had been, and he could throw double her force
+upon her deck as soon as the two steamers were in position to do so.
+
+"Are you doing all you can in the engine room, Mr. Sampson?" asked
+Christy, pausing at the engine hatch.
+
+"Everything, Captain Passford, and I think we must be making sixteen
+knots," replied the chief engineer.
+
+"Is Mr. Bockburn on duty?"
+
+"He is, sir; and if he were a Connecticut Yankee he could not do any
+better, or appear to be any more interested."
+
+"He seems to be entirely impartial; all he wants is his pay, and he is
+as willing to be on one side as the other if he only gets it," said
+Christy. "Has any damage been done to the engine?"
+
+"None at all, sir; a shot from one of those broadside guns went through
+the side, and passed just over the top of one of the boilers," replied
+the engineer. "Bockburn plugged the shot hole very skilfully, and said
+it would not be possible for a shot to come in low enough to hit the
+boilers. He knows all about the other two vessels, and has served as an
+engineer on board of the Arran on the other side of the Atlantic."
+
+Just at that moment a shot from the Arran struck the bridge and a
+splinter from the structure knocked two men over. One of them picked
+himself up, but said he was not much hurt, and refused to be sent below.
+The other man was Veering; he seemed to be unable to get up, and was
+carried down by order of the boatswain. This man was one of the
+adherents of Hungerford and Pawcett, though so far he had been of no
+service to them.
+
+Christy hastened forward to ascertain the extent of the damage done to
+the bridge. It was completely wrecked, and was no longer in condition to
+be occupied by an officer. But the pilot house was still in serviceable
+repair, and the quartermaster had not been disturbed. By this time, the
+Ocklockonee had obtained a position on the port bow of the Arran, and
+the commander directed the quartermaster at the wheel to run directly
+for the other side of the enemy.
+
+The time for decisive and final action had come. Mr. Baskirk placed
+the boarders in position to be thrown on board of the Arran. He was
+to command the first division himself, and Mr. Amblen the second. The
+Ocklockonee was rushing at all the speed she could command to the work
+before her.
+
+  [Illustration: The captain of the Arran.]
+
+For some reason not apparent the Arran had stopped her screw, though she
+had kept in motion till now, doing her best to secure the most favorable
+position for action. Possibly her commander believed a collision between
+the vessels at a high rate of speed would be more fatal to him than
+anything that could result from being boarded. It was soon discovered
+that she was backing, and it was evident then that her captain had some
+manoeuvre of his own in mind, though it was possible that he was only
+doing something to counteract the effect of a collision. Doubtless he
+thought the two vessels approaching him at such a rapid rate intended to
+crush the Arran between them, and that they desired only to sink him.
+
+He was not allowed many minutes more to carry out his policy, whatever
+it was, for the Ocklockonee came up alongside of the Arran, the grapnels
+were thrown out, and the whole boarding force of the steamer was hurled
+upon her decks. But the commander was a plucky man, however he regarded
+the chances for or against him, and his crew proceeded vigorously to
+repel boarders. Christy had timed the movements of the Bronx very
+carefully, and the Ocklockonee had hardly fastened to the Arran on
+one side before he had his steamer grappled on the other.
+
+"Boarders, away!" he shouted at the top of his lungs, and flourishing
+his sword over his head, not however with the intention of going into
+the fight himself, but as a demonstration to inspire the men.
+
+Baskirk and Amblen rushed forward with cutlasses in their hands, leaping
+upon the deck of the enemy. The crew was found to equal in numbers about
+the force that the Ocklockonee had brought to bear upon them. The
+boarders from the Bronx attacked them in the rear while they were fully
+occupied with the boarders in front of them. The officers of the enemy
+behaved with distinguished gallantry, and urged their men forward with
+the most desperate enthusiasm. They struck hard blows, and several of
+the boarders belonging to the consort had fallen, to say nothing of
+wounds that did not entirely disable others. Some of the men belonging
+to the Arran, doubtless shipped on the other side of the ocean or at the
+Bermudas, were disposed to shirk their duty, though their officers held
+them well up to the work.
+
+One of the brave officers who had done the boarders a good deal of
+mischief fell at a pistol shot from Mr. Amblen; this loss of his
+leadership caused a sensible giving way on the part of his division, and
+his men began to fall back. The other officers, including the captain,
+who fought with a heavy cutlass, held out for a short time longer; but
+Christy saw that it was slaughter.
+
+The captain of the Arran was the next to go down, though he was not
+killed. This event practically ended the contest for the deck of the
+steamer. The boarders crowded upon the crew and drove them to the bow of
+the vessel, where they yielded the deck, and submitted to the excess of
+numbers.
+
+"Don't butcher my men!" cried the captain of the Arran, raising himself
+partially from his place where he had fallen. "I surrender, for we are
+outnumbered two to one."
+
+But the fighting had ceased forward. Mr. Baskirk was as earnest to save
+any further slaughter as he had been to win the fight. Christy came on
+board of the prize, not greatly elated at the victory, for it had been a
+very unequal affair as to numbers. The Arran was captured; that was all
+that could be said of it. She had been bravely defended; and the "honors
+were even," though the fortunes of the day were against the Arran and
+her ship's company.
+
+"Allow me to introduce myself as the commander of the United States
+steamer Bronx," said Christy, approaching the fallen captain of the
+Arran. "I sincerely hope that you are not seriously injured, sir."
+
+"Who under the canopy are you?" demanded the commander of the prize,
+as he looked at the young officer with something like contempt in his
+expression.
+
+"I have just informed you who under the canopy I am," replied Christy,
+not pleased with the manner of the other. "To be a little more definite,
+I am Captain Christopher Passford, commander of the United States
+steamer Bronx, of which the Arran appears to be a prize."
+
+"The captain!" exclaimed the fallen man. "You are nothing but a boy!"
+
+"But I am old enough to try to be a gentleman. You are evidently old
+enough to be my father, though I have no comments to make," added
+Christy.
+
+"I beg your pardon, Captain Passford," said the captain of the Arran,
+attempting to rise from the deck, in which he was assisted by Christy
+and by Mr. Baskirk, who had just come aft. "I beg your pardon, Captain
+Passford, for I did not understand what you said at first, and I did not
+suspect that you were the captain."
+
+"I hope you are not seriously injured, sir," added Christy.
+
+"I don't know how seriously, but I have a cut on the hip, for which I
+exchanged one on the head, parrying the stroke so that it took me below
+the belt."
+
+"Have you a surgeon on board, Captain ---- I have not the pleasure of
+knowing your name, sir."
+
+"Captain Richfield, lieutenant in the Confederate Navy. We have a
+surgeon on board, and he is below attending to the wounded," replied
+the captain.
+
+"Allow me to assist you to your cabin, Captain Richfield," continued
+Christy, as he and Baskirk each took one of the wounded officer's arms.
+
+"Thank you, sir. I see that you have been doubly fortunate, Captain
+Passford, and you have both the Escambia and the Ocklockonee. I did the
+best I could to save my ship, but the day has gone against me."
+
+"And no one could have done any more than you have done. Your ship has
+been ably and bravely defended; but it was my good fortune to be able to
+outnumber you both in ships and in men."
+
+Captain Richfield was taken to his state room, and assisted into his
+berth. A steward was sent for the surgeon, and Christy and his first
+lieutenant retired from the cabin. The captured seamen of the Arran were
+all sent below, and everything was done that the occasion required.
+
+Christy asked Captain Flint to meet him in the cabin of the Bronx for a
+consultation over the situation, for the sealed orders of the commander
+had been carried out to the letter so far as the two expected steamers
+were concerned, and it only remained to report to the flag officer of
+the Eastern Gulf squadron. But with two prizes, and a considerable
+number of prisoners, the situation was not without its difficulties.
+
+"I hope you are quite comfortable, Captain Dinsmore," said Christy as he
+entered his cabin, and found his guest reading at the table.
+
+"Quite so, Captain Passford. I have heard a great deal of firing in the
+last hour, and I am rather surprised to find that you are not a prisoner
+on board of the Escambia, or perhaps you have come to your cabin for
+your clothes," replied the guest cheerfully.
+
+"I have not come on any such mission; and I have the pleasure of
+informing you that the Confederate steamer Escambia is a prize to the
+Bronx," replied Christy quite as cheerfully. "I am sorry to add that
+Captain Richfield was wounded in the hip, and that Mr. Berwick, the
+first lieutenant, was killed."
+
+The Confederate officer leaped out of his chair astonished at the news.
+He declared that he had confidently expected to be released by the
+capture of the Bronx. Christy gave a brief review of the action; and
+Captain Dinsmore was not surprised at the result when informed that the
+Ocklockonee had taken part in the capture. The commander then requested
+him to retire to the ward room, and Flint came in. They seated
+themselves at the table, and proceeded to figure up their resources and
+consider what was to be done. Mr. Baskirk was then sent for to assist in
+the conference.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XX
+
+THE NEW COMMANDER OF THE BRONX
+
+
+"Captain Flint, the first question to be settled is in regard to the
+engineer force," said Christy, as the three officers seated themselves
+at the table.
+
+"I think we shall have no difficulty on that score, Captain Passford,
+for I have already sounded those on board of the Arran, or the Escambia,
+as her officers call her. As long as their wages are paid, they don't
+care which side they serve. Mr. Pivotte is the chief, and he is as
+willing to go one way as the other."
+
+"Very well; then he shall retain his present position, and Bockburn
+shall be restored to the Ocklockonee. Of course the arrangements made
+after the capture of the first vessel were only temporary, and I propose
+to report to the flag officer with everything as nearly as possible in
+the condition in which we left New York," continued Christy.
+
+"Of course I expected to resume my former position on board of the Bronx
+as soon as we had disposed of the two steamers; and I can say that I
+shall not be sorry to do so," said Flint with a pleasant smile, as
+though he did not intend to grieve over the loss of his command.
+
+"In a few days more, we shall move down a peg, and I shall cease to have
+a command as well as yourself," added Christy.
+
+"And I suppose I shall be relegated to my position as a quartermaster,"
+said Baskirk; "but I shall be satisfied. I don't care to wear any spurs
+that I have not won, though I shall be glad to have a higher rank when I
+deserve it."
+
+"You deserve it now, Mr. Baskirk, and if you don't receive it, it will
+not be on account of any weakness in my report of the events of the last
+twenty-four hours," added Christy heartily.
+
+"Thank you, captain; I suppose I could have procured a better position
+than that of able seaman, but I preferred to work my way up."
+
+"It was wise not to begin too high up, and you have already won your
+spurs. Now, Mr. Baskirk, I shall ask you to take the deck, relieving Mr.
+Amblen," added Christy, who wished to talk with Flint alone.
+
+"I shall be really glad to get back into the Bronx, for I feel at home
+here with you, captain," said Flint.
+
+"You will be back to your berth here very soon. Now we have to send
+these two steamers to New York. They are fine vessels, and will be
+needed. We want two prize masters, and we must have able men. Have you
+any suggestion to make, Mr. Flint? I first thought of sending you as the
+principal one; but I cannot spare you, and the service in the Gulf needs
+you."
+
+"I am entirely willing to go where my duty calls me, without regard to
+personal preferences," replied Flint. "I have a suggestion to make:
+which is that Baskirk take one of the steamers."
+
+"That is exactly my own idea; from what I have seen of him, there is no
+more devoted officer in the service."
+
+"I have known him for many years, and I believe in him. McSpindle is
+almost as good, and has had a better education than Baskirk. I don't
+think you could find two better men in the navy for this duty."
+
+"Very well; then I will appoint them both."
+
+Flint was instructed to communicate their appointment to Baskirk and
+McSpindle, and make all the preparations for the departure of the
+Escambia and the Ocklockonee. Christy went to his state room, and wrote
+his report of the capture of the two steamers, in which he commended the
+two officers who were to go as prize masters, and then wrote a letter to
+his father, with a strong appeal in their favor. Then he wrote very
+careful instructions for the government of the officers to be sent away,
+in which he directed them to use all necessary precautions in regard to
+the prisoners. In a couple of hours after the capture of the Escambia,
+the two prizes sailed for New York. Captain Dinsmore expressed his
+thanks very warmly to Captain Passford for his courtesy and kindness
+at parting.
+
+Christy had visited every part of the two steamers, and talked with the
+officers and men, and especially with the engineers, and he discovered
+no elements of discord on board of either. Hungerford and Pawcett were
+transferred to the Escambia, and committed to the care of the surgeon
+of the ship. Both of them were suffering from fever, and they were not
+likely to give the prize master any trouble during the passage, which
+could only be three or four days in duration. Baskirk and McSpindle were
+required to make all the speed they could consistent with safety, though
+Christy hardly thought they would encounter any Confederate rover on the
+voyage, for they were not very plenty at this stage of the war.
+
+It seemed a little lonesome on board of the Bronx after the two steamers
+had disappeared in the distance, and the number of the crew had been
+so largely reduced by the drafts for the prizes. The steamer was hardly
+in condition to engage an enemy of any considerable force, and Sampson
+was directed to hurry as much as possible. Christy had heard of the
+Bellevite twice since he left her off Pensacola Bay. She had been sent
+to other stations on duty, and had captured two schooners loaded with
+cotton as prizes; but at the last accounts she had returned to the
+station where the Bronx had left her.
+
+Christy was not so anxious as he had been before the recent captures
+to fall in with an enemy, for with less than twenty seamen it would not
+be prudent to attack such a steamer as either of those he had captured,
+though he would not have objected to chase a blockade runner if he had
+discovered one pursued by the gunboats.
+
+It was a quiet time on board of the Bronx compared with the excitement
+of the earlier days of the voyage. In the very beginning of the trip,
+he had discovered the deaf mute at the cabin door, and his thought,
+his inquiries, and his action in defeating the treachery of the second
+lieutenant had kept him busy night and day. Now the weather was fine
+most of the time, and he had little to do beyond his routine duties. But
+he did a great deal of thinking in his cabin, though most of it was in
+relation to the events which had transpired on board of the Bronx.
+
+He had captured two valuable prizes; but he could not feel that he was
+entitled to any great credit for the achievements of his vessel, since
+he had been warned in the beginning to look out for the Scotian and the
+Arran. He had taken the first by surprise, and the result was due to the
+carelessness of her commander rather than to any great merit on his own
+part. The second he had taken with double the force of the enemy in
+ships and men; and the latter was not precisely the kind of a victory
+he was ambitious to win.
+
+At the same time, his self-respect assured him that he had done his duty
+faithfully, and that it had been possible for him to throw away his
+advantage by carelessness. If he had fallen in with both the Scotian and
+the Arran at the same time, the result might have been different, though
+he was sure that he should have fought his ship as long as there was
+anything left of her. In that case there would have been more room for
+manoeuvring and strategy, for he did not admit to himself that he
+should have been beaten.
+
+Amblen continued to hold his place as second lieutenant, and McLinn was
+appointed acting third lieutenant. The carpenter repaired the bridge,
+though Christy would not have been very sorry if it had been so
+thoroughly smashed as to be beyond restoration, for it was hardly a
+naval institution. The men who had been only slightly wounded in the
+action with the Escambia were progressing finely under the care of Dr.
+Spokeley, and when the Bronx was off the southern cape of Florida, they
+were able to return to duty. The latest information located the flag
+officer off Pensacola, and in due time Christy reported to him. The
+Bellevite was still there, and the commander went on board of her, where
+he received an ovation from the former officers and seamen with whom he
+had sailed. He did not take any pains to recite his experience, but it
+was soon known throughout the fleet.
+
+"Christy, I shall hardly dare to sail in command of a ship of which you
+are the executive officer," said Lieutenant Blowitt, who was to command
+the Bronx, with a laugh.
+
+"Why not? Is my reputation so bad as that?" asked Christy.
+
+"Bad! No, it is so good. The fact of it is, you are such a tremendous
+fellow, there will be no room for any other officer to shine in the same
+sky."
+
+"I have been in command for a few days, hardly more than a week, but I
+assure you that I can and shall obey the orders of my commander to the
+very letter," added Christy.
+
+"But you took two steamers, each of them of nearly twice the tonnage of
+your own ship, in mid ocean."
+
+"But I took them one at a time. If I had fallen in with both at the same
+time, the affair might have gone the other way. We captured the first
+one by accident, as it were, and the second with double the force of
+the enemy. I don't take much credit to myself for that sort of thing.
+I don't think it was half as much of an affair as bringing out the
+Teaser, for we had to use some science on that occasion," replied
+Christy quietly.
+
+"Science, is it?" laughed Mr. Blowitt. "Perhaps you can assist me to
+some of your science, when it is required."
+
+"I shall obey my superior officer, and not presume to advise him unless
+he asks me to do so."
+
+"Well, Christy, I think you are the most audacious young fellow I ever
+met," added the future commander of the Bronx.
+
+"I haven't anything about me that I call audacity, so far as I
+understand myself. When I am told to do any duty, I do it if it is
+possible; and whether it is possible often depends upon whether you
+think it is or not."
+
+"I should say that it was audacious for you to think of capturing two
+steamers, fitted out for war purposes, and twice the size of your own
+ship, with the Bronx," added Mr. Blowitt, still laughing, to take off
+the edge of his criticism.
+
+"Why did the Navy Department instruct me in my sealed orders to look out
+for these steamers, if I was to do so in a Pickwickian sense?" demanded
+Christy earnestly. "What would you have done, Mr. Blowitt?"
+
+"Perhaps I should have been as audacious as you were, Christy, if such
+had been my orders."
+
+This conversation took place on the deck of the Bellevite where Christy
+had come to see his friends; and it was interrupted by a boat from the
+flag ship which brought a big envelope for Mr. Blowitt. It instructed
+him to go on board of the Bronx, to the command of which he had been
+appointed. Another order required him to proceed to a point on the
+western coast of Florida, where the enemy were supposed to be loading
+vessels with cotton, and break up the depot established for the purpose,
+where it could be supplied by the Florida Railroad.
+
+The new commander packed his clothing, and he was sent with Christy in
+one of the Bellevite's boats to the Bronx. They went on board, where the
+late acting commander had already removed his own property to the ward
+room, and Captain Blowitt was conducted to his cabin and state room, of
+which he took formal possession. He seemed to be very much pleased with
+his accommodations since the government had put the vessel in order,
+though he had been on board of her, and fought a battle on her deck,
+while she was still the Teaser.
+
+"I am sure I could not ask for anything better than this cabin," said
+he, after he had invited his first lieutenant to come in.
+
+"I found it very comfortable," added Christy. "Flint is second
+lieutenant, and Sampson chief engineer; and that is all there are of
+those who were in the Bellevite. I will introduce you to the acting
+third lieutenant, Mr. Amblen, and you can retain him or not as you
+please."
+
+Mr. Amblen was called in and presented to the captain, and then Flint
+was ordered to get under way.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXI
+
+AN EXPEDITION IN THE GULF
+
+
+The Bronx had been three days on the station, Christy had made his
+report in full on her arrival, and the flag officer had visited the
+vessel in person, in order to ascertain her fitness for several
+enterprises he had in view. The Confederates were not sleepy or
+inactive, and resorted to every expedient within their means to
+counteract both morally and materially the efficiency of the blockade.
+
+The Bronx was admirably adapted to service in the shoal waters where the
+heavier vessels of the investing squadron could not go, and her arrival
+solved several problems then under consideration. Captain Blowitt and
+Christy had been sent for, and the late commander of the Bronx was
+questioned in regard to the steamer, her draught, her speed, and her
+ship's company. The damage done to her in the conflict with the Escambia
+had been fully repaired by the carpenter and his gang, and the steamer
+was in as good condition as when she sailed from New York.
+
+"In regard to the present officers, Mr. Passford, excepting present
+company, of course, they are excellent," said Captain McKeon, the flag
+officer. "For the service in which the Bronx is to be engaged, its
+success will depend upon the officers, though it is hardly exceptional
+in this respect. I understand that you sailed from New York rather
+short-handed abaft the mainmast."
+
+"Yes, sir, we did; but fortunately we had most excellent material of
+which to make officers, and we made them," replied Christy.
+
+"I should like to know something about them; I mean apart from Captain
+Blowitt and yourself, for you have already made your record, and yours,
+Mr. Passford, is rather a dazzling reputation for one so young."
+
+"I am willing to apologize for it, sir," replied Christy, blushing like
+a maiden, as he was in duty bound to do, for he could not control the
+crimson that rose to his browned cheeks.
+
+"Quite unnecessary," replied Captain McKeon, smiling. "As long as you do
+your duty nobody will be jealous of you, and you will be a fit officer
+for all our young men to emulate. You were the acting commander on the
+voyage of the Bronx from New York. Your executive officer is the present
+second lieutenant. Is he qualified for the peculiar duty before you?"
+
+"No one could be more so, sir," replied Christy with proper enthusiasm.
+
+"I can fully indorse this opinion of Mr. Passford," added Captain
+Blowitt. "In the capture and bringing out of the Teaser, Mr. Flint was
+the right hand man of the leader of the enterprise."
+
+"And I gave him the command of the Ocklockonee, after her capture, and
+she took an active part in the affair with the Escambia, sir," said
+Christy.
+
+"Then we will consider him the right man in the right place," replied
+the flag officer. "Who is the present third lieutenant?"
+
+"Mr. Amblen is acting in that capacity at present, and he is a very good
+officer, though he holds no rank," answered Christy.
+
+"Then I can hardly confirm him as second lieutenant," added Captain
+McKeon.
+
+"In my report of the affairs with the Ocklockonee and the Escambia,
+I have strongly recommended him and three other officers for promotion,
+for all of them are fitted by education and experience at sea to do duty
+on board of such vessels as the Bronx."
+
+"Have you any officer in mind who would acceptably fill the vacant
+place, Captain Blowitt?"
+
+"I know of no one at present who holds the rank to entitle him to such a
+position, and I shall appeal to Mr. Passford," replied the new
+commander.
+
+"You have named Mr. Amblen, Mr. Passford; is he just the officer you
+would select if the matter were left to you?" asked the flag officer.
+
+"No, sir, though he would do very well. Mr. Baskirk, who served as
+executive officer while Mr. Flint was away in the Ocklockonee, is better
+adapted for the place," said Christy. "He commanded the first division
+of boarders on board of the Escambia, and he fought like a hero and is a
+man of excellent judgment. I am confident that he will make his mark as
+an officer. I am willing to admit that I wrote a letter to my father
+especially requesting him to do what he could for the immediate
+promotion of Mr. Baskirk."
+
+"Then he will be immediately promoted," added Captain McKeon with an
+expressive smile.
+
+"I may add also that I was presumptive enough to suggest his appointment
+as third lieutenant of the Bronx," continued Christy.
+
+"Then he will be the third lieutenant of the Bronx; and what you say
+would have settled the matter in the first place as well as now," said
+the flag officer, as much pleased with the reticence of the young
+officer as with his modesty. "Amblen may remain on board till his
+commission comes, and you can retain him as third lieutenant, Captain
+Blowitt, if you are so disposed. I have ordered a draft of twelve seamen
+to the Bronx, which will give you a crew of thirty, and I cannot spare
+any more until more men are sent down. I may add that I have taken some
+of them from the Bellevite."
+
+"I am quite satisfied, sir, with the number, though ten more would be
+acceptable," replied the commander of the Bronx.
+
+The two officers were then dismissed and ordered on board of their ship.
+A little later the draft of seamen was sent on board, and among them
+Christy was not sorry to see Boxie, the old sheet-anchor man of the
+Bellevite, who had made him a sort of pet, and had done a great deal to
+instruct him in matters of seamanship, naval customs, and traditions not
+found in any books.
+
+The commander and the executive officer paid their final visit to the
+Bellevite the next day, and the order was given to weigh anchor. When
+all hands were called, Christy thought he had never seen a better set of
+men except on board of the Bellevite, and the expedition, whatever it
+was, commenced under the most favorable auspices.
+
+The Bronx sailed in the middle of the forenoon, and the flag officer was
+careful not to reveal the destination of the steamer to any one, for
+with the aid of the telegraph, the object of the expedition might reach
+the scene of operations in advance of the arrival of the force. At four
+o'clock in the afternoon Captain Blowitt opened his envelope in presence
+of the executive officer. He looked the paper through before he spoke,
+and then handed it to Christy, who read it with quite as much interest
+as the commander had.
+
+"Cedar Keys," said the captain, glancing at his associate.
+
+"That is not a long run from the station," added Christy. "We are very
+likely to be there before to-morrow morning."
+
+"It is about two hundred and eighty statute miles, I had occasion to
+ascertain a week ago when something was said about Cedar Keys," replied
+Captain Blowitt. "We have been making about fifteen knots, for the Bronx
+is a flyer, and we ought to be near our destination at about midnight.
+That would be an excellent time to arrive if we only had a pilot."
+
+"Perhaps we have one," added Christy with a smile.
+
+"Are you a pilot on this coast, Mr. Passford?" asked the commander,
+mistaking the smile.
+
+"No, sir, I am not; but I remember a conversation Mr. Flint and I had
+with Mr. Amblen, who was engaged in some sort of a speculation in
+Florida when the war came on. He was so provoked at the treatment he
+received that he shipped in the navy at once. I only know that he had a
+small steamer in these waters."
+
+"Send for Mr. Amblen at once!" exclaimed the commander, who appeared to
+have become suddenly excited. "There will be no moon to-night in these
+parts, and we may be able to hurry this matter up if we have a competent
+pilot."
+
+Christy called Dave, and sent him for the acting third lieutenant, for
+he knew that Mr. Flint had had the watch since four o'clock. Mr. Amblen
+was sunning himself on the quarter deck, and he promptly obeyed the
+summons.
+
+"I am glad to see you, Mr. Amblen, and I hope you will prove to be as
+useful a person as I have been led to believe you may be," said the
+captain.
+
+"I shall endeavor to do my duty, sir," replied the third lieutenant,
+who was always very ambitious to earn the good opinion of his superiors.
+"I mean to do the best I can to make myself useful, Captain Blowitt."
+
+"I know that very well; but the question now is what you know rather
+than what you can do as an officer. Mr. Passford informs me that you
+were formerly engaged in some kind of a speculation on the west coast
+of Florida."
+
+"Hardly a speculation, sir, for I was engaged in the fish business,"
+replied Mr. Amblen, laughing at the name which had been given to his
+calling. "When I sold a small coaster that belonged to me, I got in
+exchange a tug boat. I had been out of health a few years before; I
+spent six months at Cedar Keys and Tampa, and got well. Fish were plenty
+here, and of a kind that bring a good price farther north. I loaded my
+tug with ice, and came down here in her. I did a first-rate business
+buying from boats and in catching fish myself, and for a time I made
+money, though ice was so dear that I had to sell in the South."
+
+"Did you have a pilot on board of your tug?" asked the captain.
+
+"No, sir; I was my own pilot. I had the charts, and I studied out the
+bottom, so that I knew where I was in the darkest night."
+
+"Then you are just the person we want if you are a pilot in these
+waters."
+
+"What waters, sir? We are now off Cape St. Blas and Apalachicola Bay.
+I have been into the bay, but I am not a pilot in those waters, as you
+suggest."
+
+"I have just opened my orders, and I find we are ordered to Cedar Keys,"
+interposed the commander.
+
+"That is quite another thing, sir; and there isn't a foot of bottom
+within five miles of the Keys to which I have not been personally
+introduced. When I was down here for my health I was on the water more
+than half of the time, and I learned all about the bay and coast; and I
+have been up the Suwanee River, which flows into the Gulf eighteen miles
+north of the Keys."
+
+"I am exceedingly glad to find that we have such an excellent pilot on
+board. I am informed in my orders that schooners load with cotton at
+this place, and make an easy thing of getting to sea," added Captain
+Blowitt.
+
+"I should say that it was a capital port for the Confederates to use for
+that sort of business. Small steamers can bring cotton down the Suwanee
+River, the railroad from Fernandina terminates at the Key, and this road
+connects with that to Jacksonville and the whole of western Florida as
+far as Tallahassee."
+
+"We may find a steamer or two there."
+
+"You may, though not one any larger than the Bronx, for there is only
+eleven feet of water on the bar. Probably no blockaders have yet been
+stationed off the port, and it is a good place to run out cotton."
+
+"I am much obliged to you, Mr. Amblen, for the information you have
+given me, and your services will probably be in demand this very night,"
+added the commander, rising from his chair.
+
+"I am ready for duty at all times, sir," replied Mr. Amblen, as he
+retired from the cabin.
+
+The charts were then consulted, and sundry calculations were made. At
+one o'clock that night the Bronx was off Cedar Keys.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXII
+
+A NIGHT EXPEDITION IN THE BOATS
+
+
+During the evening Captain Blowitt had consulted his officers, and
+arranged his plans for operations, or at least for obtaining information
+in regard to the situation inside of North Key, where the landing place
+is situated. He had already arranged to give the command of the boat
+expedition to Christy, with the second lieutenant in another boat, Mr.
+Amblen being with the executive officer in the first.
+
+"Now, Mr. Passford, I do not expect you to capture the whole State of
+Florida, and if you should return without accomplishing anything at
+all, I shall not be disappointed, but I shall feel that you have done
+everything that could be done," said the captain, with a very cheerful
+smile, when all had been arranged.
+
+"I shall endeavor to obey my orders, Captain Blowitt, if I can do so in
+the exercise of a reasonable prudence," replied Christy, who took in all
+that his superior looked, as well as all that he said.
+
+"A reasonable prudence is decidedly good, coming from you, Mr.
+Passford," said the captain, laughing outright.
+
+"Why is it decidedly good from me rather than from anybody else?" asked
+Christy, somewhat nettled by the remark.
+
+"You objected once on board of the Bellevite when I mildly hinted that
+you might sometimes, under some circumstances, with a strong temptation
+before you, be just a little audacious," said the captain, still
+laughing, as though he were engaged in a mere joke.
+
+"That statement is certainly qualified in almost all directions, if you
+will excuse me for saying so, captain," replied Christy, who was fully
+determined not to take offence at anything his superior might say, for
+he had always regarded him as one of his best friends. "If I remember
+rightly the mild suggestion of a criticism which you gently and tenderly
+applied to me was after we had brought out the Teaser from Pensacola
+Bay."
+
+"That was the time. Captain Breaker sent you to ascertain, if you could,
+where the Teaser was, and you reported by bringing her out, which
+certainly no one expected you would do, and I believe this part of the
+programme carried out on that excursion was not mentioned in your
+orders."
+
+"It was not; but if I had a good chance to capture the steamer, was it
+my duty to pass over that chance, and run the risk of letting the vessel
+get out?"
+
+"On the contrary, it was your duty, if you got a good chance, to capture
+the steamer."
+
+"And that is precisely what I did. I did not lose a man, or have one
+wounded in the expedition; and I have only to be penitent for being
+audacious," laughed Christy; and he was laughing very earnestly, as
+though the extra cachinnation was assumed for a purpose. "I suppose
+I ought to dress myself in ash cloth and sashes, shut myself up in my
+state room always when off duty, and shed penitential tears from the
+rising of the sun to the going down of the same, and during the lone
+watches of the night, and in fortifying my soul against the monstrous
+sin of audacity. I will think of it."
+
+"I hope you have no feeling about this matter, Mr. Passford," said the
+captain, rising from his chair and taking Christy by the hand.
+
+"Not a particle, Captain Blowitt. I am absolutely sure that you would
+have done precisely what I did, if you had been in my situation,"
+protested Christy. "About the last thing my father talked about to me
+when we parted in this cabin in New York Harbor was the necessity of
+prudence and discretion in the discharge of my duties; and I am sure his
+advice saved me from falling into the traps set for me by Hungerford and
+Pawcett, and enabled me to capture two of the enemy's crack steamers."
+
+"I will never use the word audacity or the adjective audacious to you
+again, Christy. I see that it nettles you, to say the least," added the
+captain, pressing his hand with more earnestness.
+
+"I am perfectly willing you should apply both words to me when I
+deserve it. Audacity means boldness, impudence, according to Stormonth.
+Audacious means very bold, daring, impudent. It may have been bold to
+run out the Teaser, and the enemy would even call it impudent, for the
+meaning of a word sometimes depends upon which side you belong to. My
+father was quite as impudent as I was when he ran the Bellevite out of
+Mobile Bay, under the guns of Fort Morgan. He was audacious, wasn't he?"
+
+"We should hardly apply that word to him."
+
+"Why not? Simply because my father was forty-five years old when he told
+Captain Breaker to do it. If I were only thirty years old I should not
+be audacious. I am a boy, and therefore anything that I do is daring,
+audacious, impudent, imprudent."
+
+"I rather think you are right, Mr. Passford, and it is your age more
+than the results of your actions that is the basis of our judgment,"
+said Captain Blowitt.
+
+"I wish to add seriously, captain, as a friend and not as an officer,
+I do not claim that the command of this expedition should be given to
+me because I am first lieutenant of the Bronx, or for any other reason,"
+added Christy with an earnest expression. "Perhaps it would be better to
+give the command to the second lieutenant; and if you do so, I assure
+you, upon my honor, that it will not produce a particle of feeling in my
+mind. I shall honor, respect, and love you as I have always, Captain
+Blowitt."
+
+"My dear fellow, you are entirely misunderstanding me," protested the
+commander, as earnestly as his subordinate had spoken. "I give you the
+command of this expedition because I honestly and sincerely believe you
+are the very best person on board to whom I can commit such a
+responsibility."
+
+"That is enough, captain, and a great deal more than you were under
+any obligations to say to me; and I shall obey my orders with all the
+prudence and discretion I can bring to bear upon them," said Christy,
+taking the captain's offered hand. "If I fail it will not be because I
+do not try to be prudent."
+
+"There is such a thing as being too prudent, and I hope that nothing
+which has been said to you by your father or by me will drive you to the
+other extreme."
+
+Though this conversation had at times been very animated, Christy was
+glad that it had taken place, for it gave him a better insight into his
+own standing than he had before. He did not look upon it as a very great
+affair to command a couple of boats, in a night expedition, for he had
+recently commanded two steamers, and brought them off victorious. He
+had it in mind to ask the captain to send Flint in command of the
+expedition, though it would compel him, on account of his rank, to
+remain inactive on board of the Bronx; but he could not do this,
+after what had been said, without leaving some evidence that he was
+disaffected by what the commander had said to him about audacity.
+
+It was found after a calculation of the run very carefully made that the
+Bronx would arrive too soon at her destination, and she was slowed down
+as the evening came on. In the ward room, of which Christy was now the
+occupant of the forward berth on the starboard side, he studied the
+chart with Amblen a good part of the waiting hours, and the executive
+officer obtained all the information he could from the third lieutenant.
+There were three principal keys, or cays, one of which, called the North
+Key, was the nearest to the mainland, and was set in the mouth of a bay.
+This was the nearest to the peninsula at the end of which the railroad
+terminates. About southwest of it is the Seahorse Key, on which there is
+a light in peaceful times. To the south of the point is the Snake Key,
+and between the last two is the main channel to the port, which twists
+about like the track of a snake. There is a town, or rather a village,
+near the landing.
+
+Six bells struck on deck, and all the officers, including the captain,
+adjourned to the bridge, which was a useful institution on such
+occasions as the present. A sharp watch had been kept by Lieutenant
+Flint in charge; but though the night was clear, nothing had been made
+out in the direction of the shore. All lights on board had been put out,
+and the Bronx went along in the smooth sea as quietly as a lady on a
+fashionable promenade, and it was not believed that anything could be
+seen of her from the shore.
+
+About midnight the lookout man aloft reported that he could see a
+twinkling light. It was promptly investigated by Mr. Amblen, who went
+aloft for the purpose. He was satisfied that it was a light in some
+house in the village, probably in the upper story. It soon disappeared,
+and it was thought to be occasioned by the late retiring of some person.
+
+"I should say, Captain Blowitt, that we are not more than five miles
+outside of Seahorse Key," said Mr. Amblen, after he had interpreted the
+meaning of the light. "It is after midnight, and these people are not in
+the habit of sitting up so late."
+
+"If they are shipping much cotton from this port, it is not improbable
+that there is a force here to protect the vessels, whatever they are,"
+added the commander.
+
+"Of that, of course, I can know nothing; but I shall expect to find a
+Confederate battery somewhere on the point, and I know about where to
+look for it."
+
+"The place has never been of any great importance, and you can hardly
+expect to find a very strong force in it," added the captain.
+
+It has since become a place of more note, both as a resort for invalids
+and pleasure-seekers, and as the termination of the railroad from
+Fernandina and Jacksonville, and steamers have run regularly from the
+port to Havana and New Orleans.
+
+"If you will excuse me, Captain Blowitt, I should say that it was not
+advisable to take the Bronx nearer than within about four miles of the
+Seahorse Key," suggested Mr. Amblen.
+
+"I was just thinking that we had gone as far as it is prudent to go.
+Do you think you could take the Bronx up to the landing?" added the
+captain.
+
+"I am very sure that I could, for I have been in many a time on a darker
+night than this."
+
+"We will not go in to-night, but perhaps we may have occasion to do so
+to-morrow. We shall know better what to do when we get a report of the
+state of things in the place," replied the captain, as he gave the word
+through the speaking tube to stop the steamer.
+
+Christy had been given full powers to make all preparations for the boat
+expedition, and was allowed ten men to each of the quarter boats. He had
+selected the ones for his own boat, and had required Flint to pick his
+own crew for the other. The oars had been carefully muffled by the
+coxswains, for it was desirable that no alarm should be given in the
+place. The starboard quarter boat was the first cutter, pulled by six
+oars, and this was for Christy and Mr. Amblen, with the regular coxswain
+and three hands in the bow. The second cutter was in charge of Mr.
+Flint, and followed the other boat, keeping near enough to obtain her
+course in the twists of the channel.
+
+It was a long pull to the Seahorse Key, and a moderate stroke was taken
+as well not to tire the men as to avoid all possible noise. When the
+first cutter was abreast of the Key, the pilot pointed out the dark
+outline of the peninsula, which was less than a mile distant. No vessel
+could be seen; but the pilot thought they might be concealed by the
+railroad buildings on the point. Christy asked where the battery was
+which the pilot thought he could locate, and the spot was indicated to
+him. Christy wanted a nearer view of it, and the cutter was headed in
+that direction.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIII
+
+THE VISIT TO A SHORE BATTERY
+
+
+The first cutter reached the Seahorse Key closely followed by the
+second. It was within an hour of high tide, the ordinary rise and fall
+of which was two and a half feet. On the Key was a light house, and a
+cottage for the keeper of it; but the former was no longer illuminated,
+and the house was as dark as the head of the tower. So far as could be
+discovered there was no one on the Key, though the boats did not stop to
+investigate this matter. The crews still pulled a moderate stroke with
+their muffled oars, the men were not allowed to talk, and everything was
+as silent as the inside of a tomb.
+
+The pilot stood up in the stern sheets of the cutter, gazing intently
+in the direction of the point nearly a mile ahead. The outlines of the
+buildings could be discerned, and Amblen soon declared that he could
+make out the tops of the masts of several vessels to the westward of
+the point with which the peninsula terminated. This looked hopeful, and
+indicated that the information upon which the expedition had been sent
+out was correct. Christy began to think he should have a busy night
+before him when Amblen said there were at least three vessels at the
+port.
+
+The battery was first to be visited and cared for if there was one,
+and it was not probable that a place so open to the operations of
+the blockading force would be without one, especially if the people
+were actually engaged in loading cotton, as the masts of the vessels
+indicated, though the hulls could not yet be seen. As the first cutter
+approached nearer to the place the outlines became more distinct, and
+soon embodied themselves into definite objects. Both officers in the
+stern sheets watched with the most anxious vigilance for any moving
+object denoting the presence of life and intelligence.
+
+As the boats came nearer to the shore, a breeze sprang up, and cooled
+the air, for early as it was in the season, the weather was very warm,
+and it was not uncommon for the thermometer to rise above ninety. These
+breezes were usually present to cool the nights, and doubtless the
+inhabitants slept the sounder for the one which had just begun to fan
+the cheeks of the officers and seamen of the expedition.
+
+"There is a battery there, Mr. Passford," said the pilot in a very low
+tone. "I can make it out now, and it is just where I supposed it would
+be."
+
+"I can see something that seems like an earthwork at the right of the
+buildings," added Christy. "Can you make out anything that looks like a
+sentinel?"
+
+"I can see nothing that denotes the presence of a man. If there were
+a sentinel there, he would be on the top of the earthwork, or on the
+highest ground about it, so that he could see out into the bay, for
+there can be no danger from the land side of the place," added Amblen.
+
+"I can hardly imagine such a thing as a battery without a sentinel to
+give warning if anybody should try to carry it off. There must be a
+sentry somewhere in the vicinity."
+
+"I can't say there isn't, though I can't make out a man, or anything
+that looks like one," replied the pilot.
+
+"Very likely we shall soon wake him up, Mr. Amblen; and in that case it
+will be necessary for us to find a safer place than in front of the guns
+of the battery, for I do not feel at liberty to expose the men to the
+fire of the works, whatever they are."
+
+"All you have to do is to pull around to the other side of the point
+into the bay, where the vessels are. I am confident there is no battery
+on that side, and there can hardly be any need of one, for this one
+commands the channel, the only approach to the place for a vessel larger
+than a cutter."
+
+"I fancy this battery does not amount to much, and is probably nothing
+more than an earthwork, with a few field guns behind it. Suppose we
+should wake it up, and have to make for the bay, can we get out of it
+without putting the boats under the guns of the battery?"
+
+"Without any difficulty at all, sir. We have only to pull around the
+North Key, and pass out to the Gulf, beyond the reach of any field gun
+that can be brought to bear on us," replied Mr. Amblen.
+
+"If they have one or two field batteries here, they may hitch on the
+horses, and follow us," suggested Christy, who, in spite of the audacity
+with which he had been mildly charged, was not inclined to run into any
+trap from which he could not readily withdraw his force.
+
+"We shall have the short line, and if they pursue us with the guns, we
+can retire by the way of the channel, which they will leave uncovered."
+
+"We are getting quite near the shore," continued Christy. "How is the
+water under us?"
+
+"The bottom is sandy, and we shall take the ground before we reach the
+shore if we don't manage properly. But we can tell something by the
+mangroves that fringe the land," replied the pilot; "and I will go into
+the bow of the cutter and look out for them."
+
+Mr. Amblen made his way to the fore sheets, and asked Boxie, who was
+there, for the boathook, with which he proceeded to sound. When he had
+done so, he raised both his hands to a level with his shoulders, which
+was the signal to go ahead, and the men pulled a very slow stroke. He
+continued to sound, after he had selected the point for landing.
+
+When the first cutter was within three lengths of the shore, he elevated
+both his hands above his head, which was the signal to cease rowing,
+though the two bow oarsmen kept their oars in the water instead of
+boating them as the others did. Mr. Amblen continued to feel the way,
+and in a few minutes more, aided by the shoving of the two bow oarsmen,
+he brought the boat to the shore.
+
+Then he gave his attention to the second cutter, bringing it to the
+land alongside of the first. Stepping out on the sand himself, he
+was followed by all the crew, with cutlass in hand, and revolvers in
+readiness for use. The men were placed in order for an advance, and then
+required to lie down on the sand, so that they could not readily be seen
+if any stroller appeared on the ground.
+
+Leaving the force in charge of Mr. Flint, Christy and Amblen walked
+towards the battery, crouching behind such objects as they could
+find that would conceal them in whole or in part. The earthwork was
+semicircular in form, and was hardly more than a rifle pit. No sentinel
+could be discovered, and getting down upon the sand, the two officers
+crept cautiously towards the heaps of sand which formed the fort.
+
+Christy climbed up the slope with some difficulty, for the dry sand
+afforded a very weak foothold. On the top of it, which was about six
+feet wide, they found a solid path which had evidently been a promenade
+for sentinels or other persons. Behind it, on a wooden platform, were
+four field guns, with depressions in the earthwork in front of the
+muzzles.
+
+Christy led the way down the slope on the inside to the pieces, which
+were twelve-pounders. At a little distance from the platform was a sort
+of casemate, which might have been constructed for a magazine, or for a
+place of resort for the gunners if the fort should be bombarded. Not a
+man could be seen, and if there was any garrison for the place, they
+were certainly taking things very comfortably, for they must have been
+asleep at this unseemly hour for any ordinary occupation.
+
+Not far from the battery was a rude structure, hardly better than a
+shanty, which Christy concluded must be the barracks of the soldiers if
+there were any there. He walked over to it; but there was not a human
+being to be seen in the vicinity. It was half past one at night, when
+honest people ought to be abed and asleep, and the first lieutenant of
+the Bronx concluded that the garrison, if this shanty was their
+quarters, must be honest people.
+
+Christy walked very cautiously to the side of the building, for the
+entrance was at the end nearest to the fort, and found several windows
+there, from which the sashes seemed to have been removed, if there had
+ever been any. The bottom of each opening was no higher than his head,
+and he went to one of them and looked in.
+
+Extending along the middle of the interior was a row of berths. It was
+very dark inside, and he could not make out whether or not these bunks
+were occupied. The windows on the other side of the shanty enabled him
+to see that there were two rows of berths, each backing against the
+other. There were two in each tier, and he judged that the barrack would
+accommodate forty-eight men.
+
+He retained his place at the window in order to discover any movement
+made by a sleeper that would inform him whether or not the berths were
+occupied. If there were any soldiers there, they were as quiet as
+statues; but while he was watching for a movement, he heard a decided
+snore. There was at least one man there, and he continued to hear his
+sonorous breathing as long as he remained at the window, which was the
+first on the side of the shanty.
+
+  [Illustration: Christy walked the whole length of the shanty.]
+
+Christy decided to push the investigation still farther, and he went
+to a window in the middle of the building. He regarded the berths with
+attention for a few minutes, but he could perceive no movement. He could
+hear two snorers who seemed to be competing with each other to see who
+could make the most noise.
+
+If the berths were all occupied, three snorers were not a very great
+proportion in forty-eight. He was very anxious to ascertain if this was
+the number of soldiers in the place, but it was too dark in the shanty
+for him to determine whether or not the bunks were all in use. It was
+too many for him to encounter with his force of twenty men and three
+officers in the open field.
+
+Christy returned to the end of the building, and tried the door. It was
+not locked, and he decided to make use of a little of the audacity of
+which he was accused of having a good deal. Taking off his shoes, and
+passing his sword to Mr. Amblen, he entered the barrack on tiptoe.
+
+The boards of the floor began to creak under his weight; he stooped down
+and felt till he found the nail holes; then he knew that he was on a
+timber, and he walked the whole length of the shanty, returning on the
+opposite side, counting the occupied berths, for he passed within three
+feet of all of them. The count gave seventeen men as the number of
+sleepers, though this might not be all the force at the place.
+
+He had ascertained all he wished to know, and he walked back to the
+shore where the men were concealed. Apart from the men, he had a
+conference with Flint and Amblen, giving them the details of what he had
+discovered. Then he stated his plan, and the men were marched silently
+to the battery, and were posted behind the breastwork. Not a man was
+allowed to move, and Christy and Flint went to the casemate, which
+looked like a mound of sand.
+
+It was locked, but taking a bar of iron they found with some tools for
+digging, they tore off the padlock. A lantern had been brought from
+the steamer, which was lighted. The structure was found to be for the
+protection of the artillerists in the first instance; but the apartment
+was connected with the magazine, the lock of which was removed.
+
+Amblen was sent for ten men, and all the ammunition they could carry was
+removed. The rest of it was thrown into a pool of water made by recent
+rains. The powder, solid shot, and shells were carried to the boats. The
+rest of the men drew the four guns to the shore, where one was placed,
+with its carriage, in each of the cutters, and the other two put where
+they could be carried to the Bronx, or thrown overboard in deep water,
+as occasion might require.
+
+The seventeen soldiers, reinforced by any that might be in the town,
+were thus deprived of the power to do any mischief except in a
+hand-to-hand fight. If the place was not actually captured, it was
+practically lost to the enemy. The next business of the expedition was
+to examine the bay, and ascertain what vessels were at the landing
+place. The boats shoved off, and pulled around the point.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIV
+
+CAPTAIN LONLEY OF THE STEAMER HAVANA
+
+
+The two twelve-pounders in each boat were believed to weigh about six
+hundred pounds each, while the ordinary bronze boat gun of the same
+calibre weighs seven hundred and sixty pounds. The four guns, therefore,
+were rather too heavy a burden for the size of the cutters. But Christy
+was unwilling to throw the two without carriages overboard, for the
+water in this locality was so clear that they could have been seen at a
+depth of two or three fathoms. They were useless for the duty in which
+the expedition was engaged, and the commander of the expedition decided
+to land them on the Seahorse Key till he had completed his operations in
+the bay, when they could be taken off and transported to the Bronx as
+trophies, if for nothing better.
+
+Mr. Flint was disposed to object to this plan, on account of the time it
+would require; but he yielded the point when Christy informed him that
+it was only half past two, as he learned from the repeater he carried
+for its usefulness on just such duty as the present expedition.
+
+The guns and all that belonged to them were landed on the Key, and the
+boats shoved off, the lieutenants happy in the thought that they were no
+longer embarrassed by their weight, while they could not be brought to
+bear upon them.
+
+The boats had hardly left the little island behind them when the noise
+of paddle wheels ahead was reported by one of the trio in the bow of the
+first cutter. Christy listened with all his ears, and immediately heard
+the peculiar sounds caused by the slapping of the paddle wheels of a
+steamer upon the water.
+
+"We are in for something," said he to the pilot, as he listened to the
+sounds. "What might that be?"
+
+"It is a steamer without any doubt coming around the point, and she will
+be in sight in a moment or two," replied Mr. Amblen. "It may be a river
+steamer that has brought a load of cotton down the Suwanee, and is going
+out on this tide."
+
+"Then we may need those guns we have left on the key," suggested
+Christy.
+
+"If she is a river steamer, there is not much of a force on board of
+her," replied the pilot.
+
+"We might return to the island, and use the two guns with carriages
+there."
+
+"If she is a river steamer, we shall not need great guns to capture
+her."
+
+Christy had ordered the men to cease rowing, and the two cutters lay
+motionless on the full sea, for the tide was at its height by this time.
+Even in the darkness they could make out whether the approaching vessel
+was a river or a sea steamer as soon as she could be seen.
+
+"Whatever she is, we must capture her," said Christy, very decidedly.
+
+"If she is a river steamer, she will be of no use to the government,"
+added Mr. Amblen.
+
+"Of none at all." replied Christy. "In that case I shall burn her, for
+it would not be safe to send good men in such a craft to a port where
+she could be condemned. The next question is, shall we take her here,
+or nearer to the shore."
+
+"The farther from the shore the better, I should say, Mr. Passford.
+After she passes the Seahorse Key, she will be in deep water for a
+vessel coming out of that port; and until she gets to the Key, she will
+move very slowly, and we can board her better than when she is going at
+full speed," said Mr. Amblen.
+
+"You are doubtless quite right, Mr. Amblen, and I shall adopt your
+suggestion," replied Christy. "There she comes, and she is no river
+steamer."
+
+She had not the two tall funnels carried by river steamers, and that
+point was enough to settle her character. There could be no doubt she
+would have been a blockade runner, if there had been any blockade to
+run at the entrance to the port. Christy decided to board the steamer
+between the two keys, the channel passing between Snake and Seahorse.
+The first cutter fell back so that Christy could communicate with Mr.
+Flint, and he instructed him to take a position off the Snake Key, where
+his boat could not be discovered too soon, and board the steamer on the
+port side, though he did not expect any resistance. Each cutter took its
+position and awaited in silence the approach of the blockade runner. The
+only thing Christy feared was that she would come about and run back to
+the port, though this could only delay her capture.
+
+The steamer, as well as the officers could judge her in the distance,
+was hardly larger than the Bronx. They concluded that she must be loaded
+with cotton, and at this time it was about as valuable a cargo as could
+be put on board of her. She would be a rich prize, and the masts of the
+schooners were still to be seen over the tops of the buildings. She must
+have chosen this hour of the night to go out, not only on account of the
+tide, but because the darkness would enable her to get off the coast
+where a blockader occasionally wandered before the blockade was fully
+established. Her paddle wheels indicated that she had not been built
+very recently, for very nearly all sea steamers, including those of the
+United States, were propelled by the screw.
+
+As Mr. Amblen had predicted the steamer moved very slowly, and it was
+all of a quarter of an hour before she came to the Seahorse Key. At the
+right time Christy gave the word to the crew to "Give way lively!" and
+the first cutter shot out from the concealment of the little island,
+while Flint did the same on the other side of the channel. Almost in the
+twinkling of an eye the two boats had made fast to her, and seven men
+from each boat leaped on the deck of the steamer, cutlass in hand. No
+guns were to be seen, and the watch of not more than half a dozen men
+were on the forecastle; and perhaps this was the entire force of the
+sailing department.
+
+"What does all this mean?" demanded a man coming from the after part of
+the vessel, in a voice which Christy recognized as soon as he had heard
+half of the sentence.
+
+"Good morning, Captain Lonley," said Christy, in the pleasantest of
+tones. "You are up early, my friend, but I think we are a little ahead
+of you on this occasion."
+
+"Who are you, sir?" demanded Lonley; and Christy had at once jumped to
+the conclusion that he was the captain of the steamer. "I have heard
+your voice before, but I cannot place you, sir."
+
+"Fortunately for me, it is not necessary that you should place me this
+time," replied Christy. "It is equally fortunate that I am not compelled
+to place you again, as I felt obliged to do, on board of the Judith in
+Mobile Bay."
+
+"Passford!" exclaimed Captain Lonley, stepping back a pace in his
+astonishment.
+
+"Passford, late of the Bellevite, and now executive officer of the
+United States steamer Bronx, formerly the Teaser, privateer," answered
+Christy, in his usual cheerful tones. "May I inquire the name of this
+steamer?"
+
+"This steamer is the Havana," replied Captain Lonley. "May I ask you,
+Mr. Passford, in regard to your business on board of her?"
+
+"I have a little affair on board of her, and my duty compels me to
+demand her surrender as a prize to the Bronx."
+
+"Caught again!" exclaimed Captain Lonley, stamping violently on the deck
+in his disgust at his misfortune, and it was the third time that Christy
+had thrown him "out of a job."
+
+"The way of the transgressor is hard, Captain Lonley," added the
+commander of the expedition.
+
+"Transgressor, sir!" ejaculated the captain of the Havana. "What do you
+mean by that, Mr. Passford?"
+
+"Well, captain, you are in arms against the best government that the
+good God ever permitted to exist for eighty odd years; and that is the
+greatest transgression of which one can be guilty in a patriotic sense."
+
+"I hold no allegiance to that government."
+
+"So much the worse for you, Captain Lonley; but we will not talk
+politics. Do you surrender?"
+
+"This is not an armed steamer, and I have no force to resist; I am
+compelled to surrender," replied the captain as he glanced at the
+cutlasses of the men from the Bronx.
+
+"That is a correct, though not a cheerful view of the question on
+your part. I am very happy to relieve you from any further care of the
+Havana, and you may retire to your cabin, where I shall have the honor
+to wait upon you later."
+
+"One word, Mr. Passford, if you please," said Captain Lonley, taking
+Christy by the arm and leading him away from the rest of the boarding
+party. "This steamer and the cotton with which she is loaded are the
+property of your uncle, Homer Passford."
+
+"Indeed?" was all that Christy thought it necessary to say in reply.
+
+"You have already taken from him one valuable cargo of cotton; and it
+would be magnanimous in you, as well as very kind of a near relative,
+to allow me to pass on my way with the property of your uncle."
+
+"Would it have been kind on the part of a near relative to allow his own
+brother to pass out of Mobile Bay in the Bellevite?"
+
+"That would have been quite another thing, for the Bellevite was
+intended for the Federal navy," protested the Confederate captain. "It
+would have been sacrificing his country to his fraternal feelings. This
+is not a Confederate vessel, and is not intended as a war steamer,"
+argued Lonley.
+
+"Every pound of cotton my uncle sells is so much strength added to the
+cause he advocates; and I hope, with no unkind thoughts or feelings in
+regard to him, I shall be able to capture every vessel he sends out.
+That is my view of the matter, and I am just as strong on my side of the
+question as Uncle Homer is on his side. I would cut off my right hand
+before I would allow your vessel or any other to escape, for I have
+sworn allegiance to my government, and when I fail to do my duty at any
+sacrifice of personal feeling, it will be when I have lost my mind; and
+my uncle would do as much for his fractional government. We need not
+discuss such a subject as you suggest, captain."
+
+Captain Lonley said no more, and retired to his cabin. Christy was ready
+for the next question in order. Accompanied by Mr. Flint, he looked the
+steamer over. The mate had lighted his pipe and seated himself on a
+water cask; and he seemed to be the only officer besides the captain on
+board. The engineers were next visited. There were two of them, but they
+were red hot for the Confederacy, and nothing was said to them except to
+order them on deck, where they were placed with the crew, and a guard of
+seamen set over them. The firemen were negroes, and they were willing to
+serve under the new master, and doubtless were pleased with the change.
+The crew of the Bronx on board of the Havana were canvassed to find a
+man who had run an engine, but not one of them had any experience.
+
+"That's bad," said Flint, when they had finished the inquiry. "We have
+not an engineer on board, and we shall have to send off to the Bronx for
+one."
+
+"Not so bad as that, Mr. Flint," replied Christy. "There is one loyal
+engineer on board, and I am the one. You will take the deck, and Mr.
+Amblen will go into the pilot house. I am not quite ready to go off to
+the Bronx yet, for there are two or three cotton schooners in this port,
+and we are so fortunate as to have a steamer now to tow them out."
+
+"Very likely those soldiers have waked up by this time," said Flint.
+
+"Let them fire those guns at us, if they can find them," laughed
+Christy.
+
+Then he took Mr. Amblen into the engine room with him.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXV
+
+THE NEW ENGINEER OF THE PRIZE STEAMER
+
+
+While enthusiastically pursuing his studies as an engineer, Christy
+had visited a great many steamers with Paul Vapoor for the purpose of
+examining the engines, so that he could hardly expect to find one with
+whose construction he was not familiar, whether it was an American or a
+foreign built machine. At the first glance after he entered the engine
+room of the Havana, he knew the engine, and was ready to run it without
+spending any time in studying it. He had brought the pilot with him in
+order to come to an understanding in regard to the bells, for in the
+navy the signals differ from those in the commercial marine.
+
+"This steamer is provided with a gong and a jingling bell," said
+Christy, as he pointed them out to his companion.
+
+"My little steamer on this coast was run with just such bells," replied
+Mr. Amblen.
+
+"And so was the Bellevite, so that I am quite accustomed to the system
+of signals; but it is well to be sure that we understand each other
+perfectly if we expect to get this vessel out of the bay after we go
+up to the port," added Christy.
+
+"I agree with you entirely, sir. A single strong stroke on the gong is
+to start or to stop her according to the circumstances," said the pilot.
+
+"Precisely so; and two strokes are to back her," continued Christy.
+"Going at full speed, the jingler brings the engine down to half speed,
+or at half speed carries it up to full speed."
+
+"That is my understanding of the matter," replied Mr. Amblen.
+
+"Then we understand each other to a charm," continued the temporary
+engineer. "Report to Mr. Flint that we are ready to go ahead."
+
+Christy found a colored man who was on duty as an oiler, and four others
+in the fire room, who seemed to be engaged in an earnest discussion of
+the situation, for the capture of the Havana was a momentous event to
+all of them. The oiler was at work, and had thoroughly lubricated the
+machinery, as though he intended that any failure of the steamer should
+not be from any fault on his part.
+
+The new official set two of the firemen at work, though the boilers had
+a good head of steam. The gong bell gave one sharp stroke, and Christy
+started the engine.
+
+The Havana was headed out to sea when she was captured, and in the slack
+water she had not drifted at all. He went ahead slowly, and soon had the
+bell to stop her; but he expected this, for the channel was narrow, and
+it required considerable manoeuvring to get the steamer about. Then he
+happened to think of the guns on the Seahorse Key, and through the
+speaking tube he passed the word to Mr. Flint to have him land there
+in order to take the guns and ammunition on board.
+
+After a great deal of backing and going ahead, the Havana was headed
+for the key, where she was stopped as near to it as the depth of water
+would permit. The guns and other material were brought off, two of the
+firemen, the oiler, and other colored men of the crew of the Havana
+assisting in the work. The two guns that were provided with carriages
+were mounted, and placed on the forecastle. They were loaded and
+prepared for service by the trained gunners of the crew. Christy had
+directed all this to be done on account of the delay which had attended
+the good fortune of the expedition, for he might not get out of the bay
+before the daylight came to reveal the presence of the force he
+commanded to the people on the shore.
+
+The gong rang again when all these preparations had been made, and the
+Havana steamed slowly up the channel towards the bay. The oiler appeared
+to have finished his work for the present. He was a more intelligent man
+than the others of his color on board, and seemed to understand his
+duties. Christy spoke to him, for he said nothing unless he was spoken
+to, and he had learned that the commander of the expedition was doing
+duty as engineer in the absence of any other competent person.
+
+"How many schooners are there at the landing place at the keys?" asked
+Christy.
+
+"Only two schooners, sir," replied the man very respectfully.
+
+"Are they loaded, --what is your name?" asked the engineer.
+
+"My name is Dolly, sir."
+
+"Dolly? That is a girl's name."
+
+"My whole name is Adolphus, sir; but everybody calls me Dolly, and
+I can't help myself," replied the oiler soberly, as though he had a
+real grievance on account of the femininity of his nickname. "The two
+schooners are not quite loaded, sir, but they are very nearly full. They
+had some trouble here, among the hands."
+
+"Had some trouble, did they? I should think there were soldiers enough
+here to keep everything straight. How many artillerists or soldiers do
+they keep here?" added Christy.
+
+"They had about forty, but they don't have half that number now."
+
+"What has become of them?"
+
+"They were sent away to look for the hands that took to the woods. One
+of the officers and about half of the men were sent off yesterday,"
+replied Dolly, who seemed willing to tell all he knew.
+
+"Why did the men run off?" asked Christy curiously.
+
+"They brought about fifty hands, all slaves, down here to load the
+steamer and the schooners. They set them at work yesterday morning, and
+they had nearly put all the cotton into the schooners at dinner time.
+To make the niggers work harder, they gave them apple jack."
+
+"What is that?" asked the engineer, who never heard the name before.
+
+"It is liquor made out of apples, and it is very strong," answered
+Dolly; and he might have added that it was the vilest intoxicant to
+be found in the whole world, not even excepting Russian vodka.
+
+"And this liquor made the hands drunk, I suppose."
+
+"They did not give them enough for that, sir; but it made them kind of
+crazy, and they wanted more of it. That made the trouble; the hands
+struck for liquor before dinner, and when they didn't get it, they took
+to the woods, about fifty of them. The soldiers had to get their dinner
+before they would start out after them; and that is the reason the
+schooners are not full now, sir, and not a bale had been put into this
+steamer."
+
+"But she seems to be fully loaded now."
+
+"Yes, sir; Captain Lonley paid the soldiers that were left to load the
+Havana. They worked till eleven in the evening; they were not used to
+that kind of work, and they got mighty tired, I can tell you," said
+Dolly, with the first smile Christy had seen on his yellow face, for he
+appeared to enjoy the idea of a squad of white men doing niggers' work.
+
+"That was what made them sleep so soundly, and leave the battery on the
+point to take care of itself," said Christy. "Where were the officers?"
+
+"Two of them have gone on the hunt for the hands, and I reckon the
+captain is on a visit to a planter who has a daughter, about forty miles
+from here."
+
+"The soldiers were sleeping very soundly in the barrack about two this
+morning; and perhaps they were also stimulated with apple jack," added
+Christy. "Did you drink any of it, Dolly?"
+
+"No, sir, I never drink any liquor, for I am a preacher," replied the
+oiler, with a very serious and solemn expression on his face.
+
+"How do you happen to be a greaser on a steamer if you are a preacher?"
+
+"I worked on a steamer on the Alabama River before I became a preacher,
+and I took it up again. I was raised in a preacher's family, and worked
+in the house."
+
+He talked as though he had been educated, but he could neither read nor
+write, and had picked up all his learning by the assistance of his ears
+alone. But Christy had ascertained all he wished to know in regard to
+the schooners, and he was prepared to carry out his mission in the bay.
+At the fort it appeared that all the commissioned officers were absent
+from the post, and the men, after exhausting themselves at work to which
+they were unaccustomed, had taken to their bunks and were sleeping off
+the fatigue, and perhaps the effects of the apple jack. While he was
+thinking of the matter, the gong struck, and Christy stopped the engine.
+
+"Do you know anything about an engine, Dolly?" he asked, turning to the
+oiler.
+
+"Yes, sir; I run the engine of the Havana over here from Mobile,"
+replied Dolly. "I can do it as well as any one, if they will only trust
+me."
+
+"Then stand by the machine, and obey the bells if they are struck,"
+added Christy, as he went on deck.
+
+He found the second and third lieutenants standing on the rail engaged
+in examining the surroundings. The day was just beginning to show itself
+in the east, though it was not yet light enough to enable them to see
+clearly on shore. By the side of the railroad building was a pier, at
+which the two schooners lay. They could hear the sounds of some kind of
+a stir on shore, but were unable to make out what it meant.
+
+"We are losing time," said Christy, as he took in at a glance all he
+deemed it necessary to know in regard to the situation.
+
+"I was about to report to you, Mr. Passford; but Mr. Amblen wished to
+ascertain whether or not there is a battery on this side of the point,"
+said Flint.
+
+"Do you find anything, Mr. Amblen?"
+
+"No, sir; I can see nothing that looks like a battery," replied the
+pilot.
+
+"Then run in, and we will make fast to these schooners and haul them
+out," added Christy in hurried tones.
+
+The pilot went to the wheel, and rang one bell on the gong. Dolly
+started the engine before Christy could reach the machine. He said
+nothing to the oiler, but seated himself on the sofa, and observed his
+movements. A few minutes later came the bell to stop her, and then two
+bells to back her. Dolly managed the machine properly and promptly, and
+seemed to be at home in the engine room. The color of his skin was a
+sufficient guaranty of his loyalty, but Christy remained below long
+enough to satisfy himself that Dolly knew what he was about, and then
+went on deck.
+
+By this time the noise on shore had become more pronounced, and he saw
+the dark forms of several persons on the wharf. Flint and Amblen were
+making fast to the nearest schooner, and a couple of seamen had been
+sent on shore to cast off the fasts which held her to the wharf. This
+was the work of but a moment, and the two men returned to the steamer;
+but they were closely followed by two men, one of whom stepped on the
+deck of the schooner.
+
+"What are you about here?" demanded the foremost of the men, in a rude
+and impertinent manner.
+
+"About our business," replied Christy, with cool indifference.
+
+"Who are you, young man?" demanded the one on the deck.
+
+"I am yours truly; who are you?"
+
+"None of your business who I am! I asked you a question, and you will
+answer it if you know when you are well off," blustered the man, who was
+rather too fat to be dangerous; and by this time, Christy discovered
+that he wore something like a uniform.
+
+"I will try to find out when I am well off, and then I will answer you,"
+replied Christy.
+
+"All fast, sir," reported Flint.
+
+The commander of the expedition, turning his back to the fat man, went
+forward to the pilot house.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVI
+
+THE BATTLE WITH THE SOLDIERS
+
+
+Mr. Amblen went to the pilot house, and rang two bells. Dolly responded
+properly by starting the engine on the reverse, and the schooner
+alongside began to move away from the wharf, for the stern of the Havana
+pointed out into the bay.
+
+"Stop, there! What are you about?" shouted the fat man on the deck of
+the schooner.
+
+"About going," replied Christy.
+
+"These vessels are the property of a citizen of the Confederate States,
+and I command you to stop," yelled the fat man with all the voice he
+could muster.
+
+"All right," replied Christy, as the gong sounded to stop her. "Now, Mr.
+Flint, cast off the fasts, and let the schooner go astern," he added to
+the second lieutenant.
+
+"All clear, sir," replied Flint a moment later, and after the steamer
+lost her headway, the vessel continued to back, though the Havana was
+checked by the engine.
+
+The fat man went adrift in the schooner, but Christy gave no further
+attention to him. The steamer was started ahead again; her bow was run
+alongside of the other vessel at the wharf, and Flint proceeded in the
+same manner as with the first one.
+
+"Orderly!" shouted the fat man, evidently addressing the man who had
+come to the schooner with him, and had retreated to the wharf when the
+vessel began to move.
+
+"Captain Rowly!" replied the man, who was doubtless the orderly sergeant
+of the company.
+
+"Go to the barracks and have the men haul the four field pieces over to
+the wharf," yelled the fat captain.
+
+"All right, little one! Have them hauled over by all means," said
+Christy, as the men made fast to the other schooner, and cast off the
+fasts.
+
+But it was soon evident that the sleepy soldiers had been roused from
+their slumbers by some other agency than the orderly, though it was not
+quite possible for them to haul over the four guns, as they happened
+to be on the forward deck of the Havana. But the men were armed with
+muskets, and were capable of doing a great deal of mischief with them.
+Christy hurried up the men at the fasts, but they had about finished
+their task.
+
+"All clear, Mr. Passford," called Mr. Flint, as the soldiers
+double-quicked across the railroad to the wharf, upon which there was
+still a huge pile of bales of cotton.
+
+"Back her, Mr. Amblen," said Christy, as he hastened aft to avoid a
+collision with the other schooner.
+
+But the tide had begun to recede, and had carried the first vessel to a
+safe distance from the wharf.
+
+The soldiers reached the edge of the wharf, and were probably under the
+command of the orderly by this time. At any rate they marched farther
+down the pier, where they could be nearer to the Havana as she backed
+away. Then the troops fired a volley at the steamer; but in the darkness
+they did no serious injury to the party, though two seamen were slightly
+wounded.
+
+"Cast off the fasts!" shouted Christy, when he realized that some of his
+men were in a fair way to be shot down before they could get the two
+schooners alongside and properly secured for the trip to the Bronx, and
+the order was promptly obeyed. "Now, check her, Mr. Amblen;" and two
+bells were sounded on the gong, after one to stop her.
+
+The second schooner kept on her course out into the bay to join the
+first one cast loose; but Christy feared that they might get aground,
+and give them trouble. The seventeen soldiers whom he had counted in
+their bunks appeared to have been reinforced either by the return of the
+absent party, or by the civilians in the place, for they presented a
+more formidable front than the smaller number could make. Whatever the
+number of the defenders of the place, they could harass the expedition
+while the men were preparing for the final departure.
+
+"With what were those two guns charged, Mr. Flint?" asked Christy.
+
+"With solid shot, sir," replied the second lieutenant.
+
+"Open fire on the wharf, and then load with the shrapnel," added
+Christy.
+
+The two guns, which had been placed in proper position for use on the
+top-gallant forecastle, were aimed by Flint himself, and discharged. The
+report shook the steamer, and Christy, who retained his position on the
+quarter deck, heard a scream of terror, coming from a female, issue from
+the companion way, at the head of which a seaman had been placed as a
+sentinel over the officers below.
+
+"What was that, Neal?" asked the commander of the expedition.
+
+"It was the scream of a lady, sir, and that is all I know about it,"
+replied the man. "I haven't seen any lady, sir, and I think she must
+have been asleep so far. The captain tried to come on deck a while ago,
+but I sent him back, sir."
+
+By this time the two field pieces had been loaded again, and they were
+discharged. Christy watched the effect, and he had the pleasure of
+seeing the whole troop on the wharf retire behind the great pile of
+bales of cotton. A random fire was kept up from this defence, but the
+soldiers were safe behind their impenetrable breastwork. Flint continued
+to fire into it.
+
+At the report of the guns, nearly together, which made the Havana shake,
+and everything on board of her rattle, for she was not built to carry
+a battery of guns, another scream came forth from the companion way.
+A moment later, Christy saw a female form ascending the stairs. The
+sentinel placed his cutlass across the passage; but the lieutenant told
+him to let her come on deck if she desired to do so.
+
+It was light enough for the gallant young officer to see that she was
+young and fair, though she had evidently dressed herself in great haste.
+She looked around her with astonishment, perhaps to find that the
+steamer was no longer at the wharf. The guns on the forecastle were
+again discharged, and she shrunk back at the sound.
+
+"Do not be alarmed, miss," said Christy, in his gentlest tones. "But I
+must say that you will be safer in the cabin than on deck."
+
+"Will you please to tell me what has happened, sir, or what is going to
+happen?" asked the lady; and the listener thought he had never heard a
+sweeter voice, though he might not have thought so if he had heard it at
+Bonnydale, or anywhere else except in the midst of the din of pealing
+guns and the rattling of musketry.
+
+"I can tell you what has happened; but as I am not a prophet, I cannot
+so accurately inform you in regard to what is going to happen," he
+replied.
+
+"But what has occurred on board of the Havana?" she interposed, rather
+impatiently.
+
+"The Havana has been captured by an expedition, of which I have the
+honor to be in command, from the United States gunboat Bronx. Just now
+we are defending ourselves from an attack of the soldiers in the place.
+As to the future, miss, I have no reasonable doubt that we shall be able
+to get the steamer and two schooners we have also captured alongside
+the Bronx, where all the prizes will be subject to the order of her
+commander. Permit me to advise you to retire to the cabin, miss, and
+later, I shall be happy to give you all the information in my power,"
+said Christy, touching his cap to her, and pointing to the companion
+way.
+
+She accepted the advice, and went down the steps. The young officer had
+no time then to wonder who and what she was, for he realized that there
+was little hope of stopping the desultory firing from behind the cotton
+pile; and perhaps by this time the soldiers realized what had become of
+their four field pieces, for they knew that the Havana had not been
+armed when they loaded her with cotton.
+
+Christy went forward to set the officers at work in picking up the two
+prizes, and as he stopped to look down into the engine room, he felt
+his cap knocked off his head, and heard the whizzing of a bullet
+unpleasantly near his ears. He picked up his cap, and found a bullet
+hole through the top of it. If it had gone an inch or two lower, Mr.
+Flint would have succeeded to the command of the expedition without any
+ceremonies. Though there was no reason for it, this incident seemed to
+provoke him, for it assured him that he could not pick up his prizes
+without exposing his men to this nasty firing for some time longer.
+
+It was now light enough for him to make out the situation of the
+breastwork of cotton, and he saw that it was a long and narrow pile,
+probably near a siding of the railroad where the bales had been unloaded
+from the cars. Another glance at the surroundings in regard to the point
+enabled him to make up his mind what to do, and he did not lose a moment
+in putting his plan into execution. The firing of shot and shrapnel at
+the cotton pile seemed to produce no adequate effect, and he ordered
+Flint to cease his operations.
+
+"Back her, Mr. Amblen," he added to the pilot. "Back her at full speed."
+
+The schooners were doing very well; instead of wandering off into the
+bay, they had fallen into the channel, and were drifting with the tide.
+Several persons appeared on the deck of each of them, and it was plain
+that a portion of the crews had been asleep on board of them. While he
+was observing them, he discovered two boats coming out from behind the
+point, and making for the two vessels. This movement indicated an
+attempt to recapture the prizes.
+
+"Port the helm, Mr. Amblen, and circle around till the bow points in
+the direction of those boats coming out from beyond the point," said
+Christy. "Mr. Flint, man your guns again at once, and drop some solid
+shot into those boats."
+
+The Havana continued to back till the guns would bear on the boats, and
+then Flint delivered his fire. The headmost of the boats was smashed,
+and was a wreck on the bay. The other hastened to pick up the crew, and
+then pulled for the shore with all possible speed, though not till two
+other boats, apparently filled with soldiers, were discovered
+approaching the retreating boat.
+
+Christy did not wait to dispose of these, but mounted the top-gallant
+forecastle, and ordered the guns to be loaded with shells. Then he
+waited till the steamer reached a point off the end of the peninsula,
+when he gave the order to stop and back her. Sighting the first gun
+himself, he directed the man at the lockstring to fire. He waited a
+moment for the smoke to clear away, and then, with his glass, he saw
+several forms lying on the wharf by the side of the cotton pile. He had
+fired so as to rake the rear of this breastwork, and before the soldiers
+there understood what he was doing. Those who had not dropped before the
+fire were picking up their wounded companions, and retreating with all
+practicable haste.
+
+It was not necessary to discharge the other gun, and it was swung round
+and brought to bear on the two boats advancing towards the prizes, the
+men in which were pulling with the most desperate haste. Flint took
+careful aim this time, and the gun was discharged. The shrapnel with
+which it was charged did not knock the boat to pieces as a solid shot
+might have done, but two of the oars were seen to drop into the water,
+and both boats began to retreat, which was quite a proper thing for them
+to do in face of such a destructive fire.
+
+There was nothing more to detain the expedition at the place, and the
+two prizes were picked up, made fast, one on each side of the Havana,
+and then the bell to go ahead was sounded. The pilot then informed
+Christy that he had made out the Bronx approaching at a distance of not
+more than three miles beyond the Seahorse Key. Probably Captain Blowitt
+had heard the guns, and was coming in to assist in the fight.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVII
+
+THE INNOCENT CAPTAIN OF THE GARRISON
+
+
+The firing of the musketry was continued from the end of the point by
+a small squad of soldiers, though the most of them seemed to have gone
+over to the other side of the peninsula to take part in the attempt to
+recapture the schooners with boats, which had utterly failed. It was now
+fairly light, the battle had been fought, and the boat expedition had
+done all and more than all it had been expected to accomplish.
+
+Christy had hardly expected to do anything more than obtain information
+that would enable the Bronx to capture the schooners, and nothing had
+been said about the steamer that had been found there. It appeared from
+the statement of Captain Lonley that the Havana was the property of his
+uncle Homer Passford; and doubtless he had chosen Cedar Keys as a safer
+place, at this stage of the war, to send out his cotton than the
+vicinity of his plantation.
+
+Christy certainly had no desire to capture the property of his father's
+brother rather than that of any other Confederate planter, for he had
+had no knowledge of his operations in Florida. But he was quite as
+patriotic on his own side as his uncle was on the other side, and as it
+was his duty to take or destroy the goods of the enemy, he was not sorry
+he had been so fortunate, though he did regret that Homer Passford had
+been the principal sufferer from the visit of the Bronx to this coast.
+
+The planter had now lost three schooners and one steamer loaded with
+cotton; but Christy was satisfied that this would not abate by one jot
+or tittle his interest in the cause he had espoused. The young man did
+not think of such a thing as punishing him for taking part in the
+rebellion, for he knew that Homer would be all the more earnest in his
+faith because he had been a financial martyr on account of his devotion
+to it.
+
+The Havana, with one of the schooners on each side of her, was steaming
+slowly down the channel, and the Bronx was approaching at a distance
+of not more than three miles. For the first time since he obtained
+possession of the prizes, he had an opportunity to look them over, and
+collect his thoughts. From the very beginning of the enterprise he had
+been extremely anxious in regard to the result.
+
+His orders had been to obtain all the information he could in regard to
+the position of the vessels that were reported to be at this port, and
+to do anything the circumstances would permit without incurring too
+much risk. The adventure had been full of surprises from first to last.
+Something new and sometimes something strange had been continually
+exposed to him, and it looked to him just as though all the preparations
+to accomplish the result he had achieved had been made for his coming.
+
+Before the boats went around into the bay, he had been satisfied with
+the finding and carrying off of the twelve-pounders. He had hardly
+expected to do anything more, and he knew that Captain Blowitt would be
+amused as well as pleased at this rather singular feat. The removal of
+the four field pieces had rendered the capture of the schooners possible
+and even easy, as it would not have been if the order of Captain Rowly
+to drag them over to the wharf could have been carried out.
+
+The taking of the Havana had been rather a side incident, hardly
+connected with the rest of the affair. Everything had favored the
+young commander of the expedition, and he had made good use of his
+opportunities, though he had embraced some of them blindly, without
+being able to foresee the consequences of his action at the time it was
+taken. He had time now to review the events of the morning, and the
+result was in the highest degree pleasing to him.
+
+On board of the two schooners the crew had put in an appearance; but
+when he inquired of the negroes he learned that the captains of the
+vessels were not on board. The mate of each was on deck, and they were
+the only white men. On the rail of the one on the port side sat the fat
+captain of the garrison of the place. Thus far he had said nothing, and
+he appeared to be sitting figuratively on the stool of repentance, for
+he had not been faithful to the trust reposed in him.
+
+Dolly had said he had gone to visit a planter who had a daughter;
+but this statement did not appear to be true, for he had put in an
+appearance early, as the Havana was making fast to the first prize. He
+had left his men in the barrack to sleep off their fatigue and apple
+jack after their unaccustomed labor in loading the steamer. He had not
+so much as posted a sentinel, who might have enabled him to defeat the
+invaders of the port, even with his diminished force. If Homer Passford
+had been on the spot, his faith in the Providence that watched over his
+holy cause might have been shaken.
+
+"Good morning, Captain Rowly," said Christy cheerfully, as he walked up
+to the disconsolate captain. "I hope you are feeling quite well."
+
+"Not very well; things are mixed," replied the fat officer, looking down
+upon the planks of the deck.
+
+"Mixed, are they?" added Christy.
+
+"I can't see how it all happened," mused the military gentleman.
+
+"How what happened, Captain Rowly?" inquired Christy.
+
+"All the vessels in the place captured, and carried off!" exclaimed the
+late commander of the garrison.
+
+"I don't discover the least difficulty in explaining how it all
+happened. You were so very obliging as to allow your men to go to sleep
+in the barrack without even posting a sentinel at the battery. That made
+the whole thing as easy as tumbling off a sawhorse," replied the leader
+of the expedition, without trying to irritate the repentant captain of
+the forces.
+
+"And, like an infernal thieving Yankee, you went into the fort and stole
+the guns!" exclaimed Captain Rowly, beginning to boil with rage as he
+thought of his misfortune.
+
+"Well, it did not occur to me that I ought to have waked you and told
+you what I was about before taking the guns."
+
+"It was a nasty Yankee trick!" roared the soldier.
+
+"I suppose it was, captain; but we Yankees cannot very well help what
+was born in our blood; and I have heard that some of your honest and
+high-toned people have made bigger steals than this one. While I have
+carried off only four twelve-pounders, your folks have taken entire
+forts, including scores of guns of all calibres," replied Christy,
+amused at the view the fat gentleman took of his operations.
+
+"Our people took nothing that did not belong to them, for the forts were
+within our territory," retorted the soldier.
+
+  [Illustration: Captain Rowly protests.]
+
+"That was just my case. I have the honor to be an officer of the United
+States Navy, and as these guns happened to be within the territory of
+our government, of course it was all right that I should take them."
+
+"You stole the vessels after I ordered you to stop," muttered Captain
+Rowly.
+
+"Precisely so; but, being in a hurry just then, I hadn't time to stop,"
+laughed Christy.
+
+"Where are you going now? You knew I was on the deck of this schooner,
+and you have brought me off here where I didn't want to come. I am not
+used to the water, and I am afraid I shall get sea-sick," continued the
+fat officer.
+
+"Perhaps we may be able to provide a nurse for you if you are very
+sick."
+
+"Why don't you answer my question, and tell me where you are going?"
+demanded the soldier.
+
+"We are going out here a mile or two farther, just to take the air and
+get up an appetite for breakfast."
+
+"But I object!"
+
+"Do you indeed?"
+
+"And I protest!"
+
+"Against what?"
+
+"Against being carried off in this way. You knew I was on board of the
+schooner."
+
+"I confess that I did know you were on board, though I must add that it
+was your own fault."
+
+"I had a right on board of the vessel."
+
+"I don't deny it. You have a sword at your side; but as you neglected to
+use it, you will excuse me if I ask you to give it to me," added
+Christy, reaching out for the weapon.
+
+"Give you my sword!" exclaimed Captain Rowly.
+
+"It is a formality rather insisted upon on such occasions as the
+present."
+
+"I don't see it."
+
+"You don't? Then I must say that I think you are rather obtuse, Captain
+Rowly, and I shall be under the painful necessity of helping you to see
+it. As a prisoner of war--"
+
+"As what?" demanded the soldier.
+
+"I regard you as a prisoner of war, and I must trouble you to give me
+your sword in token of your surrender."
+
+"I was not taken in a battle."
+
+"Very true; your men fought the battle after you had left them. I have
+no more time to argue the question. Will you surrender your sword, or
+will you have the battle now? Two or three of my men will accommodate
+you with a fight on a small scale if you insist upon it."
+
+"Don't you intend to send me back to the Keys?" asked the captain, whose
+military education appeared to have been neglected, so that his ideas of
+a state of war were very vague.
+
+"I have not the remotest idea of doing anything of the sort. Your sword,
+if you please."
+
+"This sword was presented to me by the citizens of my town--"
+
+"Here, Boxie and Lanon, relieve this gentleman of his sword," added
+Christy, as he saw the young lady coming up the companion way.
+
+"Oh, I will give it up, if you really say so; but this is a queer state
+of things when my sword, presented to me by my fellow-citizens, is to be
+taken from me without any warrant of law," said Captain Rowly, as he
+handed the sword to Christy, who returned it when it had done its duty
+as a token of submission.
+
+The prisoner was marched to the forecastle of the Havana, and put under
+guard. Christy walked towards the young lady, who had evidently dressed
+herself for the occasion. She was not only young, but she was beautiful,
+and the young commander of the expedition was strongly impressed by her
+grace and loveliness. He had heard her speak in the gloom of the early
+morning, and she had a silvery voice. He could not but wonder what she
+was doing on board of a blockade runner.
+
+"Good morning, Miss ---- I have not the pleasure of being able to call
+you by name," Christy began as he touched his cap to her, and bowed his
+involuntary homage.
+
+"Miss Pembroke," she added.
+
+"I trust you are as comfortable as the circumstances will permit, Miss
+Pembroke. I hope you have ceased to be alarmed, as you were when I saw
+you before."
+
+"I am not alarmed, but I am exceedingly anxious in regard to the future,
+Mr. ----"
+
+"Mr. Passford."
+
+"I only wish to know what is to become of us, Mr. Passford."
+
+"You speak in the plural, Miss Pembroke, as though you were not alone."
+
+"I am not alone, sir; my father, who is an invalid, is in the cabin. The
+excitement of this morning has had a bad effect upon him."
+
+"I am sorry to hear it. I suppose you embarked in this steamer with the
+desire to reach some other place?"
+
+"We reside in the State of New York, and all that remain of our family
+are on board of this steamer, and all we desire is to get home. We have
+lived two years in Southern Georgia for my father's health."
+
+Christy thought they would be able to reach New York.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVIII
+
+THE BEARER OF DESPATCHES
+
+
+Christy had assured himself that the father of the beautiful young
+lady was a loyal citizen, and then he pointed out to her in what manner
+they might reach their home, which was at Newburgh on the Hudson. Mr.
+Pembroke was not a wealthy man, though he had the means of supporting
+what was left of his family comfortably. But Christy had to ask to be
+excused, as the Bronx was but a short distance from the Havana.
+
+He directed Mr. Amblen to stop her, so as to permit the gunboat to
+come alongside of her. As the Bronx came within hailing distance of
+the steamer towing the schooners, a hearty cheer burst from the crew on
+the forecastle of the former, for the prizes alongside of the Havana
+indicated the success of the expedition. The sea was smooth, and the
+naval steamer came alongside of the port schooner, and Christy, who had
+put himself in position to do so as soon as he understood her intention,
+sprang lightly on board of her.
+
+Captain Blowitt was on the quarter deck, and the commander of the
+expedition hastened into his presence. Of course Christy could not help
+realizing that he had been successful, however the circumstances had
+aided him, and he felt sure of his welcome.
+
+The commander of the Bronx was a man that weighed two hundred pounds,
+and his fat cheeks were immediately distended with laughter as soon as
+he saw his executive officer hastening towards him. He almost doubled
+himself up in his mirth as he looked into the young man's sober face,
+for Christy was struggling to appear as dignified as the importance of
+the occasion seemed to require of him. But the commander restrained
+himself as much as he could, and extended his hand to the first
+lieutenant, which the young man accepted, and received a pressure that
+was almost enough to crush his feebler paw. In spite of himself, he
+could not help laughing in sympathy with his superior.
+
+"I am sorry you did not bring it all off with you, Mr. Passford," said
+Captain Blowitt, as soon as he was able to speak, for his risibles
+seemed to have obtained complete control of him.
+
+"I have brought it all off with me, captain," replied Christy, though he
+had not yet got at the point of the joke, and spoke at a venture.
+
+"What, the whole State of Florida!" exclaimed the commander.
+
+"No, sir; I did not bring it all off with me, for I did not think it
+would be quite safe to do this, for it might set the Gulf Stream to
+running in a new course, and derange navigation by making all our charts
+useless," replied Christy, smoothing down the muscles of his face so
+that he looked as sober as before.
+
+"I thought from the appearance that you had brought it all off," added
+Captain Blowitt. "Did I instruct you to bring it off?"
+
+"No, sir; you were considerate enough to say that you did not expect me
+to capture the whole State, and therefore I have not done it."
+
+"But we heard heavy guns this morning," continued the commander, putting
+on his sober face, for he could be as serious as a judge, though his
+adipose structure compelled him to be a great joker at suitable times.
+"You had no boat guns."
+
+"No, sir; but we picked up four twelve-pounder field pieces, which you
+see, two of them on carriages, on the forecastle of that steamer. We
+found the garrison asleep, and we carried off the four guns with which
+the battery was mounted. We put them on the Seahorse Key, and went into
+the bay to see what was there, sir. We found two schooners, and on the
+way we took the steamer. When we were hauling out the two schooners, the
+garrison woke up, and attempted to drive us off with musketry. We beat
+them off and sunk two boats with the field pieces. This is my report in
+brief."
+
+"And a very good report it is, Mr. Passford. I did not expect you to do
+anything more than bring off full information in regard to the situation
+at the port," added Captain Blowitt.
+
+"But you ordered me to do anything I could to prepare the way for a
+visit from the Bronx," suggested Christy.
+
+"And you have prepared the way by bringing off everything at the port,
+so that there is nothing for the Bronx to do there," said the commander
+with a smile.
+
+"When I found that the garrison were all asleep, I thought it was
+my duty not to lose the opportunity that was thus presented to me.
+Everything was in our favor, and I was led to do one thing after another
+till there was nothing more to do. I found that Captain Lonley, the
+worthy gentleman who had made prisoners of Mr. Flint and myself on Santa
+Rosa Island, was in command of the steamer. He was not glad to see me;
+and from him I learned that the Havana, which is her name, belonged to
+my uncle Homer; and so did the schooners."
+
+"Then your uncle has a heavy charge against you, for you have now taken
+four of his vessels."
+
+"Possibly the Confederate government is behind him in this operation.
+I don't know; but I am sure that the loss of every dollar he has in the
+world would not change his views in regard to the justice of his cause.
+But, Captain Blowitt, there are on board of the Havana a gentleman and
+his daughter, who reside in Newburgh. He is an invalid and a loyal
+citizen," continued Christy, as he happened to see Miss Pembroke on the
+quarter deck of the steamer.
+
+"They wish to go home, I suppose, and there will soon be an opportunity
+for them to do so," replied the captain, as he went with his lieutenant
+to take a look at the prizes.
+
+He gave particular attention to the Havana, which it was said had been
+built to run between Cedar Keys and the port for which she had been
+named, in connection with the railroad. She appeared to be a good vessel
+of about four hundred tons, which was as large as the navigation of the
+channel to the port would permit. She was not fit for war purposes in
+her present condition, and Captain Blowitt decided to send her to New
+York. Most of the hands on board of the three prizes were negroes, who
+were too happy to go to the North.
+
+"Sail, ho!" shouted the lookout on board of the Bronx, while the
+commander was still discussing his plans with Christy.
+
+"Where away?" demanded the captain.
+
+"Coming down from the northwest," reported a quartermaster.
+
+Captain Blowitt hastened on board of the Bronx, for it did not yet
+appear whether the vessel was a friend or an enemy. She was a steamer,
+and she left a thin streak of black smoke in the sky, which indicated
+that her coal came from British territory.
+
+The Havana and the schooners were left in charge of Mr. Amblen, after
+the prisoners had been properly disposed of in safe places. Mr. Spinnet,
+the second assistant engineer, was sent on board of her, for the
+commander had not full confidence in Dolly, though he permitted him to
+remain as assistant. The boats used by the expedition were hoisted up to
+the davits, and the first and second lieutenants were ordered to return
+to the Bronx, and only six seamen were left on board to guard the
+prisoners, of whom Lonley was the only dangerous one, at all likely to
+make trouble.
+
+The Bronx steamed off at her best speed in the direction of the
+approaching steamer, which appeared to be fast, and to be of that
+peculiarly rakish class of vessels of which there were so many engaged
+in the business of blockade running. She was examined by the officers
+with their glasses; but they were unable to make her out. Her ensign was
+set on a stern pole; but they could not see whether it was the American
+or the Confederate flag.
+
+"What do you make of her, Mr. Passford?" asked the captain, as they
+watched her advance over the smooth sea.
+
+"She is or has been a blockade runner, and that is all I can make out of
+her," replied Christy.
+
+"She may have run the blockade, fitted in Mobile or some other port as a
+cruiser, and come out to do what mischief she can. We may have to fight
+for our prizes, but the splinters will fly before she gets them away
+from us," said Captain Blowitt, who watched the steamer with an anxious
+look on his face, resolute as he was in the discharge of his duty. "She
+is considerably larger than the Bronx."
+
+"As I make her out, she looks something like the Ocklockonee and the
+Escambia, which we sent to New York, though they had but one smokestack
+each while this one has two. They were about five hundred tons; and I
+should think this vessel was of very nearly the same size," added
+Christy.
+
+"Flies the American flag, sir," reported a quartermaster who had been
+sent into the main rigging to observe her.
+
+"That may be a trick," said the captain, "though I hardly think it is,
+for she is larger than the Bronx, and need not resort to tricks."
+
+A little later, she began to hoist her signals on the foremast where
+they could be plainly seen. Mr. Flint made them out to the effect that
+the steamer had orders for the Bronx. This settled the question, and
+there was no more anxiety in regard to her, and there was to be no sea
+fight for the possession of the prizes.
+
+In less than half an hour the two steamers were within hailing distance
+of each other, and the stranger sent off a boat with an officer as soon
+as both vessels had stopped their screws and lost their headway. As
+Christy watched the approaching boat, he recognized the chief engineer
+of the Bellevite in the stern sheets. It was Paul Vapoor, his old
+friend and crony, who waved his cap as soon as he discovered the
+first lieutenant. The boat came to the side, and Paul mounted the
+accommodation ladder. He was a demonstrative young man, and he embraced
+Christy as though he had been a Frenchman, as soon as he reached the
+deck. He touched his cap to Captain Blowitt, and then delivered several
+huge envelopes to him, and also a despatch bag.
+
+"Bearer of despatches, sir," said the chief engineer of the Bellevite.
+
+"I see you are, Mr. Vapoor. If you will make yourself at home on board
+of the Bronx, I will read these papers in my cabin," said the captain,
+as he went below.
+
+"I think Mr. Passford and I shall not waste any time while you are
+engaged, captain," replied Mr. Vapoor.
+
+Certain personal and social matters had to be spoken of, and Paul had
+to ask about Florry Passford first, and Christy's father and mother
+afterwards, though there was no news to tell.
+
+"What are those vessels off there, Christy?" asked Paul, pointing to the
+Havana and the schooners.
+
+"They are our prizes," replied the first lieutenant.
+
+"Did you have to fight for them?"
+
+"A little, not much. What steamer is that in which you came, Paul?"
+
+"Our prize," replied Paul, with a smile as though he knew more than he
+was permitted to tell. "We had an awful fight to get her; but we got her
+all the same. Poor Mr. Dashington was badly wounded, and he may not get
+over it."
+
+"I am sorry to hear that. Where was the fight?" asked Christy.
+
+"About a hundred miles off the entrance to Mobile Bay. We were sent to
+look out for her on account of our speed. She came out, and seemed to
+think she was going to have her own way. We overhauled her, and captured
+her by boarding."
+
+"Captain Blowitt wishes to see Lieutenant Passford and Mr. Vapoor in his
+cabin," said Dave, coming up to them at this moment; and both of them
+hastened to obey the summons.
+
+"Take seats, gentlemen," said the commander, as he pointed to chairs
+at the table at which he was seated. "I am ordered back to the Bellevite
+as first lieutenant, for poor Dashington has been seriously wounded.
+Mr. Passford is ordered to New York in the Vixen, which brings these
+despatches, for she must be condemned. Mr. Flint is ordered to the
+temporary command of the Bronx, though I am unable to understand why it
+is made temporary. You are to convoy several vessels at Key West in the
+Vixen, which is fully armed, and has a sufficient crew."
+
+Christy was never more astonished in all his life.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIX
+
+THE NEW COMMANDER OF THE VIXEN
+
+
+"Have I done anything to offend the flag-officer, or has he no
+confidence in me?" asked Christy, who heard in utter surprise that he
+was ordered to New York in command of the Vixen.
+
+"Certainly not, Mr. Passford," replied Captain Blowitt, with a
+deprecatory smile which was almost enough to satisfy the young officer.
+"What could have put such an idea as that into your head?"
+
+"It looked to me just as though I was sent away simply as a prize-master
+because my services were not needed down here where there is fighting,
+and is likely to be a great deal more of it," added Christy, not yet
+quite satisfied. "Perhaps I am banished for the crime of audacity."
+
+"That is a little too bad, Christy," said the commander, shaking his
+head. "I promised not to use that word again, and you ought not to twit
+me for it, for it was only a pleasantry on my part."
+
+"It was the farthest thing in the world from my mind to twit you for the
+word; I was only afraid that they considered me an imprudent officer on
+board of the flagship. I beg your pardon, Captain Blowitt, and I will
+never again remind you of the conversation we had on the subject of
+audacity," answered Christy, rising from his chair and taking the
+commander by the hand.
+
+"It is all right, Christy, my dear fellow," replied the captain, coming
+down from the dignified manner of the navy. "I think we understand each
+other perfectly, and I don't wish to part with the shadow of a shadow
+between us. We have sailed together too long to be anything but the best
+of friends; and the fate of poor Dashington reminds me that we may never
+meet again in this world."
+
+"Whatever you say and whatever you do, Captain Blowitt, we can never
+be anything but the best of friends, and, so far as you are concerned,
+I never had an instant of doubt or suspicion."
+
+"Now, Christy," interposed Paul Vapoor, "you entirely mistake the motive
+which has led to your appointment to the Vixen, for I happen to know
+something about it. You are not sent simply as a prize-master to New
+York, but you are put in temporary command of the Vixen because an able,
+vigilant, courageous officer was required."
+
+"Then I wonder all the more that I was selected," added Christy.
+
+"You wonder!" exclaimed Paul, looking intently into the brown face of
+the young officer, apparently to discover if there was not some
+affectation in this manifestation of modesty.
+
+There was nothing like affectation in the composition of Christy
+Passford, and whatever he had done to distinguish himself, he had done
+strictly in the line of his duty, and from the purest of patriotic
+motives. It was the most difficult thing in the world to make him
+believe that he had done "a big thing," though all others on board
+of his ship believed it with all their might. Paul Vapoor knew what
+everybody thought of his friend, and he was surprised that he should be
+so innocent and ignorant of the great reputation he had won.
+
+"I do wonder," replied Christy, earnestly and honestly. "I believe I
+am about the youngest officer in the fleet, and if this service requires
+an able officer, it seems very strange to me that I should have been
+selected."
+
+"Captain Breaker was consulted in regard to you, though he was not asked
+to name a commander, for the flag-officer had thought of you himself,
+and no doubt he had just been reading your report of your voyage to the
+Gulf in the Bronx," said Paul, laughing. "I don't see how he could do
+otherwise than select you, Christy."
+
+"You are chaffing me, Paul, as you do sometimes," said Christy with a
+smile.
+
+"Then the expression of my honest opinion, which is also the opinion
+of every other officer in the ship, is chaffing you," retorted the
+engineer.
+
+"I am satisfied; and I am sorry I said a word," added the subject of all
+these remarks.
+
+"It is a very important and responsible situation to which you are
+ordered, Mr. Passford," said Captain Blowitt, putting on his dignity
+again. "Not a few steamers fitted up in part for service as Confederate
+men-of-war, in spite of neutrality treaties, are expected on the coast.
+You have diminished the number by two, and I hope you will be able to
+make a still further reduction of that fleet. We have three vessels to
+send on for condemnation, and your orders will inform you that there
+are several others, including another steamer, at Key West; and a
+Confederate armed steamer could easily recapture the whole of them. You
+will have to protect a fleet of at least seven vessels; and this command
+ought to satisfy your ambition. You will also have charge of a despatch
+bag, to be forwarded to Washington at once; and this must not fall into
+the hands of the enemy. Sink or burn it if you are captured."
+
+"I don't intend to be captured," added Christy with a smile.
+
+"I remember that you were taken by the enemy on one occasion, and
+misfortunes may come to the best of officers. You must get ready to sail
+at once; but you must write your report of your expedition before you
+leave," added Captain Blowitt, as he rose from his chair, and the trio
+left the cabin.
+
+Christy gaped several times during the latter part of the interview, for
+he had not slept a wink during the preceding night. He went to the ward
+room and began to write his report, while the Bronx and the Vixen
+proceeded towards the three vessels which had been captured. It was well
+that they did so, for as they approached the Havana and her consorts
+they discovered quite a fleet of boats coming out from behind the
+Seahorse Key, evidently intending to recapture the prizes in the absence
+of the gunboat. They retired at once as she approached.
+
+Christy was a rapid writer, and his report was soon finished, for the
+subject was still very fresh in his mind, and he never attempted to
+do any "fine writing." He had packed his valises, and he took an
+affectionate farewell of the captain, Flint, and Sampson, as well as the
+ship's company in a more general way, though he said he expected to be
+back again in a few weeks. The Vixen's boat was waiting for him, and he
+embarked in it with Paul Vapoor. In a few minutes he ascended to the
+deck of the steamer, and the side was manned at his appearance. He was
+presented to the officers of the ship by the engineer, and all three of
+them were older men than Christy, though he was their senior in rank,
+for his commission had been dated back to his enlistment in the navy.
+
+Every one of the officers was a stranger to Christy, though there were a
+few men who had served in the Bellevite, but not in her original crew.
+With the customary proceedings he took command of the Vixen, and he
+found from sundry remarks made to him or dropped in his hearing that his
+reputation was already established on board. He directed the executive
+officer to follow the Bronx. In a short time the screw was stopped in
+the vicinity of the prizes. The Bronx reclaimed the men left on board of
+the Havana, and Captain Lonley was sent on board of the Vixen.
+
+Christy had been down into his cabin, and taken a hasty glance at the
+ward room. In addition to his own apartments like those on board of the
+Bronx, though they were larger, he found a state room opening from the
+foot of the companion way, and another from the passage way leading to
+his principal cabin. These two rooms he appropriated to the use of Mr.
+Pembroke and his daughter, though they were very well provided for on
+board of the Havana. They were invited on board, and gratefully accepted
+the accommodations tendered to them.
+
+Mr. Amblen was to retain the place assigned to him as prize-master, and
+two competent men were found to take charge of the schooners. All the
+arrangements were completed in a couple of hours, and the prizes of the
+Bronx were started at once. The negroes were employed in transferring
+the deckload of the Havana to the holds of the schooners, which were not
+quite full.
+
+The engineer of the Bellevite was to return to her in the Bronx, and he
+shook hands at parting with Christy, giving him a letter to Miss Florry
+Passford; and even her brother could not help seeing that he was greatly
+interested in her. Three rousing cheers went up from the Bronx as the
+screw of the Vixen began to turn, and she started on her voyage.
+
+The new commander, though he was very sleepy, gave his first moments
+to an examination of the vessel. The carpenter and his gang were still
+engaged in repairing the damage done to her in the engagement with the
+Bellevite. She was about the size of the two steamers captured by the
+Bronx, and coming out of the small steamer, she seemed quite large.
+She carried a midship gun of heavy calibre, and four broadside pieces.
+She had a crew of sixty men, besides those employed in the engineer's
+department, selected from the fleet, for the mission of the steamer was
+regarded as a very important one.
+
+"Your machine looks well, Mr. Caulbolt," said Christy, as he went to the
+engine room in making his round with the executive officer.
+
+"I fancy it is as good as can be built on the other side of the water,"
+replied the chief engineer.
+
+"Do you know anything in regard to the speed of the Vixen, for that may
+be a very important matter with us?" asked the commander.
+
+"I do not know very much yet, sir, but I think she is a fast steamer.
+Mr. Vapoor told me that the Bellevite made twenty-two knots in chasing
+her, and that no other vessel in the navy could have overhauled her.
+He gave me the figures," added Mr. Caulbolt, taking a paper from his
+pocket. "I think she is good for eighteen knots when driven hard."
+
+"I dare say that will do," replied Christy, finishing his examination
+and retiring to his cabin.
+
+He found Mr. Pembroke and his daughter there. The young lady presented
+him to her father, who appeared to be about fifty years of age. He was
+very gentlemanly in his manners, and thanked the captain heartily for
+the courtesy and kindness with which he had been treated. Later in the
+voyage he learned that Mr. Pembroke's wife and son had been killed some
+years before in a railroad accident, and that the money recovered from
+the corporation was about his only fortune. Miss Bertha, as her father
+called her, had been educated to become a teacher, but when his health
+failed, she had devoted herself wholly to him. They had gone to Georgia
+just before the war, and had lived in the pine woods nearly two years.
+
+"My health is very much improved, and the genial climate just suited my
+case; but in the present situation, I had rather die at home than live
+in the South," said the invalid in conclusion.
+
+"Father is ever so much better than when we came to Georgia," added
+Bertha.
+
+Christy looked at her, and he had never seen a young lady before who
+made such a decided impression upon him. Of course the reason for this
+was that she was so dutiful and devoted to her sick father, for not
+every young and beautiful maiden would have been so entirely unselfish
+as she was. The commander could not help looking at her till he made her
+blush by the intensity of his gaze, and after all, it is possible that
+Christy was as human as other young men of his age. He had never been so
+affected before, and he hardly knew what to make of it; but he concluded
+that it was not because she was so pretty, but because she was so good,
+and so devoted to her father.
+
+In due time the Vixen and her convoy reached Key West. He found only two
+schooners and a steamer, all loaded with cotton, awaiting his coming,
+for two others had been sent with another steamer. Christy went on board
+of them, and as the sea was smooth, he arranged them as he had the
+others, though tow lines were ready in case of need, and the fleet
+sailed for the North.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXX
+
+THE ACTION WITH A PRIVATEER STEAMER
+
+
+Christy had made up his lost sleep. On the first day out he had taken
+Captain Lonley's word that he would not interfere with anything on
+board, and had then given him a berth in the ward room, where he messed
+with the officers. Captain Rowly had also been taken on board, and as he
+was a captain in the Confederate army, innocent as he was, he demanded
+similar accommodations. His request was granted, but Christy decided to
+leave him at Key West, for the ward room was full.
+
+The fleet continued on its voyage after the call at the Florida port,
+and was soon in the Gulf Stream. It was an exceedingly quiet time in the
+little fleet of vessels, though the drill on board of the Vixen was
+closely followed up. On the second day they had a mild gale, and the
+schooners were cast off, and towed astern, one behind the other.
+
+Then the weather was fine again, though the sea was still too rough for
+the Havana and the Aleppo to tow the prizes alongside. Christy observed
+the drill a great deal of the time, and Bertha Pembroke was often his
+companion. He told her all about vessels in the navy, explained actions
+at sea, but hoped she would not be permitted to see one.
+
+Then he related to her the experience of the Bellevite as a yacht and
+_as_ a naval vessel, and no one ever had a more attentive listener.
+He could not conceal it from himself that he was deeply interested in
+the young lady, and observers would have said that she was not less
+interested in him. On the fifth day out from Key West, while they were
+thus agreeably occupied, there was a hail from the fore rigging.
+
+"Sail, ho!" shouted the lookout on the fore crosstrees, where the
+prudence of the commander required a hand to be stationed at all times,
+day and night.
+
+"Where away?" called Scopfield, the third lieutenant, who was the
+officer of the deck.
+
+"Broad on the starboard bow," replied the lookout.
+
+"Can you make it out?"
+
+"A steamer, sir; black smoke behind her," responded the lookout.
+
+Mr. Fillbrook had joined the third lieutenant by this time, and the
+former reported to the captain. Christy had heard all that had passed,
+and he immediately began to feel a heavy anxiety in regard to the sail.
+
+"What do you think of her, Mr. Fillbrook?" he asked, after the executive
+officer had reported to him.
+
+"There are so many steamers coming over from British ports about this
+time, bound to Confederate ports, that it is not very difficult to guess
+what she is," replied the first lieutenant. "She is either a blockade
+runner, or a steamer fitted out to prey upon the commerce of the United
+States."
+
+"That seems to be plain enough; and from the position in which we find
+her, she has come out of the Bermudas, or is bound there," added the
+commander. "Bring my glass from my state room," he continued to his
+cabin steward, who was sunning himself on the deck.
+
+When it was brought, the captain and the executive officer went forward
+and mounted the top-gallant forecastle. Mr. Fillbrook procured a glass
+from the pilot house, and both of them looked long and earnestly at the
+speck in the distance. The steamer was hull down, and they soon agreed
+that she was bound to the eastward.
+
+"We have no business with her at present," said Christy, as he shut up
+his glass.
+
+"But I have no doubt she has already run the blockade, and came out of
+Wilmington or Savannah. If that is the case, she must be loaded with
+cotton, which contains a fortune at the present time within a small
+compass," replied Mr. Fillbrook, who had not been as fortunate as some
+others in the matter of prizes.
+
+"Very likely," replied Christy, rather coldly, his companion thought.
+"I do not think I should be justified in giving chase to her, which
+could only be done by abandoning the convoy."
+
+"Could we not pick up the convoy after we had captured the steamer?"
+asked the first lieutenant.
+
+"Yes, if some Confederate cruiser does not pick it up in our absence,"
+replied Christy, with a significant smile.
+
+Mr. Fillbrook was evidently very much disappointed, not to say
+disgusted, with the decision of Captain Passford; but he was too good an
+officer to make a complaint, or utter a comment. The ship's company had
+become somewhat excited when it was announced that a sail, with black
+smoke painting a long streak on the blue sky, was made out. If it was a
+blockade runner, with a cargo of cotton, it meant a small fortune to
+each officer, seaman, and others on board.
+
+The new commander had a reputation as a daring leader, and the hopes of
+the officers and men ran high. They waited eagerly to have the steamer
+headed to the eastward; but no such order was given, and the chins of
+all hands began to drop down.
+
+Christy had no interest in the money value of a prize, and yet he could
+understand the feeling of his ship's company. He was an heir of a
+millionaire, and he had no occasion to trouble his head about the
+profits of a capture. He looked at the question from a purely patriotic
+point of view, and every prize secured was so much taken from the
+resources of the enemy.
+
+He saw the disappointment painted on the face of the first lieutenant,
+and he went to his cabin to consider his duty again, and review the
+reasoning that had influenced him; but he came to the conclusion he had
+reached in the beginning. He was in charge of six vessels loaded with
+cotton, and the ship's company of the Bronx and other vessels had an
+interest in their cargoes. The Vixen was less than a hundred and fifty
+miles from the coast, and a tug boat, with a bow gun and a crew of
+twenty-five, could come out and capture the whole fleet without the
+least difficulty. The risk was too great, and the commander was as firm
+as a rock.
+
+The next morning, before it was daylight, Mr. Bangs the second
+lieutenant, who had the mid watch, sent a messenger to the commander
+to inform him that a sail was made out, which appeared to be a steamer,
+on the starboard bow, very broad, nearly on the beam. Christy dressed
+himself in a great hurry, and hastened on deck. It was beginning to be a
+little light, and the steamer appeared to be about five miles to the
+eastward of the Vixen, and was headed towards her.
+
+Christy at once concluded that the vessel meant mischief, and he
+promptly gave the order to beat to quarters. He thought it must be the
+steamer seen the day before, as she could hardly be a blockade runner
+for the reason that she was headed towards the fleet. If she desired to
+break through the blockading squadron, she would be likely to keep as
+far as possible from anything that might be an armed vessel.
+
+Christy went to his state room to write an order for Mr. Amblen in the
+Havana, which was hardly a cable's length from the Vixen on the port
+side, the Aleppo being ahead of her. He had already given his general
+orders to the prize masters, but this was a special one. In the cabin he
+found Bertha, who had been awakened by the tramping of the men on deck.
+
+"Pray what is the matter, Captain Passford?" she asked, evidently
+somewhat alarmed.
+
+"Nothing is the matter yet, Miss Pembroke, but something may be the
+matter within an hour or two, for there is a sail making for us,"
+replied Christy with the smile he always wore when she spoke to him, or
+he to her. "In other words there may be an action, for I must defend my
+convoy."
+
+"Is there any danger?" she inquired.
+
+"Of course there is, for a shot may come through the side of the ship
+anywhere and at any time. But I have thought of this matter, and I
+propose to put you and your father on board of the Havana until after
+the danger is passed. Be kind enough to get ready as soon as possible."
+
+Christy wrote his order, and hastened on deck with it. Hailing the
+Havana, he ordered the prize-master to send a boat on board. When it
+came the two passengers were embarked in it and the order sent. The
+commander did not wait a moment to watch the receding form of the
+maiden, but immediately directed his attention to the steamer
+approaching the Vixen.
+
+"Run for that steamer, Mr. Fillbrook," said he, after his first glance.
+
+"Make the course east by north, Mr. Bangs," added the first lieutenant.
+
+"East by north," repeated the quartermaster at the wheel when the order
+reached him.
+
+"I have just been aloft, and she flies the Confederate flag, Captain
+Passford," said Mr. Fillbrook. "She is a large steamer, and she is by no
+means as jaunty as the Vixen."
+
+Both steamers were going at full speed, and it required but a short time
+to bring them near enough together for something to happen. She was well
+down in the water, and appeared as though she might be loaded with
+something besides the appliances of a man-of-war. She looked as though
+she might be twice as large as the Vixen, and it was soon evident that
+her speed was nothing to boast of. She certainly was not one of the
+high-flyer yachts which had been bought up for service in the
+Confederate navy.
+
+When the two vessels were not more than a mile apart, a column of smoke
+rose from her waist, as she swung around so that her great gun could be
+brought to bear, and a shot dropped into the water at least an eighth of
+a mile short of the Vixen.
+
+"Thank you, sir!" exclaimed Christy. "Half speed, if you please, Mr.
+Fillbrook."
+
+The commander went to the long English gun in the waist, to which he had
+already given a great deal of study, and sighted along the heavy piece.
+He had not forgotten when he pointed the gun on board of the Bellevite,
+the shot from which had disabled the Vampire, and he had some confidence
+in his ability to put a shot where he wished it to go, for he had
+brought all his mathematics and all his physics to bear on the matter,
+though the best gunners must sometimes fail. When he was ready he gave
+the word to fire. The ship was shaken by the heavy report, and every one
+waited with peculiar interest for the smoke to clear away, because the
+captain had pointed the gun.
+
+Christy had ordered the screw to be stopped, and had waited till the
+steamer lost her headway. She rolled but slightly, and he had allowed
+for everything. Glasses were in demand, and a moment later there was a
+shout went up from the men at the gun, followed by another from the rest
+of the crew. The shot had upset the great gun on the deck of the enemy.
+She was swinging round, and beginning to fire her broadside guns, but
+the shots came nowhere near the Vixen. Christy did not believe there was
+any naval officer on board of that steamer.
+
+"Keep up the fire with the long gun, Mr. Fillbrook," said the commander,
+in a low tone, and with no excitement apparent in his manner, for he
+always studied and labored to appear cool and self-possessed, whether he
+was so or not, and there was nothing in the present situation to try him
+in the least.
+
+For a full hour the long gun of the Vixen continued to pelt the enemy
+with solid shot, about every one of them hulling her or carrying away
+some of her spars. Her mainmast had gone by the board, and the
+resistance she was making was becoming very feeble.
+
+"She is full of men, Captain Passford," said Mr. Fillbrook, when the
+steamer seemed to be almost a wreck.
+
+"I observed that she had a large crew some time ago, and it is better to
+knock her to pieces than to board her," replied Christy. "Keep her as
+far off as she is now."
+
+The enemy tried to get nearer to the Vixen, but failed to do so.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXXI
+
+A SHORT VISIT TO BONNYDALE
+
+
+The firing was continued from the long gun, though only at intervals
+that would permit any signals to be seen on board of the enemy. When it
+looked as though there would soon be nothing left of her, she hauled
+down the Confederate flag at her fore, where she had hoisted it when the
+mainmast went over. The order to go ahead was given, and in a short time
+the Vixen was alongside of her.
+
+"Do you surrender?" asked Christy, mounting the rail of his ship.
+
+"We do; there is not much left of the steamer, and I am not justified
+in throwing away the lives of my men," replied a very spruce-looking
+officer.
+
+"You will board her, Mr. Fillbrook, with the first division, and take
+possession of her," said Christy, when he had received the captain's
+answer. "Ascertain her condition as soon as possible."
+
+The steamer proved to be the Pedee, formerly the Carnfield, Captain
+Linden. She had run the blockade with a valuable cargo, which more than
+paid the cost of the vessel, and was then loaded with cotton, and armed
+for her own protection, as well as to capture anything that fell in her
+way. She had a crew of eighty men to do her fighting, and the commander
+confidently expected to pick up a better steamer than the Pedee, to
+which the greater portion of the ship's company were to be transferred.
+
+"I saw your steamer yesterday afternoon," said the captain; "but she had
+several other vessels near her, and I thought she might have a whole
+blockading squadron with her. I kept off, and put about in the night.
+When I saw the Vixen early this morning, I thought she would just answer
+my purpose, and I wanted her. A nearer view of her assures me she is
+exactly the steamer I needed."
+
+"For your sake, captain, I am sorry I cannot accommodate you," replied
+Christy, laughing at the cheerful expressions of Captain Linden.
+"I presume you are an officer of the Confederate Navy?"
+
+"No, sir; I am not; but I am a Confederate to the backbone. It was my
+intention to set up a navy on my own hook. The Pedee was the first
+vessel, and I intended that the Vixen should be the second, and become
+my flag-ship."
+
+"Then you came out as a privateer?"
+
+"That's just the color of it. If you hadn't unhorsed my big gun I should
+have been as polite to you about this time as you are to me. The fact of
+it is, Captain Passford, you did not manage your ship just right."
+
+"Indeed? In what respect?" asked Christy.
+
+"Well, you see, you knocked my big gun all to pieces, and then, instead
+of running down and boarding the Pedee, you stood off out of range of my
+side guns, and knocked the starch all out of us. If you had only boarded
+us, I could have whipped you out of your boots, for I have got the
+greatest crowd of fighting dogs that was ever hitched up together."
+
+"Of course I was not aware of your views in regard to the manner in
+which I ought to have managed the affair on my own part, and therefore I
+could not handle my ship just as you desired," replied Christy. "As it
+is, I am afraid you will have to start your navy over again."
+
+Mr. Fillbrook had by this time driven the "fighting dogs" forward, and
+taken full possession of the prize. On examination, Christy found that,
+though the Pedee had been terribly battered in her upper works, she was
+not materially injured below the water line. He sent for Mr. Caulbolt,
+and required him to inspect the engine, which was not injured in any
+important part.
+
+Captain Linden had three times attempted to get nearer to the Vixen with
+the intention of boarding her, but Christy preferred to fight the battle
+at long range under the circumstances, and he had preserved his distance
+from the enemy. He had discovered that she had a large crew, and he was
+vastly more prudent than most of his critics gave him the credit of
+being. He was surprised, after examining the Pedee, that the captain had
+hauled down his flag, for the steamer could have stood a good deal more
+pounding without being used up. He concluded that Captain Linden was
+full of fight, but, for the want of a naval education, he had not fully
+comprehended his situation.
+
+It was deemed advisable to transfer one half of the Pedee's crew of
+"fighting dogs" to the Vixen, as she was not encumbered with any
+prisoners to speak of, and this was effected without any delay. Mr.
+Scopfield, the third lieutenant, was appointed prize-master, and
+instructed to keep as near as practicable to the Vixen on the voyage.
+Captain Linden and his principal officers were allowed to remain on
+board. An assistant engineer and two first-class firemen, on their way
+to New York for examination and promotion, were sent on board of the
+prize. The two steamers were soon under way, and then it was ascertained
+that the Pedee's ordinary rate of sailing did not exceed ten knots, and
+it was not probable that she would be bought into the navy.
+
+The fleet of prize vessels had continued on its course to the north, and
+was soon overhauled by the Vixen and her capture. The progress of the
+fleet was very slow, for the Aleppo, which was said to have a speed of
+ten knots, did very badly towing two steamers. Mr. Pembroke and Bertha
+were sent on board of the Vixen, and the young lady blushed beautifully
+when Christy welcomed her return.
+
+Possibly she had feared he might be killed in the action, and had
+worried about him till his return in safety, with the prize alongside
+his ship. Her father was very cordial in his congratulations to the
+young commander, and even said that he and his daughter had prayed that
+he might not be killed or injured in the conflict; and Bertha blushed
+all the more when he said it.
+
+Mr. Scopfield was instructed to take one of the schooners of the Aleppo
+in tow. Five men had been killed on board of the Pedee, and her surgeon
+had more than he could do with at least twenty wounded men. Dr. Appleton
+was sent on board of her to assist him. The fleet thus reorganized got
+under way, and it was found that the log gave better results after the
+change. Fortunately no enemy interfered with its progress, for Christy
+felt that his hands were already full.
+
+In the early days of the month of May, he sailed into New York harbor
+with his fleet of eight vessels, though only three of them were the
+prizes of the Bronx. He had been absent hardly a month; though he had
+something to show for the time he had been employed. The vessels were
+delivered over to the authorities, and the young commander obtained
+leave of absence to visit his mother and sister at Bonnydale, for his
+father came on board of the Vixen as soon as he heard the news of her
+arrival in command of his son.
+
+Captain Passford, Senior, was conducted to the cabin of Captain
+Passford, Junior, and the meeting of father and son was very
+affectionate and very demonstrative. Mr. Pembroke and his daughter
+were presented to the commander's father, and after they had talked over
+the incidents of the return voyage, the former owner of the Bellevite
+suspected that relations were altogether pleasant between Christy and
+Bertha.
+
+He was greatly pleased with the young lady, and whatever else he
+thought, he could not very well help indorsing his son's good taste. In
+the course of the subsequent conversation it appeared that Mr. Pembroke
+owned a small house at Newburgh, but that the occupant of it had a
+three-years' lease of the premises. Captain Passford immediately
+extended an invitation to the invalid and his daughter to visit
+Bonnydale, which became so pressing that it was finally accepted. In the
+afternoon the entire party took the train for the home of the captain.
+
+Christy's welcome was as hearty as though he had come home a commodore.
+The visitors were received with a sincere greeting, and Bertha and
+Florry were soon fast friends. Even if Christy's father had not dropped
+a hint to Mrs. Passford in regard to the fact that his son was at least
+tenderly inclined towards the lovely maiden from the South she could not
+have failed to notice his attentions to her. Later at night his father
+and mother had a long talk over the matter.
+
+"Christy, I have a couple of envelopes for you," said Captain Passford,
+as the party seated themselves in the drawing-room after supper.
+
+"Envelopes, father?" asked the young officer curiously. "Base ball or
+boat-club business?"
+
+"I should say neither; decidedly not," replied his father, taking the
+documents from his pocket, and handing them to him. "They have an
+official look, and bear the imprint of the Navy Department."
+
+"What business can the Navy Department have with me now? I have the
+honor to be the executive officer of the gunboat Bronx, with the rank of
+master, on detached duty as prize-master," added Christy, as he looked
+at the ponderous envelopes.
+
+"You can easily answer that question by reading the papers," replied his
+father.
+
+"A commission!" exclaimed Christy, as he opened the first one. "I am
+promoted to the rank of lieutenant!"
+
+"And, though you are my son, I must say that you deserve the promotion,"
+added Captain Passford. "I have read your report of the capture of the
+Ocklockonee and the Escambia, and you have won your spurs, my son. I did
+not ask for this promotion, or even suggest it to any one."
+
+"Well, I am astonished, confounded, overwhelmed!" exclaimed the young
+lieutenant, as we are now permitted to call him. "And the commission is
+dated back far enough to put me over the heads of not a few others of
+the same rank."
+
+"Perhaps it will please you quite as much when I inform you that the
+officers you recommended for appointment as masters have been promoted
+to that rank," added the captain.
+
+"I am even more pleased at their promotion than at my own," replied
+Christy, opening the other envelope, in which he was addressed as
+"Lieutenant Christopher Passford." "Ah, ha!" he exclaimed, leaping out
+of his chair in his excitement, to which he gave way on such an occasion
+as the present.
+
+"What in the world is the matter with you, Christy?" demanded his
+mother, astonished at such an unusual demonstration on the part of her
+son.
+
+"I am appointed to the command of the Bronx, in place of Lieutenant
+Blowitt, transferred to the Bellevite!" almost shouted the young
+officer. "If I could have selected a position for myself, this is the
+very one I should have chosen."
+
+"I heard you say as much as that when you were appointed to the
+temporary command of the Bronx, and I shall plead guilty of having
+inserted a hint where it would do the most good," added Captain
+Passford.
+
+"I am much obliged to you, father; for I don't object to that kind of
+influence, though I could have commanded the Bronx just as well as a
+master, which is the rank of her present temporary commander, Mr. Flint.
+I desire to win my own rank, and not get it by influence. I am ordered
+to proceed to the Gulf as soon as possible."
+
+In three days he obtained passage in a store-ship steamer; and he spent
+all this time at home, as perhaps he would not have done if Bertha
+Pembroke had not been there. Before he reported on board of the
+store-ship, he visited the Vixen, which was undergoing alterations and
+repairs, and took leave of his officers. Before dark he was on board of
+the vessel and on his voyage to the scene of his future operations,
+where we hope to find him again, doing his best for his whole country,
+and true to his motto from the beginning, "STAND BY THE UNION."
+
+
+
+
+OLIVER OPTIC'S BOOKS
+
++All-Over-the-World Library.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. First Series.
+    Illustrated. Price per volume, $1.25.
+
+  1. +A Missing Million+; or, The Adventures of Louis Belgrade.
+  2. +A Millionaire at Sixteen+; or, The cruise of the "Guardian
+        Mother."
+  3. +A Young Knight Errant+; or, Cruising in the West Indies.
+  4. +Strange Sights Abroad+; or, Adventures in European Waters.
+
+  No author has come before the public during the present generation
+  who has achieved a larger and more deserving popularity among young
+  people than "Oliver Optic." His stories have been very numerous,
+  but they have been uniformly excellent in moral tone and literary
+  quality. As indicated in the general title, it is the author's
+  intention to conduct the readers of this entertaining series "around
+  the world." As a means to this end, the hero of the story purchases
+  a steamer which he names the "Guardian Mother," and with a number of
+  guests she proceeds on her voyage.--_Christian Work, N. Y._
+
+
++All-Over-the-World Library.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. Second Series.
+    Illustrated. Price per volume, $1.25.
+
+  1. +American Boys Afloat+; or, Cruising in the Orient.
+  2. +The Young Navigators+; or, The Foreign Cruise of the "Maud."
+  3. +Up and Down the Nile+; or, Young Adventurers in Africa.
+  4. +Asiatic Breezes+; or, Students on the Wing.
+
+  The interest in these stories is continuous, and there is a great
+  variety of exciting incident woven into the solid information which
+  the book imparts so generously and without the slightest suspicion
+  of dryness. Manly boys will welcome this volume as cordially as they
+  did its predecessors.--_Boston Gazette_.
+
+
++All-Over-the-World Library.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. Third Series.
+    Illustrated. Price per volume, $1.25.
+
+  1. +Across India+; or, Live Boys in the Far East.
+  2. +Half Round the World+; or, Among the Uncivilized.
+  3. +Four Young Explorers+; or, Sight-Seeing in the Tropics.
+  4. +Pacific Shores+; or, Adventures in Eastern Seas.
+
+  Amid such new and varied surroundings it would be surprising indeed
+  if the author, with his faculty of making even the commonplace
+  attractive, did not tell an intensely interesting story of
+  adventure, as well as give much information in regard to the distant
+  countries through which our friends pass, and the strange peoples
+  with whom they are brought in contact. This book, and indeed the
+  whole series, is admirably adapted to reading aloud in the family
+  circle, each volume containing matter which will interest all the
+  members of the family.--_Boston Budget._
+
+
+LEE AND SHEPARD, BOSTON, SEND THEIR COMPLETE CATALOGUE FREE.
+
+
+OLIVER OPTIC'S BOOKS
+
++The Blue and the Gray--Afloat.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. Six volumes.
+  Illustrated. Beautiful binding in blue and gray, with emblematic dies.
+  Cloth. Any volume sold separate. Price per volume, $1.50.
+
+  1. +Taken by the Enemy.+
+  2. +Within the Enemy's Lines.+
+  3. +On the Blockade.+
+  4. +Stand by the Union.+
+  5. +Fighting for the Right.+
+  6. +A Victorious Union.+
+
++The Blue and the Gray--on Land.+
+
+  1. +Brother against Brother.+
+  2. +In the Saddle.+
+  3. +A Lieutenant at Eighteen.+
+  4. +On the Staff.+
+  5. +At the Front.+
+  6. +An Undivided Union.+
+
+  "There never has been a more interesting writer in the field of
+  juvenile literature than Mr. W. T. ADAMS, who, under his well-known
+  pseudonym, is known and admired by every boy and girl in the
+  country, and by thousands Who have long since passed the boundaries
+  of youth, yet who remember with pleasure the genial, interesting pen
+  that did so much to interest, instruct, and entertain their younger
+  years. 'The Blue and the Gray' is a title that is sufficiently
+  indicative of the nature and spirit of the latest series, while the
+  name of OLIVER OPTIC is sufficient warrant of the absorbing style of
+  narrative. This series is as bright and entertaining as any work
+  that Mr. ADAMS has yet put forth, and will be as eagerly perused as
+  any that has borne his name. It would not be fair to the prospective
+  reader to deprive him of the zest which comes from the unexpected by
+  entering into a synopsis of the story. A word, however, should be
+  said in regard to the beauty and appropriateness of the binding,
+  which makes it a most attractive volume."--_Boston Budget_.
+
+
++Woodville Stories.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. Six volumes. Illustrated.
+    Any volume sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25.
+
+  1. +Rich and Humble;+ or, The Mission of Bertha Grant.
+  2. +In School and Out;+ or, The Conquest of Richard Grant.
+  3. +Watch and Wait;+ or, The Young Fugitives.
+  4. +Work and Win;+ or, Noddy Newman on a Cruise.
+  5. +Hope and Have;+ or, Fanny Grant Among the Indians.
+  6. +Haste and Waste;+ or, The Young Pilot of Lake Champlain.
+
+  "Though we are not so young as we once were, we relished these
+  stories almost as much as the boys and girls for whom they were
+  written. They were really refreshing even to us. There is much in
+  them which is calculated to inspire a generous, healthy ambition,
+  and to make distasteful all reading tending to stimulate base
+  desires."--_Fitchburg Reveille_.
+
+
++The Starry Flag Series.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. In six volumes. Illustrated.
+    Any volume sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25.
+
+  1. +The Starry Flag;+ or, The Young Fisherman of Cape Ann.
+  2. +Breaking Away;+ or, The Fortunes of a Student.
+  3. +Seek and Find;+ or, The Adventures of a Smart Boy.
+  4. +Freaks of Fortune;+ or, Half Round the World.
+  5. +Make or Break;+ or, The Rich Man's Daughter.
+  6. +Down the River;+ or, Buck Bradford and the Tyrants.
+
+  "Mr. ADAMS, the celebrated and popular writer, familiarly known as
+  OLIVER OPTIC, seems to have inexhaustible funds for weaving together
+  the virtues of life; and, notwithstanding he has written scores of
+  books, the same freshness and novelty run through them all. Some
+  people think the sensational element predominates. Perhaps it does.
+  But a book for young people needs this, and so long as good
+  sentiments are inculcated such books ought to be read."
+
+
+LEE AND SHEPARD, BOSTON, SEND THEIR COMPLETE CATALOGUE FREE.
+
+
+OLIVER OPTIC'S BOOKS
+
++Army and Navy Stories.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. Six volumes. Illustrated.
+    Any volume sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25.
+
+  1. +The Soldier Boy+; or, Tom Somers in the Army.
+  2. +The Sailor Boy+; or, Jack Somers in the Navy.
+  3. +The Young Lieutenant+; or, Adventures of an Army Officer.
+  4. +The Yankee Middy+; or, Adventures of a Navy Officer.
+  5. +Fighting Joe+; or, The Fortunes of a Staff Officer.
+  6. +Brave Old Salt+; or, Life on the Quarter Deck.
+
+  "This series of six volumes recounts the adventures of two brothers,
+  Tom and Jack Somers, one in the army, the other in the navy, in
+  the great Civil War. The romantic narratives of the fortunes and
+  exploits of the brothers are thrilling in the extreme. Historical
+  accuracy in the recital of the great events of that period is
+  strictly followed, and the result is, not only a library of
+  entertaining volumes, but also the best history of the Civil War
+  for young people ever written."
+
+
++Boat Builders Series.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. In six volumes. Illustrated.
+    Any volume sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25.
+
+  1. +All Adrift+; or, The Goldwing Club.
+  2. +Snug Harbor+; or, The Champlain Mechanics.
+  3. +Square and Compasses+; or, Building the House.
+  4. +Stem to Stern+; or, Building the Boat.
+  5. +All Taut+; or, Rigging the Boat.
+  6. +Ready About+; or, Sailing the Boat.
+
+  "The series includes in six successive volumes the whole art of boat
+  building, boat rigging, boat managing, and practical hints to make
+  the ownership of a boat pay. A great deal of useful information
+  is given in this +Boat Builders Series+, and in each book a very
+  interesting story is interwoven with the information. Every reader
+  will be interested at once in Dory, the hero of 'All Adrift,' and
+  one of the characters retained in the subsequent volumes of the
+  series. His friends will not want to lose sight of him, and every
+  boy who makes his acquaintance in 'All Adrift' will become his
+  friend."
+
+
++Riverdale Story Books.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. Twelve volumes. Illustrated.
+    Illuminated covers. Price: cloth, per set, $3.60; per volume,
+    30 cents; paper, per set, $2.00.
+
+  1. +Little Merchant.+       7. +Proud and Lazy.+
+  2. +Young Voyagers.+        8. +Careless Kate.+
+  3. +Christmas Gift.+        9. +Robinson Crusoe, Jr.+
+  4. +Dolly and I.+          10. +The Picnic Party.+
+  5. +Uncle Ben.+            11. +The Gold Thimble.+
+  6. +Birthday Party.+       12. +The Do-Somethings.+
+
++Riverdale Story Books.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. Six volumes. Illustrated.
+    Fancy cloth and colors. Price per volume, 30 cents.
+
+  1. +Little Merchant.+       4. +Careless Kate.+
+  2. +Proud and Lazy.+        5. +Dolly and I.+
+  3. +Young Voyagers.+        6. +Robinson Crusoe, Jr.+
+
++Flora Lee Library.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. Six volumes. Illustrated.
+    Fancy cloth and colors. Price per volume, 30 cents.
+
+  1. +The Picnic Party.+      4. +Christmas Gift.+
+  2. +The Gold Thimble.+      5. +Uncle Ben.+
+  3. +The Do-Somethings.+     6. +Birthday Party.+
+
+  These are bright short stories for younger children who are unable
+  to comprehend the +Starry Flag Series+ or the +Army and Navy
+  Series+. But they all display the author's talent for pleasing
+  and interesting the little folks. They are all fresh and original,
+  preaching no sermons, but inculcating good lessons.
+
+
+LEE AND SHEPARD, BOSTON, SEND THEIR COMPLETE CATALOGUE FREE.
+
+
+OLIVER OPTIC'S BOOKS
+
++The Great Western Series.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. In six volumes.
+    Illustrated. Any volume sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25.
+
+  1. +Going West;+ or, The Perils of a Poor Boy.
+  2. +Out West;+ or, Roughing It on the Great Lakes.
+  3. +Lake Breezes;+ or, The Cruise of the Sylvania.
+  4. +Going South;+ or, Yachting on the Atlantic Coast.
+  5. +Down South;+ or, Yacht Adventures in Florida.
+  6. +Up the River;+ or, Yachting on the Mississippi.
+
+  "This is the latest series of books issued by this popular writer,
+  and deals with life on the Great Lakes, for which a careful study
+  was made by the author in a summer tour of the immense water sources
+  of America. The story, which carries the same hero through the six
+  books of the series, is always entertaining, novel scenes and varied
+  incidents giving a constantly changing yet always attractive aspect
+  to the narrative. OLIVER OPTIC has written nothing better."
+
+
++The Yacht Club Series.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. In six volumes. Illustrated.
+    Any volume sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25.
+
+  1. +Little Bobtail;+ or, The Wreck of the Penobscot.
+  2. +The Yacht Club;+ or, The Young Boat Builders.
+  3. +Money-Maker;+ or, The Victory of the Basilisk.
+  4. +The Coming Wave;+ or, The Treasure of High Rock.
+  5. +The Dorcas Club;+ or, Our Girls Afloat.
+  6. +Ocean Born;+ or, The Cruise of the Clubs.
+
+  "The series has this peculiarity, that all of its constituent
+  volumes are independent of one another, and therefore each story is
+  complete in itself. OLIVER OPTIC is, perhaps, the favorite author of
+  the boys and girls of this country, and he seems destined to enjoy
+  an endless popularity. He deserves his success, for he makes very
+  interesting stories, and inculcates none but the best sentiments,
+  and the 'Yacht Club' is no exception to this rule."--_New Haven
+  Journal and Courier_.
+
+
++Onward and Upward Series.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. In six volumes.
+    Illustrated. Any volume sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25.
+
+  1. +Field and Forest;+ or, The Fortunes of a Farmer.
+  2. +Plane and Plank;+ or, The Mishaps of a Mechanic.
+  3. +Desk and Debit;+ or, The Catastrophes of a Clerk.
+  4. +Cringle and Crosstree;+ or, The Sea Swashes of a Sailor.
+  5. +Bivouac and Battle;+ or, The Struggles of a Soldier.
+  6. +Sea and Shore;+ or, The Tramps of a Traveller.
+
+  "Paul Farringford, the hero of these tales, is, like most of this
+  author's heroes, a young man of high spirit, and of high aims and
+  correct principles, appearing in the different volumes as a farmer,
+  a captain, a bookkeeper, a soldier, a sailor, and a traveller. In
+  all of them the hero meets with very exciting adventures, told in
+  the graphic style for which the author is famous."
+
+
++The Lake Shore Series.+ By OLIVER OPTIC. In six volumes. Illustrated.
+    Any volume sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25.
+
+  1. +Through by Daylight;+ or, The Young Engineer of the Lake Shore
+        Railroad.
+  2. +Lightning Express;+ or, The Rival Academies.
+  3. +On Time;+ or, The Young Captain of the Ucayga Steamer.
+  4. +Switch Off;+ or, The War of the Students.
+  5. +Brake Up;+ or, The Young Peacemakers.
+  6. +Bear and Forbear;+ or, The Young Skipper of Lake Ucayga.
+
+  "OLIVER OPTIC is one of the most fascinating writers for youth, and
+  withal one of the best to be found in this or any past age. Troops
+  of young people hang over his vivid pages; and not one of them ever
+  learned to be mean, ignoble, cowardly, selfish, or to yield to any
+  vice from anything they ever read from his pen."--_Providence
+  Press_.
+
+
+LEE AND SHEPARD, BOSTON, SEND THEIR COMPLETE CATALOGUE FREE.
+
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+           *       *       *       *
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Errata Noted by Transcriber:
+
+Invisible punctuation has been silently supplied.
+
+... exclaimed the second lieutenant
+  _text reads "exclained"_
+... the lee side of the vessel.
+  _text reads "vesssel"_
+ash cloth and sashes
+  _so in original_
+
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of On The Blockade, by Oliver Optic
+
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