The Bravest of the Brave

he captain there were guns enough at the mouth of the cove to blow the ship's boats out of the water. As to the frigate getting in, I knew she couldn't, for there was only just enough water

nd island after island, but at last as we were

tanding near me, and he carried the news to the quarter

re those ar

e sure

captain said. 'Keep her away, master, I don't wa

tered, and she sailed alo

good glasses up at the lookout, and if I might make so bold I should say that they w

arks or go below. The captain and first lieutenant kept a sharp lookout through their glasses until we had passed the end of the island. I pointed o

ny other landing places on t

ce but this where you could get to sea-not though you had twenty boats waiting to take you off.' I expect that's why they chose it. Anyhow, there never was any watch kept up on shore, tho

want you to show me exactly where are these bat

well as I could, showing them the position of things, and told

es are there

in the batteries at the top. That's the watch, but besides there are six men

u led there,' the captain said, 'and then I sh

him about the captain's wife, and she being an English woman, and h

any of the men were press

if every one was trying to forget the past, and I think that made them more brutal and bloody minded than they would have been. Every on

rstood that if a man took up the life of a pirate, whether willingly or unwillingly, he would assuredly be executed if he was caught, we should have the sea s

is swung backward and forward when the ships go in port, has got a big chain too. It goes under an iron bar which is bent, and the two ends fastened in a rock. When they want to fix the boom the end of the chain is p

e lower batteries at the inn

s and nails and bits of iron. The batteries on the top of the cliff at the entrance are the heaviest metal. They have got twenty guns in each of

business by any means, Mr.

in a dubisome sort of way; 'but no doubt it

mand of the boats, Mr. Earnshaw, and it will never do t

y lad?' the lieutenant ask

nce is not more than forty feet wide, and the

aight at the boom, the two lightest boats to go first. The men must get on the spar and pu

ith grape and musketballs all trained upon a point only forty feet across. Would it be possible to land just o

oes straight up from

es, how do they get do

above, sir, and the rope is hau

d, and will there leave the cutter and my gig. You will be in charge of the cutter, and Mr. Escombe will take the gig. I shall then sail away again before daylight; for although from what the lad said there is no watch kept on that side of the island, it cannot be more than three miles across, and any of the men or women might stroll across or might from any high point in the island obtain a vie

, sir,' the lieutenant said; 'and,

ater and a week's rations of food were placed on board the boats; for in that climate there was no sayin

tain ordered the boats to be lowered, for he saw that if the wind didn't freshen the ship could not get to the island, much less get away again, before daylight. The oars were got out and off we started, and after four hours' steady rowing, the l

ughly. When we got to the point we turned and rowed back, keeping about two hundred yards from the cliff, so that we could see well up. They were about a hundred feet high-sometimes a

e officers talked over the possibility of any one climbing up at some place where the water trickling down from the top had eaten away the face a little; but not a goat in t

lieve it's to be done,' Lieutenant Earnshaw said to Mr. Escombe. 'Well, there's nothing to do,

there was eight fathoms of water when we dropped the grapnels.

gun in the bow and up end it, and with a small charge fire a ball with a rope fastened to it

doubt whether there's a man on board ship could climb a

sed a knotted rope

of the sailors said, and half a dozen others v

said; 'if he agrees, as you were the first t

; and although we rowed back to the end of the island fro

sharks about. However, we didn't see none, and we enjoyed the dip, and were in better humor still when we found that a light breeze was springing up. It might have been about midnight when the

with two light ropes making a rope ladder, and the ship's smith had got some empty shells on deck, and had made a shift to screw some iron eyes into them for fixing ro

as I should be wanted to guide them when they got near the village. It was a bright starlight night without haze, so that when we got close we could make o

t the rope to its full length; in the next place, we don't want to make more noise than we can help. What wind there is is fortuna

o the top of the cliff I shall put a trifle more into the gu

he knotted ropes fastened to it dropped in the top. The rope had been coiled in a tub so as to run out easily. The gunner applied t

st put in more next time, for the shell must go well up ove

ch powder again as he had used before, and then fired. This tim

r said, looking into the tub. 'The

e touching the water. In that case it will be just right, a hundred feet up the cl

o find the rope; but at last we came upon it, and sure

d when you get to the top haul on it till you get up the rope ladder, and fasten that to a sto

who was an active young chap;

here were some nasty places where the cliff jutted out, and the rope was hard against it; but presently the shaking ceased, and a minute later the li

taut

first,' Mr.

got up, till all had gone except the two told off as boat watch. Then the men of the launch and cutters follo

aw keeping the line by a pocket compass. It was r

bushes that we had better wait till day

we were off again, and an hour later reach

take prisoners all who throw down their arms. Some of them may be able to prove themselves less guilty than the rest. At any rate, th

ir guns round, but we didn't give 'em time. They fought desperately, for they knew what their doom was, and there weren't any prisoners taken there. As soon as the village was taken I went straight with Mr. Es

said as we came up. 'Is i

I could do for you, for you could not wish to stay h

aid. 'How is it you are here? W

unk, ma'am, and the

my hus

ake on, but your husband w

uard to see as she wasn't disturbed. An hour or two later the frigate was off the cove, and the captain landed. We stopped a week there, and carried off all th

elvets and all kinds of materials; and as to wine and such like, there was enough to have lasted them for years, for from first to last it was shown afterward that those fellows must have captured more nor fifty vessels. Why they shouldn't have stopped ashore and

ed, and a few was condemned to work on the roads for life. I and the others was taken back to England in the frigate, whose foreign time was up, and when we got to Portsmouth we was drafted into a regiment there, and lucky we thought ourselves to get off so easy. The captain's wife and some of the other white women came home to England on board the frigate. She was very low at first, but she brightened up a good deal toward the end of the voyage, which lasted two months. She grieved over h

r; and although it's very easy to say that a man ought to die rather than consent to be a pira

ty since, and no one can say as he's ever seen Sergeant Edwards show the white feather. But t

er vessels of the fleet were out of sight naturally encouraged them. Jack observed, however, that the call to parade on deck was answered with more quickness than before, and the ex

have been seen talking so much to me, because, of course, they won't say anything when you are listening; but one or two of the men who came into the regiment with me have

below, Jack had an hour's

have heard is that there is a proposal to seize the ship and to carry her into one of the northern ports of Spain, where the men will land and give up their arms to the Spanish authorities, and then

while the sailors, who may want to go abuccaneering, would not care about having the soldiers with them. I shall give a hint to the captain of my company tonight as to what is going on, but I don't much expect he will pay any attention to it. Off

re's time enough, or if you can't do it without being seen. If it's too late, and you are found out, they would just chuck you overboard or knock you on the head, and you will have done no good after all, and perhaps only caused blo

ome of the soldiers slept in hammocks, the majority lay on the deck wrapped in their blankets-he lay down by the side of a gun whose port had been opene

down their firearms from the arm racks; small groups were stooping over some of the sleeping figures; and to the mast, close to which one of the lanterns hung, two or three men

gun. There he could reach the foot of the shrouds of the foremast, which happened to be immediately above

e standing about or sitting in groups. Keeping his feet on the ledge which ran round level with the deck, and his fingers on the top of the bulwark, Jack managed to edge his way aft u

just large enough for him to squeeze through. Looking in before he attempted it he saw an officer asleep immediately below him. It was the ensign of his

mpany. There is a mutiny, sir, forward. Please help me in, I wan

ed from his bunk and a

stily dragging on his trousers and

missioned officers are bound

captain's cabin, which he open

imed. The ensign said who he wa

t is on duty; rouse all the other officers;" and he himself assisted them to do so. In a min

n who disobeys orders, shoot him instantly. Do you, sir," he said to the second officer, "go to the magazine with four of the midshipmen, open it and bring up charges of grape for the guns on the quarterdeck. Be as quick as you can. Now, gentlemen, the rest of us will make our way up quietly, one

hirty of them were gathered there, being all the officers of the regiment, the naval officers, and midshipmen. The nigh