Chapter 7: Troubles Ahead.
When Dr. Burke had left, Bob broke into an Indian war dance,expressive of the deepest satisfaction; and Captain O'Halloranburst into a shout of laughter at the contrast between the boy'svehement delight, and the dissatisfaction expressed in his wife'sface.
"I am not at all pleased, Gerald, not at all; and I don't see that itis any laughing matter. I never heard a more ridiculous thing. Uncleintrusted Bob to our care, believing that we should do what was best forhim; and here you go and engage the most feather-headed Irishman in thegarrison--and that is saying a good deal, Gerald--to look after him."
It was so seldom that Carrie took matters seriously that herhusband ceased laughing, at once.
"Well, Carrie, there is no occasion to put yourself out about it.The experiment can be tried for a fortnight; and if, at the end ofthat time, you are not satisfied, we will get someone else. But Iam sure it will work well."
"So am I, Carrie," Bob put in. "I believe Dr. Burke and I will geton splendidly. You see, I have been with two people, both of whomlooked as grave as judges, and one of them as cross as a bear; andyet they were both first-rate fellows. It seems to me that Dr.Burke is just the other way. He turns everything into fun; but Iexpect he will be just as sharp, when he is at lessons, as anyoneelse. At any rate, you may be sure that I will do my best with him;so as not to get put under some stiff old fellow, instead of him."
"Well, we shall see, Bob. I hope that it will turn out well, I amsure."
"Of course it will turn out well, Carrie. Why, didn't your uncle atfirst think I was the most harum-scarum fellow he ever saw; and nowhe sees that I am a downright model husband, with only one fault,and that is that I let you have your own way, altogether."
"It looks like it, on the present occasion, Gerald," his wifelaughed. "I will give it, as you say, a fortnight's trial. I onlyhope that you have made a better choice for Bob's Spanish master."
"I hope so, my dear--that is, if it is possible. The professor, asI call him, has been teaching his language to officers, here, forthe last thirty years. He is a queer, wizened-up little old chap,and has got out of the way of bowing and scraping that the senorsgenerally indulge in; but he seems a cheery little old soul, and hehas got to understand English ways and, at any rate, there is nofear of his leading Bob into mischief. The Spaniards don'tunderstand that; and if you were to ruffle his dignity, he wouldthrow up teaching him at once; and I have not heard of another manon the Rock who would be likely to suit."
On the following Monday, Bob began work with the professor; whocalled himself, on his card, Don Diaz Martos. He spoke English veryfairly and, after the first half hour, Bob found that the lessonswould be much more pleasant than he expected. The professor beganby giving him a long sentence to learn by heart, thoroughly; andwhen Bob had done this, parsed each word with him, so that heperfectly understood its meaning. Then he made the lad say it afterhim a score of times, correcting his accent and inflection; andwhen he was satisfied with this, began to construct fresh sentencesout of the original one, again making Bob repeat them, and formfresh ones himself.
Thus, by the time the first lesson was finished the lad, to hissurprise, found himself able, without difficulty, to framesentences from the words he had learned. Then the professor wrotedown thirty nouns and verbs in common use.
"You will learn them this evening," he said, "and in the morning weshall be able to make up a number of sentences out of them and, bythe end of a week, you will see we shall begin to talk to eachother. After that, it will be easy. Thirty fresh words, every day,will be ample. In a month you will know seven or eight hundred; andseven or eight hundred are enough for a man to talk with, on commonoccasions."
"He is first rate," Bob reported to his sister, as they sat down todinner, at one o'clock. "You would hardly believe that I can say adozen little sentences, already; and can understand him, when hesays them. He says, in a week, we shall be able to get to talktogether.
"I wonder they don't teach Latin like that. Why, I shall know intwo or three months as much Spanish--and more, ever so muchmore--than I do Latin, after grinding away at it for the last sevenor eight years."
"Well, that is satisfactory. I only hope the other will turn out aswell."
As Mrs. O'Halloran sat that evening, with her work in her hand, onthe terrace; with her husband, smoking a cigar, beside her. Shepaused, several times, as she heard a burst of laughter.
"That doesn't sound like master and pupil," she said, sharply,after an unusually loud laugh from below.
"More the pity, Carrie. Why on earth shouldn't a master be capableof a joke? Do you think one does not learn all the faster, when thelecture is pleasant? I know I would, myself. I never could see whya man should look as if he was going to an execution, when he wantsto instil knowledge."
"But it is not usual, Gerald," Carrie remonstrated, no otherargument occurring to her.
"But that doesn't prove that it's wrong. Why a boy should be drivenworse than a donkey, and thrashed until his life is a burden tohim, and he hates his lessons and hates his master, beats meentirely. Some day they will go more sensibly to work.
"You see, in the old times, Carrie, men used to beat their wives;and you don't think the women were any the better for it, do you?"
"Of course they weren't," Carrie said, indignantly.
"But it was usual, you know, Carrie, just as you say that it isusual for masters to beat boys--as if they would do nothing,without being thrashed. I can't see any difference between the twothings."
"I can see a great deal of difference, sir!"
"Well, what is the difference, Carrie?"
But Carrie disdained to give any answer. Still, as she sat sewingand thinking the matter over, she acknowledged to herself that shereally could not see any good and efficient reason why boys shouldbe beaten, any more than women.
"But women don't do bad things, like boys," she said, breakingsilence at last.
"Don't they, Carrie? I am not so sure of that. I have heard ofwomen who are always nagging their husbands, and giving them nopeace of their lives. I have heard of women who think of nothingbut dress, and who go about and leave their homes and children toshift for themselves. I have heard of women who spend all theirtime spreading scandal. I have heard of--"
"There, that is enough," Carrie broke in hastily. "But you don'tmean to say that they would be any the better for beating, Gerald?"
"I don't know, Carrie; I should think perhaps they might be,sometimes. At any rate, I think that they deserve a beating quiteas much as a boy does, for neglecting to learn a lesson or forplaying some prank--which comes just as naturally, to him, asmischief does to a kitten. For anything really bad, I would beat aboy as long as I could stand over him. For lying, or thieving, orany mean, dirty trick I would have no mercy on him. But that is avery different thing to keeping the cane always going, at school,as they do now.
"But here comes Bob. Well, Bob, is the doctor gone? Didn't you askhim to come up, and have a cigar?"
"Yes; but he said he had got two or three cases at the hospital hemust see, and would wait until this evening."
"How have you got on, Bob?"
"Splendidly. I wonder why they don't teach at school, like that."
"It didn't sound much like teaching," Carrie said, severely.
"I don't suppose it did, Carrie; but it was teaching, for all that.Why, I have learned as much, this evening, as I did in a dozenlessons, in school. He explains everything so that you seem tounderstand it, at once; and he puts things, sometimes, in such adroll way, and brings in such funny comparisons, that you can'thelp laughing. But you understand it, for all that, and are notlikely to forget it.
"Don't you be afraid, Carrie. If Dr. Burke teaches me, for the twoyears that I am going to be here, I shall know more than I shouldhave done if I had stopped at Tulloch's till I was an old man. Iused to learn lessons, there, and get through them, somehow, but Idon't think I ever understood why things were so; while Dr. Burkeexplains
everything so that you seem to understand all about it, atonce. And he is pretty sharp, too. He takes a tremendous lot ofpains, himself; but I can see he will expect me to take atremendous lot of pains, too."
At the end of a fortnight, Carrie made no allusion to the subjectof a change of masters. The laughing downstairs still scandalizedher, a little; but she saw that Bob really enjoyed his lessons and,although she herself could not test what progress he was making,his assurances on that head satisfied her.
The Brilliant had sailed on a cruise, the morning after Bob'sarrival; but as soon as he heard that she had again dropped anchorin the bay, he took a boat and went out to her; and returned onshore with Jim Sankey, who had obtained leave for the afternoon.The two spent hours in rambling about the Rock, and talking of oldtimes at Tulloch's. Both agreed that the most fortunate thing thatever happened had been the burglary at Admiral Langton's; which hadbeen the means of Jim's getting into the navy, and Bob's coming outto Gibraltar, to his sister.
Jim had lots to tell of his shipmates, and his life on board theBrilliant. He was disposed to pity Bob spending half his day atlessons; and was astonished to find that his friend really enjoyedit, and still more that he should already have begun to pick up alittle Spanish.
"You can't help it, with Don Diaz," Bob said. "He makes you go overa sentence, fifty times, until you say it in exactly the same voicehe does--I mean the same accent. He says it slow, at first, so thatI can understand him; and then faster and faster, till he speaks inhis regular voice. Then I have to make up another sentence, inanswer. It is good fun, I can tell you; and yet one feels that oneis getting on very fast. I thought it would take years before Ishould be able to get on anyhow in Spanish; but he says if I keepon sticking to it, I shall be able to speak pretty nearly like anative, in six months' time. I quite astonish Manola--that is ourservant--by firing off sentences in Spanish at her. My sisterCarrie says she shall take to learning with the Don, too."
"Have you had any fun since you landed, Bob?"
"No; not regular fun, you know. It has been very jolly. I go downwith Gerald--Carrie's husband, you know--to the barracks, and Iknow most of the officers of his regiment now, and I walk about abit by myself; but I have not gone beyond the Rock, yet."
"You must get a long day's leave, Bob; and we will go across theneutral ground, into Spain, together."
"Gerald said that, as I was working so steadily, I might have aholiday, sometimes, if I did not ask for it too often. I have beenthree weeks at it, now. I am sure I can go for a day, when I like,so it will depend on you."
"I sha'n't be able to come ashore for another four or five days,after having got away this afternoon. Let us see, this isWednesday, I will try to get leave for Monday."
"Have you heard, Jim, there is a talk about Spanish troops movingdown here, and that they think Spain is going to join France andtry to take this place?"
"No, I haven't heard a word about it," Jim said, opening his eyes."You don't really mean it?"
"Yes, that is what the officers say. Of course, they don't know forcertain; but there is no doubt the country people have got the ideainto their heads, and the natives on the Rock certainly believeit."
"Hooray! That would be fun," Jim said. "We have all been grumbling,on board the frigate, at being stuck down here without any chanceof picking up prizes; or of falling in with a Frenchman, except wego on a cruise. Why, you have seen twice as much fun as we have,though you only came out in a trader. Except that we chased a craftthat we took for a French privateer, we haven't seen an enemy sincewe came out from England; and we didn't see much of her, for shesailed right away from us. While you have had no end of fighting,and a very narrow escape of being taken to a French prison."
"Too narrow to be pleasant, Jim. I don't think there would be muchfun to be got out of a French prison."
"I don't know, Bob. I suppose it would be dull, if you were alone;but if you and I were together, I feel sure we should have somefun, and should make our escape, somehow."
"Well, we might try," Bob said, doubtfully. "But you see, not manyfellows do make their escape; and as sailors are up to climbingropes, and getting over walls, and all that sort of thing, I shouldthink they would do it, if it could be managed anyhow."
Upon the following day--when Bob was in the anteroom of the messwith Captain O'Halloran, looking at some papers that had beenbrought by a ship that had come in that morning--the colonelentered, accompanied by Captain Langton. The officers all stood up,and the colonel introduced them to Captain Langton--who was, hetold them, going to dine at the mess that evening. After he haddone this, Captain Langton's eye fell upon Bob; who smiled, andmade a bow.
"I ought to know you," the captain said. "I have certainly seenyour face somewhere."
"It was at Admiral Langton's, sir. My name is Bob Repton."
"Of course it is," the officer said, shaking him cordially by thehand. "But what on earth are you doing here? I thought you hadsettled down somewhere in the city; with an uncle, wasn't it?"
"Yes, sir; but I have come out here to learn Spanish."
"Have you seen your friend Sankey?"
"Yes, sir. I went on board the frigate to see him, yesterdayafternoon; and he got leave to come ashore with me, for two orthree hours."
"He ought to have let me know that you were here," the captainsaid. "Who are you staying with, lad?"
"With Captain O'Halloran, sir, my brother-in-law," Bob said,indicating Gerald, who had already been introduced to CaptainLangton.
"I daresay you are surprised at my knowing this young gentleman,"he said, turning to Colonel Cochrane, "but he did my father, theadmiral, a great service. He and three other lads, under hisleadership, captured four of the most notorious burglars in London,when they were engaged in robbing my father's house. It was a mostgallant affair, I can assure you; and the four burglars swung forit, a couple of months later. I have one of the lads as amidshipman, on board my ship; and I offered a berth to Repton but,very wisely, he decided to remain on shore, where his prospectswere good."
"Why, O'Halloran, you never told me anything about this," thecolonel said.
"No, sir. Bob asked me not to say anything about it. I think he israther shy of having it talked about; and it is the only thing ofwhich he is shy as far as I have discovered."
"Well, we must hear the story," the colonel said. "I hope you willdine at mess, this evening, and bring him with you. He shall tellus the story over our wine. I am curious to know how four boys canhave made such a capture."
After mess that evening Bob told the story, as modestly as hecould.
"There, colonel," Captain Langton said, when he had finished. "Yousee that, if these stories I hear are true, and the Spaniards aregoing to make a dash for Gibraltar, you have got a valuableaddition to your garrison."
"Yes, indeed," the colonel laughed. "We will make a volunteer ofhim. He has had some little experience of standing fire, forO'Halloran told me that the brig he came out in had fought a sharpaction with a privateer of superior force; and indeed, when shecame in here, her sails were riddled with shot holes."
"Better and better," Captain Langton laughed.
"Well, Repton, remember whenever you are disposed for a cruise, Ishall be glad to take you as passenger. Sankey will make you athome in the midshipmen's berth. If the Spaniards declare war withus, we shall have stirring times at sea, as well as on shore and,though you won't get any share in any prize money we may win, whileyou are on board, you will have part of the honour; and you see,making captures is quite in your line."
The next day, Captain O'Halloran and Bob dined on board theBrilliant. Captain Langton introduced the lad to his officers,telling them that he wished him to be considered as being free onboard the ship, whether he himself happened to be on board or not,when he came off.
"But you must keep an eye on him, Mr. Hardy, while he is on board,"he said to the first lieutenant.
"Mr. Sankey," and he nodded at Jim, who was among those invited,"is rather a pickle, b
ut from what I hear Repton is worse. So youwill have to keep a sharp eye upon them, when they are together;and if they are up to mischief, do not hesitate to masthead both ofthem. A passenger on board one of His Majesty's ships is amenableto discipline, like anyone else."
"I will see to it, sir," the lieutenant said, laughing. "Sankeyknows the way up, already."
"Yes. I think I observed him taking a view of the shore from thatelevation, this morning."
Jim coloured hotly.
"Yes, sir," the lieutenant said. "The doctor made a complaint thathis leeches had got out of their bottle, and were all over theship; and I fancy one of them got into his bed, somehow. He hadgiven Mr. Sankey a dose of physic in the morning; and rememberedafterwards that, while he was making up the medicine, Sankey hadbeen doing something in the corner where his bottles were. When Iquestioned Sankey about it, he admitted that he had observed theleeches, but declined to criminate himself farther. So I sent himaloft for an hour or two, to meditate upon the enormity of wastingHis Majesty's medical stores."
"I hope, Captain O'Halloran," the captain said, "that you have lesstrouble with your brother-in-law than we have with his friend."
"Bob hasn't had much chance, yet," Captain O'Halloran said,laughing. "He is new to the place, as yet; and besides, he isreally working hard, and hasn't much time for mischief; but I don'tflatter myself that it is going to last."
"Well, Mr. Sankey, you may as well take your friend down, andintroduce him formally to your messmates," the captain said; andJim, who had been feeling extremely uncomfortable since the talkhad turned on the subject of mastheading, rose and made his escapewith Bob, leaving the elders to their wine.
The proposed excursion to the Spanish lines did not come off, asthe Brilliant put to sea again, on the day fixed for it. She wasaway a fortnight and, on her return, the captain issued orders thatnone of the junior officers, when allowed leave, were to go beyondthe lines; for the rumours of approaching troubles had becomestronger and, as the peasantry were assuming a somewhat hostileattitude, any act of imprudence might result in trouble. Jim oftenhad leave to come ashore in the afternoon and, as this was the timethat Bob had to himself, they wandered together all over the Rock,climbed up the flagstaff, and made themselves acquainted with allthe paths and precipices.
Their favourite place was the back of the Rock; where the cliff, inmany places, fell sheer away for hundreds of feet down into thesea. They had many discussions as to the possibility of climbing upon that side, though both agreed that it would be impossible toclimb down.
"I should like to try, awfully," Bob said, one day early in June,as they were leaning on a low wall looking down to the sea.
"But it would never do to risk getting into a scrape here. Itwouldn't, indeed, Bob. They don't understand jokes at Gib. Onewould be had up before the big wigs, and court-martialled, andgoodness knows what. Of course, it is jolly being ashore; but onenever gets rid of the idea that one is a sort of prisoner. Thereare the regulations about what time you may come off, and what timethe gate is closed and, if you are a minute late, there you areuntil next morning. Whichever way one turns there are sentries; andyou can't pass one way, and you can't go back another way, andthere are some of the batteries you can't go into, without aspecial order. It never would do to try any nonsense, here.
"Look at that sentry up there. I expect he has got his eye on us,now; and if he saw us trying to get down, he would take us fordeserters and fire. There wouldn't be any fear of his hitting us;but the nearest guard would turn out, and we should be arrested andreported, and all sorts of things. It wouldn't matter so much foryou, but I should get my leave stopped altogether, and should getinto the captain's black books.
"No, no. I don't mind running a little risk of breaking my neck,but not here on the Rock. I would rather get into ten scrapes, onboard the frigate, than one here."
"Yes, I suppose it can't be done," Bob agreed; "but I should haveliked to swing myself down to one of those ledges. There would besuch a scolding and shrieking among the birds."
"Yes, that would be fun; but as it might bring on the same sort ofrow among the authorities, I would rather leave it alone.
"I expect we shall soon get leave to go across the lines again.There doesn't seem to be any chance of a row with the dons; Iexpect it was all moonshine, from the first. Why, they say Spain istrying to patch up the quarrel between us and France. She would notbe doing that, if she had any idea of going to war with us,herself."
"I don't know, Jim. Gerald and Dr. Burke were talking it over lastnight, and Gerald said just what you do; and then Dr. Burke said:
"'You are wrong, entirely, Gerald. That is just the dangerous partof the affair. Why should Spain want to put a stop to the warbetween us and the frog eaters? Sure, wouldn't she look on with thegreatest pleasure in life, while we cut each other's throats andblew up each other's ships, and put all the trade of theMediterranean into her hands? Why, it is the very thing that suitsher best.'
"'Then what is she after putting herself forward for, Teddy?'Gerald said.
"'Because she wants to have a finger in the pie, Gerald. Itwouldn't be dacent for her to say to England:
"'"It is in a hole you are, at present, wid your hands full; and soI am going to take the opportunity of pitching into you."
"'So she begins by stipping forward as the dear friend of bothparties; and she says:
"'"What are you breaking each other's heads for, boys? Make up yourquarrel, and shake hands."
"'Then she sets to and proposes terms--which she knows mighty wellwe shall never agree to, for the letters we had, the other daysaid, that it was reported that the proposals of Spain werealtogether unacceptable--and then, when we refuse, she turns roundand says:
"'"You have put yourself in the wrong, entirely. I gave you achance of putting yourself in the right, and it is a grave insultto me for you to refuse to accept my proposals. So there is nothingfor me to do, now, but just to join with France, and give you thebating you desarve."'
"That is Teddy Burke's idea, Jim; and though he is so full of fun,he is awfully clever, and has got no end of sense; and I'd take hisopinion about anything. You see how he has got me on, in these fourmonths, in Latin and things. Why, I have learnt more, with him,than I did all the time I was at Tulloch's. He says most likely thenegotiations will be finished, one way or the other, by the middleof this month; and he offered to bet Gerald a gallon of whisky thatthere would be a declaration of war, by Spain, before the end ofthe month."
"Did he?" Jim said, in great delight. "Well, I do hope he is right.We are all getting precious tired, I can assure you, of broilingdown there in the harbour. The decks are hot enough to cook a steakupon. When we started, today, we didn't see a creature in thestreets. Everyone had gone off to bed, for two or three hours; andthe shops were all closed, as if it had been two o'clock at night,instead of two o'clock in the day. Even the dogs were all asleep,in the shade. I think we shall have to give up our walks, tillAugust is over. It is getting too hot for anything, in theafternoon."
"Well, it is hot," Bob agreed. "Carrie said I was mad, coming outin it today; and should get sunstroke, and all sort of things; andGerald said at dinner that, if it were not against the regulations,he would like to shave his head, instead of plastering it all overwith powder."
"I call it disgusting," Jim said, heartily. "That is the one thingI envy you in. I shouldn't like to be grinding away at books, asyou do; and you don't have half the fun I do, on shore here withoutany fellows to have larks with; but not having to powder your hairalmost makes up for it. I don't mind it, in winter, because itmakes a sort of thatch for the head; but it is awful, now. I feeljust as if I had got a pudding crust all over my head."
"Well, that is appropriate, Jim," laughed Bob; and then Jim chasedhim all along the path, till they got within sight of a sentry in abattery; and then his dignity as midshipman compelled them todesist, and the pair walked gravely down into the town.
That evening after lessons were over D
r. Burke, as usual, went upon to the terrace to smoke a cigar with Captain O'Halloran.
"It is a pity altogether, Mrs. O'Halloran," he said, as he stood byher side, looking over the moonlit bay, with the dark hulls of theships and the faint lights across at Algeciras, "that we can't doaway with the day, and have nothing but night of it, for four orfive months in the year. I used to think it must be mightyunpleasant for the Esquimaux; but faith, I envy them now. Fancyfive or six months without catching a glimpse of that burning oldsun!"
"I don't suppose they think so," Mrs. O'Halloran laughed, "but itwould be pleasant here. The heat has been dreadful, all day; and itis really only after sunset that one begins to enjoy life."
"You may well say that, Mrs. O'Halloran. Faith, I wish they wouldlet me take off my coat, and do my work in my shirtsleeves down atthe hospital. Sure, it is a strange idea these military men havegot in their heads, that a man isn't fit for work unless he isbuttoned so tightly up to the chin that he is red in the face. Ifnature had meant it, we should have been born in a suit of scalearmour, like a crocodile.
"Well, there is one consolation--if there is a siege, I expectthere will be an end of hair powder and cravats. It's the gineralrule, on a campaign; and it is worth standing to be shot at, tohave a little comfort in one's life."
"Do you think that there is any chance at all of the Spaniardstaking the place, if they do besiege us?" Bob asked, as Dr. Burketook his seat.
"None of taking the place by force, Bob. It has been besieged, overand over again; and it is pretty nearly always by hunger that ithas fallen. That is where the pinch will come, if they besiege usin earnest: it's living on mice and grass you are like to be,before it is over."
"But the fleet will bring in provisions, surely, Dr. Burke?"
"The fleet will have all it can do to keep the sea, against thenavies of France and Spain. They will do what they can, you may besure; but the enemy well know that it is only by starving us outthat they can hope to take the place, and I expect they will putsuch a fleet here that it will be mighty difficult for even a boatto find its way in between them."
"Do you know about the other sieges?" Mrs. O'Halloran asked. "Ofcourse, I know something about the last siege; but I know nothingabout the history of the Rock before that, and of course Geralddoesn't know."
"And why should I, Carrie? You don't suppose that when I was atschool, at Athlone, they taught me the history of every bit of rocksticking up on the face of the globe? I had enough to do to learnabout the old Romans--bad cess to them, and all their botheringdoings!"
"I can tell you about it, Mrs. O'Halloran," Teddy Burke said."Bob's professor, who comes to have a talk with me for half an hourevery day, has been telling me all about it; and if Gerald willmove himself, and mix me a glass of grog to moisten my throat, Iwill give you the whole story of it.
"You know, no doubt, that it was called Mount Calpe, by Gerald'sfriends the Romans; who called the hill opposite there Mount Abyla,and the two together the Pillars of Hercules. But beyond giving ita name, they don't seem to have concerned themselves with it; nordo the Phoenicians or Carthaginians, though all of them had citiesout in the low country.
"It was when the Saracens began to play their games over here thatwe first hear of it. Roderic, you know, was king of the Goths, andseems to have been a thundering old tyrant; and one of his nobles,Julian--who had been badly treated by him--went across with hisfamily into Africa, and put up Mousa, the Saracen governor of theprovince across there, to invade Spain. They first of all made alittle expedition--that was in 711--with one hundred horse, andfour hundred foot. They landed over there at Algeciras and, afterdoing some plundering and burning, sailed back again, with the newsthat the country could be conquered. So next year twelve thousandmen, under a chief named Tarik, crossed and landed on the flatbetween the Rock and Spain. He left a party here to build thecastle; and then marched away, defeated Roderic and his army atXeres, and soon conquered the whole of Spain, except the mountainsof the north.
"We don't hear much more of Gibraltar for another six hundredyears. Algeciras had become a fortress of great strength andmagnificence, and Gibraltar was a mere sort of outlying post.Ferdinand the Fourth of Spain besieged Algeciras for years, andcould not take it; but a part of his army attacked Gibraltar, andcaptured it. The African Moors came over to help their friends, andFerdinand had to fall back; but the Spaniards still heldGibraltar--a chap named Vasco Paez de Meira being in command.
"In 1333 Abomelique, son of the Emperor of Fez, came across with anarmy and besieged Gibraltar. Vasco held out for five months, andwas then starved into surrender, just as Alonzo the Eleventh wasapproaching to his assistance. He arrived before the town, fivedays after it surrendered, and attacked the castle; but the Moorsencamped on the neutral ground in his rear, and cut him off fromhis supplies; and he was obliged at last to negotiate, and waspermitted to retire. He was not long away. Next time he attackedAlgeciras; which, after a long siege, he took in 1343.
"In 1349 there were several wars in Africa, and he took advantageof this to besiege Gibraltar. He was some months over the business,and the garrison were nearly starved out; when pestilence broke outin the Spanish camp, by which the king and many of his soldiersdied, and the rest retired.
"It was not until sixty years afterwards, in 1410, that there werefresh troubles; and then they were what might be called familysquabbles. The Africans of Fez had held the place, till then; butthe Moorish king of Grenada suddenly advanced upon it, and took it.A short time afterwards, the inhabitants rose against the SpanishMoors, and turned them out, and the Emperor of Morocco sent over anarmy to help them; but the Moors of Grenada besieged the place, andtook it by famine.
"In 1435 the Christians had another slap at it; but Henry deGuzman, who attacked by sea, was defeated and killed. In 1462 thegreater part of the garrison of Gibraltar was withdrawn to takepart in some civil shindy, that was going on at Grenada; and intheir absence the place was taken by John de Guzman, duke ofMedina-Sidonia, and son of the Henry that was killed. In 1540Gibraltar was surprised and pillaged by one of Barossa's captains;but as he was leaving some Christian galleys met him, and thecorsairs were all killed or taken.
"This was really the only affair worth speaking of between 1462,when it fell into the hands of the Spaniards, and 1704, when it wascaptured by us. Sir George Rooke, who had gone out with a force toattack Cadiz--finding that there was not much chance of success inthat direction--resolved, with Prince George of Hesse andDarmstadt--who commanded the troops on board the fleet--to make anattack on Gibraltar.
"On the 21st of July, 1704, the English and Dutch landed on theneutral ground and, at daybreak on the 23rd, the fleet opened fire.The Spaniards were driven from their guns on the Molehead Battery.The boats landed, and seized the battery, and held it in spite ofthe Spaniards springing a mine, which killed two lieutenants andabout forty men. The Marquis de Salines, the governor, was thensummoned, and capitulated. So you see, we made only a day's work oftaking a place which the Spaniards thought that they had madeimpregnable. The professor made a strong point of it that thegarrison consisted only of a hundred and fifty men; which certainlyaccounts for our success, for it is no use having guns and walls,if you haven't got soldiers to man them.
"The Prince of Hesse was left as governor; and it was not longbefore his mettle was tried for, in October, the Spanish army, withsix battalions of Frenchmen, opened trenches against the town.Admiral Sir John Leake threw in reinforcements, and six months'provisions. At the end of the month, a forlorn hope of five hundredSpanish volunteers managed to climb up the Rock, by ropes andladders, and surprised a battery; but were so furiously attackedthat they were all killed, or taken prisoners. A heavy cannonadewas kept up for another week, when a large number of transportswith reinforcements and supplies arrived and, the garrison beingnow considered strong enough to resist any attack, the fleet sailedaway.
"The siege went on till the middle of March, when Sir John Leakeagain arrived, drove away the French fleet
, and captured or burntfive of them; and the siege was then discontinued, having cost theenemy ten thousand men. So, you see, there was some pretty hardfighting over it.
"The place was threatened in 1720 and, in the beginning of 1727,twenty thousand Spaniards again sat down before it. Thefortifications had been made a good deal stronger, after the firstsiege; and the garrison was commanded by Lieutenant GovernorClayton. The siege lasted till May, when news arrived that thepreliminaries of a general peace had been signed. There was a lotof firing; but the Spaniards must have shot mighty badly, for wehad only three hundred killed and wounded. You would think thatthat was enough; but when I tell you that the cannon were so oldand rotten that seventy cannon, and thirty mortars, burst duringthe siege, it seems to me that every one of those three hundredmust have been damaged by our own cannon, and that the Spaniardsdid not succeed in hitting a single man.
"That is mighty encouraging for you, Mrs. O'Halloran; for I don'tthink that our cannon will burst this time and, if the Spaniards donot shoot better than they did before, it is little work, enough,that is likely to fall to the share of the surgeons."
"Thank you," Mrs. O'Halloran said. "You have told that very nicely,Teddy Burke. I did not know anything about it, before; and I hadsome idea that it was when the English were besieged here that theQueen of Spain sat on that rock which is called after her; but Isee now that it was Ferdinand's Isabella, and that it was when theMoors were besieged here, hundreds of years before.
"Well, I am glad I know something about it. It is stupid to be in aplace, and know nothing of its history. You are rising in myestimation fast, Dr. Burke."
"Mistress O'Halloran," the doctor said, rising and making a deepbow, "you overwhelm me, entirely; and now I must say goodnight, forI must look in at the hospital, before I turn in to my quarters."