CHAPTER XXIV
CAPTAIN LONLEY OF THE STEAMER HAVANA
The two twelve-pounders in each boat were believed to weigh about sixhundred pounds each, while the ordinary bronze boat gun of the samecalibre weighs seven hundred and sixty pounds. The four guns, therefore,were rather too heavy a burden for the size of the cutters. But Christywas unwilling to throw the two without carriages overboard, for thewater in this locality was so clear that they could have been seen at adepth of two or three fathoms. They were useless for the duty in whichthe expedition was engaged, and the commander of the expedition decidedto land them on the Seahorse Key till he had completed his operations inthe bay, when they could be taken off and transported to the Bronx astrophies, if for nothing better.
Mr. Flint was disposed to object to this plan, on account of the time itwould require; but he yielded the point when Christy informed him thatit was only half past two, as he learned from the repeater he carriedfor its usefulness on just such duty as the present expedition.
The guns and all that belonged to them were landed on the Key, and theboats shoved off, the lieutenants happy in the thought that they were nolonger embarrassed by their weight, while they could not be brought tobear upon them.
The boats had hardly left the little island behind them when the noiseof paddle wheels ahead was reported by one of the trio in the bow of thefirst cutter. Christy listened with all his ears, and immediately heardthe peculiar sounds caused by the slapping of the paddle wheels of asteamer upon the water.
"We are in for something," said he to the pilot, as he listened to thesounds. "What might that be?"
"It is a steamer without any doubt coming around the point, and she willbe in sight in a moment or two," replied Mr. Amblen. "It may be a riversteamer that has brought a load of cotton down the Suwanee, and is goingout on this tide."
"Then we may need those guns we have left on the key," suggestedChristy.
"If she is a river steamer, there is not much of a force on board ofher," replied the pilot.
"We might return to the island, and use the two guns with carriagesthere."
"If she is a river steamer, we shall not need great guns to captureher."
Christy had ordered the men to cease rowing, and the two cutters laymotionless 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 vesselwas 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, forit would not be safe to send good men in such a craft to a port whereshe 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 avessel coming out of that port; and until she gets to the Key, she willmove very slowly, and we can board her better than when she is going atfull speed," said Mr. Amblen.
"You are doubtless quite right, Mr. Amblen, and I shall adopt yoursuggestion," replied Christy. "There she comes, and she is no riversteamer."
She had not the two tall funnels carried by river steamers, and thatpoint was enough to settle her character. There could be no doubt shewould have been a blockade runner, if there had been any blockade torun at the entrance to the port. Christy decided to board the steamerbetween 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, wherehis boat could not be discovered too soon, and board the steamer on theport side, though he did not expect any resistance. Each cutter took itsposition and awaited in silence the approach of the blockade runner. Theonly thing Christy feared was that she would come about and run back tothe 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 loadedwith cotton, and at this time it was about as valuable a cargo as couldbe put on board of her. She would be a rich prize, and the masts of theschooners were still to be seen over the tops of the buildings. She musthave chosen this hour of the night to go out, not only on account of thetide, but because the darkness would enable her to get off the coastwhere a blockader occasionally wandered before the blockade was fullyestablished. Her paddle wheels indicated that she had not been builtvery recently, for very nearly all sea steamers, including those of theUnited States, were propelled by the screw.
As Mr. Amblen had predicted the steamer moved very slowly, and it wasall of a quarter of an hour before she came to the Seahorse Key. At theright time Christy gave the word to the crew to "Give way lively!" andthe 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 thetwinkling of an eye the two boats had made fast to her, and seven menfrom each boat leaped on the deck of the steamer, cutlass in hand. Noguns were to be seen, and the watch of not more than half a dozen menwere on the forecastle; and perhaps this was the entire force of thesailing department.
"What does all this mean?" demanded a man coming from the after part ofthe vessel, in a voice which Christy recognized as soon as he had heardhalf of the sentence.
"Good morning, Captain Lonley," said Christy, in the pleasantest oftones. "You are up early, my friend, but I think we are a little aheadof you on this occasion."
"Who are you, sir?" demanded Lonley; and Christy had at once jumped tothe conclusion that he was the captain of the steamer. "I have heardyour voice before, but I cannot place you, sir."
"Fortunately for me, it is not necessary that you should place me thistime," replied Christy. "It is equally fortunate that I am not compelledto place you again, as I felt obliged to do, on board of the Judith inMobile Bay."
"Passford!" exclaimed Captain Lonley, stepping back a pace in hisastonishment.
"Passford, late of the Bellevite, and now executive officer of theUnited States steamer Bronx, formerly the Teaser, privateer," answeredChristy, in his usual cheerful tones. "May I inquire the name of thissteamer?"
"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 todemand her surrender as a prize to the Bronx."
"Caught again!" exclaimed Captain Lonley, stamping violently on the deckin his disgust at his misfortune, and it was the third time that Christyhad thrown him "out of a job."
"The way of the transgressor is hard, Captain Lonley," added thecommander of the expedition.
"Transgressor, sir!" ejaculated the captain of the Havana. "What do youmean by that, Mr. Passford?"
"Well, captain, you are in arms against the best government that thegood God ever permitted to exist for eighty odd years; and that is thegreatest 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 talkpolitics. Do you surrender?"
"This is not an armed steamer, and I have no force to resist; I amcompelled to surrender," replied the captain as he glanced at thecutlasses of the men from the Bronx.
"That is a correct, though not a cheerful view of the question onyour part. I am very happy to relieve you from any further care of theHavana, and you may retire to your cabin, where I shall have the honorto wait upon you later."
"One word, Mr. Passford, if you please," said Captain Lonley, takingChristy by the arm and leading him away from the rest of the boardingparty. "This steamer and the cotton with which she is loaded are theproperty of your uncle, Homer Passford."
"Indeed?" was all that Christy thought it necessary to say in rep
ly.
"You have already taken from him one valuable cargo of cotton; and itwould 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 ownbrother to pass out of Mobile Bay in the Bellevite?"
"That would have been quite another thing, for the Bellevite wasintended for the Federal navy," protested the Confederate captain. "Itwould have been sacrificing his country to his fraternal feelings. Thisis 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 thecause he advocates; and I hope, with no unkind thoughts or feelings inregard 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 thequestion as Uncle Homer is on his side. I would cut off my right handbefore I would allow your vessel or any other to escape, for I havesworn allegiance to my government, and when I fail to do my duty at anysacrifice of personal feeling, it will be when I have lost my mind; andmy uncle would do as much for his fractional government. We need notdiscuss such a subject as you suggest, captain."
Captain Lonley said no more, and retired to his cabin. Christy was readyfor the next question in order. Accompanied by Mr. Flint, he looked thesteamer over. The mate had lighted his pipe and seated himself on awater cask; and he seemed to be the only officer besides the captain onboard. The engineers were next visited. There were two of them, but theywere red hot for the Confederacy, and nothing was said to them except toorder them on deck, where they were placed with the crew, and a guard ofseamen set over them. The firemen were negroes, and they were willing toserve 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 aman 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 havenot an engineer on board, and we shall have to send off to the Bronx forone."
"Not so bad as that, Mr. Flint," replied Christy. "There is one loyalengineer 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 tothe 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," laughedChristy.
Then he took Mr. Amblen into the engine room with him.