CHAPTER THE SIXTEENTH
*In which a mutiny is quelled in a minute; and our Babu proves himself aman of war.*
Crouching low, Desmond waited. When the Maratha joined the group FuzlKhan addressed him directly in a low firm tone.
"We are all agreed, Nanna," he said. "You are the only man wanting toour purpose. This is the fastest grab on the coast. I know a portwhere we can get arms and ammunition; with a few good men (and I knowwhere they can be found), we can make a strong band, and grow rich uponour spoils."
"But what about the sahib?"
"Wah! We know what these Firangi are like--at least the Angrezi.[#]They have the heads of pigs; there is no moving them. It would be vainto ask the young sahib to join us; his mind is set on getting to Bombayand telling all his troubles to the Company. What a folly! And what aninjustice to us! It would destroy our chance of making our fortunes,for what would happen? The grab would be sold; the sahib would take themost of the price; we should get a small share, not enough to help us tobecome rovers of the sea and our own masters."
[#] English.
"The sahib will refuse, then. So be it! But what then shall we do withhim?"
"He will not get the chance of refusing. He will not be told."
"But he is taking us to Bombay. How then can we work our will?"
"He thinks he is sailing to Bombay: he will really take us to Cutch."
"How is that, brother?"
"Does he know Bombay? Of a truth no. He is a boy: he has never sailedthese seas. He depends on us. Suppose we come in sight of Bombay, whowill tell him? Nobody. If he asks, we will say it is some other place:how can he tell? We will run past Bombay until we are within sight ofCutch: then truly I will do the rest."
The Maratha did not reply. The momentary silence was broken by FuzlKhan again.
"See! Put the one thing in the balance against the other: how does itturn? On the one side the twenty rupees--a pitiful sum--promised by thesahib: and who knows he will keep his promise? On the other, a tenthshare for each of you in the grab and whatsoever prey falls to it."
"Then the Babu is to have a share? Of a truth he is a small man, a harein spirit; does he merit an equal share with us? We are elephants tohim."
"No. He will have no share. He will go overboard."
"Why, then, what of the tenth share?"
"It will be mine. I shall be your leader and take two."
Desmond had heard enough. The Gujarati was showing himself in his truecolours. His greed was roused, and the chance of setting up as a pirateon his own account, and making himself a copy of the man whose prisonerhe had been, had prompted this pretty little scheme. Desmond creptnoiselessly away and returned to his quarters. Not to sleep; he spentthe remainder of his watch below in thinking out his position--in tryingto devise some means of meeting this new and unexpected difficulty. Hehad not heard what Fuzl Khan proposed ultimately to do with him. Hemight share the Babu's fate: at the best it would appear that he hadshaken off one captivity to fall into the toils of another. He hadheard grim tales of the pirates of the Cambay Gulf; they were not likelyto prove more pleasant masters than the Marathas farther south, even ifthey did not prefer to put him summarily out of the way. His presenceamong them might prove irksome, and what would the death of a singleEnglish youth matter? He was out of reach of all his friends; on the_Good Intent_ none but Bulger and the New Englander had any realkindness for him, and if Bulger were to mention at any port that a youngEnglish lad was in captivity with the Pirate, what could be done?Should the projected expedition against Gheria prove successful, and henot be found among the European prisoners, it would be assumed that hewas no longer living; and even if the news of his escape was known, itwas absurd to suppose that all India would be searched for him.
The outlook, from any point of view, was gloomy. The Gujarati hadevidently won over the whole ship's company. Were they acting from theinclination for a rover's life, coupled with hope of gain, or had theybeen jockeyed into mutiny by Fuzl Khan? Desmond could not tell, norcould he find out without betraying a knowledge of the plot. Then heremembered the Babu. He alone had been excepted; the other men held himin contempt; but despite his weaknesses, for which he was indeed hardlyaccountable, Desmond had a real liking for him; and it was an unpleasantthought that, whatever happened to himself, if the plot succeededSurendra Nath was doomed.
But thinking of this, Desmond saw one ray of hope. He had not been forlong the companion of men of different castes without picking up a fewnotions of what caste meant. The Babu was a Brahman; as a Bengali hehad no claim on the sympathies of the others; but as a Brahman hisperson to other Hindus was inviolable. The Marathas were Hindus, andthey at least would not willingly raise their hand against him. YetDesmond could not be certain on this point. During his short residencein Gheria he had found that, in the East as too often in the West, theprecepts of religion were apt to be kept rather in the letter than inthe spirit. He had seen the sacred cow, which no good Hindu wouldventure to kill for untold gold, atrociously overworked, and, when toodecrepit to be of further service, left to perish miserably of neglectand starvation. It might be that although the Marathas would notthemselves lay hands on the Babu, they would be quite content to lookcalmly on while a Mohammedan did the work.
At the best, it was Desmond and the Babu against the crew--hopelessodds, for if it came to a fight the latter would be worse than useless.Not that Desmond held the man in such scorn as the men of his owncolour. Surendra Nath was certainly timid and slack, physically weak,temperamentally a coward: yet he had shown gleams of spirit during theescape, and it seemed to Desmond that he was a man who, having once beeninduced to enter upon a course, might prove both constant and loyal.The difficulty now was that, prostrated by his illness during the storm,he was not at his best; certainly in no condition to face a difficultyeither mental or physical. So Desmond resolved not to tell him of thedanger impending. He feared the effect upon his shaken nerves. Hewould not intentionally do anything against Desmond's interest, but hecould scarcely fail to betray his anxiety to the conspirators. Feelingthat there was nobody to confide in, Desmond decided that his onlycourse was to feign ignorance of what was going on, and await eventswith what composure he might. Not that he would relax his watchfulness;on the contrary he was alert and keen, ready to seize with manful gripthe skirts of chance.
Perhaps, he thought, the grab might fall in with a British ship. Butwhat would that avail? The grab with her extraordinary sailing powerscould show a clean pair of heels to any Indiaman, however fast, even ifhe could find an opportunity of signalling for help. Fuzl Khan, withoutdoubt, would take care that he never had such a chance.
Turning things over in his mind, and seeing no way out of hisdifficulty, he was at length summoned to relieve the Gujarati at thewheel. It was, he supposed, about four in the morning, and stillpitch-dark. When he came to the helm Fuzl Khan was alone: there wasnothing to betray the fact that the plotters had, but little before,been gathered around him. The look-out, who had left his post to jointhe group, had returned forward, and was now being relieved, like theGujarati himself.
Desmond exchanged a word or two with the man, and was left alone at thewheel. His mind was still set on the problem how to frustrate thescheme of the mutineers. He was convinced that if the grab once touchedshore at any point save Bombay, his plight would be hopeless. But howcould he guard against the danger? Even if he could keep the navigationof the grab entirely in his own hands by remaining continuously at thehelm, he was dependent on the plotters for information about the coast;to mislead him would be the easiest thing in the world. But it suddenlyoccurred to him that he might gain time by altering the course of thevessel. If he kept out of sight of land he might increase the chance ofsome diversion occurring.
Accordingly he so contrived that the grab lost rather than gained in hertacks against the light north-west wind now blowing. None of the men,except possi
bly the Gujarati, had sufficient seamanship to detect thismanoeuvre; he had gone below, and when he came on deck again he couldnot tell what progress had been made during his absence. Only themainsail, foresail, and one topsail were set: these were quite enoughfor the untrained crew to trim in the darkness--likely to prove toomuch, indeed, in the event of a sudden squall. Thus the process of goingabout was a long and laborious one, and at the best much way was lost.
Not long after he had begun to act on this idea he was somewhatconcerned to see the serang, who was in charge of the deck watch, comeaft and hang about near the wheel, as though his curiosity had beenaroused. Had he any suspicions? Desmond resolved to address the manand see what he could infer from the manner of his reply.
"Is all well, serang?"
"All well, sahib," answered the man. He stopped, and seemed to hesitatewhether to say more; but after a moment or two he moved slowly away.Desmond watched him. Had he discovered the trick? Would he go belowand waken Fuzl Khan? Desmond could not still a momentary tremor. Butthe serang did not rejoin his messmates, nor go below. He walked up anddown the deck alone. Apparently he suspected nothing.
Desmond felt relieved; but though he was gaining time, he could butrecognize that it seemed likely to profit him little. A criminal goingto execution may step never so slowly across the prison yard; there isthe inexorable gallows at the end, and certain doom. Could he not forcematters, Desmond wondered? It was evidently to be a contest, whether ofwits or of physical strength, between himself and the Gujarati. Withoutone or other the vessel could not be safely navigated; if he could insome way overcome the ringleader, he felt pretty sure that the crewwould accept the result and all difficulty would be at an end. But howcould he gain so unmistakable an ascendency? In physical strength FuzlKhan was more than his match: there was no doubt of the issue of astruggle if it were a matter of sheer muscular power. For a moment hethought of attempting to enlist the Marathas on his side. They wereHindus; the Gujarati was a Muslim; and they must surely feel that, oncehe was among his co-religionists in Cutch, in some pirate stronghold,they would run a very poor chance of getting fair treatment. But hesoon dismissed the idea. The Gujarati must seem to them much moreformidable than the stripling against whom he was plotting. The Hindu,even more than the average human being elsewhere, is inclined to attachimportance to might and bulk--even to mere fat. If he sounded theMarathas, and, their fear of the Gujarati outweighing their inevitabledistrust of him as a Firangi, they betrayed him to curry a littlefavour, there was no doubt that the fate both of himself and the Babuwould instantly be decided. He must trust to himself alone.
While he was still anxiously debating the matter with himself his eyecaught the two muskets lashed to the wooden framework supporting thewheel. He must leave no hostages to fortune. Taking advantage of alull in the wind he steadied the wheel with his body, and with somedifficulty drew the charges and dropped them into the sea. If it came toa tussle the enemy would certainly seize the muskets; it would be worthsomething to Desmond to know that they were not loaded. It was, intruth, but a slight lessening of the odds against him; and as herestored the weapons to their place he felt once more how hopeless hisposition remained.
Thus pondering and puzzling, with no satisfaction, he spent the fullperiod of his term of duty. At the appointed time Fuzl Khan came torelieve him. It was now full daylight; but, scanning the horizon with arestless eye, Desmond saw no sign of land, nor the sail of any vessel.
"No land yet, sahib?" said the Gujarati, apparently in surprise.
"No, as you see."
"But you set the course by the stars, sahib?"
"Oh yes; the grab must have been going slower than we imagined."
"The wind has not shifted?"
"Very little. I have had to tack several times."
The man grunted, and looked at Desmond, frowning suspiciously; butDesmond met his glance boldly, and said, as he left to go below:
"Be sure to have me called the moment you sight land."
He went below, threw himself into his hammock, and being dead tired, wassoon fast asleep.
Some hours later he was called by the Babu.
"Sahib, they say land is in sight at last. I am indeed thankful. Tothe landlubber the swell of waves causes nauseating upheaval."
"'Tis good news indeed," said Desmond, smiling. "Come on deck with me."
They went up together. The vessel was bowling along under a brisksouth-wester, which he found had been blowing steadily almost from themoment he had left the helm. The land was as yet but a dim line on thehorizon; it was necessary to stand in much closer if any of thelandmarks were to be recognized. He took the wheel; the shade on thesea-line gradually became more definite; and in the course of an hourthey opened up a fort somewhat similar in appearance to that of Gheria.All the ship's company were now on deck, looking eagerly shorewards.
"Do you know the place?" asked Desmond of the Gujarati unconcernedly.
The man gazed at it intently for a minute or so.
"Yes, sahib; it is Suvarndrug," he said. "Is it not, Nanna?"
"Yes, of a truth; it is Suvarndrug; I was there a month ago," repliedthe Maratha.
"What do you say, Gulam?" he continued, turning to one of the Biluchisstanding near.
"It is Suvarndrug. I have seen it scores of times. No one can mistakeSuvarndrug. See, there is the hill; and there is the mango grove. Ohyes, certainly it is Suvarndrug."
At this moment four grabs were seen beating out of the harbour. FuzlKhan uttered an exclamation; then, turning to Desmond, he said with anote of anxiety:
"It is best to put about at once, sahib. See the grabs! They may beenemies."
Desmond's heart gave a jump; his pulse beat more quickly under thestress of a sudden inspiration. He felt convinced that the fortress wasnot Suvarndrug; the Gujarati's anxiety to pile up testimony to thecontrary was almost sufficient in itself to prove that. If notSuvarndrug it was probably one of Angria's strongholds, possibly Kolaba.In that case the grabs now beating out were certainly the Pirate's, andthe men knew it. Here was an opportunity, probably the only one thatwould occur, of grappling with the mutiny. The crew would be torn byconflicting emotions; with the prospect of recapture by Angria theiraction would be paralyzed; if he could take advantage of theirindecision he might yet gain the upper hand. It was a risky venture;but the occasion was desperate. He could afford for the present toneglect the distant grabs, for none of the vessels on the coast couldmatch the _Tremukji_ in speed, and bend all his energies upon the moreserious danger on board.
"Surely it cannot be Suvarndrug?" he said, with an appearance ofcomposure that he was far from feeling. "Suvarndrug, you remember, hasbeen captured. The last news at Gheria was that it was in the Company'shands, though there was a rumour that it might be handed over to thePeshwa. We should not now see Angria's grabs coming out of Suvarndrug.But if it is Suvarndrug, Fuzl Khan, why put about? As fugitives fromGheria we should be assured of a welcome at Suvarndrug. We should be assafe there as at Bombay."
The Gujarati was none too quick-witted. He was patently taken aback,and hesitated for a reply. The grab was standing steadily on her courseshorewards. Desmond was to all appearance unconcerned; but the crew werelooking at one another uneasily, and the Gujarati's brow was darkening,his fidgettiness increasing. Surendra Nath was the only man among thenatives who showed no anxiety. He was leaning on the taffrail, gazingalmost gloatingly at the land, and paying no heed to the strangesituation around him.
Desmond was watching the Gujarati keenly. The man's manner fullyconfirmed his suspicions, and even in the tenseness of the moment hefelt a passing amusement at the big fellow's puzzle-headed attempts toinvent an explanation that would square with the facts. Failing to hitupon a plausible argument, he began to bluster.
"You, Firangi, heed what I say. It is not for us to run risks: the hinddoes not walk open-eyed into the tiger's mouth. The grab must be putabout immediately, or----"
"Who is in command?" asked Desmond quietly; "you or I?"
"We share it. I can navigate as well as you."
"You forget our arrangement in Gheria. You agreed that I shouldcommand."
"Yes, but at the pleasure of the rest. We are ten; we will have ourway; the grab must be put about, at once."
"Not by me."
Desmond felt what was coming and braced himself to meet it.
Then things happened with startling rapidity. The Gujarati, with a yellof rage, made a rush towards the wheel. Knowing what to expect Desmondslipped behind it and with a few light leaps gained the deck forward.Fuzl Khan shouted to the serang to take the helm and steer the vesselout to sea; then set off in headlong pursuit of Desmond, who had nowturned and stood awaiting the attack. The Gujarati did not even troubleto draw his knife. He plunged at him like a bull, shouting that hewould deal with the pig of a Firangi as he had dealt with the sentinelat Gheria.
But it was not for nothing that Desmond had fought a dozen battles forthe possession of Clive's desk at school, and a dozen more for thehonour of the school against the town; that his muscles had beendeveloped by months of hard work at sea and harder work in the dockyardat Gheria. Deftly dodging the man's blind rush, he planted his barefeet firmly and threw his whole weight into a terrific body blow thatsent the bigger man with a thud to the deck. Panting, breathless,trembling with fury, Fuzl Khan sprang to his feet, caught sight of themuskets, and tearing one from its fastenings raised it to his shoulder.Desmond seized the moment with a quickness that spoke volumes for hiswill's absolute mastery of his body. As the man pulled the harmlesstrigger, Desmond leapt at him; a crashing blow beneath the chin sent himstaggering against the wheel; a second while he tottered brought himlimp and almost stunned to the deck.
A SHORT WAY WITH MUTINEERS.]
Meanwhile the crew had looked on for a few breathless moments inamazement at this sudden turn of affairs. But as the Gujarati fellDesmond heard a noise behind him. Half turning, he saw Shaik Abdullahrushing towards him with a marlinspike. The man had him at adisadvantage, for he was breathless from his tussle with Fuzl Khan; butat that moment a dark object hurtled through the air, striking this newantagonist at the back of the head, and hurling him a lifeless lump intothe scuppers. Desmond looked round in wonderment: who among the crewhad thus befriended him so opportunely? His wonder was not lessened whenhe saw the Babu, trembling like a leaf, his eyes blazing, his dusky faceindescribably changed. At the sight of Desmond's peril the Bengali,forgetting his weakness, exalted above his timidity, had caught up withboth hands a round nine-pounder shot that lay on deck, and in a suddenstrength of fury had hurled it at the Biluchi. His aim was fatallytrue; the man was killed on the spot.
With his eyes Desmond thanked the Babu; there was no time for words.The hostile grabs were undoubtedly making chase. They had separated,with the intention of bearing down upon and overhauling the _Tremukji_in whatever direction she might flee. Fuzl Khan still lay helpless uponthe deck.
"Secure that man," said Desmond to two of the crew. He spoke curtly andsternly, with the air of one who expected his orders to be executedwithout question; though he felt a touch of anxiety lest the men shouldstill defy him. But they went about their task instantly without aword: Desmond's bold stand, and the swift overthrow of the big Gujarati,had turned the tide in his favour, and he thrilled with relief and keenpleasure that he was master of the situation.
While the ringleader of the mutineers was being firmly bound, Desmondturned to Nanna and said:
"Now, answer me at once. What is that place?"
"It is Kolaba, sahib."
"Where is Kolaba?"
"Two or three miles south of Bombay, sahib."
"Good. Run up the fore-topsail."
He went to the wheel.
"Thank you, serang. I will relieve you. Go forward and see that themen crowd on all sail."
The mutiny had been snuffed out; the men went about their work quietly,with the look of whipped dogs; and barring accidents Desmond knew thatbefore long he would make Bombay and be safe. With every stitch ofcanvas set, the vessel soon showed that she had the heels of herpursuers. Before she could draw clear, two of them came within rangewith their bow-chasers, and their shot whistled around somewhat tooclose to be comfortable. But she steadily drew ahead, and ere long itwas seen that the four grabs were being hopelessly outpaced. They keptup the chase for the best part of an hour, but as they neared theBritish port they recognized that they were running into danger and hadthe discretion to draw off.
Now that the pursuit was over Desmond ventured to steer due north-east,and the coast line became more distinctly visible. It was about twoo'clock in the afternoon, judging by the height of the sun, when theserang, pointing shorewards, said:
"There is Bombay, sahib."
"You are sure?"
"Yes; I know it by the cluster of palmyra trees. No one can mistakethem."
Moment by moment the town and harbour came more clearly into view.Desmond saw an extensive castle, a flag flying on its pinnacled roof,set amid a green mass of jungle and cocoa-nut forest, with a fewPortuguese-built houses dotted here and there. In front a narrowjungle-clad island, called, as he afterwards learnt, Old Woman Island,stretched like a spit into the sea. To the south of the fort was theBunder pier, with the warehouses at the shore end. Southward of thesewere the hospital and the doctor's house overlooking the harbour, whilehard by were the marine yard and the docks ensconced behind the royalbastion.
Feeling that he had nothing more to fear, Desmond ordered Fuzl Khan tobe cast loose and brought to him. The man wore a look of sullensurprise, which Desmond cheerfully ignored.
"Now, Fuzl Khan," he said, "we are running into Bombay harbour. Youknow the channel?"
The man grunted a surly affirmative.
"Well, you will take the helm, and steer us in to the most convenientmoorings."
He turned away, smiling at the look of utter consternation on theGujarati's face. To be trusted after his treacherous conduct wasevidently more than the man could understand. The easy unconcern withwhich Desmond walked away had its effect on the crew. When orders weregiven to take in sail they carried them out with promptitude, andDesmond chuckled as he saw them talking to one another in low tones anddiscussing him, as he guessed by their glances in his direction. TheGujarati performed his work at the helm skilfully, and about fiveo'clock, when the sun was setting, casting a romantic glow over the longstraggling settlement, the _Tremukji_ ran to her anchorage among a hostof small craft, within a few cables-lengths of the vessels of AdmiralWatson's squadron, which had arrived from Madras a few weeks before.