CHAPTER IX
HOLDING UP "L'?GALIT?"
ARNOLD CARDYKE was the first to recover from the effect of thenoxious vapour. He had been sleeping nearest to the entrance to theconning-tower, and had thus more air than his companions. For somemoments he lay wondering where he was. He tried to call out, but nosound came from his parched lips. Then, between him and the reddishlight that seemed to encircle him, came a huge dark object thatpresently resolved itself into the shape of a man--one of the pirateofficers. Good heavens! The partial truth swept across his mind.Desperately he struggled to rise and arouse his comrades, butrealising that he was bound and weak, he rolled helplessly across thebody of Hokosuka.
The weight of the mid.'s frame expelled a quantity of the chloroformfumes from the Japanese's chest, and with a grunt Hokosuka opened hiseyes. In his effort to dislodge Cardyke the Asiatic prodded Fieldingon the back, and the sub., already well on the road to consciousness,also began to realise his position.
"What's wrong, Cardyke?" he asked. "Why, I----" Then the truth wasrevealed in all its unpleasantness. He and his comrades were oncemore in the power of Juan Cervillo and his piratical crew.
"We've made a mess of it, sir," said Cardyke, who contrived to raisehimself into a sitting posture.
"And all my fault," groaned the sub. "I fell asleep at my post. Iought to be----"
"We were drugged, or something like that," interrupted the mid. "Ican't see that any blame can be attached to you. What's done cannotbe helped, although it may be undone, in spite of the proverb."
Fielding sat up, and found that his ankles and wrists were secured byleather straps. His head seemed to spin round like a top for a fewmoments, but gradually the sensation of nausea left him. It did nottake him long to discover that the _Independencia_ had altered hercourse. By the position of the sun the sub. concluded that thedirection in which she was heading was approximately N.W. by N. Asfar as he could command the horizon there were no other ships insight--only a vast expanse of Atlantic rollers.
"Here comes that scoundrel," exclaimed Cardyke, and turning his headFielding saw Juan Cervillo approaching.
The Spaniard, who never could boast of good looks, had his appearancesomewhat disfigured from the result of the blow he had received inthe sortie from the conning-tower, while his greasy features weresallow from the effects of the chloroform which he had inhaled.
With a supercilious grin Juan Cervillo stood in front of hisprostrate captives, gloating over their plight. He could, heimagined, subject them to indignity with impunity now, but he had yetto learn caution.
Mukyima was stealthily regarding the Spaniard out of the corners ofhis narrow eyes. Slowly the lithe body and limbs of the Japanesecontracted. Then like a stone from a catapult, Mukyima, bound as hewas, hurled himself upon his foe.
Juan Cervillo saw the human thunderbolt flying towards him just inthe nick of time. He gave a hurried leap aside, caught his foot in aring-bolt, and subsided in a most undignified manner upon aparticularly aggressive fairlead. As for the Japanese, he had takenthe precaution of tucking his head well forward. His shoulders camein contact with a canvas "storm-dodger," and, rebounding, he, too,flopped on the deck.
Juan Cervillo did not wait for a second spring from the wiry Jap, butregaining his feet rushed away shouting for assistance. Half-a-dozenof the strongest of the pirate crew had a tough struggle ere theyoverpowered Mukyima; but they did it at length, lashing the Asiaticto a capstan-bar so that he was as helpless as a log.
"Me teach you!" hissed the pirate captain. "You dogs!--when I done,den ober de side I put you!"
Turning to his men he gave a lengthy order. Mukyima was borne awayfor'ard, the other captives, including the coxswain, wereunceremoniously bundled below, and placed in the same cabin fromwhich they had before escaped.
It did not take the sub. and his comrades long to free themselves ofthe straps that bound them. Fielding's first act, in recovering theuse of his limbs, was to hasten to the scuttle. The pirates had takendue precautions this time. The glass had been removed, and a massiveiron bar, placed across the frame of the scuttle, was secured bymeans of the lock-nut, the thread of which had been bent and burredso that it was impossible, without the aid of a file or hack-saw, toremove the bar from its position.
"Well, we can look out, and see what's going on; that's one comfort,"exclaimed Fielding, optimistically. "What have you found, Cardyke?"For the midshipman, rummaging in a locker, had discovered a loaf ofbread, some ship's biscuits, a jar of water, and a tin pannikin.
"We won't starve just yet, in any case," observed the mid.
The pangs of hunger had rounded off the unappetising appearance ofthe stale loaf and the "hard tack," and the water, though notparticularly fresh, tasted sweet to the parched mouths of thehostages.
"Poison?" asked Oki, interrogatively.
"I think not," replied Fielding. "If they wanted to choke us off theywould have done so before now; besides, the food doesn't looktempting enough. A sumptuous repast would be more suspicious."
About four o'clock the cruiser eased down. Knowing that something wasabout to happen, the captives took turns at looking through thescuttle. For some time nothing beyond sky and sea was visible, butwhen the _Independencia_ described a half circle Cardyke announcedthat she had compelled a huge liner to heave-to.
"A Frenchman, by Jove!" exclaimed Fielding. "Now what's thegame--more scuttling?"
The transatlantic liner's decks were crowded with passengers, whowere regarding the cruiser with the greatest interest, for the_Independencia_ had hoisted the white ensign, and with their faith inthe _entente cordiale_, the Frenchmen never for one moment harbouredany suspicion.
Suddenly a four-pounder boomed out, and a shell hissed betwixt thehuge funnels of _L'?galit?_. Like a crowd of startled rabbits, thepassengers rushed pell-mell for the companion ladders. Had warsuddenly broken out between Great Britain and France? They were notlong left in doubt. As soon as the liner came to a standstill, twoboats were lowered from the cruiser. Into them tumbled fifty men, allarmed to the teeth.
"_Ciel!_" gasped the astounded French captain. "They are not JohnBull's bluejackets. They are pirates."
His worst suspicions were confirmed when the white ensign was struckand a red flag hoisted in its place, while slowly the 'midshipsbarbette on the starboard side, actuated by manual power, was turnedtill its pair of 12 in. guns were trained upon the luckless liner.
The French captain did not know that the huge weapons were withoutbreech-blocks, but the frowning muzzles were far more terrifying tohim than the quick-firers. Unresistingly he allowed the boats to comealongside, and the lawless mob to swarm over the liner's lofty sides.
The pirates went about their work in a systematic manner. Four ofthem went straight to the wireless-room, and interrupting an urgentcall for aid, drove out the operators, and put the delicate mechanismout of action. Others, making the captain prisoner, and driving therest of the officers into the smoking-room, compelled the former tosend for the ship's papers. The whole of the specie and bullion wastransferred to the boats, together with the wealthiest and mostinfluential of the passengers. This done the terrified first andsecond-class passengers were made to hand over their money andjewellery, the steerage being left unmolested.
Very little resistance was shown by the passengers. An Americanmillionaire who had made a pile in Nevada, promptly whipped out asix-shooter, vowing he'd send the cowardly Dagoes to blazes. He wasquick and deadly with his pistol, and four of the pirates pitchedforward on the floor of the saloon; but one man against a score wastoo long odds, and the tough old backwoodsman fell riddled withbullets.
Having taken all the bullion and specie, together with the hostages,to the _Independencia_, the pirates proceeded to cripple the engines,leaving the liner helpless in the Atlantic. But they had not donewith their prize, for directly the two boats returned to the cruiserJuan Cervillo ordered _L'?galit?_ to hoist out her own boats, fillthem with provisions and stores, and bring them alo
ngside the_Independencia_. Under a threat that the liner would be sunk if thedemand were not complied with, the captain of _L'?galit?_ hastened tocarry out Cervillo's order.
Two hours later, with her store-rooms filled to their utmostcapacity, and nearly a million and a quarter pounds' worth ofadditional booty in her strong-room, the _Independencia_ bade anironical farewell to the helpless liner.
From their place of confinement Fielding and his companions hadwatched the work of plunder and wanton destruction. They had seen theeasy way by which the cruiser had replenished her stores, and thecontinuation of the policy of bringing off hostages to the ship inorder to prevent any punitive vessel from firing at the modernbuccaneer.
Cardyke turned to the sub.
"This can't go on for long," he remarked. "What will the end be?"
"Goodness only knows," rejoined Fielding; "but we've a tough timebefore us!"