The Two Admirals (63 page)

Sir Gervaise smiled his approbation, and presently he saw the young man
ascending the main-rigging, though half concealed in smoke. Just at this
instant, Greenly ascended to the poop, from making a tour of observation
below. Without waiting for a question, the captain made his report.

"We are doing pretty well, now, Sir Gervaise, though the first broadside
of the Comte treated us roughly. I think his fire slackens, and Bury
says, he is certain that his fore-top-mast is already gone. At all
events, our lads are in good spirits, and as yet all the sticks keep
their places."

"I'm glad of this, Greenly; particularly of the latter, just at this
moment. I see you are looking at those signals—they cover the body of
poor Bunting."

"And this train of blood to the ladder, sir—I hope our young baronet is
not hurt?"

"No, it is one of the Bowlderos, who has lost a leg. I shall have to see
that he wants for nothing hereafter."

There was a pause; then both the gentlemen smiled, as they heard the
crashing work made by a shot just beneath them, which, by the sounds and
the direction, they knew had passed through Greenly's crockery. Still
neither spoke. After a few more minutes of silent observation, Sir
Gervaise remarked that he thought the flashes of the French guns more
distant than they had been at first, though, at that instant, not a
trace of their enemy was to be discovered, except in the roar of the
guns, and in these very flashes, and their effect on the Plantagenet.

"If so, sir, the Comte begins to find his berth too hot for him; here is
the wind still directly over
our
taffrail, such as it is."

"No—no—we steer as we began—I keep my eye on that compass below, and
am certain we hold a straight course. Go forward, Greenly, and see that
a sharp look-out is kept ahead. It is time some of our own ships should
be crippled; we must be careful not to run into them. Should such a
thing happen sheer hard to starboard, and pass
inside
."

"Ay—ay—Sir Gervaise; your wishes shall be attended to."

As this was said, Greenly disappeared, and, at the next instant,
Wycherly stood in his place.

"Well, sir—I am glad to see you back safe. If Greenly were here now,
he
would inquire about his
masts
, but
I
wish to know the position
of the
ships
."

"I am the bearer of bad news, sir. Nothing at all could be seen from the
top; but in the cross-trees, I got a good look through the smoke, and am
sorry to say the French rear-admiral is coming down fast on our
larboard-quarter, with all his force. We shall have him abeam in five
minutes."

"And Bluewater?" demanded Sir Gervaise, quick as lightning.

"I could see nothing of Admiral Bluewater's ships; but knowing the
importance of this intelligence, I came down immediately, and by the
back-stay."

"You have done well, sir. Send a midshipman forward for Captain Greenly;
then pass below yourself, and let the lieutenants in the batteries hear
the news. They must divide their people, and by all means give a prompt
and well-directed
first
broadside."

Wycherly waited for no more. He ran below with the activity of his
years. The message found Greenly between the knight-heads, but he
hurried aft to the poop to ascertain its object. It took Sir Gervaise
but a moment to explain it all to the captain.

"In the name of Heaven, what can the other division be about," exclaimed
Greenly, "that it lets the French rear-admiral come upon us, in a moment
like this!"

"Of that, sir, it is unnecessary to speak
now
," answered the
commander-in-chief, solemnly. "Our present business is to get ready for
this new enemy. Go into the batteries again, and, as you prize victory,
be careful not to throw away the first discharge, in the smoke."

As time pressed, Greenly swallowed his discontent, and departed. The
five minutes that succeeded were bitter minutes to Sir Gervaise Oakes.
Beside himself there were but five men on the poop; viz., the
quarter-master who tended the signals, and three of the Bowlderos. All
of these were using muskets as usual, though the vice-admiral never
permitted marines to be stationed at a point which he wished to be as
clear of smoke, and as much removed from bustle as possible. He began to
pace this comparatively vacant little deck with a quick step, casting
wistful glances towards the larboard-quarter; but though the smoke
occasionally cleared a little in that direction, the firing having much
slackened from exhaustion in the men, as well as from injuries given and
received, he was unable to detect any signs of a ship. Such was the
state of things when Wycherly returned and reported that his orders
were delivered, and part of the people were already in the
larboard-batteries.

"And oh, the little warlike world within!
The well-reeved guns, the netted canopy,
The hoarse command, the busy humming din.
When at a word, the tops are manned on high:
Hark to the boatswain's call, the cheering cry!
While through the seaman's hand the tackle glides,
Or school-boy midshipman, that, standing by,
Strains his shrill pipe, as good or ill betides,
And well the docile crew that skilful urchin guides."

BYRON.

"Are you quite sure, Sir Wycherly Wychecombe, that there is not some
mistake about the approach of the rear division of the French?" inquired
the vice-admiral, endeavouring to catch some glimpse of the water,
through the smoke on the larboard hand. "May not some crippled ship of
our own have sheered from the line, and been left by us, unknowingly, on
that side?"

"No, Sir Gervaise, there is
no
mistake; there
can
be none, unless I
may have been deceived a little in the distance. I saw nothing but the
sails and spars, not of a single vessel, but of
three
ships; and one
of them wore the flag of a French rear-admiral at the mizzen. As a proof
that I was not mistaken, sir, there it is this minute!"

The smoke on the off side of the Plantagenet, as a matter of course, was
much less dense than that on the side engaged, and the wind beginning to
blow in eddies, as ever happens in a heavy cannonade, there were moments
in which it cast aside the "shroud of battle." At that instant an
opening occurred through which a single mast, and a single sail were
visible, in the precise spot where Wycherly had stated the enemy might
be looked for. It was a mizzen-top-sail, beyond a question, and above it
was fluttering the little square flag of the rear-admiral. Sir Gervaise
decided on the character of the vessel, and on his own course, in an
instant. Stepping to the edge of the poop, with his natural voice,
without the aid of a trumpet of any sort, he called out in tones that
rose above the roar of the contest, the ominous but familiar nautical
words of "stand by!" Perhaps a call from powerful lungs (and the
vice-admiral's voice, when he chose to use it, was like the blast of a
clarion) is clearer and more impressive, when unaided by instruments,
than when it comes disguised and unnatural through a tube. At any rate,
these words were heard even on the lower deck, by those who stood near
the hatches. Taking them up, they were repeated by a dozen voices, with
such expressions as "Look out, lads; Sir Jarvy's awake!" "Sight your
guns!" "Wait till she's square!" and other similar admonitions that it
is usual for the sea-officer to give, as he is about to commence the
strife. At this critical moment, Sir Gervaise again looked up, and
caught another glimpse of the little flag, as it passed into a vast
wreath of smoke; he saw that the ship was fairly abeam, and, as if
doubling all his powers, he shouted the word "fire!" Greenly was
standing on the lower-deck ladder, with his head just even with the
coamings of the hatch, as this order reached him, and he repeated it in
a voice scarcely less startling. The cloud on the larboard side was
driven in all directions, like dust scattered by wind. The ship seemed
on fire, and the missiles of forty-one guns flew on their deadly errand,
as it might be at a single flash. The old Plantagenet trembled to her
keel, and even bowed a little at the recoils, but, like one suddenly
relieved from a burthen, righted and went on her way none the less
active. That timely broadside saved the English commander-in-chiefs ship
from an early defeat. It took the crew of le Pluton, her new adversary,
by surprise; for they had not been able to distinguish the precise
position of their enemy; and, besides doing vast injury to both hull and
people, drew her fire at an unpropitious moment. So uncertain and hasty,
indeed, was the discharge the French ship gave in return, that no small
portion of the contents of her guns passed ahead of the Plantagenet, and
went into the larboard quarter of le Téméraire, the French admiral's
second ahead.

"That was a timely salute," said Sir Gervaise, smiling as soon as the
fire of his new enemy had been received without material injury. "The
first blow is always half the battle. We may now work on with some hopes
of success. Ah! here comes Greenly again, God be praised! unhurt."

The meeting of these two experienced seamen was cordial, but not without
great seriousness. Both felt that the situation of not only the ship,
but of the whole fleet, was extremely critical, the odds being much too
great, and the position of the enemy too favourable, not to render the
result, to say the very least, exceedingly doubtful. Some advantage had
certainly been obtained, thus far; but there was little hope of
preserving it long. The circumstances called for very decided and
particularly bold measures.

"My mind is made up, Greenly," observed the vice-admiral. "We must go
aboard of one of these ships, and make it a hand-to-hand affair. We will
take the French commander-in-chief; he is evidently a good deal cut up
by the manner in which his fire slackens, and if we can carry him, or
even force him out of the line, it will give us a better chance with the
rest. As for Bluewater, God only knows what has become of him! He is not
here at any rate, and we must help ourselves."

"You have only to order, Sir Gervaise, to be obeyed. I will lead the
boarders, myself."

"It must be a general thing, Greenly; I rather think we shall all of us
have to go aboard of le Foudroyant. Go, give the necessary orders, and
when every thing is ready, round in a little on the larboard braces,
clap your helm a-port, and give the ship a rank sheer to starboard. This
will bring matters to a crisis at once. By letting the fore-sail fall,
and setting the spanker, you might shove the ship ahead a little
faster."

Greenly instantly left the poop on this new and important duty. He sent
his orders into the batteries, bidding the people remain at their guns,
however, to the last moment; and particularly instructing the captain of
marines, as to the manner in which he was to cover, and then follow the
boarding-party. This done, he gave orders to brace forward the yards, as
directed by Sir Gervaise.

The reader will not overlook the material circumstance that all we have
related occurred amid the din of battle. Guns were exploding at each
instant, the cloud of smoke was both thickening and extending, fire was
flashing in the semi-obscurity of its volumes, shot were rending the
wood and cutting the rigging, and the piercing shrieks of agony, only so
much the more appalling by being extorted from the stern and resolute,
blended their thrilling accompaniments. Men seemed to be converted into
demons, and yet there was a lofty and stubborn resolution to conquer
mingled with all, that ennobled the strife and rendered it heroic. The
broadsides that were delivered in succession down the line, as ship
after ship of the rear division reached her station, however, proclaimed
that Monsieur des Prez had imitated Sir Gervaise's mode of closing, the
only one by means of which the leading vessel could escape destruction,
and that the English were completely doubled on. At this moment, the
sail-trimmers of the Plantagenet handled their braces. The first pull
was the last. No sooner were the ropes started, than the fore-top-mast
went over the bows, dragging after it the main with all its hamper, the
mizzen snapping like a pipe-stem, at the cap. By this cruel accident,
the result of many injuries to shrouds, back-stays, and spars, the
situation of the Plantagenet became worse than ever; for, not only was
the wreck to be partially cleared, at least, to fight many of the
larboard guns, but the command of the ship was, in a great measure,
lost, in the centre of one of the most infernal
mêlées
that ever
accompanied a combat at sea.

At no time does the trained seaman ever appear so great, as when he
meets sudden misfortunes with the steadiness and quiet which it is a
material part of the
morale
of discipline to inculcate. Greenly was
full of ardour for the assault, and was thinking of the best mode of
running foul of his adversary, when this calamity occurred; but the
masts were hardly down, when he changed all his thoughts to a new
current, and called out to the sail-trimmers to "lay over, and clear the
wreck."

Sir Gervaise, too, met with a sudden and violent check to the current of
his feelings. He had collected his Bowlderos, and was giving his
instructions as to the manner in which they were to follow, and keep
near his person, in the expected hand-to-hand encounter, when the heavy
rushing of the air, and the swoop of the mass from above, announced what
had occurred. Turning to the men, he calmly ordered them to aid in
getting rid of the incumbrances, and was in the very act of directing
Wycherly to join in the same duty, when the latter exclaimed—

"See, Sir Gervaise, here comes another of the Frenchmen close upon our
quarter. By heavens,
they
must mean to board!"