Watery Grave (15 page)

I woke next morning to bright sunlight and a glorious smell of the sea. This was not the dirty, refuse-and-ordure-laden Thames beneath our window but the great, broad, shining sea. I bounded out of bed and went as swift as silent feet could carry me to that window that I might look upon what I smelled.

Indeed I found it there before me, but upon it—what a sight, what riches to the eye! —rode at anchor what seemed to me to be the entire Royal Navy. (It was not, of course: there were ships at Spithead, a few at Bristol, and others on duty at every point of the compass.) I, to whom the frigate
Adventure
seemed uncommonly large, was quite unprepared to find two or three others of its dimensions and shape so close at hand. Even less was I ready for the great men-of-war, giant ships of seventy-four and eighty guns that were anchored farther out in the harbor. But there were others —sloops, dinghies, cutters, skiffs —boats and ships of every size and shape. Some smaller boats moved here and there across the great mouth of the port, but most were relatively stationary, bobbing in the morning sun. To my mind, the naked masts, the spars whereon were fixed the furled sails, gave the harbor the appearance of a lightly moving forest. I had no idea it would look so.

Wanting to see more than the window could reveal, I washed and dressed quickly, remembering Tom Durham’s advice and pulling on my clean shirt and stockings. I did what I could to subdue my wild hair, surveyed the results in the looking glass hanging on the wall, and decided they were satisfactory Then I sat down to wait.

Sir John had slept soundly through all my preparations and gave everv sign of sleeping on through the rest of the morning. Well, he couldn’t do that, of course: he must at least be present during the interrogation of the ship’s surgeon who had lately served on the frigate
Adventure
. And if I knew Sir John well, he would do more than listen. I thought perhaps I should wake him. Could it be done discreetly? I let out a quiet cough. His slow, deep, regular breathing continued undisturbed. I coughed again louder and managed to stir him — but only that. Perhaps it would be too early to wake him, in any case. I only wished to ask his permission to go out and take a better look at the harbor. Surely he would give it. Why wake him at all? Perhaps it would be best to leave quietly and see the time on the clock downstairs. Then, if it was time to wake him, I would return and do the job proper. And while downstairs, I might just go out and take a peek at the harbor. What could it hurt?

And so I left quietly, unlocking the door, pulling it shut silently after me. Then down the stairs and into a kind of sitting room that I had bare noticed when we arrived the night before. The George, as it was called, was a large inn, with a floor above our own and as many rooms as one would find in one of the grand inns of London. I wandered about the sitting room and found the clock easily enough, a great standing thing taller than myself.

“Well, young sir, you are an early riser.”

It was then, standing before the clock, I saw that it was but half past six.

The gentleman who had spoken, surely the innkeeper himself, was a healthy-looking fellow with a round belly and a rubicund face. He had in hand a large tray upon which he gathered glasses and bottles which littered the sitting room and beyond.

“I had not known it was quite so early, ” said I.

“Nothing to be ashamed of,” said he. “I’m the early riser in my family. My son closes up at night, sells spirits and wine to all the young lieutenants who drink the clock around. Since I’m up at five, no matter what, I do the tidying up. But you —what about you? What brings you down so early?”

I gave that some thought.” Since it is to me falls the job of building the stove fire each morning in our household,” said I, “then I must be accustomed to it so that I wake at six, no matter where or what the circumstance.”

“We are all of us creatures of habit,” said he.

“I thought to go outside for a better view of the harbor.”

“Aye, we have a good one.” But then he considered a bit and added a caution: “I would, however, stay close to the inn if I was you. The gangs have been about these past days, and a boy alone, such as yourself, is just what they seek.”

“I’ll remember what you say, sir.”

“Do that, young fellow,” said he, turning to his work, “and a good morning to you.”

I walked out the front door of the inn a little puzzled. What were these gangs who sought young boys such as myself? There were gangs aplenty in London which assembled to rob and do burglary. But to steal boys off the street? No, I had never heard of such a thing. What would they do? Sell them in slavery to the Turks? Surely the Royal Navy would not allow that —and Portsmouth was then, as it is still, the Navy’s home. Perhaps I should have inquired more of the innkeeper.

Yet so taken was I by the view and the smell of that sea air that I did not return to ask questions. I took it in and walked a long walk around the place for still a better prospect. This was the side of the George that faced direct upon the harbor. What I saw was that the port was even larger and wider than I had first thought —and there were even more ships anchored about, some of them in corners quite close in. Some were docked off far to the right. I looked and looked and breathed in the air. Ah, but it was grand!

But would it not be even grander if I were to see it closer? I was not far from the seawall there at water’s edge. Surely I could see more and even better there. So, putting my trust in the Royal Navy that order would be maintained at its home, and assuring myself that I had never heard tell of a gang of any sort that did their villainy at half past six in the morning, I ventured away from the inn and headed down toward the seawall.

Reader, I never reached it. For halfway there, at a corner of the street, I was set upon by a group of men lying in wait for one just such as me —naive, innocent, and ignorant of their foul tricks.

They were remarkably quiet for so many. I had no warning whatever. As I cleared the corner where they had sequestered themselves, I was quite swarmed upon. They were five in number — grown men, armed with battens with which they threatened me as I was grabbed and dragged back. Oh, I fought —indeed I did! And I yelled out in protest so loud I must have wakened all in the surrounding houses who still slept, which of course was my intention. Yet none rushed out to save me. How could they be indifferent to the predicament of a poor lad? What manner of people were these who resided in Portsmouth?

I was pushed, pulled, and dragged back to a sixth in their party. And what then should I discover but that he wore the uniform of a lieutenant in the Royal Navy? Astonished, amazed I was that one in such a position of trust and authority should take part in criminal practices. But as I stood panting before him, silenced by my surprise, it occurred to me that those who now held me were themselves in rough seaman’s dress. Could there be villainous gangs organized within the Navy?

“Will this one do, sor?” asked one of the seagoing ruffians.

“Let me have a look,” said the lieutenant dubiously.

And he began prodding and poking me about, squeezing me here and there.

“Stop!” said I, who was in no wise customed to be treated as so much meat upon the hoof.” I am a freeborn Englishman.”

“Oh, are you?” said he with a proper sneer.” Well, this, my lad, is how we treat such impudence as yours.”

He then gave my ears a thorough boxing with the palms of his hands. It had never before been done to me (and for that matter never was again). Held tight as I was, there was naught I could do but suffer the indignity and endure the ringing of my ears afterward, as he intended.

“He will do, I suppose. He’s certainly no plowboy, but lean as he is, he might one day make a topman.”

“I’ll say this, sor. He’s stronger’n he looks.”

“Well, that is reassuring.” Then to me the lieutenant said: “Tell me, Mr. Freeborn Englishman, are you resident of Portsmouth?”

“Indeed I am not, ” said I hotly.” I am a Londoner and proud to be.”

“Perfect,” said the lieutenant.” Take him to the boat.”

With that, my captors turned me round and began shoving and pulling me along toward the seawall, where, I presumed, a boat waited. I thought to break away and outrun them to the inn. Yet with two on either side, hands grasping my shoulders from the rear, and the chief of the seamen in front with a firm hold of my wrist, escape seemed quite impossible. I thought then perhaps to reason with the lieutenant.

“Sir,” I called back to him, “I am an assistant to Sir John Fielding. We came to Portsmouth with Vice-Admiral Sir Robert Redmond.”

“Ah, tell me another, lad. Why not the Lord High Admiral himself”

“We stay at the George. You may go there and ask if you do not believe me.”

“No time for that. Must be on our way.”

And so, having no choice in the matter, I marched along silently a few steps; then hearing a solitary walker behind us, I hung back a bit, allowing myself to be pushed and dragged along, yet slowing us down so that I could tell by the steps on the cobblestones that we were about to be overtaken. Then I threw back my head and yelled out lustily:

“Help! I am being kidnapped. Raise the hue and cry!”

And so I got a sound thwack with a batten on the backside for my trouble, then another. Yet I had succeeded in stopping the party while I took my punishment, and I aroused the curiosity of the passerby.

He turned out to be none other than the admiral’s adjutant, Lieutenant Byner.

“Mr. Byner! Sir!” I called to him.

He looked at me with mild curiosity, said his hello, and started on his way again.

“But tell them who I am!”

He stopped again and made the face of one in a sudden agony of thought.

“Oh, what of your name?” he asked himself.” Jeremy, isn’t it? As for your surname, I know it was given me when we met, but I’m just not good at names at all. So ‘Jeremy’ will have to do. Hello, Jeremy.”

“But did I not ride with you and the admiral here to Portsmouth?”

“Yes, of course.” Then he frowned.” Ah, I see! You’re in some sort of difficulty, are you? Like me to vouch for you?”

“Indeed I would! ‘

By this time I had at least managed to create a bit of confusion among this gang of villains. The seamen looked at one another uncomfortably, and their chief in crime, the lieutenant, stepped forward and introduced himself to Mr. Byner. Lieutenant Byner introduced himself, as well, and the two shook hands like gentlemen. They chitchatted for a couple of minutes, then in low voices discussed my situation. I was at last relieved when I heard Mr. Byner say something about the admiral not liking that at all.” Cause him a bit of embarrassment, you know.”

“Ah, well, you may have him then. I confess he did say something about all that, but I chose not to believe him. We hear so many stories, you know —a wife and seven children to maintain, that sort of thing.”

“Oh, I’m sure you do.”

“But can’t embarrass the admiral, can we?” The villainous lieutenant looked to his partners in crime.” All right, fellows, back where we were. It worked well for us once. It may work again.”

They left me reluctantly and without apology as I gave Mr. Byner profuse thanks for his intercession.

“Well,” said he, “that was quite a near thing for you, wasn’t it? If I hadn’t come along when I did, you would not have been heard from for three years — two, at least.”

“Would the Turks then have let me go?”

“Turks? What have they to do with it? Don’t you understand who those fellows were? That was a recruiting party from the H.M.S. Steadfast out in the harbor. Damn shame it was you they picked up and not some other. That’s the very ship I’m off to in order to fetch that fellow MacNaughton back to the George so we may question him. I could have gone out with them. I suppose I’ll find a bumboat about which’ll work just as well. So I’ll be off now.”

“Again, with my thanks, sir.”

He started away, then called back: “This should take a while. Tell them not to expect me for at least an hour.”

And he continued on his way.

I ran back to the George at full speed, not wishing the recruiting party to suffer a change of heart and pick me up again. Inside the inn, I did not stop to thank the innkeeper for his kind warning which I had so carelessly ignored. But rather, I went straight to the room I shared with Sir John and burst in to tell him what had happened.

“Who is there?” said he in mild alarm.” Is it you, Jeremy?”

He was out of bed and half dressed.

“It is, sir. And I have something remarkable to relate.” I was quite out of breath.

“Well, first fetch some hot water, for I need you to shave me. You may tell me your story as you attend to it.”

And that, of course, is what I did. As I lathered him up, I began my tale, which, with a multitude of details, I made last through one of my special twice-over near shaves. In response, at certain points in the telling he would let out a grunt, yet he attempted to say nothing until I had wiped his face dry with a towel.

“Well, you have learned a thing or two, haven’t you?” said he.” Primarily, I suppose, you have learned not to ignore a warning, even when it is not fully understood.”

“Ah, but more important, and all too sadly, you have learned something of one of the most execrable practices of the Royal Navy. Such recruitment parties, or to give them their more popular and accurate name, ‘press gangs,’ operate freely wherever magistrates permit them. I will not allow them in my jurisdiction. They pull men off the streets indiscriminately and press them into service. They stop merchant vessels and take their pick of the crew. It all began in wartime —which war I cannot say. For it is such an ancient practice —when the need For men was desperate, but now even in peacetime it continues whenever they are in need of men; it is a form of slavery, certainly. Mr. Byner was quite right. Had they succeeded in sailing off with you aboard the Steadfast, you would simply have disappeared For at least two years, more likely longer. We would have grieved, thought you dead, until such time as you could get a letter back to us.