CHAPTER XVI.
AN HONEST MAN ARRIVES.
Now when we got up to the surface again, I taking with me one of the bags of gold coins to show the Captain, we were very much astonished to see that, moored alongside of our ship was another--a small craft such as is known in England as a "snow," which is generally very fast in sailing, having a main and a foresail, as well as a trysail mast. And as I looked round after getting my head free again, I did see on her stern a great gilt star and the words "Etoyle, Provydence," so now I knew what she was, and, perhaps whence she came, or at least that she was from one of the Provydences. Leaning over her bows and watching us as we arose--with a twinkle in his eye, which squinted somewhat, when he saw the Coromantee--was a man whom I guessed to be the skipper, a great yellow person with a shock of black curly hair, so that I thought he must be a Mustee, and with a big slash, or scar, all along his face. And leaning over, too, were several others, sailors, all regarding us fixedly. Their eyes were set upon the bag of coins at once with, as I thought, an eager gleam in them, and then their Captain hails me and says:
"What luck below, shipmate?" to which I did but grunt a word, not knowing how things stood as yet. But now comes forward Phips, who says to him:
"Captain Alderly, this is our first lieutenant, who is in charge of the diving at present;" and then he turns to me and says, "Crafer, our friend has been here before--that is his ship's boat drawn up on the isle--and he thinks he should have a share of the spoil, since he found the wreck before us--so he says."
"Does he, indeed?" I replied; "'tis strange, then, that he took not away the spoil when he found it;" and I fixed my eye on him to see what he would reply, for since, as I say, we were moored close alongside, every word spoken on one deck could be heard on the other.
"Ay, ay," says that skipper, "and so I should indeed, and came here hoping to get all. But of what avail is hope? My little snow cannot fight your great vessel of two hundred tons, and we both sail under the English flag. And therefore, since I am an honest man and peaceable, I must, perforce, lose my chance. But your Captain says, sir," he went on, addressing me, "that I may have a percentum on what I help to bring up, and that must suffice. Yet, 'tis hard on an honest man!"
"Ay," says Phips, nodding his head, though I did observe him closely and saw that his eyes were ever on the other. "Ay, 'tis hard on an honest man! Yet, Captain Alderly, I think your percentum will pay you very well for your trip from the Bahamas."
"Not so well as the gross," replies the other, "but, as I say, it must suffice. Yet 'tis hard. I have brought with me--indeed, went back for him--a most expert diver, who I thought should have gotten me all, and now he must work for another. 'Tis hard! 'tis hard! Yet an honest man must not repine so long as he can earn his living in these times."
Now, that night when we sat as was our custom taking some drink together, while, since the arrival of our new friend, the watch was doubled, Phips says to me:
"Nick, I do believe that honest man is as big a scoundrel as ever hung at the yard-arm. For, firstly, if he does not come from Provydence in the Gulph of Mexico--which is infested with buccaneers and pirates--instead of Provydence in the Bahamas, I am much mistook, and, secondly, I am certain that he and that infernal blackamoor are known to one another. I have seen already glances between them, and it is my belief that when the negro was drinking, as he said, at Porto, he was devising some scheme with this fellow."
"But," replied I, "even so, what can they do? Naught can come up from the wreck unperceived by us, nor could his diver get down by night without our knowing it. Therefore we are safe."
"Yes," says he, "we are safe so long as we are never caught asleep. Now, as for the diving, what we will do is this. His man shall go always with Woods, and, since you like the office, the Coromantee with you. What say you, Nick?"
"I like it very well," replied I; "or all can go down together. If you are above to see to the hauling up, there can be no picking nor stealing."
So this we agreed upon, and then Phips went on to tell me of the arrival of the Etoyle while I was below. She came, it seemed, round by our little isle, and, on being challenged by Phips as she drew near, hoisted a friendly signal, so was allowed to approach, especially as she flew the English flag. Then the skipper told the Captain that he was extremely distressed to find so large a ship there forestalling him, since, having discovered the reef some months ago, he had gone back to the Bahamas to fetch a diver and to refit, and so on.
"However," says Phips, "I soon gave him to see that, even if he had been here before--which I could not dispute because of the boat at the isle--he had indeed been forestalled and missed his chance. And also I told him that we had been for four years searching for this very wreck, that we held the King's patent for fishing for it, and that we meant in no way to be thwarted or interfered with. For, says I to him, even though we had no papers, but were only pirates or buccaneers, still we would go on with our task and trust to our shotted guns--as they always are now--to help us. So then," continued Phips, "he sees that he has no chance, and asks if he cannot help in the fishing, to which I answered, 'Very willing, if you chose to do so at a fair rate.' And being anxious to get the work done and to get back home, I have given to him the same terms as to Geronimo and his sweet Blackamoor."
"Tis well, sir," says I, "and now we need fear nought. While, if that negro in any way plays us false, we will shoot him like a dog. Shall we not, Captain?"
"Ay," replies he, "we will, or, since they say the sharks will not eat black meat, we will make an experiment of him, and see for ourselves."
So now, therefore, when the morning was come all was arranged, and, to commence, down went the three divers, and I along with them. Our plan now was to clear the whole of the middle deck of all in it, and then to break up the top part of the ship sufficient to get down to the lower or orlop deck, where the bullion room of the Spanish ships was ever placed. So we got to work, sending up at once everything found, and a mighty great find it was. All cabins not in use for the officers of the ship were full of passengers away home to their country, and all these were, it was plain to be seen, rich persons. Their bodies were found frequently--all skeletons, like unto the others--and in some cases 'twas strange to see how they strived to preserve what they most esteemed of value. Thus, round one, a female, as again the hair close by denoted, which was red, slightly fleck't with grisel, there was on the bony neck a great rope of diamonds, each as big as a nut, that all sparkled and glistened in the water, and round each wristbone there was the same in bracelets. Poor thing! perhaps she feared to be robbed and so slept thus. Then again, there was a bed, or berth, in another cabin, out of which the body had been cast by the shock and lay in a disjointed mass of bones in the corner, but in the bed itself, under a pillow, we found a great pouch of goat's skin all full of unset diamonds, rubies, and blue stones called sapphires, and also a belt full of great Spanish pieces of gold, weighing five of our elephant guineas each.
And thus we went along, ransacking of every cabin, finding chests here and coffers there, full of precious stones and jewels, with bags of money and skins too, as well as, in several cases, parchment drafts drawn upon the old bank of Barcelona and the Treasury of Castile. Poor creatures! They had taken all thought to get themselves and their monies and valuables home to their land in safety. Yet had they not gotten many score leagues upon their way ere all was lost, life and everything. Nay, had they made straight for Spain, instead of coming on to Hispaniola, as they must have done to be here, they had not been lost at all.
And now we had done with the middle deck, there was nought more to take away; for though there were many rich silks and satins, and so forth, all was spoilt by the water, as was their spirituous liquors and their wines, of which there was a good supply. So, after going above for to refresh ourselves, we were now ready to cut away this deck that we might descend to the place where the plate was.
"'Tis a good find already," said Phips to me, as I sat at meat with him, "a fair good find, Nick; and by the time we have got up the silver we shall well have justified ourselves to our promoters. Of jewels and coin already sent up by you, there are many thousands of pounds' worth--and for the plate it shall bring us well up to the mark."
Then he went on to ask me, "How I found the divers working, and if I saw any sign of anything like treachery upon the part either of the Black or the Provydence diver?" And, since I could not say that I had witnessed aught that appeared to me suspicious, he said he was very glad; and so we fell to it again for the afternoon.
All that time we spent in getting the middle deck cleared away as much as might be, and in removing a great part of her starboard side, especially by her orlop beam. Also we did cut away all her timbers between her lower ports, so as to make a sufficient big opening through which to enter, and removed all between her fourth and second futtock. So that now her stern part, or at least all that below her poop and quarter deck, was open to us and gave great space. And from here we could progress right below her gun deck and waist and get up almost to her main wale, or to where her fore part began to be bruised and smashed on to the reef.
Now, therefore, we had got her bullion room clear of all encumbrances, so that there was nought to do but to burst it open--it being most securely locked with great Spanish locks that looked as though they would defy all attempts except powder to open them. Yet one thing else did we see: namely, that down on the larboard side--which, as I have writ, lay on the bottom--the ship had somewhat bulged forth and some of its treasures come out.
For we could observe great bars of silver lying on the bed of the sea, mostly encrusted with the limestone, yet with some part sticking forth and glistening brightly. One piece alone, a great sow of silver which had fallen from the bursted bullion room, was so heavy that all of our united strengths could not lift it, nor could aught be done until, with their axes, the divers had broken away its crust accumulated in fifty years.
However, at last we got it fastened to the hauling up lines and it was towed up--not without great fears to us below that it might break away and fall upon us, smashing in our heads--and when it was weighed that night we found it to be of about fifty-six pounds.
And this was the beginning of the fishing up of the plate.