“The ship’s a-sinking,” cried one. “She won’t stand up for an hour.”
As he spoke, the welcome sound of, “Sail ho!” arose, above the wash and roar of the angry water.
Sure enough, a ship was bearing down upon them, but, to the dismay of all, she hastily hauled off again.
Captain Walker was astonished. “She thinks us an armed enemy,” said he. “Fire a gun, men, and cut the mizzen-mast in two, so that it falls overboard. That will show the stranger that we’re a friend in distress.”
His orders were immediately obeyed and the mast came ripping and tearing over the side. A gun also roared, and the stranger, now convinced that the ship was a friend, and not a foe, came bearing down upon the crippled Duke William, to the rescue.
“She’s one of our own convoy!” shouted a seaman, waving his hand joyfully. And such she proved to be. Captain Walker had saved his crew by his foresight and quickness of decision. Had he thrown all of his cannon overboard he would have had no gun with which to hail the stranger, and, had he not cut away his own mast, she would have gone away, fearful that he was an enemy. Three cheers for the brave and thoughtful Captain Walker! He reached England, at last, but he and his men were in a sorry plight, for the vessel which had rescued them was almost as unseaworthy as their own, which sank in a great whirl of eddying foam, not half an hour after they had left her. Thus ended the career of the good ship which had chased all of the pirates away from the harbor of Charleston. A sad fate, indeed, for such a gallant craft.
Captain Walker was not long idle, for he soon took charge of a brigantine trading to the Baltic Sea, in spite of the fact that war had been declared with France, and the privateers and gun-boats of that nation hovered in his path, eager and anxious to secure some English merchant vessel, as a prize.
“I see that these fellows mean to catch me, if they can,” said the keen-witted mariner. “So I intend to be ready for them if I do not happen to be near an English man-of-warsman when they come sailing by.”
He therefore shipped a number of wooden guns, which were painted black, so that, at a distance, they looked exactly like the real thing. Upon his vessel were only six cannon, so when—a short time afterwards—he was chased by a French privateer off the coast of Scotland—he had an excellent opportunity to “bluff” the bold marauder.
As the Frenchman drew near, the vessel which Captain Walker was on kept steadily upon her way, and, through his glass, the cautious mariner saw that his pursuer carried fully twenty guns.