Mrs. Cliff's Yacht

by Frank R. Stockton

Burke was confounded. He knew not what to say or what to think, but seeing Mrs. Cliff appearing at the head of the companion-way, he thought it his first duty to go and report the state of affairs to her, which he did. That lady's astonishment and dismay were very great.

"What are we going to do?" she asked. "And what do you mean by the cases of arms?"

"I'm afraid that was a piece of folly on my part," said Burke.

"I didn't know we had arms on board!"

"Well, what we have don't amount to much," said Burke. "But this was the way of it. After I heard the message from Captain Horn about the pirates, and everything, and as I didn't know exactly what sort of craft we would meet round about Jamaica, I thought we would feel a good deal safer, especially on account of you and Miss Croup, if we had some firearms aboard. So I put in some repeating rifles and ammunition, and I paid for them out of my own pocket! Such things always come in useful, and while I was commanding the vessel on which you were sailing, Mrs. Cliff, I didn't want to feel that I'd left anything undone which ought to be done. Of course, there was no reason to suppose that we would ever have to use them, but I knew I would feel better if I had them. But there was one thing I needn't have done, and that was,—I needn't have opened them, which I did the other day in company with Mr. Burdette, because I hadn't had time before to examine them, and I wanted to see what they were. Some of the crew must have noticed the guns, and as they couldn't think why we wanted them, unless we were going on a filibustering expedition, they got that notion into their heads and so cut the ship. It was easy enough to do it, for we were moored to a pier, and the second mate, whose watch they went away in, was most likely at the head of the whole business!"

"But what are we going to do?" asked Mrs. Cliff.

"I must get another crew just as soon as I can," said he, "and there isn't a minute to be lost! I was stretching a point when I agreed to stop over a day, but I thought we could afford that and reach Kingston as soon as Shirley does, but when he gets there with his message to the Captain of the Dunkery Beacon, I want to be on hand. There's no knowing what will have to be done, or what will have to be said. I don't want Shirley to think that he's got nobody to stand by him!"

"Indeed," said Mrs. Cliff, "we ought to lose no time, for Captain Horn may be there. It is a most dreadful misfortune to lose the crew this way! Can't you find them again? Can't you make them come back?"

"If they don't want to be found," said Burke, "it will take a good while to find them. But I'm going on shore this minute, and I wish you would be good enough to tell Miss Croup and the ministers how matters stand!"

The news of the desertion of the crew when told by Mrs. Cliff to those of the passengers who had come on deck, and speedily communicated by these to their companions, created a great sensation. Willy Croup was so affected that she began to cry. "Is there any danger?" she said; "and hadn't we better go on shore? Suppose some other vessel wanted to come up to this wharf, and we had to move away,—there's nobody to move us! And suppose we were to get loose in some way, there's nobody to stop us!"