Frank Brown, Sea Apprentice

by Frank Thomas Bullen

“Yes, an’ it would go to your head like fire,” said the second mate. “Be thankful, man, that they can’t say that about us. I like my tot as well as the next man, but I’m bound to say that when there’s trouble about I want to be able to say there wasn’t any grog in it, anyhow. Now go and turn in, and I’ll keep watch until daylight. I’ve had a good sleep, while you must be regularly fagged out.”

“Thankee, Cope, I will,” replied the mate, “but keep your eyes skinned for those devils in case they are up to mischief again.”

“All right, sir,” rejoined the second mate, “I’ll keep my lamps trimmed for them. But you try and get some sleep.”

So the mate went to his bunk and fell instantly into a sound sleep, while Mr. Cope paced the deck and watched the gentle night fade away and take on the glory of the dawn, but never for a moment did he relax his vigilant watch on the fore end of the ship. And as he pondered over the events of the voyage so far, he felt sad to think how the mate, who was one of the kindest and best-natured fellows alive, should have been driven by untoward circumstances to become in the eyes of some of his fellow-men a veritable tyrant, enforcing his will by the use of deadly weapons.

But he was a healthy-minded young man, and soon shook off any morbid feelings that the hour and the reaction pressed upon him, and so fully did he occupy the time with these various mental exercises, that it gave him quite a start to hear the cook call out “Coffee.” He slipped below and warned the steward not to awaken the mate. Then having swallowed his refreshing draught, he went forward and had a quiet chat with the boys as to the possibilities of Harry being found, but without much hope of anything being done.

Then a man from forward approached and diffidently said that the two wounded men were in a high fever, and evidently very ill. This immediately reminded Cope of his first duty, and he went and hoisted an urgent signal for a doctor and the police, feeling sure that it would be just what Mr. Jenkins would have done.

Then, having started such of the hands as were capable of working to wash decks, he went and called his superior and informed him of what he had done, being delighted to hear in return that in Mr. Jenkins’ opinion he had done just right. In half-an-hour a police-boat was seen coming off with the doctor on board. She was soon alongside and the officer in charge put in possession of the facts. The doctor and the second mate went forward to the forecastle, and for the next hour that gloomy chamber bore no bad resemblance to a dirty hospital ward, while the groans of the sufferers were pitiable to hear.

At the same time the police-officer was in nowise astonished to hear that the mate had not seen his commander since the day after their arrival, and told Mr. Jenkins that the consignee of the cargo had seriously debated the question of putting him on board his ship by force, and daring him to come ashore again. The officer said, moreover, that from the capers the skipper had been cutting, it was certain that he must have spent a good deal of money or accumulated a heavy debt, which would certainly have to be liquidated before the vessel’s departure. He, moreover, promised to leave no stone unturned to secure the restoration of the runaway apprentice, but owned that in a port like Levuka, where there were so many schooners popping in and out, it would be difficult indeed to catch him if he had chosen to go to sea. Ashore, he could almost guarantee his being caught. And with this scant comfort Mr. Jenkins had to be content.

Presently the doctor reappeared, looking as became a man who had done a good day’s work. He said, “Well, Mr. Mate, you’ve given those fellows something to remember you by, and they won’t forget me in a hurry either. My word, but they did squimmidge. Never mind, it’s all over now, and they are doin’ as well as can be expected. Here are the pills,” and he held out two small bullets. “And now, Mr. Mate, just a toothful of whisky or squareface or anything of that nature, and I’ll absence myself chop chop. I’ve got a lot of grousing beggars ashore waiting for me who’ll swear I’ve been neglectin’ them on purpose.”

“So sorry, doctor,” replied the mate, “but there isn’t so much as a smell of firewater aboard this ship. I had to give it all a passage coming out, or I’m blessed if I think we should have got here at all.”