"It was near the end of the watch, the moon beginning to set, while it still wanted three hours of daybreak in those latitudes, when the look-out on the topgallant-yard, who was stationed there in man-o'-war cruising fashion, reported a sail to windward. Just then the midshipman came on deck to his watch, wonderfully early for him indeed, and on my remarking it was probably the Indiaman at last, Jones himself went aloft with the night-glass to make her out. 'Mr Snelling,' said I, 'see the hands on deck ready for going about.' Next minute I saw him rousing up the rest of the Lascars, who slept watch and watch on the forecastle. Only five or six of the Hebe's men were up, and all of them, save the man at the wheel, ran aloft to rig out stunsail-booms to windward, as soon as the schooner was fairly on the starboard tack, standing to nor'-eastward. Suddenly I saw a scuffle between the midshipman and the tindal, [25] a stout, dark-faced young Bengalee, with a jaunty skull-cap and frock, whom Snelling had probably helped along with a touch of a rope's end, and in a moment two or three more of them were upon him, while the reefer drew his dirk, and sung out to me, scarce before I was with him, the Lascars rolling into the lee-scuppers at two kicks of my foot.
"Webb and three of the men from Cape Town were hoisting a stunsail at the time, the smart man-o'-war's-men aloft singing out to them to bear a hand. What with the noise of the sail flapping, and its being betwixt my own men and the deck, they could know nothing of the matter; and the Lascars let go the halliards in a body, making a rush at Snelling and myself with everything they could pick up in the shape of a spar.
"This would have been nothing, as in two or three minutes more the men would have been down, and the cocoa-faced rascals dodged every way from the handspike I got hold of; but I just caught a glimpse on one side of the sly old serang shoving on the fire-scuttle to keep down the watch below; and on the other, of Webb looking round him, evidently to see how matters stood. Two Dutchmen seized the first sailor that came down the rigging, by the legs, and I saw the affair must be finished at once, it had so much the look of a regular plot on Webb's part, if Jones wasn't concerned in it too. I made one spring upon my Cape Town gentleman, and took him by the throat with one hand, while I hit the biggest Dutchman full behind the ear, felling him to the deck, on which the man-o'-war's-man grappled his watch-mate, and Webb was struggling with me sufficiently to keep both my hands full, when I had a pleasant inkling of a Malay Lascar slipping toward my back with a bare kreese in his fist.
"I just looked over my shoulder at his black eyes twinkling devilishly before he sprang, when someone came sliding fair down from the fore-topmast-head by a back-stay, and pitched in a twinkling on top of his head—a thing enough to break the neck of a monument. Directly after, I saw Jones himself hitting right and left with his night-glass, from the moonlight to the shadow of the foresail, while Snelling tumbled over a Lascar at every slap, standing up in boxer-style. By the time the rest of the men came down all was settled—the Dutchmen sulking against the bulwarks, and Webb gasping after I let him go. 'Boatswain,' said I to one of the sailors,' clap that man in irons below. Mr Snelling, see the watch called, sir.' 'I 'ad the law with me,' said Webb, gloomily. 'You plotted it, then, Mr Webb?' I said. 'Didn't you carry us off illegally?' said he. 'I only meant to recover the vessel—upon my honour, nothing more, sir; and if you're 'ard with me, you'll have to answer for it, I assure you!' Here he looked round to Jones in a strange way, as I fancied, for a moment; but Jones turned on his heel with a sneer. 'Why, Mr Webb,' answered I, 'you lost that tack by offering yourself in a watch, which makes the thing neither more nor less than mutiny—so take him below, do ye hear, bo'sun!' And down he went.
"'Now, Mr Jones,' said I, as soon as all hands were on deck, 'you'll be so good as have half of these Lascars seized to the rigging here, one after the other, and see a good dozen given to each of their backs; then these two Dutchmen, each three dozen—then pipe down the watch, sir.'
"Jones glanced at me, then at the fellows, then at me again. I thought he hung aback for an instant; but do it I was determined he should, for a reason I had; and I gave him back the look steady as stone. 'Ay, ay, sir,' said he, at last, touching his hat. I walked aft to the capstan, and stood there till every mother's son of them had got his share, the Lascars wriggling and howling on the deck after it, and the Dutchmen twisting their backs as they walked off. 'Twas the first time I did that part of duty in command, and I felt, in the circumstances, I was in for carrying it out with a taut hand.
"By this time the moon was setting, and in the dusk we lost sight of the sail to windward; but as we were heading well up to weather upon her, and going at least ten knots, I turned in below for a little, leaving the midshipman. Accordingly, it wasn't very long before Snelling called me in broad daylight 'She's a large ship, Mr Collins,' said he, 'standing under all sail on a wind. I hope to goodness, sir, it's that confounded Indiaman at last!' I hurried on deck, took the glass aloft, and soon made out the jury fore-topmast shorter than the main, as the old captain mentioned. Accordingly, it was with somewhat of a flutter in me I came down again, watching the schooner's trim below and aloft, to see if I couldn't take an hour or so off the time betwixt that and once more setting eyes on the judge's daughter.
CHAPTER XXVI
"After breakfast-time the breeze freshened again, and the ship had evidently perceived us, as well as the fact of our having hauled on a wind to make up with her course; for we could see her hoisting out one stunsail after another to the lee-side, and keeping off in order to give them full play. This was what I was afraid of, in fact, that our looking her way in the circumstances would make her show her heels; and being hull down, almost dead to windward of us, with her spread of sail to such a breeze as the present, it was like to be a troublesome matter ere we got within signalling distance; especially if she had kept hold of her wind a little more, instead of falling off before it as she did, which tended the schooner always steadily to weather upon her, the sharper we kept her nose to the sun in the spray. Indeed, the wind during the forenoon came gradually round more in our favour, till it stood south-east by east or so; by which time, however, we had dropped her topsails from the deck, then her to'gallant-sails, to a white speck far down on the lee-bow. We weathered fast upon her, and I fancied I made out the yellow India patches in her canvas; when, on turning about, I caught Jones's glance at me, as if he couldn't understand my eagerness, or else had got curious what the schooner wanted with the ship at all. 'She loses, I think, sir,' said he looking off to her again. 'Little doubt of that, Mr Jones,' said I. 'I know that Indiaman's sailing to a tee—but we shan't overhaul her at this rate an hour too soon, before she might have a chance of dropping us in the dark, or our running to leeward of her again.' 'Why, yes,' said Jones, carelessly, 'if they knew how to do it, sir.' 'By George! Mr Collins,' exclaimed Snelling, 'I see her stern-gallery sparkling in the run of the surges.'