We then squared yards and bore away straight for Madeira, with the Ruby keeping company on our lee beam; the wind having sobered down now to a good ten-knot breeze, and the weather all that one could wish, getting warmer with every hour of south latitude that we made.
Everybody was jolly that evening as we bowled along before the spanking breeze, fresh sail being set every watch, until the corvette was presently clothed in canvas from truck to keelson, the commodore wishing to take every advantage of the fair wind we had; but, though all the rest, sailor-like, were laughing and joking on the mess-deck forwards, I could not so soon forget the poor chap who had gone, his noble self-sacrifice being ever in my mind.
It was strange that reserved, unforgiving, and yet not unforgetful temperament of his!
I saw now, when too late, that he had not been quite oblivious of my having saved him that time on board the Saint Vincent when he so nearly tumbled from aloft. He had not been ungrateful, as Mick and I thought him, evidently.
On the contrary, the obligation he believed himself to be under to me had so weighed upon him that he was too proud to speak until he had cleared it off, so, he apparently fancied, to be able to treat with me on level terms.
Mick Donovan had not been on deck when the tragic occurrence happened; but he was almost as much impressed as myself when I told him of our shipmate’s last words.
“Begorrah, Tom,” cried he, wiping his eye with the sleeve of his jumper, “Oi wudn’t ’a belaved it, sure, if ye hadn’t towld me, mabouchal, wid yer own potato trap! Faith, the poor chap samed quoite a t’other sort. Sure, Tom, me darlint, as he’s bin an’ gone an’ saved the noomber ov yer mess, be the powers, Oi’ll spake to Father O’Flannagan whin I git back to Porchmouth an’ ax him fur to say a mass, sure, fur the poor beggar, so that his sowl may rest in paice. May the saints protict him!”
Three days afterwards, without any further adventure, we anchored in Funchal Roads.
Here the squadron remained a week, the other ships having joined us when within a day’s sail of Madeira; and, as we were going to make such a comparatively long stay, the men were granted leave to go ashore, watch and watch in turn.
Just before we left, the commodore gave a grand picnic to all the officers at the Grande Curral, when I had the luck of accompanying the party that went from our ship, a piece of good fortune shared by Mick, my chum.