With a very ill grace he descended into the cabin, I following, and I had just removed my cap when he roared out, "Who are you? Are you English? Say you are an English man-of-war, and I will let you look at my papers." Said I, "Captain, either you are crazy or else you think I am. Here we fire a gun, and any man with a grain of sense would have understood that it was meant for a ship to heave to, more especially when a nation is at war. You are told to heave to, are boarded, and asked a question. Instead of replying, you ask, perfectly savagely, 'Who are you?' I tell you we are the United States ship Iroquois, and then you ask, 'Are you English? Tell me you are an English man-of-war!' It's absurd, I tell you."
"Mr. Officer," yelled he, "'crazy!' 'sense!' 'absurd!' By G—d, sir, if an English man-of-war were here, no Yankee dare set foot on this deck, sir. Who are you?" "Captain," I said to the man, "it is time this piece of folly were ended. Now understand me. Look at that clock: it wants twelve minutes to eleven; I want to see your papers; I give you two minutes to produce them in. If, at ten minutes to eleven, the papers are not forthcoming, I shall adopt measures to place them in my possession."
I then sat down. Question after question did the worthy skipper ask, but no reply did I deign to give. At length it wanted but a few seconds to the time specified, when with a bad grace the irate Master produced his key, unlocked his safe, and brought forth his papers. Upon examination I found it was the ship Flora, of and to Liverpool, from Manilla, with a general cargo.
While looking over his papers, a ceaseless string of interrogations was kept up by the Master, to which I returned no answer, merely returning the papers, and remarking that he had given himself and us also, some really causeless detention. "Have you any news, captain?" I asked. "Yes, I have some news; news that some three or four of you would like to be acquainted with, but news that one of you would rather not know. But I'd see you Yankees sunk forty fathoms deep before I would tell you it." "Come, captain, don't be uncharitable; you know what is written in the Bible."
He then went on to state what a bad passage he had made so far, having met with a succession of baffling winds ever since he had left Manilla; that he had made all sail for a fair wind, and which had only lasted for a few hours, the wind coming ahead again; and it looking threatening, he had reduced sail considerably, and was making but slow progress when he was stopped by us.
"Stopped by a Yankee, too! That's something I won't forget in a hurry," said he.
I could not help laughing at the "offended majesty" air he assumed, and wishing him a speedy passage, returned on board. From one of my boat's crew I learnt that the Flora had either seen or been boarded a couple of days ago by a two-masted long-funnelled steamer, supposed by the Master to have been a Confederate, though showing Yankee colours.
* * * * *
Wednesday, September 16th.—At 3 P.M. doubled the Cape of Good Hope and steamed into the anchorage at Simon's Town, which we reached at about 4.30 P.M. The Vanderbilt had left on Friday last, and was reported to have hovered near the Cape for a day or two. Greatly disarranged by the news from home—Vicksburg and Port Hudson fallen; Rosecrans' army marching southwards; and Lee having recrossed the Potomac. Our poor people seem to be terribly pressed by the Northern hordes.
But we shall fight it out to the end, and the end will be what an all-wise Providence shall decree.