“Here, mates, just pay out this line as I want it!” sung out Peter, passing the bight of a rope under his arms and leaping overboard. “I’ll tackle him to, I warrant.”
In an instant he was in the water, and a few strokes bringing him up to the spar as it floated by, he grasped hold of the person hanging to it, and then sung out, “Haul away, my lads; it’s all right!”
The whole incident took place, it seemed, in a few seconds. Once more he was on the deck, and there could be no doubt of it, with no other than Walter Stenning in his arms! The poor fellow breathed, but the dangers he had gone through, and the sudden restoration to safety, had overcome him, and he lay almost unconscious on the deck.
“Now, sir, the sooner we fill and stand out of this the better,” said Peter, turning to the captain, after he had placed Stenning on the deck. “I did not speak of it before, but just now I saw another of those piratical fellows getting under way just from opposite where we lay, doubtless to be after us.”
Peter’s remark was found to be true; and up the harbour another brig was seen making sail, of course with the hope of overtaking us. I, with another man, received orders to carry Captain Stenning below, which we did, placing him on a mattress on the floor of the cabin, and then hurried up again to attend to our duty.
Once more the brig was put about, and head up towards the passage. On we rushed, the foam flying over us as we approached the spot. She lifted to the first rolling sea, and then down she came, as if she must strike the sand below; but another roller came tumbling in, and mounting like a sea-bird on its summit, she descended on the other side amid clouds of spray, again to mount another huge wave, and then to rush on with impetuous force as she felt the blast which laid her over almost on her beam-ends towards the open ocean. Still, on either hand, wild foaming water broke in mountain masses around us; but on we sped. “Hold on! hold on for your lives!” shouted the captain, as yet another mountain sea came thundering on towards us, close upon a previous one over which we had ridden in safety. The brig seemed to spring at it, as if able to dash it aside; but vain indeed was the attempt. High above us it rose. Right into it we went, and for a moment I thought all was over. Along our decks it found its way, and fell in torrents below, sweeping everything before it; but still buoyantly our brave vessel flew on, and wave after wave being surmounted, a loud shout burst from all hands as once more we found ourselves in the open sea, following in the wake of the British corvette.
As soon as we were in safety, the captain called me below to attend to Captain Stenning. We found him sitting up on the mattress, and, as he held on by the leg of the table, looking somewhat wildly around him.
“Where am I? what is all this that has happened?” he exclaimed, as we appeared.
“That you are safe aboard the Dolphin, my friend, and that you have escaped from the wreck of a Moorish pirate,” answered the captain. “But before I answer more questions, we’ll just get off your wet clothes, and clap you into bed with a glass of hot grog.”
This we accordingly did, and the result was that the poor fellow very soon fell fast asleep—the best thing he could do under the circumstances.