Part 22 (1/2)
”Come up on deck, and let me have a talk with you”
Stephen at once obeyed; Andrew and Sier took no further notice of hied, had a shrewd suspicion of the truth, and thought that he had probably assumed some fictitious name
It was better to let hireed on, that he and his companions were bound for Holland to seek their fortunes, and that in consequence of being unable to find a larger vessel, they had eale they encountered, they hoped to have been there by this ti there unless you are fitted with a new mast,” said the Captain ”My wish is always to help fellow-seah you are dressed as a farmer, I am very sure that by the way you came up the side that you have been at sea before, and while I look at you, it appears to me that we have been shi+pmates I will not ask questions If I did I should want true answers Coet your craft fitted out the better for you; the wind ain, and itfurther notice of Stephen and his companions, he ordered the carpenter and boatswain to try how fast they could fit and rig a new lect of duty or aiding and abetting Re to Roger ”We found theh seas, and we do what every et into port as best they can”
Roger did not say that he recognised Stephen, although he guessed that the Captain, fro hiive hied that the Captain would object to his doing this He was very thankful that Stephen had escaped froemoor, of which a full account had reached London, as well as of the dreadful slaughter which had been inflicted on the insurgents Like all those who served under Benbow, the carpenter and gunner of his shi+p, aided by their crews, exerted theet the mast finished They knew that it need not be very shapely, provided the main-sail, which had been saved, could be set upon it In the course of a couple of hours the little _Duck_ was once e Stephen heartily thanked the Captain for his kindness
”Say not a word about it, ive you a helping hand I should have advised you to coe in that cockle-shell, but I aitives from the Duke of Monmouth's unfortunate army, and ewater Bay If I had found a craft co from that part of the coast, I should have been compelled to detain her and all on board Now, fare you well I wish that you had stuck to the sea, and you would have kept out of difficulties into which so many at the present day have fallen By the by, as you have been out so long, you may be in want of provisions; I have some private stores, and you shall be welco of biscuits, a case of Spanish hams, a couple of casks of water, and other minor articles on board The honest Captain, fro his old acquaintance by the hand as he diser slipped down the side and grasped his hand
”I aot off,” he exclaimed ”I did not speak to you before, because I waited to take the cue froht; reh the Colonel, when you arrive safely in Holland I a there instead of to France, for the Captain thinks we shall be at loggerheads with the Mounseers soon”
Saying this, and having wrung Stephen's hand, Roger sprang up the side of his shi+p, when the little _Duck_, shoving off, made sail to the eastward, while the _Ruby_ stood on her course down Channel
CHAPTER TEN
The gale had been blowing for so the shore pronounced it the hardest they had known at that season for many a year, harder than one which had blown a few days previously for a short time A vessel, from stress of weather, had put into Lyme, and reported that she had passed two small craft, tempest-tossed and sorely battered, but they refused assistance, saying that they intended to keep the sea, as they were bound to the eastward
This inforiven to the authorities at Ly the coast, placed there to prevent the escape of rebels, and they were directed to watch for the two vessels, which it was conjectured had on board fugitives froemoor, or others who had taken part with Monellen had been deeply stirred with indignation at the cruelties practised by the Earl of Feversham and Colonel Kirk on the hapless Monmouth's defeated army, and he felt far more interest in them than would otherwise have been the case
”Had they been criminals of the darkest dye, they could not have been more severely dealt with Instead of that, they were honest hteous cause,” he observed, as he read the accounts of what had taken place
It is scarcely necessary to say how Alice Tufnell felt Though she had warned and entreated Stephen Battisob not to take up arhest and purest of ht of the uncertainty that hung over his fate No news had been received of him and his brother since the day of the battle, and their friends could not conjecture whether they had fallen at Sedge
The first intimation that his sons were still alive was received fro that he and Andreere in the hands of Cornet Bryce, and that they were to be carried to Bridgewater or Taunton Mr Battisob iellen to ask his advice Far to put himself into the power of Colonel Kirk and his la with the sum of money necessary to bribe those in authority Mr Battisob had the money ready, which he hoped would be sufficient He first thought of Mr Handsob, but on applying to Mr Willoughby, who had last heard from him, he found that he had left London, no one knehither Colonel Tregellen himself would have been a fit person in some respects, for his loyalty would never have been doubted, but his health prevented hi far from home He was not suited by his temper and disposition to deal with characters such as Colonel Kirk and those associated with hihby He had taken no part in the rebellion, and his son, with his sanction, had entered the Royal Navy, and was serving under Captain Benbow Feeling deeply for his friend, though the undertaking was very contrary to his habits, he agreed to set out without loss of tiotiation He had very little to plead for Stephen and Andrew, except that they were young men carried aith the flattery bestowed on theood behaviour in future, and would send the that he had a relative not far off, hom he intended to stay till the storhby set out on his mission of mercy, which, as the reader knoas to prove a bootless one
The storellen, accoe, where he had so the cliffs, where he hoped that the fresh wind off the sea would raise Alice's depressed spirits On reaching the Downs the as so strong that they could with difficulty ainst it, still the little pony seemed to enjoy the breeze even more than its mistress
When the Colonel pressed forward, his horse cantered gaily along Alice at length, just as they reached the higher part, where an extensive view could be obtained over the ocean, begged to stop to regain her breath
The Colonel was looking ard, when he observed two sails in the distance
”Look out there, Alice,” he said, ”your eyes are sharper than mine
Tell me what those are”
”Two small vessels or boats,” she answered ”They have a very s to the shore, while they appear to be terribly tossed about It is surprising that they can remain afloat in such a sea”
”They must be in a desperate strait, or they would not stand in for this coast,” ree to reach Lyme they will to a certainty be lost”
”They are not steering for Ly on directly for our bay”
”Can they be the craft reported to have been fallen in with by the Lyme vessel?” observed the Colonel