CHAPTER FIFTY TWO.
Heaven's loud artillery began to play, And wrath divine in dreadful peals convey; Darkness and raging winds their terrors join, And storms of rain with storms of fire combine. Some run ashore upon the shoaly land. BLACKMORE.
It was no time for man to war against man. The powers of heaven wereloose, and in all their fury. The wind howled, the sea raged, thethunder stunned, and the lightning blinded. The Eternal was present inall his majesty; yet pigmy mortals were contending. But CaptainM--- was unmoved, unawed, unchecked; and the men, stimulated by hisexample, and careless of everything, heeded not the warring of theelements.
"Sit on your powder-box, and keep it dry, you young monkey," said thequarter-master, who was captain of the gun, to the lad who had thecartridge ready for reloading it. The fire upon the French vessel waswarmly kept up, when the master again came on deck, and stated to thecaptain, that they could not be more than four leagues from a deadlee-shore, which, by keeping away after the French vessel, they must benearing fast.
"She cannot stand this long, sir. Look to windward--the galeincreases--there is a fresh hand at the `bellows.'"
The wind now redoubled its fury, and the rain, that took a horizontal,instead of a perpendicular direction, from the force of the wind, fedthe gale instead of lulling it. The thunder rolled--and the frigate wasso drenched with water, that the guns were primed and reprimed, withoutthe fire communicating to the powder, which in a few seconds wassaturated with the rain and spray. This was but of little consequence,as the squall and torrents of rain had now hid the enemy from theirsight. "Look out for her, my men, as soon as the squall passes over,"cried Captain M---.
A flash of lightning, that blinded them for a time, was followed by apeal of thunder, so close, that the timbers of the ship trembled withthe vibration of the air. A second hostile meeting of electricity tookplace, and the fluid darted down the side of the frigate's mainmast,passing through the quarter-deck in the direction of thepowder-magazine. Captain M---, the first-lieutenant, master, and fiftyor sixty of the men, were struck down by the violence of the shook.Many were killed, more wounded, and the rest, blinded and stunned,staggered, and fell to leeward with the lurching of the vessel.Gradually, those who were only stunned recovered their legs, and amongstthe first was the captain of the frigate. As soon as he could recallhis scattered senses, with his usual presence of mind, he desired the"fire-roll" to be beat by the drummer, and sent down to ascertain theextent of the mischief. A strong sulphureous smell pervaded the ship,and flew up the hatchways; and such was the confusion, that some minuteselapsed before any report could be made. It appeared that the electricfluid had passed close to the spirit-room and after-magazine, andescaped through the bottom of the vessel. Before the report had beenmade, the captain had given directions for taking the wounded down tothe surgeon, and the bodies of the dead under the half-deck. Theelectric matter had divided at the foot of the mainmast, to which it haddone no injury--one part, as before mentioned, having gone below, whilethe other, striking the iron bolt that connected the lower part of themain-bitts, had thence passed to the two foremast quarter-deckcarronades, firing them both off at the same moment that it killed andwounded the men who were stationed at them. The effects of thelightning were various. The men who were close to the foot of themainmast, holding on by the ropes belayed to the main-bitts, were burntto a cinder, and their blackened corpses lay smoking in the remnants oftheir clothes, emitting an overpowering ammoniacal stench. Some wereonly wounded in the arm or leg; but the scathed member was shrivelledup, and they were borne down the hatchway, howling with intolerablepain. The most awful effects were at the guns. The captains of the twocarronades, and several men that were near them, were dead--but had notthe equipoise of the bodies been lost by the violent motion of the ship,their dreadful fate would not have been immediately perceived. Not aninjury appeared--every muscle was fixed to the same position as when thefluid entered--the same expression of countenance, the eye like life, asit watched the sight on the gun, the body bent forward, the armextended, the fingers still holding the lanyard attached to the lock.Nothing but palpable evidence could convince one that they were dead.
The boy attending with his powder-box, upon which he had sat by thedirections of the captain of the gun, was desired by Captain M--- tojump up and assist the men in carrying down the wounded. He sat stillon his box, supported between the capstan and the stanchions of thecompanion hatchway, his eyes apparently fixed upon the captain, but notmoving in obedience to the order, although repeated in an angry tone.He was dead!
During the confusion attending this catastrophe, the guns had beendeserted. As soon as the wounded men had been taken below, the captaindesired the boatswain to pipe to quarters, for the drummer, when calledto beat the "fire-roll," had been summoned to his last account. Theguns were again manned, and the firing recommenced; but a want ofenergy, and the melancholy silence which prevailed, evidently showedthat the men, although they obeyed, did not obey cheerfully.
"Another pull of the fore-staysail, Mr Hardsett," cried CaptainM--- through his speaking-trumpet.
"Ay, ay, sir; clap on him, my lads," replied the boatswain, holding hiscall between his teeth, as he lent the assistance of his powerful frameto the exertions of the men. The sheet was aft, and belayed, and theboatswain indulged in muttered quotations from the Scriptures:--"Hebringeth forth the clouds from the ends of the world, and sendeth forthlightnings, with rain; bringing the winds out of his treasuries. Hesmote the first-born of Egypt."
The first-lieutenant and master were in close consultation to windward.The captain stood at the lee-gangway, occasionally desiring thequarter-master at the conn to alter the course, regulating his own bythat of his disabled enemy.
"I'll speak to him, then," exclaimed Pearce, as the conference broke up,and he went over to leeward to the captain.
"Captain M---, I have had the honour to serve under your command sometime, and I trust you will allow that I have never shown any want ofzeal in the discharge of my duty?"
"No, Mr Pearce," replied the captain, with a grave smile; "withoutcompliment, you never have."
"Then, sir, you will not be affronted at, or ascribe to unworthymotives, a remark which I wish to make."
"Most certainly not; as I am persuaded that you will never make anyobservation inconsistent with your duty, or infringing upon the rules ofthe service."
"Then, sir, with all due submission to you, I do think, and it is theopinion of the other officers as well, that our present employment,under existing circumstances, is tempting, if not insulting, theAlmighty. Look at the sky, look at the raging sea, hear the wind, andcall to mind the effects of the lightning not one half-hour since. Whenthe Almighty appears in all his wrath, in all his tremendous majesty, isit a time for us poor mortals to be at strife? What is our feebleartillery, what is the roar of our cannon, compared to the withering andconsuming artillery of Heaven? Has he not told us so?--and do not theship's company, by their dispirited conduct since the vessel was struck,acknowledge it? The officers all feel it, sir. Is it notpresumptuous,--with all due submission, sir, is it not wicked?"
"I respect your feelings as a Christian, and as a man," replied CaptainM---; "but I must differ with you. That the Almighty power appears, Igrant; and I feel, as you do, that God is great, and man weak andimpotent. But that this storm has been raised--that this thunderrolls--that this lightning has blasted us, as a _warning_, I deny. Thecauses emanate from the Almighty; but he leaves the effects to thearrangements of Nature, which is governed by immutable laws. Had therebeen no other vessel in sight, this lightning would still have struckus; and this storm will not cease, even if we were to neglect what Iconsider a duty to our country."
The master touched his hat, and made no answer. It was now about oneo'clock, and the horizon to leeward, clearing up a little, showed theland upon the lee-beam.
"Land ho!" cried one of the men.
"Indeed," observed
the captain to the master--"we are nearer than youthought."
"Something, sir, perhaps; but recollect how many hours you have keptaway after this vessel."
"Very true," rejoined the captain; "and the in-draught into the bargain.I am not surprised at it."
"Shall we haul our wind, sir? we are on a dead lee-shore."
"No, Mr Pearce, not until the fate of that vessel is decided."
"Land on the weather-bow!" reported the boatswain.
"Indeed!" said the captain--"then the affair will soon be decided."
The vessels still continued their course in a slanting direction towardsthe land, pursuer and pursued running on to destruction; but althoughvarious indirect hints were given by the first-lieutenant and others,Captain M--- turned a deaf ear. He surveyed the dangers which presentedthemselves, and frowned upon them, as if in defiance.