CHAPTER XI.
THE CRUISE IN THE FELUCCA.
Raimundo was very much disgusted when hefound that Bill Stout and Bark Lingall were tobe the companions of his flight. Thus far he had feltthat his conduct was justifiable. His uncle Manuelhad taught him to believe that his guardian intended to“put him out of the way.” Don Alejandro had notactually attempted to do any thing of this kind, so faras was known; and no case could be made out againsthim. Don Manuel did not mean that he should havean opportunity to attempt any thing of the kind. Certainlyit was safer to keep out of his way, than to tempthim to do a deed which his own brother believed hewas capable of doing. Raimundo thought Don Manuelwas right: indeed, he could remember enough ofDon Alejandro’s treatment of him before he left Barcelona,to convince him of his guardian’s intentions.
But when he found himself in the boat, escapingfrom the Tritonia with two of the worst “scalliwags”of the crew, the case seemed to present a differentaspect to him. He realized that he was in bad company;and he felt contaminated by their presence, Yethe did not see how he could help himself. The onlyway he could get out of the scrape was to surrenderto the chief steward, and in due time be handed overto the agent of his guardian. Whether he was corrector not in his estimate of his uncle’s character, he wassincere in his belief that Don Alejandro intended to dohim harm, even to the sacrificing of his life. Independentlyof his personal fears, he did not think itwould be right to give himself up to one who might betempted to do an evil deed. He concluded to makethe best of the situation, and as soon as possible to getrid of his disagreeable companions.
“Where shall we go, Raimundo?” asked Bill Stout,as confidentially as though he had been a part of theenterprise from the beginning.
“We must go on shore, of course,” replied theyoung Spaniard, who was not yet sufficiently reconciledto the situation to be very cordial.
More than this, he had not yet considered what hiscourse should be when he had left the vessel; but itoccurred to him, as Bill asked the question, that the_alguacil_, whose action had been fully reported to himby Hugo, might be watching the vessel from the shore.Raimundo looked about him to get a better idea of thesituation. The wind was from the north–west, whichswung the Prince so that she lay between the Tritoniaand the landing–place, and hid her hull from the viewof any one on the city side.
“I think we had better not land at any of the usualplaces,” suggested Bark. “Marline, Rimmer, and allthe rest of the forward officers, are in charge of theboats at the principal landing.”
“I had no idea of going to the city. It would notbe safe for me to show my face there,” answered Raimundo;and he directed the boatman to pull to theBarceloneta side of the port, and in such a direction asto keep in the shadow of the vessels of the fleet.
The man offered to land them at a more convenientplace; but Raimundo insisted upon going to the pointindicated. Very likely the boatman suspected that hispassengers were not leaving the vessel to which theybelonged in a perfectly regular manner; but probablythis would not make any difference to him, as long ashe was well paid for his services. Presently the boatgrounded on some rocks at the foot of the sea–wall,which rose high above them. As usual the boatmanwas anxious to obtain another job; and he offered totake them to any point they wished to go to.
“I will take you back to your ship when you areready to go,” continued the man with a smile, and atwinkle of the eye, which was enough to show that hedid not believe they intended to return.
Raimundo replied that they had no further use forthe boat that day.
“I have a big boat like that,” persisted the man,pointing to a felucca which was sailing down the bay.
The craft indicated was about thirty feet long, andcarried a large lateen sail.
“Where is she?” asked Raimundo, with interest.
The man pointed up the harbor, and said he couldhave her ready in a few minutes.
“Do you go out to sea in her?”
“Oh, yes! go to Majorca in her,” replied the boatman,quite excited at the prospect of a large job.
“Can you take us to Tarragona in her?” continuedthe young Spaniard, to whom the felucca suggestedthe best means of getting away from Barcelona.
“Certainly I can: there is no trouble about it.”
“How much shall you charge to take us there?”
“It is fifteen leagues to Tarragona,” replied theboatman, who proceeded to magnify the difficulties ofthe enterprise as soon as the price was demanded.
“Very well: we can go by the railroad,” added Raimundo,who fully comprehended the object of the man.
“Your officers will see you if you go into the city,”said the boatman, with a cunning smile.
There was no longer any doubt that the fellow fullycomprehended the situation, but the fugitive saw thathe would not betray them; for, if he did, he would losethe job, which he evidently intended should be a profitableone.
“Name your price,” he added; and he was willingto pay liberally for the service he desired.
“Five hundred _reales_,” answered the man.
“Do you think we have so much money?” laughedthe fugitive. “We can’t make a bargain with you.”
“What will you give?” asked the boatman.
“Two hundred _reales_.”
After considerable haggling, the bargain was struckat three hundred _reales_, or fifteen dollars; and thiswas less than the fugitive had expected to pay. Therest of the arrangements were readily made. Filipe,for this was the name he gave, was afraid his passengerswould be captured while he went for his felucca;and, keeping in the shadow of the sea–wall, he pulledthem around the point on which the old light–housestands, and landed them on some rocks under the wall.In this position they could not be seen from the vesselsof the fleet, or from the landing–place on the otherside, while the high wall concealed them from anyperson on the shore who did not take the trouble tolook over at them.
“We shall want something to eat,” said Raimundo,as the boatman was about to leave them. “Take this,and buy as much bread and cold meat as you can withit.”
Raimundo handed him three dollars in Spanish silver,which Hugo had obtained for him. The large sum ofmoney he had was in Spanish gold, obtained in Genoa.He had a few dollars in silver left for small expenses.
“What are we here for?” asked Bill Stout, who, ofcourse, had not understood a word of the conversationof his companion and the boatman.
Both he and Bark had asked half a dozen timeswhat they were talking about; but Raimundo had notanswered them.
“What has been going on between you and thatfellow all this time?” asked Bill, in a tone so imperativethat the young officer did not like it at all.
“I have made a bargain with him to take us toTarragona,” replied Raimundo coldly.
“And did not say a word to Bark and me about it!”exclaimed Bill.
“If you don’t like it you need not go. I did notinvite you to come with me.”
“Did not invite me!” sneered Bill. “I know youdidn’t; but we are in the party, and want you to understandthat we are no longer under your orders. Youneedn’t take it upon yourself to make arrangements forme.”
“I made the arrangement for myself, and I don’task you to go with me,” answered Raimundo withdignity.
“Come, come! Bill, dry up!” interposed Bark. “Doyou want to make a row now before we are fairly outof the vessel?”
“I got out of the vessel to get clear of those snobsof officers, and I am not going to have one of themlording it over me here.”
“Nonsense! He hasn’t done any thing that you canfind fault with,” added Bark.
“He has made a trade with that boatman to take ussomewhere without saying a word to us about it,”blustered Bill. “I want to put a check on that sort ofthing in the beginning.”
“He has done just the right thing. If we had beenalone we could not have managed the matter at all.”
“I could have managed it well enough myself.
”
“You can’t speak a word of Spanish, nor I either.”
“I don’t even know where that place is—Dragona—orwhatever it is,” growled Bill.
“I am not to blame for your ignorance,” said Raimundo.“You heard every thing that was said; and, ifyou don’t like it, I am willing to get along withoutyou.”
“Come, Bill; we must not get up a row. Raimundohas done the right thing, and for one I am very muchobliged to him,” continued Bark.
“He might have told us what he was about,” addedBill, somewhat appeased by the words of his fellow–conspirator.
“We had no time to spare; and he could not stop totell the whole story twice over.”
“Where is the place we are going to?” demandedBill in the same sulky tone.
“Tarragona, a seaport town, south of here. Howfar is it, Mr. Raimundo?”
“About fifty miles.”
“Will you tell us now, if you please, what arrangementsyou made with the boatman?” continued Bark,doing his best to smooth the ruffled feelings of theyoung Spaniard.
“Certainly I will; but I want to say in the firstplace that I had rather return to the Tritonia at oncethan be bullied by Stout or by anybody else. I don’tput on any airs, and I mean to treat everybody like agentleman. I am a Spaniard, and I will not be insultedby any one,” said Raimundo, with as much dignity asan hidalgo in Castile.
“I didn’t mean to insult you,” said Bill mildly.
“Let it pass; but, if it is repeated, we part companyat once, whatever the consequences,” added Raimundo,who then proceeded to explain what had passedbetween Filipe and himself.
The plan was entirely satisfactory to Bark; and soit was to Bill, though he had not the grace to say so.The villain had an itching to be the leader of whateverwas going on himself; and he was very much afraidthat the late second master of the Tritonia wouldusurp this office if he did not make himself felt in thebeginning. He was rather cowed by the lofty standRaimundo had taken; and he had come to the conclusionthat he had better wait till the expedition was alittle farther along before he attempted to assert himselfagain.
“Have you any money?” asked Raimundo, when hehad finished his explanation.
“Yes. Both of us have money; and we will pay ourshare of the cost of the boat,” replied Bark, who wasten times more of a man than his companion in mischief.
“Is it Spanish money?”
“No, not any of it. I have seven English sovereignsin gold, and some silver. Bill has twelve sovereigns.I can draw over eighty pounds on my letter of credit;and Bill can get fifty on his.”
“I only wanted to know what ready money you had,”added Raimundo. “You must not say a word aboutmoney when we get into the felucca.”
“Why not?” asked Bill, in his surly way, as thoughhe was disposed to make another issue on this point.
“I don’t know the boatman; and it is very likely hemay have another man with him. There he comes,and there is another man with him,” replied Raimundo,as the felucca appeared off the light–house. “If youshould show them any large sum of money, or let themknow you had it, they might be tempted to throw usoverboard for the sake of getting it. Of course, Idon’t know that they would do any thing of the kind;but it is best to be on the safe side.”
“Some of these Spaniards would cut a man’s throatfor half a dollar,” added Bill.
“So would some Americans; and they do it in NewYork sometimes,” replied Raimundo warmly. “I repeatit: don’t say a word about money.”
“The men in the boat cannot understand us if wedo,” suggested Bark.
“They may speak English, for aught I know.”
“The one you talked with could not.”
“I don’t know about that. I did not try him inEnglish. We must all pretend that we have very littlemoney, whether we do it in English or in Spanish.When Filipe—that’s his name—asked me five hundred_reales_ for taking us to Tarragona, I said that Ihad not so much money.”
“And that was a lie; wasn’t it?” sneered Bill.
“If it was, it is on my conscience, and not yours;and it may be a lie that will save your life and mine,”answered Raimundo sharply.
“I don’t object to the lie; but I thought you, one ofthe parson’s lambs, did object to such things,” chuckledBill.
“I hate a lie: I think falsehood is mean and ungentlemanly;but I believe there is a wide differencebetween a lie told to a sick man, or to prevent a boatmanfrom being tempted to cut your throat, and a lietold to save you from the consequences of your ownmisconduct.”
“Well, you needn’t preach: we are not chaplain’slambs,” growled Bill.
“Neither am I,” added Raimundo. “I am whatthey call a Christian in Spain, and that is a RomanCatholic. But here is the felucca. Now mind what Ihave said, for your own safety.”
Filipe ran the bow of his craft up to the rocks onwhich the fugitives were standing, and they leaped onboard of her. The boatman’s assistant shoved her off,and in a moment more she was driving down the harborbefore the fresh breeze. The second man in the boatwas not more than twenty years old, while Filipewas apparently about forty–five. He introduced hiscompanion as his son, and said his name was John(_Juan_).
At the suggestion of Raimundo, the fugitives coiledthemselves away in the bottom of the felucca, so thatno inquisitive glass on board of the vessels or on theshore should reveal their presence to any one thatwanted them. In this position they had an opportunityto examine the craft that was to convey them out of thereach of danger, as they hoped and believed. She wasnot so large as the craft that Filipe had pointed out asthe model of his own; but she carried two sails, andwas decked over forward so as to form quite a roomycuddy. She was pointed at both ends, and sailed likea yacht. It was about one o’clock when the party wenton board of her, and at her present rate of speed shewould reach her destination in six or seven hours. Shehad the wind on her beam, and the indications werethat she would have it fair all the way. There was nota cloud in the sky, and there was every promise of fairweather for the rest of the day. When the felucca hadpassed Monjuich, the party ventured to move about thecraft, as they were no longer in danger of being seenfrom the city or the fleet; but they took the precautionto keep out of sight when they passed any other craftwhich might report them to their anxious friends inBarcelona.
“What have you got to eat, Filipe?” asked Raimundo,when the felucca was clear of the city.
“Plenty to eat and drink,” replied the skipper.
“Let me see what you have, for I am beginning tohave an appetite.”
“RAIMUNDO DID NOT HESITATE TO STRIKE HIM DOWN.” Page 172.]
Juan was directed to bring out the hamper of provisionshis father had purchased. Certainly there wereenough of them; but the quality was any thing butsatisfactory. Coarse black bread, sausages that lookedlike Bolognas, and half a dozen bottles of cheap wine,were the principal articles in the hamper. The wholecould not have cost half the money given to the boatman.But Filipe insisted that he had paid a _peseta_more than the sum handed him.
Raimundo inquired into this matter more because hewas anxious to know about the character of the manthan because he cared for the sum expended. He feltthat he was, in a measure, in this man’s power; and hedesired to ascertain what sort of a person he had todeal with. If he was not wicked enough to cut thethroats of his passengers, or to throw them overboardfor their money, he might betray them when there wasno more money to be made out of them. The inquirywas not at all satisfactory in its results. Filipe hadcheated him on the provisions; and Raimundo wasconfident that he would do so in other matters to theextent of his opportunities.
The food tasted better than it looked; and Raimundomade a hearty meal, as did all the others on board,including the boatmen. Raimundo would not drinkany of the wine; but his companions did so quite freely,in spite of his caution. He noticed that Filipe urgedthem to drink, and seemed to be vexed when he couldnot induce him to taste the wine.
“Where are you
going when you get to Tarragona?”asked the boatman, when the collation was disposed of.
“I think I shall go to Cadiz, and join my ship whenshe arrives there,” replied Raimundo.
“To Cadiz!” exclaimed Filipe. “How can you goto Cadiz when you have no money?”
Raimundo saw that he had said too much, and thatthe skipper wished to inquire into his finances.
“I shall get some money in Tarragona,” he replied;but he did not deem it prudent to mention his letter ofcredit.
Filipe continued to ply him with questions, which heevaded answering as well as he could. He did hisbest to produce the impression on his mind that hehad no money. The boatman asked him about hiscompanions, whether they could not let him have allthe money he wanted to enable him to reach Cadiz.Why did they leave their ship if they had no money?How did he expect to get money in Tarragona?
“How do I know that you will pay me if you are sopoor?” demanded Filipe, evidently much vexed at theresult of his inquiry.
“I have money enough to pay you, and a few dollarsmore,” replied Raimundo.
“I don’t know: I think you had better pay me now,before I go any farther.”
“No, I will not pay you till we get to Tarragona,”replied the young Spaniard.
“I don’t know that you have money enough to payme,” persisted the boatman.
Raimundo took from his pocket the three isabelinoshe had reserved for the purpose of paying for theboat, with the silver he had left, and showed them tothe rapacious skipper.
“That will convince you that I have the money,”said he, as he returned the gold and silver to hispocket.
He resolutely refused to pay for the boat till herwork was done. By this time Bill and Bark, overcomeby the wine they had drunk, were fast asleep in thecuddy where they had gone at the invitation of the boatman.Raimundo was inclined to join them; but theskipper was a treacherous fellow, and it was not prudentto do so. After all the man’s efforts to ascertainwhat money he had, he was actually afraid the fellowwould attack him, and attempt to search his pockets.There were brigands in Spain,—at least, a party hadbeen recently robbed by some in the south; and theremight be pirates as well. So confident was the passengerof the evil intentions of Filipe, that he believed, ifhe was not robbed, it would be because the man supposedhe had no more money than he had shown him.He kept his eye on a spare tiller in the boat, which hemeant to use in self–defence if the occasion shouldrequire.
Just before dark Bill and Bark, having slept off theeffect of the wine, awoke, and came out of the cuddy.Filipe proposed that they should have supper beforedark, and ordered Juan to bring out the hamper.Raimundo did not want any supper, and refused to eator drink. Bark and Bill were not hungry, and alsodeclined. Then the skipper urged them to drink.
“Don’t taste another drop,” said Raimundo earnestly.“That man means mischief.”
“Do you mean to insult me?” demanded Filipe,fixing a savage scowl upon Raimundo.
It was plain enough now that the man understoodEnglish, though he had not yet spoken a word of it,and had refused to answer when spoken to in that language.At the same time he left the helm, which Juantook as though he was beside his father for that purpose.Raimundo leaped from his seat, with the tiller inhis hand; for he had kept his place where he could layhis hand upon it.
“Stand by me!” shouted he to his companions.
Filipe rushed upon Raimundo, and attempted toseize him by the throat. The young officer struck athim with the tiller, but did not hit him. He dodgedthe blow; but it fanned his wrath to the highest pitch.Raimundo saw him thrust his hand into his breast–pocket;and he was sure there was a knife there. Heraised his club again; but at this instant Bark Lingallthrew his arms around the boatman’s throat, and, jamminghis knees into his back, brought him down on hisface in the bottom of the boat.
“Hold him down! don’t let him up!” cried Raimundo.
Bark was a stout fellow; and he held on, in spite ofthe struggles of the Spaniard. At this moment Juanleft the tiller, and rushed forward to take a hand in theconflict, now that his father had got the worst of it. Hehad a knife in his hand, and Raimundo did not hesitateto strike him down with the heavy tiller; and he laysenseless in the bottom of the felucca. The youngofficer then went to the assistance of Bark Lingall;and, in a few minutes more, they had bound the skipperhand and foot, and lashed him down to the floor.