The Black Buccaneer

  CHAPTER XXXI

  There was a bustle of action aboard the sloop when the boys swarmed upher side. One chanty was being sung up forward, where half a dozensturdy seamen were heaving at the capstan bars, and another was goingamidships as the throat of the long main gaff went to the top. CaptainJob stood on the afterdeck, constantly shouting new orders. His bigvoice made itself heard above the singing, the groan of tackle-blocksand the crash of the canvas, flapping in the northwest wind.

  It was a clear, sunny day, with a bite of approaching winter in the air,and the boys were glad to button their jackets tight and move into thelee of the after-house.

  "Here, lads," Job cried, "there's work for you, too. Take a run below,Jeremy, and bring up an armload of cutlasses. See if any of thosemuskets need cleaning, Tom."

  Jeremy scurried down the companion ladder, and forward along thestarboard gun deck to the rack of small arms near the fo'c's'le hatch.Jeremy was pleased to see that the sloop carried a full complement often broadside guns, beside a long brass cannon in the bows. In fact,she was armed like a regular man-o'-war. The tubs were filled and neatlittle piles of round-shot and cannister stood beside each gun. The_Tiger_, he thought, was likely to give a good account of herself if shecould come to grips with the buccaneers.

  Stepping on deck once more, his arms piled with hangers, Jeremy foundthat the sloop had already cleared the bay on her starboard tack and wasjust coming about to make a long reach of it to port. The pirate sailwas no longer in sight in the west, but as several islands filled thehorizon in that direction, it seemed likely that she had passed beyondthem.

  Jeremy approached the Captain. "How far ahead do you think they are?" heasked.

  "When we sighted 'em, they were about four sea-miles to the westward,"answered Job. "If they're making ordinary sailing, they've gained closeto three more, since then. But if they're carrying much canvas it may bemore. We shan't come near them before dark, at any rate."

  He cast an eye aloft as he spoke, and Jeremy's gaze followed. The_Tiger_ was carrying topsails and both jibs, with a single reef in herfore and main sails. She was scudding along at a great rate with thewhitecaps racing by, close below the lee gunports. Jeremy whistled withdelight. He had seen Stede Bonnet crowd canvas once or twice, but neverin so good a cause.

  The wind held from the northwest, gaining in strength rather thandecreasing, and the sloop, heeled far to port, sped along close-hauledon a west-sou'west course.

  After three-quarters of an hour of this kind of sailing they were closeto the group of islands, and sighting a passage to the northward, swungover on the other tack. A rough beat to starboard brought them into thegap. Though they crossed a grim, black shoal at the narrowest part, Jobdid not shorten sail, but steered straight on as fast as the wind wouldtake him. And at length they came clear of the headland and saw a greatstretch of open sea to the southwestward with a faint, white dot of sailat its farthest edge.

  At the sight a hearty cheer went up from the seamen, clustered along theport rail. A lean, wind-browned man with keen black eyes came aft to thetiller where Jeremy and Tom stood with the Captain. It was IsaiahHawkes, Job's first mate, himself a Maine coast man. "It's all clearsailin' ahead, sir," he said. "No more reefs or islands 'twixt this an'Cape Cod, if they follow the course they're on."

  The _Tiger_ hung with fluttering canvas in the wind's eye for a secondor two, then settled away on the port tack with a bang of her mainboom.

  "Here, Isaiah, take the tiller," said Job, at length. "Hold her as sheis--two points to windward of the other sloop. You'll want to set anextra lookout tonight," he continued. "We shan't be able to keep 'em insight at this distance, if they've sighted us, which most likely theyhave. I'm going up to have a look at 'Long Poll' now."

  Accompanied by the two boys, he made his way along the steeply canteddeck of the plunging schooner to the breach of the swivel-gun at thebow.

  "Ever seen this gal afore, Jeremy?" asked Job, shouting to make himselfheard above the hiss and thunder of the water under the forefoot. "She'sthe old gun we had aboard the _Queen_. Stede Bonnet never had a piecelike this. Cast in Bristol, she was, in '94. There's the letters thattells it." And he patted the bright breach lovingly, sighting along thebrazen barrel, and swinging the nose from right to left till he broughtthe gun to bear squarely on the white speck that was the pirate sloop,still hull-down in the sea ahead. "Come morning, Polly, my gal," hechuckled, "we'll let you talk to 'em."

  As he spoke, the fiery disk of the sun was slipping into the oceanacross the starboard bow. With sunset the breeze lightened perceptibly,and Job ordered the reefs shaken out of the fore and mainsails and anextra jib set. Then he and the boys, who, although they had quartersaft, had been assigned to the port watch, went below and turned in.