Chapter XIV
In which some new characters appear on the stage, although the corporalis not to be heard of.
The loss of the boat was reported by Obadiah Coble at daylight, and MrVanslyperken immediately went on deck with his spy-glass to ascertain ifhe could distinguish the corporal coming down with the last of theebb-tide but he was nowhere to be seen. Mr Vanslyperken went to themast-head and surveyed in every direction, but he could neither seeanything like the boat or Corporal Van Spitter. His anxiety betrayed tothe men that he was a party to the corporal's proceedings, and theywhispered among themselves. At last Mr Vanslyperken came down on deck,and desired Corporal Van Spitter to be sent to him. Of course, it wassoon reported to him that Corporal Van Spitter was nowhere to be found,and Mr Vanslyperken pretended to be much astonished. As the lieutenanttook it for granted that the boat had been swept out with the ebb, hedetermined to get under weigh in pursuance of his orders, pick up thecorporal, if he could find him, and then proceed to Portsmouth, whichwas the port of his destination. Smallbones attended his master, and wasso unusually active that the suspicious Mr Vanslyperken immediatelydecided that he had had a finger in the business; but he took no notice,resolving in his own mind that Smallbones should some day or another beadrift himself as the corporal was, but with this difference, that thereshould be no search made after him. As soon as the men had finishedtheir breakfasts, the cutter was got under weigh and proceeded to sea.During the whole day Vanslyperken cruised in the Zuyder Zee looking forthe boat, but without success, and at last he unwillingly shaped hiscourse for England, much puzzled and perplexed, as now he had no one toact as his steward to whom he could confide, or by whose arrangements hecould continue to defraud the ship's company; and, farther, he wasobliged to put off for the present all idea of punishing Jemmy Ducks,for, without the corporal, the marines were afraid to move a step indefiance of the ship's company. The consequence was, that the three daysthat they were at sea, Mr Vanslyperken confined himself altogether tohis cabin, for he was not without some fears for his own safety. On hisarrival at Portsmouth, he delivered his letters to the admiral, andreceived orders to return to his cruising ground after the smugglers assoon as he had replaced his lost boat.
We have observed that Mr Vanslyperken had no relations on this side ofthe water; but in saying that, we referred to the epoch that he was inthe service previous to the accession of King William. Since that, andabout a year from the time we are now writing about, he had brought overhis mother, whom he had not, till the peace, seen for years, and hadestablished her in a small apartment in that part of the town now knownby the name of the Halfway Houses. The old woman lived upon a smallpension allowed by the Dutch court, having been employed for many yearsin a subordinate capacity in the king's household. She was said to haveonce been handsome, and when young, prodigal of her favours; at presentshe was a palsied old woman, bent double with age and infirmity, butwith all her faculties as complete as if she was in her prime. Nothingcould escape her little twinkling bloodshot eyes, or her acute ear; shecould scarcely hobble fifty yards, but she kept no servant to assisther, for, like her son, she was avaricious in the extreme. What crimeshe had committed was not known, but that something lay heavy on herconscience was certain; but if there was guilt, there was no repentance,only fear of future punishment. Cornelius Vanslyperken was her onlyliving child: she had been twice married. The old woman did not appearto be very fond of him, although she treated him still as a child, andexecuted her parental authority as if he were still in petticoats. Hercoming over was a sort of mutual convenience. She had saved money, andVanslyperken wished to secure that, and also have a home and a person towhom he could trust; and she was so abhorred, and the reports againsther so shocking where she resided, that she was glad to leave a placewhere every one, as she passed, would get out of her way, as if to avoidcontamination. Yet these reports were vague, although hinting at somehorrid and appalling crimes. No one knew what they exactly were, for theold woman had outlived her contemporaries, and the tradition wasimperfect, but she had been handed down to the next generation as one tobe avoided as a basilisk.
It was to his mother's abode, one room on the second floor, to which MrVanslyperken proceeded as soon as he had taken the necessary steps forthe replacing of the boat. As he ascended the stairs, the quick ear ofthe old woman heard his footstep, and recognised it. It must beobserved, that all the conversation between Vanslyperken and his motherwas carried on in Dutch, of which we, of course, give the translation.
"There you come, Cornelius Vanslyperken; I hear you, and by your hurriedtread you are vexed. Well, why should you not be vexed as well as yourmother, in this world of devils?"
This was a soliloquy of the old woman's before that Vanslyperken hadentered the room, where he found his mother sitting over a few cindershalf ignited in a very small grate. Parsimony would not allow her to usemore fuel, although her limbs trembled as much from cold as palsy; hernose and chin nearly met; her lips were like old scars, and of an ashywhite; and her sunken hollow mouth reminded you of a small, deep, darksepulchre; teeth she had none.
"How fare you, mother?" said Vanslyperken on entering the room.
"I'm alive."
"And long may you live, dear mother."
"Ah," replied the woman, as if doubting.
"I am here but for a short time," continued Vanslyperken.
"Well, child, so much the better; when on board you save money, on shoreyou must spend some. Have you brought any with you?"
"I have, mother, which I must leave to your care."
"Give it me then."
Vanslyperken pulled out a bag and laid it on the lap of his mother,whose trembling hands counted it over.
"Gold, and good gold--while you live, my child, part not with gold. I'llnot die yet--no, no, the devils may pull at me, and grin at me, but I'mnot theirs yet."
Here the old woman paused, and rocked herself in her chair.
"Cornelius, lock this money up and give me the key:--there, now that issafe, you may talk, if you please, child: I can hear well enough."
Vanslyperken obeyed; he mentioned all the events of the last cruise, andhis feelings against the widow, Smallbones, and Jemmy Ducks. The oldwoman never interrupted him, but sat with her arms folded up inher apron.
"Just so, just so," said she, at last, when he had done speaking; "Ifelt the same, but then you have not the soul to act as I did. I coulddo it, but you--you are a coward; no one dared cross my path, or if theydid--ah, well, that's years ago, and I'm not dead yet."
All this was muttered by the old woman in a sort of half soliloquy: shepaused and continued, "Better leave the boy alone,--get nothing byit;--the woman--there's work there, for there's money."
"But she refuses, mother, if I do not destroy the dog."
"Refuses--ah, well--let me see:--can't you ruin her character, blast herreputation; she is yours and her money too;--then, then--there will bemoney and revenge--both good;--but money--no--yes, money's best. The dogmust live, to gnaw the Jezebel--gnaw her bones--but you, you are acoward--you dare do nothing."
"What do I fear, mother?"
"Man--the gallows, and death. I fear the last, but I shall not dieyet:--no, no, I _will_ live--I will _not_ die. Ay, the corporal--lost inZuyder Zee--dead men tell no tales; and he could tell many of you, mychild. Let the fish fatten on him."
"I cannot do without him, mother."
"A hundred thousand devils!" exclaimed the old mother, "that I shouldhave suffered such throes for a craven. Cornelius Vanslyperken, you arenot like your mother:--your father, indeed"
"Who was my father?"
"Silence, child,--there, go away--I wish to be alone with memory."
Vanslyperken, who knew that resistance or remonstrance would be useless,and only lead to bitter cursing and imprecation on the part of the oldwoman, rose and walked back to the sallyport, where he slipped into hisboat and pulled on board of the _Yungfrau_, which lay at anchor in theharbour, about a cable's length from th
e shore.
"Here he comes," cried a tall bony woman, with nothing on her head but acap with green faded ribbons, who was standing on the forecastle of thecutter. "Here he comes;--he, the willain, as would have flogged myJemmy." This was the wife of Jemmy Ducks, who lived at Portsmouth, andwho, having heard what had taken place, vowed revenge.
"Silence, Moggy," said Jemmy, who was standing by her.
"Yes, I'll hold my tongue till the time comes, and then I'll sarve himout, the cheating wagabond."
"Silence, Moggy."
"And as for that 'peaching old Corporal Blubber, I'll _Wan Spitter_ himif ever he turns up again to blow the gaff against my own dear Jemmy."
"Silence, Moggy--there's rowed of all, and a marine at your elbow."
"Let him take that for his trouble," cried Moggy, turning round, anddelivering a swinging box of the ear upon the astonished marine, who notliking to encounter such an Amazon, made a hasty retreat down thefore-hatchway.
"So there you are, are you?" continued Moggy, as Vanslyperken stepped onthe deck.
"Silence, Moggy."
"You, that would flog my own dear darling duck--my own Jemmy."
"Silence! Moggy, will you?" said Jemmy Ducks, in an angry tone, "or I'llsmash your peepers."
"You must climb on the gun to reach them, my little man," replied hiswife. "Well, the more I holds my tongue now, the more for him when Igets hold on him. Oh! he's gone to his cabin, has he, to kiss hisSnarleyyow:--I'll make _smallbones_ of that beast afore I'm done withhim. Flog my Jemmy--my own, dear, darling Jemmy--a nasty lean--"
"Go down below, Moggy," said Jemmy Ducks, pushing her towards thehatchway.
"Snivelling, great-coated--"
"Go below," continued Jemmy, shoving her.
"Ferret-eyed, razor-nosed--"
"Go down below, will you?" cried Jemmy, pushing her near to thehatchway.
"Herring-gutted, bare-poled--"
"Confound it! go below."
"Cheating rip of a wagabond! Lord, Jemmy, if you a'n't a shoved me downthe hatchway! Well, never mind, my darling, let's go to supper;" andMoggy caught hold of her husband as she was going down, and withsurprising strength lifted him off his legs and carried him down in herarms as she would have done a child, much to the amusement of the menwho were standing on the forecastle.
When it was dusk, a boat dropped alongside of the cutter, and a manstepped out of it on the deck, when he was met by Obadiah Coble, whoasked him, "What's your pleasure?"
"I must speak with the commander of this vessel directly."
"Wait a moment, and I'll tell him what you say," replied Coble, whoreported the message to Mr Vanslyperken.
"What sort of a person is he?" demanded the lieutenant.
"Oh, I don't know,--sort of half-bred, long-shore chap--looks somethingbetween a bumbailey and a bum-boatman."
"Well, you may show him down."
The man, who shortly after entered the cabin, was a short, punchy littlefellow, with a red waistcoat, knee-breeches, and a round jacket of greencloth. His face was covered with carbuncles, some of them so large thathis small pug-nose was nothing more in appearance than a larger blotchthan the others. His eyes were small and keen, and his whiskers of adeep red. As soon as he entered the cabin, he very deliberately lockedthe door after him.
"Nothing like making sure," observed he.
"Why, what the devil do you want?" exclaimed Vanslyperken, ratheralarmed; while Snarleyyow walked round and round the thick calves of theman's legs, growling, and in more than two minds to have a bite throughhis blue worsted stockings; and the peculiar obliquity with which hecarried his head, now that he surveyed with only one eye, was by nomeans satisfactory.
"Take your cur away, and let us proceed to business, for there is notime to lose," said the man coolly, taking a chair. "Now there can be noeavesdropping, I trust, for my life may be forfeited, if I'mdiscovered."
"I cannot understand a word of all this," replied Vanslyperken, muchsurprised.
"In a few words, do you want to put some five thousand pounds in yourpocket?"
At this question Vanslyperken became attentive. He beat off the dog, andtook a chair by the side of the stranger.
"Ah! interest will always bring civility; so now to the point. Youcommand this cutter, do you not?"
"I do," replied Vanslyperken.
"Well, you are about to cruise after the smugglers?"
"Yes."
"I can give information of a cargo to be landed on a certain night worthten thousand pounds or more."
"Indeed!" replied Vanslyperken.
"Yes, and put your boats in such a position that they must seize thewhole."
"I'm very much obliged to you. Will you take something, sir, anyscheedam?" said Vanslyperken, unlocking one of his cupboards, andproducing a large stone bottle, and a couple of glasses, whichhe filled.
"This is very good stuff," observed the man; "I'll trouble you foranother glass."
This was one more than Mr Vanslyperken intended; but on second thoughts,it would make his new acquaintance more communicative, so another wasfilled, and as soon as it was filled, it was emptied.
"Capital stuff!" said he of the rubicund face, shoving his glass towardsVanslyperken, by way of hint; but the lieutenant would not take thehint, as his new guest had already swallowed as much as lasted himselffor a week.
"But now," observed Vanslyperken, "where is this cargo to be seen, andwhen?"
"That's tellings," replied the man.
"I know that; but you have come to tell, or what the devil else?"replied Vanslyperken, who was getting angry.
"That's according," replied the man.
"According to what?"
"The snacks," replied the man. "What will you give up?"
"Give up! How do you mean?"
"What is my share to be?"
"Share! you can't share--you're not a king's officer."
"No, but I'm an informer, and that's the same thing."
"Well, depend upon it, I'll behave very liberally."
"How much, I ask?"
"We'll see to that afterwards; something handsome, depend upon it."
"That won't do. Wish you good-evening, sir. Many thanks for thescheedam--capital stuff!" and the man rose from his chair.
But Mr Vanslyperken had no intention to let him go; his avarice inducedhim at first to try if the man would be satisfied with his promise toreward him--a promise which would certainly never have been adhered to.
"Stop! my dear sir, do not be in such a hurry. Take another glass."
"With pleasure," replied the man, re-seating himself, and drinking offthe scheedam. "That's really prime; I like it better every time I tasteit. Now, then, shall we go to business again? I'll be plain with you.Half is my conditions, or I don't inform."
"Half!" exclaimed Vanslyperken; "half of ten thousand pounds? What, fivethousands pounds?"
"Exactly so; half of ten is five, as you say."
"What, give you five thousand pounds?"
"I rather think it is I who offer you five thousand, for the devil apenny will you get without me. And that I will have, and this bond youmust sign to that effect, or I'm off. You're not the only vessel inthe harbour."
Vanslyperken tried for some time to reduce the terms, but the man waspositive. Vanslyperken then tried if he could not make the manintoxicated, and thus obtain better terms; but fifteen glasses of hisprime scheedam had no effect further than extorting unqualified praiseas it was poured down, and at last Mr Vanslyperken unwillingly consentedto the terms, and the bond was signed.
"We must weigh at the ebb," said the man, as he put the bond in hispocket. "I shall stay on board; we have a moonlight night, and if we hadnot, I could find my way out in a yellow fog. Please to get your boatsall ready, manned and armed, for there may be a sharp tussle."
"But when do they run, and where?" demanded Vanslyperken.
"To-morrow night at the back of the Isle. Let me see," continued theman, taking out his watch; "mercy
on me! how time has flown--that's thescheedam. In a couple of hours we must weigh. I'll go up and see if thewind holds in the same quarter. If you please, lieutenant, we'll justdrink success to the expedition. Well, that's prime stuff, Ido declare."