CHAPTER XXV
_In Which Notorious Tom Tulk o' Twillingate and the Skipper of the "Black Eagle" Put Their Heads Together Over a Glass of Rum in the Cabin of a French Shore Trader_
There was never a more notorious rascal in Newfoundland than old TomTulk of Twillingate. There was never a cleverer rascal--never a manwho could devise new villainies as fast and execute them as neatly.The law had never laid hands on him. At any rate not for a crime ofimportance. He had been clapped in jail once, but merely for debt; andhe had carried this off with flying colours by pushing past thestartled usher in church and squatting his great flabby bulk in thegovernor's pew of the next Sunday morning. He was a thief, a chronicbankrupt, a counterfeiter, an illicit liquor seller. It was allperfectly well known; but not once had a constable brought an offensehome to him. He had once been arrested for theft, it is true, andtaken to St. John's by the constables; but on the way he had stolen awatch from one and put it in the pocket of the other, therebyinvolving both in far more trouble than they could subsequentlyinvolve him.
Add to these evil propensities a deformed body and a crimsoncountenance and you have the shadow of an idea of old Tom Tulk.
* * * * *
George Rumm and Tom Tulk boarded the _Black Eagle_ in the rain andsought the shelter of her little cabin. The cook had made a fire forthe skipper; the cabin was warm and quiet. Tom Tulk closed the doorwith caution and glanced up to see that the skylights were tight.Skipper George produced the bottle and glasses.
"Now, Skipper George," said Tom Tulk, as he tipped the bottle, "'tis amint o' money an' fair easy t' make."
"I'm not likin' the job," the skipper complained. "I'm not likin' thejob at all."
"'Tis an easy one," Tom Tulk maintained, "an' 'tis well paid when 'tisdone."
Skipper George scowled in objection.
"Ye've a soft heart for man's work," said Tom, with a bit of asneer.
Skipper George laughed. "Is you thinkin' t' drive me by makin' fun o'me?" he asked.
"I'm thinkin' nothin'," Tom Tulk replied, "but t' show you how it canbe done. Will you listen t' me?"
"Not me!" George Rumm declared.
Tom Tulk observed, however, that the skipper's ears were wide open.
"Not me!" Skipper George repeated, with a loud thump on the table."No, sir! I'll have nothin' t' do with it!"
Tom Tulk fancied that the skipper's ears were a little bit wider thanbefore; he was not at all deceived by this show of righteousness onthe part of a weak man.
"Well, well!" he sighed. "Say no more about it."
"I'm not denyin'," said Skipper George, "that it _could_ be done. I'mnot denyin' that it would be easy work. But I tells you, Tom Tulk,that I'll have nothin' t' do with it. I'm an honest man, Tom Tulk, an'I'd thank you t' remember it."
"Well, well!" Tom Tulk sighed again. "There's many a man in thisharbour would jump at the chance; but there's never another so honestthat I could trust him."
"Many a man, if you like," Skipper George growled; "but not me."
"No, no," Tom Tulk agreed, with a covert little sneer and grin; "notyou."
"'Tis a prison offense, man!"
"If you're cotched," Tom Tulk laughed. "An' tell me, George Rumm, is_I_ ever been cotched?"
"I'm not sayin' you is."
"No; nor never will be."
It had all been talked over before, of course; and it would be talkedover again before a fortnight was past and the _Black Eagle_ had setsail for the French Shore with a valuable cargo. Tom Tulk had begungingerly; he had proceeded with exquisite caution; he had ventured abit more; at last he had come boldly out with the plan. Manned withcare--manned as she could be and as Tom Tulk would take care to haveher--the _Black Eagle_ was the ship for the purpose; and SkipperGeorge, with a reputation for bad seamanship, was the man for thepurpose. And the thing _would_ be easy. Tom Tulk knew it. SkipperGeorge knew it. It could be successfully done. There was no doubtabout it; and Skipper George hated to think that there was no doubtabout it. The ease and safety with which he might have the moneytumble into his pocket troubled him. It was not so much a temptationas an aggravation. He found himself thinking about it too often; hewanted to put it out of his mind, but could not.
"Now, Tom Tulk," said he, at last, flushing angrily, "let's have nomore o' this. I'm fair tired of it. I'll have nothin' t' do with it;an' I tells you so, once an' for all."
"Pass the bottle," said Tom Tulk.
The bottle went from hand to hand.
"We'll say no more about it," said Tom Tulk; "but I tells you, SkipperGeorge, that that little clerk o' yours, Tommy Bull, is just theticket. As for a crew, I got un handy."
"Belay, belay!"
"Ay, ay, Skipper George," Tom Tulk agreed; "but as for fetchin' acargo o' fish into St. John's harbour without tellin' where it camefrom, if there's any man can beat me at that, why, I'd----"
Skipper George got up and pulled open the hatch.
"I'll see you again," said Tom Tulk.
Skipper George of the _Black Eagle_ helped himself to another dramwhen Tom Tulk had withdrawn his great body and sly face. It was true,all that Tom Tulk had said. It was true about the clerk; he was ripeto go bad. It was true about the crew; with hands scarce, andable-bodied young fellows bound to the Sidney mines for better wages,Skipper George could ship whom he liked and Tom Tulk chose. It wastrue about fetching fish into St. John's without accounting whence itcame. Tom Tulk could do it; nobody would ask eccentric old Tom Tulkwhere he got his fish--everybody would laugh. It was true about theskipper himself; it was quite true that his reputation was none of thebest as a sailing-master. But he had never lost a ship yet. They mightsay he had come near it, if they liked; but he had never lost a shipyet. No, sir; he had never lost a ship yet. Nor would he. He'd fetchthe _Black Eagle_ home, right enough, and _show_ Sir ArchibaldArmstrong!
But the thing would be easy. It was disgustingly easy in prospect.Skipper George wished that old Tom Tulk had never come near to botherhim.
"Hang Tom Tulk!" thought he.
But how easy, after all, the thing would be!
* * * * *
The first hand put his head in the hatchway to tell Skipper Georgethat he was to report to Sir Archibald Armstrong in the office atonce. Skipper George was not quite easy about the three drams he hadtaken; but there was nothing for it but to appear in the officewithout delay. As a matter of fact Sir Archibald Armstrong detectednothing out of the way. He had something to say to Skipper Georgeabout the way to sail a schooner--about timid sailing, and recklesssailing, and feeling about in fogs, and putting out to sea, andrunning for harbour. When he had finished--and he spoke long andearnestly, with his blue eyes flashing, his head in the air, his teethsnapping once in a while--when Sir Archibald had finished, SkipperGeorge was standing with his cap in his hand, his face flushed,answering, "Yes, sir," and, "No, sir," in a way of the meekest. Whenhe left the office he was unpleasantly aware that he was face to facewith his last chance. In this new trouble he forgot all about TomTulk.
"Skipper George," he thought, taking counsel with himself, as hepoured another dram, "you got t' do better."
He mused a long time.
"I _will_ do better," he determined. "I'll show un that I can sail aschooner."
Before he stowed away for the night, a little resentment crept intohis thoughts of Sir Archibald. He had never felt this way before.
"I got t' stop this," he thought.
Tom Tulk was then dreaming over a glass of rum; and his dreams werepleasant dreams--concerning Skipper George of the _Black Eagle_.