it. Running to the cabin I retrieved my longbow and the arrows I had made as
well as some I had brought from England.
“Tumble in,” I told Sakim. “We’ll do a bit of business this day!”
From the deck they lowered down a light but powerful cast-iron gun and we lashed
it into place. The gig was light and fast, under ordinary conditions, but now
she sat deep and we shifted what weight there was to counterbalance the gun.
Then we pushed off, got our sail up and headed for the open sound, needing all
the room we could get.
The tide was rising rapidly, but it needed time to float such a craft as the
Tiger, although glancing back I could see that Tempany had a boat out astern of
her with a line to the ship and the boats crew pulling with a will.
If the Jolly Jack had sighted our gig, she seemed to think it of no importance.
It was the Tiger they wanted, and they wanted her free of the sand and their
work done for them. The Jack was moving in toward the coast now, prepared to
stand off and demand a surrender or shell the Tiger to bits.
Now we put about our gig and commenced moving toward the Jack. My thought was to
cause trouble, to buy time for the Tiger to get well afloat, and what I proposed
to do was the height of foolishness. All depended on the maneuverability of the
gig, much of which had been sacrificed to carry the cannon.
We edged in close and intent upon the Jack. They paid us small attention. We
laid our gun on the form’st and touched a match to the hole.
A moment only, then our gun boomed and the gig jerked violently in the water.
There was a startled shout from the Jack, then an angry voice telling us to
sheer off or be sunk.
We had done no harm to the mast, but we had hit the bulwark just forward of
mast, carried away some rigging made fast there and scattered fragments of wood
in all directions.
Carefully, we loaded her again. We had put just eight balls aboard, and powder
enough, but no more.
Now they opened a port upon our side and ran out a gun. Kneeling, I took aim
with my long-bow and put an arrow through the open port. It must have startled
them, although I doubt if damage was done.
We turned right in toward the Jack, firing the second time as we lined out
straight with a good shot at her. This time our shot was high. It hit the
after-house just abaft the wheel.
Almost at the same instant, a Jack gun boomed and a shot splashed only a few
feet away from us. We were much less of a target than the Jack, and before they
could put a rammer down her muzzle, we had turned under her stern and come up on
the portside, but too close for any gun to reach us.
Men rushed to the rail with small arms. Jublain killed one with a pistol shot.
They put their helm hard over to run us down, but Sakim had foreseen the move
and was already moving away, then falling back.
Somebody ran aft and fired a futile shot at us, and then there was another boom.
We saw smoke lifting from the muzzle of one of the stern guns on the Tiger. One,
then another.
We did not see what effect the Tiger’s guns had, but maneuvered close to stay
out of range of the Jack’s stern guns. Men came aft with muskets.
I put an arrow into the first one, missed the second, and then suddenly, I
swore.
Sakim turned and looked at me. “What?” he asked.
“We are fools, Sakim. We forget the obvious.”
They were all looking at me now.
“The rudder,” I said, “it’s point-blank range. Smash their rudder.”
Jublain had finished reloading the gun. “All right. Ready when you are.”
“Take her in close, Sakim.” I held my bow with an arrow notched.
The Jolly Jack was swinging now to bring her starboard guns to bear on the
Tiger.
We ran in as close as we dared. Jublain touched the match to the hole. There was
an instant of deadly silence while we waited, then the smash and concussion of
the gun.
The four-pound ball hit the rudder post and smashed it. Hastily, Jublain loaded
again. It was a pleasure to watch the man, for it was obvious he was a gunner
who knew his business, and he worked smoothly, without hesitation or fumble.
Again the gun bellowed … and the rudder hung loose. The ship looming over us
began to fall away.
Sakim was already turning our gig away. For an instant, close in to the vessel,
we lost the wind. Then it filled our sails and the gig glided out from the
shadow of the ship. A couple of shots barked heavily, balls hit near us, one
striking splinters from the gunwhale, but our gig handled smoothly and we sailed
away.
Glancing back I saw the Jolly Jack had turned broadside to the shore, her guns
no longer able to bear on the Tiger, some of the crew desperately trimming sail,
others working at the stern to rig some kind of a jury rudder.
The Tiger had floated free! Now her crew were trying to work her offshore. She
had some canvas up, and the longboat was again towing her. As she turned, the
Tiger let go with two guns, both shots taking effect in the Jack’s rigging: a
yard came crashing to her deck. And then the Tiger’s sails filled and she
gathered speed.
The longboat cut loose and dropped back to be picked up.
Further out upon the water we waited, watching the Jack. Bardle was a seaman.
I’ll give him that. He was using his canvas to keep her headed right, and his
men were working feverishly. The Tiger moved in close to us and a seaman tossed
us a line. Sakim made it fast and Corvino rigged the sling on our gun. With
another line aft we held our gig close to the Tiger’s side, as the gun was
hoisted aboard and our own towline made fast.
I was the last man to go aboard, and for a moment I clung to the rope and
glanced shoreward. Dark and green was the distant forest, green of trees against
the pale sandhills closer by, and blue the water. It was a fair land … a fair
land. I would leave it with reluctance.
Hand over hand I went up the rope and the gig fell behind on its towrope.
Tempany was on the quarterdeck, with Abigail close beside him.
“Neat work, Sackett,” he said, “very neat work.”
We pointed our bows to the north and east, looking for a way to the open sea.
Tempany had traded along the coast before coming to where we had met, and his
trade had gone well. I had furs … enough to pay me well for my time, yet I
wanted more and we had the space for it.
“What now?” Jublain asked me.
“We’ll sail north,” I said, “but if I prevail we’ll go into that big bay north
of here, cut some mast timbers and burn driftwood for potash.”
And so we did. On the shores of the large bay we found standing timber, and we
cut several for ships’ masts, burning wood the meanwhile until we had forty tons
of potash to add to our cargo. There had been, meanwhile, more trade with
Indians nearby.
Dealing with Indians I found them of shrewd intelligence, quick to detect the
false, quick to appreciate quality, quick to resent contempt and to appreciate
bravery. So much of the Indian’s life was predicated upon courage that he
respected it above all else. He needed courage in the hunt, and in warfare, and
to achieve success within the tribe he needed both courage and wit.
We kept to smaller bays and river-mouths, hoping not to be found by Bardle. But
we knew he would be looking. He was better gunned than we, and had a far larger
crew, and fighting men all of them.
At last, our holds filled to the bursting with furs, potash and timber, we set
sail for England.
“It will be good to be home,” Abigail said, at supper.
“Yes,” I agreed, reluctantly, “but I shall come back to these shores.”
Tempany looked up from his soup. “If we come safely back to England,” he said,
“you will realize a goodly sum.”
“Yes,” I agreed.
“And you have friends there, awaiting your return.”
“That is possible,” I said carefully, “but I place no faith in such things. My
future is one I must make myself, this I know. And my future, I think, is back
there.”
“Gosnold will be sailing again, and there was talk of what Raleigh might do. So