The Cruise of the Thetis: A Tale of the Cuban Insurrection Page 2

  CHAPTER TWO.

  LIEUTENANT MILSOM, R.N.

  The evening was fine, and the distance not far from Morley's to theCecil; Jack therefore did not trouble to take a cab, but, slipping on alight dust-coat over his evening dress, set out to walk down the Strandon his way to dine with his friend. As he went his thoughts weredwelling upon the incident of his afternoon encounter with themysterious "Mr Mackintosh, of Inveraray"; and he decided that he wouldlet Carlos and his father know that someone appeared to be taking rathera marked interest in them and their movements. A walk of some tenminutes' duration sufficed to take him to his destination; and as heturned in at the arcade which gives access to the hotel from the Strand,whom should he see but the mysterious stranger, apparently intentlystudying the steamship advertisements displayed in one of the windows ofthe arcade, but in reality keeping a sharp eye upon the hotel entrances.

  "Ah!" thought Jack; "watching, are you? All right; I'll see if I can'tgive you a bit of a scare, my friend!" And, so thinking, the younggiant walked straight up to the stranger, and, gripping him firmly bythe arm, exclaimed:

  "Hillo, Mackintosh, waiting for Mr Montijo, eh? Is this where he isstopping? Because, if so, we may as well go in together, and see if heis at home. The sight of you reminds me that I rather want to see himmyself. Come along, old chap!" And therewith Jack, still retaining hisgrip upon the stranger's arm, swung him round and made as though hewould drag him along to the hotel.

  "Carrajo! How dare you, sir!" exclaimed the stranger, vainly strivingto wrench himself free from Jack's grasp. "Release me, sir; release meinstantly, you young cub, or I will call a policeman!"

  "What!" exclaimed Jack, in affected surprise; "don't you wish to seeyour friend Montijo? Very well; run along, then. But take notice ofwhat I say, Mr Mackintosh; if I find you hanging about here again Iwill call a policeman and give you in charge as a suspicious character.Now, be off with you, and do not let me see you again."

  And, swinging him round, Jack thrust him away with such force that itwas with difficulty the man avoided falling headlong into the carriage-way. Then, calmly passing into the hotel, Singleton enquired for SenorMontijo, and was ushered to that gentleman's private suite of rooms byan obsequious waiter.

  He found both father and son waiting for him in a very pretty littledrawing-room, and, Carlos having duly introduced his friend, the threestood chatting together upon the various current topics of the day untildinner was announced, when they filed into a small dining-roomadjoining. Here also the conversation was of a strictly generalcharacter, so long, at least, as the waiters were about; but at lengththe latter withdrew, and the two young men, at Senor Montijo's request,drew up their chairs closer to his.

  Don Hermoso Montijo was a man in the very prime of life, being in hisforty-third year; and, fortune having been kind to him from the first,while sickness of every description had carefully avoided him, he lookedeven younger than his years. He was a tall, powerful, and strikinglyhandsome man, of very dark complexion, with black hair, beard, andmoustache, and dark eyes that sparkled with good humour and vivacity;and his every movement and gesture were characterised by the statelydignity of the true old Spanish hidalgo. He had spoken but littleduring dinner, his English being far from perfect; moreover, although hehad paid the most elaborately courteous attention to what Jack said, histhoughts had seemed to be far away. Now, however, he turned to hisguest and said, with an air of apology:

  "Senor Singleton, I must pray you to me pardon if I have silent beenduring--the--meal--of dinner, but I have not much of English, as youhave doubtless noticed. Have you the Spanish?"

  Jack laughed as he replied in that language: "What I have, Senor, I oweentirely to Carlos here. He may perhaps have told you that we two usedto amuse ourselves by teaching each other our respective tongues. But Iam afraid I was rather a dull scholar; and if my Spanish is only half asgood as Carlos's English I shall be more than satisfied."

  "I am afraid I am unable to judge the quality of Carlos's English,"answered Don Hermoso, "but I beg to assure you, Senor, that your Spanishis excellent; far better, indeed, than that spoken by many of my owncountrymen. If it be not too tedious to you, Senor, I would beg you todo me the favour of speaking Spanish for the remainder of the evening,as I find it exceedingly difficult to make myself quite clearlyunderstood in English."

  Jack having expressed his perfect readiness to fall in with thissuggestion, Don Hermoso continued:

  "Carlos has been telling me what passed between you and him to-day,Senor Singleton, and although I was naturally somewhat disinclined togive an unqualified assent to his suggestion before I had seen you,permit me to say that now, having seen, watched, and conversed with you,nothing will give me greater pleasure than to endorse his proposal,unless it be to hear that you agree to it."

  "To be perfectly candid, Don Hermoso, I feel very strongly inclined todo so," answered Jack. "But before I can possibly give my assent toCarlos's proposal you must permit me to clearly indicate the risks toyou involved in it. You know absolutely nothing of me, Senor, beyondwhat you have learned from your son; and it is in the highest degreeessential that you should clearly understand that what Carlos suggestedto me this afternoon involves you in the risk of losing your yacht, forthe carrying into effect of that proposal would make the vesselpositively my own, to do as I pleased with; and if I should choose toretain possession of her, neither you nor anybody else could preventme."

  "I very clearly understand all that, my dear young friend," answered DonHermoso, "and I am perfectly willing to take the risks, for severalreasons. In the first place, if you were the kind of individual to dowhat you have just suggested, I do not for an instant believe that youwould have warned me that the proposal involved me in the risk of losingmy yacht. In the next place, although, as you say, I know little ornothing about you, my son Carlos knows you pretty intimately, and I canrely upon his judgment of you. And, finally, I do not believe that anyEnglishman in your position would or could be guilty of such infamousconduct as you have suggested. The fact is that we shall certainly beobliged to trust somebody--for if it were once known that the yachtbelonged to me she would be so strictly watched that we could do littleor nothing with her; and I would naturally trust you, rather than astranger."

  "Of course," answered Jack, "that is only natural, and I can quiteunderstand it. Nevertheless I will not give you an answer at present;you must have sufficient time to think the matter over at leisure, andperhaps while doing so you may hit upon some alternative scheme thatwill suit you better. Meanwhile, let me tell you of a little adventurethat I had this afternoon, just after I had parted from you, Carlos--andits continuation this evening. It will perhaps interest you, for I amgreatly mistaken if it does not concern you both, even more than it doesme."

  And therewith Jack proceeded to give a humorous relation of his twoencounters with the foreign-looking gentleman claiming to be one of theMackintoshes of Inveraray. When at length he finished, father and sonlooked at each other with glances of alarm, and simultaneouslyexclaimed:

  "Now, who can that possibly be?"

  "Your description of the man does not in the least degree suggest anyparticular individual to me," continued Don Hermoso; "but that, ofcourse, is not surprising, for a man must have a singularly strikingpersonality to allow of his being identified from verbal descriptiononly. But let him be who he may, I am quite disposed to agree with youthat his object in accosting you this afternoon was to enable him tofamiliarise himself with your personal appearance; while the fact thatyou caught him watching the hotel this evening would seem to indicatethat our presence in London is known, and that our visit is regardedwith a certain amount of suspicion. This only strengthens my convictionthat your aid, my dear Senor Singleton, will be of the greatest value tous, if we can succeed in persuading you to give it."

  Don Hermoso's manner was such as to leave no room for doubt in the mindof Singleton as to the sincerity of the Cuban, while the latter and hisson we
re easily able to see that their proposal strongly appealed to theadventurous spirit of the young Englishman: it is therefore notsurprising that ere they parted that evening Singleton had definitelyagreed to become, for the time being, the apparent owner of the newsteam-yacht, and to take part in the gun-running adventure; alsoagreeing to take along with him the working model of his submarine,which all three were of opinion might be found exceedingly useful, whilethe service upon which they were about to engage would afford Jack anopportunity to put the craft to the test of actual work.

  These important points having been arranged, it was further agreed that,since the two Montijos were evidently under Spanish surveillance, theyshould advertise their connection with the yacht as little as possible,leaving the matters of the final trials of the vessel, the payment ofthe last instalment of her cost, and her transfer to Jack's ownershipentirely in the hands of the agent who had thus far managed the businessfor them; taking a holiday on the Continent, meanwhile, and joining thevessel only at the last moment prior to her departure for Cuba. And itwas further arranged that the ordering and shipment of the arms,ammunition, and supplies destined for the use of the insurgents shouldalso be left absolutely in the hands of the agent and Jack conjointly;by which means the Montijos would effectually avoid embroilment with theSpanish authorities, while it was hoped that, by occupying the attentionof those authorities themselves, that attention would be completelydiverted from Jack and the yacht. The settlement of these details andof others incidental to them kept the three conspirators busy untilnearly midnight, when Jack rose to go, having already arranged to leavethe hotel by the side entrance in order to baffle the eminentlyrespectable "Mr Mackintosh", should that individual happen to be stillon the watch. As it happened, he was; for upon leaving the hotel Jacksauntered along the Embankment as far as Waterloo Bridge, then made hisway up into Lancaster Place, and there took a cab, in which he drove upthe Strand, where he saw his man, evidently on guard, strolling slowlyto and fro in front of the main entrance to the Cecil.

  Now Jack, although a yacht owner, was not a member of any yacht club,his cutter _Lalage_ being such an out-of-date craft, and so seldom inuse, that he had not thus far thought it worth while to very intimatelyidentify himself with what is the Englishman's pastime _par excellence_.But as he thought over the events of the evening while smoking a finalpipe before turning in that night, it occurred to him that if he was tosuccessfully pose as the owner of a fine new steam-yacht, it wasimperative that he should become a member of some smart club; and as hehappened to have two or three intimate friends who belonged to the RoyalThames, he decided upon attempting to procure election into thatsomewhat exclusive club. Accordingly, the next morning he addressedletters to those friends, requesting them to undertake the matter of hiselection, with the result, it may here be mentioned, that about threeweeks later he received a communication from the secretary of the club,intimating his enrolment, and requesting the payment of his entrance feeand first subscription. This matter having been attended to, Jack nextaddressed a letter to Senor Montijo's agent, making an appointment withhim for the afternoon; and then went out to interview his tailor andoutfitter, for the purpose of procuring a suitable outfit.

  Then it occurred to him that for the especial work which the new yachtwas required to do she would need a first-rate crew, every man of whommust be absolutely to be depended upon under all circumstances. Theeight or ten hands comprising the crew of the _Lalage_ were all well-known to him, having indeed belonged to the cutter for years, while shewas still the property of Jack's father, and they would doubtless serveas the nucleus of the new ship's crew: but of course they would go but alittle way towards the manning of a steam-yacht of three hundred andforty tons measurement; while Perkins, satisfactory as he had provedhimself in his capacity of skipper of the cutter, would never do ascommander of the new ship--though he might perhaps make a very goodchief officer. Having arrived at this point in his meditations, Jacksuddenly bethought himself of Lieutenant Philip Milsom, R.N. (retired),who would make a perfectly ideal skipper for the new craft, and wouldprobably be glad enough to get to sea again for a few months, andsupplement his scanty income by drawing the handsome pay which thecaptain of a first-class modern steam-yacht can command. Whereupon theyoung man turned into the next telegraph office that he came to, anddispatched a wire to Milsom, briefly informing him that he had heard ofa berth which he thought would suit him, and requesting him to call atMorley's Hotel on the following day. And at lunch-time Jack received aletter from Carlos Montijo, announcing the departure of his father andhimself for Paris, _en route_ for Switzerland, and containing anitinerary and list of dates for Singleton's guidance in the event of hisfinding it necessary to communicate with them.

  Jack had finished his luncheon, and was taking a cup of coffee with hiscigarette in the smoke-room, when a waiter entered, bearing a card theowner of which was enquiring for Mr Singleton. The card bore the nameof "James M. Nisbett", and Jack knew that Senor Montijo's agent hadarrived. He accordingly directed the waiter to show Mr Nisbett up intohis private sitting-room.

  Mr Nisbett was one of those agents whose business is generally broughtto them by foreign and colonial clients; and his transactions consistedof obtaining for and forwarding to those clients anything and everythingthat they might chance to require, whether it happened to be a pocketknife, a bridal trousseau, or several hundred miles of railway; aneedle, or an anchor. And, being a keen man of business, it was onlynecessary to mention to him the kind of article required, and he was atonce prepared to say where that article might be best obtained. Also,being a tremendously busy man, he was wont to get straight to business,without any circumlocution; and he did so in the present instance byproducing a letter which he had that morning received from Don HermosoMontijo, detailing the arrangement arrived at on the previous nightbetween himself and Jack, and authorising Nisbett to act upon Jack'sinstructions precisely as though these instructions emanated directlyfrom Don Hermoso himself. This letter very effectually cleared theground, and Jack at once began to detail to Nisbett full particulars ofall the arms, ammunition, stores, and articles generally which it wasintended to put on board the yacht for conveyance to Cuba; after whicharrangements were made for the final trials of the yacht prior to heracceptance by Nisbett on behalf of his clients, and her subsequenttransference to Jack's ownership. It was perfectly clear to Jack thatthis last arrangement was distinctly unpalatable to Nisbett, who thoughthe saw in it some deep-laid scheme for the theft of the yacht from heractual owners; but when Jack explained the reasons which had actuatedthe Montijos in making the proposal, and further cheerfully offered toconsent to any alternative scheme which would achieve the same result,the man at once gave in, frankly admitting that the arrangement alreadycome to was the best that could be suggested. He remained with Jack twofull hours, carefully discussing with him every point affecting thesuccess of the expedition; and when at length he retired he was fullyprimed with all the information necessary to enable him tosatisfactorily perform his share of the task.

  The following morning brought Jack a visitor of a very different butequally thorough type, in the person of Lieutenant Philip Milsom, R.N.,who sent in his card while the young man was still dawdling over arather late breakfast.

  "Bring the gentleman in here," ordered Jack; and a minute later thewaiter re-appeared, conducting a dapper-looking, clean-shaven man ofmedium height, attired in a suit of blue serge, the double-breastedjacket of which he wore buttoned tight to his body. This individualspotted Jack instantly, and, pushing the waiter on one side, bustled upwith outstretched hand to the table at which the young man was sitting,exclaiming in a brisk, cheery voice:

  "Hillo, Jack, my hearty, what cheer? Gad! what a big lump of a chap youhave become since I saw you last--how long ago?--ay, it must be morethan two years. But, nevertheless, I should have known you anywhere,from your striking likeness to your poor father. Well, and how are you,my lad, eh? Not very much the matter with you, I should
say--and yet Idon't know; you look a trifle chalky about the gills, and your clothesseem to hang rather more loosely than they should. What have you beendoing with yourself, eh?"

  "Oh, nothing very dreadful!" laughed Jack, "only overworking myself atrifle, so I am told. But sit down, there's a good fellow, and--haveyou breakfasted, by the way?"

  "Breakfasted very nearly three hours ago, my boy," was the answer. "Butif you want me to join you--I see you are still busy at it--don't bebashful, but say so straight out, and I'll not refuse, for the journeyup has given me a fresh appetite."

  "That's right," said Jack. "Now, which will you have, coffee or tea?And you can take your choice of ham and eggs, steak, chop, and fish."

  "Thanks!" said Milsom, "I'll take coffee--and a steak, rather underdone.And while the steak is getting ready I'll amuse myself with one ofthose rolls and a pat of butter, if you don't mind. I got yourtelegram, by the way, or of course I shouldn't be here. What is thejob, my boy, eh? I suppose it is something that a gentleman mayundertake, or you wouldn't have thought of me, eh?"

  "Of course," said Jack; "that is to say, I think so. But you must judgefor yourself whether the post is such as you would care to accept. Thefact is that, as I told you just now, I have been overworking myself;and a specialist whom I have come down here to consult tells me that Imust take a long holiday in the open air. I have therefore decided togo on a yachting cruise--to the West Indies, probably--and I want you totake command of the ship for me. She is a brand-new, three-hundred-and-forty-ton steam-yacht, of eight hundred indicated horse-power, and herguaranteed sea speed is twenty-two knots."

  Milsom pursed up his lips and gave vent to a prolonged whistle as Jackenunciated these particulars; then his features relaxed into a broadsmile as he extended his right hand across the table to Jack,exclaiming:

  "I'm your man! As I came along in the train this morning I wascogitating what was the smallest amount of pay that I would take forthis job--whatever it might be; but, by the piper, Jack, the merepleasure of commanding such a craft would be payment enough for me, andI'm quite willing to take it on free, gratis, and for nothing, if yousay so."

  "The pay," said Jack, "will be at the rate of thirty pounds sterling percalendar month, with uniform and your keep, of course, thrown in."

  "Good enough!" exclaimed Milsom enthusiastically. "You may take it thatupon these terms I accept the command of the--what's her name?"

  "She is so new," said Jack, "that she has not yet been given a name. Atpresent she is known simply as Number 78. But"--lowering his voice--"Ihave not yet told you everything; you had better wait until you haveheard all that I have to say before you definitely decide. Meanwhile,here comes your steak and some fresh coffee, so you had better get yourbreakfast; and when you have finished we will both go up to my privateroom."

  "Right ho!" acquiesced Milsom, who forthwith turned his attention to hissecond breakfast, saying very little more until he intimated that he hadfinished, and was now quite ready to resume the discussion of the matterthat had brought him up to town. Accordingly, Jack conducted his friendup to his private sitting-room, waved him into a chair, and took onehimself.

  "Ah!" exclaimed Milsom, in a tone that conveyed his completesatisfaction with things in general; "this is all right. I suppose, bythe way, a chap may smoke here, mayn't he?"

  "Of course," said Jack; "smoke away as hard as you please, old man.Have a cigar?"

  "No, thanks," answered the Navy man; "good, honest, stick tobacco,smoked out of a well-seasoned brier, is good enough for me--unless onecan get hold of a real, genuine Havana, you know; but they are scarcelyto be had in these days."

  "All the same, I think we may perhaps manage to get hold of one or twowhere we are going," said Jack; "that is to say, if you are stillwilling to take on the job after you have heard what I am bound to tellyou."

  "Ah!" exclaimed Milsom; "something in the background, eh? Well, itcan't be very terrible, I fancy, Jack, or you would not be mixed up init. However, heave ahead, my lad, and let us hear the worst, withoutfurther parley."

  "Well," said Jack, "the fact is that the yachting trip is all a `blind',and is in reality neither more nor less than a gun-running expedition inaid of the Cuban revolutionaries. And the yacht is really not mine, butbelongs to a certain very wealthy Cuban gentleman who, being, like mostCubans, utterly sick of the Spanish misgovernment of the island, hasthrown in his lot with the patriots, and has had the craft speciallybuilt for their service. But, recognising that to declare his ownershipof her would at once arouse the suspicion of the Spaniards, and attracta tremendous amount of unwelcome attention to her, he has persuaded meto assume the apparent ownership of the vessel, and to undertake a tripto the West Indies in her, ostensibly for my health, but actually to runinto the island a consignment of arms and ammunition, and otherwise toassist the patriots in every possible way."

  "I see," observed Milsom thoughtfully. "That means, of course, that Ishould really be in the service of the Cuban gentleman, instead of inyours. That makes a very important difference, Jack, for, you see, Ishall have to look to him, instead of to you, for my pay; and smugglingcontraband of war is a very different matter from navigating agentleman's private yacht, and is work for which I shall expect to bewell paid."

  "Then am I to understand that you regard thirty pounds per month asinsufficient?" demanded Jack.

  "Not at all, my dear boy," answered Milsom quickly, "do notmisunderstand me; I am quite content with the pay, but as the service isone that I can see with half an eye will involve a good deal of risk, Iwant to be quite certain of getting it. Now, is your friend to beabsolutely depended upon in that respect? You see, if this insurrectionshould fail--as it probably will--your friend may be killed, orimprisoned, and all his property confiscated; and then I may whistle formy money."

  "I think not," said Jack. "For my friend has left the management ofeverything in my hands, and I will see that you are all right. But I amvery glad that you have raised the point; for it has enabled me to seethat the proper thing will be to deposit a sufficient sum in an Englishbank to cover the pay of all hands for a period of--well, say twelvemonths. What do you say to that?"

  "I say," answered Milsom, "that it will be quite the proper thing to do,and will smooth away a very serious difficulty. But, Jack, my boy, hasit occurred to you that you will be running a good many quiteunnecessary risks by mixing yourself up in this affair? For you mustremember that we may be compelled to fight, before all is done; while,if we are captured, it may mean years of imprisonment in a Spanish penalsettlement, which will be no joke, I can assure you, my lad!"

  "Ah!" answered Jack. "To be quite frank, I had not thought of the lastcontingency you mention. But `in for a penny, in for a pound'; I'lltake the risk, and trust to my usual good luck to keep me out of aSpanish prison. The fact is, Phil, that I am fairly aching for a bit ofadventure, and I simply must have it."

  "Very well," said Milsom grimly; "I think you have hit upon a mostexcellent scheme for getting it! My advice to you, Jack, is to leavethe whole thing severely alone; but, whether you do or not, I am in it,so please give me your orders. And, mind you, Jack, I take them fromyou, and from nobody else."

  "Very well," said Jack. "It may be necessary for you to modify thatresolution later on, but let that pass; at present, at all events, youwill receive all instructions from me, and regard me as the owner of thevessel. Now the first thing to be done is to secure a good crew; and,as I have told you precisely the kind of work that will have to be done,I shall look to you to provide the right sort of officers and men. Isuppose you will have to give them a hint that they will be required todo something more than mere everyday yachting work--and you must arrangetheir pay accordingly; but, while doing this, you must be careful not tolet out the true secret, or it will not remain such for very long. Andyou need not trouble to provide the engine-room staff; I think I canmanage that part of the business myself."

  "I see," answered Milsom. "You wi
sh me to engage merely the officers,seamen, and stewards? Very well. How many guns will she carry?"

  "Guns?" echoed Jack. "By Jove, I had not thought of that! Will sheneed any guns?"

  "She certainly will, if she is to be as useful as she ought to be,"answered Milsom.

  "Um!" said Jack; "that complicates matters a bit, doesn't it? I amafraid that I must refer that point to Senor Montijo, the actual owner.What sort of armament would you recommend for such a craft, Phil?"

  "Oh! not a very heavy one," answered Milsom; "probably four 12-pounders,of the latest pattern, and a couple of Maxims would be sufficient."

  Jack made a note of these particulars for reference to Senor Montijo,and then said:

  "Now, is there anything else that you can think of, Phil?"

  "Nothing except an outfit of small arms--rifles, revolvers, andcutlasses, you know, for the crew," answered Milsom. "If anything elseshould occur to me I will write and mention it."

  "Very well; pray do so," said Jack. "Now, I think that is all for thepresent. Pick a first-class, thoroughly reliable crew, Phil. I giveyou a week in which to look for them, by which time I expect the boatwill be ready to receive them. Then you can bring them all north withyou, and we will ship them in the proper orthodox style. Now, good-bye;and good luck to you in your search!"