The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 389: what you’re looking at

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3/4 thing like holding a proper council of war. In the first place, then, we must reflect that you and me are only two on one side against the captain and nine men on the other.” “ That’s two against ten,’ observed the Big Beg- garman, gloomily. “ And ten strong, sturdy fellers that don’t know what fear is,” added Joe Warren. “ But this is only the dark side of the picture. The light side is more flattering than t’other is discouraging. In the first place we must make away with the captain.” “That’s easy enow,” observed the Beggarman. * He has quite Jost all his mistrust of us—and by waiting so patiently before we made up our minds to do anything or take any step, we’ve quite lulled asleep any suspicion that he might have enter- tained.” “You're right there, Stephen,” responded the Magsman. “That he did look upon us in a very queer fashion at the beginning, is very certain: or else he wouldn’t have made us give up our pistols the first night we were on board the ship. But by degrees his fears wore off: and then he let us go upon deck the second day and chat withthe sailors. Well, our first move, as we were saying, is to make away with him: and then we must serve the chief mate in the same manner. ‘That’s not impossible to be done, as I explained to you yesterday.” “ But then we shall have eight sturdy mariners to deal with,” said the Beggarman. “'They’ll be paralysed when we tell them what we’ve done and what we mean to do,” rejoined War- ren, in atone of desperate ferocity. ‘ After all,” he continued, at the expiration of a few minutes, during which a tremendous gust swept over the ocean and the vessel went careering down into the abyss like a maddened race-horse—then up the mighty steep of waters again at a far slower rate,—* after all, we ain’t the men to stand upon trifles, Stephen—and if it comes to the scratch, we must fight a bloody battle, even though the odds will be eight to two when the captain and first mate are put out of the way.” “« Aye—it won’t come to such a desperate combat, when we think calmly of the business,” said the Big Beggarman. “The men will knock under as soon as they see that their chief officers are gone and that we’re resolute. Besides, the hope of plunder and the excitement of the new kind of life which we shall propose to them——”’ “That’s the very point which I rely upon!” ejacu- lated the Magsman. “ But let us still look at the worst. With arms in our hands, friend Stephen, there ain’t two more formidable fellers on the face of this earth than we are——” “ Well, I rather think not,” interrupted the Beggar- ian, complaisantly. ‘‘ And as to getting the weapons to use in case of necessity, there won't be much dif- liculty on that score—for the captain always carries pistols secreted about him. Zhaé we know for a sertainty.” * And there’s always half-a-dozen cutlasses on jleck, round the foot of the main-mast,’’ added the Magsman: “for though the captain’s suspicions have been lulled asleep, as you observed just now, he hasn’t omitted the necessary precautions in case we should suddenly show our teeth. But his pre- cautions will be our safeguard: that is to say, we -hall know where to Jay our hands upon weapons at the proper moment. After all said and done, I Bian't be sorry in the Jong run that the nobleman, LL | \ THE MYSTERIES. whoever he was, played us this infernal trick. The first night we came on board, when I opened the letter which I expected was to contain Bank-notes for the fifteen hundred due to me, I was cursedly savage to find that it was a bill payable inNew York only.” “And I wasn’t best pleased when I opened my letter at the same time and found the same thing,” observed the Beggarman. “It was a deuced gvod plant to compel us to go out to America and recon- cile ns to our fate inthat respect. But we’ve hit upon a plan that’ll upset all the nobleman’s fine schemes,” added the rnffian, with a horrible chuckle. “J should think so indeed,” exclaimed the Mags- man. “ We'll not only get our fifteen hundred pounds each in New York—but we'll also get the ship and everything in her. The cargo must be worth some thousands. And therefore, as I was saying just now, I’m not so particularly sorry after all that his unknown lordship has tried this plant upon us. Had we received our money in good Bank- notes upon coming on board, and if no restraint had been put upon us, we should have quietly left the ship again and stepped back on British ground, contented with the cash we’d realized. But now the treachery practised towards us, has instigated us to treachery jikewise ; and there’s more than one person that’ll be made to rue the ——” Here the Magsman’s voice was drowned in the roar of the tempest which increased a thousand fold all the terrible noises that we have enumerated above. But soon after the rage of that tremendous gust had spent itself, there was a long interval of com- parative lull: and, the door of the cabin suddenly opening, the captain of the vessel made his ap- pearance. His rough garments were shining with the spray which had dashed over him: the water dropped from the wide brim of the low glazed hat which he had substituted for his cap with the gold-lace band; —and his dripping hair hung lanky and straight over his ears. His countenance was more rubicund than ever; and his aspect altogether was that of the weather-beaten, sturdy tar to whom storms were familiar and tempests a source of not un- pleasurable excitement. “ Well, my hearties,” he exclaimed, in a voice which was hoarse and thick from the effects of bawling out his orders upon the deck amidst the din of the elements,—“ you manage to make your- selves pretty comfortable—eh? ‘That's all right— and I thought I'd just step down to see how you was both getting on. It blows great guns, by jingo !” “ Won't it be a nasty night, captain ?” demanded the Magsman. “ Rough enow,” was the laconic response, as the captain shook himself like a dog just emerged from the water. “But there’s nothin’ to fear, my hearties,” he added at the expiration of a few mo- ments: “a good ship and plenty of sea-room — that’s all one wants to make everything safe and trim.” “You'll take a dram, captain—eh ?” said the Big Beggarman. “ Just to keep the cold out,” observed Joe War- ren. “Come —-sit down there, and I'll mix a stinger for you.” “Well, [ don't mind staying a minute or twa bd MICLOOOLKS: (C(O) (C(O)