Under Drake's Flag: A Tale of the Spanish Main Read online

  Three days after the receipt of the letter, Ned Hearne stood withhis bundle on the quay at Plymouth. Near him lay a large rowboatfrom the ships, waiting to take off the last comers. A little waybehind, Captain Francis Drake and his brother, Captain John Drake,talked with the notable people of Plymouth, who had come down tobid them farewell; the more since this was a holiday, being WhitsunEve, the 24th May, and all in the town who could spare time hadmade their way down to the Hove to watch the departure of theexpedition; for none could say how famous this might become, or howgreat deeds would be accomplished by the two little craft lyingthere. Each looker on thought to himself that it might be that, tothe end of his life, he should tell his children and his children'schildren, with pride, "I saw Mr. Drake start for his great voyage."

  Small, indeed, did the fleet appear, in comparison to the workwhich it had to do. It was composed of but two vessels. The first,the Pacha, of seventy tons, carrying forty-seven men and boys, wascommanded by Captain Francis Drake himself. By her side was theSwanne, of twenty-five tons, carrying twenty-six men and boys, andcommanded by Captain John Drake. This was truly but a small affairto undertake so great a voyage.

  In those days the Spaniards were masters of the whole of SouthAmerica, and of the Isles of the West Indies. They had many verylarge towns full of troops, and great fleets armed to carry thetreasure which was collected there to Spain. It did seem almostlike an act of madness that two vessels, which by the side of thoseof the Spaniards were mere cockleshells, manned in all by less thaneighty men, should attempt to enter a region where they would beregarded, and rightly, as enemies, and where the hand of every manwould be against them.

  Captain Drake and his men thought little of these things. Thesuccess which had attended their predecessors had inspired theEnglish sailors with a belief in their own invincibility, whenopposed to the Spaniards. They looked, to a certain extent, upontheir mission as a crusade. In those days England had a horror ofPopery, and Spain was the mainstay and supporter of this religion.The escape which England had had of having Popery forced upon it,during the reign of Mary, by her spouse, Philip of Spain, had beena narrow one; and even now, it was by no means certain that Spainwould not, sooner or later, endeavor to carry out the pretensionsof the late queen's husband. Then, too, terrible tales had come ofthe sufferings of the Indians at the hands of the Spaniards; and itwas certain that the English sailors who had fallen into the handsof Spain had been put to death, with horrible cruelty. Thus, then,the English sailors regarded the Spaniards as the enemy of theircountry, as the enemy of their religion, and as the enemy ofhumanity. Besides which, it cannot be denied that they viewed themas rich men, well worth plundering; and although, when it came tofighting, it is probable that hatred overbore the thought of gain,it is certain that the desire for gold was, in itself, the mainincentive to those who sailed upon these expeditions.

  Amid the cheers of the townsfolk the boats pushed off, Mr. FrancisDrake and his brother waving their plumed hats to the burghers ofPlymouth, and the sailors giving a hurrah, as they bent to theoars. Ned Hearne, who had received a kind word of greeting from Mr.Drake, had taken his place in the bow of one of the boats, lost inadmiration at the scene; and at the thought that he was one of thisband of heroes, who were going out to fight the Spaniards, and toreturn laden with countless treasure wrested from them. At thethought his eyes sparkled, his blood seemed to dance through hisveins.

  The western main, in those days, was a name almost of enchantment.Such strange tales had been brought home, by the voyagers who hadnavigated those seas, of the wonderful trees, the bright birds, thebeauties of nature, the gold and silver, and the abundance of allprecious things, that it was the dream of every youngster on theseaboard some day to penetrate to these charmed regions. A weeksince, and the realization of the dream had appeared beyond hiswildest hopes. Now, almost with the suddenness of a transformationscene, this had changed; and there was he on his way out to theSwanne, a part of the expedition itself. It was to the Swanne thathe had been allotted, for it was on board that ship that the boywhose place he was to take had been seized with illness.

  Although but twenty-five tons in burden, the Swanne made a fargreater show than would be made by a craft of that size in thepresent day. The ships of the time lay but lightly on the water,while their hulls were carried up to a prodigious height; and it isnot too much to say that the portion of the Swanne, above water,was fully as large as the hull which we see of a merchantman offour times her tonnage. Still, even so, it was but a tiny craft tocross the Atlantic, and former voyages had been generally made inlarger ships.

  Mr. Francis Drake, however, knew what he was about. He consideredthat large ships required large crews to be left behind to defendthem, that they drew more water, and were less handy; and heresolved, in this expedition, he would do no small part of his workwith pinnaces and rowboats; and of these he had three fine craft,now lying in pieces in his hold, ready to fit together on arrivingin the Indies.

  As they neared the ships the two boats separated, and Ned soonfound himself alongside of the Swanne. A ladder hung at her side,and up this Ned followed his captain; for in those days the strictetiquette that the highest goes last had not been instituted.

  "Master Holyoake," said Mr. John Drake, to a big andpowerful-looking man standing near, "this is the new lad, whoseskill in swimming, and whose courage, I told you of yesternight. Hewill, I doubt not, be found as willing as he is brave; and I trustthat you will put him in the way of learning his business as asailor. It is his first voyage. He comes on board a green hand, butI doubt not that, ere the voyage be finished, he will have become asmart young sailor."

  "I will put him through," John Holyoake, sailing master of theship, replied; for in those days the sailing master was thenavigator of the ship, and the captain was as often as not asoldier, who knew nothing whatever about seamanship. The one sailedthe ship, the other fought it; and the admirals were, in thosedays, more frequently known as generals, and held that position onshore.

  As Ned looked round the deck, he thought that he had never seen afiner set of sailors. All were picked men, hardy and experienced,and for the most part young. Some had made previous voyages to theWest Indies, but the greater portion were new to that country. Theylooked the men on whom a captain could rely, to the last. Tall andstalwart, bronzed with the sun, and with a reckless and fearlessexpression about them, which boded ill to any foes upon whom theymight fall.

  Although Ned had never been to sea on a long voyage, he had sailedtoo often in the fishing boats of his native village to have anyqualm of seasickness, or to feel in any degree like a new hand. Hewas, therefore, at once assigned to a place and duty.

  An hour later the admiral, as Mr. Francis Drake was called, fired agun, the two vessels hoisted their broad sails and turned theirheads from shore, and the crews of both ships gave a parting cheer,as they turned their faces to the south.

  As Ned was not in the slightest degree either homesick or seasick,he at once fell to work, laughing and joking with the other boys,of whom there were three on board. He found that their dutiesconsisted of bearing messages, of hauling any rope to which theywere told to fix themselves, and in receiving, with as good a faceas might be, the various orders, to say nothing of the variouskicks, which might be bestowed upon them by all on board. At thesame time their cheerful countenances showed that these thingswhich, when told, sounded a little terrible, were in truth in noway serious.

  Ned was first shown where he was to sling his hammock, and how;where he was to get his food; and under whose orders he wasspecially to consider himself; the master, for the present, takinghim under his own charge. For the next ten days, as the vesselsailed calmly along, with a favoring wind, Ned had learned all thenames of the ropes and sails, and their uses; could climb aloft,and do his share of the work of the ship; and if not yet a skilledsailor, was at least on the high road to become one. The master waspleased at his willingness and eagerness to oblige, and he soonbecame a great favorite of his.


  Between the four boys on the ship a good feeling existed. All hadbeen chosen as a special favor, upon the recommendation of one orother of those in authority. Each of them had made up his mindthat, one of these days, he, too, would command an expedition tothe West Indies. Each thought of the glory which he would attain;and although, in the hearts of many of the elder men in theexpedition, the substantial benefits to be reaped stood higher thanany ideas of glory or honor; to the lads, at least, pecuniary gainexercised no inducement whatever. They burned to see the strangecountry, and to gain some of the credit and glory which would, ifthe voyage was successful, attach to each member of the crew. Allwere full of fun, and took what came to them, in the way of work,so good temperedly and cheerfully, that the men soon ceased to givethem work for work's sake.

  They were, too, a strong and well-built group of boys. Ned was by afull year the youngest, and by nigh a head the shortest of them;but his broad shoulders and sturdy build, and the strength acquiredby long practice in swimming and rowing, made him their equal.

  There were, however, no quarrels among them, and their strengththey agreed to use in alliance, if need be, should any of the crewmake a dead set at one or other of them; for even in an expeditionlike this there must be some brutal, as well as many brave men.There were assuredly two or three, at least, of those on board theSwanne who might well be called brutal. They were for the most partold hands, who had lived on board ship half their lives, had takenpart in the slave traffic of Captain Hawkins, and in thebuccaneering exploits of the earlier commanders. To them the voyagewas one in which the lust of gold was the sole stimulant; and,accustomed to deeds of bloodshed, what feelings they ever had hadbecome utterly blunted, and they needed but the power to becomedespotic and brutal masters.

  The chief among these was Giles Taunton, the armorer He was aswarthy ruffian, who hid, beneath the guise of a jovial bonhomie, acruel and unfeeling nature. He was ever ready to cuff and beat theboys, on the smallest provocation.

  They soon gathered together, in a sort of defensive league, againsttheir common oppressors. All four were high-spirited lads. Theother three, indeed, were sons of men of substance in Devon, whosefathers had lent funds to Captain Drake for the carrying out of hisgreat enterprise. They therefore looked but ill on the kicks andcurses which, occasionally, fell to their lot.

  One day they gathered together round the bowsprit, and talked overwhat they should do. Gerald Summers, the eldest of the party,proposed that they should go in a body to Captain Drake, andcomplain of the tyranny to which they were subject. After sometalk, however, all agreed that such a course as this would lowerthem in the estimation of the men, and that it would be better toput up with the ill treatment than, to get the name of tell tales.

  Ned then said to the others:

  "It seems to me that, if we do but hold together, we need not beafraid of this big bully. If we all declare to each other and swearthat, the first time he strikes one of us, we will all set uponhim; my faith on it, we shall be able to master him, big as he is.We are all of good size, and in two years will think ourselves men;therefore it would be shame, indeed, if the four of us could notmaster one, however big and sturdy he may be."

  After much consultation, it was agreed that this course should beadopted; and the next day, as Reuben Gale was passing by Giles, heturned round and struck him on the head with a broom. The boy gavea long whistle, and in a moment, to the astonishment of thearmorer, the other three lads rushed up, and at once assailed himwith fury. Astonished at such an attack, he struck out at them withmany strange oaths. Gerald he knocked down, but Ned leaped on hisback from behind, and the other two, closing with him, rolled himon to the deck; then, despite of his efforts, they pummeled himuntil his face was swollen and bruised, and his eyes nearly closed.

  Some of the men of his own sort, standing by, would fain haveinterfered; but the better disposed of the crew, who had seen, withdisgust, the conduct of the armorer and his mates to the boys, heldthem back, and said that none should come between.

  Just as the boys drew off, and allowed the furious armorer to riseto his feet, Captain John Drake, attracted by the unusual noise,came from his cabin.

  "What is this?" he asked.

  "These young wild cats have leapt upon me," said Giles Tauntonfuriously, "and have beaten me nigh to death. But I will have myturn. They will see, and bitterly shall they have cause to regretwhat they have done."

  "We have been driven almost weary of our lives, sir, with the fouland rough conduct of this man, and of some of his mates," Geraldsaid. "We did not like to come to tell you of it, and to gain thename of carry tales; but we had resolved among ourselves at lastthat, whoever struck one of us, the whole should set upon him.Today we have carried it out, and we have shown Giles Taunton thatwe are more than a match for one man, at any rate."

  "Four good-sized dogs, if they are well managed," said Captain JohnDrake, "will pull down a lion; and the best thing that the lion cando is to leave them alone.

  "I am sorry to hear, Master Taunton, that you have chosen tomistreat these lads; who are, indeed, the sons of worthy men, andare not the common kind of ship boys. I am sure that my brotherwould not brook such conduct, and I warn you that, if any complaintagain on this head reaches me, I shall lay it before him."

  With angry mutterings, the armorer went below.

  "We have earned a bitter foe," Ned said to his friends, "and we hadbest keep our eyes well open. There is very little of the lionabout Master Taunton. He is strong, indeed; but if it be true thatthe lion has a noble heart, and fights his foes openly, methinks heresembles rather the tiger, who is prone to leap suddenly upon hisenemies."

  "Yes, indeed, he looked dark enough," Gerald said, "as he wentbelow; and if looks could have killed us, we should not be standinghere alive, at present."

  "It is not force that we need fear now, but that he will do us somefoul turn; at all events, we are now forewarned, and if he plays usa scurvy trick it will be our own faults."

  For several days the voyage went on quietly, and without adventure.They passed at a distance the Portuguese Isle of Madeira, lyinglike a cloud on the sea. The weather now had become warm and veryfair, a steady wind blew, and the two barks kept along at a goodpace.

  All sorts of creatures, strange to the boys, were to be seen in thesea. Sometimes there was a spout of a distant whale. Thousands offlying fish darted from the water, driven thence by the pursuit oftheir enemies beneath; while huge flocks of gulls and other birdshovered over the sea, chasing the flying fish, or pouncing downupon the shoals of small fry; whose splashings whitened the surfaceof the water, as if a sandbank had laid below it.

  Gradually, as the time went on, the heat increased. Many of thecrew found themselves unable to sleep below, for in those daysthere was but little thought of ventilation. The boys were amongthese, for the heat and the confinement were, to them, especiallyirksome.

  One day the wind had fallen almost to a calm, and the small boathad been lowered, to enable the carpenter to do some repair to theship's side, where a seam leaked somewhat, when the waves werehigh. When night came on, and all was quiet, Ned proposed to theothers that they should slip down the rope over the stern into theboat which was towing behind; where they could sleep undisturbed bythe tramp of the sentry, or the call to pull at ropes and trimsails.

  The idea was considered a capital one, and the boys slid down intothe boat; where, taking up their quarters as comfortably as theycould, they, after a short chat, curled themselves up and were soonsound asleep, intending to be on board again, with the earliestgleam of morn.

  When they awoke, however, it was with a start and a cry. The sunwas already high, but there were no signs whatever of the ship;they floated, alone, in the mid-ocean. With blank amazement theylooked at each other.

  "This is a stroke of misfortune, indeed," Gerald said. "We havelost the ship, and I fear our lives, as well.

  "What do you say, Otter?"

  For the lad's nickname had come on board
ship with him, and he wasgenerally known by it.

  "It seems to me," said Ned, "that our friend the armorer has doneus this bad turn. I am sure that the rope was well tied, for I wasthe first who slipped down it, and I looked at the knot well,before I went over the side and trusted my weight to it. He musthave seen us, and as soon as he thought we were fairly asleep musthave loosened the knot and cast us adrift. What on earth is to bedone, now?"

  "I should think," Gerald said, "that it will not be long before theship comes back for us. The boat is sure to be missed, in themorning, for the carpenter will be wanting it to go over the side.We, too, will be missed, for the captain will be wanting his flagonof wine, soon after the day has dawned."

  "But think you," Tom Tressilis said, "that the captain will turnback on his voyage, for us?"

  "Of that I think there is no doubt," Gerald said; "the onlyquestion is as to the finding us, but I should say that of thatthere is little fear; the wind is light, the ship was not makingfast through the water, and will not be more than fifty miles, atmost, away, when she turns on her heel and comes to look for us. Iexpect that Master Taunton knew, well enough, that we should bepicked up again; but he guessed that the admiral would not bepleased at losing a day, by our freak, and that the matter is notlikely to improve the favor in which we may stand with him and hisbrother."

  "It is going to be a terrible hot day," Ned said, "and with the sunabove our heads and no shade, and not so much as a drop of water,the sooner we are picked up the more pleasant it will be, even ifwe all get a touch of the rope's end for our exploit."

  All day the boys watched anxiously. Once they saw the two vesselssailing backward on their track, but the current had drifted theboat, and the ships passed fully eight miles away to windward ofthem, and thus without seeing them. This caused the boys,courageous as they were, almost to despair.

  "If," argued Gerald, "they pass us in the daylight, our chance issmall, indeed, that they will find us at night. They will,doubtless, sail back till dusk; and then judge that they havemissed us, or that we have in some way sunk; then, putting theirheads to the west, they will continue their voyage.

  "If we had oars, or a sail, we might make a shift to pull the boatinto the track they are following, which would give us a chance ofbeing picked up when they again turn west; but as we have neitherone nor the other, we are helpless, indeed."

  "I do not think," Ned said, "that Captain John or his brother arethe men to leave us, without a great effort; and methinks that,when they have sailed over the ground to the point where, at theutmost, we must have parted from them, they will lay by through thenight, and search back again, tomorrow."

  And so it proved. On the morrow, about midday, the boys beheld oneof the ships coming up, nearly in a line behind them; while theother, some six miles away to leeward, was keeping abreast of her.

  "They are quartering the ground, like hounds," Gerald said; "and,thanks to their care and thoughtfulness, we are saved, this time."

  By the time that, three hours later, the ship, which was the Pacha,came alongside, the boys were suffering terribly from the heat andthirst; for thirty-six hours no drop of water had passed theirlips, and the sun had blazed down upon them with terrible force.Therefore when the vessel hauled her course, and laid by for a boatto be lowered to pick them up, their plight was so bad a one thatCaptain Francis, although sorely vexed at having lost near two daysof his voyage, yet felt that they had been amply punished for theirescapade.

  Chapter 3: On the Spanish Main.