Held Fast For England: A Tale of the Siege of Gibraltar (1779-83), G. A. Henty [suggested reading txt] 📗

match for her, at any time, came up. We might have out sailed her, if we could have carried all our canvas; but with only a jury topmast, she was too fast for us. As you may see by our sails, we had a smart fight but, by the greatest good fortune, we knocked the mainmast out of her.

"Then we were chased by a French frigate, with the lugger to help her. However, we gave them the slip in the night, and here we are.

"I am afraid you won't get your brother's boxes, till tomorrow. Nothing can go ashore till the port officer has been on board, and the usual formalities gone through. I don't know, yet, whether we shall discharge into lighters, or go alongside; but I will have your boxes all put together, in readiness for you, the first thing in the morning, whichever way it is."

"We shall be very glad if you will dine with us, tomorrow," Captain O'Halloran said. "We dine at one o'clock or, if that would be inconvenient for you, come to supper at seven."

"I would rather do that, if you will let me," Captain Lockett replied. "I shall be pretty busy tomorrow, and you military gentlemen do give us such a lot of trouble--in the way of papers, documents, and signatures--that I never like leaving the ship, till I get rid of the last bale and box with the government brand on it."

"Very well, then; we shall expect you to supper."

"I shall come down first thing in the morning, captain," Bob said, "so I need not say goodbye to anyone, now."

"You had better bring only what you may want with you for the night, Bob," his sister put in, as he was about to run below. "The cart will take everything else up, together, in the morning."

"Then I shall be ready in a minute," Bob said, running below; and it was not much more before he reappeared, with a small handbag.

"I shall see you again tomorrow, Mr. Probert. I shall be here about our luggage;" and he took his place in the boat beside the others, who had already descended the ladder.

"And you have had a pleasant voyage, Bob?" Captain O'Halloran asked.

"Very jolly, Gerald; first rate. Captain Lockett was as kind as could be; and the first mate was very good, too, though I did not think he would be, when I first saw him; and Joe Lockett, the second mate, is a capital fellow."

"But how was it that you did not take that French privateer, Bob? With a fellow like you on board--the capturer of a gang of burglars, and all that sort of thing--I should have thought that, instead of running away, you would have gone straight at her; that you would have thrown yourself on her deck at the head of the boarders, would have beaten the Frenchmen below, killed their captain in single combat, and hauled down their flag."

"There is no saying what I might have done," Bob laughed, "if it had come to boarding; but as it was, I did not feel the least wish for a closer acquaintance with the privateer. It was too close to be pleasant, as it was--a good deal too close. It is a pity you were not there, to have set me an example."

"I am going to do that now, Bob, and I hope you will profit by it.

"Now then, you jump out first, and give Carrie your hand. That is it."

And, having settled with the boatman, Captain O'Halloran followed the others' steps. It was a busy scene. Three ships were discharging their cargoes, and the wharf was covered with boxes and bales, piles of shot and shell, guns, and cases of ammunition. Fatigue parties of artillery and infantry men were piling the goods, or stowing them in handcarts. Goods were being slung down from the ships, and were swinging in the air, or run down to the cry of "Look below!"

"Mind how you go, Carrie," Captain O'Halloran said, "or you will be getting what brains you have knocked out."

"If that is all the danger, Gerald," she laughed, "you are safe, anyhow.

"Now, Bob, do look out!" she broke off as, while glancing round, he tripped over a hawser and fell. "Are you hurt?"

"Never mind him, Carrie--look out for yourself. A boy never gets hurt.

"Now, keep your eyes about you, Bob. You can come and look at all this, any day."

At last they got to the end of the Mole. Then they passed under an archway, with a massive gate, at which stood a sentry; then they found themselves in a sort of yard, surrounded by a high wall, on the top of which two cannon were pointed down upon them. Crossing the yard, they passed through another gateway. The ground here rose sharply, and a hundred yards further back stood another battery; completely commanding the Mole, and the defences through which they had passed.

The ground here was comparatively level, rising gradually to the foot of the rock, which then rose steeply up. A few houses were scattered about, surrounded by gardens. Hedges of cactus lined the road. Parties of soldiers and sailors, natives with carts, and women in picturesque costumes passed along. The vegetation on the low ground was abundant, and Bob looked with delight at the semi-tropical foliage.

Turning to the right they followed the road, passed under an archway in a strong wall, and were in the town, itself.

"We are not living in barracks," Carrie said. "Fortunately there was no room there, and we draw lodging allowance, and have taken the upper portion of a Spanish house. It is much more pleasant. Besides, if we had had to live in quarters, we should have had no room for you."

"The streets are steep," Bob said. "I can't make out how these little donkeys keep their feet on the slippery stones, with those heavy loads.

"Oh! I say, there are two rum-looking chaps. What are they--Moors?"

"Yes. You will see lots of them here, Bob. They come across from Ceuta, and there are some of them established here, as traders. What with the Moors, and Spaniards, and Jews, and the sailors from the shipping, you can hear pretty nearly every European language spoken, in one walk through the streets."

"Oh, I say, isn't this hot?" Bob exclaimed, mopping his face; "and isn't there a glare from all these white walls, and houses! How much higher is it?"

"About another hundred yards, Bob. There, you see, we are getting beyond the streets now."

They had now reached a flat shoulder; and on this the houses were somewhat scattered, standing in little inclosures, with hedges of cactus and geranium, and embowered in shrubs and flowers.

"This is our house," Carrie said, stopping before a rickety wooden gateway, hung upon two massive posts of masonry. "You see, we have got a flight of steps outside, and we are quite cut off from the people below."

They ascended the stairs. At the top there was a sort of wide porch, with a wooden roof; which was completely covered with creepers, growing from two wooden tubs. Four or five plants, covered with blossoms, stood on the low walls; and two or three chairs showed that the little terrace was used as an open-air sitting room.

"In another hour, when the sun gets lower, Bob, we can come and sit here. It is a lovely view, isn't it?"

"Beautiful!" Bob said, leaning on the wall.

Below them lay the sea front, with its gardens and bright foliage and pretty houses, with Europa Point and the sea stretching away beyond it. A little to the right were the African hills; and then, turning slightly round, the Spanish coast, with Algeciras nestled in foliage, and the bay with all its shipping. The head of the bay was hidden, for the ground behind was higher than that on which the house stood.

"Come in, Bob," Captain O'Halloran said. "You had better get out of the sun. Of course, it is nothing to what it will be; but it is hot now, and we are none of us acclimatized, yet."

The rooms were of a fair size, but the light-coloured walls gave them a bare appearance, to Bob's eyes. They were, however, comfortably furnished, matting being laid down instead of carpets.

"It is cooler, and cheaper," Carrie said, seeing Bob looking at them.

"This is your room, and this is the kitchen," and she opened the door into what seemed to Bob a tiny place, indeed.

Across one end was a mass of brickwork, rather higher than an ordinary table. Several holes, a few inches deep, were scattered about over this. In some of these small charcoal fires were burning, and pots were placed over them. There were small openings from the front, leading to these tiny fireplaces; and a Spanish girl was driving the air into one of these, with a fan, when they entered.

"This is my brother, Manola," Mrs. O'Halloran said.

The girl smiled and nodded, and then continued her work.

"She speaks English?" Bob said, as they went out.

"She belongs to the Rock, Bob. Almost all the natives here talk a little English."

"Where do these steps lead to? I thought we were at the top of the house."

"Come up and see," Carrie said, leading the way.

Following her, Bob found himself on a flat terrace, extending over the whole of the house. Several orange trees--in tubs--and many flowers, and small shrubs in pots stood upon it; and three or four light cane-work lounging chairs stood apart.

"Here is where we come when the sun is down, Bob. There is no finer view, we flatter ourselves, anywhere in Gib. Here we receive our guests, in the evening. We have only begun yet, but we mean to make a perfect garden of it."

"It is splendid!" Bob said, as he walked round by the low parapet, and gazed at the view in all directions; "and we can see what everyone else is doing on their roofs, and no one can look down on us--except from the rock over there, behind us, and there are no houses there."

"No, the batteries commanding the neutral ground lie over that crest, Bob. We are quite shut in, on two sides; but we make up for it by the extent of our view, on the others. We are very lucky in getting the place. A regiment went home in the transport that brought us out. Gerald knew some of the officers, and one of them had been staying here, and told Gerald of it; and we took it at once. The other officers' wives are all quite jealous of me and, though some of them have very nice quarters, it is admitted that, as far as the view goes, this is by far the best. Besides, it is a great thing being out of the town, and it does not take Gerald more than three or four minutes longer to get down to the barracks.

"But now, let us go downstairs. I am sure you must want something to eat, and we sha'n't have supper for another three hours."

"I dined at twelve," Bob said, "just before we rounded the point, and I could certainly hold on until supper time Still, I daresay I could eat something, now."

"Oh, it is only a snack! It is some stewed chicken and some fruit. That won't spoil your supper, Bob?"

"You will be glad to hear, Bob," Captain O'Halloran said, as the lad was eating his meal, "that I have secured the services of a Spanish professor for you. He is to begin next Monday."

Bob's face fell.

"I don't see that there was need for such a hurry," he said, ruefully, laying down his knife and fork. "I don't see there was need for any hurry, at all. Besides, of course, I want to see the place."

"You will be able to see a good deal of it, in four days, Bob; and your time won't be entirely occupied, when you do begin. The days are pretty long here, everyone gets up early.

"He is to come at seven o'clock in the morning. You have a cup of coffee, and some bread and butter and fruit, before that. He will go at nine, then we have breakfast. Then you will have your time to yourself, till dinner at half past two. The assistant surgeon of our regiment--he is a Dublin man--will come to you for Latin, and what I may call general knowledge, for two hours. That is all; except, I suppose, that you will work a bit by yourself, of an evening.

"That is not so bad, is it?"

"What sort of man is the assistant surgeon?" Bob replied, cautiously. "It all depends how much he is going to give me to do, in the evening."

"I don't think he will give you anything to do, in the evening, Bob. Of course, the Spanish is the principal thing, and I told him that you will have to work at that."

"I don't think you need