Outward Bound Or, Young America Afloat: A Story of Travel and Adventure, Optic [best non fiction books of all time txt] 📗

up to the davits at sunset. We must do it while the professors are at supper, or not at all. We want eight oars for the {81} barge, and six for the third cutter; that makes fourteen fellows. Can we raise as many as that?"

"Yes, I think we can; we will try, at any rate."

"But you must look out, or some fellow will blow the whole thing," added Wilton. "Mind whom you speak to."

The trustworthiness of the various students was canvassed, and it was decided what ones should be invited to join the enterprise. The discontented boys separated, and went to work with great caution to obtain the needed recruits. Unfortunately, in such a crowd of young men, there are always enough to engage in any mischievous plot, and it is quite likely that twice as many as were wanted could have been obtained to man the boats in the runaway expedition.

Wilton missed Shuffles very much in arranging the details of the present enterprise. While at the Brockway Academy, they had plotted mischief so often that each seemed to be necessary to the other. But Shuffles had reformed; he was now third lieutenant of the ship, and it was not safe to suggest a conspiracy to him, for he would attempt to gain favor with the principal by exposing or defeating it.

Yet Shuffles was so bold in thought, and so daring in execution, that Wilton could hardly abandon the hope of obtaining his assistance; besides, the third lieutenant would be officer of the deck when the professors went to supper, and might wink at their departure in the boats, if he did not actually help them off.

"Would you say anything to Shuffles?" asked {82} Wilton, still in doubt, of Monroe, as they happened to meet again in the waist.

"To Shuffles!" exclaimed Monroe, in an energetic whisper.

"I mean so."

"Certainly not. I should as soon think of speaking to Lowington himself."

"But Shuffles may join us. He is always in for a good time."

"Why, you ninny, he is third lieutenant of the ship."

"No matter if he is. I think Shuffles would like to join us."

"Nonsense! He has been in office only three days, and it would break him. He would be degraded to the steerage," replied Monroe, who could not help thinking that Wilton was beside himself in proposing such a thing, and that the enterprise was doomed to failure in such incompetent hands.

"If he won't join us, perhaps he will help us off. He is officer of the deck, you know, in the second dog watch."

"I know he is; but don't you open your mouth to him. If you do, I'll back out at once."

"Back out?"

"Yes, back out. I believe you are crazy. Why don't you go to Captain Carnes, and done with it?" said Monroe, with energy.

"I haven't any hold on Carnes, and I have on Shuffles."

"What do you mean?" asked the prudent conspirator, curiously.{83}

"If Shuffles won't join us, he won't blow on us, you may depend upon that. He wouldn't dare to do it. I could break him before sundown, if I chose," said Wilton, with conscious power.

"That alters the case."

"Of course, I shouldn't think of saying anything to him, if I did not know what I was talking about. I have him where the hair is short, and he knows it, as well as I do."

"What is it, Wilton?"

"No matter what it is. When a thing is told me in confidence, I keep it to myself; but if he turns traitor to his cronies, he must look out for breakers. He knows what it is."

"Well, if you can get him, he will be a first-rate fellow to have."

"I think I can get him. Here he comes; you keep out of the way, and I will see how deep the water is."

Monroe went forward to find a student to whom he had been deputed to speak in the interest of the enterprise leaving Wilton to grapple with the old lion of mischief, whose teeth, however, seemed to have been worn out in the cause.

"What's up, Wilton?" demanded the third lieutenant who was now off duty, and therefore allowed to speak to the crew, though it was a privilege of which the officers seldom availed themselves.

"Who said anything was up?" asked Wilton.

"You look as though you meant something. What were you and Ike Monroe talking about just now?" continued Shuffles. "About me, I'll be bound, for you kept looking at me, as though you meant something." {84}

"What makes you think so? Have you heard anything?" asked Wilton, fearful that the plot had leaked out.

"Not a word? I only judged by your looks."

"I suppose if anything was up, you wouldn't have anything to do with it now."

"Most decidedly, I should not. I like my present position too well to fall out of it. I'm going to be captain next term, if I can fetch it any way in the world."

"You mean to be a flunky, just like the rest of them. You are not the same fellow you used to be."

"Yes, I am."

"You are getting too big for your boots."

"You wrong me, Wilton. I'm just as good a fellow as I ever was. I think I'm the best fellow in the ship, and for that reason I want to be captain. I'm ahead of Carnes so far on marks this month."

"Well, if you want to be the head flunky, I hope you'll get it. We are not going ashore to-morrow, they say," added Wilton, changing the topic to get nearer to the business of the hour.

"So Pelham told me."

"Are you willing to stay on board and study, and do ship's duty, on the Fourth of July?"

"We are going to celebrate."

"How?"

"I'm sure I don't know."

"We shall celebrate to-morrow just as we do every day—as close prisoners on board the ship. I, for one, don't like it, and I won't stand it."

"Won't you?" laughed Shuffles. {85}

"When I say I won't, I mean so."

"O, you do—do you?"

"You better believe I do," added Wilton, shaking his head resolutely.

"What are you going to do?"

"I'm going ashore, by hook or by crook."

"Better not get into any scrape."

"You say that as one of the flunkies."

"Well, you had better not say anything to me, for I shall have to do my duty as an officer. Don't say anything to me, and then I shall not know anything about it."

"Humph!" sneered Wilton, not pleased with this non-committal policy.

"I don't want to do anything mean with any of our fellows; so don't say a word to me. I shall do my duty as an officer, as I promised to do when I was made third lieutenant."

"Do you mean to say you will stop me, Shuffles, if you see me going?" demanded Wilton.

"I do mean so; I promised faithfully to do my duty as an officer, and I shall do it."

"See here, Bob Shuffles; you needn't talk to me in that manner. I knew the ship's cable from a pint of milk, and you can't come the flunky over me."

"I'm going to do just as you would do if you were in my place. I won't hear a word about any of your plans."

"But will you interfere with them?"

"If it is my duty to do so, I shall. I intend to obey orders; and if I have the deck, I shall keep things straight, whatever happens." {86}

"Lowington don't know you as well as I do."

"No matter if he don't; he shall have no fault to find with me this term, if I can help it."

"It's no use for me to mince the matter with you, Bob Shuffles. We understand each other too well for that. Something's up."

Shuffles turned on his heel, and was about to walk away.

"Hold on a minute, Shuffles," continued Wilton. "I won't tell you what's up, but I'll tell you this; if you interfere with what I do, or with what the fellows with me do, I'll tell Lowington about the mutiny—I will, as sure as your name is Bob Shuffles. Do you understand me?"

"Well, I do; and it seems to me that sounds very much like a threat."

"Call it what you like. If you turn traitor to our fellows, you must stand the racket of it. You are not a saint just yet, and those that live in glass houses musn't throw stones."

"I believe I haven't played false to any of our fellows. If I don't choose to get into any scrape with them, I have a right to keep out. That's all I've got to say."

"But what are you going to do, Shuffles? Our fellows will want to know."

"I'm going to do my duty," replied the third lieutenant as he walked away, regardless of the efforts of his companion to detain him.

Shuffles was experiencing the truth of the old maxim, that honesty is the best policy. It is to be regretted that his present devotion to duty had no {87} higher incentive than mere policy; but it may be hoped of those who do their duty from low motives, that they may gather inspiration even from their politic fidelity to obey its behests from higher motives. The third lieutenant of the Young America intended to keep the promise he had made in accepting his office, simply because it would pay best.

Wilton and his confederates had no difficulty in making up the required number of discontents and malcontents before six o'clock, which was the time fixed for carrying out the enterprise they had planned. Some of the recruits joined because they anticipated a good time in the city in celebrating the Fourth, and others from a mere love of mischief and excitement. The details of the scheme had been carefully elaborated by Monroe and Wilton, after the ranks of the conspirators were full. Having learned a valuable lesson from the daily discipline of the ship, the mischief was certainly well planned. Each boy was assigned to a particular position in the boats, and knew on what thwart he was to sit, and which oar he was to pull.

Wilton and Monroe, as the master spirits of the enterprise were to run out first on the swinging boom, and slide down the painters, each into the boat he was to command. The others were to follow in the same way, descending from the boom, for it was not considered prudent to run the boats up to the gangway, where some enthusiastic officer might easily interfere with the plan, which was to depend for its success upon the celerity of its execution.

When four bells struck, the professors went down to {88} their evening meal, as usual, and the boatswain piped the port watch to supper, the starboard watch having taken theirs at three bells, or half past five. Wilton gave a low whistle, when Shuffles, officer of the deck, was abaft the mizzenmast, with his back to the runaways who had gathered in the waist, and were waiting for the signal.

"Be lively, fellows," said the leader of the enterprise, as he sprang over the rail, and ran out on the boom, followed by Monroe.

The others, in the order in which they had been instructed, did the same. About half of them were on the boom, when the movement was reported to the officer of the deck by the midshipman on duty in the waist. Shuffles rushed forward, now understanding, for the first time, the intentions of Wilton; and true to the inspiration of fidelity, he set about defeating the object of "our fellows."

The studding-sail boom, to which the boats were fastened, was supported by a topping-lift from above, and kept in position, at right angles with the side of the ship, by guys extending forward and aft.

"Stand by that fore guy!" shouted Shuffles, as he sprang upon the rail. "Cast off!"

"Lively, fellows!" said Wilton, when he saw that the third lieutenant intended to swing in the boom to the ship's side.

"Stand by the after guy of the studding-sail boom!" continued Shuffles, with becoming energy.

Both his orders were promptly obeyed; but seeing that his movement would be too late, he rushed to the topping-lift, and cast it off, causing the swinging boom {89} to drop into the water, just as the last boy was about to slide down into the professors' boat. Of course the luckless fellow went into the water; but he was promptly picked up by his companions in mischief.

"If I'm caught, Bob Shuffles, you look out for breakers!" cried Wilton, as the third lieutenant appeared at the gangway again.

The tide was coming in, and the boats swung so far abaft the boom that it had fallen clear of them when it dropped into the water. Wilton and Monroe were prompt to avail themselves of their present success, and the boys sat in the boats, with their oars up, ready to pull as soon as the order was given.

"Let fall!" said Wilton; and the eight oars of the professors' barge dropped into the water, and the rowers placed them in readiness for the first stroke.

Monroe, in the third cutter, followed