"Kind and pleasant intentions, but what do they think we shall do?"

observed Jack. "I don't like the look of affairs. They will be for cutting our throats, to prevent our giving an account of their doings."

"Perhaps the Malay is mistaken," answered Murray. "They may not intend to murder the people; or if they do, they will keep us shut up in the cabin while the operation is going forward, or they will make us swear before they set us at liberty not to give information. I have no fears about our safety."

"Nor have I in reality," said Jack; "but I wish that we could render some a.s.sistance to the poor people on board the brig. We might warn them of the fate intended for them; but even if we got Jos and Hoddidoddi to stand by us, I am afraid we could not do much in the way of fighting."

"I am afraid not, indeed," said Murray; "we must be prepared for any emergency. It is impossible to say what will occur."

"I like the feeling," said Jack. "I wish that we were on board the brig though, we would have a fight for it. But we are drawing near. Had the pirates intended much mischief they would have sent us into our cabin, I suspect."

The pirate junks had now completely hemmed in the helpless brig. She was American, for just then the stars and stripes of the United States flew out from her peak. Two men, apparently the captain and his mate, were seen to come on deck with revolvers in their hands. They turned round, and shouted in English and Spanish, and Malay down the hatchway, to the crew to come up on deck, and defend themselves and the ship and pa.s.sengers like men. No one appeared.

"Cowards, wretches, brutes, will you have your throats cut like sheep without an attempt to defend yourselves? Take that, then!" cried the captain, and in his rage he hove his pistol at their heads and stood prepared for his fate. The mate threw his overboard, which was a wiser proceeding, and then, folding his arms, stood ready to bear whatever might occur.

"Those are brave fellows," cried Jack; "we must try and save their lives at all events."

The pirate crews now burst forth into the most terrific and unearthly shouts, and, urging on their junks, dashed up to the brig, and simultaneously threw their grappling irons on board her. At the same time those nearest to her hove fire-b.a.l.l.s, and stink-pots, and stones, and bits of iron, and missiles of all sorts on board, and then reiterating their shrieks, sprang on to her deck. The captain and his mate, who had hitherto undauntedly stood at their post, were borne down; and the pirates, throwing themselves on them, seized their arms and bound them to the mainmast. There seemed to be a hundred or more pirates from the different junks: their persons garnished with pistols and daggers of all sorts stuck in leathern belts, and their heads surmounted with red turbans, which increased the natural hideousness of their countenances. Some of the savage crew joined hands and leaped and danced round and round the deck, with the most violent contortions of the body, shrieking all the time at the top of their voices, while others, flourishing their daggers and shrieking louder than ever, rushed below. At that instant a cry very different from that of the pirates ascended from the cabin. Jack and Alick heard it.

"It is the voice of a lady, or a female at all events," cried Jack.

"Alick, we must go and a.s.sist her. Jos, my boy, come along. Tell Hoddidoddi he is wanted. The Chinamen won't stop us, they are all too busy."

"I am with you," answered Murray, as they picked up two Chinese swords, several of which lay about, and, followed by the Malay, leaped unopposed on the deck of the brig.

CHAPTER TWENTY NINE.

THE NIGHT BATTLE.

The Chinese pirates were so busily employed in the agreeable occupation of plundering the American brig, that they did not observe the two midshipmen leaping in among them. Jack and Alick had on, it must be remembered, turbans and Chinese jackets and trousers like the rest, so in the confusion they easily pa.s.sed unnoticed.

"I really think that we might drive the scoundrels out of the brig and retake her," observed Jack as he sprang on.

"No, no, sare, one ting at a time, if oo please," answered Jos the Malay, who heard his remark.

Jos was right, as Jack afterwards confessed, for though they might have swept off the heads of a good many pirates engaged in collecting booty, the rest would soon have come to their senses and cut off theirs.

Again the female cry was heard. Jack and Murray sprang into the main cabin. It was full of Chinese rifling the lockers and searching in bed-places or wherever anything could be stowed away. No females were there, but there was a hatchway and a ladder leading to the deck below.

The cries proceeded from thence, so they jumped down, leaving Jos and Hoddidoddi, who had joined them, to guard the entrance. There, in dim uncertain light, they distinguished two ladies, apparently one old and stout, the other young, struggling in the hands of half a dozen or more pirates, who were endeavouring to draw the rings from their fingers, and their earrings from their ears. One lady was somewhat stout and oldish, the other was young and slight, and Jack thought very pretty. Whether ugly or pretty would not have mattered just then. She and the old lady were in distress, and that was enough to make the midshipmen eager to fight for them, whoever they were. They were very much terrified, but not so much so as to prevent them from endeavouring to repel the indignities offered them.

Not a moment was to be lost. There was no room to use their swords without running a great risk of wounding the ladies, so Jack knocked one fellow down with his fist, and another with the b.u.t.t end of his pistol.

Murray did the same. They then both planted such thorough honest English blows under the ribs of the other two miscreants, that they sent them reeling backwards among the casks and packages which filled the after-hold, and there they lay sprawling, unable to get up again.

"It won't do to stop here, Alick," cried Jack. "Haul along the old lady, I'll carry the young one; and we'll stow them away in our berth till we see what's best to be done. Come along, miss. Beg pardon-- hadn't time to ask your leave; it's all right, though." Jack said this after he had lifted the young lady in his arms, and was carrying her up the ladder. As he remarked, there was no time for ceremony. Everything depended on the rapidity with which they could accomplish their enterprise.

"Thank you, thank you, sir; I trust you," said the young lady in a foreign accent.

Murray, who always admired Jack's plans when anything dashing was to be done, followed as fast as he could, helping the old lady along. He would have had great difficulty in making progress, had not Jos the Malay comprehended what was required. So he seized her under one arm, while Alick lifted her under the other, and thus, without molestation, they followed Jack on board the junk.

Jack rushed into their cabin, and placed his fair burden on a chair, when Alick and Jos bundled the old lady in after her, with a very scant ceremony; indeed there was no time for any; and then they closed the door and walked a little way off, and tried to look as unconcerned as if they had done nothing to merit the anger of the pirates.

"I begged the young lady not to be alarmed, and entreated her to try and keep the old one quiet, promising to defend them with our lives,"

observed Jack.

"Of course we will do so, and Jos will stick by us, won't you, Jos?"

said Murray.

"Yes, sare," answered the Malay; "but if Chinese come aboard, dey cut all our throats. Stay do--Jos know what he do."

There was a peculiar, fierce, vindictive look on the countenance of the Malay as he spoke, which boded mischief. Without uttering another word he sprang on board the brig, and disappeared among the crowd who were hurrying to and fro below, removing the cargo.

Just then Murray pointed out to Jack the brave captain and mate of the brig sitting on deck, lashed with their hands behind them to the mainmast.

"When those wretches have glutted themselves with booty, they will indulge their evil tempers by tormenting those poor fellows. Could we not manage to release them while no one is watching us, and let them hide themselves on board their junk? We may, perhaps, by and by be able to form some plan to escape together."

"With all my heart," answered Jack. "No time like the present. Here goes."

Saying this, he and Murray seized their swords, which they had stuck into the bulwarks, and a few springs brought them up to where the captain and mate were sitting. In an instant the knives were at work, and the ropes were cut.

"Leap on board the junk, my men, we'll cover your retreat."

The captain and mate did as they were directed, and had just reached the junk when several of the pirates saw what had happened and sprang after them.

Had not the midshipmen undertaken to defend them, their heads would have been off that moment. Jack and Alick had fortunately gained the side of the vessel, and there stood at bay. They had cut down three of their a.s.sailants, but others were coming on, when the Malay rushed past them, crying out, "Leap, leap on board; cast off, or we shall all blow up." A back-handed blow which he gave with his short sword cut down the nearest of their a.s.sailants, and enabled them to accomplish his advice. He and they, without questions asked, instantly cast off the grapnels, and shoved the junk away from the brig before the Chinese saw what they were about.

Scarcely were they free, when a rush of flame burst out of the hold of the merchantman, and up went her decks with a terrific explosion, carrying masts, and spars, and sails, and cargo, and the many hundred human beings, who, like ants in a granary, were swarming in every direction, rifling her of the treasures she contained. The numerous junks surrounding her did not escape; some were blown up, others had their sides blown in, and several caught fire or were more or less injured. For a moment there was perfect silence; every one stood aghast, and then down came clattering on their heads, limbs, and trunks, and heads of human beings, and fragments of spars, and burning bales, and canvas, and packages burst open like sh.e.l.ls, scattering their contents on every side. Next arose shrieks, and groans, and shouts, a hubbub most terrific, the cries of the wounded, and the imprecations of those who had escaped and been baulked of their prey.

"Dat is just what I tort it would be," said Jos, quite coolly, watching the effects of the catastrophe, as he a.s.sisted to shove the junk out from among the crowd of burning vessels. The pirate captain and crew, most of whom had got on board, thought that they were very much indebted to him and the white men for having been the means of saving their vessel. As they also had been the most busily at work, and had collected a good deal of booty, they did not at all take to heart the accident which had happened to their pirate companions. They shrugged their shoulders, and blinked their little pig-eyes, and seemed to think that it was just as well as it was, seeing that they themselves had come off better than anybody else. A few more junks having blown up, and others burnt to the water's edge or sunk, those that had escaped sent their boats, not so much for the chance of saving any fellow-creatures who might be struggling for existence, as to pick up any articles of value which might be still floating. The fleet then made sail away from the spot, lest the explosion might be the means of bringing down an enemy upon them to interfere with their proceedings.

The midshipmen were now placed in a somewhat difficult position with regard to the ladies in their cabin. How to account for their being there was one puzzle, and how to save them from annoyance or insult was another. The pirates seemed inclined to treat the American captain and mate as well as they had done the midshipmen. They had seen them very active in saving the junk, but it was probably not grat.i.tude so much as the hope of obtaining a ransom which made them civil. Jos having intimated that they were hungry, in a short time a mess of food was brought for the whole party to the upper raised deck in the afterpart of the vessel. While discussing this meal, they also discussed the means likely to be most serviceable to the ladies. The American captain told them that his brig was the _Wide Awake_, that his name was William Willock, that of his mate, Joe Hudson; that they were bound to Sydney in Australia, where the two ladies, who were French, and mother and daughter, were proceeding.

"I know what!" cried Jack, as if a bright thought had struck him. "The pirates seem to treat men civilly enough; could we not manage to rig up the ladies in men's clothes? There is a chest of Chinamen's coats and trousers in our cabin, and the old lady would make a very tolerable mandarin."

"I should think it would very speedily be discovered what they are,"

answered Murray. "It will be better if we get Jos to talk over the old pirate skipper, and having excited his cupidity in suggesting a good ransom, produce our captives, and charge him to treat them well. What do you say. Captain Willock?"

"A very good plan, I guess," was the answer; "there is nothing like making it the interest of a man to do what you want him. Just let the ladies show themselves. I suppose Chinamen have hearts like other people, and will have some compa.s.sion on them, when they see their distress."

"But how are we to account for their being on board, and in our cabin?"

asked Jack.

"Let your Malay friend, then, settle that; he'll know what will be most likely to go down with the Chinamen," answered Captain Willock.

"I think, rather, that we should boldly say that we brought them, and claim them as our share of the loot as the Indians call it--the booty,"

said Murray. "Now all the miserable wretches from whom we rescued them have, in all probability, been destroyed, there will be no one, unless any of our own crew saw our proceedings, to witness against us. When the pirates find that they are to get a ransom for the ladies, they will be very much obliged to us for having saved them, and, depend on it, will treat them properly."

Murray's plan, which was certainly the wisest, as it was the most straightforward, was agreed to. They, however, said nothing till late in the evening, when the fleet of junks dropped their ponderous wooden anchors close to the sh.o.r.e in a beautiful little bay, surrounded by green hills covered to the water's edge with trees.