Charley Laurel | Page 3

it's a little girl," exclaimed the captain, examining the
delicate features and somewhat feminine appearance of the child,
which had long fair locks hanging down over its shoulders.
"Lord bless you, no, sir! If it had been a she I shouldn't have known
what to do with her--but it's as fine a youngster as I ever set eyes upon,
barring his curls: and we will soon dock them, seeing they will be in his
way, and not suited for the smart little tarpaulin I am going to make for
him."
"What, my man, you don't expect to keep the child?" exclaimed the
captain. "We must send him on shore with the rest of the property
brought away."
"But, sir, he was given to me to look after by his dying mother,"
exclaimed Dick, forgetting for the moment that the child was white,
and that the woman who had given it to him was as black as his shoe.
"He is not like the rest of the booty, and if I may make so bold, I would
like to keep him, and bring him up as one of the ship's company. We
are all agreed that we will take precious good care of him, and he will
be a greater favourite among us than either Quacho, or Jocko, or the old
goat that went overboard in the last gale, or the pig as was killed when
we were short of fresh provisions. Do, sir, let us keep him? We
wouldn't part with the little chap for all the prize-money we have made
this cruise."
Dick, in his anxiety to keep the child, had become desperate, and spoke

with greater freedom than he would otherwise have ventured to do
when addressing his captain. "If he were to be sent ashore there's no
one might own him," he continued; "then what would become of the
poor little chap? he might be taken to the workhouse, or just brought up
nohow."
The captain, however, was not to be moved by all Dick's arguments.
"You did very rightly, my man, in saving the child's life, and you
deserve a reward," he observed; "but we cannot turn the ship into a
nursery, and he must run his chance of finding his friends. However, as
you seem to have made a good nurse, you may take charge of him till
we can send him away."
"Thank you, sir," said Dick, as he touched his hat, glad of even this
short respite, and hoping that something might turn up to induce the
captain to allow the child to remain on board. "We will take good care
of him--that we will; and if he has to go back to his friends, we will see
that he is in proper trim, so that they won't be nohow ashamed of him."
Dick, having thus delivered himself, swung his body round and hurried
forward with light step, holding his young charge in his arms.
The Laurel and the other ships, with their prizes, were at this time
standing away from the land. The seamen grumbled not a little at
having to give up their booty: they could not understand why the
merchantmen should have been cut out, and they not allowed to keep
what they had picked up on shore.
An officer, who spoke French, now came from one of the prizes with
some important information which he had obtained from a prisoner. It
was to the effect that three heavy French frigates were hourly expected
off the coast. Captain Blunt accordingly ordered a bright look-out to be
kept for any strange sail. In a short time three were descried standing
along shore. There could be no doubt that they were the enemy's
frigates; and as the two corvettes and brig could not hope to cope with
them, all sail was made to escape. The enemy soon afterwards were
seen crowding all sail in chase: the prizes were ordered by signal to

separate and to make the best of their way to Jamaica, while the Laurel
and her consorts stood to the eastward, under all the canvas they could
spread. Before nightfall they had run their powerful foes out of sight.
The next day a heavy gale sprang up, which increased to a hurricane. A
signal of distress was made by the unfortunate ten-gun brig, while the
other sloop was evidently in a bad plight.
During the night, the Laurel having to run before the gale, lost sight of
both of them. The gale continuing longer than usual, ere it ceased she
found herself in a the wide waters of the Atlantic, with all her boats
washed away or stove in, her three top-masts gone, and besides other
damages, a leak sprung, which kept the pumps going for the best part
of each watch.