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Read Ebook: Snarleyyow; or The Dog Fiend by Marryat Frederick
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Ebook has 287 lines and 15639 words, and 6 pages
geant, ha, ha, ha!"
"Why do you laugh, Mistress Corbett, and what is that you have heard at the admiral's office?"
"What you may hear yourself, and what I know to be true; there is not a single smuggler in the cave."
"No!" exclaimed the sergeant. "What, nobody there?"
"Yes, there is somebody there; the cave has been chosen by the smugglers to land their goods in."
"But some of them must be there in charge of the goods."
"Yes, so there are, but they are all women, the smuggler's wives, who live there: what an expedition! Let me see:--one gallant major, one gallant captain, two gallant lieutenants, eight gallant non-commissioned officers, and a hundred gallant soldiers of the Buffs, all going to attack, and rout, and defeat a score of old women."
"But you're joking, Mistress Nancy."
"Upon my life I'm not, sergeant; you'll find it true; the admiral's ashamed of the whole affair, and the cutter's crew swear they won't fire a single shot."
"Not at all; your regiment will become quite the fancy, you'll go by the name of the lady-killers, ha! ha! ha! I wish you joy, sergeant, ha! ha! ha!"
Nancy Corbett knew well the power of ridicule: she left the sergeant, and was accosted by one of the lieutenants; she rallied him in the same way.
"But are you really in earnest, Nancy?" said Lieutenant Dillon, at last.
"Upon my soul I am; but, at the same time I hear that they will fight hard, for they are well armed and desperate, like their husbands, and they swear that they'll all die to a woman, before they yield; so now we shall see who fights best, the women or the men. I'll back my own sex for a gold Jacobus, lieutenant: will you take the bet?"
"Good God, how very annoying! I can't, I won't order the men to fire at women; could not do so if they were devils incarnate; a woman is a woman still."
"And never the worse for being brave, Lieutenant Dillon; as I said to Sergeant Tanner, your regiment, after this, will always go by the name of the lady-killers."
"Damn!" exclaimed the lieutenant; "but now I recollect there must be more there; those who had possession of the cutter and who landed in her boat."
"Yes, with forty boxes of gold, they say; but do you think they would be such fools as to remain there and allow you to take their money?--that boat started for France yesterday night with all the treasure, and are now safe at Cherbourg. I know it for a fact, for one of the men's wives who lives here, showed me a letter to that effect, from her husband, in which he requests her to follow him. But I must go now--good-bye, Mr Lady-killer."
The lieutenant repeated what Nancy had told him to the officers, and the major was so much annoyed, that he went up; to the admiral and stated what the report was, and that there were only women to contend with.
"It is mentioned in the despatches, I believe," observed the admiral, "that there are only women supposed to be in the cave; but the smugglers who were on board the cutter--"
"Have left with their specie yesternight, admiral; so that we shall gain neither honour nor profit."
"At all events, you will have the merit of obeying your orders, Major Lincoln."
The major made no reply, but went away very much dissatisfied. In the meantime, the sergeant had communicated with his non-commissioned officers and the privates ordered on the duty, and the discontent was universal. Most of the men swore that they would not pull a trigger against women, if they were shot for it, and the disaffection almost amounted to mutiny. Nancy, in the meantime, had not been idle; she had found means to speak with the boats' crews of the Yungfrau, stated the departure of the smugglers with their gold, and the fact that they were to fight with nothing but women, that the soldiers had vowed that they would not fire a shot, and that Moggy Salisbury, who was with them, swore that she would hoist up her smock as a flag, and fight to the last. This was soon known on board of the Yungfrau, and gave great disgust to every one of the crew, who declared, to a man, that they would not act against petticoats, much less fire a shot at Moggy Salisbury.
What a mountain of mischief can be heaped up by the insidious tongue of one woman!
After this explanation, it may be supposed that the zeal of the party dispatched was not very great. The fact is, they were all sulky, from the major downwards, among the military, and from Vanslyperken downwards, among the naval portion of the detachment. Nancy Corbett, satisfied with having effected her object, had crossed over the night before, and joined her companions in the cave; and what was extremely fortunate, on the same night Sir Robert Barclay came over in the lugger, and finding how matters stood, immediately hoisted both the boats up on the rocks, and taking up all the men, prepared with his followers for a vigorous resistance, naturally to be expected from those whose lives depended upon the issue of the conflict.
Next morning the cutter was seen coming down with the boats in tow, hardly stemming the flood, from the lightness of the breeze, when Nancy Corbett requested to speak with Sir Robert Barclay. She stated to him what she had done, and the dissatisfaction among the troops and seamen in consequence, and submitted to him the propriety of all the smugglers being dressed as women, as it would operate more in their favour than if they had fifty more men to defend the cave. Sir Robert perceived the good sense of this suggestion, and consulted with Ramsay, who strongly urged the suggestion being acted upon. The men were summoned, and the affair explained to them, and the consequence was, that there was a scene of mirth and laughter, which ended with every man being fitted with woman's attire. The only one who remained in the dress of a man was a woman, Wilhelmina Krause, but she was to remain in the cave with the other women, and take no part in the coming fray.
IN WHICH THE OFFICERS, NON-COMMISSIONED OFFICERS, AND RANK AND FILE, ARE ALL SENT TO THE RIGHT ABOUT.
About noon, the Yungfrau hove-to off the cave, and the troops were told-off into the boats.
About half-past twelve, the troops were in the boats all ready.
About one, Mr Vanslyperken had hoisted out his own boats, and they were manned. Mr Vanslyperken, with his pistols in his belt, and his sword drawn, told Major Lincoln that he was all ready. Major Lincoln, with his spy-glass in his hand, stepped into the boat with Mr Vanslyperken, and the whole detachment pulled for the shore, and landed in the small cove, where they found the smugglers' boats hoisted up on the rocks, at which the men seemed rejoiced, as they took it for granted that they would find some men to fight with instead of women. The major headed his men, and they commenced a scramble up the rocks and arrived at the foot of the high rock which formed the platform above at the mouth of the cave, when the major cried "Halt!"--a very judicious order, considering that it was impossible to go any further. The soldiers looked about everywhere, but could find no cave, and after an hour's strict search, Major Lincoln and his officers, glad to be rid of the affair, held a consultation, and it was agreed that the troops should be re-embarked. The men were marched down again, very hot from their exertions, and thus the expedition would have ended without bloodshed, had it not been for the incautious behaviour of a woman. That woman was Moggy Salisbury, who, having observed that the troops were re-embarking, took the opportunity, while Sir Robert and all the men were keeping close, to hoist up a certain under-garment to a pole, as if in derision, thus betraying the locality of the cave, and running the risk of sacrificing the whole party in it. This, as it was going up, caught the eye of one of the seamen in the boat, who cried out, "There goes the ensign up to the peak at last."
"Where?" exclaimed the major, pulling out his telescope; "Yes, by heavens! there it is--and there then must be the cave."
Neither Sir Robert nor any of the conspirators were aware of this manoeuvre of Moggy's; for Smallbones, perceiving what she had done, hauled it down again in a minute afterwards. But it had been hoisted, and the major considered it his duty to return; so once more the troop ascended the precipitous path.
Moggy then went into the cave. "They have found us out, sir," said she, "they point to us, and are coming up again. I will stand as sentry. The men won't fire at me, and if they do I don't care."
Sir Robert and Ramsay were in close consultation. It appeared to them that by a bold manoeuvre they would be able to get out of their scrape. The wind had gone down altogether, the sea was as smooth as glass, and there was every appearance of a continued calm.
"If we could manage it--and I think we may--then the sooner the affair is brought to an issue the better."
Moggy had now taken a musket on her shoulder, and was pacing up and down the edge of the flat in imitation of a sentry. She was soon pointed out, and a titter ran through the whole line: at last, as the major approached, she called out--
"I say, soger, what are you doing here? keep off, or I'll put a bullet in your jacket."
"My good woman," replied the major, while his men laughed, "we do not want to hurt you, but you must surrender."
"Surrender!" cried Moggy, "who talks of surrender?--hoist the colours there."
Up went the chemise to the end of the pole, and Smallbones grinned as he hoisted it.
"My good woman, we must obey our orders."
"And I must obey mine," retorted Moggy. "Turn out the guard there."
All the women now made their appearance, as had been arranged, with muskets on their shoulders, headed by little Lilly, with her drawn sword.
The sight of the child commanding the detachment was hailed with loud cheers and laughter.
"That will do, that will do," cried Sir Robert, fearful for Lilly, "let them come in again."
"They'll not fire first, at all events," cried Moggy; "never fear, sir. Guard, turn in," continued she; upon which Lilly and her squadron then disappeared.
"Upon my honour this is too ridiculous," said Lieutenant Dillon.
"Upon my soul I don't know what is to be done," rejoined the major.
"Moggy, we must commence hostilities somehow or another," cried Sir Robert from within. Smallbones here came out with his musket to release Moggy, and Moggy retired into the cave.
The major, who imagined that there must be a path to the cave on the other side, now advanced with the determination of finding it out, and somehow or another putting an end to this unusual warfare.
"If you please you'll keep back, or I'll fire," cried Smallbones, levelling his musket.
The major went on, heedless of the threat. Smallbones discharged his piece, and the major fell.
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