"Well and good! See a boat be prepared, Smy, and then we'll heave-to and be quit o' this lubberly Sharp and his fellows forthright."
And presently, with creak of yards, rattle of blocks and flapping of canvas, the ship was brought to; Captain Elihu Sharp with four of his officers and the nine men who remained faithful to him, went over the side into the small boat prepared for them, and there, standing in the stern-sheets, he cursed Absalom Troy living and dead, with dire threats of rope and gallows, tar, irons and gibbet. The law's dreadful and inevitable vengeance. To all of which Absalom, lounging above on lofty poop, hearkened with a polite interest and acknowledged with cheery smile and gracious flourish of hat. Then, at his command, the braces were manned, sails trimmed, and the course set for the golden west.
And so, in this most fateful hour, the London Merchant now the Bold Adventuress, bore away, with fair wind and smooth sea, for those far latitudes where all were to find peril, many death, some few great fortune and success, two a wondrous happiness, and one—triumph, greatness, heartbreak and failure.
CHAPTER X
CHIEFLY CONCERNING A KISS
For a week, owing to bodily hurt and affliction of mind, Adam kept his bed, with the surgeon, Tobias Perks, to doctor him, Jimbo, the black giant, to wait on him, the boy Smidge to creep on small, bare feet to steal furtive peeps at him, and Antonia to preside and rule all of them in her own serene though determined manner.
This morning, finding himself sufficiently recovered, and moreover being for the moment alone, Adam determined to get up, and looked about for his garments, and seeing them nowhere, scowled pettishly; then noting his father's sword had vanished also, fretful annoyance changed to swift anger, and he cried out in dismay—whereupon, round the jamb of narrow doorway came a shock of curly hair and the boy Smidge inched himself into view with a rag of grimy canvas in one small fist, Adam's rapier in the other.
"Oh, sir," he whispered, "I be main glad as youm well again—do ee lack for aught, sir?"
"Ay, my clothes, boy. And what do ye with that sword?"
"Nuffink, Mis' Adam, only shine it up a bit like. I've cleaned your shoes, bofe pair, sir. I've polished your belt and buckle, sir, and all your buttons."
"Thankee, my man. Now where are my clothes?"
"He's took 'em, sir—Mist' Anthony, your bruvver, Mist' Adam, sir."
"Then go fetch 'em, Smidge,—stay, where is he—my brother?"
"On deck, sir, along o' the fat gen'leman, and another on 'em named Mr. Melord——" But at this moment was jingle of crockery and in came Antonia, followed by Jimbo carrying a large, heavy-laden tray.
"I shall get up to-day," said Adam, with the utmost resolution and glancing at Antonia, "so bring me my clothes, Jimbo."
"Yessah!" answered the great negro with flash of white teeth, "I bringum dis instantannyious moment, sah!" But, instead of so doing, he too glanced enquiringly at Antonia who shook her head, saying:
"After breakfast, Adam—mayhap. Set the tray here, Jimbo, my hearty. Ahoy, Smidge, hang up that sword and bring me the stool yonder. Now—this cake for thee and run off like a good child."
"Ooh, thankee, sir, I'm sure ... only, Mist' Anthony, I ain't no child—eh, Mist' Adam, sir?"
"Nay, thourt my trusty old shipmate."
"So there's for ee, Mist' Anthony!" cried the boy, making a face at Antonia's back; then with salute, smart and sailorly, to Adam, he sped away.
"This boy worships you, Adam. He's forever hovering around,—he hath cleaned your shoes so often that I've hid them lest he rub and polish them into holes!"
"He told me you were walking with 'the fat gentleman' the which I guess will be Sir Benjamin."
"It was," said Antonia, and giggled.
"And some other gentleman he said is named Mr. Melord.'
"This," said she, laughing merrily, "was my lord Perrow, one of the rescued prisoners, Adam, and though such great gentleman very gracious and kindly but very sad too, and small wonder considering his many sufferings, poor gentleman ... and with his every tone and gesture puts me in mind of someone, though who 'tis I cannot think. Hath your fine Captain Absalom been to see you this morning?"
"No,—unless this be he," answered Adam, as came the sound of approaching footsteps.
"It is not!" quoth Antonia. "Your grand Captain goes with leisured stride scornful of haste. No, hither speeds our surgeon that hath mixed you potions that looked noisome as they smelt."
"Yet I have taken none, surely?"
"Surely not, Adam! And so be humbly thankful to thy brother Anthony."
"Good morrow t'ye, gentlemen!" cried a cheery voice, and in bustled Master Perks, the surgeon. "A day o' promise, sirs. Aurora blusheth, sly jade, i' the lap o' Neptune on our starboard beam, the hoary wag! A sweet morn, a gladsome dayspring!" Master Tobias Perks, though small of person, was great of speech and if skilful surgeon in treatment of wounds, by reason of long and much experience, knew little or nothing of medical arts, which ignorance he was wont to veil in pomposity of words and sounding phrases. All of which Antonia's womanly sense had been quick to perceive, of course.
"Well, well?" exclaimed the little surgeon, clapping plump hands softly, and beaming down at pale-faced Adam, "here is very obvious betterment, Mr. Anthony. Though our young patient, like Peter's wife's mother, hath lain sick of a fever, this is now happily reduced. Tongue, sir—ha! Pulse now—hum! You gave him the draught, Mr. Anthony?"
"No, sir!" answered Antonia, serenely.
"Eh? Not? Then—what did you?"
"Threw it out through the scuttle, sir."
"Eh, sir? Oh! The devil, sir! Most irregular! Yet no matter. He showeth none the worse."
"He is better, Master Perks."
"Much better!" quoth Adam, with vehemence.
"Ha! Good! This will be effect o' the pill, 'tis potent, sirs, 'tis remedy radical and prescription o' my own! 'Tis most rare stimulant o' the aortic nerve whereto the heart responsive induceth a more liveliness in the vital spirits, a flux, sirs, a flow o' the secretions animal. Pray, when took he the pill?"
"Sir, he did not."
"Not, sir—not? Gad's my life! Why not?"
"Sir, he showed so much better without it that, minding how wisely you said: 'Nature is nature's best physic', I withheld your pill lest Nature approve not of my so meddling therewithal."
"Hem! Ha! And yet—he is better and shall anon be well, thanks to Great Nature, to Tobias Perks—and—thine own littleness, Mr. Penfeather, thy paucity o' person and lack o' length, sir."
"And what," Adam demanded, scowling, "what hath my lack o' size to do with it?"
"Everything, sir, everything! Look at yourself, Master Adam,—regard me! Little men both, ha? But little men be usually of an amazing vitality,—and for this most especial and very cogent reason, to wit: As the blood is the life, the chiefest life member is the heart, this sponge, this pump, this most lovely organ! Now perceive me,—if the body be small o' size and trimly compact, this same pump needeth the lesser force to pump or drive blood to the extremest limits thereof. But if the body be o' dimensions grossly large, plethorically bulky,—oh, conceive then how poor heart must laborious surge, must heave and convulsive strive, and so—be weary! And when heart languisheth, body fainteth,—so cometh disease, till weary heart swooneth, stoppeth and—body dieth! So be grateful, sir, for your vital smallness o' body, your poverty of inches, as I am, good faith! In health or sickness, peace or war, better be small and sweetly compact o' person than giant, like Jimbo or great, brawny fellow like Troy."
"Speaking of him, Mr. Tobias, how go things aboardship these days, since he took command?"
"Better and better, sir! 'Tis sweet ship now, ay and nobly handled and cared for. Such scouring and scrubbing, such prodigious business alow and aloft, such drilling with small arms and great, this crew o' scowling slovens are being worked and kicked and transformed into fighting men now they've a man to rule 'em. Troy knoweth men and hath with 'em a method unfailing."