Ramage & the Rebels by Dudley Pope

Author:Dudley Pope [Pope, Dudley]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Historical, War
ISBN: 9780935526912
Goodreads: 1077362
Publisher: McBooks Press
Published: 1978-12-31T00:00:00+00:00

Ramage found that after five minutes’ conversation with Bazin he felt grubby. The man had a face which was startlingly like a weasel’s; his manner, way of talking, and probably his way of thinking was the same. No doubt he was quick to pounce and bully or kill a weaker animal; but he was ingratiating when in the company of a stronger. And a fool, too; he had seen the Tricolour being hauled down, leaving only a British ensign flying, and he had thought nothing of it.

Out of curiosity it might be worth talking to the other two French lieutenants, just to find out their view of Citizen Bazin, but Ramage felt he could guess. And now Bazin was below again, under Marine guard, and no doubt quite certain that he had told the rosbif Captain nothing …

Ramage went up on deck again and found both Aitken and Southwick waiting for him, shamefaced and looking like naughty schoolboys caught red-handed.

“I’m sorry, sir,” Aitken said. “Southwick and the carpenter were just going on board her when you came up and told us about the leak, but—”

“But they should have finished their examination by then …”

“Yes, sir.”

“And you’ve no explanation for this lapse.”

“No, sir,” Aitken said contritely. “None at all.”

“I’ll give you one,” Ramage said, “and it’s a lesson we’ve all just learned. Just because no shots have been fired, don’t assume a prize isn’t damaged and sinking.”

“Aye,” Southwick said, “and it’s worse than that, sir: they could have scuttled her—they should have done, in fact—and I just leaned on the quarterdeck rail and looked at her. I even noticed she rolled more than we did and had less freeboard, but I never thought the reason was that she had several feet of water in her.”

“Well, how’s the pumping going?”

Southwick grinned cheerfully. “With three hundred prisoners and our own pumps on board as well, it’s no problem. No man has more than a quarter of an hour at a pump, but he has to work like a madman. It’s the only way we’ll get the level down.”

“She’s making seven feet an hour,” Ramage said.

“Yes, but if we can empty her while she’s alongside us, then the French can hold her with their own pumps without much trouble. We’ve got all the Frenchmen pumping—purser, bosun, sailmaker, captain’s steward, everyone is taking a turn.”

Aitken was still rather chastened, and he said to Ramage: “After we’ve pumped her dry and left the French prisoners to hold their seven feet an hour, what are we going to do with her, sir?”

Ramage shrugged his shoulders. “After capturing her for the price of some cloth to make flags, it seems a pity to let her sink; but our orders are to deal with those privateers. I can’t spare fifty men to take La Perle to Jamaica. More than fifty, because the prizemaster would need enough men to sail her and enough to guard three hundred Frenchmen and keep them busy pumping.”

“But losing a prize like this, sir!” Southwick protested.

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