Jack Hardy: A Story of English Smugglers in the Days of Napoleon — John Shaqi
Jack Hardy: A Story of English Smugglers in the Days of NapoleonStrang, Herbert
History
Jack Hardy: A Story of English Smugglers in the Days of Napoleon
Strang, Herbert
Great Britain -- History -- 19th century -- Juvenile fiction; Sailors -- Juvenile fiction; Smugglers -- Juvenile fiction
A few minutes later the dim outlines of two prominent cliffs to the
northeast and west-north-west respectively could be seen. Jack saw that
he could determine the general direction of the light by those two
well-known landmarks. Accordingly he ordered the cutter to be hove to;
he then took its position with reference to the two cliffs, and the
angle of the light. When this was done he went below and reported to
Lieutenant Blake, who was enjoying a nap in his tiny cabin.
"You did very well, Hardy. We’ll return to-morrow and test your
observations. There’s no confounded lugger or anything of that sort in
sight, eh?"
"Nothing, sir."
"Well, I’ll leave things to you. Run closer in shore, and keep a bright
lookout. If there’s nothing in sight, head her for Wynport, but keep a
good offing off Bantock Point."
Carrying out these orders, Jack found that a mile farther in he lost
sight of the light. He thought it worth while to run out again and see
if it had disappeared altogether, but on returning to nearly the same
spot at which the cutter had been hove to, he saw that the light was
burning as brightly as ever. All at once it went out. Jack waited for
some time to see if it reappeared, but the shore remaining in perfect
blackness he saw no good in delaying further, and weathering the Point,
with its spine of jagged rocks running out to sea, ran straight for
Wynport.
They had not gone far when Babbage declared he saw a sail on the weather
beam. Jack instantly put down the helm, but after cruising about for
some time and finding nothing he concluded that the bo’sun had been
mistaken.
"Another facer for old Onions!" whispered Turley.
At Wynport Mr. Blake put up at the _Dolphin_, leaving Jack on board.
Early in the morning Jack met Mr. Goodman, the riding-officer, on his
way to the inn. He had been informed, Goodman said, that the smugglers
had made a run in the night, and that their cargo had been concealed
somewhere about the premises of Gumley, the one-legged mariner on the
hill. This news surprised Jack. It had never occurred to him that
Gumley could have anything to do with the smugglers. But when he
thought of Gumley’s seclusion, his mysterious ways, the defenses of his
cottage, and his bulldog, he began to wonder whether dust had been
thrown in his eyes, and the apparently law-abiding gardener was after
all engaged in the illicit trade. He told Lieutenant Blake what he knew
of Gumley.
"Depend upon it, that’s your man," cried that officer. "You’d better
search his place, Mr. Goodman."
"Unluckily, sir, most of my men are off rummaging in another direction
and won’t be back till to-morrow."
"Well, I’ll lend you some of my crew. And as you know the place, Mr.
Hardy, I’ll send you in charge."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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