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11 - Kidnapped - Robert Louis Stevenson · Classic Adventure Books - Daily

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  Speaker 1: Chapter eleven. The captain knuckles under Alan and I sat
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  Speaker 1: down to breakfast about six of the clock. The floor
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  Speaker 1: was covered with broken glass and in a horrid mess
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  Speaker 1: of blood, which took away my hunger. In all other ways,
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  Speaker 1: we were in a situation not only agreeable but merry,
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  Speaker 1: having ousted the officers from their own cabin, and having
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  Speaker 1: at command all the drink in the ship, both wine
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  Speaker 1: and spirits, and all the dainty part of what was eatable,
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  Speaker 1: such as the pickles and the fine sort of bread.
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  Speaker 1: This of itself was enough to set us in good humor.
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  Speaker 1: But the richest part of it was this that the
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  Speaker 1: two thirstiest men that ever came out of Scotland, mister
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  Speaker 1: Chuan being dead, were now shut in the fore part
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  Speaker 1: of the ship and condemned to what they hated, most
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  Speaker 1: cold water, and depend upon it. Alan said, we shall
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  Speaker 1: hear more of them ere long. You may keep a
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  Speaker 1: man from the fighting, but never from his bottle. We
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  Speaker 1: made good company for each other. Alan indeed expressed himself
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  Speaker 1: most lovingly, and taking a knife from the table, cut
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  Speaker 1: me off one of the silver buttons from his coat.
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  Speaker 1: I had them, says he from my father Duncan Stewart,
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  Speaker 1: and now I'll give you one of them to be
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  Speaker 1: a keepsake for last night's work. And wherever you go
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  Speaker 1: and show that button, the friends of alan Breck will
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  Speaker 1: come around you. He said this as if he had
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  Speaker 1: been Charlemagne and commanded armies. And indeed, much as I
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  Speaker 1: admired his courage, I was always in danger of smiling
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  Speaker 1: at his vanity. In danger, I say, for had I
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  Speaker 1: not kept my countenance, I would be afraid to think
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  Speaker 1: what a quarrel might have followed. As soon as we
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  Speaker 1: were through with our meal, he rummaged in the captain's
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  Speaker 1: locker till he found a clothes brush, and then, taking
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  Speaker 1: off his coat, began to visit his suit and brush
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  Speaker 1: away the stains with such care and labor as I
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  Speaker 1: supposed to have been only usual with women. To be sure,
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  Speaker 1: he had no other. And besides, as he said, it
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  Speaker 1: belonged to a king, and so behooved to be royally
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  Speaker 1: looked after. For all that, when I saw what care
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  Speaker 1: he took to pluck out the threads where the button
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  Speaker 1: had been cut away, I put a higher value on
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  Speaker 1: his gift. He was still so engaged when we were
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  Speaker 1: hailed by mister Riach from the deck, asking for a parley,
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  Speaker 1: and I, climbing through the skylight and sitting on the
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  Speaker 1: edge of it, pistol in hand, and with a bold front,
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  Speaker 1: though inwardly in fear of broken glass, hailed him back
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  Speaker 1: again and bade him speak out. He came to the
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  Speaker 1: edge of the round house and stood on a coil
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  Speaker 1: of rope, so that his chin was on a level
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  Speaker 1: with a roof. And we looked at each other a
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  Speaker 1: while in silence, mister Riach, as I do not think
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  Speaker 1: he had been very forward in the battle, so he
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  Speaker 1: had got off with nothing worse than a blow upon
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  Speaker 1: the cheek. But he looked out of heart and very weary,
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  Speaker 1: having been all night afoot, either standing watch or doctoring
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  Speaker 1: the wounded. This is a bad job, said he at last,
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  Speaker 1: shaking his head. It was none of our choosing, said I, Eh,
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  Speaker 1: Captain says he would like to speak with your friend.
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  Speaker 1: They might speak at the window. And how do we
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  Speaker 1: know what treachery he means? Cried I, he means none,
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  Speaker 1: David returned mister Riach, And if he did, I'll tell
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  Speaker 1: you the honest truth. We couldn't get the men to follow.
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  Speaker 1: Is that so? Said I? I'll tell you more than that,
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  Speaker 1: said he. It's not only the men, it's me. I'm
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  Speaker 1: fritchened davy, and he smiled across at me. No, he continued,
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  Speaker 1: what we want is to be shut of him. Thereupon
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  Speaker 1: I consulted with Alan, and the parley was agreed to,
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  Speaker 1: and parole given upon either side. But this was not
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  Speaker 1: the whole of mister Riach's business, and he now begged
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  Speaker 1: me for a dram with such instancy and such reminders
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  Speaker 1: of his former kindness, that at last I handed him
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  Speaker 1: a paniquin with about half a gill of brandy. He
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  Speaker 1: drank apart, and then carried the rest down upon the
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  Speaker 1: deck to share it, I suppose, with his superior. A
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  Speaker 1: little after the captain came as was agreed to one
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  Speaker 1: of the windows, and stood there in the rain, with
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  Speaker 1: his arm in a sling, and looking stern and pale
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  Speaker 1: and so old that my heart smote me for having
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  Speaker 1: fired upon him. Alan at once held a pistol in
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  Speaker 1: his face. Put that thing up, said the captain. Have
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  Speaker 1: I not passed my words, sir? Or do you seek
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  Speaker 1: to affront me? Captain? Says Allan, I doubt your word
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  Speaker 1: is a breakable last night you haggled and argo bargled
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  Speaker 1: like an apple wife, and then pessed me your word
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  Speaker 1: and gave me your hand to back it. And you
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  Speaker 1: can very well what was the upshot? Be damned to
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  Speaker 1: your word, says he. Well well, sir, said the captain.
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  Speaker 1: You'll get little good by swearing, And truly that was
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  Speaker 1: a fault of which the captain was quite free. But
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  Speaker 1: we have other things to speak, he continued bitterly. You've
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  Speaker 1: made a sore hash of my brig. I haven't hands
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  Speaker 1: enough left to work her, and my first officer, whom
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  Speaker 1: I could ill spare, has got your swords throughout his
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  Speaker 1: vitals and passed without speech. There is nothing left me, sir,
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  Speaker 1: but to put back into the port of Glasgow after hands,
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  Speaker 1: and there by your leave. You shall find them that
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  Speaker 1: are better able to talk to you, I said Alan,
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  Speaker 1: and faith I'll have a talk with them myself. Unless
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  Speaker 1: there's nobody speaks English in that town. I have a
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  Speaker 1: bunny take for them. Fifteen Tari sailors upon the one side,
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  Speaker 1: and a man and a halfling boy upon the other.
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  Speaker 1: Oh man, it's pitiful hose season flushed red. No, continued Alan,
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  Speaker 1: that'll no do. You'll just have to set me ashore
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  Speaker 1: as we agreed, aye, said hose season. But my first
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  Speaker 1: officer is dead, ye ken best how there's none of
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  Speaker 1: the rest of us acquainted with this coast, sir, and
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  Speaker 1: it's one very dangerous to ships. I give ye yer choice,
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  Speaker 1: says Alan. Set me on dry ground in Appen or Ardgour,
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  Speaker 1: or in Morvin or Erseg or Morar, or in brief
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  Speaker 1: where you please, within thirty miles of my own country,
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  Speaker 1: except in a country of the Campbell's. That's a broad target.
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  Speaker 1: If you miss that, you must be as feckless at
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  Speaker 1: the sailoring as I have found ye at the fighting.
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  Speaker 1: Why my poor country people in their bit cobbles passed
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  Speaker 1: from island Toland in all weathers I am by night too.
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  Speaker 1: For the matter of that, a cobble's not a ship, sir,
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  Speaker 1: said the captain. It is no draft of water. Well,
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  Speaker 1: then to Glasgow, if you list, says Allan, we'll have
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  Speaker 1: the laugh of y at the least. My mind runs
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  Speaker 1: little upon laughing, said the captain. But all this will
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  Speaker 1: cost money, sir. Well, sir, says Allan, I am no
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  Speaker 1: weather cock thirty guineas if you'll lad me on the
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  Speaker 1: sea side, and sixty if you put me into lineylock.
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  Speaker 1: But see, sir, where we lie. We are but a
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  Speaker 1: few hours sail from Arden. American says, O, season, give
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  Speaker 1: me sixty and I'll set you there, and I'm to
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  Speaker 1: wear my brogues and run jeopardy of the redcoats to
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  Speaker 1: please you, cries Allan. No, sir, if you want sixty guineas,
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  Speaker 1: earn them and set me in my own country. It's
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  Speaker 1: to risk the brig, sir, said the captain, and your
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  Speaker 1: own lives along with her. Take it or want it,
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  Speaker 1: says Allan. Could ye pilot us at all? Asked the captain,
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  Speaker 1: who was frowning to himself. Well, it's doubtful, said Allan.
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  Speaker 1: I'm more of a fighting man, as ye've seen for yourself,
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  Speaker 1: than a sailor man. But I have been often enough
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  Speaker 1: picked up and set down upon this coast, and should
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  Speaker 1: ken somethin o the lie of it? The captain shook
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  Speaker 1: his head, still frowning. If I had lost less money
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  Speaker 1: on this unchancy cruise, says he, I would see you
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  Speaker 1: in a rope's end before I risked my brig, sir.
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  Speaker 1: But be it as you will, as soon as I
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  Speaker 1: get a slant, O wind, an't there some coming, or
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  Speaker 1: I'm the more mistaken. I'll put it in hand. But
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  Speaker 1: there's one thing more. We may meet in with the
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  Speaker 1: King's ship, and she may lay us aboard, Sir, with
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  Speaker 1: no blame of mine. They keep the cruisers thick upon
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  Speaker 1: this coast, Ye ken who four? Now, Sir, if that
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  Speaker 1: was to befall, ye might leave the money, Captain says Allan.
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  Speaker 1: If ye see a pennant, it shall be your part
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  Speaker 1: to run away. And now, as I hear you are
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  Speaker 1: little short of brandy in the forepart, I'll offer ye
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  Speaker 1: a change a bottle of brandy against two buckets of water.
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  Speaker 1: That was the last clause of the treaty, and was
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  Speaker 1: duly executed on both sides, so that Alan and I
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  Speaker 1: could at last wash out the round house and be
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  Speaker 1: quit of the memorials of those whom we had slain,
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  Speaker 1: and the Captain and mister Rioch could be happy again
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  Speaker 1: in their own way, the name of which was drink.
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  Speaker 1: End of chapter