Jack: Book One in the Trilogy, the Battle Begins

Signing Up Part 47

The very next day Jack and I watched Master Whittemore leave his house and carrying aloft of him a large sea trunk that threatened to overpower him and plummet them both to the ground. But he made it, after several rests, to the harbor a half mile away to a three-mast schooner. Men were loading bales of tobacco for the trip to wherever she was going as well as indigo and cotton. We watched master go onto it after receiving a smile and a nod from the watchman. Five minutes later master waved to the watch who waved back and he exited the ship. The name painted on the side was, "Helena" – formerly the "Diana."

One of the crew loading on the docks told Jack he thought they would be heading for Cuba but nothing had been announced yet, so nobody really knew where the ship would be going.

"This is perfect!" said Jack, after finding out its possible destination. "Let's go see the captain," Jack said. "Just remember kiddie, we're both sixteen and we both have experience on the rivers."

"You sure you want to do this?" I asked.

"Com'on this is going to be the biggest adventure we've ever had!"

"You there! Boys! What'cha doin' hangin' 'round my dock, get on with ya!" said the leathery-faced man whose grey beard and long unkempt black hair was blowing in the breeze, his oil-stained, three-cornered hat slightly tipped to the side.

"We got work to do. Off with ya!" the man said while blowing tobacco smoke our way.

"We need to see the captain," said Jack.

"Captain ain't see'in no-one. He's getting ready to ship out," said the man.

"Not here? We want to sign up to work on the ship. We both be able-bodied seamen."

The man with the pipe spit off the deck into the green water, laughed hoarsely, then spat again into the water.

"You two young squirts are just barely off your mothers' tits. Now beat it before I have my mate here throw you off!"

"Let's go," I said.

"Look!" said Jack "I want to see the captain. You can't just get rid of me like I'm nobody. I'm a seaman through and through!"

"The captain eh? You're looking at him!"

"You sir? I thought so! Oh...well, please, give us a chance sir," said Jack.

"You're too young. Come back next year and we'll see what we can do. Get out of here now and stop botherin' me."

"No, we're both nearly seventeen," said Jack. "And we can tie down any ship, we have experience, lots, on the big riverboats, and we can paint real good, better'n most, and we can get into tiny spaces where most able-bodied seamen can't cuz they aren't as able-bodied as us."

"You'll have to show more reason than that for me to go ahead and hire two young green pipsqueaks. How do you stand on abolitionism? I mean, do you think the darkies should be freed?"

"Well, that's a hard question. They should be freed but not all at the same time," Jack said. "I guess that's a matter for the authorities to sort out. I'm looking for adventure and experience - not much of anything else."

"Sooner or later they'll be freed probably but it doesn't preoccupy me as it does some," I said.

"Don't think so boys," said the captain.

"Oh com'on man!" Jack said. "Let us go and we'll give you our first week's pay. We'll work for nothin'!"

"Hmm, a bargaining man eh?" Captain Pendleton said. "And an enterprising one. You bribing me boy? What else can you do, young man?"

"I can tie up any ship in record time and I know I could pilot them too if given half a chance. I've been up and down the rivers a hundred times at least I want a chance to prove myself!"

"How you about following orders?" he said.

"You won't find any more reliable or loyal," said Jack. "We will jump when you say jump and walk when you say walk. We're very dependable. Why Captain Bollings on the barge I worked on last winter said we were the best workers he'd ever had on his ship and he liked us so much that he offered to give us a hundred dollars each if we stayed but we told him we were goin' traveling the high seas so we had to refuse," Jack lied.

"Well, he thought you were that good, eh? You're not pulling the wool over my eyes, would you be?"

"Sir, no sir," said Jack.

"Hmm. Come to my cabin below then."

It was a small but comfortable space with southern yellow pine-boarded walls. He sat at a small desk that had nothing on top but a pen and fountain bottle half-full of ink.

"Can you fight if you have to - that's what I want to know? Can you fight on our side," said the captain, "if, for instance, there was a revolt? On this here ship my crew earns a hefty piece of change – the pay's better than any ship in the harbor, I can tell ye. But that means that, if you come sail with me, you will be sworn to keep secret our activities - completely secret. 'Loose lips sink ships', ye remember that! You do not even talk about them among yourselves. Going to sea can be a dirty business lads. And you will have to get your hands dirty. Are you sure you want to commit?"

"I am," said Jack.

"Me too," I said wondering how dirty could it get out in the deep blue sea.

"But I can tell from fifty feet away from you sonny boy you don't have an ounce of salt in your whole body. You ain't never even been on the rivers in ships," the captain said looking at me.

"I can cook and I know how to mend canvass real fast," I said. "And I've canoed the rivers lots of times."

We go together," Jack said.

"Cook, eh?"

"Yeah, I can do that."

"Well we might use a second cook on the return voyage - we'll be havin' some guests from Guinea and we'll need a second cook to attend to their needs," captain said. "What do you cook boy?"

"Um, most anything - pancakes, fried dough, cupcakes and fish chowder. Anything really."

"Well you won't have to cook up anything too fancy," the captain said. "Don't take the job if ye are not sure you can do it. We're also bringin' back some African animals and you, Jack is it? You'll have to feed and water and try to keep some level of sanitariness down in the hold where they'll be living for six weeks. Ever pick up a dead animal?" said the captain.

"Of course I have," Jack answered. "Lots of times."

"Well, nothing counts so much on this kind of voyage as experience - ain't no substitute. Let me think on it tonight and see me tomorrow first light."

"Sir, we know you're shipping out tonight," Jack said, "so who is trying to pull the wool over whose eyes?"

"Hmm. I see you have got an ear for news. And a mouth for lip at that! But you're bold kid. I like that. Yes, boldness can be a good thing at sea. Might need a pair of ears or two. But we do seem to have a pair of loose lips aboard. We'll need some good ears? What do you say to that?"

"Sure. Ain't nobody more qualified than us for that task sir - nobody. We're the best at sneaking around."

"Are you now? Question is, whose side do ye be sneakin' around fer? Tell you what? Tell me who told you we're sailing tonight and you can sign on straight away."

"Sir, we overheard a coachman on Meetinghouse Street say your ship was heading out to sea tonight."

"A likely story, yes sir, a likely one at that. A coachman! You boys should know that I'm not the kind of captain you should fool with. I run a tight ship and either you're with me or you're against me. And you don't want to be against me! Well boys, you're probably protecting him but it least it shows a kind of loyalty that isn't wholly objectionable. Here are your shipping contracts - read them and sign at the bottom. I'll have my chief mate do the witnessing. We'll be gone about four months, maybe five. But no more than that. You'll be informed of our first destination tomorrow after we've made the Atlantic. After you sign, I want you to help that man down there with the green knickers load the rest of those bales. He'll show you what to do. By the way, we ship in four hours so move your bones lads. Get a move on."