The Midshipman Prince Page 8

  Walker rushed for the orlop deck ladder and ran up the stairs as if the furies of hell were chasing him. He got to the gun deck paused for a second to find the gangway ladder, ran up those stairs and finally lurched out on deck. Finding an unoccupied area, he rushed to the side of the ship, leaned over, and screamed. He finally slid down the bulwark until he was seated on the deck cross-legged, his head in his hands. His breathing was labored and his eyes, filled with tears, were seeing nothing.

  He didn’t know how long he had been in that position when he felt someone sit down beside him and put an arm on his shoulder. It was Susan Whitney. She had on an apron that already had spots of blood on it. She, of course, had dived right in as soon as they arrived on the orlop deck. After a while, when she could not find Walker anywhere below deck, she surmised what had happened and followed him up.

  “Susan, I am sorry. I just can’t do this,” Walker choked out.

  “I know. It’s not easy, especially your first time.”

  “No, you don’t understand. I can’t do THIS anymore,” he said waiving his hand around him. “Any of it. None of it. I don’t fit. I don’t understand any of it. I don’t know what to do; I don’t know what not to do; and I don’t know how to get back to my normal life. I want out, Susan, and I don’t know how to get out. I only know I can’t do it any more.” Walker’s eyes began to mist over.

  Susan Whitney said nothing for a while.

  “I don’t know what to tell you, Lucas; but, whether you belong here or not seems pretty irrelevant to me.”

  “What do you mean?”

  She hesitated for a moment. “I am not an educated person like you or Mr. Smith; so I can only speak plainly. I was always taught that all of life’s problems are one of two kinds—those you can do something about, and those you can’t. You ignore the things you can’t change, and work like the devil on the things you can.

  “Look, you were aboard a ship that was wrecked in a storm, right?”

  “Right.”

  “So, if there’s nothing you can do about that. It goes on the ‘I can do nothing about it’ pile.

  “You are a member of the ships company of the HMS Richmond, right?

  “Correct.”

  “Can you do anything about that?”

  “No, apparently not.”

  “So that follows the previous problem onto the ‘I can do nothing about it’ pile.

  “You are the ship’s surgeon on the Richmond, right?”

  “Yes... against my will.”

  “No matter. You are the ship’s surgeon. Can you do anything about that?”

  “No.”

  “And there’s where you’re wrong, because you can choose. You might not have had control of Captain Hudson’s appointment, but you can choose whether you want to be a good surgeon or a bad one.”

  “But...”

  “But, nothing. Look, Lucas, I think that basically you’re a good person; but, right now, you’re the most useless piece of dung I’ve ever seen.

  “You were given a responsibility and you’ve run from it. You whine about what’s happened to you, but don’t give a damn about the people you’re harming.”

  “Who am I harming?”

  “Me, for one, because I have to do all the damn work you should be doing; but, more importantly, you’re hurting the men aboard the Richmond. They need to believe in you, Lucas. They need to believe that you’ll be there for them if they’re sick or injured. And what about those men below deck just now. Do you think they don’t need you?

  “You’re a smart fellow. I saw the way you absorbed those medical books. You have skills. You could be of help. Instead, you’d rather wallow in self-pity. ‘Woe is me. I’ve been pressed. I therefore beg leave to be an utterly useless prick.’

  “Yet, I don’t get the sense that you’re, by nature, that way. That’s what I don’t understand. You have ‘leader’ written all over you. I can see it in your eyes. Yet, you’ve chosen to be worthless. You’ve chosen to put your life on the ‘I can do nothing about it’ pile. And that, I am sorry, disgusts me.”

  With that, Susan got up and disappeared down the forward gangway ladder.

  Walker sat alone on the deck for nearly 20 minutes. No one knows what he thought about as, later on, he never talked about it. What we do know is this. He arrived on deck that day a 22 year old who was going on 18 years of age. When he finally stood up and followed Susan below, he was 22 going on 40.

  * * *

  Walker had no idea how long he had been asleep but, however long it was, it wasn’t enough.

  “Meester Walker, Sir. Meester Walker. Time to geet up. De Captain wants to see you and Meester Smith.” Angelo, the wardroom steward, a native of the Windward Islands, was vigorously shaking him awake.

  “Tell him I’ve died,” Walker replied and rolled over.

  “No, you tol’ me to do dat last time and I got in trooble.” Angelo got Walker to sit up and swung him around, placing a cup of coffee in his hands. Walker never ceased to be amazed at Angelo’s ability to come up with real coffee beans for his coffee, as opposed to the burnt breadcrumbs and hot water that was otherwise called “coffee” on this ship.

  With Angelo’s help, he managed to splash some water on his face and shave. As he dressed in the clothes Angelo laid out, he realized that his clothes—the clothes of an 18th Century gentleman—felt good, even if they were castoffs and loaners from the other ship’s officers. He drew the line at wearing what he called “culottes,” however. He had never liked them. Trousers had recently been introduced and they were the rage in London. That gave him all the excuse he needed to wear them.

  The sunlight caused his eyes to water as he walked out on the main deck and looked out to sea. The French were still there. It had been two days since the Battle of the Capes and not much more had happened. The two fleets had continued east, warily eyeing each other but no one wanted to make the first move to renew the fighting. The Shrewsbury, Intrepid, Montagu, and Princessa were off station tagging along after the fleet as they underwent repairs. Admiral Drake, a descendent of the great Sir Francis Drake, shifted his flag from the Princessa to the Alcide and it was reported that Captain Robinson of the Shrewsbury had had his leg amputated below the knee. Captain Colpoys of the Orpheus took over for him. The Terrible was taking on so much water that Graves had ordered her burned and the Ajax was leaking badly. A pall of disappointment and despair hung over the ship’s company.

  Walker proceeded to the captain’s cabin and found Smith already standing before the captain’s long table. Walker joined him.

  “Ah, there you are, Mr. Walker,” the captain said jovially. It was the first time he had ever talked to him in a friendly voice and it startled Walker.

  “First of all, I’ve received a report from the First Lieutenant of the Shrewsbury stating that you had worked tirelessly during your time onboard and may be credited with saving the lives of any number of their men—including that of their captain. For that, he sends his respects and gratitude and, to which, I add mine. You reflected very well on this ship.”

  Walker didn’t know what to say. He remembered the time only as a blur—endless hours of cutting, and sewing, and removing musket balls, and wood fragments. He did not sleep and only took two breaks for water and a few ship’s biscuits. He was still working off the sleep deficit.

  “Thank you, sir.”

  I also received a message from Admiral Hood, although, I must admit, I am not quite sure what to make of it. It seems the Richmond has been selected for what the admiral describes as a ‘very important mission,’ which will require two dependable officers. I selected Smith and he selected you. Don’t ask me to provide the logic behind that choice, but there we have it.”

  Walker looked over at Smith who smiled and gave a small, almost imperceptible, shrug.

  “In any event, the admiral wishes to see the three of us this afternoon at four bells. Be on deck and ready to go 20 minutes before that.

  * * *


  The Barfleur was the largest wooden object Walker had ever seen up-close. She was 177 feet long and 50 feet wide. She mounted 90 guns on three decks, weighed almost 2000 tons and drew 21 feet. Everything about her was big—including the access ladder—which allowed the three of them to scramble up the side with little effort.

  Admiral Hood’s stateroom was correspondingly large as well. The Richmond’s captain’s cabin, wardroom, and officer sleeping area would have fit in Hood’s meeting room alone. The room was tastefully appointed with fine furniture, hangings and lamps from the best London shops. Given that, Walker was startled when he looked down at a floor that was covered in plain canvas and painted in a black and white checkerboard pattern. It provided almost a comic contrast from the high quality furnishings.

  Contrary to his reputation as a dour man of few words, Hood seemed positively gregarious.

  “Captain Hudson! Good to see you again.”

  “Good to see you too, admiral. May I present my First Lieutenant, William Sidney Smith; and our ship’s surgeon, Mr. Walker.”

  “Good afternoon, gentleman. Please, be seated. I have a rather exceptional Madeira here if you would care for some.” Hood didn’t wait for an answer but walked over to a sideboard and poured four glasses. This gave Walker a chance to study him.

  Hood was not a large man but, nevertheless, seemed to exude authority. He had a small almost frail build with a head that seemed too large for his body. Indeed, his head was his most striking feature.

  At first Walker thought he was wearing a powdered wig but it turned out he was wrong. Hood had a full head of pure white hair that hung down in carefully coffered ringlets. His face bore a striking resemblance to the pictures he had seen of George Washington, except Hood’s nose was bigger and he had two shaggy, almost unruly, eyebrows.

  Hood, returning with the wine glasses, broke Walker’s reverie.

  “Gentlemen,” Hood began, “I’ll not detain you long; but there is an urgent matter that I must discuss with you. Before doing so, however, I must warn you that what I am about to tell you, and the mission you are about to perform, is of the utmost secrecy. Is that clear?”

  Hood paused for a moment to look at each of them. His eyes were dead serious.

  “As I am sure you know, Our Sovereign, George III, has nine sons. The third oldest of these is Prince William Henry. You might also know that, for the past several years, the prince has been enrolled as a midshipman in His Majesty’s Navy; and, truth be known, he has actually developed into quite a good one.

  “What you might not know is that several months ago Prince William was sent to New York on a mission to raise the morale of the troops, not to mention the morale of the Tory population of the city who are sympathetic to us. Nothing quite like having a real-live prince at your gala ball to boost the spirits, what?

  “Anyway, shortly after his arrival Washington moved his army from New Jersey to the outskirts of New York in an obvious move to lay siege to it. He knew the prince was there and at least one attempt was made to capture him, but it failed.

  “It was therefore felt prudent to send the prince off to go build morale somewhere else, so he was sent to visit his ‘Uncle Cornwallis’ in Yorktown. What could go wrong there, right? Cornwallis had about a third of the British Army with him, and he had been rampaging through the southern colonies, almost unopposed, for months.”

  Walker looked around. Smith seemed shocked, but Captain Hudson had visibly gone pale.

  “But that means... I mean, sir, are you saying...” Hudson stuttered.

  “Yes,” the admiral answered. “The prince is currently in Yorktown. Cornwallis is cut off on the landward end of the peninsula by some 22,000 rebel troops—6000 under Lafayette, 4000 French troops brought by De Grasse, 4000 more frogs from Rhode Island, and 8000 rebels that Washington moved down from New York. They have over 100 heavy guns dug in and pointed down Cornwallis’ throat. To combat this, Cornwallis has 6000 or 7000 exhausted troops and a handful of 6-pound cannon that I wouldn’t use for ceremonial purposes, let alone to fight. His only hope was that our fleet—that we—would control the seaward side so he could remain supplied and, if necessary, evacuate his troops. And, we failed.”

  “But, sir,” Hudson began. “With all due respect to you and Admiral Graves, I am not sure we have failed. Certainly, we seemed to have lost the fight a few days ago, but that was only a skirmish. Even now, we could engage and still win.”

  “Yesterday afternoon there was a meeting of Admiral Graves, Admiral Drake and myself—a rather heated one, I might add. Admiral Graves has determined that we suffered too many losses on that first day to engage the enemy again.”

  “Then why don’t we pivot around and race the French back to the Chesapeake? I am sure our ships are faster than theirs. His fleet has been at sea a long time in the Caribbean. Their hulls must be completely covered with moss and barnacles, which would slow them down considerably. Let’s get back there first, form up at the mouth of the Chesapeake, and dare them to take the place away from us. No French fleet has ever sailed into a bay or harbor occupied by one of our fleets to fight us. Not once. And they won’t do it now.”

  “You know, you might make a good admiral yet, Charles. Of course, you’re right; but Admiral Graves doesn’t see it that way. He believes De Grasse’s real objective is New York—never mind that Washington and most of his army is now here at Yorktown. He thinks as soon as we head to the Chesapeake, De Grasse will head north, land troops, and take the city. So we tag along and tag along, not retreating but not fighting either, until we see what he’s up to.”

  Hood gave a tired sigh as if he couldn’t believe the stupidity of his senior officer, then added: “Meanwhile, you have a job to do.

  “Here are your official orders.” Hood slid a sealed envelope across the table to Hudson. “You and the Frigate Iris are to detach yourself and make best possible speed back to the Yorktown peninsula. Upon arrival, the Iris is to go into the bay and destroy the French anchorage. It seems that in their haste to depart most of the French ships did not haul in their anchors. They put buoys on their anchor cables and just let the cables run out to be retrieved and reattached later. The Iris is going to destroy the buoys, which should cause a great deal of confusion on board the French ships when and if they come back. That confusion might come in handy at some point.

  “While the Iris is busy in the Chesapeake, you are to proceed to Yorktown. You will land, I presume, these two gentlemen, get Prince William Henry and take him, again with best possible speed, to New York and deliver him to Governor Clinton for immediate transport back to England.”

  Hood slid another sealed envelope across the table. “In case you run into any objections anywhere along the line—including from the prince—this is a letter from Governor Clinton authorizing and requiring the full cooperation of any authorities you should meet. He makes it quite clear, however, that these orders are not coming from him, but directly from His Majesty.

  “Are there any questions?”

  Smith and Walker shook their heads, Captain Hudson said “No, sir,” and Admiral Hood stood up to see them off.

  “Oh yes, Charles. One more thing...”

  “Yes, sir?”

  “Don’t even think about failing.”

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CAPTAIN Hudson had made his gig available to transport the two men ashore. There were six seamen on board, three on a side, rowing at a steady, measured, pace. In the bow sat a young midshipman trying to look as dignified as possible, having just been evicted from his usual place in the stern by Smith and Walker. A ship’s bosun’s mate manned the tiller. All of the men were in their regular work-a-day clothes, although that would certainly change if this same group came back to pick up the prince. Walker was looking glum.

  “Come on, Lucas. I’ve done you a good turn. We’ll spend a night ashore, eat some decent food for a change, gather up His Nibs, and be gone. Besides, there are other possible delights.”

&nbs
p; “Such as?”

  “The Town of York was not evacuated prior to the arrival of the Jonathans. Which means there are, I am sure, any number of young ladies up ahead who will be delighted to make our acquaintance.”