University of Virginia Library

6. CHAPTER VI.

Although the governor deemed it prudent to anchor for
the night, he did not neglect the precaution of reconnoitring.
Betts was sent towards the Reef, in a boat well
armed and manned, in order to ascertain the state of things
in that quarter. His instructions directed him to push forward

as far as he could, and if possible to hold some sort
of communication with Socrates, who might now be considered
as commander at the point assailed.

Fortunate was it that the governor bethought him of this
measure. As Betts had the ship's launch, which carried two
lugg-sails, his progress was both easy and rapid, and he
actually got in sight of the Reef before midnight. To his
astonishment, all seemed to be tranquil, and Betts at first
believed that the savages had completed their work and
departed. Being a bold fellow, however, a distant reconnoitring
did not satisfy him; and on he went, until his
boat fairly lay alongside of the natural quay of the Reef
itself. Here he landed, and marched towards the entrance
of the crater. The gate was negligently open, and on
entering the spacious area, the men found all quiet, without
any indications of recent violence. Betts knew that
those who dwelt in this place, usually preferred the Summit
for sleeping, and he ascended to one of the huts that
had been erected there. Here he found the whole of the
little garrison of the group, buried in sleep, and totally
without any apprehension of the danger which menaced
them. As it now appeared, Waally's men had not yet
shown themselves, and Socrates knew nothing at all of
what had happened to the brig.

Glad enough was the negro to shake hands with Betts,
and to hear that Master Mark was so near at hand, with a
powerful reinforcement. The party already arrived might
indeed be termed the last, for the governor had sent with
his first officer, on this occasion, no less than five-and-twenty
men, each completely armed. With such a garrison,
Betts deemed the crater safe, and he sent back the
launch, with four seamen in it, to report the condition in
which he had found matters, and to communicate all else
that he had learned. This done, he turned his attention
to the defences of the place.

According to Socrates' account, no great loss in property
would be likely to occur, could the colonists make
good the Reef against their invaders. The Abraham was
over at the Peak, safe enough in the cove, as was the Neshamony
and several of the boats, only two or three of the
smaller of the last being with him. The hogs and cows

were most exposed, though nearly half of the stock was
now habitually kept on the Peak. Still, a couple of hundred
hogs were on the prairie, as were no less than eight
horned cattle, including calves. The loss of the last would
be greatly felt, and it was much to be feared, since the
creatures were very gentle, and might be easily caught.
Betts, however, had fewer apprehensions touching the cattle
than for the hogs, since the latter might be slain with arrows,
while he was aware that Waally wished to obtain the first
alive.

Agreeably to the accounts of Socrates, the progress of
vegetation had been very great throughout the entire group.
Grass grew wherever the seed was sown, provided anything
like soil existed, and the prairie was now a vast range, most
of which was green, and all of which was firm enough to
bear a hoof. The trees, of all sorts, were flourishing also,
and Betts was assured he would not know the group again
when he came to see it by day-light. All this was pleasant
intelligence, at least, to the eager listeners among the new
colonists, who had now been so long on board ship, that
anything in the shape of terra firma, and of verdure appeared
to them like paradise. But Betts had too many
things to think of, just then, to give much heed to the
eulogium of Socrates, and he soon bestowed all his attention
on the means of defence.

As there was but one way of approaching the crater,
unless by water, and that was along the hog pasture and
across the plank bridge, Bob felt the prudence of immediately
taking possession of the pass. He ordered Socrates
to look to the gate, where he stationed a guard, and went
himself, with ten men, to make sure of the bridge. It was
true, Waally's men could swim, and would not be very apt
to pause long at the basin; but, it would be an advantage
to fight them while in the water, that ought not to be
thrown away. The carronades were all loaded, moreover;
and these precautions taken, and sentinels posted, Betts
suffered his men to sleep on their arms, if sleep they could.
Their situation was so novel, that few availed themselves
of the privilege, though their commanding officer, himself,
was soon snoring most musically.

As might have been expected, Waally made his assault

just as the day appeared. Before that time, however, the
launch had got back to the ship, and the latter was under
way, coming fast towards the crater. Unknown to all,
though anticipated by Mark, the Mermaid had entered the
western passage, and was beating up through it, closing
fast also on Waally's rear. Such was the state of things,
when the yell of the assailants was heard.

Waally made his first push for the bridge, expecting to
find it unguarded, and hoping to cross it unresisted. He
knew that the ship was gone, and no longer dreaded her
fire; but he was fully aware that the Summit had its guns,
and he wished to seize them while his men were still impelled
by the ardour of a first onset. Those formidable
engines of war were held in the most profound respect by
all his people, and Waally knew the importance of success
in a rapid movement. He had gleaned so much information
concerning the state of the Reef, that he expected no
great resistance, fully believing that, now he had seized
the Mermaid, his enemies would be reduced in numbers
to less than half-a-dozen. In all this, he was right enough;
and there can be no question that Socrates and his whole
party, together with the Reef, and for that matter, the
entire group, would have fallen into his hands, but for the
timely arrival of the reinforcement. The yell arose when
it was ascertained that the bridge was drawn in, and it
was succeeded by a volley from the guard posted near it,
on the Reef. This commenced the strife, which immediately
raged with great fury, and with prodigious clamour.
Waally had all his muskets fired, too, though as yet he saw
no enemy, and did not know in what direction to aim.
He could see men moving about on the Reef, it is true,
but it was only at moments, as they mostly kept themselves
behind the covers. After firing his muskets, the chief
issued an order for a charge, and several hundreds of his
warriors plunged into the basin, and began to swim towards
the point to be assailed. This movement admonished
Betts of the prudence of retiring towards the gate,
which he did in good order, and somewhat deliberately.
This time, Waally actually got his men upon the Reef,
without a panic and without loss. They landed in a crowd,
and were soon rushing in all directions, eager for plunder,

and thirsting for blood. Betts was enabled, notwithstanding,
to enter the gate, which he did without delay, perfectly
satisfied that all efforts of his to resist the torrent
without must be vain. As soon as his party had entered,
the gate was closed, and Betts was at liberty to bestow all
his care on the defence of the crater.

The great extent of the citadel, which contained an area
of not less than a hundred acres, it will be remembered,
rendered its garrison very insufficient for a siege. It is
probable that no one there would have thought of defending
it, but for the certainty of powerful support being at
hand. This certainty encouraged the garrison, rendering
their exertions more ready and cheerful. Betts divided
his men into parties of two, scattering them along the
Summit, with orders to be vigilant, and to support each
other. It was well known that a man could not enter from
without unless by the gate, or aided by ladders, or some
other mechanical invention. The time necessary to provide
the last would bring broad daylight, and enable the
colonists to march such a force to the menaced point, as
would be pretty certain to prove sufficient to resist the
assailants. The gate itself was commanded by a carronade,
and was watched by a guard.

Great was the disappointment of Waally when he ascertained,
by personal examination, that the Summit could
not be scaled, even by the most active of his party, without
recourse to assistance, by means of artificial contrivances.
He had the sagacity to collect all his men immediately beneath
the natural walls, where they were alone safe from
the fire of the guns, but where they were also useless. A
large pile of iron, an article so coveted, was in plain sight,
beneath a shed, but he did not dare to send a single hand
to touch it, since it would have brought the adventurer
under fire. A variety of other articles, almost as tempting,
though not perhaps of the same intrinsic value, lay also in
sight, but were tabooed by the magic of powder and balls.
Eleven hundred warriors, as was afterwards ascertained,
landed on the Reef that eventful morning, and assembled
under the walls of the crater. A hundred more remained
in the canoes, which lay about a league off, in the western
passage, or to leeward, awaiting the result of the enterprise.

The first effort made by Waally was to throw a force
upward, by rearing one man on another's shoulders. This
scheme succeeded in part, but the fellow who first showed
his head above the perpendicular part of the cliff, received
a bullet in his brains. The musket was fired by the hands
of Socrates. This one discharge brought down the whole
fabric, several of those who fell sustaining serious injuries,
in the way of broken bones. The completely isolated position
of the crater, which stood, as it might be, aloof from
all surrounding objects, added materially to its strength in
a military sense, and Waally was puzzled how to overcome
difficulties that might have embarrassed a more civilized
soldier. For the first time in his life, that warrior had
encountered a sort of fortress, which could be entered only
by regular approaches, unless it might be carried by a
coup de main. At the latter the savages were expert
enough, and on it they had mainly relied; but, disappointed
in this respect, they found themselves thrown back on resources
that were far from being equal to the emergency.

Tired of inactivity, Waally finally decided on making a
desperate effort. The ship-yard was still kept up as a place
for the repairing of boats, &c., and it always had more or
less lumber lying in, or near it. Selecting a party of a
hundred resolute men, and placing them under the orders
of one of his bravest chiefs, Waally sent them off, on the
run, to bring as much timber, boards, planks, &c., as they
could carry, within the cover of the cliffs. Now, Betts
had foreseen the probability of this very sortie, and had
levelled one of his carronades, loaded to the muzzle with
canister, directly at the largest pile of the planks. No
sooner did the adventurers appear, therefore, than he blew
his match. The savages were collected around the planks
in a crowd, when he fired his gun. A dozen of them fell,
and the rest vanished like so much dust scattered by a
whirlwind.

Just at that moment, the cry passed along the Summit
that the Rancocus was in sight. The governor must have
heard the report of the gun, for he discharged one in return,
an encouraging signal of his approach. In a minute, a
third came from the westward, and Betts saw the sails of
the Mermaid over the low land. It is scarcely necessary

to add, that the reports of the two guns from a distance,
and the appearance of the two vessels, put an end at once
to all Waally's schemes, and induced him to commence,
with the least possible delay, a second retreat from the spot
which, like Nelson's frigates, might almost be said to be
imprinted on his heart.

Waally retired successfully, if not with much dignity.
At a given signal his men rushed for the water, plunged in
and swam across the basin again. It was in Betts's power
to have killed many on the retreat, but he was averse to
shedding blood unnecessarily. Fifty lives, more or less,
could be of no great moment in the result, as soon as a
retreat was decided on; and the savages were permitted to
retire, and to carry off their killed and wounded without
molestation. The last was done by wheeling forward the
planks, and crossing at the bridge.

It was far easier, however, for Waally to gain his canoes,
than to know which way to steer after he had reached them.
The Mermaid cut off his retreat by the western passage,
and the Rancocus was coming fast along the northern. In
order to reach either the eastern, or the southern, it would
be necessary to pass within gun-shot of the Reef, and,
what was more, to run the gauntlet between the crater and
the Rancocus. To this danger Waally was compelled to
submit, since he had no other means of withdrawing his
fleet. It was true, that by paddling to windward, he greatly
lessened the danger he ran from the two vessels, since it
would not be in their power to overtake him in the narrow
channels of the group, so long as he went in the wind's
eye. It is probable that the savages understood this, and
that the circumstance greatly encouraged them in the effort
they immediately made to get into the eastern passage.
Betts permitted them to pass the Reef, without firing at
them again, though some of the canoes were at least half
an hour within the range of his guns, while doing so. It
was lucky for the Indians that the Rancocus did not arrive
until the last of their party were as far to windward as the
spot where the ship had anchored, when she was first brought
up by artificial means into those waters.

Betts went off to meet the governor, in order to make
an early report of his proceedings. It was apparent that

the danger was over, and Woolston was not sorry to find
that success was obtained without recourse to his batteries.
The ship went immediately alongside of the natural
quay, and her people poured ashore, in a crowd, the instant
a plank could be run out, in order to enable them to do so.
In an hour the cows were landed, and were grazing in the
crater, where the grass was knee-high, and everything possessing
life was out of the ship, the rats and cock-roaches
perhaps excepted. As for the enemy, no one now cared for
them. The man aloft said they could be seen, paddling
away as if for life, and already too far for pursuit. It would
have been easy enough for the vessels to cut off the fugitives
by going into the offing again, but this was not the desire of
any there, all being too happy to be rid of them, to take
any steps to prolong the intercourse.

Great was the delight of the colonists to be once more
on the land. Under ordinary circumstances, the immigrants
might not have seen so many charms in the Reef
and crater, and hog-lot; but five months at sea have a
powerful influence in rendering the most barren spot beautiful.
Barrenness, however, was a reproach that could no
longer be justly applied to the group, and most especially
to those portions of it which had received the attention of
its people. Even trees were beginning to be numerous,
thousands of them having been planted, some for their
fruits, some for their wood, and others merely for the
shade. Of willows, alone, Socrates with his own hand
had set out more than five thousand, the operation being
simply that of thrusting the end of a branch into the mud.
Of the rapidity of the growth, it is scarcely necessary to
speak; though it quadrupled that known even to the most
fertile regions of America.

Here, then, was Mark once more at home, after so long
a passage. There was his ship, too, well freighted with a
hundred things, all of which would contribute to the comfort
and well-being of the colonists! It was a moment
when the governor's heart was overflowing with gratitude,
and could he then have taken Bridget and his children in
his arms, the cup of happiness would have been full. Bridget
was not forgotten, however, for in less than half an
hour after the ship was secured, Betts sailed in the Neshamony,

for the Peak; he was to carry over the joyful tidings,
and to bring the `governor's lady' to the Reef. Ere the
sun set, or about that time, his return might be expected,
the Neshamony making the trip in much less time than
one of the smaller boats. It was not necessary, however,
for Betts to go so far, for when he had fairly cleared Cape
South, and was in the strait, he fell in with the Abraham,
bound over to the Reef. It appeared that some sings of
the hostile canoes had been seen from the Peak, as Waally
was crossing from Rancocus Island, and, after a council,
it had been decided to send the Abraham across, to notify
the people on the Reef of the impending danger, and to
aid in repelling the enemy. Bridget and Martha had both
come in the schooner; the first, to look after the many valuables
he had left at the `governor's house,' on the Summit,
and the last, as her companion.

We leave the reader to imagine the joy that was exhibited,
when those on board the Abraham ascertained the
arrival of the Rancocus! Bridget was in ecstasies, and
greatly did she exult in her own determination to cross on
this occasion, and to bring her child with her. After the
first burst of happiness, and the necessary explanations had
been made, a consultation was had touching what was next
to be done. Brown was in command of the Abraham, with
a sufficient crew, and Betts sent him to windward, outside
of everything, to look after the enemy. It was thought
desirable not only to see Waally well clear of the group,
but to force him to pass off to the northward, in order that
he might not again approach the Reef, as well as to give
him so much annoyance on his retreat, as to sicken him
of these expeditions for the future. For such a service the
schooner was much the handiest of all the vessels of the
colonists, since she might be worked by a couple of hands,
and her armament was quite sufficient for all that was
required of her, on the occasion. Brown was every way
competent to command, as Betts well knew, and he received
the females on board the Neshamony, and put
about, leaving the schooner to turn to windward.

Bridget reached the Reef before it was noon. All the
proceedings of that day had commenced so early, that there
had been time for this. The governor saw the Neshamony,

as she approached, and great uneasiness beset him.
He knew she had not been as far as the Peak, and supposed
that Waally's fleet had intercepted her, Betts coming
back for reinforcements. But, as the boat drew near, the
fluttering of female dresses was seen, and then his unerring
glass let him get a distant view of the sweet face of his
young wife. From that moment the governor was incapable
of giving a coherent or useful order, until Bridget had
arrived. Vessels that came in from the southward were
obliged to pass through the narrow entrance, between the
Reef and the Hog Lot, where was the drawbridge so often
mentioned. There was water enough to float a frigate,
and it was possible to take a frigate through, the width
being about fifty feet, though as yet nothing larger than
the Friend Abraham White had made the trial. At this
point, then, Woolston took his station, waiting the arrival
of the Neshamony, with an impatience he was a little
ashamed of exhibiting.

Betts saw the governor, in good time, and pointed him
out to Bridget, who could hardly be kept on board the
boat, so slow did the progress of the craft now seem. But
the tender love which this young couple bore each other
was soon to be rewarded; for Mark sprang on board the
Neshamony as she went through the narrow pass, and immediately
he had Bridget folded to his heart.

Foreigners are apt to say that we children of this western
world do not submit to the tender emotions with the same
self-abandonment as those who are born nearer to the rising
sun; that our hearts are as cold and selfish as our manners;
and that we live more for the lower and grovelling passions,
than for sentiment and the affections. Most sincerely do
we wish that every charge which European jealousy, and
European superciliousness, have brought against the American
character, was as false as this. That the people of
this country are more restrained in the exhibition of all
their emotions, than those across the great waters, we believe;
but, that the last feel the most, we shall be very
unwilling to allow. Most of all shall we deny that the
female form contains hearts more true to all its affections,
spirits more devoted to the interests of its earthly head, or
an identity of existence more perfect than those with which

the American wife clings to her husband. She is literally
“bone of his bone, and flesh of his flesh.” It is seldom
that her wishes cross the limits of the domestic circle,
which to her is earth itself, and all that it contains which
is most desirable. Her husband and children compose her
little world, and beyond them and their sympathies, it is
rare indeed that her truant affections ever wish to stray.
A part of this concentration of the American wife's existence
in these domestic interests, is doubtless owing to the
simplicity of American life and the absence of temptation.
Still, so devoted is the female heart, so true to its impulses,
and so little apt to wander from home-feelings and home-duties,
that the imputation to which there is allusion, is
just that, of all others, to which the wives of the republic
ought not to be subject.

It was even-tide before the governor was again seen
among his people. By this time, the immigrants had taken
their first survey of the Reef, and the nearest islands,
which the least sanguine of their numbers admitted quite
equalled the statements they had originally heard of the
advantages of the place. It was, perhaps, fortunate that
the fruits of the tropics were so abundant with Socrates
and his companions. By this time, oranges abounded, more
than a thousand trees having, from time to time, been
planted in and around the crater, alone. Groves of them
were also appearing in favourable spots, on the adjacent
islands. It is true, these trees were yet too young to produce
very bountifully; but they had begun to bear, and it
was thought a very delightful thing, among the fresh arrivals
from Pennsylvania, to be able to walk in an orange
grove, and to pluck the fruit at pleasure!

As for figs, melons, limes, shaddocks, and even cocoa-nuts,
all were now to be had, and in quantities quite sufficient
for the population. In time, the colonists craved the
apples of their own latitude, and the peach; those two
fruits, so abundant and so delicious in their ancient homes;
but the novelty was still on them, and it required time to
learn the fact that we tire less of the apple, and the peach,
and the potato, than of any other of the rarest gifts of
nature. That which the potato has become among vegetables,
is the apple among fruits; and when we rise into

the more luscious and temporary of the bountiful products
of horticulture, the peach (in its perfection) occupies a
place altogether apart, having no rival in its exquisite flavour,
while it never produces satiety. The peach and the
grape are the two most precious of the gifts of Providence,
in the way of fruits.

That night, most of the immigrants slept in the ship;
nearly all of them, however, for the last time. About ten
in the forenoon, Brown came running down to the Reef,
through the eastern passage, to report Waally well off, having
quitted the group to-windward, and made the best of
his way towards his own islands, without turning aside to
make a starting-point of Rancocus. It was a good deal
questioned whether the chief would find his proper dominions,
after a run of four hundred miles; for a very trifling
deviation from the true course at starting, would be very
apt to bring him out wide of his goal. This was a matter,
however, that gave the colonists very little concern. The
greater the embarrassments encountered by their enemies,
the less likely would they be to repeat the visit; and should
a few perish, it might be all the better for themselves. The
governor greatly approved of Brown's course in not following
the canoes, since the repulse was sufficient as it was,
and there was very little probability that the colony would
meet with any further difficulty from this quarter, now that
it had got to be so strong.

That day and the next, the immigrants were busy in
landing their effects, which consisted of furniture, tools
and stores, of one sort and another. As the governor
intended to send, at once, forty select families over to the
Peak, the Abraham was brought alongside of the quay, and
the property of those particular families was, as it came
ashore, sent on board the schooner. Males and females
were all employed in this duty, the Reef resembling a beehive
just at that point. Bill Brown, who still commanded
the Abraham, was of course present; and he made an
occasion to get in company with the governor, with whom
he held the following short dialogue:

“A famous ship's company is this, sir, you 've landed
among us, and some on 'em is what I calls of the right
sort!”

“I understand you, Bill,” answered Mark, smiling.
“Your commission has been duly executed; and Phœbe is
here, ready to be spliced as soon as there shall be an opportunity.”

“That is easily enough made, when people's so inclined,”
said Bill, fidgeting. “If you 'd be so good, sir,
as just to point out the young woman to me, I might be
beginning to like her, in the meanwhile.”

“Young? Nothing was said about that in the order,
Bill. You wished a wife, invoiced and consigned to yourself;
and one has been shipped, accordingly. You must
consider the state of the market, and remember that the
article is in demand precisely as it is youthful.”

“Well, well, sir, I 'll not throw her on your hands, if
she 's old enough to be my mother; though I do rather suppose,
Mr. Woolston, you stood by an old shipmate in a
foreign land, and that there is a companion suitable for a
fellow of only two-and-thirty sent out?”

“Of that you shall judge for yourself, Bill. Here she
comes, carrying a looking-glass, as if it were to look at
her own pretty face; and if she prove to be only as good
as she is good-looking, you will have every reason to be
satisfied. What is more, Bill, your wife does not come
empty-handed, having a great many articles that will help
to set you up comfortably in housekeeping.”

Brown was highly pleased with the governor's choice,
which had been made with a due regard to the interests
and tastes of the absent shipmate. Phœbe appeared well
satisfied with her allotted husband; and that very day the
couple was united in the cabin of the Abraham. On the
same occasion, the ceremony was performed for Unus and
Juno, as well as for Peters and his Indian wife; the governor
considering it proper that regard to appearances and
all decent observances, should be paid, as comported with
their situation.

About sunset of the third day after the arrival of the
Rancocus, the Abraham sailed for the Peak, having on
board somewhat less than a hundred of the immigrants,
including females and children. The Neshamony preceded
her several hours, taking across the governor and

his family. Mark longed to see his sister Anne, and his
two brothers participated in this wish, if possible, in a still
more lively manner.

The meeting of these members of the same family was
of the most touching character. The young men found
their sister much better established than they had anticipated,
and in the enjoyment of very many more comforts
than they had supposed it was in the power of any one to
possess in a colony still so young. Heaton had erected a
habitation for himself, in a charming grove, where there
were water, fruits, and other conveniences, near at hand,
and where his own family was separated from the rest of
the community. This distinction had been conferred on
him, by common consent, in virtue of his near affinity to
the governor, whose substitute he then was, and out of
respect to his education and original rank in life. Seamen
are accustomed to defer to station and authority, and
are all the happier for the same; and the thought of any
jealousy on account of this privilege, which as yet was
confined to Mark and Heaton, and their respective families,
had not yet crossed the mind of any one on the
island.

About twelve, or at midnight, the Abraham entered the
cove. Late as was the hour, each immigrant assumed a
load suited to his or her strength, and ascended the Stairs,
favoured by the sweet light of a full moon. That night
most of the new-comers passed in the groves, under tents
or in an arbour that had been prepared for them; and sweet
was the repose that attended happiness and security, in a
climate so agreeable.

Next morning, when the immigrants came out of their
temporary dwellings, and looked upon the fair scene before
them, they could scarcely believe in its reality! It is true,
nothing remarkable or unexpected met their eyes in the
shape of artificial accessories; but the bountiful gifts of
Providence, and the natural beauties of the spot, as much
exceeded their anticipations as it did their power of imagining
such glories! The admixture of softness and magnificence
made a whole that they had never before beheld
in any other portion of the globe; and there was not one

among them all that did not, for the moment, feel and
speak as if he or she had been suddenly transformed to an
earthly paradise.