Fighting for the Right — Themes and Context

CHAPTER I. A Conference at Bonnydale 15

CHAPTER II. A Complicated Case 26

CHAPTER III. The Departure of the Chateaugay 37

CHAPTER IV. Monsieur Gilfleur explains 48

CHAPTER V. An Abundance of Evidence 59

CHAPTER VI. The Boarding of the Ionian 70

CHAPTER VII. A Bold Proposition 81

CHAPTER VIII. A Notable Expedition 92

CHAPTER IX. The Frenchman in Bermuda 103

CHAPTER X. Important Information obtained 114

CHAPTER XI. An Unexpected Rencontre 125

CHAPTER XII. As Impracticable Scheme 136

CHAPTER XIII. At the End of the Chase 147

CHAPTER XIV. An Easy Victory 158

CHAPTER XV. The Gentleman with a Grizzly Beard 169

CHAPTER XVI. Among the Bahamas 180

CHAPTER XVII. The Landing at New Providence 191

CHAPTER XVIII. An Affray in Nassau 202

CHAPTER XIX. An Old Acquaintance 213

CHAPTER XX. A Band of Ruffians 224

CHAPTER XXI. A Question of Neutrality 235

CHAPTER XXII. On Board of the Snapper 246

CHAPTER XXIII. The Chateaugay in the Distance 257

CHAPTER XXIV. The Tables turned 268

CHAPTER XXV. Captain Flanger in Irons 279

CHAPTER XXVI. A Visit to Tampa Bay 290

CHAPTER XXVII. Among the Keys of Tampa 302

CHAPTER XXVIII. The Surrender of the Reindeer 313

CHAPTER XXIX. Bringing out the Prize 324

CHAPTER XXX. A Very Important Service 335

CHAPTER XXXI. An Undesired Promotion 346

FIGHTING FOR THE RIGHT

A CONFERENCE AT BONNYDALE

"Well, Christy, how do you feel this morning?" asked Captain Passford, one bright morning in April, at Bonnydale on the Hudson, the residence of the former owner of the Bellevite, which he had presented to the government.

"Quite well, father; I think I never felt any better in all my life," replied Lieutenant Passford, of the United States Navy, recently commander of the little gunboat Bronx, on board of which he had been severely wounded in an action with a Confederate fort in Louisiana.

"Do you feel any soreness at the wound in your arm?" inquired the devoted parent with some anxiety.

"Not a particle, father."

"Or at the one in your thigh?"

"Not the slightest bit of soreness. In fact, I have been ready to return to my duty at any time within the last month," replied Christy very cheerfully. "It would be a shame for me to loiter around home any longer, when I am as able to plank the deck as I ever was. In truth, I think I am better and stronger than ever before, for I have had a long rest."

"Your vacation has been none too long, for you were considerably run down, the doctor said, in addition to your two wounds," added Captain Passford, senior; for the young man had held a command, and was entitled to the same honorary title as his father.

"These doctors sometimes make you think you are sicker than you really are," said Christy with a laugh.

"But your doctor did not do so, for your mother and I both thought you were rather run out by your labors in the Gulf."

"If I was, I am all right now. Do I look like a sick one? I weigh more than I ever did before in my life."

"Your mother has taken excellent care of you, and you certainly look larger and stronger than when you went to sea in the Bronx."

"But I am very tired of this inactive life. I have been assigned to the Bellevite as second lieutenant, a position I prefer to a command, for the reasons I have several times given you, father."

"I am certainly very glad to have you returned to the Bellevite, though the honors will be easier with you than they were when you were the commander of the Bronx."

"But I shall escape the responsibility of the command, and avoid being pointed at as one who commands by official influence," said Christy, rather warmly; for he felt that he had done his duty with the utmost fidelity, and it was not pleasant to have his hard-earned honors discounted by flings at his father's influence with the government.

"It is impossible to escape the sneers of the discontented, and there are always plenty of such in the navy and the army. But, Christy, you wrong yourself in taking any notice of such flings, for they have never been thrown directly at you, if at all. You are over-sensitive, and you have not correctly interpreted what your superiors have said to you," said Captain Passford seriously.

His father recalled some of the conversations between the young officer and Captain Blowitt and others, reported to him before. He insisted that the remarks of his superiors were highly complimentary to him, and that he had no right to take offence at them.

"I dare say I am entirely wrong, father; but it will do me no harm to serve in a subordinate capacity," added Christy.

"I agree with you here; but I must tell you again, as I have half a dozen times before, that I never asked a position or promotion for you at the Navy Department. You have won your honors and your advancement yourself," continued the father.

"Well, it was all the same, father; you have used your time and your money very freely in the service of the government, as you could not help doing. I know that I did my duty, and the department promoted me because I was your son," said Christy, laughing.

"Not at all, my son; you deserved your promotion every time, and if you had been the son of a wood-chopper in the State of Maine, you would have been promoted just the same," argued Captain Passford.

"Perhaps I should," answered the young officer rather doubtfully.

"After what you did in your last cruise with the Bronx, a larger and finer vessel would have been given to you in recognition of the brilliant service you had rendered," added the father. "I prevented this from being done simply because you wished to take the position of second lieutenant on board of the Bellevite."

"Then I thank you for it, father," replied Christy heartily.

"But the department thinks it has lost an able commander," continued the captain with a smile.

"I am willing to let the department think so, father. All I really ask of the officials now is to send me back to the Gulf, and to the Bellevite. I believe you said that I was to go as a passenger in the Chateaugay."

"I did; and she has been ready for over a week."

"Why don't she go, then?" asked Christy impatiently.

"On her way to the Gulf she is to engage in some special service," replied Captain Passford, as he took some letters from his pocket.

"Letters!" exclaimed the young lieutenant, laughing as he recalled some such missives on two former occasions. "Do you still keep your three agents in the island of Great Britain?"

"I don't keep them, for they are now in the employ of the government, though they still report to me, and we use the system adopted some two years ago."

"What is it this time, father?" asked Christy, his curiosity as well as his patriotism excited by this time at the prospect of capturing a Confederate man-of-war, or even a blockade-runner.

"There are traitors in and about the city of New York," answered Captain Passford, as he returned the letters to his pocket. "We had a rebel in the house here at one time, you remember, and it is not quite prudent just now to explain the contents of the letters."

"All right, father; but I suppose you will read them to me before I sail for the South."

"I will talk to you about it another time," added the captain, as a knock was heard at the door. "Come in!"

It was the man-servant of the house, and he brought in a tray on which there was a card, which Captain Passford took.

"Captain Wilford Chantor," the captain read from the card. "Show him in, Gates. Lieutenant Chantor is appointed to the command of the Chateaugay, Christy, in which you take passage to the Gulf; but she will not go there directly."

"Captain Chantor," said Gates, as he opened the door for the visitor.

"I am happy to see you, Captain Chantor, though I have not had the pleasure of meeting you before," said the captain, as he rose from his chair, and bowed to the gentleman, who was in the uniform of a lieutenant.

"I presume I have the honor to address Captain Horatio Passford," said the visitor, as he took a letter from his pocket, bowing very respectfully at the same time, and delivering the letter.

"I am very glad to meet you, Captain Chantor," continued Captain Passford, taking the hand of the visitor. "Allow me to introduce to you my son, Lieutenant Passford, who will be a passenger on your ship to the Gulf."

"I am very happy to make your acquaintance, Mr. Passford, for I need hardly say that I have heard a great deal about you before, and this is a very unexpected pleasure," replied Captain Chantor.

"Thank you, Captain, and I am equally happy to meet you, as I am to be a passenger on your ship," added Christy, as they shook hands very cordially.

"I had three other passengers on board, but they have been transferred to the store-ship, which sails to-day, and you will be my only passenger."

"At my suggestion," said Captain Passford smiling, doubtless at the puzzled expression of the captain of the Chateaugay at his statement.

"I am to attend to some special service on my voyage to the Gulf, and I am ordered to take my instructions from you," added Captain Chantor.

"Precisely so; but I hold no official position, and your orders will be put in proper form before you sail," replied Christy's father. "Now, if you will be patient for a little while, I will explain the nature of the special service."

"I shall be very glad to understand the subject, and I am confident my patience will hold out to any extent you may require."

The conversation so far had taken place in the library. The owner of Bonnydale rose from his arm-chair, opened the door into the hall, and looked about him very cautiously. Then he closed a window which the unusual warmth of an April day had rendered it necessary to open. He conducted his companions to the part of the room farthest from the door, and seated them on a sofa, while he placed his arm-chair in front of them. Even Christy thought his father was taking extraordinary precautions, and the visitor could make nothing of it.

"As I have had occasion to remark before to-day, there are traitors in and about New York," the captain began.

"If you have any private business with Captain Chantor, father, I am perfectly willing to retire," suggested Christy.

"No; I wish you to understand this special service, for you may be called upon to take a hand in it," replied Captain Passford; and the son seated himself again. "There are traitors in and about New York, I repeat. I think we need not greatly wonder that some of the English people persist in attempting to run the blockade at the South, when some of our own citizens are indirectly concerned in the same occupation."

This seemed to the captain of the Chateaugay an astounding statement, and not less so to Christy, and neither of them could make anything of it; but they were silent, concluding that the special service related to this matter.

"In what I am about to say to you, Captain Chantor, I understand that I am talking to an officer of the utmost discretion," continued Captain Passford, "and not a word of it must be repeated to any person on board of the Chateaugay, and certainly not to any other person whatever."

"I understand you perfectly, sir," replied the officer. "My lips shall be sealed to all."

"I wish to say that the command of the Chateaugay would have been offered to my son, but I objected for the reason that he prefers not to have a command at present," said the captain.

"That makes it very fortunate for me."

"Very true, though the change was not made for your sake. You were selected for this command as much on account of your discretion as for your skill and bravery as an officer."

"I consider myself very highly complimented by the selection."

"Now to the point: I have information that a fast steamer, intended to carry eight guns, called the Ovidio, sailed from the other side of the ocean some time since, and she is to be a vessel in the Confederate navy. Her first port will be Nassau, New Providence."

"Does that prove that any Americans are traitors in and about New York, father?" asked Christy.

"She is to run the blockade with a cargo consisting in part of American goods."

Captain Passford took a file of papers from his pocket.

Captain Passford looked over his papers for a moment; but it was soon evident from his manner that he had secrets which he would not intrust even to his son, unless it was necessary to do so. He seemed to be armed with documentary evidence upon which to act, but he did not read any of his papers, and soon returned them to his pocket.

"The American goods of which I speak are certain pieces of machinery to be used in the manufacture of arms," continued the captain. "They cannot be obtained in England, and the traitors have decided to send them direct, rather than across the ocean in the first instance. These will form the principal and most important part of the cargo of a steamer now loaded, though she will carry other goods, such as the enemy need most at the present time."

"I did not suppose any Americans were wicked enough to engage in such an enterprise for the sake of making money," said Christy indignantly.

"The steamer of which you speak is already loaded, is she?" asked Captain Chantor.

"She is; and now I wish both of you to go with me, and I will point out the vessel to you, and you must mark her so well that you can identify her when occasion requires."

The trio left the house and took the train together. They went to New York, and in an out-of-the-way locality they went down to a wharf; but there was no steamer or vessel of any kind there, and the pier was falling to pieces from decay. Captain Passford stopped short, and seemed to be confounded when he found the dock was not occupied.

"I am afraid we are too late, and that the steamer has sailed on her mission of destruction," said he, almost overcome by the discovery. "She was here last night, and was watched till this morning. She has already cleared, bound to Wilmington, Delaware, with a cargo of old iron."

"Do you know her name, Captain Passford?" asked the commander of the Chateaugay.

"She was a screw steamer of about six hundred tons, and was called the Ionian, but she is American."

It was useless to remain there any longer, for the steamer certainly was not there. Captain Passford hailed a passing-tug-boat, and they were taken on board. The master of the boat was instructed to steam down the East River, and the party examined every steamer at anchor or under way. The tug had nearly reached the Battery before the leader of the trio saw any vessel that looked like the Ionian. The tug went around this craft, for she resembled the one which had been in the dock, and the name indicated was found on her stern.

"I breathe easier, for I was afraid she had given us the slip," said Captain Passford. "She is evidently all ready to sail."

"The Chateaugay is in commission, and ready to sail at a moment's notice," added her commander.

"But you are not ready to leave at once, Christy," suggested Captain Passford, with some anxiety in his expression.

"Yes, I am, father; I put my valises on board yesterday, and when mother and Florry went down to Mr. Pembroke's I bade them both good-by, for after I have waited so long for my passage, I felt that the call would come in a hurry," replied Christy. "I am all ready to go on board of the Chateaugay at this moment."

"And so am I," added Captain Chantor.

"But I am not ready with your orders in full, though they are duly signed," said Captain Passford. "I will put you on shore at the foot of Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn, Captain Chantor, and you will hasten to your ship, get up steam, and move down to this vicinity. I will put my son on board as soon as I can have your papers completed."

The order necessary to carry out this procedure was given to the captain of the tug, and the commander of the Chateaugay was landed at the place indicated. The tug started for the other side of the river.

"It seems to me this is very strange business, father," said Christy, as he and his father seated themselves at the stern of the boat.

"Traitors do not work in the daylight, my son, as you have learned before this time," replied Captain Passford.

"If you know the men who are engaged in supplying the enemy with machinery, why do you not have them arrested and put in Fort Lafayette?" asked Christy, in a very low tone, after he had assured himself that no person was within possible hearing distance. "It looks as though the case might be settled here, without going to sea to do it."

"We have not sufficient evidence to convict them; and to make arrests without the means of conviction would be worse than doing nothing. The Ionian has cleared for Wilmington with a cargo of old iron. Everything looks regular in regard to her, and I have no doubt there is some party who would claim the castings if occasion required. The first thing to be ascertained is whether or not the steamer goes to Wilmington."

"Then we can make short work of her."

"My information in regard to this treason comes from Warnock--you know who he is?"

"Captain Barnes," replied Christy promptly, for the names of all the agents of his father in England and Scotland had been given to him on a former occasion, when the information received from one of the three had resulted in the capture of the Scotian and the Arran.

"Barnes is a very shrewd man. He does not inform me yet in what manner he obtained the information that the Ovidio was to carry this machinery from Nassau into a rebel port; but I shall get it later in a letter. He gave me the name of the party who was to furnish the machinery; and one of his agents obtained this from the direction of a letter to New York. I placed four skilful detectives around this man, who stands well in the community. They have worked the case admirably, and spotted the Ionian. I have aided them in all possible ways; but the evidence is not complete. If this steamer proceeds beyond Wilmington, Captain Chantor will be instructed to capture her and send her back to New York."

"Then this business will soon be settled," added Christy.

"Perhaps not; the government official, with authority to act, is in New York. I shall see him at once. I have no doubt the detectives have already reported that the Ionian has moved down the river," said Captain Passford, as the tug came up to a pier, where father and son landed.

They went to an office in Battery Place, where the captain was informed that a special messenger had been sent to Bonnydale to acquaint him with the fact that the Ionian had moved down the river. Files of documents, containing reports of detectives and other papers, were examined and compared, and then the government official proceeded to finish the filling out of Captain Chantor's orders. The paper was given to Christy, with an order to deliver it to the commander of the Chateaugay. The tug had been detained for them, and they hastened on board of her.

They found the suspected steamer at her moorings still; but it was evident that she was preparing to weigh her anchor. The tug continued on her course towards the Navy Yard, and the Chateaugay was discovered in the berth she had occupied for the last two weeks. Everything looked lively on board of her, as though she were getting ready to heave up her anchor.

"Christy, you will find on board of your steamer a man by the name of Gilfleur," said Captain Passford, as the tug approached the man-of-war.

"That sounds like a French name," interposed Christy.