Captain Allen

“ After a few days spent in this manner, the swaggering captain—whose name, it was soon bruited about, was Thomas Allen, of his Majesty's Navy—went on board of his ketch,—or brig, as we should call it,—the Quaker, weighed anchor, and set sail towards the Potomac, and thence stood down the Bay upon the coast of Virginia. Every now and then, after his departure, there came reports to the Council of insults offered by Captain Allen to the skippers of sundry Bay craft and other peaceful traders on the Chesapeake ”

“ Captain Allen, before he would fire one gun, come within pistol-shot of the enemy. The Spaniards, at Cales, did stand laughing at the Dutch, to see them run away and flee to the shore, 34 or thereabouts, against eight Englishmen at most. I do purpose to get the whole relation, if I live, of Captain Allen himself. In our loss of the two ships in the Bay of Gibraltar, the world do comment upon the misfortune of Captain Moone of the Nonsuch, (who did lose, in the same manner, the Satisfaction,) as a person that hath ill-luck attending him; without-considering that the whole fleet was ashore. ”

“ Many conjectures were made, and one or two rather philanthropic individuals proposed, as a common duty, an attempt to arrest the fugitives and bring them back. But there were none to second this, the general sentiment being, that Captain Allen was fully competent to look after his own affairs. And that he wood look after them, and promptly too, on his return, none doubted for an instant. As for Jacob Perkins, no one professed a willingness to stand in his shoes. The fire-eating Captain would most probably blow that gentleman's brains out in the heat of his first excitement. ”

“ After beating to windward a few days, the wind hauled us to the southward and eastward, the fog towards noon, to a very considerable extent, dispersed, and Captain Allen obtained a meridian altitude of the sun, the horizon being as he erroneously thought, well defined. Having thus determined the latitude to his satisfaction, he ordered the brig to be steered about west-south-west, which, he supposed, would carry us round Cape Sable, clear of all danger. ”

“ The whale-ship "Black Eagle," Captain Allen, lay in Grinnell Bay on the arrival of our voyagers, and the captain soon appeared on the deck of the "George Henry," with several Esquimo. One of these natives, named Ugarng, especially attracted Mr. Hall's attention. He was intelligent, possessing strong lines of character, and a marked physical development. He had spent a year on a visit to the United States. Speaking of New York, he said with a sailor's emphasis: "No good! too much horse! too much house! too much white people! Women? Ah! women great many—good!" ”

“ There was an instant rush to the life-boat; but it was barely half way to the water when a huge sea dashed it against the ship's side, crushing it like an egg-shell. This was the last chance. An arm tossing wildly through the foam of a distant wave, a faint cry borne past on the wind, and poor Allen was gone forever.
Then, amid the dismal silence, was heard, clear and strong, the firm voice of the captain:
OILING THE OUTBOARD BEARINGS.
"Lads, I won't order any of you to run such a risk; but this job must be done somehow, or we shall all go to the bottom together. ”

“ Her flag floats over every ocean, and her ministry are in every nation. I know it is a great journey for a man to undertake and leave his family; but Captain Allen says he will give absolute permission for the families to remain here. He has also obtained a writing from the Pottawatamie sub-agency, signed by the chiefs and braves to that effect, so that everything is straightforward."
He concluded by making a motion that a body of five hundred men be raised, and make Captain Allen Lieutenant-Colonel, a promotion he had been promised providing he raised the battalion. ”

“ She rides the crest, then plunges down to greater depths below; the greedy sea laughs in its glee, then thunderous billows throw o'er bow and poop of fated sloop—they stab her through and through, they wash the captain overboard, likewise his mate and crew. The bos'n and the cook are gone, also the nine-lived cat—on all the ship no soul is spared, no, not one lonesome rat. The ship is lost! Where is the scribe—the boy, oh where is he? Astride the bowsprit, pen in hand, writing a sto-o-rm at sea.
MORAL: Genius should be coaxed, not driven. ”

“ The Alligator drawing too much water, two boats were manned and stood for them; an action ensued, in the early part of which Captain Allen received two musket balls, one in the head, the other in his breast, and soon died, encouraging his men to do their duty; which they nobly performed, for after a short contest the pirates abandoned their vessel and swam to the shore. The vessels were taken possession of by the victors and carried into Matanzas.
"They mounted one gun each, amid-ship, with forty men each, well armed, and considerable plunder on board. ”

“ I had dismounted and was leaning across my horse, when I saw, as I thought, Captain Allen, of the Twenty-fourth Virginia, of our brigade, having [46] watered his horse where the stream crossed the road. The captain was a fine specimen of a Virginia soldier and gentleman, some sixty years of age, of fine presence, who was always said to resemble General Lee, wearing his grey beard trimmed after the fashion of that of our great leader, and in the saddle having about the same height, though dismounted, the captain, I should say, was the taller. ”

“ If Captain Allen permitted this it shows he was not well posted in the tricks of the British export trade of his day. It is not denied that the Pelican’s sides were full of dents where the Yankee’s shot struck but did not penetrate. Still the most reasonable explanation of the inferiority of the Americans’ fire is in the fact369 that they had captured a wine-ship. By the modern standard of morals it would be disgraceful to allow a ship’s crew to drink of a captured cargo of wine. ”

“ The captain paused, and shaded his eyes a moment. “Hanged if that isn’t just what it is,” he answered, slowly. “It’s a rigged-up heliograph, and they’re using the Morse code; dash my eyes if they aren’t. Well, this is civilization! What the dickens can have come to the island of Boupari? There isn’t a darned European soul in the place, nor ever has been. Anchorage unsafe; no harbor; bad reef; too small for missionaries to make a living, and natives got nothing worth speaking of to trade in.” ”

“ On his return to England, Allen was made admiral of the blue, and had also a special commission to act as vice-admiral of the fleet, then under the command of the Earl of Sandwich. On the 24th June 1665, the honour of knighthood was conferred upon him. In the following year he was337 appointed admiral of the white, and hoisted his flag on board the Royal James, which Prince Rupert made his flag-ship,—Allen remaining on board, however, as captain of the fleet. The prince, with a squadron, proceeded down the Channel on the lookout for a French naval force, which was expected to join the Dutch. ”

“ The James Allen also lost an anchor here, in about the same spot in [Pg 220] which she broke her windlass whilst getting under weigh last year. From all accounts her Hobartown crew had been anything but orderly and obedient, so that the captain was glad to be rid of them. Amongst the men at the fishery there were several Americans who had been in this section of the world for years; they did not like the country, and, if we had wanted men, would gladly have engaged and gone home with us. ”

“ The pirates, he said, had their spies in all the Cuban ports, and these secret agents, by watching the run of trade, could easily determine what vessels were likely to offer the most tempting booty.
"At length, all being ready, and Mr. and Mrs. Howard coming off to us, we hove up our anchor and made sail. The greatest danger, Captain Allen believed, would be close off the port, and so he had given out that we should probably remain three or four days longer. ”

“ Why not a signal?”
“Beg your pardon, captain,” called back Frank. “I didn’t see you soon enough. I thought the river was clear and did not slow down much to make this bend.”
“Go easy, boy,” answered the man at the wheel of the tug, as half a dozen faces showed up in the dim lights here and there on the sturdy craft. “Always take that bend same as you would in an auto. Can’t always tell about these roads.”
There was a heartiness about the voice that was reassuring to the boys on the Rocket’s deck—the heartiness that is so often met among sea-faring men. ”

“ They could not go through explanations to every one. They became morbidly sensitive upon the subject. No less then seven duels grew out of the affair, and Allen, who had fired the gun, wrote to his father thus: "If I am acquitted honorably, if Captain Barron is condemned, you may see me again. If not, never."—Poor Allen! No disgrace shall ever be attached to his name. He died of wounds received while bravely fighting on the deck of his own little vessel, the Argus, some years later, and he was buried in foreign soil by a guard of honor of his enemies, who appreciated his bravery and worth. ”

“ But I did not let my momentary astonishment distract me from my purpose. “We’ve come for our cat,” I stated.
Looking beyond the boy, I saw the Captain in the act of pouring out a saucer of milk. “He’s had his supper,” I said. “And besides he likes his milk warmed.”
“I guess I know what he likes,” snapped the Captain, setting the saucer of milk down on the floor beside the stove.
I took an indignant step forward. But Eve’s restraining hand was on my arm. “Wait a minute, Sandy,” she urged. “If Captain Trout wants to give Adam a little refreshment, surely there’s no harm in that. ”

“ I will send my boat to you. Mr. Bailey, have the second cutter lowered, and send Mr. Allen on board that schooner to take charge of her with a dozen well-armed men. Let her captain and his crew come back here in our boat. Take a master’s mate with you, Mr. Allen!”
“Aye, aye, sir,” and the boat was called away and made ready.
“By the way, Mr. Allen,” I called out as200 the boat shoved off, “see if you can find out from them anything about Mr. Taylor. In dodging him they have probably run afoul of us.” ”

“ The crew of the Betsy Allen, whose anxiety and exertions during the last few hours had been excessive, gladly accepted the captain's offer, and were soon snoring in their hammocks. Captain Horton and Mr. Williams remained on the deck of the Raker, the one too anxious for revenge upon the pirate who had destroyed his brig, to sleep, and the other too much afflicted by the loss of his daughter, and the painful thoughts which it engendered, to think of any thing but her speedy recovery. ”

“ Allen says that she went into the fight with “a crew of one hundred and two men and sixteen boys.” They are especially careful to specify the number of boys when they are defeated. James is at the pains to announce that “two of her men were each seventy years of age!”
Captain Warrington reported that she had a crew of one hundred and twenty-eight—his list of prisoners numbered one hundred and twenty, including the wounded. It is agreed on both sides that she lost eight men killed and fifteen wounded, and that she had enough men at least to work all of her guns efficiently. ”

“ Rexdale knew better than to slow up and lower his boat at once, thus increasing this time and the risk of losing the man.
"Port a little more, Quartermaster!" ordered the captain. "Mr. Staples," he added, "whistle down to the engine-room and tell them to give us all the speed they can."
After a brief colloquy through the tube the executive reported: "They can do a little better, sir, but not much. They were just starting to clean fires."
Liddon, on the quarter-deck, now called out, "All ready the lifeboat, sir!"
"Very well, Mr. Liddon," returned Staples. ”

“ In the race between Yale and the Atalanta crew on New Haven Harbor, in 1890, Phil Allen, stroke and captain, broke his oar and jumped into the sea. He was picked up by the referee's tug, and stood at the bow dripping wet as he watched his seven men defeat the crack amateur crew of New York. Allen got his training at St. Paul's—in fact, most of the best oarsmen of Harvard and Yale learned to row on Lake Penacook. ”

“ At 101⁄2 A. M. on the morning of February 12th, the ship James Allen, and barque Henry M. Crapo, hove up their ground tackle and stood out to sea. The captain of the James Allen had been vaunting of the speed of his ship, and confidently asserting that she would outsail any ship or barque in the harbor, he issued a challenge. We hove up at 11 o’clock, [Pg 89] half an hour later than he, and in the course of two hours had both the Crapo and James Allen on our lee quarter. As we passed the latter, our captain facetiously desired them to let go that hawser. ”

“ ALLEN, WILLIAM (1793–1864) , naval officer, was born at Weymouth in 1793, entered the navy as a volunteer in 1805, and, as midshipman, was present at the passage of the Dardanelles in 1807. Allen was promoted lieutenant in 1815, commander 1836, and captain 1842. ”

“ So I directed the gentleman's clerk to inform him that I was greatly in need of so signal a charity and desired the young gentleman to make the utmost despatch, which he did; but in the meantime, captain Symonds and his officers came on board, and immediately made ready for sailing; the wind at the same time being fair, set sail when the young gentleman was in fair sight with the aforesaid store. ”