“You, boy!”
Zachary turned towards the quarterdeck to see a boy only a year or two older than himself but dressed as an officer.
“Yes?” he enquired.
“It’s ‘yes, sir’,” the boy said imperiously.
Wondering who this strange boy was but deciding to humor him he said, “Yes, sir.”
“I’m Midshipman Stanley, and as an officer aboard this ship I will insist on being addressed as such.”
“Yes, sir,” repeated Zachary.
“You are the new powder monkey?”
“Yes, sir.”
“You are assigned to the larboard watch. These two guns,” he pointed out two across from each other, “will be the ones you will supply with powder.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Do you have any questions?”
“No, sir.”
Mr. Stanley turned abruptly and strode across the quarterdeck and out of sight.
In truth, Zachary did have questions, but he didn’t dare ask the midshipman. Chief among his questions was, ‘How does a boy that young get to be a ship’s officer?’ He decided he’d have to ask Tony.
He stood beside one of his guns, touching it and almost patting it thinking that soon they would be very well acquainted.
His daydreaming was interrupted by some raucous chatter. He looked towards the direction of the sounds and saw eight boys, all approximately his own age, walking towards him laughing uproariously.
Tony was one of the boys. He turned towards the others and told them to be quiet, reminding them they could get in trouble for being so loud.
Tony introduced Zachary to the other boys, telling them he was the newest powder monkey. The boys had calmed down some and each one shook Zachary’s hand saying, “Welcome aboard, Zach.”
Zachary much preferred to be called by his full name but decided that perhaps it wasn’t the time to bring that up. As a result, he was soon known to everyone on the ship except the officers as Zach.
Tony showed Zachary where his hammock was, instructing him that it had to be kept clean. He also told Zachary that when they were called to action, they stored their hammocks at the rail to provide protection for those on the deck.
When Zachary was alone with Tony, he said, “I just met Midshipman Stanley.”
“Lucky you,” said Tony. “A bit of a pompous prick as near as I can make out.”
“How does a kid our age ever get to be a midshipman?”
“Are you planning to apply?” asked Tony with a grin.
“No, but he can’t be more than a year or two older than I am, yet he’s an officer.”
“Okay, one of the first things you need to understand as a member of the U. S. Navy is that rank is usually determined by who you know. The difference between you and Caleb Stanley is that his father is a United States senator, a good friend of President Jefferson, and a wealthy merchant and importer. He owns several ships which bring things from Europe, the Caribbean, and even West Africa. Most of his ships are engaged in the Triangular Trade.”
“What’s that?” asked Zachary.
“The simplest explanation is that textiles and weapons are shipped from Europe to the west coast of Africa where they are traded for captured Africans from various tribes. Those Africans are then shipped to this country or the Caribbean where they are sold as slaves. The money from the sale is used to buy sugar, molasses, and cotton. Those goods come to states in the north where they are processed and then sold to Europe.”
“So Mr. Stanley’s father is a slave trader?”
“Yes, like many New England shipowners. And because his father is well-positioned and wealthy, Caleb Stanley is a midshipman.”
“So you or I could never become a midshipman?”
“In theory we can if we volunteer in the navy for three or more years, but that’s never going to happen. We can become ordinary seamen and even able seamen but not officers.”
Tony went on to explain the watch system to Zachary. “When we’re at sea, the ship works on a series of bells. Eight bells ring the time for one watch to end and the next to begin. Then bells are rung every half hour, so that one bell is half-an-hour after eight bells. Two bells is an hour after, and so on. So, your watch begins at eight bells, or midnight, and ends at eight bells, or four in the morning. Then you’ll be off duty until the next ringing of eight bells, which will be at eight in the morning. Each watch is for four hours.”
“What do we watch for?”
Tony smiled. “That’s not really what the word means. It simply means that we are on duty to do anything the ship needs, from cleaning, to hoisting sails. The only people who really watch are up in the tops.”
Zachary was pleased to learn that Tony and two of the other powder monkeys were in his watch.
Later in the day, Zachary was issued simple, serviceable clothing. A pair of sturdy trousers and a shirt which made his skin itch. The boys did not wear shoes, even in winter, because their bare feet gave better traction on the deck when they were hurrying to supply the gun crews.
He had no difficulty going to sleep that night, but he was a light sleeper, and the bells every half hour woke him up, even though there were no watches in effect. He lay in his hammock, listening to the sounds of the harbor ─ the lapping water, men on shore calling to each other, the quiet oars of a rowboat.
Very early in the morning he needed to urinate. Although he knew where the sailors’ head was, he decided to stand at the side of the ship and pee into the water. He was enjoying the relief when rough hands grabbed him from behind.
“Gotcha now,” said a quiet voice.
Immediately, Zachary recognized Max’s voice. He struggled to get away, but Max was much too strong for him.
“Let’s see if this monkey can swim,” Max whispered in the boy’s ear.
Zachary was terrified. He couldn’t swim, and he knew that if Max threw him in the water he’d quickly drown. He did the only thing he could think of. He screamed.
“Help! Help me! Help me!”
Military men in general are trained to react very quickly to a situation, and as Max was lifting Zachary over the rail, men came pouring out from every corner of the ship.
The first to reach Max was the bo’sun, who grabbed Max by the neck and pulled him and Zachary back from the railing.
Soon, Max was in a brawl which he couldn’t possibly win, while Zachary lay on the deck breathing hard and trembling.
The next thing he knew, Tony was holding and comforting him.
The scuffle with Max ended very quickly as he was completely outnumbered.
Lieutenant Appleton, whom Zachary had met at the tavern, appeared and asked what had happened. The boy began explaining to him, but every time Zachary said anything, Max said he was lying.
“I’m not! I’m not!” protested Zachary.
Turning to Max, Mr. Appleton declared, “At the very least you’ve caused a major disturbance to peace aboard the ship.” He then told two members of the crew to put Max in irons until the captain came aboard. Then he escorted Zachary down to the berth deck and into the steerage area, where he sat the boy down at a table and took the chair beside him. Tony had followed, and since the lieutenant hadn’t told him to leave, he remained standing behind Zachary. Knowing he could be punished for what he was doing, he nevertheless said, “Sir, I don’t know what was happening, but I do know that the first time Zach saw Max aboard he turned pale and told me he had once met the man on shore.”
Mr. Appleton turned to Zachary and asked him if that was true.
“Yes, sir,” the boy replied shakily.
“Tell me about that first meeting,” the lieutenant said.
“Do I have to?” Zachary asked, both afraid and embarrassed.
When the lieutenant told him he did, Zachary reluctantly took a deep breath and spoke about his encounter with Max at the Pewter Tankard. When he got to the rape, he heard Tony gasp behind him, but he saw no reaction from the officer.
He went on to tell about his encounter with Max aboard ship, and how Max had threatened to throw him overboard. Finally, he told about Max grabbing him as he was peeing over the side of the ship and what Max had said.
When the boy finished, the lieutenant thanked him and told him that he saw no reason to discipline him. He suggested the boys go to their hammocks, saying that he would keep Max in irons until daytime.
Zachary lay in his hammock with his eyes closed but sleep wouldn’t come. He thought about getting up and walking on the deck, but he thought he might be safer in his hammock.
It seemed to him that just as he dozed off, eight bells rang and it was time to get up and report for duty. On deck, Tony didn’t let Zachary out of his sight. They paced the deck talking quietly. Tony told him that this wasn’t the first time Max had gotten into trouble, and he hoped they would see the last of him.
When Captain Whitmore came aboard in the early afternoon, Mr. Appleton told him what had happened in the night. The captain wanted to hear from both Zachary and Max, but he also wanted to hear what the tavern bartender had to say.
A boat was dispatched to shore. About an hour later Phillip, the bartender, was brought on board. The captain then assembled the entire crew while he heard the evidence. Again Zachary had to tell all that had happened, including the embarrassing details of the events in the Pewter Tankard. Standing right near him was Midshipman Stanley, and he realized he was especially embarrassed to tell his story with the other boy there.
When Max was given a chance to speak, he denied everything, but Phillip totally supported Zachary’s telling of the events on shore.
The captain then asked the assembled company if anyone had something to add.
One man, a friend of Max’s, tried to say something in his support, but he didn’t get two words out before he felt a sharp elbow in his ribs. Clearly, most of the crew was on Zachary’s side.
Finally, the captain said to Max, “Since we are still in the harbor, you will receive a hundred lashes and then be returned to shore. This I can tell you, that you will never serve aboard a United States Navy ship again. I will file a complete report with the Secretary of the Navy.”
When the captain said, “a hundred lashes,” Max grew pale and began to tremble, knowing that many lashes could be fatal. He tried to plead with the captain, who simply turned his back.
Max was tied to a large grating and his shirt was cut away. As the strokes of the whip began, he tried to remain stoic and silent, but by the time he had received the first ten lashes, he was crying out and moaning.
The entire company had been ordered to witness the punishment. That included Zachary, who began to feel sick as the whipping continued, drawing blood on Max’s back. He tried to control his stomach, but suddenly he had to hurry to the rail and deposit his breakfast in the harbor. Returning, he stood beside Tony, who said quietly, “That’s a lot of strokes. I hope it’s not a sign of things to come.”
When the bo’sun called out the last lashings, Max was cut down from the grating and fell on the deck nearly unconscious. The surgeon’s mate on the ship poured sea water to the man’s weeping, bleeding back.
When he finished, Max was led away and deposited in a boat which would take him to shore.
Meanwhile, the captain turned to Zachary and said, “You did well, young man.” With that he returned to his cabin and the crew dispersed.
The men began to prepare the ship for sailing as they were to depart with the early morning ebb tide. Since they had been aboard for several days, there was not a great deal to do, but there was a brief call to quarters so that the gun crews could be checked and the officers could ascertain that everyone was in his correct place.
When Zachary was offered some supper, he turned it down saying his stomach was still too upset. He sat with the other powder monkeys, who ate and chattered away as though nothing had happened.
Later in the evening, Zachary asked Tony how they could all be so indifferent to the beating.
Tony laughed and said, “Zach, you may see many beatings aboard the Governor Bradford. The captain expects complete obedience and discipline. Just pray you never bring a beating on yourself.”
“Oh, I’ll be really careful.” Then Zachary asked, “Have you ever been beaten?”
In reply, Tony took off his shirt and turned so that Zachary could see his scarred back. “Yes,” he replied. “It was only ten lashes, but I passed out before it was over. It took my back weeks to heal.”
That night, lying in his hammock, Zachary shuddered at the thought of being beaten and again he had great difficulty sleeping.
As the time neared for the ship to depart, the boys rose from their hammocks paced the deck, trying to stay out of the way. Just after midnight, a man whom Tony said was the pilot came aboard. His job was to guide the ship out of the harbor.
At five bells in the morning, the crew began preparing to head to sea. Some worked the capstan raising the big anchor. Others climbed the ratlines into the rigging and prepared to set whatever sails were ordered.
The sailing master called out to unfurl the topsails on both the main and foremasts, and slowly the ship began to move.
Having nothing to do and trying to stay out of the way, Zachary stood at the rail watching. The moon was nearly full, which provided enough light for him to make out what was happening. It reflected on the water, appearing to Zachary as though there were two moons, one above and one below. From time to time he gazed up at the stars, wondering when or whether he would ever return to Boston.
The pilot kept the ship in a channel which avoided the several islands that dotted Boston harbor. On one island there was a lighthouse which had replaced an older light in 1783. Tony told him it was the second oldest lighthouse in the country.
Soon, a small sloop came out from shore to pick up the pilot. When he left, the Governor Bradford sailed on towards the light which was just beginning to appear on the horizon.