their ship-o'-the-line! It's — it's marvellous!' Parker skipped about the deck in joy. 'Don't you see? We've lost three or four frigates and smaller, but now we've got eight - eight - of the line more.'
'Doubles our force,' Kydd said. 'At last, th' shabs came across!'
'An' I'm Joe Fearon, Leopard, an' this is Bill Wallis o' Standard - we come t' say we signed y' eight articles an' we mean to abide by 'em t' death.'
Kydd responded warily: these were hard men and would need careful handling.
'Thank you,' said Parker. 'There are many—'
'An' we've brought a few of our own, like,' Fearon said flady.
'Oh, may we hear them?'
'Right. Fer the first we has this. Court martials on seamen ter be made o' foremast hands, not grunters.' 'Yes, well—'
'Fer the second, we want prize-money three-fifths forrard, two-fifths aft.'
There was no use in opposing: they had to hear it out. All told there were four articles, which had to be voted upon. Then it was insisted that they be taken ashore and presented to the admiral.
'I do this from duty, Tom, not by choice. You stay here, my friend.'
Kydd's spirits were low as he saw him off in the rain. They had doubled their force, but the Admiralty was not moving an iota towards meeting any of their grievances. Where was it all leading?
When Parker returned, the fleet was in joyous mood, with singing and dancing on deck in the clear moonlit evening. But his face was deeply lined. Buckner had refused even to accept the articles, and the fear and chaos ashore were worse: now it was open hostility.
Early the next day the seamen's Parliament met.
'Brother Kydd, how d' we stan' in the matter o' vittles?' Hulme opened.
Kydd had estimates: dry stores and those in cask could possibly be shared out among the ships that were running short, but there was already hardship. The difficult part was the usual problem of finding wood and water: cooking salt beef needed a good deal of both, and all had been held back.
'We c'n hold out f'r another week or so. Then it's two upon four f'r another—'
'Those fuckin' toads! It's insultin' to us. Th' admiral here commands thirteen o' the line — that's nigh-on what Old Jarvey had at St Vincent.' Hulme scowled.
Parker sat quite still.
'Why we has t' sit here, takin' all they wants ter dish out.. .' Hulme finished morosely.
Parker's face animated suddenly. 'Perhaps we don't.'
'Ah, how so?' Blake drawled, clearly reluctant for yet another of Parker's schemes.
But Parker was energised and would not be stopped. 'Think of it, brothers, we could, with one stroke, win free of these shackles and at the same time force their lordships to accept our terms.'
Conversations stopped around the table. 'Go on, then, cully, let's hear yez,' Fearon, of Leopard in the North Sea squadron, said.
Parker waited until he had complete attention. 'We have all the means we need to call their lordships' bluff. If they don't want to come to us and talk — we'll force 'em.'
Hulme sneered. 'Yair, you'll—'
