Ramage and the Freebooters Read Online Free Page B

with a dry sense of humour and, like his father, he combined a highly developed, even if arbitrary, sense of justice with an uncontrollable impatience with fools. Well, no harm in that – as long as he never became a member of the Board and had to persuade the rest to adopt some policy they were too stupid to understand.
    Realizing he’d been staring at Ramage for some moments, Spencer smiled and asked: ‘Why do you think you were chosen to command the Triton and given these orders?’
    ‘I’ve no idea, sir,’ Ramage said frankly.
    ‘Since you’ve already given the reason yourself without realizing it, I’ll tell you – and I’m speaking to the son of an old friend, not to a young lieutenant!
    ‘The Board know full well that to get the Triton under way at Spithead is going to need ingenuity and quick thinking by her commanding officer; perhaps even highly irregular methods which might lead to violence and which, if it resulted in a public outcry, the Board would have to disown.’
    He held up his hand to stop Ramage interrupting and continued: ‘The Board also know it’s easier to persuade fifty seamen than a couple of hundred, so they chose a brig rather than a frigate. Selecting a lieutenant to command her – well, there was only one man known to them who was the junior lieutenant of a frigate when he was rendered unconscious in battle and woke to find himself her commanding officer and behaved with great initiative and bravery; and only one lieutenant who was quick enough to spot that the only way to prevent several Spanish ships of the line from escaping capture was to ram the leading one with the tiny cutter he was commanding.
    ‘That the lieutenant happens to be you is a fortunate coincidence,’ Spencer added.
    But Ramage had already spotted the potential trap.
    ‘If anything went wrong at Spithead, then I’ll make a convenient scapegoat,’ he added bitterly. ‘And the son of “Old Blazeaway” into the bargain.’
    ‘Scapegoat, yes – if you fail,’ Spencer said blandly. ‘And no public credit if you succeed, because no one but the Admiralty knows the problems you’ll have overcome.’
    ‘Exactly, my Lord.’
    ‘You have a poor view of politicians, Ramage – and in view of your family’s experience, I can’t blame you. But you’d be wise to give the Board a little more credit. For a start, the Board chose the man they thought would succeed. That’s their prime interest. But the man they chose might fail and might become a scapegoat.’
    He wagged a finger as he said slowly, emphasizing each word, ‘Don’t forget any public outcry brings the Navy into disrepute. Just suppose a public outcry forced us to bring you to trial. What better defence can the Admiralty have for their choice than citing your record so far – omitting your tendency to ignore orders? Who else could call witnesses to his character ranging from Lord St Vincent and Sir Horatio Nelson down to seamen who were on board the Kathleen when you rammed the San Nicolas ?’
    Ramage was almost persuaded and grateful to the First Lord for his frankness. He was just going to reply when Spencer said quietly: ‘We’re putting a lot of faith in you, Ramage. It’s vital that the three admirals are warned of what’s happening at Spithead. Supposing the mutiny spreads to Admiral Duncan’s Fleet watching the Dutch, or Sir Richard Curtis’ off Brest, or Lord St Vincent’s covering the Spanish off Cadiz, or Admiral Robinson’s covering the Windward and Leeward Islands, or Sir Hyde Parker’s at Jamaica…
    ‘The Royal Navy’s all that stands between us and defeat,’ he continued. ‘You realize that. The price of bread is rising, the people are restive with empty purses and often empty bellies, Parliament is more than restive with a government that can only announce defeats and the defection of one ally after another on the Continent. And every damned merchant in the City of London is screaming that he’s ruined. Sometimes,