by Bob Kranich
The Cayman Turtle Schooner, (Part 16, Excerpt 84)
This is a story, titled The Cayman Turtle Schooner. This story will tell about the forming and history of the Cayman Islands, the green sea turtle’s habits and life style, the building of a dugout canoe, and then a schooner, and lastly about the historic two-masted turtle schooner, A. M. Adams. They just dropped off the freedom fighters on a beach in Cuba and as they are leaving they are sighted by a Spanish gunboat.
Just then a puff of smoke came from a front gunport, and then a bang! There was a splash of a cannon ball just in front of their schooner.
“We could, Sir, but we can’t out run that!” as he pointed to where the cannon balls ripples were still in sight.
“Drop sails, Thomas. That will let them know we are not running,” Parker commanded.
“Aye aye, Sir. Drop sails men, real fast!” Thomas commanded.
The sails came down. The Saint Sebastian just sat there, rocking with the swells. The Spanish ship came into hailing distance.
“Ahoy there!” came a call from the Spanish ship, “Prepare to be boarded.”
A large quarter boat rowed by eight men in Spanish naval uniforms and two officers, one in the front and one in the rear, was fast approaching. They came alongside. The two officers and four men came aboard. Thomas and Parker met them. The two officers stepped forward. The four men had rifles and were right behind by the rail in a row.
One officer, who appeared to be senior, asked, “Who is Captain?”
Parker said, “I am Captain Parker of the Saint Sebastian, out of the Cayman Islands.”
“Senor, I am Major Dominique. I represent His Royal Majesty of Spain and the Spanish Governor of Cuba. You are trespassing in Spanish Cuban waters. What do you have to say for yourselves?”
“Sir,” Parker offered, “We were just trying to catch some green turtles.”
“A likely story,” the Spanish officer said. “We saw you. You were too far into shore. You were dropping off filibusters? Yes?”
Parker said, “No sir, we were after green turtles.”
The commanding officer turned to the officer behind him, “Lieutenant, you will take this prize capture to Havana. I will leave these four men with you. His men will sail the schooner and this man, Captain Parker, will be tied and locked up. His men will be impressed into the Spanish Navy. This captain will like Havana’s Morro Castle. But it is a pity he will probably hang for delivering filibusters. We’ve got to cast off, so take over, we’re already late for our visit to Santiago de Cuba.”
“Si, Senior!” The Spanish Lieutenant saluted.
The ranking one went over the side into the longboat and they pushed off hastily heading back to their ship.
The Spanish lieutenant said to two of the Spanish sailors, “Carlos, Sanchez, take the captain below, tie him up and lock him in the cabin. Pedro, Domingo, watch these men. Who is the first mate?”
Thomas stepped forward, “Me, sir.”
“Very good. Sails up and set a course for the western tip of Cuba. Due west and south of the Isle of Pines.
“Aye, Sir. Men, let’s get the sails up,” Thomas commanded. But there was a noticeable slowness in the men’s response.
The two sailors were talking Spanish and motioned for Parker to lead. He opened the hatch and went down the ladder. The two men followed.
Parker said, “This is the way.” That’s when he realized they spoke no English.
He opened the door to his cabin. They followed him in, tied his hands behind him, and then motioned for him to lie in his cot. Next they tied his ankles together. They went out speaking Spanish. They closed the door and he could hear them gibbering in their language, which Parker couldn’t understand. He guessed they were trying to find a way to lock the door from the outside. Then he could hear them leaving and climbing back up the ladder.
He thought, they must have improvised something.
He could feel the Saint Sebastian swinging around. He decided, that while they are getting accustomed to his ship he needed to act fast. He didn’t want to hang in Havana or even visit the dreaded Morro Castle Prison.
He rolled around and got the hammock swinging...Bang! He fell out onto the floor. Ouch! That hurt, he thought.
He laid still for a moment to make sure no one had heard the sound. Then he scrunched and bent until he was sitting up. Then he tapewormed his way pushing with his two legs and sliding with his bottom. He came up to a couple of storage drawers, built into the side of the ship. He turned his back to them, took hold of a handle pull on the bottom one, and pulled with his fingers. The drawer came open. He got up on his knees and reached in until he found the knife. With his fingers he picked it up. He then held it with his hand and backed up and stuck it into a timber of the ship. After that he just put the rope on the blade and sawed through. Hands free, the leg ropes came off easy.
He looked around. Parker thought, what next? If I could slip off the boat and head for shore, I could join up with Major Monce’s group. Anything is better than the alternative.
He looked around. There was a glass window port in the rear. It was large enough for him to slip through. He took down the hammock and cut the ropes from both ends. Then he tied them together It would be long enough. There was a small chair. He tied the rope to it and set it below the window port. He tied the rope to his belt, opened the port, slipped through, and did a somersault. The chair came up to the port, and stopped there with a slam, hanging against the window. Parker came to a sudden stop swinging there back and forth out the rear of the ship, in the air, just over the water. He held on to the rope with one hand, cut the rope with the knife he had taken with him, and quietly let himself down into the water.
Immediately the Saint Sebastian pulled away from him as he treaded water. He was fortunate the seas were calm with only slight swells. Parker took one last look at the schooner, then he started to slowly swim toward the shore, far in the distance. It was then he realized there was something wrong with his shoulder. It was cramping. He must have injured it when he fell off the hammock. He stopped swimming and treaded water. He had to make it to shore somehow. He started to pull with his good arm.
Sebastian had just arrived from Nicaragua. He was diving down and eating some of the good sweet sea grass. He decided he had eaten enough and would dive down and swim out some. He took a deep breath and went down, down. He held his breath for quite a while, then pulling with strong front flippers he shot up to the surface.
Parker had been pulling with his good arm, then taking a deep breath and just floating. His one arm was hurting and cramping real bad. It looked like he hadn’t gotten any closer to the shore. He set out again with his tiring good arm. He said out loud, “I don’t think I’m going to make it...God, please help me!”
The Cayman Turtle Schooner, (Part 16, Excerpt 84)
This is a story, titled The Cayman Turtle Schooner. This story will tell about the forming and history of the Cayman Islands, the green sea turtle’s habits and life style, the building of a dugout canoe, and then a schooner, and lastly about the historic two-masted turtle schooner, A. M. Adams. They just dropped off the freedom fighters on a beach in Cuba and as they are leaving they are sighted by a Spanish gunboat.
Just then a puff of smoke came from a front gunport, and then a bang! There was a splash of a cannon ball just in front of their schooner.
“We could, Sir, but we can’t out run that!” as he pointed to where the cannon balls ripples were still in sight.
“Drop sails, Thomas. That will let them know we are not running,” Parker commanded.
“Aye aye, Sir. Drop sails men, real fast!” Thomas commanded.
The sails came down. The Saint Sebastian just sat there, rocking with the swells. The Spanish ship came into hailing distance.
“Ahoy there!” came a call from the Spanish ship, “Prepare to be boarded.”
A large quarter boat rowed by eight men in Spanish naval uniforms and two officers, one in the front and one in the rear, was fast approaching. They came alongside. The two officers and four men came aboard. Thomas and Parker met them. The two officers stepped forward. The four men had rifles and were right behind by the rail in a row.
One officer, who appeared to be senior, asked, “Who is Captain?”
Parker said, “I am Captain Parker of the Saint Sebastian, out of the Cayman Islands.”
“Senor, I am Major Dominique. I represent His Royal Majesty of Spain and the Spanish Governor of Cuba. You are trespassing in Spanish Cuban waters. What do you have to say for yourselves?”
“Sir,” Parker offered, “We were just trying to catch some green turtles.”
“A likely story,” the Spanish officer said. “We saw you. You were too far into shore. You were dropping off filibusters? Yes?”
Parker said, “No sir, we were after green turtles.”
The commanding officer turned to the officer behind him, “Lieutenant, you will take this prize capture to Havana. I will leave these four men with you. His men will sail the schooner and this man, Captain Parker, will be tied and locked up. His men will be impressed into the Spanish Navy. This captain will like Havana’s Morro Castle. But it is a pity he will probably hang for delivering filibusters. We’ve got to cast off, so take over, we’re already late for our visit to Santiago de Cuba.”
“Si, Senior!” The Spanish Lieutenant saluted.
The ranking one went over the side into the longboat and they pushed off hastily heading back to their ship.
The Spanish lieutenant said to two of the Spanish sailors, “Carlos, Sanchez, take the captain below, tie him up and lock him in the cabin. Pedro, Domingo, watch these men. Who is the first mate?”
Thomas stepped forward, “Me, sir.”
“Very good. Sails up and set a course for the western tip of Cuba. Due west and south of the Isle of Pines.
“Aye, Sir. Men, let’s get the sails up,” Thomas commanded. But there was a noticeable slowness in the men’s response.
The two sailors were talking Spanish and motioned for Parker to lead. He opened the hatch and went down the ladder. The two men followed.
Parker said, “This is the way.” That’s when he realized they spoke no English.
He opened the door to his cabin. They followed him in, tied his hands behind him, and then motioned for him to lie in his cot. Next they tied his ankles together. They went out speaking Spanish. They closed the door and he could hear them gibbering in their language, which Parker couldn’t understand. He guessed they were trying to find a way to lock the door from the outside. Then he could hear them leaving and climbing back up the ladder.
He thought, they must have improvised something.
He could feel the Saint Sebastian swinging around. He decided, that while they are getting accustomed to his ship he needed to act fast. He didn’t want to hang in Havana or even visit the dreaded Morro Castle Prison.
He rolled around and got the hammock swinging...Bang! He fell out onto the floor. Ouch! That hurt, he thought.
He laid still for a moment to make sure no one had heard the sound. Then he scrunched and bent until he was sitting up. Then he tapewormed his way pushing with his two legs and sliding with his bottom. He came up to a couple of storage drawers, built into the side of the ship. He turned his back to them, took hold of a handle pull on the bottom one, and pulled with his fingers. The drawer came open. He got up on his knees and reached in until he found the knife. With his fingers he picked it up. He then held it with his hand and backed up and stuck it into a timber of the ship. After that he just put the rope on the blade and sawed through. Hands free, the leg ropes came off easy.
He looked around. Parker thought, what next? If I could slip off the boat and head for shore, I could join up with Major Monce’s group. Anything is better than the alternative.
He looked around. There was a glass window port in the rear. It was large enough for him to slip through. He took down the hammock and cut the ropes from both ends. Then he tied them together It would be long enough. There was a small chair. He tied the rope to it and set it below the window port. He tied the rope to his belt, opened the port, slipped through, and did a somersault. The chair came up to the port, and stopped there with a slam, hanging against the window. Parker came to a sudden stop swinging there back and forth out the rear of the ship, in the air, just over the water. He held on to the rope with one hand, cut the rope with the knife he had taken with him, and quietly let himself down into the water.
Immediately the Saint Sebastian pulled away from him as he treaded water. He was fortunate the seas were calm with only slight swells. Parker took one last look at the schooner, then he started to slowly swim toward the shore, far in the distance. It was then he realized there was something wrong with his shoulder. It was cramping. He must have injured it when he fell off the hammock. He stopped swimming and treaded water. He had to make it to shore somehow. He started to pull with his good arm.
Sebastian had just arrived from Nicaragua. He was diving down and eating some of the good sweet sea grass. He decided he had eaten enough and would dive down and swim out some. He took a deep breath and went down, down. He held his breath for quite a while, then pulling with strong front flippers he shot up to the surface.
Parker had been pulling with his good arm, then taking a deep breath and just floating. His one arm was hurting and cramping real bad. It looked like he hadn’t gotten any closer to the shore. He set out again with his tiring good arm. He said out loud, “I don’t think I’m going to make it...God, please help me!”
From The Author:
My second full-length book , Florida Keys’ Watercolor Kapers is composed of 336 pages. There are 12 stories running from 6 pages to as many as 72 pages. It is fully illustrated with 88 watercolors and sketches. The watercolors I made roaming around Key West after I finished my 750 mile hike from Georgia to Key West. (See book or Don Browne’s SouthWest Florida Online News records, A Walk Across Florida.) As you read these stories you will experience Key West, the Keys, and the Caribbean. These stories span the time of the early 1800’s to 1969. bkranich.wixsite.com/bobkranich
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