“I will warn off all trespassers, sir,” I said soberly in reply to Mr. Allardyce’s remark, and my answer seemed to give him great delight.

Having said my farewells to my friends in Shrewsbury also, I hastened back to my ship.  We set sail in the last week of August, being escorted down the channel by Sir George Rooke and Sir John Munden with a large fleet.  On the second of September we left Sir George off Scilly, and on the twenty-eighth made St. Mary’s, one of the Azores, and remained there some eight days, during which Mr. Benbow (who was now promoted vice admiral) called his flag officers and captains together on board the Breda, his flagship, and communicated to them his instructions.  The junior officers and some of the men were allowed to go in detachments for a few hours on shore, and it was on one of these trips that I heard a piece of news that interested me deeply.

I was strolling along with Mr. Venables when we encountered Joe Punchard and a group of men from the Breda.  Seeing me, he touched his cap, and begged that he might have a few words with me in private.  I went aside with him, and he began: 

“That there young lady, sir—­wasn’t she kin to Dick Cludde—­Mr. Lieutenant Cludde, begging his pardon?” (I had told Joe how ’twas Mistress Lucy had saved me from a horse whipping when first I appeared at the Hall.)

“To be sure, Joe,” I replied, “she is his cousin.”

“That be bad, sir,” says he, “and ’twill be worse, by all accounts.”

“What do ’you mean?” I asked.

“Why, sir, one of the men yonder be Jonathan Tubbs, Captain Kirkby his man, and he was just a-telling of us how Mr. Cludde, when he’s in his cups (which is pretty often) tells a bragging yarn as how there’s a mighty pretty girl out in Jamaicy a-waitin’ to be spliced as soon as he comes to port; and she’s a cousin of his, with a fine property; and he’ll invite all the officers of his ship to the wedding and take ’em teal shooting next day, and—­”

“That’s enough, Joe,” I said.  “You had better go and tell your friend Jonathan Tubbs not to repeat things he hears when he’s on duty.”

Joe instantly touched his cap, begged my pardon, and walked away.  I must have worn a very sober countenance when I rejoined Mr. Venables, for he looked at me oddly, and asked if I had had bad news.  I evaded the question, and he did not press me.  It was indeed bad news in this respect; that ’twas clear the Cluddes knew of Mistress Lucy’s whereabouts.  Indeed, for all I knew, Sir Richard himself might have got well of his gout and made the voyage to secure his ward.  It wanted but a few months to her coming of age, and while I knew that Dick could not wed her during her minority, I saw that the very shortness of the time left would make the Cluddes eager to get her under their influence.  I had never met Dick since that duel of ours on Southsea Common, having deliberately avoided him; but I said to to myself that I would certainly meet him when we arrived in Jamaica and make it clear to him that he would interfere with Mistress Lucy at his peril.