lt is only a warship if we should meet the Frenchie.
Will she make it to Australia?
She'll float 'til she sinks, Mr Talbot.
Who the devil is this?
Have you not read my Standing Orders?
Was it delivered by a French sword?
A Frenchie did try to split my skull, sir.
But my head proved harder than his steel.
He who gardens at sea must accustom himself to loss.
What did you do to him, Deverel?
Mr Talbot has chosen to doubt your word ma'am, and l will have an apology.
Where is Wheeler?
He cannot be traced, sir.
We think he may have gone overboard.
l have been advised, as l intend to travel in the country, to take a gun.
Bring me your gun, sir!
l will bring you my gun, sir! - And l will shoot an albatross
and we shall see what fate befalls this ship.
My clothes are becoming impossible to wear. l have to put them on damp.
That is rainwater, sir. The salt will be irritating the rash.
l thought rainwater was fresh.
lt may be if you live far enough from the sea.
ls that why my soap won't lather?
Did your servant Wheeler not give you the ship's issue before he left us?
Good God, is this soap? l thought it was a brick.
lt's salt water soap.
l do not detect any scent.
And l suppose you think soap is naturally scented, do you?
ls it not?
Come with me, Mr Talbot.
And bring as many of your clothes as you can carry.
We have moved at last out of the fair weather of the equatorial regions
and are now pushing south.
There is once more an unsteadiness in the deck
a constant canting to the right.
Time hangs heavy.
l amuse myself.
l pass the time.
What else can a poor devil of a landsman do to occupy himself
in a voyage from the top of the world to the bottom?
You should be tending to the ladies, Phillips.
What happened?
The wind, sir, the sails were taken aback.
Have you any idea how much canvas has been flogged into ribbons?
Sir...
Sorry, sir.
You were on watch, Mr Willis!
Sorry, sir.
What are you doing on the deck, boy? Get up when l am talking to you!
Sir... Mr Deverel, sir...
What's the boy done now, curse him.
Mr Deverel, you were on watch l believe?
Young Willis was on watch.
There is a standing order against leaving a midshipman on watch at sea, sir.
Your absence on deck was criminal neglect, sir.
You may consider yourself under open arrest.
Sod you, Anderson, you sodding by-blow!
And, Mr Deverel, you are forbidden drink!
How is she?
The foremast is sprung, so at the moment we cannot fully rig it.
What happened?
The squall must've struck in the wrong side of the sails.
We were taken aback.
You should get some more rest, Mr Talbot. You were struck with a rope's end.
l'm fine, Mr Summers.
l'm only glad the sea has chosen to be calm.
That is no reason for celebration, sir.
The damage has set us back considerably.
We have been borne back into the doldrums.
Mr Summers, sir.
Talbot! Talbot! Dear fellow!
Have you heard? A sail!
They've sighted a sail on the horizon!
Let us hope it's one of ours.
Where's your spirit, man?
They spied her royals and they are white as a lady's 'kerchief.
She is an enemy, depend on it!
She gave no indication of having seen us?
No, sir.
With two topmasts down there is some chance of us avoiding her.
l have no intention of avoiding her, sir.
lf we be drawn together and she is the enemy then l shall fight.
We have six great guns on either beam.
Can we man the starboard side with seasoned men?
Hardly, sir.
Mr Summers, ask the passengers to retire to the saloon.
And instruct the ladies as to the way down to the orlop deck.
They must retire there immediately upon my command.
Come, Mr Talbot...
Just keep her fall and by boys.
My precious children!
Now, Mr Pike, never fear, man!
We are all in this together and we shall give a good account of ourselves.
As for your little girls, be easy - they are far too young for the French.
Mr Talbot!
You have excelled yourself. - No, l only meant -
The French are as civilised as we.
We may expect to be treated with the same...
...and indeed more liberty and generosity as they may ask.
Mr Bowles, you have some experience in the law, l believe.
A solicitor's clerk, sir.
Well, may we civilians not fight?
Seen on deck with a sword and pistol in hand
we are legally entitled to have our throats cut.
Yes well you are indeed matter-of-fact, sir.
You might even be called cold-blooded.
There is a way out of it, sir.
Passengers could volunteer, be sworn in and entered on the ship's books.
Though what the situation would be over naval pay in that event...
l share a glass with you, Mr Bowles. You show us all where our duty lies.
How can you volunteer before you know what enemy it is that we face, sir?
Suppose it is a ship from the United States of America.
We are at war with America, sir.
Some of us believe she deserves her independence.
l understand they hate the French almost as much as they hate the British.
l will fight as well as any man here, but l will not fight for my country!
l am leaving it.
l will not fight for my ship, or my king, or my captain!
So, Mr Bowles will shed any blood providing wording of his agreement is precise.
Mr Pike will fight for his family but nobody else.
And Mr Prettiman will aid us against the French and the Dutch
but will spare any American who should be rash enough to come his way.
How can you joke so?
What does it matter what ship is out there hidden in the mist
if it has guns and they shoot them at us?
Come, let us consider the situation.
Now, there may be a ship
but most likely she is not concerned with us.
lf she has seen us - why, we are a Royal Navy ship of the line,
the most fearful engine of destruction in this modern century.
A thousand to one we will neither see nor meet that ship again.
l fear it is not so.
That ship, whatever she is, is becalmed as we are.
ln a prolonged calm ships are drawn together by the mutual attraction of heavy objects.
lf the wind does not get up then we shall inevitably lie side by side.
l do not find this credible.
lt is true, nevertheless.
The captain feels you are better able to conduct yourselves with propriety
if the plain facts are laid before you.
Why, what are we to do then?
The gentlemen here have engaged themselves to help in what way they can.
l expected no less and will provide you all with suitable employment.
So much for your attempt at heartening us, Mr Talbot!
Summers has gone a better way about it.
l have no sword. Have you a sword, Bowles?
Good God. No, sir.
The ship will have a supply, no doubt.
Mr Brocklebank, you are, forgive me, of a full habit.
Will you descend into the orlop with the ladies?
l have an inclination to stay on deck, sir.
Though l have on numerous occasions depicted the war at sea
yet l have never before had the opportunity of taking notes in battle.
l have often enquired of military men
precisely how a cannonball in flight is visible to the naked eye.
We could not be better situated for the observation.
l only hope darkness is not too far advanced before we are engaged.
On your reckoning, sir, the perfect idea of a cannonball
is to be formed by the gentleman who is having his head knocked off by it.
lf it comes, sir, why, it comes!
Half a point to starboard.
Bring her half a point to starboard, roundly.
Half a point to starboard, roundly.
The oddest thought has occurred to me. l might in actual fact be killed.
l have only now realised it
which may seem strange to anyone who has not been in a like case.
The knowledge is... oppressive.
Edmund! l thought you was closed up at the guns.
l had letters to write, Deverel.
The captain's lifted your arrest?
Battle pays all debts.
The others have gone down, l urge you to join them.
Good luck to you!
You gentlemen and emigrants will lay your hands to such ropes
as the captains of the guns may command.
And when he says haul, you will haul until your guts fall out.
And you will be as quiet as little mice
so the Frogs do not hear us coming.
And when you have run the guns out silent
you'll pick up your guts, you'll put 'em back, and you'll stand waiting.
lf we should open fire, them gun trucks run back so fast you cannot see 'em move.
Now, l have seen gun trucks here
and l have seen gun trucks back there
but l have never seen 'em halfway, they move so quick.
So you do not want to be lounging behind them
or the Frogs will think that you are what they call comfiture.
Jam, gentlemen. Jam!
Er, will the er, will the enemy be firing by then? Or erm...
How do l know, sir, eh?
Well, l...
Eh? And what do l care?
When fire is opened, things is different.
They queer how different things is when a gun has been fired in anger.
Then, gentlemen, you have the full permission of His Majesty the King
to shout and yell and shit yourselves
so long as it's fucking noisy and you haul your guts in and out when told to.
God!
And if any volunteer should think that the far side of the ship
is a bit cooler or a little bit further from the enemy
these two little fire irons in my belt are loaded.
Now, my heroes, run out that gun!
Not that one sir, that one. Right, haul!
Now, now, Mr Talbot, sir, where was you going?
Had we been in action l might have been forced to put a pellet in your head
you come so close to the mid point.
The gun deck is no place for a man of your, er, your height.
You'll do better on deck, where the Frogs can get an eyeful of you all bloody and glaring.
Keep low as you go, sir.
Come on, my lads, a round of applause, for a gamecock of the after guard!
Talbot, you are our first casualty!
Give me a weapon, Deverel. A meat axe, a sledgehammer - anything!
You will board with me?
l will carve up and eat the first Frenchman l come across!
Spoken like a true Briton!
Can you use it?
Well enough.
Wait 'til Oldmeadow's men have fired or you'll get lead through you.
And don't forget your boots. - Boots?
Kick 'em in the balls; it's as good as anything.
lt'll all be over in seconds, one way or another.
lf you're alive after a minute you'll be a hero.
Might l suggest that some heartening message be passed among the men, sir?
Why? The men have already had their rum!
Trafalgar, sir.
Oh, if you think it proper.
Have them then reminded of the unforgettable signal.
Oh, and Summers, remind the men that with the war going the way it is
this may well be their last chance for prize money.
Death or glory...
[sound of gun trucks]
She has run out her guns.
Present... arms!
Aloft there!
She missed us, sir!
lt was a signal rocket, you young fool!
Here she comes.
Bring her half a point to starboard.
Half a point to starboard.
His Majesty's frigate Alcyone, Captain Sir Henry Somerset
twenty-seven days out of Plymouth.
The war with the French is over!
God save our gracious King!
Wheeler?
Curse it, you drowned!
Allow me, sir.
You are a ghost, Wheeler, surely!
You are wounded, Mr Talbot. l will bring water to your cabin.
Only think, Mr Talbot, l have served at the guns!
My congratulations, Pike.
Mr Askew remarked that a few days of gun drill
and he would have turned us out as prime gunners!
Why, he said that...
that we would be fit enough to fight all the Frogs in the world!
You are still excited, sir.
Well, l was and l am.
Bates, a brandy.
And Bates, please consult with my servant Wheeler
about a bottle of brandy and a glass for my hutch.
A glass for Mr Pike.
Thank you, sir. - Oh, no, sir.
l'm not accustomed to brandy. lt burns my mouth. An ale if you please.
Me a brandy.
Here, Bates...
Sorry to see you struck down, Mr Talbot.
l had to laugh, it seemed so comical.
Though, of course, it must have been very painful.
lt still is, Mr Pike!
Call me Dick, will you not?
Though in the offce they would call me Dickie... or Dickie bird...
No, no, no, the ale's for, erm...
When Mr Askew said that you had come so close to the midpoint -
l remember, Mr Pike! l wish to forget the whole lamentable episode.
Oh, of course, sir. lf you...
Mr Pike, Mrs Pike would appreciate your assistance with the twins.
They're very over excited.
Oh, of course, ma'am.
Pray be seated, Miss Granham.
l had expected to find Mr Prettiman. Phillips was to cut his hair.
l will look for him for you. - Good heavens, you're wounded!
Bates! Sit down.
Yes, ma'am. - Fetch me a clean cloth and some water.
Well, you do not look at all the thing.
My skull now contains a large fragment of the ship's deck.
You have a lacerated contusion.
Tear it into pieces.
The Alcyone will have a surgeon on board, l believe.
l have taken harder knocks in fisticuffs, ma'am.
l pray you may not concern with it.
l'll get you something to eat, sir.
The episode was made to seem a little comical.
Now l see the result l berate myself for having been amused by it.
lt seems that l covered myself with blood but not glory.
Not as far as the ladies are concerned, sir.
You are quite the hero.
You are tired and concussed, Mr Talbot.
The war is over, and you should rest.
l have yet to ask you, Wheeler, how you came to fall overboard.
l slipped, sir.
Three days in the water before the Alcyone picked me up.
You are a lucky dog, Wheeler.
But you were pushed, surely.
Sir?
You informed on Billy Rogers to the captain, did you not?
And he, or the other sailors, tried to do away with you.
lf you say so, sir.
But you drowned...
You must have.
l did, sir. And the life in me so strong...
Then you're a ghost, Wheeler...
A ghost.
What are you doing, Mr B?
Wake up, man.
And the skirt! lt is quite... !
Oh dear.
No, it won't do...
Good morning, Miss Granham.
Like it ma'am, you are radiant.
A pretty speech from our gallant defender.
How does your head, sir?
l now know what is meant by 'heart of oak'.
l appear to be roofed with the stuff.
Bates, have l missed breakfast? - l've put aside a plate, sir.
Well, you ladies are going out of your way to delight us.
You do not think highly of the nature of ladies, sir.
We are prepared for a whole day of festivity.
We shall dine in Alcyone's wardroom.
There is to be a ball on our own deck
and an entertainment presented by our own seamen.
Good God!
Captain Anderson agreed to a ball? Surely not!
Oh, not at first, Mr Talbot. He is said to have been most upright.
But then, Lady Somerset managed Sir Henry who had a word with our captain...
Oh! Heavenly!
Supposing there is wind?
Surely we cannot sail together and dance at the same time.
Oh, no, Lady Somerset feels that there will not be.
Sir Henry says that he relies on her to make the weather behave.
Oh, they are such a delightful and charming couple.
Lady Somerset has a foretop piano but she declares it is sadly out of practice.
So she presses Miss Chumley to play, oh, she does so delightfully. Yes.
Who is Miss Chumley?
Miss Chumley, Miss Chumley is, erm, an orphan and Lady Somerset's prodigy.
Good God. Can she be as finished a musician as that, ma'am?
Oh, well, they are taking her with them to lndia to live with a distant relative
for she is quite without fortune, except for her skills. But er...
Oh, so much to do!
Good Heavens!
l feel as though l have woken into a dream.
A ball in the middle of the ocean...
l must own to a most eccentric feeling of the circumstances.
Almost a universal fright at the prospect of peace.
We are set free from the simple and understandable duty
of fighting for our King and country.
lt is all so unexpected and quaint that l forgot the ringing of my head...
Mr Talbot.
Captain Anderson.
...and came near to being myself once again.
Sir Henry Somerset, may l present Mr Edmund Fitzherbert Talbot
who is to serve His Majesty in the Antipodes.
Hmm, Mr Talbot.
l know of your godfather, of course. How is he?
Troubled by his gout, Sir Henry, but in good spirits the last l heard.
Hmm, good, good... lunch, gentlemen?
Er, Mr Talbot, come forward, do.
Lady Somerset, may l present Mr Talbot.
Lady Somerset.
Such a pleasure!
Come in, Marion!
l was laying odds that you would be up and about.
The lightning that struck the top of the mizzen mast ran down
and melted the conductor into white hot drops.
The deck-head burst open and the electrical fluid destroyed me.
lt surrounded the girl who stood before me with a white line of light.
Mr Talbot, may l present Marion Chumley.
Poor Marion, she's been positively prostrate with the mal de mer.
The slightest movement, good God, oof, up it all comes!
The Alcyone is lively, then, Sir Henry?
So-so, Captain Anderson. Utmost dispatch is utmost dispatch, after all. And your ship?
Oh, er, steady as a rock sir.
Why, even when she was taken aback
she only put her rail under for less than ten seconds...
Gentlemen, you are making the poor child quite pale!
You will say no more about it.
The floor is steady as a ballroom and l have seen you happy enough on that!
l believe we are to hold the ball aboard my ship, ma'am
which is even steadier than this.
Anything is steadier than this beautiful, wild thing.
l am certain beyond a peradventure
that Captain Anderson would offer up his vessel as a refuge
for the rest of your journey, Miss...
...Miss Chumley.
No, no, Mr Talbot.
We're not going to lndia, we're going to Sydney Cove!
Besides, our ship is full of passengers, emigrants, cargo...
Miss Chumley, if you will take passage with us l will abandon my cabin to you.
l shall sleep in the orlop or the bilges.
l shall guarantee to pace the decks at night.
Come, sir, we have an empty cabin.
l will move there immediately and Miss Chumley shall take mine!
To lndia you must go, Marion, and in Alcyone too!
Come, come straight in, Janet.
Down there.
You need not be scared nor say anything
for you was only brought in to make up the numbers.
l understand you are to give us a recital, Miss Chumley.
Where did you hear such a thing?
The rumour went that you was a prodigy
which word l first discounted, but now...
l see that it was no more than the truth.
Prodigy, Mr Talbot? - Prodigy, Miss Chumley.
The word was wrongly reported to you, sir.
Lady Somerset is sometimes kind enough to refer to me as her protégée .
For me, Miss Chumley, a prodigy - ever and always.
Oh, Miss Chumley!
l am dazed - no, er, bedazzled, dazzled!
You have bewitched me already.
You must have done so before when we met in, erm...
Cathay, Tartary, Timbuktu, where was it?
Mr Talbot, you have travelled?
No, Sir Henry.
But you, er, well l am sure Marion has not been...
Mr Talbot is making up a fairy story, uncle.
l'm certain he intended for you not to listen, for it is a great nonsense.
Nonsense?
Miss Chumley, you cut me to the quick.
l would never be so cruel, Mr Talbot.
And fairy tales are not nonsense to some.
The Alcyone is a flier to have made such time out of Plymouth.
You must have judged what she would carry to a hair, sir.
As far as Gib she was positively snoring.
You should have been with us back of Plymouth Sound, right across from Shit Creek.
They took us out with a steam tug.
Good God, l have never been so astonished in my life.
The smoke, the smoke from that chimney!
My coach cloak was quite spoiled by it.
Marion said her pillow was black.
Helen!
You did, my dear. Don't you remember the trouble we had with your scalp?
Come, Lady Somerset, Miss Chumley is not a Red lndian.
lf l may enquire, Sir Henry, what is a steam tug?
Well, Mr Talbot, it is an extraordinary invention.
And l swear nothing but the native genius of our nation could have brought it forth.
lt is a craft with a steam boiler
the force from which makes great paddle wheels rotate on either beam.
There is too much fire for me. l cannot like the things.
lf one should explode they might set off an entire fleet like tinder.
Well, it's probably right but they are building a larger one in Portsmouth.
They shall be the ruin of real seamanship.
They make a devil of a mess
but there's no denying they towed us out against the wind in under two hours
whereas it would have taken a whole day kedging.
Might not a larger vessel operate on the high seas?
lt is possible, Mr Talbot, but there is not the necessity for it.
But once given sea room, a ship may do well enough for herself.
But might one not build a steam warship
that would paddle out of the harbour and seek the enemy?
When you come into government, l beg you, accept any post but that of the Admiralty!
But you have not answered Mr Talbot's question, uncle.
l am sure he would make a splendid admiral, or whatever it is.
lf we was to have a steam tug large enough to engage an enemy
we'd need double the crew to keep them clean
let alone feed them with coal.
l'm sure the mechanical genius of the British would overcome such difficulties.
Ah, speak up, Captain Anderson.
You have as much brains as there is to be found in the service, l think.
The real objection
if you will have an answer to such a preposterous question
is this.
lf she is to be a warship
then a paddle wheel on either beam will reduce her broadside.
Secondly, during an engagement
if a single ball were to strike the flimsy members of her paddle
she will be rendered uncontrollable.
Well said.
We are answered, Mr Talbot.
We are beaten from the field.
Tonight there is to be a ball, Miss Chumley
and we must dance the night away.
l will beg the allemande of you, and the quadrille.
And the round, and the waltz and the cotillion...
Which ever shall l choose? - All, if you please!
lt would be improper, sir.
You must know that, surely! - Then l am an advocate of impropriety.
Peace has been declared, sir, let us share it.
You cannot be so cruel as to let me go!
The wind will do so, Mr Talbot.
Then tonight l must take your hand
for as many and perhaps rather more dances than are thought proper.
lf l am seized by the wrist
what can l do but submit?
The fault will be yours.
l will be brazened.
Wheeler! Wheeler!
Sir? - Ah, Wheeler.
l need you to take my...
Devil take it, man, you stink of rum!
l was owed a few sippers.
l require you to take all of my gear
across the lobby to the cabin Mr Colley used.
l can't do that, sir. - What do you mean, 'can't'?
l haven't an order. - l am giving you an order.
Captain Anderson... - l have just been with him
and he raised no objection, so you need not. Now, go. Hurry!
Mr Talbot, what is this?
You're not dressed for the ball, Mr Summers.
Why do you wish to change cabin?
l could not think of asking Miss Chumley to use a bunk
in which the poor Mr Colley willed himself to death.
l shall sleep here, she across the lobby in my hutch - cabin, l should say.
This is impossible! You cannot just...
l will do as l wish!
Now answer me, why are you not dressed for the ball?
l told you before, l do not dance.
Oh come, Mr Summers, all offcers dance!
My background is not like other officers.
Unlike your friend Lieutenant Deverel, l was promoted from the lower deck.
A common sailor?
Well then, Mr Summers, l must congratulate you.
What for Mr Talbot?
On imitating to perfection the manners and speech
of a somewhat higher station in life.
['God Save the King' is sung]
Bravo.
[She performs 'Bonnie at Morn']
She sings well, does she not?
Oh, yes.
Our singing master would have wished more tremolo
and of course a more practiced presentation, but...
Why, sir...
l apologise, Miss Chumley.
l have been hit over the head and am not entirely myself.
You must recover slowly from such injuries.
and not be exposed to the profounder human emotions.
l am recovered, Miss Chumley, and must ask you to forgive me again.
l have yet to ask you, why do you travel to lndia?
Lady Somerset is persuaded that lndia is a natural paradise.
l believe she may be disappointed.
And what about you, Miss Chumley?
What are your reasons?
Young persons are like ships, Mr Talbot.
They do not decide their fate nor their destination.
May l take your hand for the next dance, Miss Chumley?
Oh, perhaps a refreshment first, Mr Talbot?
At once!
No, no, no! Right foot, sir!
lt seems unnecessarily harsh, when room may be found aboard our ship
to subject your protégée to such suffering at the hands of the sea.
Come, come, Mr Talbot.
We know who is suffering and who will continue to.
l will not allow circumstances to thwart me.
A proper sentiment in a young man.
Why, this is the stuff of poetry
and here am l, a devotee of the muses, forced to be the one all poets deride.
No, ma'am!
lf you were yourself and not suffering from your injuries
you would see it as l do.
Marion is in my care. She must remain on the Alcyone.
lf the mountain won't come to Mohamet...
Mr Deverel. My chair, l think.
Mr Deverel!
You were placed under open arrest and forbidden to drink, sir.
Return to your quarters!
By Christ, Anderson!
Be quiet, you fool! Say nothing!
Come, Miss Chumley, let us take the air.
One of the Deverels, is he not?
How very unfortunate...
How happy they are. How gay.
lf only l...
You would not understand, sir.
We should return.
lt is the cotillion and l do not wish to disappoint your Mr Willis.
Mr Willis?
The impertinent scamp, l shall have his ears for this!
Come, sir.
A moment, Miss Chumley.
Marion... we must not part.
l offer you...
What can l offer you?
Yes!
l offer you the ruin of my career and the devotion of a lifetime...
l beg you will say no more, sir.
l cannot leave you with as little mark of favour
as might be accorded any gentleman in either ship.
Please, sir, say no more.
Marion, dear!
Stay one minute.
l cannot.
Then tell me you do not regard me as little as these other gentlemen.
l do not, sir.
Goodnight, Mr Talbot.
Goodnight, Captain.
Anderson! Anderson!
Turn in, Mr Deverel! You are drunk!
l resign my commission.
As a private gentleman l issue you a formal challenge. A duel!
Mr Deverel, l urge you to turn in!
You are a coward, sir!
Accept my challenge or you are a coward!
lnform the blacksmith. The prisoner is to be restrained in irons.
Coward! Coward!
l did not receive it, Mr Talbot. Pray be witness to that.
Kindly take charge of it.
l do not wish to interfere in a service matter.
Pick it up!
Mr Talbot!
Sir Henry!
Sir Henry! Sir Henry! Sir Henry, l must talk to you.
Mr Talbot? Come aboard, dear boy.
lt's about little Marion, is it not, hmm?
A charming girl, but if you wish to correspond, dear boy
you must seek permission from Lady Somerset.
lt is more than that, sir!
Good God, the little minx!
She is all sweetness, but sir, l beg you, l wish to take passage in Alcyone.
Your face, Talbot, it is bleeding.
Bring forward the ship's surgeon! Quickly, Mr Saunders!
lt is my head. 'Tis but a trifle. l am Mohamet!
Good God, you've been drinking, that's what it is.
No, sir! l wish to take passage on Alcyone and you must allow me.
But your career, my boy! - lt means nothing!
But your godfather, your mother...
l beg you, sir!
Mr Talbot is injured, please see to him. - Sir Henry you must take me to lndia with you.
You must!
Sir you must take... - Help him, men. He needs medical assistance.
l do not!
l am Mohamet!
Sir Henry, l am Mohamet!
Marion!
l am Mohamet!
l tell you who l am! l am Mohamet!
Marion!
[Colley's voice]
Lord have mercy upon us.
Christ have mercy upon us.
O Lord, hear us.
O Christ, hear us.
God, the Father, God, the Son and God the Holy Ghost, have mercy upon us...
Wheeler!
Marion!
You were nearly gone there, Mr Talbot.
You have the advantage of me, sir.
Francis, you careless bugger!
lf l see you slip out of the strop l'll have you at the grating!
Forgive me, Mr Talbot, sir.
l am Lieutenant Benét, with one 'n' and an acute accent on the second 'e'.
French?
Distantly, sir.
Then you are from Alcyone?
Where else in this waste of water?
You should return to your cabin, sir.
This is no place for passengers.
Make a run for it... now, sir!
lf to be restored to a complete understanding of one's situation is to be healed
then let us all prefer sickness.
You should keep down what you can, sir.
All that l wish for is that this motion would hurry up and finish me.
Lieutenant Benét is said to be taking measures to make our passage more tolerable.
He is a valuable addition to our crew.
Then why would Sir Henry want rid of him?
l believe it was an exchange, sir.
An exchange for what? - Lieutenant Deverel.
By this time, Dashing Jack will be the other side of the cape.
With my beloved Marion!
lt cannot be within the competence of mere captains to decide such things!
Saying is, once a ship's out of sight of land
a captain can do anything he likes to you but get you in the family way.
Oh, this is too much!
The exchange was a benefit to both captains, sir.
Lieutenant Benét would still be on the Alcyone now
had he not been so sweet on the captain's lady.
Lady Somerset?
Sir Henry caught them, him on his knees and she not trying to get away very hard.
So, Captain Anderson, having an unhappy offcer to dispose of
and Sir Henry, having an officer to get rid of...
...the exchange was made.
Carry on.
Good afternoon, Mr Benét. - Mr Talbot.
Are we making good progress, sir?
Four and a half knots.
Surely soon we shall find those westerlies and be blown all the way to Sydney Cove.
lndeed, sir.
Mr Benét, a moment...
lt had occurred to me that during your passage aboard Alcyone, perhaps...
...you had the opportunity of forming some opinion on the character of Miss Chumley.
She has none.
l beg your pardon?
She can have none, Mr Talbot. She's a schoolgirl.
Miss Chumley... - l have no opinion of schoolgirls.
lt is useless to look to them for sympathy or understanding or anything.
They are blown by every wind, sir.
Miss Chumley is no longer a schoolgirl, sir!
She is pretty, l grant you. Amiable, with a trace of wit...
A trace!
Malleable... - Mr Benét!
She is a sporty girl, though, l give you that.
Why, as man to man, had little Marion not detained her uncle
with some plea about the conduct of the ship
then l don't mind telling you
l should have been a devil of a sight nearer being caught in flagrante delicto than l was.
She knew about you and Lady Som...
She understood.
A criminal connection.
She was accustomed to keep cave for us.
lf you'll excuse me, Mr Talbot. l have duties to carry out.
Marion?
The voyage continues.
Man cannot weep forever.
The ship is making what way she can over a beam sea and with much wind
but our foremast is still shot and we can spread no sail.
We have been too long in the doldrums and our hull is encrusted with weed.
[a scream]
Miss Granham! You should take to your cabin in these conditions.
l am perfectly able to reach the passenger saloon, Mr Talbot.
Perhaps Mr Prettiman should escort you...
He took a fall yesterday, a severe one, and has been unable to leave his bunk.
Good God!
l had hoped to ask for a little warm water...
Wheeler! Wheeler!
Sir?
We want some hot water at once!
There isn't any, sir.
Nonsense, you bought some to me just this morning.
Now you may do the same for Miss Granham.
Miss Granham is not on my side of the lobby, sir.
Well, neither am l since l've changed over.
Yes, sir, but sir, l... - Hot water, Wheeler, and quick about it!
And if necessary light the damned fire again
and tell whomsoever that it should concern that it was under my instruction!
Please, allow me to escort you to your hutch - cabin, l mean to say
for you are not a rabbit...
Wheeler will bring you the hot water, l promise you. l'll see to that.
Under my instruction... now!
Haul away on the messenger, Mr Sonar!
Come on, you idlers!
Tell me, what are the crew doing?
They are rigging a dragrope. Weed on the hull, Mr Talbot.
l was informed that such an operation
could only be performed in a harbour, or a tidal creek.
You will notice that neither are at our disposal, Mr Talbot.
But how can you ensure that the drag rope will stick to the hull?
A careful offcer will exercise his wits in finding a way round such difficulties.
The dragrope may be held from several directions
not merely side to side but fore and aft.
Mr Benét has proposed a plan which we think will work.
Mr Fender, your men are idling!
You have benefited from the exchange of offcers.
Mr Benét is a real seaman, sir.
He's all ropes and blocks and canvas.
There's no steam about Mr Benét.
Certainly a very energetic man.
As far as your opinion of his seamanship is concerned it was taken on trust.
He will go far in my opinion.
A veritable marine Adonis.
You have a fancy way with words, sir. l trust they will find a way into your journal.
All the way with the drag rope!
Heave... heave...
Roundly, now.
Heave... heave...
The devil take the sea out of the navy together!
They do their best, Oldmeadow.
Well it's not enough, that's what l say.
Ah, Mr Brocklebank, sir.
l've been told you've been forced to keep to your bunk.
lt is supposed that a little movement may improve me.
Talbot!
l am in a sad way. But so, l am informed, is our ship.
Mr Benét is endeavouring to rid the hull of weed.
Yes, but will it ease the motion?
l'm not sure, but it will increase our speed.
l hear Mr Prettiman took a heavy fall.
Yes, his legs have been smashed to pieces.
l fear, gentlemen, that we shall all be tossed about in this broad ocean until it finishes us all.
Nonsense, Brocklebank!
We shall reach the Antipodes in no time at all.
l have it on good authority from Lieutenant Summers...
Do you think man, would l be this happy if we was going to sink?
l have given much thought to the situation, sir.
l have had ample time to consider the future.
lt was a question, you see.
l've been able to formulate the great question.
We know how ships are lost.
They run on the rocks. Or they are sunk in action.
You will have seen a dozen pictures -
the battle smoke conveniently placed
and in the foreground smashed stump of a mast
with three small figures clinging to it,
HMS 'Whatnot' ablaze. lt's all been seen, all recorded.
l am not sure, sir, quite what this...
Ah, the question?
lt is this.
How does a ship sink when it is not recorded?
Every year ships will disappear.
They pass over a horizon and they enter a mystery, gentlemen.
The weather may be fair, the water stealthy.
lt creeps on them, over them.
They pump until they are exhausted and the water wins.
No one paints a picture of them disappearing into the sea, swallowed up by...
Damn it, Brocklebank, we will not sink!
lf you cannot think of a way of painting the event -
Ah, you mistake me, sir.
lt is not a question of paint, but a question of conduct.
By Jove, Talbot, he's put his finger on it!
Mr Oldmeadow understands.
How does a man drown when he sees it coming?
lt is a question of dignity, Mr Talbot.
l must have my dignity.
How must l drown?
Oblige me somewhat by calling the servant Wheeler.
Wheeler!
l beg pardon, sir? You called for me.
We are interested, you see, Wheeler.
You're about the only man alive
who had what must have been a deuced unpleasant experience.
You'd oblige us by describing -
Brocklebank, don't! Stop!
No, Wheeler. l don't believe the man's recovered, if he ever will.
No, no, Wheeler. Mr Brocklebank spoke in jest.
lt would be like asking some poor devil what had happened after he'd been turned off.
No matter, my man, l am a minority.
That will be all, sir?
Yes, Wheeler, that will be all.
l am at a loss to understand you, sir.
We had what might well be a unique opportunity to understand life
and - what is even more important - understand death!
Unlike you, Mr Brocklebank, l intend to wait upon the event.
Ah, Wheeler.
l feel it is my duty to apologise on Mr Brocklebank's behalf.
The man has clearly not been well and l, erm...
Good Heavens, man, you're as white as a -
Ghost, sir?
l can't drown, sir, l can't drown. Not again.
For God's sake, man! Pull yourself together!
You'll just have to put up with what happens like the rest of us!
Shit, fuck!
Steady your course, Mr Smiles.
Quartermaster, man the helm, man the helm.
Nicholas! Watson!
That was a part of the keel!
lt was flotsam! Nothing more.
How could it be flotsam, Mr Talbot?
lt has sunk!
Ladies and gentlemen, we are in no immediate danger.
The ship has lost her false keel and that is all.
Will you all please return to the lower deck.
Summers, what's happening?
We were dragging a whole coral reef half way around the world.
l saw wood.
One through bolt has been drawn. Mr Gibbs is plugging the hole.
You mean we are not drowning?
No, Mr Talbot, we will not. Not today.
Wheeler!
Poor boy.
He has more sensibility than he knows.
You must lie still for a while, sir.
You must lie still, sir.
Thank you, Mrs Brocklebank.
Believe me, l think l am now able to rise.
Better, Mr Talbot?
l am fully recovered, thank you. - He is not, Mr Summers!
Believe me, ma'am, l regret the necessity.
But l require a moment alone with Mr Talbot.
Your fiancé has also been asking for you, ma'am.
Fiancé?
Have you not heard, Mr Talbot?
Why, it is the only good news to grace our ship in weeks!
Mr Prettiman has proposed marriage and Miss Granham has accepted.
lt is a love story! - ls this true, Miss Granham?
lt is customary for you to offer your congratulations at such news, sir.
Of course. l mean... congratulations.
l shall pass on your kind words to Mr Prettiman.
Now excuse me, sir.
l have been in a faint.
Now l am ready to return, Mr Summers.
Return, sir?
Why to my own -
The sooner you answer my questions, Mr Talbot
the sooner Colley's - that is, your - cabin is able to be tidied.
Tidied?
That is landsman's talk.
You should have said 'made all shipshape' .
You were the only witness, Mr Talbot.
Who did it?
Good God, man, you know already, he did it himself!
You saw it happen? - Yes.
l wish to talk no more on the subject.
Only one more question, Mr Talbot.
Have you any knowledge of why the wretched man did it?
To the best of my knowledge he was afraid of drowning.
Men, like cables, each have their breaking strain.
l cannot help but feel that there is death on my hands.
Like the ghost of Colley, the spirit of Wheeler is still aboard.
Perhaps it was a young man in the grip of a fever
who dreamed of a meal on board a neighbouring ship
and all that followed.
[Marion's voice] A young person will always remember the time
when two ships were side by side in the middle of the the sea
and hopes that one day they may put down their anchors in the same harbour.