A smuggler's life

There being no relatives willing to take on a small boy of eighteen months, it was agreed that Jack would be put into the care of Mr and Mrs Goody. The admiralty paid Mr Goody a small pension for the care of the Lieutenant's only surviving dependant and Nancy's parents paid an annual allowance to pay for the boys schooling. It wasn't much but it meant that Jack was no burden on the family, in fact quite the reverse Jack's money helped them through the tough winter months when rough weather made it hard to put to sea. With her own children all grown Mrs Goody was delighted to look after young Jack who was such an angelic child. "Give's me something to do, otherwise Mr Goody would say I'd polish the wood off the banister.
The years passed by with regularity and little excitement. Life with Mr and Mrs Goody was simple but full of caring. Mr Goody had been a midshipman during the war with America. After the war was over he decided it was time to leave the Navy and enter into a far more lucrative profession. When Jack asked where Mr Goody had been on his return from an extended absence ' he always received the same response, "Oh here and there. As Jack grew older he learnt not to ask. Mrs Goody explained that his trade was import and export. Which, in a way, it was. A fine supply of lace, brandy, and sugar could always be found at Mr Goody's. After all he was one of the most successful smugglers in the city.

The house was a small terrace in the Spice Island, not far from St Botolph's Church. Jack grew up surrounded by taverns and whores, sailors, smugglers and thieves and for the most part it was the only company he knew. Mrs Goody had insisted that Jack go to a good school, a luxury that none of Mrs Goody's own children had known. However as she regularly pointed out to Mr Goody the boy came from good parents who would have provided him with the best of everything, including an education and she was determined to do right by the boy for Nancy's sake. As a grammar school boy Jack stood out from his contemporaries in Spice Island like a sore thumb. He quickly realised that the vocabulary of the Spice island would mark him out as different from the rest of the boys and he adapted his conversation dependant upon whether he was at school or at home. Most of the other boys had fathers in the Navy, and it was not unusual for the boys fathers to be absent most of the time. In his uniform he was indistinguishable from any of the other boys at the school. However he quickly changed out of the clothes once home with the Goody's. Summer evenings were mostly spent fishing down by the docks or running errands for the fishermen and tavern keepers.

Jack's reading and writing skills were often called into service by the sailors and their wives in the neighbourhood, who wished to carry on a correspondence but were on the whole illiterate. Jack, a young boy was seen as a safer keeper of secrets than an older man or woman. Over the years Jack became a confidante of most of his neighbours and would know the intimate details of the lives, just by virtue of his role of letter writer. Mrs Goody revelled in young Jack's secrets. Jack never charged for the work he did, there was no need. For as soon as he was home, Mrs Goody would pull up a stool by the fire, present Jack with a plateful of hot steaming dinner. Then she would sit knitting quietly, while he gave her a line by line account of that days letters. By this means Mrs Goody was able to maintain her position as queen of the gossips, without ever revealing the source of her information. An inability to read or write was not something you discussed in public.

The information that Jack received gave him a great insight into the workings of human nature. Mr Goody's profession gave him an even greater insight into the nature of human greed. Although Mr Goody rarely allowed the trade to pass through his doors, (Mrs Goody would never have allowed those sort of men traipsing their cargoes all over her polished floors,) Jack was allowed on the odd occasion to help out when Mr Goody needed an extra pair of hands. The Cargo was mainly french lace and brandy, although occasionally Mr Goody was able to lay his hands on more exotic goods from the ships that passed through the port. On one memoreable occasion Mr Goody was able to lay his hands on a large supply of tea and spices from a clipper that had taken shelter in Portsmouth harbour en route to Tilsbury. That time Mrs Goody was more than happy to allow some of Mr Goody's wares to pass the threshold.

One summer when Jack was 15 Mr Goody took him along on a trip to Brittany. The object was to pick up a cargo of lace and brandy. The weather was fair set and the winds were with them for the trip to France. Mr Goody's cutter had a good speed, a requirement in case of the need to outrun the excise men, and they made the sleepy port of Brisac in good time. Jack had learnt to make himself useful on board climbing the rigging with the other men and unfurling the billowing sails. He loved the feel of the salty breeze on his face and the feeling of freedom being out at sea gave him. After the noise and bustle of the Spice Island the wide stillness of the ocean was a soothing balm. Mr Goody was in a cheerful mood, the cargo looked to be a profitable one and the war had meant that there were far fewer excise men to worry about. Brittany had been relatively untouched by the revolution and the war that followed. The Breton fishermen had a long tradition of trade with Portsmouth and war or no war, a family had to eat. The cutter had slipped unnoticed into the harbour. Mr Goody signalled to Jack that he could come with him and together they made their way to a house not far from the quayside. The knock on the door was swiftly answered and it was clear Mr Goody was not only expected, but he was with old friends. Jack struggled to make out what was being said, as to his surprise Mr Goody was speaking in French. A skill he was not aware of until then. Jack had been learning Latin and French at school but he had not applied himself in either subject as he felt they were a waste of time. Like most of the other lads at his school, he was headed for a career in the services, and he felt he would have been better spending his time studying navigation. Mr Goody's thick accent did nothing to help Jack's understanding. He caught the occasional word, but he suspected that the vocabulary that was being used was not the sort that they would normally cover when studying at school. What would the French for customs and excise men be for example?

Jack gave up trying to follow the conversation and glanced around the room. He had some difficulty adjusting his eyes to the darkness. The shadows caused by the low beamed ceiling were a huge contrast to the blinding light at sea. The first thing that caught his eye was the huge stone fireplace where a pot was precariously hanging from a great iron hook. A delicious smell of onions, garlic and fish wafted over to Jack. It was unlike any smell that had come from Mrs Goody's kitchen and Jack wondered what it would look like. As he pondered he became more aware of how hungry he was. He licked his lips and hoped no-one had noticed the rumbling noises coming from his stomach. It had been a long while since they had their breakfast and as a growing lad the urge to eat came at very regular intervals. Jack heard a bustle of silk and turned to see a woman coming down the stairs at the far end of the room. He tried to make out her face in the darkness but her hair was shrouded in a lace veil and it was difficult to see anything at all. Mr Goody's companion looked up, said something incomprehensible to the woman and waved towards Jack. Jack wished he had paid more attention in class and hoped that he was not in trouble for something. He had tried to be as unobtrusive as possible. The woman came towards him, touched him gently on the shoulder. Now that she was next to him Jack realised his mistake. This was no old woman but a girl of his own age, Jack blushed in his confusion. The girl waved her hands towards the fireplace and gave him a shy smile. Jack furiously tried to make the blushing subside and hoped in the gloom she could not see. Realising she was offering some food, Jack nodded and smiled back. They made their way towards the fire together, the girl lifted the lid of the pot and gestured to Jack to look inside. With the lid off the smell became even more intense, and heady clouds of steam rose up the chimney. Inside the pot Jack could make out a rich fish stew, red in colour.

"C'est bon?

Jack felt instant relief, this he could understand.

"Oui, c'est tres bon.

"Vous en envie?

Jack's momentary confidence collapsed, he had no idea what she had said. The girl spoke again.

"Monsieur, vous voulez quelque chose?

Fortunately for Jack, Mr Goody and his companion had broken off their conversation to watch Jack and the girl. Mr Goody decided to put Jack out of his misery.

"She wants to know if you want something to eat.

"Oh. Yes please. Jack turned to the girl. "Yes, I'd love some. I mean, oui, oui, mercy.

The girl laughed and Jack grinned in response. In the light of the fire she was a very pretty girl indeed. Jack fought back against the blush he could feel rising up within himself. Being at a boys school the only girl Jack spent anytime with was Lizzie, Mrs Goodie's scullery maid and she was a silly little thing who spent most of her day crying about something. Thankfully the girl turned and went to a large dresser by the wall. Opening the heavy oak door she reached inside and got out some bowls and a large large ladle that was hanging inside the door. Mr Goody's companion said something and Mr Goody laughed and clapped the fellow on the back. They both got up and went towards Jack and the girl.

"My friend here Monsieur Quimbereque says that you are welcome to have some soup with him, but he can't afford to let you have his daughter Delphine, she's far too useful about the house. Mr Goody grinned. "She's a pretty little thing mind, and there's no harm in looking, lad, just watch that's all you do.

Jack blushed again. Delphine had taken the bowl and filled it from the pot on the fireplace. Now she shyly offered the steaming bowl to Jack, which he took. Jack was about to thank her when her father interrupted. They spoke rapidly, the girl answering her father as she took two more bowls and filled them ' one for Mr Goody and one for himself. The heady steam and flavours of the soup invaded Jack's consciousness. His senses overwhelmed Jack fumbled towards a stool and sat down. After taking a sip of the steaming broth Jack glanced up and smiled at the girl.
"It's very good. Thank-you.

Mr Goody pulled up a stool to sit down with M Quimbereque near the fireplace.

"Don't you worry about us my boy, we've still got plenty of business to discuss. Once you've got that soup down you, if you want you can take a turn about out front with young Delphine. On the look of it you may find conversation a little difficult, but I dare say you'll improvise.

Mr Goody spoke a few words in French to M Quimbereque who nodded and smiled in his direction. Jack guessed that he may not have directly translated the previous conversation, as he had not expected such a ready smile from her father.

Jack returned the smile and the nod and then concentrated his attention back to his soup. His stomach had began to growl in a most disconcerting manner and Delphine giggled. Jack gestured towards the pot with his spoon and back to Delphine.

"Vous?

"Non merci, monsieur, j'ai mange deja. Mais c'est tres gentil de vous. said the girl shaking her head.

Once again Jack wished he could understand what she was saying. Whatever it was, she made it sound very pretty, almost like music. He wanted to hear her speak some more.

"Did you make this? he asked.

Delphine glanced across at Mr Goody but his head was bent close to M Quimpereque and they were already engaged in a deep conversation. Delphine edged closer to Jack.

"Pardon Monsieur. Je ne comprends pas du tout l'anglais. Qu'est-ce que vous dites ? » she said.

Jack smiled to himself. Whatever it was she was saying, it sounded great. She could probably make smelly socks sound like a dish fit for a queen. He wondered what else he could say to prolong the conversation. The last thing he wanted was for her to get bored and walk away. He hungrily took another slurp of soup. Whatever else was on his mind, his teenage appetite wouldn't let him neglect his stomach. Delphine got up and Jack shot her a look of pain and disappointment, which is the same in any language. She smiled and pointed to the bread which lay on the side of the dresser.

"Est-ce que vous en voulez du pain? she said teasingly.

Jack swallowed hard. Was she making fun of him ? Her voice sounded even more lovely when she smiled. He nodded his assent to the bread she was holding out towards him. He took the bread from her hands and his skin on the back of his neck tingled as he felt the touch of her palm. Then he watched as she turned her back on him her silk skirts swooshing as they brushed past his leg and she took some bread to her father. Almost without looking her father took the bread and passed a piece to Mr. Goody. Jack could feel his face colouring. He desperately tried to make the redness disappear, but the harder he fought the reaction the further the colour deepened. Jack began to feel hot and uncomfortable. He decided to focus his attention on the soup and hopefully then everything would get back to normal. Taking a spoonful of soup Jack took the opportunity to glance up to see where Delphine was but she had disappeared.
"Damn and blast, I've made such a fool of myself. He hurriedly finished remainder of the soup then stood up and moved towards the fireplace where Mr Goody was seated.

"Sir if you don't mind I'm going to step out for some air, I am getting a trifle hot. Will you thank M Quimber, will you thank him for the soup. It was delicious.

Mr Goody stood up and smiled a warm smile and clapped an arm around Jack.

"Indeed I will, Jack. Take yourself off outside and I should be finishing my business here in an hour or so. Don't stray too far and I'll catch you up as soon as I'm done.

Mr Goody spoke a few words quickly to the Frenchman. M Quimbereque stood up and held his hand out for Jack to shake. Jack grabbed his hand, and wished it wasn't quite so sweaty from holding the bowl of soup.

"Bonjour Mosieur, and mercy.

"De rien Jack. Au revoir.

Jack turned and made his way to the thick oak set in the granite wall. As he opened the door he turned and waved to the men but they had already turned back to their discussion. Jack stumbled outside, blinded by the sunlight. At first he couldn't quite get his bearings as the light was so bright. He had followed Mr Goody without thinking who had walked very quickly and now Jack wasn't too sure what he should do once he found himself outside. He was shielding his eyes from the sun and trying to make out if he could see the mast from his ship when he felt a tap on his shoulder. He spun round quickly thinking he was about to be robbed and almost fell into Delphine's arms.

Confused by Jack's unexpected behaviour Delphine stepped back alarmed. Jack realized he had frighten her by his brusqueness and put a reassuring hand on her delicate shoulder.

"No, don't worry, I'm not going to hurt, you, you startled me that's all. He said in a soothing voice.

He held out his other hand towards her and smilingly she took it. A thrill ran through Jack. I must not frighten her again he thought to himself. As they walked together hand in hand, Jack had no idea where he was or where he was going, but he didn't want to stop walking incase the spell was broken. As they walked Jack pointed out various things and said the English word, Delphine obliged him with the French and tried to stifle her giggles as Jack tried to repeat them. Jack in turn found Delphine's attempts at English exotic and exciting, her accent making even the most mundane words sound like music. They had just reached the coolness of the harbourside when a load hullo jerked Jack from the dream back to the real world. It was Mr Goody. It was time to rejoin the ship, the tide was about to turn and they needed to be on their way. Blushing Jack turned to Delphiine and kissed her on the cheek.

"I must go. I don't want to, but I must. I hope you understand this? He asked, with more than a hint of doubt in his voice.

"I'll see you again, I promise.

Jack frantically wracked his brains for something he could say that she would understand. In the end he settled for

"Je te amo.

It didn't seem to have quite the reaction he was looking for and he really needed to go. Then he realized he'd muddled his Latin with his French. As he was running along the cobbled harbour he shouted back at the receding figure.

"Delphine je t'aime, je t'aime Delphine.

Unfortunately for Jack, Mr Goody was also within earshot and all the way back to Portsmouth kept repeating

Oh Jack je t'aime, Jack.

Jack was mortified.