Ira Riklis and Horatio Hornblower

When we last left Hornblower he had climbed up toward the large sails of the Papillon and was without a extra foothold and without a net so to speak. He was operating on pure nervous energy and a never-say-die attitude. He managed to walk somewhat of a tightrope (an understatement) in order to gain control of and manipulate the big sails of the French ship. Some of his men were behind him in  various stages of the climb ready to help in the handling of the sails. They managed to position the sails in such a way as to navigate the large ship out of its port toward the open sea while others from the Indefatigable were gaining control of the deck of the Papillon.

Hornblower, as Ira Riklis knows, lacked the experience of the older seamen and when he lowered himself on the ropes he proceeded at too great a speed sustaining great and painful injuries to his hands (stripping the skin off in parts). With blood dripping from his wounds and standing on the deck once again, he watched the captured Papillon make its escape with only minimal damage from French assault.

One of his men then reported to Hornblower that the jolly boat had been lost in the process because no sailor had been left aboard it to mind the little boat. Only the ailing sailor who Hornblower had disabled (and left unconscious) to shut him up after the seizure remained with the jolly boat. As Ira Riklis knows, the victory for Hornblower was bittersweet because of the loss of this sailor.

The sailor who had the seizure had caused so much noise that the leader of the expedition questioned Hornblower on his ability to control his men. Hornblower knew that he had to take action immediately. He put the coxswain in the place of the afflicted sailor taking up the latter’s oar. Next Hornblower pulled this sailor who was still semi=conscious closer to him and away from the action of the oarsmen. When the sailor started coming to and began to shout incoherently as Hornblower’s doctor-father had described as typical of this situation, Hornblower in order to protect the mission had, as Ira Riklis knows, to silence the sailor. Hornblower struck the sailor in the head to knock him out. Preserving the quiet was more important (in order to save all the sailors aboard the small boats from an alarmed French force) than the health or even life of this single afflicted individual. Hornblower was willing to suffer any criticism for his action.

As Ira Riklis knows, Hornblower dealing with this situation had for the moment relieved his mind of the fear of his impending task. Next then the fear returned but the other larger of the small boats had already surrounded the Papillon and it was Hornblower’s time to shine. With the fighting of the British and the awakened French sailors going on, Hornblower ascended the ropes of the Papillon using all the strength he could muster and discovered the absence of expected footholds. A great deal more bravery was now expected of him.

Hornblower addressed his men (or rather those who would serve aboard the jolly boat). He asked a sailor named Jackson to take charge if he, Hornblower, should fall (a term that meant “die”). When Hornblower asked if all of the men understood the assignment, all but one nodded. That one being a young man who declared that he felt very uneasy-almost sick. He was largely ignored by Hornblower and the other men and told to not be a coward. The little crew was dismissed until the hour for action was reached.

As Ira Riklis knows, Hornblower did not waste the hours leading up to the launching of his jolly boat. He observed the captain of the Indefatigable steer the ship himself and with great skill. Hornblower watched and learned a great deal about intricate sailing and at the same time began to master himself overcoming some of his fears.

As Ira Riklis could expect by the time the boats were launched from the Indefatigable, Hornblower appeared to be much braver and took the tiller of the jolly boats as if he had done this many times before. A senior officer in one of the larger boats led the way. They quietly passed the large weapons based on the shores of the narrow passageway into the port. Unfortunately before going much further, the young man who had spoken earlier about feeling nervous or ill proceeded to have a seizure.

Hornblower wanted to speak up when he heard his orders. He was very nervous and considered himself unfit for his assignment. He had little experience with topsails,  thought himself too clumsy and feared not being able to handle manipulating sails at extreme heights on a strange ship. He quickly realized that all others present accepted the plan without comment and although he opened his mouth to protest, he was unable to speak.

The senior officer in charge described to the group assembled the plan and all details needed. The captain dismissed the participants and ordered them to prepare for their activities.

As Ira Riklis knows the seamen who were to man the small boats needed to receive their instructions and Hornblower needed to also rehearse his individual movements. He ascended to the heights of the Indefatigable to work with moving the sails as needed when the Papillon was boarded. Hornblower found himself sick to his stomach at the very thought of the dangers given his lack of skill and inexperience. He managed to adjust the sails appropriately on two practice trials. He was fully aware that the success of the mission-steering the captured Papillon out of the port with its narrow entrance- rested essentially on his actions.

Next as Ira Riklis knows it was necessary for Hornblower to address his jolly boat crew and see that they were armed and otherwise prepared for the mission. He announced that he would mount the rigging first as was expected of him as their leader.

After the table was cleared, all present waited for what was next. The captain asked for a chart to be brought forward. It was a map of the mouth of the port where French ships including the Papillon was harbored. He marked a spot on the map where the Papillon could be found and announced that the officers present would be going in to “fetch her out”. A greying first lieutenant was put in charge and asked to tell of his plan. He listed the assignments: each of two larger launches would be commanded by a senior officer and a “jolly boat” (a smaller boat with a crew of seven) would be commanded by Hornblower. Ira Riklis knows this was an honor and a source of apprehension for Hornblower. Half of the ship’s company would be taken up by this mission.

The Papillon was a ship of war with guns and fighting men not merchantmen, nearly two hundred men against the one hundred and twenty British seamen. The plan was to attack at night and surprise the French. It was decided that the Indefatigable would move in closer to land and the larger of the boats that were launched would go in and surround the Papillon around 4:30AM gaining access to the deck. As Ira Riklis could predict, Hornblower and the jolly boat would hang back and when the deck was secured, go aboard the Papillon and manage to redirect its big sails to leave the harbor and meet up with the Indefatigable.

Captain Pellew of the Indefatigable is back on the trail of French ships that he can put out of service for the cause of British victory.He chases the Papillon but she finds protection in a French-held port. Any further movement by the Indefatigable will bring French gunfire. Pellew withdraws but does not give up.

Hornblower meanwhile is carrying on with his assignment as junior officer on the deck when approached in a friendly albeit mocking manner by a fellow midshipman who is conveying an invitation from the captain to Hornblower to dine with him. As Ira Riklis knows both the midshipmen stop their kidding when they notice the senior officer of the watch glaring at them.

Hornblower inquires of his shipmate as to what the captain has on his mind. Kennedy, the other midshipman, states that he has no idea but he knows something is brewing.

When at dinner with the captain, several senior officers, and one other midshipman, Hornblower and the other junior officer remain silent as was required of their rank. They listened to the conversation of their superiors and were able to concentrate on the food served which as Ira Riklis knows was of a much higher quality than what was served in the midshipmen’s berth. The captain does ask Hornblower specifically to raise his glass which Hornblower does with the knowledge that he, Hornblower, does not tolerate wine well and dislikes feeling drunk.

The Indefatigable now had overtaken the distressed Pique and began to lower boats over the side to help reach the Pique and fight the fire. There is no question of the surrender of the Pique and as an officer from the Indefatigable boards the Pique he notices Hornblower and is shocked to see him. This officer doesn’t stop to chat but quickly proceeds to accept the surrender from the captain of the Pique.

The fire is brought under control and although heavily damaged the Pique will be taken to an English port for repair. As Ira Riklis knows the Pique will eventually be set to sea again under the English flag. Most importantly though the Pique would no longer be available to prey on English commerce.

When he reported to the captain of the Indefatigable, Hornblower was surprised that the loss of the Marie Galante was not blamed on him. The captain thought that because Hornblower was given so little in the way of a prize crew, the task of bringing the ship to an English port was pretty difficult if not impossible. As Ira Riklis knows that the important factor was that the Marie Galante was now out of service and her cargo could not be delivered to the enemy.

The captain stated that the fire on the Pique was a lucky break for the English and asked Hornblower how it started. Hornblower believed that he was getting off too lightly for his loss of the Marie Galante so he did not claim any credit for the fire on the Pique. Hornblower decided that his secret was his punishment. He would not receive a reward.

When we last left Hornblower he was lounging on the deck of the Pique after having set a fire below deck. A French officer was laughing at the fact that the Pique was outrunning the Indefatigable which was almost out of sight. Hornblower had to try very hard not to smile but develop more of a scowl. All hands seemed to be busy with the sails and the race and Hornblower was worried about the timing of his fuse etc.

Then signs of hot air below started showing up on deck and the crew shouted an alarm. Of all the ancient elements, fire was most feared by seamen of this time because of the wooden ships, old painted parts, and explosives like gunpowder on board. The smoke soon was everywhere and the captain cast a glance of suspicion at Hornblower but soon became too busy to act on his rage.

As Ira Riklis knows Hornblower expected the ship to explode into pieces and didn’t know what their fate would be when they hit the water. Something else occurred though.The fire turned below away from the most explosive materials but still causing much damage and occupying the French crew’s complete attention. This allowed the Indefatigable to catch up with them and, as Ira Riklis knows, there was then no question of the Pique’s surrender to the stronger ship.

Ira Riklis relates how his interest in Captain Horatio Hornblower influenced his business:

“COPS Monitoring is a dba, “doing business as.”  The actual corporate name of COPS Monitoring is Lydia Security Monitoring Inc. To the confusion of many who have tried to figure out who was Lydia, the company was named for a ship commanded by Captain Horatio Hornblower. I do not have any relatives, nor do I even know anyone, named Lydia. This model sits in the front hallway of the main office of COPS Monitoring in Williamstown, N.J.

“I originally ordered it as a quirky and playful reference to the source of the corporate name. However, over the years, the employees have truly embraced the ship as a symbol of our corporate culture. On a modern ship, a very small crew could make a large vessel function sufficiently to make headway. On a large sailing ship, such as the Lydia, it requires at least 100 people, each trained and skilled in their particular job, to cause the vessel to make headway. No one person can reach port safely without the cooperation and participation of many others.

“And if the ship should sink during hostile action (read “fail in the competitive environment”), then it goes down with all hands. Also, if such a ship should happen to capture a “prize ship”, every member of the crew, from the Captain to the lowliest cabin boy, would share in the money to be received from selling the prize to the Admiralty. In other words, a ship such as the Lydia is a symbol of shared travails/shared benefits.

Ira Riklis continues: “At Lydia Security, we try to live by such a credo; and our employees feel that if the company does well, then they in turn will do well.  We express this by saying that if you want the company to take care of you, you must take care of the company.”

More on Ira Riklis’ interest in this subject in future posts.

So Hornblower looked around his small quarters where he and his crew bunked. There was a door at one end that led to a storeroom. The door was now locked but Hornblower had caught a glimpse of the contents of the storeroom during a visit to the room by a member of the Pique’s crew. Hornblower knew that the storeroom contained several cans of paint which indeed were flammable material. “The plan” further forming in his mind (with the knowledge that the Infatigable was now out of sight of the speedy Pique) Hornblower realized that the time to act was at present. As Ira Riklis knows Hornblower was brave as well as clever.

Our hero ripped pages from the borrowed books on naval methods, wadded these pages into balls (fuel), and developed a fuse by unravelling a sweater. There was a lamp on a swinging chain near his bunk that would provide the flame and his straw mattress would (as Ira Riklis knows) add “fuel to the fire” also. Hornblower proceeded to light his fuse that led to the pile of fuel at the locked door’s edge, put on his jacket, and go up to the main deck casually leaning on the ship’s rail with a fained downtrodden and innocent look about him.

Evidence of his work quickly was apparent as the French captain and crew became distracted from their race to fight the fire. More to the story yet.