Read Online Judy: The Unforgettable Story of the Dog Who Went to War and Became a True Hero by Damien Lewis - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Damien Lewis
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darkness. For a moment the officer on watch wondered whether it mightn’t be another stinking cess ship that had dragged Judy out of her slumber, but it was quickly clear that her attitude and demeanor were entirely different this time. There was an aggression and ferocity in her barking the likes of which he’d never heard before.
The crew of the Gnat were learning by now to pay all due attention to their dog. The officer on watch took immediate action. He grabbed the nearest Aldis lamp—a powerful handheld light more normally used for signaling from ship to ship—switched it on, and turned it toward the point at which Judy was directing her fury. Immediately the reason for her behavior became apparent: two large junks were drifting silently toward the Gnat —though not quietly enough to have avoided detection by a dog’s hypersensitive hearing.
Wasting not a second, the officer on watch drew his pistol and fired a single shot into the dark sky, the hollow crack of the low-velocity bullet reverberating around the sleeping ship and bringing the crew instantly awake. From all directions pajama-clad men tumbled out of hatches and doorways, rifles, pistols, and an assortment of other weapons held at the ready as they hurried to their predetermined stations to repel boarders.
The watch officer, meanwhile, had ordered Judy to be quiet. Now they knew what threat they faced, her early warning had given the ship’s crew a perfect opportunity to get one over on their foremost adversaries—two large vessels packed full of fearsome Yangtze River pirates.
The pirates were making their attack approach in typical fashion—a pair of junks drifting silently abreast with a thick bamboo hawser slung between them. Once the rope snagged on the Gnat ’s bows it would pull the pirate ships in toward her, and upon contact the waiting men would leap aboard the still-sleeping vessel, decimate the crew, and loot to their hearts’ content. At least that had been their intention until Judy had caught wind of their coming on the chill night air.
The tension aboard the Gnat was palpable as the seconds ticked by. Then there was a faint, barely audible thunk as the bamboo rope made contact with the Gnat ’s prow. By then Captain Waldegrave was directing operations with gusto from the bridge. As the two pirate vessels swung in toward his ship, the river gurgling under their bulging wooden hulls, he had his men positioned at the ready. One of them, a stoker, only had time to don his scarlet pajama top before grabbing a fire ax with which to set about the approaching threat.
Before the first vessel had even made contact with the Gnat , the captain ordered those manning the Maxim machine guns mounted on a platform to the rear of the twin funnels to open fire. They let rip with ten-second bursts, raking the flanks of the pirate vessels, splinters of wood being blasted into the river. The Maxims were mounted three to each side of the ship, chiefly for antiaircraft use,but they were also the perfect weapons with which to signal the Gnat ’s intent.
The river pirates knew for sure now that their target was forewarned, not to mention heavily armed, but there was no stopping the drift of their vessels as the rope dragged them in. The first craft bumped alongside. Shadowy figures reared up and attempted to board the Gnat . But they were met with a fusillade of gunfire—plus one roaring stoker with his manhood on show swinging an ax above his head and one ship’s dog barking and snarling furiously.
Battle had most surely been joined.
Two of the Gnat ’s crewmen were stationed in the prow, and they were chopping furiously at the pirate’s hawser. As the final strands of the bamboo rope were sliced through, the pair of junks were dragged free by the current and slipped into the darkness. The last of the pirates turned tail and took a leap into the void in a desperate effort to rejoin their fast-disappearing ships.
Those who failed to make that
The crew of the Gnat were learning by now to pay all due attention to their dog. The officer on watch took immediate action. He grabbed the nearest Aldis lamp—a powerful handheld light more normally used for signaling from ship to ship—switched it on, and turned it toward the point at which Judy was directing her fury. Immediately the reason for her behavior became apparent: two large junks were drifting silently toward the Gnat —though not quietly enough to have avoided detection by a dog’s hypersensitive hearing.
Wasting not a second, the officer on watch drew his pistol and fired a single shot into the dark sky, the hollow crack of the low-velocity bullet reverberating around the sleeping ship and bringing the crew instantly awake. From all directions pajama-clad men tumbled out of hatches and doorways, rifles, pistols, and an assortment of other weapons held at the ready as they hurried to their predetermined stations to repel boarders.
The watch officer, meanwhile, had ordered Judy to be quiet. Now they knew what threat they faced, her early warning had given the ship’s crew a perfect opportunity to get one over on their foremost adversaries—two large vessels packed full of fearsome Yangtze River pirates.
The pirates were making their attack approach in typical fashion—a pair of junks drifting silently abreast with a thick bamboo hawser slung between them. Once the rope snagged on the Gnat ’s bows it would pull the pirate ships in toward her, and upon contact the waiting men would leap aboard the still-sleeping vessel, decimate the crew, and loot to their hearts’ content. At least that had been their intention until Judy had caught wind of their coming on the chill night air.
The tension aboard the Gnat was palpable as the seconds ticked by. Then there was a faint, barely audible thunk as the bamboo rope made contact with the Gnat ’s prow. By then Captain Waldegrave was directing operations with gusto from the bridge. As the two pirate vessels swung in toward his ship, the river gurgling under their bulging wooden hulls, he had his men positioned at the ready. One of them, a stoker, only had time to don his scarlet pajama top before grabbing a fire ax with which to set about the approaching threat.
Before the first vessel had even made contact with the Gnat , the captain ordered those manning the Maxim machine guns mounted on a platform to the rear of the twin funnels to open fire. They let rip with ten-second bursts, raking the flanks of the pirate vessels, splinters of wood being blasted into the river. The Maxims were mounted three to each side of the ship, chiefly for antiaircraft use,but they were also the perfect weapons with which to signal the Gnat ’s intent.
The river pirates knew for sure now that their target was forewarned, not to mention heavily armed, but there was no stopping the drift of their vessels as the rope dragged them in. The first craft bumped alongside. Shadowy figures reared up and attempted to board the Gnat . But they were met with a fusillade of gunfire—plus one roaring stoker with his manhood on show swinging an ax above his head and one ship’s dog barking and snarling furiously.
Battle had most surely been joined.
Two of the Gnat ’s crewmen were stationed in the prow, and they were chopping furiously at the pirate’s hawser. As the final strands of the bamboo rope were sliced through, the pair of junks were dragged free by the current and slipped into the darkness. The last of the pirates turned tail and took a leap into the void in a desperate effort to rejoin their fast-disappearing ships.
Those who failed to make that
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