On Board a Pirate Ship by L.L. Weedon

Name: On Board a Pirate Ship
Author: L.L. Weedon

Captain Firebrace of the pirate ship "Morning Star" boards a drifting, half-wrecked schooner, the "Speedy Return," bound for Jamaica, and finds only one survivor: a boy named Roger Cary, locked in a cabin and nearly starved. Roger explains he is the son of Squire Cary of Paignton, Devonshire, who ran away to sea aboard his uncle Austin Cary's ship. Patch and Long Andrew, two of the crew, want Roger killed as a possible spy, but Firebrace overrules them at pistol-point and keeps the boy aboard as ship's boy. Roger endures a year of hard, degrading labor, abused chiefly by Patch, and is forced to watch French sailors from a captured Rouen merchantman walk the plank, which cures him of any romantic notions about piracy. He finds no chance to escape, since the "Morning Star" avoids regular ports and he would be hanged as a pirate himself if caught. Firebrace, though outwardly showing him no favor, questions him privately about his home and once tells him he will see Paignton again. Cruising in Spanish waters in search of a treasure galleon, the ship is caught in a violent storm. The topmast snaps, and despite Firebrace's efforts at the helm, the ship is driven toward rocks near the shore of St. Diego. A Spanish sailor, Pedro, spots a passage between two rocks, but the "Morning Star" strikes a rock and sinks. Roger is swept away but held by Firebrace as both are swirled through the rocks toward shore. Fishermen pull Roger and Long Andrew alive from the surf; Firebrace, also dragged out, is found dead, battered against the rocks. Roger eventually makes his way home. Long Andrew keeps the ship's true identity secret and afterward takes only honest work. He tells Roger that "Firebrace" was an assumed name, that the captain was in fact Devonshire born, likely from Paignton himself, and that this kinship is probably why Roger was spared rather than thrown to "Davy Jones's locker."

By L.L. Weedon · Genre: Adventure, Historical Fiction, Coming of Age · 1,874 words

First lines

"HAS the boy eaten his fill?"

"Ay, enough for six, the young villain."

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Genres

Adventure — The narrative is driven by Roger's perilous experiences at sea, encounters with pirates, multiple dangerous situations, and his struggle to escape captivity and return home.
Historical Fiction — The work features specific historical settings (Devonshire, Jamaica, Spanish colonial waters), authentic period maritime details, and colonial-era seafaring customs and practices.
Coming of Age — Roger undergoes significant physical and psychological transformation from a naive runaway to a hardened sailor, demonstrating the classic bildungsroman arc of maturation through adversity.
Pirate Fiction — Pirates and piracy are central to the plot, with detailed depictions of pirate ship operations, tactics, codes of conduct, and the moral ambiguity of pirate leadership.

What this Textopian page supports

On Board a Pirate Ship is listed on Textopian as a short story by L.L. Weedon, dated Date unknown.

This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.

Work type: Short story
Author: L.L. Weedon
Date: Date unknown
Language: English
Genres: Adventure, Historical Fiction, Coming of Age, Pirate Fiction, Maritime Fiction
Length: 1,874 words
Structure: 1 section, 30 paragraphs
Reading fit: Fairly Easy (7th Grade)

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