Hair-Breadth Escapes Part 2

"Let us go ash.o.r.e," interrupted Nick, "and we shall be safe to find out lots of fun for ourselves. It would be jolly fun, in itself, to be walking on hard ground again, instead of these everlasting planks. I suppose, as these islands belong to the Portuguese, and we've no quarrel with them, the skipper will go ash.o.r.e, and allow the pa.s.sengers to do so too?"

"He'll go ash.o.r.e, no doubt," said a voice close at hand; "but he won't let you go, I'll answer for that."

The boys turned quickly round, and were not particularly pleased to see the first lieutenant, Mr Grey, who had come aft, to give some orders, and had overheard the last part of their conversation. Mr Grey was no favourite of theirs. He was not downright uncivil to the boys, but he was fond of snubbing them whenever an occasion offered itself. It was generally believed also that a good deal of the captain's harshness was due to the first lieutenant's suggestions.

"You'd better leave the captain to answer for himself," remarked Frank, his cheek flus.h.i.+ng with anger. "I don't see how you can know what he means to do."

"Perhaps you mayn't see it, and yet I may," returned Mr Grey calmly.

"Why shouldn't he let us go ash.o.r.e, as he did at Madeira?" asked Warley.

"Nothing went wrong there."

"I beg your pardon," replied the lieutenant; "things did go wrong there, and he was very much displeased."

"Displeased," repeated Warley, "displeased with us? What do you mean, Mr Grey?"

"I mean that you are not to go ash.o.r.e," returned the other curtly, and walking forward as he spoke.

Ernest's cheek grew almost as crimson as Frank's had done. The apparent insinuation that he had misconducted himself while on his parole of good behaviour, was one of the things he could least endure. Mr Lavie laid his hand on the boy's arm.

"Hush, Ernest!" he said, checking an angry exclamation to which he was about to give vent. "Most likely Mr Grey is not serious. Anyway, if the captain does forbid your going ash.o.r.e, you may be a.s.sured he has good reasons--"

"What reasons can he have?" interposed Gilbert; "we are no more likely to get into trouble here than at Madeira, and who has a right to say we did anything wrong there?"

"The first lieutenant _didn't_ say so," observed the surgeon. "I think there is some mistake. I'll make inquiries about the matter before we enter the harbour."

He moved away, and the boys resolved to retreat to their den, where they might hold an indignation meeting without molestation. This den, to which its occupants had given the cla.s.sical name of "Dionysius's ear,"

or more briefly, "Dionysius," was an empty s.p.a.ce on the lower deck, about six foot square, where various stores had been stowed away. By some oversight of the men a dozen chests or so had been left ash.o.r.e, and a vacant place in a corner was reserved for them. When, however, they were brought aboard, they could not conveniently be lowered, and were secured on deck. Master Nick, in the course of his restless wandering, had lighted on this void s.p.a.ce, and it occurred to him that it would make a snug place of retreat, when he wished to be alone, as he not unfrequently did, in order to escape the consequences of some piece of mischief. When his friends.h.i.+p with his companions had been sufficiently cemented, he had communicated the secret to them, and Frank at once appreciated its value. Advantage had been already taken of it on one or two occasions, to evade an unwelcome summons from the skipper, or smoke a pipe at interdicted hours.

To be sure it was not a very desirable retiring room, and most persons would have considered a Russian or Neapolitan dungeon greatly preferable to it. As the reader has heard, it was about six foot square. It was lighted by a dead light in the deck above, which had fortunately been inserted just in that spot. Whatever air there was, came through the barrels, or along the s.h.i.+p's sides. But it is needless to say it was at all times suffocatingly close, and nothing but a boy or a salamander could have long continued to breathe such an atmosphere. Entrance was obtained by pulling aside a small keg; the removal of which allowed just enough room for any one to work his way in, like an earthworm, on his stomach. Then the keg was drawn by the rope attached to it into its place again, and firmly secured to a staple in the s.h.i.+p's side.

Whatever might be its other defects, it was certainly almost impossible of detection.

Arrived here, our three heroes lay down at their leisure on some sacks with which they had garnished their domicile, and proceeded to discuss the matter in hand, lowering their voices as much as possible, as they had discovered that conversation might be heard through the barrels by any one on the other side, which fact, indeed, was the explanation of the name bestowed on their retreat. They were not at first agreed as to the steps to be adopted. Nick was for going ash.o.r.e under any circ.u.mstances--the difficulty of accomplis.h.i.+ng his purpose, and the fact of his having been forbidden to essay it, being, in his eyes, only additional incentives. Frank was not disposed to make the attempt, if his uncle really had interdicted it; but he professed himself certain that no such order had been given by anybody but the first lieutenant, and he was not, he said, going to be under his orders. Warley for once was inclined to go beyond Frank, and declared that though he would obey the captain's order if any reasonable ground for it was a.s.signed, he would not be debarred from what he considered his right as a pa.s.senger, by any man's mere caprice. He added, however, that he thought it would be better to hear what Lavie had found out, before coming to any resolution.

"Well, it is time we should see the doctor, if we mean to do so,"

remarked Frank, after an hour or so had pa.s.sed in conversation. "We must be entering Porto Prayo by this time, or be near it at all events; and he must have had lots of time to find out everything."

"Very good; one of us had better see Mr Lavie at once," said Ernest.

"I'll go, if you like, and come back to 'Dionysius' here, as soon as I have anything to tell."

He departed accordingly, and returned in about half an hour, looking very cool, but very much annoyed.

"Hallo, Ernest, what's up now?" exclaimed Nick, as he caught sight of his face. "What does the doctor say?"

"I haven't seen the doctor," answered Warley. "One of the crew has been taken dangerously ill, and the doctor has been with him ever since he left us."

"What have you learned, then?" asked Frank. "Are we in the harbour?"

"We're in the harbour, and the skipper's gone ash.o.r.e. I saw his boat half-way to the beach. Captain Renton, Mr May, and Mr De Koech have gone with him. They are the only pa.s.sengers who wanted to go."

"Well, but I suppose there are some sh.o.r.e boats that would take pa.s.sengers to and fro."

"The captain has given orders that no sh.o.r.e boat is to be allowed alongside. He won't even allow the fresh provisions, or the water, to be brought aboard by any but the s.h.i.+p's boats. I saw the largest cutter with the empty water-casks in her, lying ready to go ash.o.r.e presently."

"Who told you this?" inquired Wilmore, half incredulous.

"Old Jennings, the quartermaster. He has charge of the boat. He said the captain's resolved we shan't leave the s.h.i.+p."

"It's an infamous shame," said Frank. "I declare I've half a mind to swim ash.o.r.e. It can't be very far."

"No," said Nick, "but it wouldn't be pleasant to land soaking wet, to say nothing of the chance of ground sharks. Even Lion had better not try that dodge. But I'll tell you what--if the boat is lying off the s.h.i.+p's side, with a lot of ankers in her, why shouldn't we creep in among them, and go ash.o.r.e unbeknown to the first lieutenant?"

"We should be seen getting aboard," said Frank.

"No, we shouldn't. The men are at dinner just now, and we can slip in when the backs of the fellows on deck are turned."

"I forgot that," said Frank; "but we should be certain to be seen when we landed."

"Ay, no doubt. But that will be too late, won't it? Once ash.o.r.e, I guess they must be pretty nimble to catch us; and besides, old Jennings is too good-natured to do anything against us, which he isn't obliged to do."

"Well, that's true, certainly," returned Wilmore. "What do you say, Warley? Are you game to make the trial?"

"Yes, I am," returned Ernest. "I think it is regular tyranny to oblige us to stay in the s.h.i.+p, when there is no reason for it, except the captain's caprice. But if we mean to try this, we must make haste."

The three lads hurried on deck; and a glance showed them they were just in time. There were only two or three men to be seen, and they were at the other end of the s.h.i.+p. They skimmed nimbly down the ladder, and found no difficulty in concealing themselves at the bow end of the boat, which was completely hidden from sight by the empty casks. They had not been in their hiding-place very long, before the old quartermaster and his men were heard coming down the side. The sh.o.r.e was soon reached, and the keel had no sooner grated on the sand, than the boys sprang out and ran up the beach, saluting old Jennings with a parting cheer as they went.

"Well, I never," muttered the old man. "The cap'en 'ull be in a nice taking when he hears of this! And there ain't no chance but what he _will_ hear of it. We've Andy Duncan in the boat, and he carries everything to the first lieutenant, as sure as it happens. Well, I ain't bound to peach, anyhow--that's one comfort!"

Meanwhile the captain had gone on sh.o.r.e, his temper not improved by the report of the doctor which had been brought to him as he was leaving the vessel, that another of his best hands was rendered useless--for several weeks to come at all events--by a bad attack of fever, which might very possibly spread through the s.h.i.+p. He returned on board after nightfall, still more provoked and vexed. He had met with the greatest difficulty in his attempts to fill the places of his missing men. There were, as the reader has been told, very few whites on the island, and none of them were sailors. The blacks were very unwilling to engage, except upon exorbitant terms, and hardly one of those with whom he spoke appeared good for anything. He had at one time all but given up the matter in despair. But late in the afternoon he was accosted by a dark-complexioned man, lean and sinewy as a bloodhound, who informed him that the vessel in which he traded between the South African ports and the West Indian Islands, had been driven on the Cape Verdes and totally wrecked. But the crew had escaped, he said, and were willing to engage with Captain Wilmore for the voyage to Calcutta.

The captain hesitated. He had little doubt that the lost vessel had been a slaver, and he had an instinctive abhorrence of all engaged in that horrible traffic. Still there seemed no other hope of successfully prosecuting the voyage, and after all it would be a companions.h.i.+p of only a few months. He resolved to make one effort more to obtain less questionable help, and if that should fail, to accept the offer.

Desiring the stranger to bring his men to the quay in an hour's time, he once more entered the town, and made inquiries at all the houses to which sailors were likely to resort. His success was no better than it had been before, and he was obliged to close with the proposal of the foreign captain. He liked the looks of the crew even less than those of their captain. There were eighteen of them, however, and all strong serviceable fellows, if they chose to work. He must hope for the best; but even the best did not appear very promising; and if the Yankee captain, who had been the prime cause of the mischief, had been delivered into his hands at that moment, it is to be feared he would have met with small mercy.

In this frame of mind he regained the _Hooghly_, and shortly after his arrival was informed by the first lieutenant of the escapade of the three boys, with the gratuitous addition that he had himself delivered them the captain's message--that no one was to be permitted to leave the s.h.i.+p, except those who had gone ash.o.r.e with the captain.

The skipper's wrath fairly boiled over. He vowed he would straightway give his nephew a smart taste of the cat-o'-nine-tails, and put the other two into irons, to teach them obedience. The boatswain accordingly was summoned, and the delinquents ordered into custody, but after a delay of half an hour, during which the captain's wrath seemed to be every moment growing hotter, it was announced that the boys could not be found, and the boat's crew sent ash.o.r.e with the water-casks positively declared that they did not return with them. As no other boats but theirs and the captain's had held any communication with the land, it appeared certain that the young gentlemen were still on sh.o.r.e, intending probably to return by a sh.o.r.e boat later in the evening.

"Do they?" exclaimed Captain Wilmore fiercely, when this likelihood was suggested to him by Mr Grey. "They'll find themselves mistaken, then.

Up with the anchor, Crossman, and hoist the mainsail. Before their boat has left the quay, we shall be twenty miles from land. Not a word, Mr Lavie. A month or two's stay in these islands will be a lesson they'll keep by them all their lives."

No one ventured to remonstrate. The anchor was lifted, the great sails were set, and in half an hour they were moving southward at a pace which soon left the lights of Porto Prayo a mere speck in the distance.

But the boys had not been left behind, though no one but themselves and old Jennings was aware of the fact. He had kept the boat from putting off on her return to the s.h.i.+p, on one pretext or another, as long as he could venture to do so, in the hope that the lads would make their appearance. But he was aware that Andy Duncan's eye was upon him, and could not venture to delay longer. It happened, however, that soon after his return, Mr Lavie had found it necessary to send on sh.o.r.e to the hospital for some ice, of which they had none on board, and old Jennings had volunteered to go. He took the smallest boat and no one with him but his nephew, Joe Cobbes, who was completely under his orders. He landed at a different place from that at which the boat had been moored in the morning, and sent his nephew with the message to the hospital. He then made search after the boys, whom he soon discovered at the regular landing-place, waiting anxiously for some means of regaining the _Hooghly_.

"Hallo, Jennings," exclaimed Frank, as he caught sight of the old man's figure through the fast gathering darkness; "that's all right, then. I was afraid we were going to stay ash.o.r.e all night?"

"I hope it is all right, sir," answered Jennings, "but if the captain finds out that you've been breaking his orders--"

"I don't believe he has given any order--" interrupted Frank. "And it would be monstrous if he had," exclaimed Ernest in the same breath.