The World of Ice Part 10

A jar containing about thirty pounds of powder was sunk in a hole in an immense block of ice which lay close against the stern of the s.h.i.+p.

Mivins, being light of foot, was set to fire the train. He did so, and ran--ran so fast that he missed his footing in leaping over a chasm, and had well-nigh fallen into the water below. There was a whiz and a loud report, and the enormous ma.s.s of ice heaved upwards in the centre, and fell back in huge fragments. So far the result was satisfactory, and the men were immediately set to sink several charges in various directions around the vessel, to be in readiness for the highest tide, which was soon expected. Warps and hawsers were also got out and fixed to the seaward ma.s.ses, ready to heave on them at a moment's notice; the s.h.i.+p was lightened as much as possible by lifting her stores upon the ice; and the whole crew--captain, mates, and all--worked and heaved like horses, until the perspiration streamed from their faces, while Mizzle kept supplying them with a constant deluge of hot coffee. Fred and the young surgeon, too, worked like the rest, with their coats off, handkerchiefs bound round their heads, and s.h.i.+rt-sleeves tucked up to their shoulders.

At last the tide rose--inch by inch, and slowly, as if it grudged to give them even a chance of escape.

Mivins grew impatient and unbelieving under it. "I don't think it'll rise another hinch," he remarked to O'Riley, who stood near him.

"Niver fear, boy. The capting knows a sight better than you do, and _he_ says it'll rise a fut yit."

"Does he?" asked Grim, who was also beginning to despond.

"Ov coorse he does. Sure he towld me in a confidintial way, just before he wint to turn in last night--if it wasn't yist.u.r.day forenoon, for it's meself as niver knows an hour o' the day since the sun became dissipated, and tuck to sitting up all night in this fas.h.i.+on."

"Shut up yer tatie-trap and open yer weather-eye," muttered Buzzby, who had charge of the gang; "there'll be time enough to speak after we're off."

Gradually, as the tide rose, the ice and the s.h.i.+p moved, and it became evident that the latter was almost afloat, though the former seemed to be only partly raised from the ground. The men were at their several posts ready for instant action, and gazing in anxious expectation at the captain, who stood, watch in hand, ready to give the word.

"Now, then, fire!" he said in a low voice.

In a moment the ice round the s.h.i.+p was rent, and upheaved, as if some leviathan of the deep were rising from beneath it, and the vessel swung slowly round. A loud cheer burst from the men.

"Now, lads, heave with a will!" roared the captain.

Round went the capstan, the windla.s.s clanked, and the s.h.i.+p forged slowly ahead, as the warps and hawsers became rigid. At that moment a heavy block of ice, which had been overbalanced by the motion of the vessel, fell with a crash on the rudder, splitting off a large portion of it, and drawing the iron bolts that held it completely out of the stern-post.

"Never mind; heave away--for your lives!" cried the captain. "Jump on board, all of you!"

The few men who had until now remained on the ice scrambled up the side.

There was a sheet of ice right ahead which the s.h.i.+p could not clear, but which she was pus.h.i.+ng out to sea in advance of her. Suddenly this took the ground and remained motionless.

"Out there with ice-chisels! Sink a hole like lightning! Prepare a canister, Mr. Bolton--quick!" shouted the captain in desperation, as he sprang over the side and a.s.sisted to cut into the unwieldy obstruction.

The charge was soon fixed and fired, but it only split the block in two and left it motionless as before. A few minutes after the s.h.i.+p again grounded; the ice settled round her; the spring tide was lost, and they were not delivered.

Those who know the bitterness of repeated disappointment and of hope deferred, may judge of the feelings with which the crew of the _Dolphin_ now regarded their position. Little, indeed, was said, but the grave looks of most of the men, and the absence of the usual laugh, and jest, and disposition to skylark, which, on almost all other occasions characterized them, showed too plainly how heavily the prospect of a winter in the Arctic Regions weighed upon their spirits. They continued their exertions to free the s.h.i.+p, however, for several days after the high tide, and did not finally give in until all reasonable hope of moving her was utterly annihilated. Before this, however, a reaction began to take place; the prospects of the coming winter were discussed; and some of the more sanguine looked even beyond the winter, and began to consider how they would contrive to get the s.h.i.+p out of her position into deep water again.

Fred Ellice, too, thought of his father, and this abrupt check to the search, and his spirits sank again as his hopes decayed. But poor Fred, like the others, at last discovered that it was of no use to repine, and that it was best to face his sorrows and difficulties "like a man!"

Alas! poor human nature; how difficult do we find it to face sorrows and difficulties _cheerfully_, even when we do conscientiously try! Well would it be for all of us could we submit to such, not only because they are inevitable, but because they are the will of G.o.d--of him who has a.s.serted in his own Word that "he afflicteth not the children of men willingly."

Among so many men there were all shades of character, and the fact that they were doomed to a year's imprisonment in the Frozen Regions was received in very different ways. Some looked grave and thought of it seriously; others laughed and treated it lightly; a few grumbled and spoke profanely; but most of them became quickly reconciled, and in a week or two nearly all forgot the past and the future in the duties, and cares, and amus.e.m.e.nts of the present. Captain Guy and his officers, however, and a few of the more sedate men, among whom were Buzzby and Peter Grim, looked forward with much anxiety, knowing full well the dangers and trials that lay before them.

It is true the s.h.i.+p was provisioned for more than a year, but most of the provisions were salt, and Tom Singleton could have told them, had they required to be told, that without fresh provisions they stood a poor chance of escaping that dire disease scurvy, before which have fallen so many gallant tars whom nothing in the shape of dangers or difficulties could subdue. There were, indeed, myriads of wild-fowl flying about the s.h.i.+p, on which the men feasted and grew fat every day; and the muskets of Meetuck and those who accompanied him seldom failed to supply the s.h.i.+p with an abundance of the flesh of seals, walruses, and Polar bears, portions of all of which creatures were considered very good indeed by the men, and particularly by the dogs, which grew so fat that they began to acquire a very disreputable waddle in their gait as they walked the deck for exercise, which they seldom did, by the way, being pa.s.sionately fond of sleep! But birds, and perchance beasts, might be expected to take themselves off when the winter arrived, and leave the crew without fresh food.

Then, although the _Dolphin_ was supplied with every necessary for a whaling-expedition, and with many luxuries besides, she was ill provided with the supplies that men deem absolutely indispensable for a winter in the Arctic Regions, where the cold is so bitterly intense that, after a prolonged sojourn, men's minds become almost entirely engrossed by two clamant demands of nature--food and heat. They had only a small quant.i.ty of coal on board, and nothing except a few extra spars that could be used as a subst.i.tute, while the bleak sh.o.r.es afforded neither shrub nor tree of any kind. Meanwhile, they had a sufficiency of everything they required for at least two or three months to come, and for the rest, as Grim said, they had "stout hearts and strong arms."

As soon as it became apparent that they were to winter in the bay, which the captain named the Bay of Mercy, all further attempt to extricate the s.h.i.+p was abandoned, and every preparation for spending the winter was begun and carried out vigorously. It was now that Captain Guy's qualities as a leader began to be displayed. He knew, from long experience and observation, that in order to keep up the _morale_ of any body of men it was absolutely necessary to maintain the strictest discipline. Indeed, this rule is so universal in its application, that many men find it advantageous to impose strict rules on themselves in the regulation of their time and affairs, in order to keep their own spirits under command. One of the captain's first resolves therefore was, to call the men together and address them on this subject; and he seized the occasion of the first Sabbath morning they spent in the Bay of Mercy, when the crew were a.s.sembled for prayers on the quarter-deck, to speak to them.

Hitherto we have not mentioned the Sabbath day in this story, because, while at sea, and while struggling with the ice, there was little to mark it from other days, except the cessation of unnecessary labour, and the reading of prayers to those who chose to attend; but as necessary labour preponderated at all times, and the reading of prayers occupied scarce half-an-hour, there was little _perceptible_ difference between the Sabbath and any other day. We would not be understood to speak lightly of this difference. Little though it was in point of time and appearance, it was immeasurably great in _fact_, as it involved the great principle that the day of rest ought to be observed, and that the Creator should be honoured in a special manner on that day.

On the Sabbath in question--and it was an exceedingly bright, peaceful one--Captain Guy, having read part of the Church of England service as usual, stood up, and in an earnest, firm tone said:--

"My lads, I consider it my duty to say a few plain words to you in reference to our present situation and prospects. I feel that the responsibility of having brought you here rests very much upon myself, and I deem it my solemn duty, in more than the ordinary sense, to do all I can to get you out of the ice again. You know as well as I do that this is impossible at the present time, and that we are compelled to spend a winter here. Some of you know what that means, but the most of you know it only by hearsay, and that's much the same as knowing nothing about it at all. Before the winter is done your energies and endurance will probably be taxed to the uttermost. I think it right to be candid with you. The life before you will not be child's play, but I a.s.sure you that it may be mingled with much that will be pleasant and hearty if you choose to set about it in the right way. Well, then, to be short about it. There is no chance whatever of our getting through the winter in this s.h.i.+p comfortably, or even safely, unless the strictest discipline is maintained aboard. I know, for I've been in similar circ.u.mstances before, that when cold and hunger, and, it may be, sickness press upon us--should it please the Almighty to send these on us in great severity--you will feel duty to be irksome, and you'll think it useless, and perhaps be tempted to mutiny. Now, I ask you solemnly, while your minds are clear from all prejudices, each individually to sign a written code of laws, and a written promise that you will obey the same, and help me to enforce them even with the punishment of _death_, if need be. Now, lads, will you agree to that?"

"Agreed! agreed!" cried the men at once, and in a tone of prompt decision that convinced their leader he had their entire confidence--a matter of the highest importance in the critical circ.u.mstances in which they were placed.

"Well, then, I'll read the rules. They are few, but sufficiently comprehensive:--

"1st. Prayers shall be read every morning before breakfast, unless circ.u.mstances render it impossible to do so."

The captain laid down the paper, and looked earnestly at the men.

"My lads, I have never felt so strongly as I now do the absolute need we have of the blessing and guidance of the Almighty, and I am persuaded that it is our duty as well as our interest to begin, not only the Sabbath, but _every_ day with prayer.

"2nd. The ordinary duties of the s.h.i.+p shall be carried on, the watches regularly set and relieved, regular hours observed, and the details of duty attended to in the usual way, as when in harbour.

"3rd. The officers shall take watch and watch about as heretofore, except when required to do otherwise. The log-books, and meteorological observations, etc., shall be carried on as usual.

"4th. The captain shall have supreme and absolute command as when at sea; but he, on his part, promises that, should any peculiar circ.u.mstance arise in which the safety of the crew or s.h.i.+p shall be implicated, he will, if the men are so disposed, call a council of the whole crew, in which case the decision of the majority shall become law, but the minority, in that event, shall have it in their option to separate from the majority and carry along with them their share of the general provisions.

"5th. Disobedience to orders shall be punishable according to the decision of a council to be appointed specially for the purpose of framing a criminal code, hereafter to be submitted for the approval of the crew."

The rules above laid down were signed by every man in the s.h.i.+p. Several of them could not write, but these affixed a cross (x) at the foot of the page, against which their names were written by the captain in presence of witnesses, which answered the same purpose. And from that time, until events occurred which rendered all such rules unnecessary, the work of the s.h.i.+p went on pleasantly and well.

CHAPTER X.

_Beginning of winter--Meetuck effects a remarkable change in the men's appearance--Mossing, and working, and plans for a winter campaign_.

In August the first frost came and formed "young ice" on the sea, but this lasted only for a brief hour or two, and was broken up by the tide and melted. By the 10th of September the young ice cemented the floes of last year's ice together, and soon rendered the ice round the s.h.i.+p immovable. Hummocks cl.u.s.tered round several rocky islets in the neighbourhood, and the rising and falling of the tide covered the sides of the rocks with bright crystals. All the feathered tribes took their departure for less rigorous climes, with the exception of a small white bird about the size of a sparrow, called the snow-bird, which is the last to leave the icy North. Then a tremendous storm arose, and the sea became choked up with icebergs and floes, which the frost soon locked together into a solid ma.s.s. Towards the close of the storm snow fell in great abundance, and when the mariners ventured again to put their heads up the opened hatchways, the decks were knee-deep, the drift to windward was almost level with the bulwarks, every yard was edged with white, every rope and cord had a light side and a dark, every point and truck had a white b.u.t.ton on it, and every hole, corner, crack, and crevice was choked up.

The land and the sea were also clothed with this spotless garment, which is indeed a strikingly appropriate emblem of purity, and the only dark objects visible in the landscape were those precipices which were too steep for the snow to lie on, the towering form of the giant flagstaff, and the leaden clouds that rolled angrily across the sky. But these leaden clouds soon rolled off, leaving a blue wintry sky and a bright sun behind.

The storm blew itself out early in the morning, and at breakfast-time on that day, when the sun was just struggling with the last of the clouds, Captain Guy remarked to his friends who were seated round the cabin table, "Well, gentlemen, we must begin hard work to-day."

"Hard work, captain!" exclaimed Fred Ellice, pausing for a second or two in the hard work of chewing a piece of hard salt junk; "why, what do you call the work we've been engaged in for the last few weeks?"

"Play, my lad; that was only play--just to bring our hands in, before setting to work in earnest!--What do you think of the health of the men, doctor?"

"Never was better; but I fear the hospital will soon fill if you carry out your threat in regard to work."

"No fear," remarked the second mate; "the more work the better health is my experience. Busy men have no time to git seek."

"No doubt of it, sir," said the first mate, bolting a large mouthful of pork. "Nothing so good for 'em as work."

"There are two against you, doctor," said the captain.

"Then it's two to two," cried Fred, as he finished breakfast; "for I quite agree with Tom, and with that excellent proverb which says, 'All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.'"