The Pirate Island: A Story of the South Pacific

by Harry Collingwood

  CHAPTER SIX.

  DISMASTED.

  As the hurricane swooped down upon the ship, Captain Staunton and MrBowles sprang with one accord aft to the helm. It was well that theydid so; for when the vessel was thrown upon her beam-ends the wheel flewsuddenly and violently round, taking unawares the unfortunate man whowas stationed at it and hurling him far over the lee quarter into thesea, where he immediately sank, being probably disabled by a blow fromthe rapidly revolving spokes. The two officers saw in a moment that thepoor fellow was irretrievably lost, so without wasting time in uselessefforts to save him they devoted themselves forthwith to the task ofpreserving the ship. The wheel was put hard up, with the object ofgetting the craft before the wind; and then the two men stood anxiouslywatching and awaiting the result. Two or three minutes passed, andthere still lay the ship prone on her side, with her lee topsail andlower yard-arms dipping in the water, she would _not_ pay off.

  "Bowles," said Captain Staunton, lashing the wheel as he spoke, "makeyour way forward; muster the carpenter and one or two of the mostreliable men you have, and bring them aft with axes to cut away themizen-mast; we _must_ get her before it somehow; should it come anystronger she will `turn the turtle' with us. Station your men; but donot cut until I hold up my hand."

  Mr Bowles nodded his head; and then set out upon his difficult journey,climbing up to windward by the grating upon which the helmsman usuallystood, and then working his way along the deck by grasping the bulwarks,which on the poop were only about a foot above the deck. On reachingthe wake of the mizen-mast he was compelled to pause in order to helpRex Fortescue and Violet out of their dangerous position, a position ofcourse altogether untenable now that the order had been given to cutaway the mast. This, with Brook's assistance, he with some difficultyaccomplished, landing them safely alongside Blanche and Bob upon thecompanion. The slight delay thus incurred threatened to have the mostdisastrous consequences; for when the chief mate was once more free toproceed upon his errand he became aware that the ship's inclination hadsensibly increased, to such an extent indeed that he momentarilyexpected to feel her rolling bottom-up. Glancing aft once more, hecaught the eye of Captain Staunton, who immediately raised his hand.This the mate took to mean an order to cut away the mast with allpossible expedition; and whipping out his keen broad-bladed knife hethrust it into Brook's hand, and tapping the lanyards of the mizenrigging roared in his ear the one word "Cut."

  Then without pausing another instant he proceeded as rapidly as he couldforward, much impeded by the continuous blinding shower of spindriftwhich swept across the vessel, and compelled to cling with all hisstrength to whatever he laid hold of in his progress, in order to escapebeing literally blown away.

  Meanwhile Brook, who now showed that he was made of far better stuffthan anyone had hitherto suspected, began without a moment's delay tovigorously attack the rigid and tightly strained lanyards of the weathermizen rigging, being speedily joined by Bob, who turned Blanche over toRex Fortescue's care the moment he saw that he could be of use.Steadily and rapidly they hacked and notched away at the hard rope,working literally for their lives, for it was now no longer possible todoubt that the _Galatea_ was slowly but surely capsizing. The upturnedside which supported them was becoming every moment more nearlyhorizontal, the lee yard-arms were steadily burying themselves deeperand deeper in the water, and it became apparent that unless relieved,another minute would see the ship bottom-up. Mr Bowles, meanwhile, wasout of sight forward, hidden by the gloom and the cloud of spindrift.

  At last one of the lanyards was severed by the keen blade in Brook'shand. The others attached to the same shroud immediately began torender through the deadeye, throwing an extra strain upon the lanyardsof the other shrouds, one of which immediately parted under Bob's knife;then _twang, twang, twang_, one after the other, they rapidly yielded,until, as the last lanyard parted, _crash_ went the mizen-mast short offby the deck and away to leeward, carrying away the saloon skylight as itwent.

  A perceptible shock was felt as the mast went over the side, and everyone watched anxiously to see what the effect would be. Thedisappointment was extreme when it was seen that the relief was notsufficient to enable the ship to recover herself; she still lay downupon her side, and though she now no longer threatened momentarily tocapsize, she neither righted nor paid off.

  The chief mate now reappeared upon the poop, having by this timemustered a gang of men, whom he had left clinging to the main-rigging,thinking it not unlikely the main-mast would also have to go.

  By the time he reached Captain Staunton's side the mind of the latterwas made up.

  "It is no good, Bowles," he said; "she will do nothing; we must partwith the main-mast also. Cut it away at once, and let us get her uponan even keel again if we can."

  Mr Bowles hurried forward, and as soon as he became visible to the menclustered about the main-rigging he made a sign to them to cut. Theaxes gleamed in the darkened air, a few rapid strokes were struck uponthe lanyards of the rigging, and the main-mast bowed, crashed off atabout ten feet from the deck, and was carried by the wind clear of thelee rail into the sea.

  Another shock, almost as if the ship had struck something, accompaniedthe fall of the main-mast, and then, laboriously at first but finallywith an almost sudden jerk, the _Galatea_ swung upright, and, paying offat the same time, began to draw through the water, her speed increasingto some seven knots when she got fairly away before the wind, and wasrelieved of the wreckage towing alongside.

  The well was sounded, and to everybody's intense relief some six inchesonly of water was found in the hold. The pumps were rigged, manned, andset to work, and the water was so speedily got rid of as to show that ithad penetrated only through some portion of the upper works.

  The first mad fury of the hurricane was by this time over, but it stillblew far too heavily to admit of any other course than running deadbefore it. The sea, which had hitherto been a level plane of fleecywhite foam, now showed symptoms of rising, and the aspect of the sky wasstill such as to force upon the voyagers the conclusion that they werenot yet by any means out of danger. What _could_ be done, however,_was_ done; and the entire crew were set to work, some to get uppreventer back-stays and secure the fore-mast, and others to convert thespare spars into jury-masts.

  The passengers, meanwhile, had made their way down into the saloondirectly the ship recovered herself, where they found Lance Evelin pale,dazed, and barely conscious, bleeding from a very ugly wound in thetemple caused by his having fallen heavily against the brass-bound edgeof one of the saloon stairs. Mrs Staunton was doing her best single-handed to staunch the blood and bind up the wound, with little May onher knees beside the patient, sobbing as though her tender child's heartwould break, for Lance had taken greatly to the sweet little creature,and, grave and quiet though he was in general, was always ready to rompwith her or tell her the most marvellous tales. Mr Dale had retired tohis cabin and shut himself in. The new arrivals very promptly affordedtheir assistance, and in a short time Lance was laid carefully in hisberth, and packed there with flags, shawls, and other yielding materialsin such a way as to prevent the increasing motion of the ship fromcausing him any avoidable discomfort.

  Dinner that day was a very comfortless meal. By the time that it wasserved the sea had risen so much as to render the "fiddles" necessary onthe cabin table, and even with their aid it was difficult to prevent theviands from being scattered upon the floor. The ship, running beforethe wind, and with only the fore-mast to steady her, rolled like ahogshead, and the act of dining was therefore quite an acrobaticperformance, demanding so much activity of eye and hand as to completelymar the enjoyment of the good things which, in spite of the weather,graced the board.

  The conversation at table turned naturally upon the disaster which hadbefallen the ship; the passengers being all curious to know how it wouldaffect them.

  "I suppose it means another beastly detention," grumbled Dale. "Theship can't sail all the way to E
ngland with only one mast, can she,captain?"

  "Well, scarcely," replied Captain Staunton. "The trip home _might_ bemade under jury-masts; but it would be a longer and more tedious voyagethan any of us would care for, I fancy, and at all events I have nointention of attempting it. Our nearest port is Otago; but as we arepretty certain to get westerly winds again as soon as this breeze haspiped itself out, and as the current would also be against us if weattempted to return to the westward, I shall endeavour to reachValparaiso, where we may hope to restore the poor old barkie's clippedwings."

  "Umph! I thought so," snarled Dale. "And how long shall we be detainedat that wretched hole?"

  "It will depend on circumstances," answered Captain Staunton, "but Ithink you may reckon on being a month there."

  "A month!" ejaculated Dale, too much disgusted to say another word.

  "A month!" exclaimed Rex Fortescue, "Jolly! I shall explore the Andesand do a little shooting. I daresay Evelin will join me--or us rather--for I suppose you will go as well, won't you, Brook?"

  "Oh yes, I'll go, certainly; 'tain't often as I has a holiday, so I mayas well take one when I can get it. But what's them Handles we're toexplore, Mr Fortescue? Mr Dale 'll come with us too, I'm sure; he'sfond of sleeping in a tent, ain't you, sir?"

  "_Don't_ be such a fool, Brook," retorted that worthy. "If ever we getto Valparaiso, which I think is very doubtful, I shall go homeoverland."

  "I am afraid that before you can do that, Mr Dale, you or someone elsewill have to bridge the Atlantic," remarked Captain Staunton, as heleisurely sipped his wine. "I am extremely sorry for the untoward eventwhich has interrupted our voyage, but it was one of those occurrenceswhich no skill or foresight could have prevented, so I think the bestthing you can do is to make as light of it as possible. Worse thingsthan being dismasted have happened at sea before now, and I, for one, amsincerely thankful that we are still above water instead of beneath it,as seemed more than likely at one time."

  So saying the skipper rose, and with a bow left the saloon for the deck.

  The sky still looked wild, but there were occasional momentary breaks init, through which the lustrous stars of the southern heavens beamedgloriously down for an instant ere they were shut in again by thescurrying clouds; and the sea, which now ran high, afforded amagnificent spectacle as the huge billows raced after the ship, eachwith its foaming crest a cataract of liquid fire. And as the shiprolled, and the water washed impetuously across her decks, the darkplanking gleamed with millions of tiny fairy-like stars, which waxed andwaned with every oscillation of the vessel. The fore-mast had by thistime been made secure, and, it being too dark to work any longer toadvantage, the men were busy re-lashing the spars which had been castadrift in the process of overhauling and selecting those most suitablefor jury-masts. Mr Bowles, who had hurried up from the saloon afterswallowing the merest apology for a dinner, had charge of the deck; andCaptain Staunton joining him, the pair began to discuss the future withits plans and probabilities.

  Two days later saw the _Galatea_ making her way to the northward andeastward under a very respectable jury barque-rig, which enabled her toshow her fore-topmast stay-sail, reefed fore-sail, and double-reefedfore-topsail on the fore-mast; a main topsail with topgallant-sail overit on the spar which did duty for a main-mast; and a reefed mizen setupon the jib-boom, which had been rigged in, passed aft, and set on end,properly stayed, with its heel stepped down through the hole in the poopfrom which the mizen-mast had erstwhile sprung.

  The gale had blown itself out; the sea was rapidly going down; the windhad hauled round from the westward once more; and the ship was slippingalong at the rate of some five knots an hour. The minor damages had allbeen made good, excepting that done to the saloon skylight by the fallof the mizen-mast, and upon this job the carpenter, who was an ambitiousman in his own way and not altogether devoid of taste, was taxing hisskill to the utmost in an effort to make the new skylight both astronger and a more handsome piece of work than its predecessor. Thebarometer was slowly but steadily rising; and everything seemed to pointin the direction of fine weather. Lucky was it for our voyagers thatsuch was the case.

  The passengers had by this time got over their recent alarm, and weresettling back into their old ways. Even the impatient and discontentedDale seemed to have got over to a great extent his annoyance at thedelay which the loss of the masts involved; and, catching the contagionof the good spirits which animated the rest of the party, was actuallybetrayed into an effort or two to make himself agreeable that evening atthe dinner-table. So amiable was this generally irritable individualthat he positively listened with equanimity to the plans which Fortescueand Evelin--the latter with a broad patch of plaster across his brow--were discussing relative to a properly organised sporting excursion intothe Cordilleras--or Andes, as they indifferently termed them, much tothe perplexity of Brook--nor did he allow himself to show any signs ofannoyance when the last-named individual sought to ruffle his (Dale's)feathers, as he elegantly termed it, by urging him to join theexpedition; on the contrary, to the secret but carefully concealedconsternation of Rex and Lance, the prime movers in the matter, Mr Daleseemed more than half disposed to yield to Brook's jesting entreatiesthat he would make one of the party. It almost seemed as though thisintensely selfish and egotistical individual were at last becomingashamed of his own behaviour and had resolved upon an attempt to improveit.

  Dinner over, the ladies retired to the poop to witness the sunset, Rexand Lance accompanying them; while Dale and Brook remained below,lingering over their wine.

  "Oh, how refreshing this cool evening breeze is, after the closeness andheat of the saloon!" exclaimed Violet as, leaning on Rex Fortescue'sarm, she gazed astern where the sun was just sinking out of sightbeneath the purple horizon, leaving behind him a cloudless sky whichglowed in his track with purest gold and rose tints, merging insensiblyinto a clear ultramarine, deepening in tone as the eye travelled up tothe zenith and thence downward toward the eastern quarter where, almostbefore the upper rim of the sun's golden disc had sunk out of sight, agreat star beamed out from the velvety background, glowing with thatsoft mellow effulgence which seems peculiar to southern skies.

  "Yes," responded Rex, "it _is_ cool and decidedly pleasant. Do you notthink it is almost _too_ cool, however, to be braved without a shawl orwrap of some kind after being cooped up for an hour in that roastingsaloon. I cannot think why it should have been so warm this evening; tomy mind it was hotter even than when we were crossing the line on theoutward voyage."

  Blanche and Lance, who were standing near enough to overhear theseremarks, were also of opinion that it had been quite uncomfortably warmbelow, and the two gentlemen, who by this time had arrived at that stageof intimacy with the ladies which seemed to justify them in their owneyes for assuming an occasional dictatorial air toward their faircompanions, forthwith insisted on returning below to seek for shawls orwraps of some kind.

  "Phew! it is like walking into a Turkish bath to come in here,"exclaimed Rex, as he passed through the saloon doors; "and what apeculiar smell!"

  "Yes," assented Lance. "Smells like oil or grease of some kind. Iexpect the steward has spilled some lamp-oil down in the lazarette, andthe heat is causing the odour to rise. I hope it will pass off beforewe turn-in to-night, for it is decidedly objectionable."

  "Do you know, Miss Lascelles," said Lance, as he settled himselfcomfortably in a chair by that young lady's side, after carefullyenveloping her in a soft fleecy wrap, "I have an idea in connection withthat touching story you told me the other night respecting your uncle'sloss of his wife and infant son."

  "Have you, indeed?" said Blanche. "And pray, what is it, Mr Evelin?"

  "Simply this," replied Lance. "I have an impression--almost aconviction--that your cousin is living, and that I can put my hand uponhim when required."

  "Oh, Mr Evelin! what is this you say?" exclaimed Blanche eagerly."Have you, indeed, met with anyone in the course of your wanderin
gs,whose history is such that you believe him to be my dear little long-lost cousin, Dick? I do not think you would speak heedlessly or withoutdue consideration upon such a subject; and if your supposition should becorrect, and you can furnish a clue to the discovery of my missingrelatives, you will give new life to my uncle, and lay us all under suchan obligation as we shall never be able to repay."

  "Do not place too much confidence in the idea that it would be quiteimpossible to repay even such an obligation as the one of which youspeak," said Lance in a low and meaning tone which somehow causedBlanche's cheek to flush and her heart to flutter a little. "You areright in supposing," he continued, "that I would not make such anassertion without due consideration. I have thought much upon the storyyou confided to me; and, comparing it with another which I have alsoheard, I am of opinion that I have discovered a clue which is worthfollowing up, if only for the satisfaction of ascertaining whether it bea true or a false one. If true, your poor aunt is without doubt longsince dead; but your cousin is still alive, and--there he stands!"pointing to Bob, who was in the waist leaning musingly over the leerail.

  "Where?" asked Blanche, looking quite bewildered.

  "_There_," replied Evelin, again pointing to Bob. "If my supposition iscorrect, that lad Bob is your cousin, Miss Lascelles."

  "Impossible!" exclaimed Blanche. "Oh, Mr Evelin, tell me:--What hasled you to think so?"

  "I will," answered Lance. "But I hope the idea is not very distressingto you. It is true that the lad's present position is--well, notperhaps exactly worthy of the cousin of--"

  "Oh no; do not say that, Mr Evelin, I beg," interrupted Blanche. "Iwas not thinking of that in the least. If Bob indeed prove to be mycousin, I shall certainly not be ashamed of him--quite the contrary; butyou took me so completely by surprise. I have ever pictured my lostcousin as a chubby little flaxen-haired baby boy, from always havingheard him so spoken of, I suppose; and I had forgotten for the momentthat, if alive, he must necessarily have grown into a young man. Butlet me hear why you have come to think that Robert may be my cousin; Iam all curiosity and impatience--woman-like, you see--in the presence ofa mystery."

  "Well," said Lance, "you doubtless remember that on one occasion Iremarked upon the striking resemblance he bears to you; and, I mighthave added, the still more striking resemblance between him and youruncle, Sir Richard. My somewhat bungling remark, as I at the timeconsidered it, led to your relating to me first the history of yourfriend Bob, and then that of your uncle's loss. As I listened to you,the idea dawned upon me that Bob and your lost cousin might possibly beone and the same individual I got the lad to tell me his story, whichwas naturally somewhat more full and circumstantial than your ownsketch; and comparing dates and so on, I have been led to the conclusionthat he may indeed prove to be Sir Richard's son. In the first place,his age, which of course can only be approximately guessed at, is aboutthe same as your cousin's would be, if alive. Next, there is the veryextraordinary likeness, almost _too_ striking, I think, to be merelyaccidental; and lastly, the clothes he wore when found, and which arestill in existence, I understand, are marked with the initials R.L.,which may stand for Richard Lascelles, the name, as I understood you,which your cousin bore."

  At this moment Captain Staunton made his appearance at the head of thesaloon staircase, and calling to the chief mate, said--

  "Mr Bowles, pass the word for the carpenter to come aft to the saloon_at once_, if you please. Let him look smart."

  The skipper then disappeared below again; but not before the passengers,who _were_ all by this time on the poop, had had time to observe thathis features wore a somewhat anxious expression.

  The word was passed; and Chips, who was on the forecastle smoking hispipe, at once came shambling aft. At the head of the companion-way heencountered the steward, who went up to Mr Bowles, said a word or twoto him in a low tone of voice, and then returned below again.

  Mr Bowles nodded; stepped quietly down to the main dock, and put hishead inside the door of the deck-house wherein Mr Dashwood was lodged;and in another moment the second mate came out, followed the chief up tothe poop, and took charge of the deck; Mr Bowles immediately proceedingbelow.

  No one but Lance appeared to take any particular notice of thesemovements, so quietly were they executed; and if he suspected thatanything was wrong he took care not to show it, but went on chattingwith Blanche upon the same subject as before. It may be, however, thathis thoughts wandered a little from the matter in hand, for once ortwice he halted and hesitated somewhat in his speech, and seemed toforget what he was talking about.

  A quarter of an hour passed away; and then Captain Staunton, followed bythe chief mate, came on deck. They walked as far as the break of thepoop together, and then Mr Bowles gave the word to "pipe all handsaft!"

  ("There _is_ something amiss," thought Lance.)

  In less than a minute the men were all mustered in the waist of theship, waiting wonderingly to hear what the skipper had to say, for itwas perfectly evident that Captain Staunton was about to address them.When the men were all assembled the captain turned to the passengers onthe poop, and said--

  "Ladies and gentlemen, have the goodness to come a little nearer me, ifyou please; what I have to say concerns all hands alike--those in thesaloon as well as those in the forecastle."

  The passengers moved forward as requested, Lance taking Blanche's handupon his arm and giving it a little reassuring squeeze as he did so.

  Captain Staunton then turned himself so that he could be heard by all,and began--

  "My friends, I have called you round me in order to communicate to youall a piece of very momentous intelligence. It is of a somewhat tryingnature; and therefore, before I go further, I must ask you to listen tome patiently, to obey orders implicitly, and above all, to preservecoolness and presence of mind. _With_ these, I have not a doubt that wecan successfully battle with the difficulty; _without_ them it will beimpossible for us to work effectively, and the consequences mustnecessarily be proportionately grave."

  He paused a moment; and then, seeing that every one appeared to beperfectly cool and steady, he added--

  "I greatly regret to say I have some cause for suspicion that _fire hasbroken out somewhere below_--steady, now! steady, lads; wait and hearall I have to say--I repeat I have a suspicion that fire may have brokenout on board; the temperature of the saloon is unaccountably hot, andthere is a strange smell below which may or may not be caused by fire.It is necessary that the matter should be looked into at once; and I askevery one here to lend me their best assistance. In case of my surmiseproving correct _keep cool_ and work your hardest, every man of you, andthen there is no reason whatever why we should not come easily out ofthe scrape. Mr Bowles and Mr Dashwood will each take charge of hisown watch. Mr Dashwood, get the fire-engine rigged and under weigh.Mr Bowles, rig the force-pump, get the deck-tubs filled, and arrangeyour watch in a line along the deck with all the buckets you can muster.Gentlemen," turning to the passengers, "be so good as to keep out ofthe men's way, and hold yourselves in readiness to assist in whatevermanner may be required. Now lads, go quietly to your posts, and do yourduty like Englishmen."