The Lifeboat

by R. M. Ballantyne

  CHAPTER TWENTY.

  A FIRE AT SEA.

  On the troubled breast of the Atlantic, a little to the southward ofthat great collection of sea-weed, known by the name of the SargassoSea, lay a large ship.

  She was in distress, for her flag was hoisted with the Union Jack down.The nature of her distress was apparent from a column of thick smokethat issued from the fore-hatch. The most terrible of all calamitieshad befallen her--she was on fire!

  That she was an emigrant ship was apparent from the great number ofhuman beings--men, women, and children--who crowded her decks. Beforethe fire broke out she had weathered a severe gale, the effects of whichhad not yet passed away, for, although there was little wind, the waveswere still high, and the burning ship rolled and plunged heavily.

  How the fire originated no one could tell, but the instant it wasdiscovered, the captain, who was a brave and able man, took promptmeasures for its extinction. But his utmost efforts failed of success,because (the old story) there was _no suitable machinery on board forthe extinction of fire_! The owners of this ship, however, were not,like too many, utterly regardless of human life. On the contrary theyhad done a great deal--much more than is done by many ship-owners--forthe comfort and safety of those who had entrusted their lives to them.There were boats on board sufficient to carry the entire crew andpassengers; and two of these were lifeboats. There was also a largesupply of life-buoys and life-jackets; the latter being made of cork, insuch a form that the wearers might be able to work in them withoutinconvenience. But in preparing the ship for sea, fire had not beensufficiently considered. There was no fire-engine aboard. Bucketsthere were, and these were plied with vigour, but, as we have said,without success.

  Finding that the fire continued to gain strength, the captain orderedthe ship to be scuttled; in other words, to be flooded by opening thelower ports and letting the sea rush in. The ship was one of those oldEast Indiamen, which in former days carried guns and marines like ourmen-of-war. The ports were soon knocked out, and the sea burst in,foaming and splashing like a mill-race when the sluice is drawn as itswept towards the hold, carrying boxes, bulk-heads, loose furniture andall before it. When it poured in a mighty cataract into the hold, theterrified multitude that crowded the upper deck entertained the hope fora few minutes that the fire would certainly be put out. Their hope wasquickly crushed, for the ship soon gave signs of being waterlogged andthreatened to settle down, rendering it necessary to close the portsbefore the fire was subdued.

  A wail of despair rose, from them when this was done, for now they knewthat the ship was doomed, and that death in two of its most appallingforms stared them in the face. The scene that followed washeart-rending. The more timid among the passengers lost self-command.Some fell on their knees, and with bitter cries implored God to havemercy on them. Others took passionate farewell of each other, or satclinging to each other in the silence of despair. Many became frantic,rushed about the decks and tore their hair, and a few of the braverspirits moved calmly and silently about, doing anything that required tobe done, or coolly making preparation for the last struggle.

  Among these last were several women, who, sustained by the Christian'shope, went about comforting their companions and calming the poorchildren. In some cases they became the centres of little groups of menand women, who listened intently while they read the word of God, orjoined with them in prayer. Many cursing lips had become silent now, ortremblingly attempted to call on our Saviour, for the first time, _inearnest_.

  Meanwhile the officers and crew were not idle. Preparation was made tolower the boats. The lifebuoys and belts were got ready, and everythingwas done to facilitate the abandoning of the vessel before she should beutterly consumed.

  The ordinary ship's boats were converted into lifeboats by the simplecontrivance of fastening small empty casks all round them under theseats, and a large-sized cask in the stern and bow of each.

  As the sea was still running high, the operation of lowering was amatter of difficulty and danger. The women and children were put intothe first boat while it hung suspended at the davits. Two men stood byto detach the hooks that held the boat by the bow and stern the instantshe should touch the water. This was the moment of danger; for, if oneman should succeed in this and the other fail, the inevitableconsequence would be that the stern or the bow of the boat would bejerked into the air, and the people in her hurled into the sea.

  Four boats were lowered and cast off in safety. The fifth, whichcontained men chiefly, with only two or three women and no children, wasupset. The man in the bow could not detach his hook; it remained fastwhile the stern hook was cast off; and when the ship rose it hungsuspended by the bow. Instantly the people in her were struggling inthe waves. The captain, knowing that this might occur, had ordered adozen of the strongest of his men to put on cork life-belts, and standin the main chains to be in readiness. These at once leaped into thesea, and supported the people, until another boat was lowered for them.But a misfortune here befell them. While one of the boats was swingingit was dashed against the ship's side so violently as to be stove in andrendered useless. This accident happened also to another boat, so that,even by overloading those that remained, it would now be impossible toaccommodate every one.

  In this dilemma, the captain at once gave orders to heave overboard allthe spare spars and the hencoops, together with enough of cordage forthe construction of a raft. This was promptly done, and the raft wassufficiently far advanced in the course of an hour to admit of theemigrants being placed upon it.

  It was during the formation of this raft that the great value of thelife-belts became manifest. While the spars were in a loose andhalf-fastened state, the men were obliged to work in the water. To havedone this without the support of the belts would have been veryexhausting, almost impossible; but with their floating power the mencould work with both hands, and move about almost as freely in the wateras on land.

  The life-buoys were also of the greatest value at this time; for theburning ship became so hot, before the raft was ready, that thepassengers were obliged to jump overboard and get upon it as they bestcould, or float about until there was room for them all. In thesecircumstances the buoys were the means of saving the lives of some whocould not swim.

  It was late in the evening when the raft was commenced, and night wasfar advanced before it was completed. During all this time the boatsremained close to it, after having hauled it a short distance from theburning ship, which latter was now a mass of flame from the deck to themast-heads, rendering the whole scene as bright as day. After therigging was consumed, and the masts had fallen over the side, the hullcontinued to burn, for a considerable time, with less flame but with adull red glow that afforded sufficient light to the workers. It wasfortunate the light lasted so long, for the night was so dark that itwould otherwise have been almost impossible to have worked at the raft--tossed and rolled about as it was by the heavy sea.

  It was a strange weird sight, that busy glowing scene of disaster outupon the black ocean at midnight; and wonderful--unaccountable--did itappear in the eyes of the night-watch on board the "Trident," as thatship came over the sea, ploughing up the water before a steady breezewhich had sprung up soon after the sun went down.

  "What can it be?" said Mr Denham to the captain when they firstobserved the light on the horizon.

  "A steamer, perhaps," replied the captain.

  "No steamer ever spouted fire like that," said Bax, who was the onlyother passenger on deck, all the others having gone to rest; "thesteamers on the American lakes and rivers do indeed spout sparks andflames of fire like giant squibs, but then they burn wood. Oceansteamers never flare up like that. I fear it is a ship on fire."

  "Think you so? Steer straight for it, captain," said Mr Denham, whoseheart, under the influence of bad health, and, latterly, of considerableexperience in the matter of human suffering, had become a little softerthan it used to be.

  The ship's course w
as altered, and long before the wreck was reached herdecks swarmed with men and women who had got up in haste at the firstmention of the word "fire"--some of them with a confused notion thattheir own vessel was in danger!

  It was indeed a novel and terribly interesting sight to most of those onboard the "Trident." At first they saw the burning vessel like a redmeteor rising on the waves and disappearing in the hollows; then theflames grew fierce, and spread a halo round the doomed ship that shoneout vividly against the surrounding darkness. This latter was renderedintensely deep by contrast with the light. Then the masts went over theside, and a bright volume of sparks and scattered tongues of flame shotup into, the sky, after which the hull shone like a glow-worm until theydrew quite near. The busy workers at the raft were too anxiously intenton their occupation to observe the approach of the "Trident," whoseblack hull was nearly invisible, and whose small lanterns might wellhave been overlooked on such an occasion.

  "They don't see us," observed Mr Denham.

  This was abundantly evident. Within the circle of red light, they couldsee the raft and the boats floating close to it; the men in cork-jacketstoiling in the water and on floating spars, with ropes, handspikes, andaxes. It was not until the "Trident" herself came within the circle oflight, and hove-to, with flapping sails, that the people in the boatsbecame aware of her presence.

  Then, indeed, there arose a shout of joy such as could be uttered onlyby men and women snatched suddenly and unexpectedly from the very jawsof death. Again and again it burst forth, and was replied to by thepeople in the "Trident," many of whom were so excited by the scene, andso overjoyed at the thought of having come up in time to save so manyhuman beings, that they burst into tears; while others went down ontheir knees and thanked God fervently.

  Seeing that the people were getting excited, and knowing that order mustbe preserved, if the work that lay before them was to be done speedilyand without accident, the captain sprang into the rigging, ordered thewomen and children to go below, and assured the male passengers that ifany of them showed a disposition to be obstinate or unruly they alsoshould be ordered below. This had the desired effect. Order was atonce restored, and the captain then called for volunteers from among thestoutest of those on board to go into the chains, and lift the women andchildren out of the boats.

  The appeal was responded to by all the strong men in the ship--foremostand, strongest among whom was our friend Bax. From among these thecaptain selected the men that seemed best able for the work theyundertook to do; and this, be it understood, was no child's play.

  The state of the sea rendered it extremely difficult and dangerous tobring the boats alongside, heavily laden as they were with human beings.To get the men on board would be difficult enough, even although theywould in most cases be able to spring, and lay hold of ropes, andotherwise help themselves; but to get out the women and children by suchmeans was not to be thought of. The men of the "Trident" who had thestrongest arms and chests were therefore sent into the chains, wherethey leaned forward in slings with outstretched arms, and whenever theboats sheered up close enough they caught the women or children in theirvice-like grasp and dragged them on board.

  Bax, owing to his unusual strength and breadth of shoulders, waspeculiarly fitted for this laborious duty. His long reach of armenabled him to stretch far beyond the others, and in several instanceshe caught hold of and rescued women after his companions had failed.Thus a much larger portion of the work fell upon him than on any of theothers.

  In this sort of work Tommy Bogey was of no use whatever; and severelydid his youth and want of physical strength press upon his spirits thatnight, poor boy! But Tommy's nature would not allow him to sit down anddo nothing. Feeling that he could not do manly work, he set himselfwith right good-will to womanly employment. He assisted in carrying thechildren below when they were handed over the side, helped to stripthem, and brought dry clothing and blankets, besides doing an immenseamount of what may be termed stewardess' work for the poor ladies.There were others on board who worked willingly and well, but none whowere so ubiquitous as he; none who knew so thoroughly what to do and howto do it, and none, certainly, who did everything with such asuperabundance of energy.

  Once or twice Tommy stopped in the middle of these occupations to seehow Bax was getting on; for to his rather partial eyes it seemed thathis friend was doing the whole work, and that everybody else was merelylooking on!

  On one of these occasions he saw Bax sustaining the weight of an old manand a young woman.

  The girl was the old man's daughter; she had clung to him in the boatand refused to let him go, having lost self-command through terror.Ignorant of this, and observing that the old man could not help himself,Bax grasped him under the arms the first time he came within reach. Theboat was immediately swept away by the passing wave, leaving the old manand the girl, who still clung with a death-like grasp to him, suspendedin the air. Bax's great strength enabled him to support this doubleweight, but he could not draw them up. A comrade stooped to assist him,but the strain on the sling was so great that it gave way, and Bax, withhis burden, fell into the sea like lead.

  Tommy saw this happen. There were plenty of loose ropes about. Heseized the end of one and leaped overboard instantly. He sank for asecond or two, and on coming to the surface looked hastily round. Ahand was raised above the water near him. He knew it to be that of hisfriend, and struck out for it, but it disappeared. Again it rose, andthere was a convulsive grasping of the fingers. Tommy made one strokeand placed the rope in it. The fingers closed like a vice. Next momentthe ship rose and lifted Bax completely out of the water, with the oldman and the girl still clinging to him. Before the ship sank again theboat sheered up, and they were all pulled into it!

  To leap on board the "Trident" again, and resume his position with a newand stronger sling, was comparatively easy work for Bax. Tommyclambered up, too, close behind him. Passing a strong rope round hisfriend's waist, he said quietly:

  "It won't do to risk that again."

  "True, Tommy," said Bax; "run below and fetch me a glass o' brandy, lad.That last plunge almost floored me."

  The boy leaped over the side and dived below. He reappeared in a fewseconds with a tin can, with which he clambered over the side into thechains, and held it to his friend's lips. Bax drained it at a draught,and Tommy left him without another word.

  The whole of this scene was enacted with the utmost speed and energy.The spectators seemed to be paralysed with amazement at the quietself-possession of the man and the boy, both of whom appeared to divineeach other's thoughts, and to work into each other's hands with theprecision and certainty of a machine; they did it all, too, as if theywere entirely alone in the work. Until now they had been watched withbreathless anxiety; but when Tommy gave Bax the can of brandy, and thengravely went below with a baby that had just been rescued in his arms,there arose a wild cheer of admiration, not unmingled with laughter,from those who had witnessed his conduct.

  But their attention was soon turned again to the boats, two of whichstill remained with their freight on the heaving water. Many incidentsof a thrilling nature were enacted that night. One of the mostinteresting, perhaps, occurred soon after that which has just beenrelated.

  In one of the boats was the young wife of an emigrant, who, having beencompelled to separate from his wife and child when they left the burningship in the first boat, had come alongside of the "Trident" in anotherboat. Being an active man, he had caught a rope and hauled himself onboard some time before his wife was rescued. The poor young mother hadtied her infant tightly to her bosom by means of a shawl, in order tomake sure that she should share its fate, whatever that might be.

  When the boat sheered up alongside, her husband was standing in thechains, anxious to render her assistance. The woman chanced to comenear to Bax, but not sufficiently so to grasp him. She had witnessedhis great power and success in saving others, and a feeling of strongconfidence made her resolve to
be caught hold of by him, if possible.She therefore drew back from the grasp of a stout fellow who held outhis brawny arms to her.

  Bax noticed this occur twice, and understood the poor woman's motive.Feeling proud of the confidence thus placed in him, he watched hisopportunity. The boat surged up, but did not come near enough. Itswept away from the ship, and the poor woman's hands played nervouslyabout the folds of the shawl, as she tried to adjust them more securelyround her infant. Again the boat rose on a wave; the woman stood ready,and Bax stooped. It did not come quite near enough, but thedisappointed woman, becoming desperate, suddenly put her foot on thegunwale, stood up at full length, and stretched out her arms. Bax justcaught her by the hands when the boat was swept from under her.

  Similar incidents had occurred so often that little anxiety was felt;but our hero's strength was now thoroughly exhausted. He could not haulher up, he could only hold on and shout for assistance. It was promptlyrendered, but before the poor woman could be rescued the infant slippedfrom the shawl, which the straightening of the mother's arms and hersuspended position had loosened. A cry burst from the agonised father,who stooped, and stood in the attitude of one ready to plunge into thesea. The mother felt the child slipping, and a piercing shriek escapedfrom her as she raised her knees and caught it between them. Withmuscular power, intensified by a mother's love, she held the infant inthis strange position until both were drawn up and placed in safety onthe deck!

  This was the last of Bax's achievements on that eventful night. He wasso thoroughly worn out by the long-continued and tremendous exertions hehad been called on to make, that his strength, great though it was,broke down. He staggered down into the cabin, flung himself, wet as hewas, on a couch, and almost instantly fell into a sleep so deep that hecould not be roused for more than a moment or two at a time. Seeingthis, Tommy bade the bystanders leave him alone for a few minutes untilhe should come back, when, according to his own expression, "he wouldscrew him up all right and tight!" Every one was by this time sothoroughly convinced that the boy was quite able to manage his friendthat they stood still awaiting his return with much curiosity.

  Tommy soon returned with a tumbler of hot brandy and water, followed bythe steward with a pile of blankets.

  "Hold that a minute," said the boy, handing the tumbler to a little oldgentleman who stood swaying to and fro with the motion of the vessel,and staring at Bax as if he had been a half-drowned sea-monster.

  "Now, then," cried Tommy, punching his friend severely in the ribs,seizing the hair of his head with both hands, and shaking him until hisneck seemed dislocated,--to the surprise of all and the horror of not afew!

  The result was that Bax grumbled angrily, half awoke, and raised himselfon one elbow.

  "Drink, you tom-tit!" said the boy, catching the tumbler from the oldgentleman, and applying it to his friend's lips.

  Bax smiled, drank, and fell back on the pillow with a deep sigh ofsatisfaction. Then Tommy spread blanket after blanket over him, and"tucked him in" so neatly and with such a business-like air, that two orthree mothers then present expressed their admiration and wonder inaudible whispers.

  While Bax was being thus carefully tended by Tommy and a knot ofsympathisers, the passengers and crew vied with each other in making therescued people as comfortable as circumstances would permit.

  Meanwhile the "Trident" was again laid on her course, and, thus crowdedwith human beings, steered before favouring breezes for the shores ofold England.