CHAPTER SEVEN.
There was not much time for examination before darkness set in, butenough to prove to the two seekers that there was not the slightestcause for anxiety respecting provisions; for, without taking intoconsideration what the sea and shore might afford them upon being tried,there was the full run of the ample stores provided for about a hundredpeople, and the great tanks of fresh water. In short, as Bostock putit:
"Why, there's enough for us three to live like fighting cocks for awhole year, sir, and to have company too. Then there's water ashore, aswe saw plainly enough, and there's sure to be something or another toeat there, besides cocoanuts, which aren't bad if you drink 'em. Boundto say there's hysters too, while, as for fish, I know what these watersare. You've only got to put a bit o' bait on a hook and hold it out,and the fish are so hungry for it that they'll jump out o' water or rushashore to catch it. Why, we're in luck, sir."
"Luck, Bostock?" said the doctor, sadly.
"Yes, sir, luck. It's an awful bad job for the old _Susan_ to bewrecked; but she's well insured, I've no doubt, and there must bedisasters at sea sometimes."
"And the passengers and crew, my man?" said the doctor, bitterly.
"Saved, every one of 'em, we hope and pray, sir, and as I said afore,pitying us poor chaps as they think warn't. Beg pardon, sir, you're agentleman and a scholar, while I'm only a poor uneddicated sort of afellow as never had any time for schooling but I've larnt a deal in mytime, not book larning, but useful stuff."
"Well," said the doctor, smiling, for the old sailor had stopped short;"why don't you go on, Bostock?"
"Thought I was getting too forrard, sir."
"No, no, go on; what were you about to say just now?"
"Well, sir, only this, that it's best to take things as they come andnot grumble. Here we are, unfortunate, as you may say, but what a lotworse off we might be. Little while ago, as we thought, there was youngMaster Carey dying as fast as he could, and us just waiting to go to thebottom. Now here's that there dear lad asleep comf'table and gettingbetter, and you and me with the pick o' the berths and the saloon all toourselves, getting ready to have a reg'lar good, square meal. Aren'tgot so werry much to grumble at, have we?"
Doctor Kingsmead gave the speaker a hearty slap on the shoulder.
"Bostock," he said, "you're a philosopher. There, we'll make the bestof things, and, in the hope that our poor friends are all saved, I willnot murmur against our fate."
"That's right, sir, and now if you don't mind my being a bit rough I'llbe cook and stooard, and you'll soon have your bit to eat, and whenyou've done--"
"You will have done too," said the doctor, "and we must dropdistinctions now. So help me make the coffee, and then we'll have ourmeal, and afterwards we must make our plans."
They made very few plans that night, for in spite of their long sleepthat day the exhaustion they had gone through during the typhoon stilltold upon them so that, after seeing to Carey, who was sleepingpeacefully enough, they took it in turns to keep watches of three hours'length, and passed the night sleeping or listening to the soft, low boomof the breakers on the reef.
The morning broke gloriously, and the sunshine and soft air seemed tosend a thrill of elasticity through the doctor, which grew into afeeling of joy as he examined his patient, who slept still as if he hadnot moved during the night.
He stepped out of the cabin to hear Bostock whistling away cheerily inthe steward's department: but the whistling ceased as soon as the doctorappeared.
"Morning, sir. What do you make o' the young skipper?"
"Sleeping still," said the doctor; "a beautiful, restful sleep, withouta trace of fever."
"Hooroar for that, sir. Best thing for him, aren't it?"
"Yes, so long as we keep up his strength."
"We, sir? You mean you."
"I mean we, Bostock, for you will help."
"All right, sir, ready _and_ willin'."
"The sleep will be the best thing for him, and when we can move himwe'll have him up on deck, and contrive a shade."
"Oh, I can soon do that, sir. We couldn't rig up the old awning again,but there's plenty of canvas to set up a little un. Is he ready forsome breakfast, do you think?"
"I would not wake him on any consideration. Let him sleep."
"Good, sir. There's a bit ready as soon as you like, and after that wecan get to work."
Carey still slept on whilst the doctor and old Bob made a hearty meal,and, taking advantage of the freedom thus afforded them, they examinedtheir position in relation to the shore by naked eye and with one of theglasses from the captain's cabin.
There it all was as they had partly seen overnight: the vessel firmlyfixed in the rocky shallows of a great lagoon, whose waters were fastbecoming of crystal-clearness and as smooth as a pond, while sea-wardthere was the great sheltering reef with everlasting breakers thunderingand fretting and throwing up a cloud of surf.
On the other side, comparatively close at hand, was, as far as theycould make out, the lovely shore of a beautiful island, bathed insunshine and glorious in rich verdure and purple shade, while they couldnow clearly see the sparkling surface of the stream, which tumbled inrapids and falls down to the vivid blue waters of the lagoon.
"Looks good enough for anything, sir, don't it?"
"A perfect paradise, Bostock," said the doctor, who could hardly tearhis eyes from the glorious scene.
"It just is, sir," said the old sailor; "makes a man feel quite youngagain to see it. My word! won't that dear lad enjy hisself as soon ashe's well enough to go ashore? I'm reckoning ongoing with him, sir.Won't be to-day, I suppose?"
"No," said the doctor, smiling, as he closed the glass in its case; "noryet this month, Bostock."
"That's a long time, sir. I might pig-aback him if we got him ashore."
"Let's get him well first."
"Right, sir, you know best; but I don't want the poor young chap to bedull and moping. I might rig up some fishing-tackle for him, though,so's he could sit on deck here and fish."
"Yes, by-and-by; but he will not be dull. We'll amuse him somehow."
"That we will, sir; and now you must be skipper and take the lead, for Is'pose we shall have to live here a bit."
"Is that likely to be the mainland?" said the doctor, by way of answer.
"Not it, sir. One of the hundreds of islands out in these parts."
"I see no sign of inhabitants."
"That's right, sir. Men's scarce about here. We shan't see none, and Idon't expect we shall see any ships go by. Skippers give these waters awide berth on account of the coral reefs. Strikes me that we shall haveto make ourselves comf'table and wait till something turns up. The_Susan's_ as safe as a house. Even if another storm comes, as therewill some day, she can't move. She'll get to be more of a fixter as theyears go by, with the coral growing up all round her."
"Do you think it will?"
"Think, sir? Why, it grows up just like as if it was so much moss in awood."
"Then you are ready to make up your mind to be here for years to come?"
"Yes, sir; aren't you?"
The doctor shrugged his shoulders.
"We couldn't be better off, sir. Now, just you wait a bit, sir, andyou'll see something. Directly that young chap's well enough, we shan'tbe able to hold him. He'll be 'bout half mad with delight. He won'twant to go away--not for a long time, at all events."
"Well, we shall see," said the doctor. "Now let's go below."
"Right, sir. I wouldn't do anything till you come."
They began a tour of inspection at once, making their way as far down asthey could, to find that the lower hold was eight or ten feet deep inwater, which covered the heavy cargo of railway iron, machinery, casks,and miscellaneous goods.
"'Bout high water now, sir," said the old sailor. "It'll sink a gooddeal when the tide's out. We seem to have come on at high water."
"Would it be possible to stop it out, and
in the course of time pump thevessel clear?"
"Not if we'd got fifty steam pumps, sir: that water'll flow in and outand be always sweet--I mean salt--for she's got plates below thereripped off like sheets of writing paper. But the water won't hurt us,and the stores such as we want are all above it. There's nothing tomind there."
The doctor nodded in acquiescence, and they went on with their search,to find more and more how well they were provided for, old Bostockchuckling again and again as each advantage came home to him.
"I don't believe no shipwrecked chaps was ever so well off before. Why,it's wonderful how little the _Susan's_ hurt. Look at the store ofcoals we've got, and at the cook's galley all ready for cooking achicken--if we had one--or a mutton chop, if the last two sheep hadn'tbeen drowned and washed away along with the cow. Now, that was badluck, sir. Drop o' milk'd been a fine thing for that there boy if Icould ha' squeezed it out. I never did try to milk, sir, but I'd ha'tried. Don't suppose it would ha' been so very hard, if the old cowwould ha' stood still. Milk would be a fine thing for him, wouldn'tit?"
"Yes, excellent," said the doctor, with a peculiar smile; "but we haveno cow, Bostock."
"Tchah! Of course not, sir," said the old sailor, giving himself a slapon the mouth, "and me talking like that. But hi! Look here, sir," hecontinued, pointing shoreward.
"What at?" said the doctor, who was startled by the man's energy. "Whatdo you see--natives?"
"No, no, sir; there, sir, in a row along beyond the sands. Noo milk forthat there lad, sir. Vegetable cows--cocoanuts. Plenty for years tocome."
"Yes, we shall be in the midst of plenty," said the doctor, lookingwistfully round. "Prisoners, perhaps, but happily provided for. Lookyonder, Bostock."
"What at, the birds, sir? I've seen 'em all the morning. Ducks andterns as well as gull things. They seem to be nesting about those rocksyonder. And of coarse that means noo-laid eggs for that there boy; yes,and roast duck. There's shooting tackle down below, isn't there, sir?"
"Yes, the captain has arms, and I have a double gun in my cabin."
"There, hark at that, sir," cried the old sailor. "Now what could onewish for more?"
"What indeed?" said the doctor, smiling at his companion's enthusiasm.
"Nothing, sir," cried Bostock. "Yes, there's something, sir, as wehaven't got and we must have."
"What's that?"
"A boat, sir, to get ashore with. Now, that is a bit o' bad luck."
"Ah, yes, we must have a boat to go ashore, and every one has gone."
"Yes, sir, even the little dinghy. That must ha' been washed away, sameas the gig, for that warn't launched. But all right, sir; there's otherways o' killing a cat besides hanging. We must make one."
"Or a raft," said the doctor.
"Raft'll do to begin with. Four bunged-up casks and some boards'll dofirst. That's easy to make on deck, for there's the carpenter's tools,and we can easily rig up tackle to hyste it over the side. It's theboat as'll bother us, but you never know what you can do till you try."
"No, Bostock, you never do."
"That's so, sir. A boat we want, and a boat we'll have. I say, sir,just think of it; won't that there dear lad just enjy having a boat tosail and fish about here in the lagoon, or out yonder across the reef ona calm day?"
"Yes, we must get him well, Bostock," said the doctor, smiling. "Comealong: we need not examine our position any more; let's see if he isawake."
"And ready for a drop o' soup, sir. There's rows of them tins o'portable, as they call it, sir, in the store-room. Drop warmed up oughtto be just the thing now, poor lad; he can't work his teeth as heshould."
"We'll see," said the doctor, and they made their way towards thesaloon, but only to stop short and listen to the sounds which camesoftly through the cabin bulkheads--sounds which made the old sailordrop into the attitude of one with folded arms about to perform ahornpipe, and executing three or four steps, to end suddenly with a slapon the leg.
"Hear that, sir?" he whispered, softly. "That's what I call real pluckin a lad with his upper works broke clean in half. Just think o' that!"
King o' the Beach: A Tropic Tale Page 7