by Mayne Reid
CHAPTER FIVE.
THE REEF.
It was Sunday morning, and as fine a one as I can remember. It was inthe month of May, and not likely to be otherwise than fine. The sun wasshining brightly, and the birds filled the air with joyous music. Thethrush and blackbird mingled their strong vigorous voices, with themellowed trilling of the skylark, and over the fields could be heardalmost continuously the call of the cuckoo--now here, now there, as theactive creature plied her restless wing from one hedge-tree to another.There was a strong sweet perfume in the air like the scent of almonds,for the white thorn was now expanding its umbels of aromatic flowers,and there was just enough breeze to bear their fragrance throughout thewhole atmosphere. The country, with its green hedgerows, its broadfields of young corn, its meadows enamelled with the golden ranunculusand the purple spring orchis both in full flower; the country with itsbirds' nests and bird music would have been attractive to most boys ofmy age, but far more fascination for me was there in that which laybeyond--that calm, glassy surface of a sky-blue colour that shone overthe fields, glistening under the rays of the sun like a transparentmirror. That great watery plain was the field upon which I longed todisport myself: far lovelier in my eyes than the rigs of waving corn, orthe flower-enamelled mead, its soft ripple more musical to my ear thanthe songs of thrush or skylark, and _even_ its peculiar smell moregrateful to my senses than the perfume of buttercups and roses.
As soon, therefore, as I left my chamber and looked forth upon thissmiling, shining sea, I longed to fling myself on its bosom with ayearning which I cannot express. To satisfy this desire, I made allhaste to be gone. I did not even wait for a regular breakfast, but wascontent with a piece of bread and a bowl of milk, which I obtained fromthe pantry, and having hurriedly swallowed these, I struck out for thebeach.
I rather stole away than otherwise, for I had apprehensions that someobstacle might arise to hinder me from gratifying my wishes. Perhaps myuncle might find reason to call me back, and order me to remain aboutthe house; for although he did not object to my roaming idly about thefields, I knew that he did not like the idea of my going upon the water,and once or twice already had forbidden it.
This apprehension, then, caused me to use a little precaution. Insteadof going out by the avenue leading direct from the house to the mainroad that ran along the shore, I went by a back way that would bring meto the beach in a circuitous direction.
I met with no interruption, but succeeded in reaching the water edgewithout being observed--by any one who had an interest in knowing whereI went.
On arriving at the little cove where the young waterman kept his boats,I perceived that the larger one was out, but the dinghy was there at myservice. This was just what I wished for, as on that particular day Ihad formed a design to make a very grand excursion in the little boat.My first act, then, was to get inside and bale out the water which hadgathered in the bottom of the dinghy. There was a good deal of water inher, and I concluded from this that she must have lain several dayswithout being used, for she was a craft that did not leak very fast.Fortunately, I found an old tin pan, that was kept on purpose to baleout with, and after scooping away for some ten minutes or a quarter ofan hour, I got the little boat dry enough for my purpose. The oars werekept in a shed behind the cottage of the waterman, which stood only ashort distance back upon the beach: and these I fetched, as I had oftendone before, without the necessity of asking leave from any one.
I now entered the dinghy, and having adjusted the thole pins and placedmy oars on the rowlocks, I took my seat and pushed off from the shore.My little skiff yielded freely to my stroke, and shot out into the deepwater as smoothly as if she had been a fish; and with a heart as lightas ever beat in my breast, I pulled away over the bright blue sea. Thesea was not only bright and blue, but as calm as a lake. There washardly so much as a ripple, and so clear was it underneath, I could seethe fishes at play down to a depth of several fathoms.
The bed of the sea in our bay is of pure sand of a silvery whiteness;and the smallest objects, even little crabs not so big as a crown-piece,could be distinctly seen gambolling along the bottom, in playful pursuitof one another, or in search of some creatures still smaller thanthemselves, of which they designed to make their breakfast. I could see"schools" of small herring fry and broad round plaice, and huge turbots,and beautiful green mackerel, and great conger eels as large asboa-constrictors, all engaged in pursuits of pleasure or prey.
It was one of those mornings when the sea is perfectly still, and suchas are very rare upon our coasts. It was just the morning for me, for,as I have already said, I had designed a "grand excursion" for the day,and the weather would enable me to carry my design into execution.
You will ask whither was I going? Listen, and you shall hear.
About three miles from the shore, and just visible from it, lay a smallislet. It is not exactly correct to say islet. It was but a shoal ofrocks--a small patch, apparently about a square pole in dimensions, andrising only a few inches above the surface of the water. This, too,only when the tide was out, for at all other times it was quite coveredwith the waves; and then there could only be seen a slender staffsticking up out of the water to the height of a few feet, and at thehead of this appeared a sort of knob, or lump. Of course the staff hadbeen placed there to point out the shoal in times of high tide, so thatthe sloops and other small vessels that traded up the bay might not runupon it by mistake, and so get wrecked.
Only when the tide was low, then, was this little islet to be observedfrom the shore. Usually, it appeared of a jet black colour; but therewere other times when it was as white as if covered a foot deep withsnow, and then it showed plainer and more attractive. I knew very wellwhat caused this singular metamorphosis in its colour. I knew that thewhite mantle that covered it was neither more nor less than a vast flockof beautiful sea-fowl, that had settled upon the rocks, either to restthemselves after so much flying, or to search for such small fish orCrustacea as might be left there by the tide.
Now this little spot had long been to me a place of first-rate interest,partly on account of its remote and isolated situation; but more, Ifancy, on account of these very birds, for in no other part of the bayhad I seen so many of them together. It seemed also to be a favouriteplace with them; for at the going out of every tide, I observed themgather from all directions, hover around the staff, and then settle downupon the black rocks around it, until the latter were hidden from theview behind the white bodies of the birds. These birds were gulls; butthere appeared to be several kinds of them; large ones and small ones,and at different times I had noticed birds of other kinds, such as thegreat terns and grebes, preening themselves in the same neighbourhood.Of course, from the shore the view one could have of these creatures wasa very distant one, and it was difficult to tell to what species theybelonged. The largest of them appeared not much bigger than sparrows,and had they not been on the wing, or so many of them together, theymight have moved about unnoticed by any one passing along the shore.
I think it was the presence of these birds that had made this remotespot so interesting to me. At a very early age I was fond of allobjects of natural history, but particularly of the creatures that havewings, and I believe there are few boys that are not so. There may besciences and studies of greater importance to mankind, but there is nonemore refining to the taste or more fascinating to the youthful fancythan the study of nature. Whether it was to get a good look at thebirds, or whether from some curiosity about other things I might seeupon this little islet, I often wished that I could get to it. Neverdid I turn my eyes in that direction--and I did so as often as I camenear the beach--without feeling a strong wish to get there and exploreit from end to end. I knew in my memory the exact shape of it when thetide was lowest, and could at any time have chalked out its profilewithout looking at it. It was lower at both ends, and rose with a sortof curve towards the middle, like a huge black whale lying along thesurface, and the staff, rising f
rom the highest point, looked like aharpoon that was sticking in his back.
That staff, too, I longed to get my hands upon; to see what it was madeout of; how high it really was if one were near it, for it only lookedabout a yard high from the shore; what sort of a thing the knob was onthe top, and how the butt was fastened in the ground. Firmly it musthave been set; for I had often seen the waves wash up to it during greatstorms, and the spray driving so high above it, that neither rock, norstaff, nor knob were at all visible.
Ah! many a time had I sighed to visit that attractive spot; but neveryet had the opportunity occurred. It was by far too distant for anyexcursion I had hitherto dared to make--far too dangerous a flight forme to take in the little dinghy; and no one had offered to go with me.Harry Blew had once promised me he would take me--at the same time, helaughed at the desire I expressed to visit such a place. What was it tohim? He had often rowed past it and around it, and no doubt landed uponit, and perhaps tied his boat to the staff, while he shot the sea-birds,or fished in the waters beside it; but it had never been my good fortuneto accompany him in one of these pleasant excursions. I had been inexpectation, however, of doing so; but now these hopes were gone. Icould no more get away except on the Sundays; and on these very days myfriend was always engaged in his own occupation--for Sundays, above allother days of the week, was the time for sailing parties.
For a long time, then, I had waited in vain; but I now resolved to waitno longer. I had made a bold determination on that very morning; whichwas, that I should take the dinghy and visit the reef myself. This,then, was the grand excursion on which I was bound, when I removed thelittle boat from her fastenings, and shot out upon the bosom of thebright blue sea.