by Mayne Reid
CHAPTER THIRTY THREE.
THE STORM.
More than a week had I spent under this tedious monotony of existence.The only sound that reached my ears was the hoarse rushing of the waves_above_ me. Above me--for I knew that I was far down amid their depths,far below the surface of the sea. At long intervals only, I coulddistinguish other noises, like a thumping upon the decks as if someheavy object was being moved about, and no doubt such was the cause ofit. In calm weather I sometimes fancied I could hear the bell callingthe men upon their watches, but I was not sure of this. At all events,the sound appeared so distant and indistinct, that I could notpositively say it was a bell; and if so, it was only during the calmestweather I could hear it.
I speak of calm weather, for I knew perfectly when there were changes.I could tell the breeze, the gale, the storm--when they commenced andwhen they ended--just as well as if I had been upon deck. The rollingof the ship, and the creaking of her timbers, were good indices as tohow the wind blew, or whether it was rough or mild weather. On thesixth day--that is, the tenth from departure, but the sixth of myregister--we encountered a regular storm. It lasted for two days and anight; and must have been a terribly severe one, as it shook the timbersof the vessel as though it would have torn them asunder. At times Ireally thought that the great ship was going to pieces; and the noisesmade by huge boxes and casks striking and grinding against each other,or knocking violently upon the sides and bulwarks of the ship itself,was sufficiently terrible. At intervals, too; I could distinguish thesound of big waves--"seas," as the sailors call them--breaking againstthe vessel with awful crash, as if a huge trip-hammer or battering-ramhad been directed with full force against the timbers of the ship.
I had no doubt that the vessel was in danger of being wrecked; and underthis belief you may fancy my situation. I need not tell you that I wasin fear. When I thought that we should go to the bottom of the sea, andI situated as I was--shut in on all sides as if in a coffin--with nochance to move, not even to make, an effort to save myself by swimming,how could it be otherwise with me than a time of great fear? Had I beenupon deck and free, I am certain I should not have been half sofrightened at that storm.
To increase my misery, the sea-sickness had returned upon me, for thisis usually the case with those who go to sea on a first voyage. A greatstorm encountered brings a return of the nauseous malady, often asdisagreeably vigorous as that experienced during the first twenty-fourhours at sea. This is accounted for very easily: it is simply theconsequence of the more violent rocking of the ship while buffeted bythe storm.
For nearly forty hours the gale continued, and then there succeeded aperfect calm. I knew this to be the case, because I no longer heard theseething sound which usually betokens that the ship is moving throughthe water. But notwithstanding that the wind had ceased to blow, thevessel kept tumbling about; and her timbers creaked, and boxes andbarrels rolled and knocked each other, as badly as ever. This wasoccasioned by the "swell" which always succeeds a heavy gale, and whichis sometimes as dangerous to vessels as the stormy weather itself. In avery heavy swell the masts are sometimes broken, and the ship thrownupon her beam-ends--a catastrophe ever dreaded by sailors.
The swell gradually subsided, until, in about twenty-four hours after,it had ceased altogether, and the vessel appeared to glide along moresmoothly than ever. The nauseating sickness took its departure aboutthe same time, and I felt the reaction of health, which produced alittle cheerfulness within me. As my fears had kept me awake during thewhole time the storm was raging, and as I had continued ill so long asthe violent rocking prevailed, I was quite worn out; so that the momentthings were smooth again, I fell off into a profound slumber.
I had dreams that were nearly as terrible as the realities through whichI had been passing. In fact, I dreamt what but the hours before I hadbeen dreading. I dreamt that I was being drowned, and just under thecircumstances in which I was--shut up in the hold without the chance ofswimming a stroke for my life. Nay more, I dreamt that I actually _was_drowned, and lying at the bottom of the sea--that I was dead, but notunconscious. On the contrary, I could see well around me, andperceived, among other things, horrible green monsters--crabs orlobsters--crawling towards me, as if with the design of tearing me withtheir hideous claws, and feasting on my flesh! One, in particular, drewmy attention, larger and more spiteful-looking than the rest, and closerto me than any. Each instant, too, he was drawing nearer and nearer. Ithought he had reached my hand, and I could feel him crawling upon it.I could feel the cold harsh touch as he dragged his unwieldy shape overmy fingers, but I could not move either hand or finger to cast him off.On he came over my wrist and straight up my arm, which was lyingoutstretched from my body. He appeared as if determined to attack me inthe face or the throat. I read his intention to do so from theeagerness with which he advanced, but despite the horror I felt, I coulddo nothing to repel him. I could not move hand or arm--nor a muscle ofmy body. How could I, since I was drowned and dead? "Ha! he is on mybreast--at my very throat--he will soon clutch me--ha!"
I awoke with a shriek, and started upward. I would have risen to myfeet, had there been room to stand erect. As it was, there was notroom; and a blow which I received by dashing my head against the greatoak rib of the vessel, brought me back to my couch, and, after somemoments, to a consciousness of my situation.