by Mayne Reid
CHAPTER THIRTY SIX.
AN UGLY INTRUDER.
For a long while I did not sleep, but lay thinking over the mysteriousdisappearance of the half biscuit. I say _mysterious_, for I was morethan half convinced that I had _not_ eaten it, but that it had gone insome other way; though how, I could not even guess, since I wasperfectly alone, the only living thing, as I supposed, in that vessel'shold which could have touched it. Ah! now I thought of my dream--of thecrab! Perhaps, after all, there might have been a crab?--and though itwas but a dream that I was drowned, yet the rest might be true enough,and a crab might actually have crawled over me? It might have eaten thebiscuit?
It would not be its natural food, I knew; but shut up in a ship's hold,where it could have no choice, it would be likely enough to eat such athing rather than suffer starvation. There might be a crab after all?
Partly by such a train of reflections, and partly by the hungry cravingof my stomach, I was kept awake for hours. At length I found myselfgoing off, not into a regular sleep, but a half sleep or doze, fromwhich every two or three minutes I awoke again.
In one of these intervals, during which I lay awake, I fancied that Iheard a noise, different from the sounds that habitually fell upon myear. The ship was running smoothly, and I could distinguish thisunusual sound above the soft sighing of the waves. This last was now soslight, that the ticking of my watch appeared louder and more distinctthan I had ever observed it.
The sound which had attracted my attention, and which was something newto me, appeared like a gentle scratching. It came from the corner wheremy buskins lay empty and idle. _Something was scratching at mybuskins_!
"The crab, to a certainty!" I said to myself. The thought at oncedrove away all ideas of sleep; and I placed myself in an attitude tolisten, and, if possible, lay my hands on the thievish intruder; for Inow felt certain that, crab or no crab, whatever creature was making thescratching noise was the same that had stolen my supper.
Once more I heard the scraping and scratching noise. Certainly itproceeded from my buskins?
Slowly and silently I raised myself into a half-upright position, sothat I could reach the buskins with a single effort, and in thisattitude I again listened for a repetition of the sound.
But though I remained patient for a considerable time, I did not hear itagain; and I then passed my hands over the buskins, and around the placewhere they were lying, but felt nothing there. They appeared to be justas they had been left, and nothing amiss. I also groped over all thefloor of my cell, but with like result. Nothing was there that oughtnot to have been.
I was not a little perplexed, and lay for a good while awake andlistening, without hearing anything more of the mysterious noise. Sleeponce more began to steal upon me, and I dropped off into a series ofdozing fits as before.
Once again the scraping and scratching noise falling upon my eardisturbed me, and caused me to lie listening. Most surely it came fromthe buskins; but when I moved to get within reach of them, the noiseinstantly ceased, as if I had frightened the creature that was makingit; and, just as before, I groped everywhere and found nothing!
"Ha!" muttered I to myself, "I now know what has been causing all thisdisturbance: no crab at all--for a crab could not possibly crawl soquickly out of the way. The intruder is a mouse. Nothing more norless. Strange I did not think of this before! I might have guessedthat it was a mouse, and not have made myself so uneasy about it. Itcould only be a mouse; and, but for my dream, I should, perhaps, neverhave thought of its being a crab."
With this reflection I lay down again, intending to go to sleep at once,and not trouble myself any more about the mouse or its movements.
But I had scarcely settled my cheek upon the pillow, when the scratchingbegan afresh, and it now occurred to me that the mouse was gnawing at mybuskins, and probably doing them a serious damage. Although they wereof no service to me just then, I could not permit them to be eaten up inthis way; and, raising myself once more, I made a dash to catch themouse.
In this I was unsuccessful. I did not even touch the animal; but Ithought I heard it scampering through the crevice that led out betweenthe brandy-cask and the timbers of the ship.
On handling the buskins, I discovered to my chagrin that half of theupper leather of one of them was eaten away! The mouse must have beenbusy to have made so much ruin in so short a time, for it was but a fewhours before that I had had the buskins in my hands, and I had thennoticed nothing wrong with them. Perhaps several mice had been at work?This was likely enough.
Partly to save the buskins from total destruction, and partly to hindermyself from being disturbed again, I took them out of the corner, andplacing them near my head, covered them up with a fold of thebroadcloth. This done, I once more laid myself out for a sleep.
After awhile the dozing fit came on me, but I was again awakened by asingular sensation, as of something crawling over me! It appeared as ifsome creature had just crept over my legs with great rapidity.
The feeling startled me into complete wakefulness, I did not move,however, but lay quietly waiting to see if the thing should come again.
Of course, I concluded that it was still my mouse, now running about insearch of the buskins. I was getting annoyed by its intrusion, and Iknew it would be no use to grope for it, as it would easily escapethrough one of the crevices, as soon as it found me moving. Idetermined, therefore, to lie quite still, and let it again crawl uponme as before, and I could then easily seize upon it. It was not myintention to kill the little creature; but I intended to give it a goodsqueeze, or pinch its ear sharply, so that it would not come troublingme any more.
I lay a long while without hearing or feeling it. At last, however, mypatience was likely to be rewarded. I could tell by a slight movement,in the piece of cloth that covered my limbs, that something was runningupon it, and I even fancied that I heard the pattering of little feet.Nearer still the cloth appeared to move, until I could distinctly feel acreature crawling on my ankles, and then upward to my thighs. Itappeared heavy for a mouse; but I did not stay to reflect about this,for now or never was the time to seize upon it.
Down came my hands, with fingers outstretched to cover it; but, oh,horror! what a mistake I had made.
Instead of the little tiny mouse, which I intended to clutch, my handrested upon the body of an animal almost as large as a kitten! Therewas no mistaking what it was. _Beyond doubt, it was a great, horridrat_!