Asiatic Breezes; Or, Students on The Wing

by Oliver Optic

  CHAPTER XX

  THE LAST OF CAPTAIN MAZAGAN

  Captain Ringgold was very much delighted with the success which hadattended his efforts to interest his passengers; for he never lost sightof the instructive feature of the voyage. None of his party werescientists in a technical sense in the studies which occupied them,though Dr. Hawkes and Professor Giroud were such in their occupation athome; but they were all well-educated persons in the ordinary use of theterm.

  They were not Egyptologists, philosophers, theologians, zoologists,biblical critics, ethnologists, or devoted to any special studies; theywere ordinary seekers after knowledge in all its varieties. The everydayfacts, events, and scenes, as presented to them in their presentmigratory existence, were the staple topics of thought and study. Thoughnone of the party ascended to the higher flights of scientific inquiry,the commander endeavored to make use of the discoveries and conclusionsof the learned men of the present and the past.

  He was eminently a practical man, and practical knowledge was his aim;and he endeavored to lead the conferences in this direction. Thebuilding of the piers at Port Said, and the construction of the canal,as meagrely described by the magnate of the Fifth Avenue, were the kindof subjects he believed in; and he had a sort of mild contempt for onewho could discourse learnedly over a polype, and did not know thedifference between a sea mile and a statute mile.

  "Do you believe in the explanation of that Dutchman you mentioned,Captain Ringgold?" asked Mr. Woolridge, at the close of the conference.

  "What Dutchman?" inquired the commander. "I do not remember that Ialluded to any Dutchman."

  "I mean the man who says that Pharaoh's army perished in the lake wherethe weeds and papyrus grew," the magnate explained.

  "Brugsch? He was not a Dutchman; he was a German."

  "It is all the same thing; I have been in the habit of calling a Germana Dutchman."

  "If you will excuse me, Mr. Woolridge, I think it is a very bad habit,"added the commander with a deprecatory smile. "A German is not aDutchman, any more than a Dutchman is a German; and I should as soonthink of calling a full-blooded American a Chinaman, as a German aDutchman."

  "Of course you are right, Captain, though I am not alone in the use ofthe word," replied the magnate.

  "But it is more common among uneducated people than with people of evenfair education. I do not accept Brugsch's explanation, but cling to theBible story as I learned it in my childhood. I don't think Brugsch'sexplanation comes under the head of what is called the 'highercriticism,' or that it places him in the column of those who representthe 'advanced thought' of the present time; for he follows the Scripturerecord, and does not seek to invalidate it. But we are going to run intothe basin, and it is time we were moving," added the commander, as hecalled the first officer, and ordered the anchor to be weighed.

  "Do you have to pay to go through the canal, Captain Ringgold?" askedMrs. Belgrave, after the commander had given his orders.

  "Of course we do," replied the captain; and about all the party gatheredaround him to hear what he had to say. "As Mr. Woolridge said, the canalis good paying stock to the holders of the shares. It cost a vast sum ofmoney, and it is worked and kept in running order at an immenseexpense."

  "I asked a foolish question, and I might have known better," said thelady.

  "Every vessel that goes through to Suez has to pay a round sum for theprivilege."

  "Do all ships have to pay the same amount?"

  "Certainly not; for that would be very unfair. They pay by the ton; andevery vessel carries a register, in which her tonnage is given. TheGuardian-Mother's is 624 tons. About everything is French in thislocality; and the rate charged is ten francs a ton, or a little lessthan two dollars. I shall have to pay a bill of $1,248 in our money."

  "That looks like an enormous price," suggested Mrs. Woolridge.

  "In addition to this charge, we have to pay from ten to twenty francsfor a pilot, depending upon the tonnage, and the same for eachpassenger. Through the greater portion of the canal the speed ofsteamers is limited to five miles an hour; otherwise the swash of thepropeller would injure the embankments on either side. It takes steamersabout sixteen hours to go through to Suez."

  "But that is over six miles an hour," Uncle Moses objected.

  "The three lakes, making nearly thirty miles of the distance, are wideenough and deep enough to permit steamers to go ahead at full speed,which will more than make up the difference, and include the stay atIsmailia. There are sometimes unavoidable delays. A vessel may getaground, and bar the passage for a day or two. The canal is not in allplaces wide enough for one large steamer to pass another, and there aresidings, as on a single track railroad, where it can be done, a littlemore than three miles apart. Posts are set up every five kilometres toindicate the distances."

  "Anchor aweigh, sir," reported the first officer.

  "Heave it up," replied the captain, and went to the pilot-house.

  The "Big Four" had gone on board of the Maud, and she got under way atthe same time. The pilot was on board of the ship, and none was takenfor the little steamer, which was regarded as the tender. Captain Scotthad his plan of the harbor before him, and he could have taken his craftinto the basin without any assistance; but he was required to follow theship.

  Port Said owes its existence to the canal, and without that it wouldamount to nothing. It is located on the eastern end of an island whichis a part of the narrow neck of land which divides Lake Menzaleh fromthe Mediterranean. It was thought when it was laid out that it wouldbecome a considerable city; but it has not yet realized thisexpectation, though it has now a population of over seventeen thousand.Six thousand of this number are Europeans, the French predominating. Themaking of the harbor, or "Grand Basin Ismail" as it is called, wasanother difficult task for the canal company; for it has an area of 570acres, which had to be excavated to the depth of twenty-six feet bydredging.

  The Guardian-Mother, followed by the Maud, passed through the channel,which is marked by red and green lights, to the basin, where the formerwas moored at one of the walls. The town could not be seen by thetourists till the ship entered the basin, and then it was found to be aplace of no small importance. It contains two good hotels, where one mayboard at one for three dollars a day, and at the other for two and ahalf.

  It was necessary for the steamers to coal at this point, and the partywent on shore. From the deck they could see up the principal street. TheFrench post-office, for there is also an Egyptian, was close to thewharf; and they hastened to that, for most of them had written lettersto their friends at home. It was still Egypt, and the place was true toits national character; for the travellers were immediately beset by ahorde of beggars, and bakshish was still a popular clamor. The shopswere like those of other regions, though they did not seem to be doing avery thriving trade; for the entire surrounding country was either adesert or a morass, and there were few to go shopping.

  There was really nothing to be seen there, and the passengers soonreturned to the ship, impatient to proceed on the passage through thecanal; but the night was coming on, and the commander decided to make anearly start the next morning, for he wished his charge to see thecountry as they passed through it, and especially the steamers on theirway to India and China. After dinner the company gathered in themusic-room; but it was observed that the commander and Dr. Hawkes wereabsent. They had remained in the cabin, and were in conversation.

  "What is the present condition of your patient, Doctor?" asked thecaptain as soon as they were alone.

  "He is doing very well, and is in a fair way to recover in a shorttime," replied the surgeon.

  "After we get through the Red Sea, we strike out on a voyage of ten daysor more, and I am not anxious to retain this villain on board,"continued the captain. "I owe him nothing, though I shall treat him withcommon humanity. In a word, I wish to get rid of him as soon aspossible."

  "There is nothing in his present condition to prevent you from puttinghim on sh
ore at any time,--to-night, if you are so disposed," repliedDr. Hawkes in decided terms.

  "You would oblige me very much, Doctor, by broaching this subject tohim. I suppose he has money, though I know nothing about it, and he canpay his way at one of the hotels here," suggested the captain.

  "We had the United States Consul with us at dinner, as you are aware,and he can inform you whether or not there is a hospital here. I willsee Mazagan at once, and do as you desire. I will see you in your cabinin half an hour," said the surgeon, as he went forward to the hospital.

  Captain Ringgold went to the music-room, where the consul was enjoyinghimself in listening to Miss Blanche, who was giving him some account ofthe voyage; and she had just mentioned "The Battle of Khrysoko," ofwhich the consul wished to know more. The captain called him aside, andproceeded to question him in regard to the care of the patient in thetown.

  "I have a wounded man on board, and I wish to get rid of him," hebegan.

  "Wounded in the battle of which Miss Woolridge was telling me?" askedthe official.

  "Precisely so; but he is not of my party, and is the biggest scoundrelthat ever went unhung;" and the commander gave a brief account of hisrelations to Mazagan. "Is there a hospital in Port Said?"

  "None, except for _fellahs_ and other laborers. If he is a respectableman, perhaps I can find accommodations for him at the Hotel de France,"answered the consul. "I will go and see the landlord at once, and reportto you in half an hour."

  "Come to my cabin on the upper deck."

  In less than the time he had stated he came back, and reported that thehotel would take him at sixty francs a week. While he was in the cabinthe doctor presented himself.

  "Does this patient require a nurse?" asked the consul.

  "He does not. In the last two days he has greatly improved," replied thedoctor, "though we keep a man near him to prevent him from doing anymischief."

  It was settled that the patient should be sent on shore that night tothe hotel, and the consul returned to the music-room.

  "Mazagan protests against being sent ashore here; and I have no doubt hewould do the same at Ismailia or Suez," said Dr. Hawkes. "He insistsupon seeing you, and declares that he has important business with you.If you do not seriously object, perhaps that would be the easiest way toquiet him."

  "Can he walk?" asked the commander.

  "As well as you can, Captain. He has a lame shoulder; but he can helphimself with his left hand, and I have put his right arm in a sling, toprevent him from using it," answered Dr. Hawkes.

  Captain Ringgold struck his bell, and sent for Knott to conduct thepatient to his cabin. In a few minutes Mazagan was seated in the chairhe had occupied once before as a prisoner.

  "You wish to see me?" the commander began rather curtly.

  "I do, Captain Ringgold. You talk of sending me ashore at this place. Iprotest against it," said the prisoner; for such he was really.

  "Do you intend to remain on board of my ship for an indefinite period?"

  "Until you settle my account with you," answered the pirate, asself-possessed as though he had been the victor dealing with thevanquished.

  "Don't say anything more to me about your account!" added the commander,fiercely for him. "Your protest is of no consequence to me, and I shallput you ashore to-night!"

  "You don't know what you are doing, Captain Ringgold," said the woundedman, with a savage scowl on his face. "The Fatime was old and worn out,or your tender could not have crushed in her side. Let me tell you thatmy noble master, the Pacha, ordered a new steam-yacht of a thousand tonsa year ago; and if you treat me with this inhumanity, he will follow youall over the world till he obtains his revenge."

  "KNOTT, TAKE THIS VILLAIN AWAY." Page 201.]

  "That is enough of this nonsense!" said the captain, springing from hischair, and calling for Knott, who was at the door.

  "If you pay me the two hundred thousand francs, that will be the end ofthe affair," added the prisoner.

  "I will never pay you a centime! Knott, take this villain away, and havehim conveyed to the Hotel de France at once!" said the commander.

  Knott obeyed the order, taking the pirate by the left arm. Mr. Boulongwas instructed to carry out the order given. In five minutes more theMoor was marched up the quay between two seamen, and handed over to thelandlord. At daylight the next morning the Guardian-Mother and the Maudsailed on their way through the canal; and nothing more was seen ofCaptain Mazagan.