CHAPTER NINE.
VOYAGE ON A CHEST CONTINUED--FIND A CASK ON WHICH NUB AND THE MATEREST--THE RAFT WITH WALTER RETURNS--A SWORD-FISH CAUGHT--A BOAT PICKEDUP--WASHED FROM THE RAFT--STORMY NIGHT--TWO RAFTS IN SIGHT.
No two men could have conducted themselves more heroically than did themate and Nub to save the young girl left under their charge. Neither ofthem allowed her to discover how weary and exhausted they felt by theirprolonged and almost superhuman exertions. Now and then they stopped,and holding on with both hands to the chest, allowed their bodies tofloat on the water, thus obtaining some relief. The water was so warmthat they did not feel any benumbing effects from being so long in it.After resting for a time, they would again strike out, Nub alwayscommencing with a laugh and a negro song, though he seldom got furtherthan--
"Swim away, boys, swim away; We get to land 'fore end of day."
Then he would cry out, "I tink I smell de flowers and de fruit already."Mr Shobbrok spoke but little, except occasionally a word or two tocheer up Alice. She did not experience the anxieties of her oldercompanions, for it did not, happily, enter her head that they mightafter all fail to reach the shore. She could not help thinking aboutWalter, however, and wondering how it was that the raft had run awaywith him. She kept her eyes ahead, looking out for the land; but thoughher vision was remarkably keen, she could not discover it. She thought,however, that she could distinguish, far away, the white sail of theraft; and so undoubtedly she could, but she forgot that all the time itwas going further and further from them.
The mate had at first had another cause for anxiety. It was that theymight be espied and followed by some of the sharks which they had seenin the neighbourhood; but as they got further away from the spot, hebegan to hope that they had escaped them, and that the creatures weretoo much occupied with the carcasses of the whale and the zygaena tofollow them.
They had thus been going on for two hours or more, when Alice exclaimed,"I see something floating ahead!"
"What is it like?" asked the mate anxiously.
"It seems to me like another chest, or a cask perhaps. If you will liftyour head a little out of the water, you will see it clearly."
The mate drew himself up till his head was as high as the chest.
"It's an empty cask," he exclaimed; "and will serve to rest one of us,though it will not assist us while towing the chest."
They swam towards it, and found that it was a large empty cask--probablyone which had floated out of the American whaler which had gone down.
"Now, Mr Shobbrok, you get on de cask; you want rest more dan I do,"said Nub. "But take care dat you not roll round and round. It no easymatter to sit on an empty cask in de water."
The mate tried to do as Nub advised, but he found that the cask wouldroll round, and that the only way he could rest on it was by throwinghimself length-wise along it--though he had considerable difficulty inkeeping it steady. He was thus, however, able to regain his strength.
When he found himself somewhat recovered, he resigned his place to Nub,who managed by working his feet on either side to sit across it, holdingon to the chest. Scarcely had he taken his seat when heexclaimed,--"Oh, I can smell de flowers and de fruit! Here come deland-breeze; but den it will drive us back faster dan we came along."
Nub was right. In another minute a strong breeze, smelling of theearth, blew in their faces; and the water, which had hitherto been calm,was soon rippled over with small waves, which rapidly increased inheight, hissing and bubbling around them. This was excessively tryingto the mate, who could with difficulty keep his head above the foamwhich drove in his face. His heart began to fail him, for while thebreeze continued the little hope he ever had of reaching the land mustbe abandoned. All he could do was to hold on to the chest, which Nubbalanced on the opposite side, without attempting to make any progress.He was, for the first time, beginning to lose hope of saving the littlegirl, when he was aroused by hearing Nub exclaim--
"Hurrah! here come de raft! De wind catch her sail, and drive her back.We soon see Massa Walter, and I hope he soon see us."
"I see him! I see him!" cried Alice, lifting up her head.
The mate raised himself also; and then, sure enough, he caught sight ofthe raft skimming along at a rapid rate over the seas.
Whether Walter saw them or not, they could not tell; but they supposedthat he had recovered his senses, and was steering the raft,--and that,finding the breeze in his favour, he was endeavouring to reach the spotwhere he had left them. He might remember the chest and casks and otherobjects floating about, and believe that they had been able by suchmeans to support themselves. There could be little doubt, by the steadyway in which the raft approached, that Walter was at the helm, though,as he was steering a course rather on one side, it was probable that hehad not yet discovered them. As the raft drew nearer, Nub exclaimed--
"I will swim away and cut him off, or else maybe he will pass us."
"Let us first try what hailing will do," said the mate; "we will allshout together."
"Ay, ay!" answered Nub. "I give de time."
All three, raising their voices, shouted as loud as they could, Alice'sshrill note reaching almost as far as the others.
"Once more," cried Nub; "and sure dis time he hear." Again they allcried out, even louder than before.
"Dere! dere, Missie Alice, he see us!" exclaimed Nub, looking down atthe little girl as he spoke. At that moment the sheets were let go, andWalter was seen eagerly looking out to discover whence the voices came.The raft now came gliding up towards them, Walter having gone back tothe helm to steer it.
Nub was the first to spring on board, and then having made fast thechest, he lifted Alice safely on to the raft, where she was received inWalter's arms. The almost exhausted mate was then dragged on board byNub. The first thing Mr Shobbrok did was to haul down the sail, thatthe raft might not be driven further away from the land; he then turnedtowards Walter, not to find fault with him for running away,--for he waswell aware that the poor lad could not help it,--but to ascertain thestate of his mind.
Walter had placed Alice on her usual seat, and now sat by her side. Helooked up at Mr Shobbrok. "I cannot tell you how it all happened," hesaid in a low voice. "I only remember seeing Alice in the water, andshrieking out for some one to help her, when I fell down fainting on theraft. I was unconscious of what happened further, till I found myselfalone on the raft, which had at that instant been taken aback by astrong breeze from the westward. I felt full of dismay and grief, butas calm and self-possessed as I ever had been. I considered what was tobe done. My first thought was to go in search of you. I lowered thesail, got the raft round, and again setting the sail, steered away tothe eastward, fully prepared to perish should I not find you; and oh, Icannot express how thankful I am to find you again!"
"I am sure he is," said Alice, jumping up and kissing Walter.
"I am certain of it too, my lad," said the mate. "We don't blame you;and can only be thankful that, through God's mercy, your senses were sowonderfully restored."
"Yes, Massa Walter, we bless Heaven dat de shark not eat us, and dat wefind you; and now all go well."
Both the mate and Nub felt too much fatigued just then to speak more; sohaving secured the chest and cask, they threw themselves down to rest,as they could not attempt to row against the breeze then blowing, withtheir strength exhausted as it was.
Alice was scarcely less weary than they were, not so much from exertionas from alarm and anxiety. Her clothes soon dried in the hot sun, andthen she too lay down. Walter, who was now apparently quite recovered,sat by her side, watching her till she dropped off to sleep. The winddid not much affect the raft, but it was all the time slowly driftingfurther and further from the shore. The little girl's slumbers weredisturbed by the terrible scenes she had gone through, and now and thenshe cried out, "Oh, save him! oh, save him! Where is Walter? where isWalter?"
Walter, on hearing his name pronounced, took her ha
nd. "Here I am, allsafe," he said in a soothing tone. "I am very, very sorry that I causedyou so much alarm; but it's all right now. We shall soon reach theland, I hope; and then we will build a boat, and go in search of ourfather and the rest."
Alice, who was still scarcely awake, did not understand what he said.Suddenly she started up. "O Walter, where are we?" she exclaimed,looking wildly about her. "I thought you had gone away again, and werenever coming back. You will never leave me, will you?"
"I should be miserable without you," he answered. "No, I never willleave you, if I can help it, till we find our father--though MrShobbrok and Nub take the best care of you they possibly can: had it notbeen for them, we should both have been lost."
"Don't think that it's we who take care of you, my children," said themate, who had been awakened by their voices. "There is One above whoalone has the power to do so. We are only the instruments in Hishands."
"But we do what we can, though," said Nub, sitting up; "and now I tinkthe wind begin to fall, and we get out de oars."
"We had better take some food first," said the mate. "The young peoplemust be hungry, and I am pretty sharp set myself."
"What you like to have, Mr Shobbrok? Roast beef, boiled mutton, porkpies, or plum pudding?" asked Nub, trying to make Walter and Alicelaugh, for he observed how sad they both looked. "Well, if we can'thave dem, we have whale blubber; it bery good for dem dat like it. Takea lilly bit, Missie Alice."
Poor Alice's lip curled. She recollected how nauseous she had found itin the morning. Nub got out some of the blubber, which the rest of theparty swallowed without making faces. Fortunately there was still asmall portion of biscuit, and this enabled Alice at length to get downenough of the food to sustain her strength. They had still the wine andwater; but, alas! there now remained only sufficient biscuit to affordher another meal. "After that has gone, what can we give the littlegirl to eat?" thought the mate. "Well, well, she has been sustainedhitherto, and we must not anticipate evil."
Nub having stowed away the rest of the blubber, the oars were got out,and while Walter steered, he and the mate began to urge on the rafttowards the shore. Their progress, however, was very slow, as when theystood up their bodies acted the part of sails, and they were driven backalmost as fast as they advanced. Several birds were flying overhead, asign that land could not be far off; while, as they looked around, theysaw here and there fish of all sizes rising out of the water.
"We may get hold of one of these fellows if they come near us," said themate. "Our time may be better spent in preparing the harpoons. Lay inyour oar, Nub, and we will set to work."
They all eagerly sat down, and in a short time two harpoons were fittedwith lines, while spears were also got ready for use. Scarcely weretheir preparations completed when the land-breeze died away; and asea-breeze shortly afterwards setting in, the sail was once morehoisted, and the raft steered for the land. All the party kept a brightlookout ahead on either side, in the hope of seeing a fish and gettingnear enough to catch it. The mate and Nub stood with their harpoons intheir hands ready for instant use; the importance of catching somecreature made them vigilant; the strong flavour of the blubber assuredthem that it would not keep much longer. They had got a short distance,when Alice exclaimed, "See, see! what is that curious fish?" Shepointed to a spot a short distance on one side, her sharp eyes detectingwhat had escaped the observation of the mate. As she spoke, there rosefrom the surface a creature with a long white polished piece of bone orivory at the end of its snout, which might be well likened to a sword,and having two fish of considerable size spitted on it; at the samemoment two large frigate-birds were seen in the sky, flying rapidly downto deprive the fish of its prey.
"That's a sword-fish," exclaimed the mate; "and we must try to get itbefore those frigate-birds succeed in stealing the smaller fish from it.Lower the sail, Nub; get out your oar and pull away. Starboard thehelm, Walter. That fellow will not dive as easily as he may expect todo with those fish on his nose."
Nub pulled away with all his might, thus bringing the raft close up tothe spot where the sword-fish, which had run its pointed weapon, perhapsunintentionally, through the fish, was struggling to get them off. Themate stood with his harpoon ready; it flew from his hand, and was burieddeeply in the creature's body. In vain it tried to escape. The fishimpeded its progress; and, Nub coming to the mate's assistance, theline, which had run out some way, was hauled in; after which Nub,seizing the animal's snout, in spite of its struggles, held it fast, anddrew off the two fish, which he threw on the raft.
"Dere, we got dem safe, at all events. Dey make a good dinner for you,Missie Alice," he exclaimed. "Now, Massa Walter, you take de spear andstick it into de sword-fish's belly." Walter thrust in the weapon, andin another instant the creature's struggles ceased, and it was hauled upon the raft.
"Thank Heaven," said the mate. "We have now got food enough, if it willlast so long fresh, for two or three days; and could we but smoke it, weshould each of us enjoy two hearty meals a day for a week to come.However, it may, at all events, keep for some time if dried in the sun.Hoist the sail, Nub; Walter, do you steer, while the black and I cut upthe fish."
The frigate-birds, disappointed of their prey, had flown off, but werehovering overhead ready to seize the entrails as they were thrownoverboard.
The fish hauled up on the raft was about ten feet long, of abluish-black above, and silvery white below, the skin being somewhatrough.
"I have seen them much bigger than this one," observed the mate; "butit's as well that we did not catch a much bigger fellow, for we shouldhave had some difficulty in handling it. I have known these fellowsattack a whale, and run their beaks right into its side, while thethrasher sticks to its back; and between them they manage to kill themonster, though I believe the sharks benefit most by the hunt. I haveseen them caught in the Mediterranean by harpoons, especially off thecoast of Sicily. The people in those parts are little better thanidolaters, and when they go out fishing they sing some old heathen songwhich they fancy attracts the sword-fish. They won't utter a word oftheir own language, for fear that the creatures should understand them;but certain it is that the fish follow their boats, when they standready with their harpoons to strike them. The flesh is good eating, andvery nourishing when cooked; as we shall find it, I hope, though we haveto eat it raw. There's another sort of fish which I have fallen in within these seas, and a curious creature it is. It is called `thesail-fish,' for it has got a big fin on the top of its back which it canopen or shut like a Chinese fan; and when it rises to the top of thewater, the wind catches this sail-like fin and sends it along at a greatrate; and at its chin it has got two long lines, which I suppose serveit to anchor by, to the rocks in a tideway, when lying in wait for itsprey."
"What a curious sort of creature it must be," said Alice; "how I shouldlike to see one!"
"Perhaps we may, when we get closer in-shore," answered the mate; "andwe will try to harpoon it if you don't object to our eating itafterwards."
"Oh, no, no; that I would not," answered Alice. "I only wish someflying-fish would come on to the raft; I would willingly eat them raw.I remember what a foolish remark I made about the matter when we were onboard the _Champion_. I little thought how very thankful I should be tocatch some of the beautiful creatures for the purpose of eating them."
"I no tink Missie Alice need eat de fish raw," said Nub. "I manage tocook it."
"How so?" asked the mate. "We have no hearth nor fuel."
"I find both," said Nub, in a confident tone. "Look here, MassaShobbrok. We get some bits of board. I put dem down on de middle of deraft, and we damp dem well; den I take de skin of dis fish and put it onde top of dem, doubled many times; den I take some of de dry pieces ofblubber, and I pile dem up; den I get some chips from de sword-fish, andfix dem close to de heap; and now I set fire to de heap, and de fishtoast; and I give it to Missie Alice and Massa Walter to eat."
"Oh, thank you, N
ub; but Walter and I shall not like to eat cooked fishwhile Mr Shobbrok and you are eating it raw," said Alice.
"We see, Missie Alice, if we got enough for all," answered Nub.
"Your plan seems a good one, Nub," said the mate. "We will try it, atall events."
Nub set to work and prepared the hearth, and by putting on only a fewpieces of blubber at a time, he was able to keep up a sufficient heat tocook some small pieces of fish, which Alice and Walter gratefully ate.There were a few pieces over, which he insisted that the mate shouldtake, he himself humbly saying that raw fish was "good enough for blackfellow." The mate and Walter stood by ready to throw water on the raftshould the fire burn into the wood; but though it nearly consumed theskin, it only charred the boards beneath it.
There was still some blubber remaining, with which Nub proposed to cookanother meal for Alice on the following day. Part of the sword-fish wasnow cut up into thin strips, which were hung up along the yard to dry inthe sun, as they would thus, it was hoped, keep longer. They had nowsuch food as they could require; though, eaten without any condiments,it was not palatable, nor altogether wholesome. It would, however, keepthem from starving, and they were thankful. They knew that manyvoyagers, under similar circumstances, had been much worse off than theywere.
They had been so much engaged that they had almost forgotten the chestwhich had been the means of saving Alice. Walter, looking at it, askedthe mate if he would like to have it opened.
"Though I do not expect to find much within it, still there may besomething that will prove useful to us," answered the mate.
Not being very heavy, though of considerable size, it was easily hauledup on the raft. It was a more difficult matter to get it open, for theywere afraid of breaking their axe should they attempt to prize the lidoff. Walter proposed to use one of the spear-heads, which might bedriven under the lock with a hammer. The attempt was immediately made,and succeeded better than they anticipated. It was, as the mate hadsuspected, a carpenter's chest. In the upper part was a drawercontaining boat-nails, brad-awls, gimlets, and other small tools. Thecentre part, which had contained the larger tools, was empty; but below,under a sort of false bottom, were found a fine and a coarse saw, someparcels of large heavy nails, two cold irons, and several pieces of ironof various shapes, which altogether had served to ballast the chestwhile in the water.
"I don't know that in our present circumstances we can make much use ofthese things," observed the mate; "but if we get on shore on anuninhabited island, they will serve us either for putting up a house, orfor building a boat, and we may be thankful that we obtained them; andshould the sea get up, the chest will also serve to add buoyancy to theraft."
By this time it was almost dark, and the wind had again begun to drop.As night drew on it was a complete calm. The mate and Nub rowed on forsome time; but they found that they were overtaxing their strength, andwere obliged to desist, hoping to get a breeze from the eastward thenext day.
They had now less fear of want of food than of want of water. Theirstock of the latter necessary of life had already begun to run short.The mate, therefore, proposed that they should reduce their dailyallowance, though they gave Alice as much as she would consent to take.
The party on the raft had been so accustomed to the sort of life theywere leading, that it no longer appeared strange to them. Now and thenWalter woke up, and saw the stars shining brightly overhead, andreflected on the wild ocean around him; then he went to sleep againalmost with the same sense of security which he had felt on board ship.He began to fancy that the raft would stand any amount of sea, and hefully expected to reach the shore at last. Alice slept on more calmlythan on the previous night, the comparatively wholesome meal she hadtaken making her feel more comfortable than before. Now the mate tookhis watch, now Nub his; and as Alice opened her eyes, she saw either oneor the other on the lookout, so she soon again closed them, feeling assecure as did Walter. Towards morning both were awakened by finding theraft tossing about far more violently than it had hitherto done. Themate was steering, and Nub was attending to the sheets with the sailhoisted only half-way up.
"What's the matter?" asked Walter.
"We have got a stiffish breeze, and it will carry us the sooner to theshore, if it does not come on to blow harder," answered the mate. "Butdo you and Miss Alice sit quiet; the weather does not look threatening,and if the wind brings us some rain we may be thankful for it."
"But the wind may throw the surf on the shore, and we may find itdangerous to pass through it," observed Walter.
"Time enough to think about that when we get there," said the mate."Either there was no land in sight yesterday, and we were mistake whenwe fancied we formerly saw it, or a mist hanging about it hid it fromour view."
"Perhaps we see it when daylight come back," observed Nub; "and dat justbegin to break astern."
The dawn gradually increased. Nub kept eagerly looking out ahead. "Isee someting!" he exclaimed suddenly. "It either a rock or a boat."
"That's not a rock," said the mate, "or it would be hidden as the seawashes over it."
"Den dat a boat," cried Nub. "Can it be de cap'en's?"
"Our father's boat?" cried Walter and Alice in chorus.
"It may be," said the mate; "but I think not. We shall soon know."
Eagerly they all watched the boat.
"You must not raise your hopes too high," said the mate at length. "Ifthat boat had people on board she would be pulling towards us, but bythe way she floats on the water I am pretty certain that she's empty.Yes, I am confident of it," he added. "In another minute we shall be upto her, and till then there is little use hazarding conjectures on thesubject."
The raft approached the boat. "Furl the sail!" cried the mate. Walterand Nub did so, and the raft glided up alongside the boat, which washalf-full of water, and much shattered. Nub seized hold of the bows,while Walter jumped in, and with his cap began to bail out the water.
"What boat is it?" asked Alice.
"One of the _Champion's_--no doubt about that," answered the mate; "butdon't be alarmed, Miss Alice, at there being no one on board. It'sstrong evidence, in my opinion, that the people have been taken out ofher, and that the boat, being water-logged, has been abandoned. Bailaway, Walter. We shall soon free her from water, and then as soon asthe sea goes down we shall haul her up on the raft, and see what we cando with her. That carpenter's chest was not sent us for nothing, forthe tools are just the sort we want for the work; and, look here! theplanks we nailed on to the bottom of the raft are exactly suited forrepairing her. I scarcely dared to pray for a boat like this; but nowshe has been sent us, we may have good hope of reaching the shore, whichI own I began to doubt we ever should."
"Ay, Massa Shobbrok, you can never pray for too much," said Nub. "Ialways pray for what I want; and if it no come, I know it not good forme."
"Do you think this is papa's boat?" asked Alice.
"No, Miss Alice. I know this is Morgan the second mate's boat, whichaccompanied the captain's; and we may hope that the same vessel whichreceived both crews on board may pick us up."
Walter having reduced the water in the boat, sail was hoisted, and shewas dropped astern, Nub jumping in to assist in bailing out theremainder. At present she was too sorely battered and leaky to be ofany use. Their fear was that the weather might get worse, and that shemight after all have to be abandoned. However, as the day advanced,happily the wind fell and the sea went down. As soon, therefore, asthey had breakfasted they hauled the boat up on the raft; and though sheoccupied the larger portion of it, there was still room for Alice to sitnear the mast. All hands then set to work to repair her,--Walter andNub acting under the direction of the mate, who performed the moredifficult parts of the task. The boat-nails found in the chest wereinvaluable, but, of course, without the planks which had been preserved,nothing could have been done.
"Now, lads," said the mate, "before we begin we must see what amount ofmaterial we ha
ve got, and fit it to the parts for which it is bestsuited. A little time spent in this way will be time saved in the end,and enable us to accomplish what we might not otherwise have the powerto do."
They worked away, scarcely allowing themselves a minute to rest or totake food. The boat had apparently been damaged by the flukes of awhale, several planks on one side having been broken in. These werefirst repaired, and her bottom made sound; and then other injuries shehad received at the bow and stern were put to rights, either by fixingin new planks or by nailing others over the damaged places. There wasstill wood enough remaining to run a weatherboard all round her, thus toenable her the better to go through any bad weather she might encounterduring the long voyage she would possibly have to make. Lockers werethen fitted to the bow and stern, in which provisions might be stowed,and so prevent the risk of these being wetted should the sea break intothe boat.
Darkness found them still engaged in the task. Their intention was,next morning to make a step for the mast and to build a little cabin aftfor Alice.
As there was not room to lie down on the raft, the boat was propped onit; and they all got into her, having also stowed away on board the caskof water, the remaining biscuits, the bottles of wine, two harpoons andspears, and a portion of the fish. Walter and Alice occupied the sternsheets; the mate lay down amidships; while Nub, who was to keep thefirst watch, sat in the bows. Nub, finding himself in a boat, felt muchmore secure than he had done on the raft. He had kept the morningwatch, and had been working hard all day. It is not surprising,therefore, that when he ought to have been sitting with his eyes wideopen he allowed them to close, and fell asleep. The mate himself,though generally very wakeful, experienced a feeling of security he hadnot for long enjoyed, and slept more soundly than usual. It was almosta dead calm when they lay down, and the sea was perfectly smooth; novessel could run over them, for none could approach without wind;indeed, unless to be prepared for a change in the weather, it seemedalmost needless to keep watch.
Some hours, probably, had passed, when suddenly the voyagers wereawakened by a loud roaring sound, and by feeling the boat lifted on asea and sent surging forward. They all started up, the mate and Nublooking around them, while Walter held Alice in his arms, thinkingsomething terrible was about to happen.
"Out with the oars!" cried the mate. "Walter, ship the tiller." He wasinstantly obeyed, fortunately for them; for should such another sea asthat which had washed the boat off the raft catch her broadside, itmight roll her over and over. By great exertions the mate got herround, head to the sea, and there he and Nub were able to keep her. Butwhat had become of the raft? In the darkness it could nowhere be seen.Perhaps it was afloat near them, or it might, deprived of their weight,have been turned over and knocked to pieces by the seas. Happily, mostof the articles on which they depended for existence were in the boat;but their mast and sail had gone, with the chest, and the greaterportion of their tools. In vain the mate and Nub looked around on everyside in the hope of seeing it. Could they find it, even though itshould be sorely battered, they might hang on to leeward of it by ahawser, and thus, in comparative security, ride out the gale; as it was,they must keep their oars moving all night to prevent the seas frombreaking into the boat. They were, fortunately, rested; and the fleshof the nutritious sword-fish had restored their strength.
"Pull away, boys; pull away!" sung out Nub. "It's a long lane dat hasno turning. We better off dan on de raft, which de sea would havewashed over ebery moment. Here we pretty dry--only have to keep de oarsmoving. Pull away, boys; pull away!"
"That's the right spirit, Nub," said the mate. "I only wish that Icould sing as you do."
"I sing to cheer up Missie Alice," said Nub in a low voice. "I don'ttink I could sing oderwise."
Walter had learned to steer well, and kept the boat's head carefully tothe seas, so that she rose over each of them as they came hissing by.The wind was blowing on the land; and though the boat's head was turnedthe other way, she was in reality drifting towards it. Without a sailthey could not attempt to put her stem to the seas, and they musttherefore remain in their present position until the weather shouldagain moderate: when that might be it was impossible to say. However,the mate and Nub, being happily inured to hard work, could keep onrowing for many hours together.
Thus the night passed away; and when daylight returned, the rolling seashissing and bubbling around them were alone to be seen. They naturallylooked out for the raft. The boat had just risen on the crest of arolling wave, when Nub exclaimed, "I see de raft on de larboard hand,"--and he pointed with his chin to indicate the direction; "but it lookbery much knocked about."
"But I see it on the starboard bow," exclaimed Walter. "It seems to meas if it had kept perfectly together, though the mast has gone."
"How can that be?" exclaimed the mate, looking round in the directiontowards which Nub was pointing. "Yes, you are right, Nub; that's ourraft, sure enough. And now, Walter, I will try to get a look at whatyou say is a raft." The mate managed, while pulling, to slew himselfsufficiently round to look in the direction in which Walter pointed."Sure enough, Walter, that's also a raft," he exclaimed,--"a much largerone than ours; but whether or not any people are on it I cannot makeout."
The South Sea Whaler Page 9
