The South Sea Whaler

by William Henry Giles Kingston

  CHAPTER ELEVEN.

  VOYAGE IN THE BOAT CONTINUED--SUFFERINGS FROM THIRST--DEATH OF THEBOATSWAIN--REGAIN THE RAFT AND MAST AND SAIL--A BONITO CAUGHT ANDCOOKED--RAIN AND WIND--THE SHORE REACHED--WATER FOUND--THE FIRST NIGHTON SHORE--BIRDS OF PARADISE SEEN--A REFRESHING BATH--FRUIT OBTAINED.

  The mate and Nub, with their young companions, cordially welcomed thesurgeon and Tidy. "We should have been more thankful to see you, had wefood and water to offer," said the mate; "but we must pray that a showermay be sent down on us, and that we may fall in before long with asword-fish or a bonito."

  The weather had somewhat moderated, and casting off from the raft, theyput the boat's head towards the shore. Walter, as before, took thehelm, while the mate and Nub pulled away as hard as their strength wouldallow, neither the doctor nor Dan being able to exert themselves. Asthe sun got high in the sky, and distant objects could be seen, the matestood up and looked out anxiously for the land. "I see it," heexclaimed; "but it's still a long way off. We must not despair however,my friends." Saying this, he again sat down.

  "Pull away, lads; pull away!" faintly sang out poor Nub, though hisstrength was almost gone; for, in order that Walter and Alice might haveenough, he had eaten but little food for many hours. The wind once morecame ahead, and unless they continued to exert themselves, they might beblown back again a considerable distance. Nub had not spoken for sometime, still pulling on; but suddenly his oar fell from his grasp, and hesank down in the bottom of the boat, while the oar, on which so muchdepended, fell into the water. Dan Tidy, who was sitting next to him,in vain attempted to catch it. It passed by, too far off for Walter toreach. The mate in vain endeavoured with his single oar so to managethe boat as to come up with it, and in the violent efforts he made, hisoar almost broke in two. The helpless voyagers now floated on the wildwaters deprived of the means of urging on their boat.

  "What are we to do, Mr Shobbrok?" asked Walter, as the mate stepped aftand sat down by the side of the young people.

  "All we can do is to pray to God for help, for vain is the help of man,"answered the mate.

  "Oh yes, yes! that we will!" exclaimed Alice; and she and her brotherlifted up their hands and eyes to heaven, and uttered a prayer, whichwas surely heard, as true prayers always are.

  Poor Nub lay in the bows, too much exhausted to move; Dan Tidy sat withhis head cast down, hope almost gone, his brave Irish heart for thefirst time yielding to despair; while the surgeon, nearly overcome withweakness, watched the boatswain, who lay at the bottom of the boat withhis head resting on one of the thwarts, holding on by the side, hisgroans expressing the terror and agony of his mind. Gradually thewretched man's hands relaxed their hold, and his eyes became fixed.

  "He has gone to his terrible account," said Mr Lawrie at length. Notanother word was spoken for some time.

  "We must bury the man," said the mate; "the sooner that's done thebetter." The doctor summoned Dan to assist him, and they and the matetaking the body up, were about to let it over the side, when the latterexclaimed, "Stay! his jacket and shirt will be of use in making a sail.It's our only chance of reaching the shore." The garments were takenoff the body, which was then committed to the deep; and although withoutany weight attached, it immediately sank beneath the surface. Not aword was spoken. The surgeon did not think for a moment of goingthrough the mockery of a service; but they all lifted up their hearts inprayer that they might be preserved.

  The boat continued drifting before the land-wind further and furtherfrom the shore, till all hope of reaching it was lost. Alice, who wasseated with her brother gazing across the ocean, perhaps in theexpectation of catching sight of an approaching sail, suddenlyexclaimed, "Look--look! Walter! what can that be?"

  "A piece of wreck," he answered; "or it's one of the rafts."

  The boat was drifting directly towards it. The rest of the party turnedtheir eyes in the direction Walter and Alice were looking.

  "It's our raft," exclaimed Mr Shobbrok, getting out the broken oar."Walter, take the helm and steer as I tell you." They quickly nearedthe raft. "Heaven be praised!" exclaimed the mate, as they got close toit; "the sail and mast are still there, and also the two oars."

  The boat was made fast to the raft, and the mate, with the assistance ofWalter and Tidy, lifted the mast, yard, and sail into the boat, with thetwo oars. The chest, being securely lashed, still remained. The matequickly opened it, and took out the tools likely to prove most useful,with an ample supply of nails. Scarcely had they been transferred tothe boat, when Alice, who had been the harbinger of good tidings,exclaimed, "See! see that large fish!" Walter seized one of theharpoons, and handed it to the mate, The fish was swimming round closeto the raft; the harpoon flew from the grasp of the mate, and he callingto Tidy to help him, they together in another minute brought to thesurface a large bonito, which was quickly hauled on to the raft. PoorNub, who had hitherto scarcely been able to open his languid eyes,dragging himself up, exclaimed, "We cook it on de raft for MissieAlice."

  The suggestion was acted upon, and the lighter portions of the raft,which were sufficiently dried to serve as fuel, were cut up. The firebeing kindled, large slices of the meat were arranged round it. Beforethey were thoroughly cooked, however, most of the starving party beganto devour them, though Alice waited till the piece intended for her wasdone. They were still engaged in cooking the fish, when dark cloudsarose in the east. How anxiously they watched them! One passed overtheir heads, then another.

  "Here comes the rain," cried the mate. "Heaven be praised!"

  The sail was stretched out as before. Down came the blessed rain. Thefire was put out,--which was, however, of minor consequence; and thealmost exhausted voyagers were able to quench their thirst, the caskbeing filled before the rain ceased. The cooked and uncooked portionsof the fish were taken on board; and the mate set to work to fit a stepfor the mast. This was soon done; and a fresh breeze blowing towardsthe shore, the sail was hoisted, and the boat went gliding over theocean. How grateful were the hearts of all on board! Food and waterhad been amply provided, when the blessing was least expected.

  Before night set in, land was clearly seen ahead. The mate was ofopinion that it was an island of no great extent, or a promontory of NewGuinea. Both Nub and Tidy were greatly restored by a night's rest, andthe late ample supply of food they had enjoyed. Mr Shobbrok kept atthe helm nearly the whole time, and only when the wind fell would heallow Walter to take his place, with the doctor, to keep watch while heslept. The land-wind, which blew during the morning, tried theirpatience; but the sea-breeze at length setting in, they rapidlyapproached the shore, which appeared thickly wooded down to the veryedge of the water, with high ground rising at a short distance from it.A belt of coral, such as is now called a "fringing reef," against whichthe sea beat with considerable violence, throwing up a heavy surf,extended along the shore, making an attempt to land highly dangerous, ifnot impossible. The mate accordingly hauling the boat to the wind,stood to the southward, in the hope of finding some bay or inlet intowhich they might run. All eyes were eagerly turned towards the shore.As they coasted along, no huts or habitations of any kind were seen, norwas there any appearance of the island being inhabited. The water inthe cask was by this time nearly exhausted, and the uncooked fish beganto exhibit the effects of the hot sun. The day was drawing on, and themate felt especially anxious not to have to spend another night at sea.Just as he was beginning to fear that they might have to do so, hispractised eyes discovered an opening in the reef; and telling the doctorand Nub to keep a bright lookout for rocks ahead, he steered for it.

  As the boat approached, the shore opened out, and the thankful voyagerssoon found themselves entering a deep inlet, fringed with graceful treesdown to the very edge of the water. A spot appearing, not far from theentrance, where the rocks, running out, afforded a naturallanding-place, sail was lowered, and the boat being rowed carefully in,they soon reached the beach. Walter was the first to spring on
shore,followed by Nub, who stretched out his arms to receive Alice from themate. Her young heart beat with gratitude as she stood, holding herbrother's hand, safe on firm land. The rest followed; and having hauledup the boat, they all knelt down and offered up their thanks to Heavenfor their preservation from the numberless dangers they had gonethrough.

  "And let us still trust, my friends, to Him who has taken care of us,"added the mate. "We should always pray for protection against unseen aswell as seen dangers; and it would be folly not to expect to meet withmore."

  The sail of the boat and the other articles in her were now landed, themate wishing to form a tent which would protect Alice during the night.As but little water remained in the cask, and the fish was scarcelyeatable, it was important to find a fresh stream or spring, and somefruit, if live creatures could not be caught, to satisfy their hunger.The doctor and Tidy set out to explore the neighbourhood for thatpurpose, while Walter remained to take care of Alice, and to assist themate in putting up the tent and preparing a fire. Nub begged to beallowed to go in search of wood, observing that he had a notion on thesubject, though what it was he did not say.

  The mate and Walter had been very busy; the latter in collecting aquantity of dried grass and leaves to form a bed for Alice. He was thusengaged, when, looking up, he saw Nub coming out of the water, carryingon his shoulders what looked like a round basin or saucer of enormousdimensions, with long streamers down which the water trickled hangingfrom it.

  "What can it be?" exclaimed Alice.

  "It is, I suspect, a large shell-fish; a mollusc, learned people callit; and if so, the creature will afford all hands an ample meal,"observed the mate.

  Walter and Alice ran down to meet Nub.

  "Yes, Missie Alice, bery good fish inside here," he answered. "Nuf forgood supper for eberybody; only we cook it first."

  The large clam--such was the species to which the shell-fish belonged--was placed on the ground.

  "Where de oders?" asked Nub. "I want Tidy to help make fireplace. DanTidy, where are you?" shouted Nub.

  Just then Dan made his appearance, with the information that they hadfound a stream of fresh water running down from the hills not far off,and that the doctor had sent him back to get the cask, he himselfremaining on the watch for any birds or quadrupeds which might come downto drink. The remaining contents were therefore shared among thethirsty party, and the Irishman went away with the empty cask on hisshoulder; while the mate and Walter assisted Nub in building afireplace--the materials being furnished by some masses of coral rockwhich lay on the beach. Fuel was then collected and arranged betweenthe two piles of stone, and the mollusc being placed so that its edgesrested on the top of them, the mate set fire to the wood.

  Scarcely was the fire lighted when Dan returned with the cask. "Arrah,now, Nub, you are mighty clever; but there's one thing I think I canbeat you in, and that is in blowing up a fire. Shure, they used to callme `little bellows' at home, and set me to make the turf blaze up whenthe praties were put on to boil." Saying this, Dan threw himself on theground, and began blowing away with a vehemence which soon made thesparks fly, speedily followed by a flickering flame. The sticks caughtand crackled, and the smoke rose in dense volumes.

  While he was so employed, the doctor arrived with a large water-fowlwhich he had cleverly caught, as he lay hid in the long grass, while thebird was passing by, unconscious of danger. "I will undertake thecooking of the mollusc," he said. "If the creature is cut up into smallpieces, it will be much more rapidly and perfectly done. We must firstopen the shell, however. Walter, fetch me the cold chisel and hammerwhich you brought on shore."

  After the mollusc had been for some time exposed to the fire, he with afew strokes opened it, allowing each half to rest on the piles of stone.Honest Nub was in no way offended at being superseded in his office ofcook, and went off to collect a further supply of fuel, with which hequickly returned; while Walter employed himself in plucking the wildfowl captured by the doctor. Dan finding it no longer necessary toperform the part of bellows, got up and surveyed the mollusc withinfinite satisfaction.

  "Arrah, now, if there were but some praties to cook with it, we shouldbe having as fine an Irish stew as we could wish to set eyes on. It'sdone to a turn now, doctor; and if you will please to lend a hand, wewill carry it to a clear place, away from the smoke, where Miss Alicecan sit down and enjoy herself." Suiting the action to the word, Dantook hold of the edge of the shell, but sprang back again with a howl,wringing his burnt fingers as he exclaimed, "Arrah, now, I forgotentirely how hot it was!" The doctor could scarcely help laughing atDan's mistake, into which he himself had, however, narrowly escapedfalling. At his suggestion, the fire being raked away, two sticks werelaced under the shell, and it was carried to a level spot, where all theparty gathered round it, and thankfully ate their first meal on shore,The food was well-tasted and nutritious, though they would gladly havehad some vegetable diet to take after it. All had eaten as much as theyrequired, and still a considerable portion remained. The doctorsuggested that it should be covered up with the upper shell, and keptfor the next day's breakfast. As it was now getting dark, the mateadvised Alice to retire to her tent, which he had erected close to thespot where they were sitting, while the rest of the party made suchpreparations as they deemed necessary for passing the night.

  "Though we are not at sea, my friends," said the mate, "we must set awatch, to guard against the attack of wild animals or savages; forthough we saw no habitations as we coasted along the shore, people maypossibly inhabit the interior. If each of us take two hours apiece, weshall easily get through the dark hours of the night."

  "Shure, Mr Shobbrok, how are we to fight the wild bastes or savages, ifthey come, without arms?" asked Dan.

  "With regard to the savages, I do not, I confess, expect a visit fromthem; but if any do come, we must try to win their friendship," answeredthe mate. "As for the wild beasts, we will at once cut some long poles,and sharpen the ends in the fire to serve as lances. If, however, wekeep up a good blaze all night, none are likely to come near us; butshould any appear, the person on watch must instantly rouse up therest."

  "No fear of dat, Mr Shobbrok," observed Nub. "If lion or tiger come,me make a precious hollobolo."

  "We need not be afraid of either lions or tigers," answered the mate,"as, to the best of my belief, they are not to be found in this part ofthe world; but what other savage animals there are, I am not prepared tosay."

  Alice quickly retired to the tent her friends had arranged for her. Themate assigned their watch to each of the party,--telling Walter,however, that he must consider his over, and get a good night's rest.No one thought it necessary to provide shelter, all of them being bythis time inured to sleeping in the open air. A lump of wood or a fewbundles covered with grass served for pillows. The doctor took thefirst watch, Tidy the second, and Nub the third, while the mate chosethe last, that he might arouse the rest of the party in time. Therebeing an abundance of fuel, a large fire was kept up, which would serveto prevent any wild beasts from approaching the camp; for they, unlikefishes and insects, which are attracted by a bright light, generallyshow a dislike to approach a fire.

  Alice and Walter were the first on foot--even before the mate intendedto call them. Alice had conceived a wish to visit the fresh stream thedoctor had described, to enjoy a draught of cool water and the luxury ofa bath, should a spot be found which no sharks could reach, and where noother savage creature was likely be lying hid. Walter willingly agreedto accompany her, and to stand guard while she was performing herablutions. The mate did not object; and when Mr Lawrie heard of theirintention, he said that he considered the place perfectly safe, and thathe would shortly follow. Nub and Tidy, in the meantime, collected morewood to keep up the fire, as it was important not to let it out, theirstock of matches being limited. They then went down to the beach tosearch for more shell-fish, while Mr Shobbrok remained at the camp towatch the fire. He and the doctor put
their heads together to inventvarious traps, with which they hoped to catch some of the numerous birdsflitting about the woods, or any of the smaller quadrupeds inhabitingthe neighbourhood.

  Walter provided himself with a long stick, which he hoped would be asufficient weapon of defence against any creatures they were likely toencounter, and in good spirits they set out on their expedition. Theyhad not got far when Alice, touching Walter's arm, whispered, "Do notspeak, or we shall frighten them. Look at those beautiful birds; whatcan they be?" She pointed to a tree a short distance off, on which wereperched a number of birds of the most magnificent plumage, with bodiesabout the size of thrushes, having a mass of feathers which extended farbeyond their tails, making them look much larger than they really were.The birds did not apparently observe the intruders on their domain, andcontinued dancing about on the boughs, exhibiting their richly colouredfeathers to each other, as if proud of their beauty. Walter and Alicehad never seen any birds to be compared in beauty to them, though theydiffered considerably from each other. The most beautiful had a bill,slightly bent, of a greenish colour, around the base of which was afringe of velvet-like black plumes. The head and part of the neck wasof a pale golden-green, the throat being of a still richer hue, whilethe remaining plumage on the body and the tail was of a deep chestnut,--except on the breast, which was a rich purple. From each side of thebody beneath the wings sprang a mass of long floating plumes of the mostdelicate texture, of a bright yellow; and beyond the tail projected apair of naked shafts, far longer even than the yellow plumes.Sometimes, when the bird was at rest, it allowed these plumes to hangdown close together; then suddenly it would raise them, when they archedover, covering the whole of the body, which shone brightly in the sun.This was evidently a male bird; the females, though possessing muchbeauty, were not nearly so richly adorned. Another bird, much smaller,was seen among them, perched on a bough above the rest, and evidentlyconsidering itself of no small importance. Its colour was mostly of abeautiful red-chestnut, the base of the bill being surrounded withvelvet-like plumes, while the throat and upper part of the breast wereof a deep purple-red; a bright golden-green zone running across thelower part, separated from the red above by a line of yellow; the lowerportion of the body being perfectly white. On each side was a bunch offeathers, tinged with the richest golden-green; and from the middle ofthe tail extended two very long, naked shafts, which terminated in abroad golden-green web of spiral form. So delighted were the youngpeople with the spectacle, that they could not tear themselves from thespot, forgetting all about the object of their excursion. They werestill intently watching the birds, when they were aroused by the voiceof the doctor, which had also the effect of startling the beautifulcreatures. Away flew the birds, the doctor, however, catching a glimpseof them.

  "Oh, what a pity you did not come sooner!" exclaimed Alice.

  "Had I done so, I should have deprived you of the pleasure of watchingthe birds," answered Mr Lawrie. "From the glimpse I caught of them, Ihave no doubt that they are birds of paradise, which, I have heard,inhabit New Guinea and the surrounding islands. I have seen some deadspecimens, but of course they can give but a very inadequate idea of thebirds when living, which I believe are the most beautiful of the wholefeathered tribe."

  The doctor's arrival was most opportune, for Walter and Alice hadremained so long looking at the birds, that they had forgotten thedirection to take, and would very probably have lost their way.Conducted by the surgeon, they reached a spot where a bright, sparklingstream fell over a high rock, forming a small cascade, into a pool ofclear water about three feet deep. A ledge enabled them to reach thecascade, where they could drink the water as it fell. How cool andrefreshing it tasted! They all felt wonderfully invigorated; and thedoctor owned that, under their circumstances, no tonic medicine he couldhave given them would have a more beneficial effect. The rock extendedsome way down on the opposite side of the stream, and the path they hadpursued appeared to be the only one by which the pool could beapproached.

  "What a delightful place for a bath!" said Alice, looking at it with alonging eye.

  "You shall have it all to yourself," answered Walter; "but let me soundit with my stick first. It may be deeper than we suppose."

  Walter, as he suggested, went round the pool, plunging in his stick. Itwas fortunate he did so, for the upper side, into which the cascadefell, was, he found, much out of Alice's depth. He charged her,therefore, to keep on the lower side, where the water was less deep. Hewas satisfied, too, that no creature lurked within, for the bottom waseverywhere visible, though, from the clearness of the water, it wasdifficult to judge the depth by the eye.

  "It's a mercy that you thought of trying the depth," said Alice; "for Iintended to have gone under the cascade and enjoyed a shower-bath."

  Leaving Alice to bathe in the retired pool, the doctor and Walter huntedabout in search of game or fruits, which might serve as an addition totheir breakfast. Birds of gorgeous plumage flew about overhead, orflitted among the branches of the trees; and high up, far beyond theirreach, they observed some tempting-looking fruit, on which numerousbirds were feeding. They gazed at them with envious eyes.

  "Our only chance of getting any will be if those feathered gentlemenshould be kind enough to let some fall," observed the doctor. "We mustnot be too proud to take advantage of their negligence."

  While he was speaking, a large bird of black plumage, with an enormousbeak, and a horn-shaped ornament on the top of it, flew at one of thefruits, and nipping it off, down it came to the ground; while the bird,perching on a bough, attacked another, with more benefit to himself.Walter picked up the fallen fruit, which, though it had a somewhat hardskin, was full of a delicious juicy pulp. While he was examining thefruit, the doctor watched the bird, which, picking off fruit afterfruit, appeared to throw them up and catch them in its mouth as theyfell. The bird having apparently satisfied itself, then flew off to thetrunk of a tree of enormous size and height. The doctor followed it,and found that it made use of its beak to carry food, with which it wassupplying another of its species--poking its head out of a hole in thetrunk.

  "We must have those birds if we are hard pressed, as I am afraid weshall be unless our traps succeed, or we can manage some serviceablebows and arrows for shooting game," said the doctor to Walter, who hadfollowed him.

  On their way back to the pool they picked up several more fruits whichhad dropped. They met Alice, who had not only bathed herself, but hadwashed her clothes, and dried them in the hot sun, which struck withgreat force against the side of the rock, so that in a few minutes theywere again fit to be put on.

  "We must follow your wise example by-and-by," said the doctor; "but wewill now go back to breakfast, or Mr Shobbrok will wonder what hasbecome of us."