Four Young Explorers; Or, Sight-Seeing in the Tropics

by Oliver Optic

  CHAPTER XXII

  IN THE DOMINIONS OF THE FRENCH

  It was not a long voyage from Bangkok to the mouth of the Mekhong River;and the sight of land was not as thrilling an incident as it had oftenbeen in the experience of the voyagers, and they were not in conditionto appreciate the feelings of Captain Columbus when Watling's Islandbroke on his vision four hundred years before. It had been smoothsailing all the way; the Gulf of Siam had been as gentle andaffectionate as a maiden among the flowers, and the China Sea wasscarcely more ruffled.

  Mr. Gaskette had finished up his new map of Cochin China, so that it wasas creditable to his skill and taste as his former efforts had been; andit was displayed on the frame in Conference Hall, which was the usualsitting apartment of the company, though some of them did a great dealof walking on the promenade deck. The water was deeper inshore thanfarther out at sea, where several spots were marked at eight fathoms;and the passengers had a view of the land before they were within ahundred miles of the entrance of Saigon River.

  "There is a broad opening in the coast, which must be the Cambodia, orMekhong River," said Morris.

  "That is Batac Bay, with a large island in the middle of it," repliedCaptain Ringgold. "It is one of the mouths of the Mekhong; for there isa Delta here extending about a hundred miles, the Saigon River being themost easterly."

  "Mekhong seems to me a new word, though doubtless it was the native nameof the great river; but when I went to school we never called itanything but the Cambodia," added Uncle Moses.

  "It is now called by both names, and both are usually found on the mapsand charts," said the commander.

  A couple of hours later he pointed out the mouth of the great river. Allthe land was very low, and much of it was sometimes under water. Felixhad become the owner of an excellent spy-glass, which he had purchasedat second-hand at Aden; and he made abundant use of it. It was too largeto be worn in a sling at his side, and he always carried it in his handwhen the ship was in sight of land. After lunch, in the middle of theafternoon, he stationed himself in front of the pilot-house, and kept asharp lookout ahead.

  "Saigon light!" he shouted, some time before it could be made outwithout a glass.

  The steamer was headed for Cape St. Jacques, near the entrance to theriver by which she was to reach the city. The light soon came into view,and a boat was seen pulling out of the mouth. The signal for a pilot hadbeen displayed on the ship, and one of the men in it was believed to bethe person desired. The screw was stopped as he approached her, and theladder lowered for his ascent to the deck. As usual, all the passengerswanted to see him. He was an old man, or at least well along in years.

  "Good-day, sir," said Louis, who had gone to the main deck with thethird officer to receive him; and he spoke to him in French.

  He was conducted to the promenade deck, and presented to the captain. Hesaid that he was born in France, but had been in Cochin China nearlythirty years. He was first sent down to Monsieur Odervie for a lunchafter he had given the course, and the ship continued on her way. Thecook was very glad to meet a compatriot; and, as he was getting dinner,he had several nice dishes, from which he treated his new friend. Butthe pilot's services were soon needed in the pilot-house. He spoke alittle English, consisting mainly of nautical terms.

  He took his place on the starboard side of the wheel, with QuartermasterBangs on the other side, steering himself; perhaps because he was notwilling to trust his English in giving orders. But the quartermasterseconded all his movements, and they steered together in silence. Theship was soon well in the river, and the passengers had enough to do inobserving the shores on both sides.

  There were many openings in the banks of bayous and cut-offs, and theland was as flat as it had been during the last hundred miles of thevoyage. The soil was very rich, and produced abundant crops where itwas cultivated. A very few villages were to be seen; but each of themhad its temple or pagoda, and the houses hardly differed from those theyhad seen in Siam.

  "I suppose this is all an alluvial soil, Brother Avoirdupois," said Dr.Hawkes, as the ship was passing a rice-field.

  "So say the books I have consulted, Brother Adipose Tissue. It is justthe right land for rice, and that is the staple product of all thisregion," replied Uncle Moses.

  Both of these gentlemen weighed about two hundred and twenty-six poundsapiece, and they continued to call each other by the appropriate namesthey had given each other even before the ship left New York on hervoyage all over the world.

  "What is alluvial soil, Doctor?" asked Mrs. Blossom, who had read verylittle besides her Bible and denominational newspaper.

  "It is the soil or mud which is brought to its location by the action ofwater; and here it is brought down by the mighty river which spreadsitself out into a delta where we are," replied the doctorgood-naturedly, and without a smile at the ignorance of the worthy lady;for though her education had been greatly neglected, she was esteemedand respected by all on board, for in sickness she had been the nurse ofthe patients. "It is just the right soil for rice," he added.

  "I have seen so many rice-fields out here, that I should like to knowsomething more about them," suggested the good lady.

  "Naturalists class it as a kind of grass; but I will not vex you withany hard words. Rice is the food of about one-third of all the people onthe globe. It requires heat and moisture for its growth, and it israised in considerable quantities on the low lands of Georgia and SouthCarolina and elsewhere in our country. The plant grows from one to sixfeet high. I don't know much about the culture of this grain in theEast; but in South Carolina they first dig trenches, in the bottom ofwhich the rice is sown in rows eighteen inches apart. The plantation isprepared so that water can be let in and drawn off as desired. As soonas the seed is sown, the water is let in till the ground is covered tothe depth of several inches. As soon as the rice comes up, the water isdrawn off, and the plant grows in the open air rapidly under the hotsun. The field is again flooded for a couple of weeks, to kill theweeds, and again when the grain is ripening. The rice is in a hull, likewheat and other grains; and you have found parts of this covering in therice when you were cooking it. It is threshed out by hand or machineryafter it is dried, and then it is ready for market. There is arice-field on your right; and you can see the channels which have beendug to convey the water to the plants, or to draw it off," said thesurgeon in conclusion.

  "I see them, Dr. Hawkes; and I am very much obliged to you for taking somuch pains to instruct an ignorant body like me," replied Mrs. Blossom.

  "It is quite impossible for any of us to know everything, and I oftenfind myself entirely ignorant in regard to some things; and I have livedlong enough to forget many things that I learned when I was younger,"added the doctor with a softening smile.

  The villages increased in number and in size as the ship approached thecity; though they were about the same thing, except that in the largerones the temple was a handsomer structure.

  "How far is it from the sea to Saigon?" asked Bangs, speaking to thepilot for the first time; but the Frenchman could not understand him,and the quartermaster called Louis in, who repeated the question inFrench.

  "Sixty miles if you go one way; thirty-five by another," Louistranslated the reply.

  "That may account for the difference in the distance given in thebooks," said the captain, who was in the pilot-house. "But theinformation we obtain from what are considered the authorities is sovarious on the same subject that I don't know where the fault is."

  "This is the largest village we have seen," said Louis to the pilot inFrench.

  "Yes, sir; and the next place is Saigon," replied the Frenchman; but hewas so much occupied with his duty that he would not talk much, even inhis own language.

  The city was soon in sight, and the pilot began to feel about for thebell-pull. He spoke to Louis, and the quartermaster was told to ring thespeed-bell. A little later, off the town, the gong sounded for the screwto stop. The anchor was all ready, was let go, and the
steamer swunground to her cable. The Blanche had not so readily obtained a pilot asher consort, and she was an hour behind her in arriving.

  The Guardian-Mother was surrounded by boats as soon as she was at rest,but the boatmen kept their distance till the port physician and thecustom-house officials came on board. Both ships passed the ordeal ofthe examination, and the boats closed up. They were manned by all sortsof people, and they were in all sorts of craft. The captain said thatmost of them were Chinese sampans, and the boatmen were of the samenation.

  "There comes the Blanchita!" exclaimed Felix, who was walking about thedeck with his spy-glass under his arm.

  "They got her overboard in a very short time," said the captain, who hadjoined the company on the promenade. "I am glad she is coming, for Idesire to see the general."

  The gangway had already been rigged out; and the launch came alongsidethe platform, containing General Noury, his wife, the rajah, Captain andMrs. Sharp, Dr. Henderson, the surgeon of the Blanche, and the Frenchmaid of the princess. They were warmly greeted on the platform by thecommander and Louis, and the ladies were assisted from the boat. Theymounted to the deck; and the usual hugging, kissing, and handshakingfollowed in the boudoir.

  "I am glad you have come, General Noury," said Captain Ringgold, afterhe had shaken hands with everybody. "We have been shut up on shipboardfor some time now; and as we have come to a French city, I propose totake my party to a hotel for a day or two. Of course you can do as youplease, General."

  "I like the idea, Captain, if there is a decent hotel here," replied thepacha. "What do you think, Zuleima?" he asked, turning to his wife.

  "I like it very much; and the hotel cannot be any worse than some wehave lived in on our yacht voyages," replied the princess.

  "Here is the medical officer, and he can tell us something about thehotels," suggested the commander.

  The doctor was consulted by the general in French, and he said the Hotelde l'Europe was very good. The entire party of both ships were invitedto go on shore, and remain at the hotel. All of them accepted, includingCaptain Sharp and his wife. Those on board the Guardian-Mother wentbelow to prepare for the shore, and the Blanchita returned to theBlanche for the same purpose. The gentlemen were on deck again in a fewminutes.

  "A visitor to see you, Mr. Scott," said a seaman, approaching the thirdofficer as he came from the cabin.

  "Captain Rayburn!" exclaimed Scott as soon as he caught sight of thevisitor. "I am very glad to see you, Captain;" and the young officergrasped his hand.

  "I am quite as pleased to see you, Captain Scott, though I hardly knewyou," replied the English captain.

  "I am no longer captain, though I am the third officer of this ship; andI did not wear my uniform when I met you at Kuching."

  "How are the rest of your party?" inquired the captain of the Delhi.

  "Very well, and here they are."

  "I am delighted to see you on board of your own ship, Mr. Belgrave,"said Captain Rayburn, rushing to the young millionaire as he came ondeck with his bag in his hand.

  Felix and Morris soon appeared, and gave the captain a hearty greeting.The commander happened to pass near them, and he was approached byScott.

  "Captain Ringgold, allow me to introduce Captain Rayburn, of the steamerDelhi, to whom the Borneo party are greatly indebted for his kindness;and the Blanchita sailed in company of his ship from Kuching to fortymiles inside of Point Cambodia."

  "Captain Rayburn, I am very happy to meet you; and I am glad of theopportunity to thank you for your kindness to my young men, andespecially for standing by the Blanchita during the worst part of hervoyage to Bangkok. But we are all going ashore at once to spend a day ortwo at the Hotel de l'Europe; and I cordially invite you to be myguest."

  After some objections to the plan, he accepted the invitation. He waswell dressed, and a gentleman in every sense of the word. He ordered themen in his boat to return to the Delhi, and to bring off certaingarments to the hotel. The Blanchita came up to the gangway again, andthe party embarked in her.