THE LANDING
This burst of high spirits showed how light-hearted the castaways were
in the face of difficulties, for what lay before them and how they were
to reach the island required all their powers of thought and action.
"How do you propose to get the cutter over the side?" asked Mr. McKay.
"By means of one of the derricks," replied Ellerton promptly.
"Quite so; but where is the power required to turn the winches to come
from? We've no steam at our command, you know, and these winches are
not adapted to manual power."
The apprentice's face clouded; he thought for a few minutes, then--
"We can top one of the derricks and rig up a tackle, sir."
"Good!" replied Mr. McKay. "But what is the weight of the boat?"
"Ours on the _Tophet_ weighed twelve hundredweight; this one is about
the same size."
"Then rig a gun tackle, and the four of you will manage the job, I
think."
Accordingly two large double blocks were obtained and the rope rove
ready for use. One of the blocks was secured to the cud of the
derrick, which was then hoisted to an angle of about forty-five
degrees. This took time, but at length everything was ready for the
crucial test.
"Now, all together!"
The three lads and the mulatto tailed on to the rope. The blocks
squeaked as the strain began to tell; the cutter began to lift,
then--crash!
Flat on their backs fell the four lads; high in the air jerked the
disengaged lower block. The slings to which it had been fastened had
snapped.
Slowly the victims regained their feet, Andy rubbing a tender portion
of his anatomy, Terence gasping for breath, for Andy's head had
well-nigh winded him. Ellerton was clapping his hands to a rapidly
rising bump on the back of his head, while Quexo, whose skull was as
hard as iron, was hopping all over the deck, rubbing his shins, that
had saved the apprentice's head at the mulatto's expense.
"Try again, boys!" shouted Andy. "Everything on board this blessed
craft seems rotten!"
A new span was placed in position, and the tackle again manned, and
this time their efforts were crowned with success. The cutter rose
slowly in the air, till it hung fire five feet above the shattered
bulwarks.
"Belay, there! Man the guy-rope!"
The derrick swung outboard, till the cutter was poised above the water
and well clear of the sloping sides of the hull.
"Lower away handsomely."
Slowly the boat dipped, till at length she rode, sheltered under the
lee of her stranded parent, upon the bosom of the ocean.
"Capital!" exclaimed Mr. McKay, as his son swarmed down the rope,
disengaged the tackle, and allowed the cutter a generous length of
painter.
Then the work of loading her was begun. It was decided that for the
first trip nothing more than was absolutely necessary for immediate use
was to be taken, until it was settled where their camp was to be fixed,
and whether the island had any inhabitants.
"A small barrico of water will be sufficient, though I am certain there
are springs amongst those trees," said Ellerton. His sense of
responsibility was hourly increasing. "A barrel of flour, some tinned
goods, canvas and rope for a tent."
"Not forgetting hatchets, knives, and firearms," added Mr. McKay.
"Firearms?"
"Aye; one never knows how the natives--if there be natives on the
island--will greet us. Most of the Pacific Islanders are fairly
peaceable, thanks to missionary enterprise and the fear of a visit from
a warship; yet cannibalism still exists. I have known instances of the
crews of small 'pearlers' being treacherously surprised, killed, and
eaten. So get hold of the arms; you'll probably find the key of the
captain's cabin in the chart-house; if not, burst open the door."
Ellerton departed upon his errand, and presently returned with the news
that there was no trace of the key. "Here is a sextant and a bundle of
charts, however," he added. "They are bound to be useful, although I
cannot understand the meaning of the depths on the chart."
"They are in 'brazas,' equal to about five and a half English feet.
But, as you say, the charts will be of extreme importance to us."
"Come on, Terence, let's burgle the captain's cabin," exclaimed
Ellerton, laying hold of a hatchet.
Soon the sound of blows was heard, followed by the splintering of wood,
and the two lads returned literally armed to the teeth.
Each had a couple of rifles slung across his back; Terence carried half
a dozen revolvers in his arms and a sheath-knife between his teeth,
while Ellerton staggered beneath the weight of several belts of ball
cartridges and a box of revolver ammunition.
"There's more to come; the place is like a regular armoury," explained
Terence.
"That's somewhat unusual," replied Mr. McKay. "Most captains keep
firearms of a kind in their cabins. I strongly suspect that those arms
were to be sold to some South American insurgents. They are much too
good for bartering with the South Sea Islanders. Nevertheless, I'm
right glad we have been able to arm ourselves thoroughly, as I expected
we should have to be content with a couple of pistols between the lot
of us."
The work of loading the boat proceeded briskly, till the strictly
limited quantity of gear was carefully stowed under the thwarts. Then
came the question, how were they going to transport the crippled Mr.
McKay to the shore?
"Hoist me over by the derrick, of course," replied he. "A couple of
rope spans round the plank and their bights slipped over the hook of
the lower block, and the trick's done."
Ellerton and Terence thereupon slipped down a rope into the boat and
carefully guided the swaying mess table and its helpless burden on to a
couple of the after thwarts. This done, they were joined by Andy and
Quexo, and, shipping the heavy ash oars, they pulled clear of the ship.
The first fifty yards meant hard and careful rowing, for directly they
were beyond the shelter of the stranded vessel they felt the full force
of the rollers as they dashed against the coral reef, barely a boat's
length to lee'ard.
Once, indeed, it seemed as if the cutter were bound to be swept upon
the rocks; but by dint of the utmost exertions of her crew, the boat
surely and slowly drew away from the influence of the rollers.
"My word, that was a narrow squeak!" exclaimed Andy, wiping his face,
from which the perspiration ran freely. "I thought we were going to be
capsized that time."
"It doesn't say much for the chances of those poor fellows last night,"
replied Ellerton. "They must have dropped smack on top of the reef."
"We'll soon find out," said Mr. McKay. "You see, they were immediately
to lee'ard of the ship, and it was high water at the time. If they
survived, we'll find them ashore right enough."
"But I saw no sign of the boat when I looked through the glass."
"That may be because there is a creek or cove that is invisible from
the ship. Being directly to wind'ard, we are bound to find either the
men or the remains of the boat."
"The ship is sitting up well," remarked Andy, for, the tide having
dropped nearly six feet--it had been abnormally high by reason of the
terrific wind--they could see the top of one of her propeller blades.
"Do you think she'll stay there?"
"It certainly doesn't seem as if she is likely to slip off into deep
water, but we cannot say for certain. The first fine day there's
little or no swell we'll sound all round her. Now, give way, lads."
The rowers resumed their oars, and the boat, passing through the narrow
gap in the reef, gained the shelter of the lagoon.
"Fine, isn't it?" exclaimed Terence enthusiastically, as he rested on
his oar and gazed into the clear depths of the tranquil water. "Won't
we be able to have some bathes?"
"You'll have to be careful if you do," remarked Mr. McKay. "There are
bound to be sharks about."
He did not think it advisable to call the lads' attention to a
commotion in the water a few hundred yards in front of the boat. From
his inclined position he could see ahead, while the rowers had their
backs turned in that direction. His keen eyes had detected the
sinister dorsal fin of not one, but many sharks, all cutting towards
one spot. There could be but little doubt of the fate of the Peruvian
seamen.
The noise of the approaching oars disturbed the huge monsters, and they
darted off to the shelter of the rock-strewn floor of the lagoon.
Unaware of the tragedy, the lads urged the boat almost over the fatal
spot, and five minutes later the cutter's forefoot grounded on the
sandy beach.
"Terence, I want you and Quexo to stay in the boat," said Ellerton,
after the survivors had, by a common impulse, knelt down and returned
thanks to Divine Providence for their escape. "Keep her stern from
slewing round, so that we can push off in a hurry. Andy and I are
going to explore."
And, buckling on a revolver and an ammunition belt, and grasping a
rifle in his hand, Ellerton took a flying leap over the bows and
alighted on the sand.
The lads found themselves on the shore of a small bay, its extremities
bounded by two towering cliffs, that rose sheer from the lagoon. That
to the left was not less than five hundred feet in height, while the
other was but slightly lower. Midway between these impassable
boundaries the land sloped abruptly to the beach, and was thickly
covered with cocoanut palms.
"Keep your weather eye lifting, Andy," cautioned Ellerton, who had
taken the precaution of charging both the magazine of his rifle and the
chambers of his revolver.
It was an unnecessary warning, for Andy was an infinitely better scout
than his companion; still, it showed that Ellerton was fast adopting
the manner of life required in a wild and unsettled country.
Skirting the edge of the wood, the lads kept a vigilant look-out for
any traces of human agency, but nothing was visible.
Presently they came to a small stream, which, trickling down the steep
hillside, was lost in the sand.
"There'll be no lack of fresh water," exclaimed Andy thankfully, for he
knew the value of that precious fluid. "But, I say, isn't everything
quiet?" For, save the babbling of the brook and the distant roar of
the breakers on the reef, there was an unaccustomed silence. Not a
bird sang in the groves, not an animal rustled the thick undergrowth.
"I think we may take it for granted that the island is uninhabited--at
least, this part," said Andy, as they completed their walk along the
shores of the bay. "Otherwise, there's almost sure to be a beaten
track to the shore."
"It doesn't promise much for the boat's crew," answered Ellerton.
Then, with an exclamation of surprise, he shouted: "Look! What's that?"
Lying on the sand a few feet from the water's edge was a mournful relic
of the unfortunate boat, her back-board bearing the words _San Martin_.
A little farther they found an oar.
"There were two boats, remember," said Ellerton. "And one we know was
capsized."
"I vote we explore the next bay," exclaimed Andy. "There's no suitable
clearing here for a camp, and felling trees takes time; so let's get
back to the boat."
"Well?" asked Mr. McKay on their return.
"We must push off and land on the other side of the cliff," said his
son. "There may be a better site for our tent. It's too steep and
densely wooded here."
"Any signs of the crew?"
"Only part of their boat."
"I feared as much," replied Mr. McKay.
* * * * *
"This looks more promising," exclaimed Andy enthusiastically, as the
boat slowly rounded the northernmost of the two cliffs.
Here the land sloped less abruptly towards the lagoon, while in places
there were terraces almost bare of trees. In the background towered a
range of mountains whose rugged sides gave the appearance of being
unclimbable, while on either hand of the bay rose lofty cliffs.
The beach, too, was better adapted for landing purposes than where they
had first touched, consisting of sand interspersed by ledges of rocks
jutting seawards, thus forming convenient natural jetties.
"This will do admirably," said Ellerton, pointing to a narrow cove
betwixt the ledges. "There's sand at its head, so there's no fear of
the boat being damaged."