THE FORECASTLE OF THE SEALER.--A SEALER'S STORY.--THE LAST
HUNT.--ARRIVAL AT ST. JOHN'S.
In the quarters of the men forward, between the lofty and wedge-like
bows, the rest of the party met with a warm reception; and although
grease was everywhere a prominent feature of the surroundings, still the
sense of comfort, warmth, and security, made it a paradise to men who
had passed so many days of discomfort and anxiety.
Huge kids of beef, potatoes, and bread, with hot pannikins of strong
black tea, formed their dinner, which most of the men preferred to eat
on deck; but the boatswain, or rather captain of the forecastle, with,
perhaps, a dozen others, seated themselves at the long hanging shelf
which formed the table, and listened intently to the story of their
varied wanderings and adventures.
As Regnar concluded, a grizzly-haired sealer from Kitty Vitty seized him
by the hand.
A SEALER'S STORY.
"Ye've ben lucky, sur; de Lord be praised for't, for dere's many a
better man nor you dat's died wid hunger an' cold on de ice. I mind once
myself dat I sailed out o' Conception in March, an' tree weeks after dat
we were up off Hamilton Inlet. Dere was a big fleet of us boys, for dat
was in de ould times when dere were no steamers, but only brigantines
mostly.
"Well, dere was ould Ned Shea in de Li'n, an' Jim Daygle in de Ringdove,
an' Bill 'Hearne in de Swiler's Bride, an ourselves in de Truelove, all
in company; an' dat night at dusk we made de Greenland ice. Well, de
wind was west-nor'-west, an' we put de studdin'-sils onto her, an' away
we went flamin' mad through der slob.
"Well, de ice giv us many a heavy thump dat night, but de ould Truelove
was well fastened, an' at daylight next mornin', we heard de watch cry,
'Swiles! Swiles! On deck, below dere!' You may be sure we wasn't long in
gettin' on deck wid our guns an' gaffs, an', sure enough, dere dey was,
ould an' young, _atin' de shaydn_ (sheathing) _off her_.
"Den we launched de boats an' took to de ice; an' when we landed, de
capten said, 'Trow your guns in de boats, an' at dem wid de gaff;' an'
such a massacree I never saw since. De first I killed was a 'harp;' an'
den I killed a 'hood' wid de first lick; an' den a 'jenny' an' tree
'white coats;' but I took my toe to dem, an' all of 'em in a bit of a
hollow not bigger den dis fo'c's'le, an' I sculped dem an' put dere
sculps on a pinnacle; an' so it was all day an' de next.
"But on de t'ird day we were hard at it a good way from de vessil, an' I
tought I saw some swiles under a hummock, an' I ran up swingin' my club;
but dey didn't stir, an' den I saw dat dey wasn't swiles. Dey was
Huskies, two of 'em, dead an' frozen stiff. Dere lines an' lances lay
beside 'em, an' knives of hoop-iron, wid bone hannles, were in dere
boots; but dere was no sign of anythin' to ate, an' dey looked wasted to
'natomies.
"I called de odders, an' de capten come up an' looked at dem a minute
sorrowful-like, an' den said, 'Poor fellows! dey've been carried off'n
de ice, an' starved till dey froze to death;' an' he tould us to bury
dem daycently, an' we closed dem up in a pinnacle.
"But it was lucky we was near loaded, for dat put a chill on our min',
an' de tought of dose dead Huskies lost us many a fine swile, for de
boys wouldn't scatter over de ice as dey used to.
"It wasn't long after dat de capten tould us dat we were full enough,
an' away we sailed to de sou'-east."
"Dat was de time de Li'n was lost--wasn't it?" inquired another
islesman.
"Yes; on de way down we had an awful gale, an' de Li'n put into de pack
an' got 'nipped,' so dat she went down; but her crew was all saved in de
boats. We put off to say, an' for two days an' nights I tought we should
never say land. Why, we lay to as long as we dared, an' until our deck
was full of water, an' de capten said we mus' do somethin' else, or we
should founder.
"I stood in de fore-riggin' an' watched de big says as dey come down
upon us; an' I'll tell you one thing you'll do well to remember.
Whenever a big wave come dat I knew would sink us, if it broke upon us,
_I made de sign of de holy cross, an' de wave broke before it reached
us_."
"I've done de same ting often myself, an' nivir knew it to fail," said
the younger man, who, it appeared, was the son of the veteran sealer.
"But how did you get clear finally?" asked Regnar.
"De ould capten dat was drownded de oder day was mate den. He was a wild
young chap, but smart an' able. He tould de capten to rig one of de
pumps, and pump some of de oily water out of de hold. So de brakes was
rigged, but he an' de capten had to man dem at first, for all de rest
were afeard, an' I was in de fore-riggin' watchin' de says.
"Well, dey pumped a while, an' de oil an' water went overboard, an' as
we went driftin' away to leeward, I saw de slick of de ile spreadin'
over de waves. We kept a couple of men at de pumps till night, an' dere
wasn't another say broke over us."
* * * * *
"Swiles! Swiles! On deck, dere below!" cried some one on deck; and a
general rush up the steep ladder leading to the deck took place.
Following the others, our three friends soon found their companion, La
Salle, who had pressed through the crowded gangways to his party.
Again they lay below the Deadman's Berg, and around them were the floes,
crowded with living seals, as well as the one over which the ravenous
sea-birds fluttered, holding high carnival over the multitude of frozen
bodies. The crew, armed with guns and clubs, were lowering their light
boats, and the party dragging their own boat to the side, awaited the
lowering of a boat to use its falls for their own. Blake approached
them, and said, kindly,--
"I wouldn't land; you must be tired, and need rest. Just turn in, all of
you, in the cabin, for we shall be ashore all day."
"We would rather hunt with you, for we shall never probably have another
chance to see how a Newfoundland sealer kills his game. Only, if you
please, let us have some sheath-knives, and four of your clubs."
Merely saying, "We shall be very glad of your help, for we have to leave
two of our best men with the captain," Blake spoke to an under-officer,
who soon produced four sharp sheath-knives, and as many oaken clubs
about six feet long, ringed at the top with iron, and furnished with a
sharp hook, or gaff; and lowering their little craft, the four paddled
stoutly after the fleet of boats, whose wild crews tore the water into
foam with their oars, as each strove to reach the floes, and to "win the
first blood."
Sixty men, besides La Salle's party, swept across the pool, almost flung
their light boats upon the safe ice, and prevented from slipping by
their spiked crampets, charged at full speed upon the frightened seals,
who filled the air with their clamorous roars and whining. Crick, crack!
fell the heavy clubs on every side, and seldom was the stroke repeated;
but sometimes an "ould hood" would elevate his inflated helmet, and the
heavy club would fall upon it, producing a hollow sound, that boomed
high above the noise of the conflict. Then the officer in charge of that
gang would step up, present his carbine, and the brave seal, shot
through the brain, would fall back dead, as the report rattled among the
ice-peaks.
Having disposed of the adults, a regular butchery took place among the
young seals, who were easily despatched by a blow on the nose, or a kick
with the heavy heel of a sealer's boot on the spinal vertebræ. Then
followed the "sculping," or skinning, which was despatched with
marvellous rapidity. At its close the men, covered with blood and oil,
gathered to their boats, and leaving the floe crimsoned with gore, and
horrible with bloody and skinless carcasses, hastened to another field
to continue the work of death.
Such for two days were the scenes presented to the eyes of the
companions, who received many commendations for their assistance, but
who rejoiced beyond measure when the word was passed through the ship
that she was "full," and that they were to sail at once for St. John's.
[Illustration]
Once more the black funnel poured forth its cloud of smoke, and casting
off the lines which attached her to the surrounding ice, the Mercedes
pressed boldly into the pack, and soon our adventurers gazed for the
last time on the fading outlines of the Deadman's Berg.
Two days later, as the steamer rounded Cape Race, the captain, worn and
weak, but evidently in his right mind, appeared at the table. On being
introduced to La Salle, he seemed somewhat agitated, but soon assumed an
overbearing and despotic demeanor. To Mr. Blake he was particularly
insulting.
"I'll have you know, sir, that I am captain now; ay, and owner, too,
sir, for my poor brother left neither chick nor child in the world but
me. Damn me, sir! what right have you to invite everybody to my table
and cabin? ay, and put a stranger into my brother's very state-room?"
Blake looked confounded, and the other officers sat with bowed heads and
lowering brows at this insult to a man they all loved and respected; but
La Salle unconcernedly turned to the newly-fledged commander, and
said,--
"I regret, captain--really, I forget your name; but let that pass; but
when I came on board, I told this gentleman that I would sleep forward
with the men. I have not cared to speak about it before, but I can
assure you that I have the worst dreams in that state-room that I ever
had in my life. I shall try to recompense you for the passage of my
companions and myself when we arrive at St. John's;" and rising, he
bowed haughtily, and withdrew to the deck.
Ten minutes later he was joined by Blake.
"The captain has apologized to us, and begs that you will come to his
room, as he is too weak to leave the cabin."
La Salle attended the good-hearted sailor to the inner cabin, where a
mattress lay upon the table, and many appliances, among them a couple of
broad bandages of stout canvas, bore witness to the severity of the
captain's late illness. The sick man attempted to rise from his chair as
he entered, but was evidently very weak, and La Salle interposed,--
"Don't rise, captain, I beg of you. I see you are very weak, and perhaps
I was too ready to take offence. We should not always notice--"
"The disagreeable acts of a sick and almost heart-broken man,"
interposed Randall, with a smooth, deceitful softness of tone, that
instantly reawakened La Salle's antipathies. "I beg you, however," he
continued, "to excuse me, and to make yourself at home in your old
quarters. I should like to talk with you about your strange cruise, but
at St. John's we may have a better opportunity over a bottle of wine."
"I shall be glad to meet you with my friends as soon as I can see Smith
& Co., and get some notes changed, so that I can buy suitable clothes
for myself and friends;" and bowing, La Salle withdrew.
That night La Salle looked well to the fastenings of his door, lashing
the knob of the lock to a corner of his berth, where a knot had dropped
out of the deal. Several times he felt the thin partition tremble, and
heard the noise of some one tampering with the lock; but at last morning
came, and three hours later the steamer lay at anchor off the city of
St. John's.
The party had funds enough to secure a change of apparel and respectable
quarters, until they should hear from Waring's father, to whom he had
telegraphed their safe arrival, and want of money. A telegram to the
wife of the new captain of the Mercedes, conveyed to Baltimore the news
of the death of her brother-in-law.
Of course the party received much attention, and for a few days they
were the lions of the city, although tales of adventure on the ice are
of too frequent occurrence in St. John's, to awaken any lasting
interest; for scarcely a winter elapses without the arrival of one or
more crews who have seen their vessel disappear beneath the resistless
pressure of colliding icebergs.