THE CUT CABLE.
Whether my brother had spoken more, I know not; for, on a sudden, there
came a stir and commotion among the men, who began to move towards us
in a gang.
When they were come near, one said hoarsely:
“Cap’n, we hears shore-breakers. Hearken now! hearken to it!”
I listened, and above the clamour of the waterfall, I thought I did,
indeed, hear the sound of breaking waves. But the seaman on a sudden
cried:
“We be nearer shore! Nearer shore, the Lord ha’ mercy on ’s!”
“Nearer shore!” cries the Captain. “Hath the anchor, peradventure, come
home in a duck-pond? Why, you lunkhead, she is fast as iron locks!”
“Then look there!” said the other, and pointed down upon the sea
forward.
The thick darkness, which had held until now with no rift in the
cloud-pall, was broken. A shaft of moonshine took the sea hard by our
cutwater; and the Captain, following it, gave a great start. _The ship
was in motion again!_
“Driving, by thunder!” cried he; and, running to the head, he laid hold
of the cable, and hauled on it. It began to come in slack and easy;
and soon a loose end appeared. _The cable had been severed!_
My brother stood motionless, the dripping rope’s end dangling from his
hand. Then he swung fiercely round upon the Mosquito Indian.
“If this be your handywork, my man,” cried he; “if I do but half trace
it to your hands, you shall hang--you shall hang at that yardarm!”
But Thalass reared himself haughtily up, and looked him in the face;
and the Captain was abashed.
He turned to the men. “My lads,” said he weightily and slow, “whether
there be treachery here I know not. Look you to that! Look well to it
if you’ld live, and drag out the villainous man! As for me, witness
all, I am contriving and fending for you no less than for myself! If
any man have a grievance against me, let him out with it now. Ay!”
cried he hotly, as they began to press upon him, “and if you’ld depose
me, do even so; I care not a jot! You’re but a scullion crew. Choose ye
another captain: I grow weary of it! Weary of it!”
His challenge rang loud; but they held silent while many moments
passed; and, when one of them said humbly, “We make no quarrel
against you, Cap’n; we be mazed men,” the rest answered with a great
heartiness. Yet took they heed of what the Captain had said concerning
treachery, looking narrowly one upon another; and there fell a dispute
and questioning among them.
The conclamation was broken off suddenly, on a man crying out that we
were come among the very breakers of the shore; and scarce his voice
had died away, when, with a lamentable dull grating sound, the ship
struck, ploughing long and deep into the bottom of sand. The breakers
swayed her languidly from side to side with a dismal motion, while the
despairing cry arose, “Now we be gone indeed, the Lord ha’ mercy on us!
We shall never see our homes again!”
And the crazy lad took up the word, crying:
“We shall never see our homes again! Never! never! never! Jack! poor
Jack! Never! never! never! never! What’s to become of poor Jack? Home
again! home from sea! Never! never! never! never! Mother, I’ve brought
ye a parrot....”
But hereupon the boatswain, stepping to him, laid hold on the poor
antic, and, with a silken band which he had, gagged him effectually. At
the same time my brother put a period to the dejection and amazement,
with blustering words driving the men to labour.
He caused a great match to be contrived, that we might learn how far we
lay from the shore. And, when they had set light to the tinder bound
about the end of a boarding-pike, and held it forth over the sea, we
descried the shore about a cable’s length away.
Hereupon the Captain turns to the men, and “Well, my lads,” says he,
“Who’ll proffer for a shore-party?”
But no man answered, save only Surgeon Burke, Thalass, and myself (we
being even eager to go); and, looking scornfully on the timorous men,
my brother said shortly:
“Out with the boat; I’ll go alone.”
Hereupon he went to his cabin to provide himself for the adventure;
and, having returned, put himself immediately into the cock-boat, which
had been hoisted out and lay tumbling in the languid breakers.
He began to row towards the shore.
We watched him pass over the black waters in the lurid matchlight.