Giving the gig's crew strict injunctions not to leave their boat for a
moment upon any consideration, but to hold themselves in readiness to
shove off on the instant of our rejoining them--should a precipitate
retreat prove necessary--Captain Vernon and Mr Smellie stepped ashore
with a request that I would accompany them.
The channel or canal in which the gig was now lying was about fifty feet
wide, with a depth of water of about eight feet at the point to which we
had reached. Its banks were composed of soft black foetid mud in a
semi-liquid state, _so_ that in order to land it was necessary for us to
make our way as best we could for a distance of some two hundred feet
over the roots of the mangrove trees which thickly bordered the stream,
before we were enabled to place our feet on solid ground.
Beyond the belt of mangroves the soil was densely covered with that
heterogeneous jumble of parasitic creepers of all descriptions spoken of
in Africa by the generic denomination of "bush," thickly interspersed
with trees, many of which were of large size. Path there was none, not
even the faintest traces of a footprint in the dry sandy soil to show
that humanity had ever passed over the ground before us. It may be that
ours _were_ the first human footsteps which had ever pressed the soil in
that particular spot; at all events it looked very much like it, and we
had not travelled one hundred feet before we became fully impressed with
the necessity for carefully marking our route if we had the slightest
desire to find our way back again. This task was intrusted to me, and I
accomplished it by cutting a twig half through, and then bending it
downwards until a long light strip of the inner wood was exposed. This
I did at distances of about a yard apart all along our route, whilst the
skipper and Smellie went ahead and forced a passage for the party
through the thick undergrowth.
The general direction of our route was about south-south-west, as nearly
as the skipper could hit it off with the aid of a pocket-compass, and it
took us more than two hours to accomplish a journey of as many miles
through the thick tangled undergrowth. This brought us out close to the
water's edge again, and we saw before us a canal about a cable's length
across, which the skipper said he was certain was a continuation of the
one we had entered in the gig. About a mile distant, on the opposite
side of the canal, could be seen the tops of the hills which we had
noticed on the occasion of our first exploration of the river.
Here, as at the point of our landing, the banks of the canal consisted
of black slimy foetid mud, out of which grew a belt of mangroves, their
curious twisted roots straggling in a thick complicated mass of net-work
over the slime beneath.
The sun was shining brilliantly down through the richly variegated
foliage on the opposite bank of the stream, and lighting up the surface
of the thick turbid water as it rolled sluggishly past; but where we
stood--just on the inner edge of the mangrove-swamp--everything was
enshrouded in a sombre green twilight, and an absolute silence prevailed
all round us, which was positively oppressive in its intensity.
Breathless, perspiring, and exhausted with our unwonted exertions, we
flung ourselves upon the ground for a moment's rest, during which the
skipper and Smellie sought solace and refreshment in a cigar. As for
me, not having at that time contracted the habit of smoking, I was
contented to sit still and gaze with admiring eyes upon the weird beauty
of my surroundings.
For perhaps a quarter of an hour my companions gave themselves up to the
silent enjoyment of their cigars, but at the end of that time the
skipper, turning to Smellie, said:
"I think this must be the creek to which we have been directed; but
there are so many of these inlets, creeks, and canals on this side of
the river--and on the other side also for that matter--that one cannot
be at all certain about it. I would have explored the place thoroughly
in the gig, and so have saved the labour of all this scrambling through
the bush, but for the fact that if we are right, and any slave-craft
happen to be lurking here--as our Yankee friend's suspicious conduct
leads me to believe may be the case--there would be a great risk of our
stumbling upon them unawares, and so giving them the alarm. And even if
we escaped that mischance I have no doubt but that they keep sentinels
posted here and there on the look-out, and we could hardly hope that the
boat would escape being sighted by one or other of them. If there _are_
any craft hereabout, we may rest assured that they are fully aware of
the presence of the _Daphne_ in the river; but I am in hopes that our
_ruse_ of openly starting as upon a sporting expedition has thrown dust
in their eyes for once, and that we may be able to steal near enough to
get a sight of them without exciting their suspicions."
"It would be worth all our trouble if we _amid_ do so," responded
Smellie. "But I don't half like this blind groping about in the bush;
to say nothing of the tremendously hard work which it involves there is
a very good chance, it seems to me, of our losing ourselves when we
attempt to make our way back. And then, again, we are quite uncertain
how much further we may have to go in order to complete our search
satisfactorily. Do you not think it would be a good plan for one of us
to shin up a tree and take a look round before we go any further? There
are some fine tall trees here close at hand, from the higher branches of
which one ought to be able to get a pretty extensive view."
"A very capital idea!" assented the skipper. "We will act upon it at
once. There, now," pointing to a perfect forest giant only a few yards
distant, "is a tree admirably suited to our purpose. Come, Mr
Hawkesley, you are the youngest, and ought therefore to be the most
active of the trio; give us a specimen of your tree-climbing powers.
Just shin up aloft as high as you can go, take a good look round, and
let us know if you can see anything worth looking at."
"Ay ay, sir," I responded; "but--" with a somewhat blank look at the
tall, straight, smooth stem to which he pointed, "where are the
ratlines?"
"Ratlines, you impudent young monkey!" responded the skipper with a
laugh; "why, an active young fellow like you ought to make nothing of
going up a spar like that."
But when we reached the tree it became evident that the task of climbing
it was not likely to prove so easy as the skipper had imagined; for the
bole was fully fifteen feet in circumference, with not a branch or
protuberance of any description for the first sixty feet.
The second lieutenant, however, was equal to the occasion, and soon
showed me how the thing might be done. Whipping out his knife, he
quickly cut a long length of "monkey-rope" or creeper, and twisting the
tough pliant stem into a grummet round the trunk of the tree, he bade me
pass the bight over my shoulders, and then showed me how, with its aid,
I might work myself gradually upward.
Accordingly, acting under his directions I placed myself within the
bight, and tucking it well up under my arm-pits, slid the grummet up the
trunk as high as it would go. Then bearing back upon it, so that it
supported my whole weight, I worked my body upwards by pressing against
the tree-trunk with my knees. By this means I rose about two feet from
the ground. Then pressing against the tree firmly with my feet I gave
the grummet a quick jerk upward and again worked myself up the trunk
with my knees as before. In this way I got along very well, and after
an awkward slip or two, in which my knees suffered somewhat and my
breeches still more, soon acquired the knack of the thing, and speedily
reached the lowermost branch, after which the rest of my ascent was of
course easy.
On reaching the topmost branches I found that the tree I had climbed was
indeed, as the skipper had aptly described it, a forest giant; it was by
far the most lofty tree in the neighbourhood, and from my commanding
position I had a fine uninterrupted prospect of many miles extent all
round me, except to the southward, where the chain of hills before-
mentioned shut in the view.
Away to the northward and eastward, in which direction I happened to be
facing when I at length paused to look around me, I could catch glimpses
of the river, over and between the intervening tree-tops, for a distance
of quite twenty miles, and from what I saw I came to the conclusion that
in that direction the river must widen out considerably and be thickly
studded with islands, among which I thought it probable might be found
many a snug lurking-place for slave-craft. On the extreme verge of the
horizon I also distinctly made out a small group of hills, which I
conjectured to be situate on the northern or right bank of the river.
From these hills all the way round northerly, to about north-north-west,
the country was flat and pretty well covered with bush; although at a
distance of from two to four miles inland I could detect here and there
large open patches of grass-land. Bearing about north-north-west from
my point of observation was another chain of hills which stretched along
the sea-coast outside the river's mouth, and extended beyond the
horizon. To the left of them again, or about north-west from me, lay
Banana Creek, its entrance about eleven miles distant, and over the
intervening tree-tops on Boolambemba Island I could, so clear was the
atmosphere just then, distinctly make out the royal-mast-heads of the
_Daphne_ and the American barque; I could even occasionally detect the
gleam of the sloop's pennant as it waved idly in the sluggish breeze.
Still further to the left there lay the river's mouth, with the ripple
which marked the junction between the fresh and the salt water clearly
visible. Next came Shark Point, with the open sea stretching mile after
mile away beyond it, until its gleaming surface became lost in the ruddy
afternoon haze, and on the inner side of the point I could trace,
without much difficulty, the course of the various creeks which we had
explored in the boat on the occasion of our first visit. Looking below
me, I allowed my eye to travel along the course of the stream or canal
which flowed past almost under my feet, and following it along I saw
that it forked at a point about three miles to the westward, and turned
suddenly northward at a point about three miles further on, the branch
and the stream itself eventually joining the river, and forming with it
two islands of about five and three miles in length respectively, the
larger of the two being that which we had so laboriously crossed that
same afternoon.
The view which lay spread out below and around me was beautiful as a
dream; it would have formed a fascinating study for a painter; but
whatever art-instincts may have been awakened within me upon my first
glance round were quickly put to flight by a scene which presented
itself at a point only some three miles away. At that distance the
channel or stream below me forked, as I have already said, and at the
point of divergence of the two branches the water way broadened out
until it became quite a mile wide, forming as snug a little harbour as
one need wish to see. And in this harbour, perfectly concealed from all
prying eyes which might happen to pass up or down the river, lay a brig,
a brigantine, and a schooner, three as rakish-looking craft as could
well be met with. Their appearance alone was almost sufficient to
condemn them; but a huge barracoon standing in a cleared space close at
hand, and a crowd of blacks huddled together on the adjacent bank,
apparently in course of shipment on board one or other of the craft in
sight, put their character quite beyond question.
A hail from below reminded me that there were others who would feel an
interest in my discovery.
"Well, Mr Hawkesley, is there anything in sight, from your perch aloft
there, worth looking at?" came floating up to me in the skipper's voice.
"Yes, sir, indeed there is. There are three craft in the creek away
yonder, in the very act of shipping negroes at this moment," I replied.
"The deuce there are!" ejaculated the skipper. "Which do you think will
be the easier plan of the two: to climb the tree, or to make our way
through the bush to the spot?"
"You will find it much easier to climb the tree, I think, sir. You can
be alongside me in five minutes, whilst it will take us nearly two
hours, I should say, to make our way to them through the bush," I
replied.
"Very well; hold on where you are then. We will tackle the tree,"
returned the skipper.
And, looking down, I saw him and the second lieutenant forthwith whip
out their knives and begin hacking away at a creeper, wherewith to make
grummets to assist them in their attempt at tree-climbing.
In a few minutes the twain were alongside me, and--in happy
forgetfulness of the ruin wrought upon their unmentionables in the
process of "shinning" aloft--eagerly noting through their telescopes the
operations in progress on board the slavers.
"They seem very busy there," observed the skipper with his eye still
peering through the tube of his telescope. "You may depend on it, Mr
Smellie, the rascals have got wind of our presence in the river, and
intend trying to slip out past us to-night as soon as the fog settles
down. I'll be bound they know every inch of the river, and could find
their way out blindfold?"
"No doubt of it, sir," answered the second luff. "But it is not high-
water until two o'clock to-morrow morning, so that I suspect they will
not endeavour to make a move until about an hour after midnight. That
will enable them to go out on the top of the flood, and with a strong
land-breeze in their favour."
"So much the better," returned Captain Vernon, with sparkling eyes.
"But we will take care to have the boats in the creek in good time. You
never know where to have these fellows; they are as cunning as foxes.
Please note their position as accurately as you can, Mr Smellie, for I
intend you to lead the attack to-night."
"Thank you, sir," answered Smellie delightedly; and planting himself
comfortably astride a branch, he drew out a pencil and paper and
proceeded to make a very careful sketch-chart of the river-mouth, Banana
Creek, and the creek in which the slavers were lying; noting the
bearings carefully with the aid of a pocket-compass.
"There, sir," said he, when he had finished, showing the sketch to the
skipper; "that will enable me to find them, I think, let the night be as
dark or as thick as it may. How do you think it looks for accuracy?"
"Capital!" answered Captain Vernon approvingly; "you really have a
splendid eye for proportion and distance, Mr Smellie. That little
chart might almost have been drawn to scale, so correct does it look.
How in the world do you manage it?"
"It is all custom," was the reply. "I make it an invariable rule to
devote time and care enough to such sketches as this to ensure their
being as nearly accurate as possible. I have devised a few rules upon
which I always work; and the result is generally a very near
approximation to absolute accuracy. But the sun is getting low; had we
not better be moving, sir?"
"By all means, if you are sure you have all the information you need,"
was the reply. "I would not miss my way in that confounded jungle to-
night for anything. It would completely upset all our arrangements."
"To say nothing of the possibility of our affording a meal to some of
the hungry carnivora which probably lurk in the depths of the said
jungle," thought I. But I held my peace, and dutifully assisted my
superior officers to effect their descent.
It was decidedly easier to go up than to go down; but we accomplished
our descent without accident, and after a long and wearisome tramp back
through the bush found ourselves once more on board the gig just as the
last rays of the sun were gilding the tree-tops. The tide had now
turned, and was therefore again in our favour; and in an hour from the
time of our emerging upon the main stream we reached the sloop, just as
the first faint mist-wreaths began to gather upon the bosom of the
river.
I was exceedingly anxious to be allowed to take part in the forthcoming
expedition and had been eagerly watching, all the way across the river,
for an opportunity to ask the necessary permission; but Captain Vernon
had been so earnestly engaged in discussing with Smellie the details and
arrangements for the projected attack that I had been unable to do so.
On reaching the ship, however, the opportunity came. As we went up over
the side the skipper turned and said:
"By the way, Mr Smellie, I hope you--and you also, Mr Hawkesley--will
give me the pleasure of your company to dinner this evening?"
Smellie duly bowed his acceptance of the invitation and I was about to
follow suit when an idea struck me and I said:
"I shall be most happy, sir, if my acceptance of your kind invitation
will not interfere with my taking part in to-night's boat expedition. I
have been watching for an opportunity to ask your permission, and I hope
you will not refuse me."
"Oh! that's it, is it?" laughed the skipper. "I thought you seemed
confoundedly fidgety in the boat. Well--I scarcely know what to say
about it; it will be anything but child's play, I can assure you.
Still, you are tall and strong, and--there, I suppose I must say `yes.'
And now run away and shift your damaged rigging as quickly as possible;
dinner will be on the table in ten minutes."
I murmured my thanks and forthwith dived below to bend a fresh pair of
pantaloons, those I had on being in so dilapidated a condition--what
with the tree-climbing and our battle with the thorns and briars of the
bush--as to be in fact scarcely decent.
The conversation at the dinner-table that night was of a very animated
character, but as it referred entirely to the projected attack upon the
slavers I will not inflict any portion of it upon the reader. Mr
Austin, the first lieutenant, was at first very much disappointed when
he found he was not to lead the boat expedition; but he brightened up a
bit when the skipper pointed out to him that in all probability the
slavers would slip their cables and endeavour to make their escape from
the river on finding themselves attacked by the boats; in which case the
cream of the fun would fall to the share of those left on board the
sloop.
Mr Smellie--who was at all times an abstemious man--contented himself
with a couple of glasses of wine after dinner, and, the moment that the
conversation took a general turn, rose from the table, excusing himself
upon the plea that he had several matters to attend to in connection
with the expedition. As he rose he caught my eye and beckoned me to
follow him, which I did after duly making my bow to the company.
When we reached the deck the fog was so thick that it was as much as we
could do to see the length of the ship.
"Just as I expected," remarked my companion. "How are we to find the
creek in such weather as this, Mr Hawkesley?"
"I am sure I don't know, sir," I replied, looking round me in
bewilderment. "I suppose the expedition will have to be postponed until
it clears a bit."
"Not if I can prevent it," said he with energy. "Although," he added, a
little doubtfully, "it certainly _is very_ thick, and with the slightest
deviation from our course we should be irretrievably lost. Whereaway do
you suppose the creek to be?"
"Oh, somewhere in that direction!" said I, pointing over the starboard
quarter.
"You are wrong," remarked my companion, looking into the binnacle. "The
tide is slackening, whilst the land-breeze is freshening; so that the
ship has swung with her head to the eastward, and the direction in which
you pointed leads straight out to sea. Now, if you want to learn a good
useful lesson--one which may prove of the utmost value to you in after-
life--come below with me to the master, and between us we will show you
how to find that creek in the fog."
"Thank you," said I, "I shall be very glad to learn. Why, you do not
even know its compass-bearing."
"No," said Smellie, "but we will soon find it out." With that we
descended to the master's cabin, where we found the owner in his shirt-
sleeves and with a pipe in his mouth, poring over a chart of the coast
on which was shown the mouth of the river only, its inland course being
shown by two dotted lines, indicating that the portion thus marked had
never been properly surveyed. He was busily engaged as we entered
laying down in pencil upon this chart certain corrections and remarks
with reference to the ebb and flow of the tidal current.
"Good evening, gentlemen!" said he as we entered. "Well, Mr Smellie,
so you are going to lead the attack upon the slavers to-night, I hear."
"Yes," said Smellie, unconsciously straightening himself up, "yes, if
this fog does not baffle us. And in order that it may not, I have come
to invoke your assistance, Mr Mildmay."
"All right, sir!" said old Mildmay. "I expected you; I was waiting for
you, sir."
"That's all right," said the second lieutenant. "Now, Mildmay," bending
over the chart, "whereabouts is the _Daphne_?"
"_There_ she is," replied the master, placing the point of his pencil
carefully down on the chart and twisting it round so as to produce a
black mark.
"Very good," assented Smellie. "Now, look here, Mr Hawkesley, this is
where your lesson begins." And he produced the sketch-chart he had made
that afternoon and spread it out on the table.
"You will see from this sketch," he proceeded, "that the _Daphne_ bore
exactly north-north-west from the tree in which we were perched when I
made it. Which is equivalent to saying that the tree bears south-south-
east from the _Daphne_; is it not?"