"Besides what, my boy?" he asked, on my pausing here, almost afraid to
mention the sight I had noticed on the deck of the ill-fated ship in the
presence of two such sceptical listeners as Mr Fosset and my more
immediate superior, the third officer, Spokeshave. "You need not be
afraid of saying anything you like before me. _I'm_ captain of this
ship."
"Well, sir," said I, speaking out, "just before that mass of clouds or
fog bank came down on the wind, shutting out the ship from view, she
yawed a bit off her course, and I saw somebody on her deck aft."
"What!" cried the skipper, interrupting me. "Was she so close as that?"
"Yes, sir," said I. "She did not seem to be a hundred yards away at the
moment, if that."
"And you saw somebody on the deck?"
"Yes, cap'en," I answered; "a woman."
He again interrupted me, all agog at the news.
"A woman?"
"Yes, sir," said I. "A woman, or rather, perhaps a girl, for she had a
lot of long hair streaming over her shoulders, all flying about in the
wind."
"What was she doing?"
"She appeared to be waving a white handkerchief or something like that,
as if to attract our attention--asking us to help her, like."
The skipper drew himself up to his full height on my telling this and
turned round on Mr Fosset, his face blazing with passion.
"A ship in distress, a woman on board imploring our aid," he exclaimed
in keen, cold, cutting tones that pierced one like a knife, "and you
passed her by without rendering any assistance,--a foreigner too, of
all. We Englishmen, who pride ourselves on our humanity above all other
nations. What will they think of us?"
"I tell you, sir, we could not see any ship at all!" retorted the first
mate hotly, in reply to this reproach, which he felt as keenly as it was
uttered. "And if we couldn't see the ship, how could we know there was
a woman or anybody aboard?"
"Quite so," echoed Spokeshave, emphasising Mr Fosset's logical argument
in his own defence. "That's exactly what I say, sir."
"I would not have had it happen for worlds. We flying the old Union
jack, too, that boasts of never passing either friend or foe when in
danger and asking aid."
He spoke still more bitterly, as if he had not heard their excuses.
"But hang it, cap'en," cried Mr Fosset, "I tell you--"
Captain Applegarth waved him aside.
"Where did you last sight the ship, Haldane?" he said, turning round
abruptly to me. "How was she heading?"
"She bore about two points off our port quarter," I replied as
laconically. "I think, sir, she was running before the wind like
ourselves, though steering a little more to the southwards."
The skipper looked at the standard compass in front of the wheel-house
on the bridge, and then addressed the helmsman.
"How are we steering now, quartermaster? The same course as I set at
noon, eh?"
"Aye, aye, sir," replied Atkins, who still stood by the steam steering
gear singlehanded. If it had been the ordinary wheel, unaided by steam-
power, it would have required four men to move the rudder and keep the
vessel steady in such a sea as was now running. "We've kept her pretty
straight, sir, since eight bells on the same course, west by south, sir,
half south."
"Very good, quartermaster. Haldane, are you there?"
"Yes, sir," said I, stepping up to him again, having moved away into the
shadow under the lee of the wheel-house whilst he was speaking to
Atkins. "Here I am, sir."
"Was that vessel dropping us when we passed her, or were we going ahead
of her?"
"She was running before the wind, sir, at a tangent to our course, and
more to the southwards, moving through the water quicker than we were,
until she luffed up just before that mist or fog bank shut her out from
view. But--"
"Well?"
"I think, sir," I continued, "that was done merely to speak us; and if
she bore away again, as she was probably forced to do, being at the
mercy of the gale, she must be scudding even more to the southwards,
almost due south, I should fancy, as the wind has backed again more to
the nor'ard since this."
"I fancy the same, my boy. I see you have a sailor's eye and have got
your wits about you. Quartermaster?"
"Aye, aye, sir?"
"Let her off a point or two gradually until you bring her head about
sou'-sou'-west, and keep her so."
"Aye, aye, sir," responded Atkins, easing her off as required. "Sou'-
sou'-west it shall be, sir, in a minute."
"That will bring us across her, I think," said the skipper to me. "But
we must go a little faster if we want to overtake her. What are we
doing now, eh?"
"I don't quite know, sir," I answered to this question. "I was only
just coming up on the bridge to relieve Mr Spokeshave when I sighted
the ship and have not had time to look at the indicator. I should
think, though, we're going eight or nine knots."
This didn't satisfy the skipper, so he turned to the first mate, who had
remained moodily aloof with Spokeshave at the end of the bridge.
"Mr Fosset," he sang out abruptly, "what are the engines doing?"
"About thirty revolutions, sir; half speed, as nearly as possible."
"How much are we going altogether?"
"Ten knots, with our sails," replied the other. "The wind is
freshening, too."
"So I see," said Captain Applegarth laconically.
"And it'll freshen still more by-and-bye if I'm not mistaken!"
"Yes, it looks as if we're going to have a bit of a blow. The scud is
flying all over us now that we are running before the wind. I really
think we ought to ease down, sir, for the screw races fearfully as she
dips and I'm afraid of the shaft."
"I'm responsible for that, Mr Fosset," answered the skipper as, moving
the handle of the gong on the bridge communicating with the engine-room,
he directed those in charge below to put on full speed ahead. "I never
yet abandoned a ship in distress, and I'm not going to do so now. We're
on the right course to overhaul her, now, I think, eh, Haldane?"
"Yes, sir," I replied. "I hope, though, we won't pass her in the fog,
sir, or run into her, perhaps."
"No fear of that, my boy: The fog is lifting now and the night will soon
be as clear as a bell, for the wind is driving all the mists away.
Besides, we'll take precautions against any accident happening. Mr
Fosset?"
"Aye, aye, sir?"
"Put a couple of lookouts on the fo'c's'le."
"Aye, aye, sir."
"Perhaps, too, we'd better send up a rocket to let 'em know we're about.
Mr Spokeshave? Mr Spokeshave?"
No answer came this time, however, from my friend, Master "Conky,"
though he had been ready enough just now with his aggravating "quite
so."
"I think, sir," said I, "Mr Spokeshave has gone below to his tea."
"Very likely," replied the skipper drily; "he's precious fond of his
breadbasket, that young gentleman. I don't think he'll ever starve
where there's any grub knocking about. Fancy a fellow, calling himself
a man, thinking of his belly at such a moment! Go, Haldane, and call
him up again and tell him I want him."
I started to obey Captain Applegarth's order, but I had hardly got three
steps down the ladder when Spokeshave saved me further trouble by coming
up on the bridge again of his own accord, without waiting to be
summoned.
The skipper, therefore, gave him instructions to let off, every quarter
of an hour, a couple of signal rockets and burn a blue light or two over
our port and starboard quarter alternately as we proceeded towards the
object of our quest.
"All right, sir; quite so!" said "Conky," as well as he could
articulate, his mouth being full of something he had hurriedly snatched
from the steward's pantry when he had gone below, and brought up with
him to eat on deck, knowing that the skipper would be sure to sing out
for him if he remained long away at so critical a juncture. "All right,
sir; quite so!"
The skipper laughed as he went down again to get the rockets and blue
lights which were kept in a spare cabin aft for safety.
"He's a rum chap, that little beggar," he observed to Mr Fosset, who
had been forward to set the look-out men on the forecastle and had
returned to the bridge. "I think if you told him he was the laziest
loafer that ever ate lobscouse, he couldn't help saying `Quite so!'"
"You're about right, sir. I think, though, he can't help it; he's got
so used to the phrase," replied the other, joining in the skipper's
laugh. "But, hullo, here comes old Stokes, panting and puffing along
the gangway. I hope nothing's wrong in the engine-room."
"I hope not," said the skipper. "We want to go all we can just now, to
overhaul that ship Haldane saw."
"_If_ he saw it," muttered the first officer, under his breath and
glowering at me. "A pack of sheer nonsense, I call it, this going out
of our course on a wild-goose chase and tearing away full speed on a
wild night like this, in a howling sea, with a gale, too, astern; and
all because an ass of a youngster fancies he saw the _Flying Dutchman_!"
I daresay the captain heard him, but the appearance just then of Mr
Stokes, our chief engineer, who had now reached the bridge, panting and
puffing at every step, as Mr Fosset had said, he being corpulent of
habit and short-winded, stopped any further controversy on the point as
to whether I had seen, or had not seen, the mysterious ship.
"Cap'en, Cap'en Applegarth!" cried out the chief engineer asthmatically
as soon as he got within hail, speaking in a tearful voice and almost
crying in his excitement. "Are you there, sir?"
"Aye, here I am, Mr Stokes, as large as life, though not quite so big a
man as you," answered the skipper jocularly.
"I am here on the bridge, quite at your service."
Mr Stokes, however, was in no jocular mood.
"Cap'en Applegarth," said he solemnly, "did you really mean to ring us
on full speed ahead?"
"I did," replied the skipper promptly. "What of that?"
"What of that?" repeated the old engineer, dumbfounded by this return
shot. "Why, sir, the engines can't stand it. That is all, if you must
have it!"
"Can't stand what?"
"They can't stand all this driving and racing, with the propeller blades
half out of water every second revolution of the shaft. No engines
could stand it, with such a heavy sea on and the ship rolling and
pitching all the time like a merry-go-round at Barnet Fair. The
governor is no good; and, though Grummet or Links have their grip on the
throttle valve all the while to check the steam, and I've every stoker
and oiler on duty, the bearings are getting that heated that I'm afraid
of the shaft breaking at any moment. Full speed, sir? Why, we can't do
it, sir, we can't do it!"
"Nonsense, Stokes," said the skipper good-humouredly. "You must do it,
old fellow."
"But, I tell you, Cap'en Applegarth, the engines can't stand it without
breaking down, and then where will you be, I'd like to know?"
"I'll risk that."
"No, cap'en," snorted the old chief, doggedly. "I'm responsible to the
owners for the engines, and if anything happened to the machinery they'd
blame me. I can't do it."
The skipper flew up to white heat at this.
"But, Mr Stokes, recollect I am responsible for the ship, engines and
all, sir. The greater includes the less, and, as captain of this ship,
I intend to have my orders carried out by every man-jack on board. Do
you hear that?"
"Yes, sir, I hear," replied Mr Stokes grumblingly as he backed towards
the bridge-ladder. "But, sir--"
The skipper would not give him time to get out another word.
"You heard what I said," he roared out in a voice that made the old
chief jump down half a dozen steps at once. "I ordered you to go full
speed ahead and I mean to go full speed ahead whether the boilers burst,
or the propeller races, or the screw shaft carries away; for I won't
abandon a ship in distress for all the engineers and half-hearted
mollicoddles in the world!"
"A ship in distress?" gasped old Mr Stokes from the bottom rung of the
ladder. "I didn't hear about that before."
"Well, you hear it now," snapped out the skipper viciously, storming up
and down the bridge in a state of great wrath. "But whether it's a ship
in distress or not, I'll have you to know, Mr Stokes, once for all that
if I order full speed or half speed or any speed, I intend my orders to
be obeyed; and if you don't like it you can lump it. I'm captain of
this ship!"