O'Gorman and his entire train of satellites being now upon the islet,
ready to dig until they had reached the buried treasure, I thought the
opportunity a good one to afford Miss Onslow a run ashore; so, taking
possession of the boat that O'Gorman had graciously intimated I might
use--the same craft that had done us such good service ere we fell in
with the _Governor Smeaton_--I paddled alongside the brig, and suggested
to the young lady that we should devote the remainder of the day to an
exploration of the island proper. To this my companion acceded with
alacrity and evident delight; so, packing a small basket with everything
required for a substantial luncheon, I stepped the boat's mast, set her
canvas, and we got under way, working out through the loch into the big
lagoon formed by the barrier reef, and then coasting alongshore until we
reached a promising-looking landing-place. Here we ran the boat up on
the beach, secured her, and, stepping ashore, decided to lunch before
proceeding farther, since it was by this time drawing well on toward
midday. Then, having made a hearty meal, we plunged into the jungle,
with the idea of reaching the summit of the hill if we could hit upon a
practicable path. Viewed from the sea, the island had the appearance of
being as completely and thickly overgrown with jungle as had been the
islet where O'Gorman and his gang were hunting for treasure, but upon
entering the forest we found that it was not so, and that, by keeping
our eyes about us, we might manage with very little difficulty to work
our way through the comparatively open spaces that occurred at frequent
intervals. And we had not proceeded very far when we were fortunate
enough to fall athwart a tiny stream, with just the merest trickle of
water in it now, but which was evidently, in the rainy season, a
roaring, raging torrent. The bed of this stream was full of small
boulders, that served very well as stepping-stones, and as we knew we
could not go astray if we followed the course of the stream, and as we
knew, moreover, that by so doing we should be constantly rising, and as,
further, we should thus avoid being impeded by the necessity to wind our
way through the jungle, we decided to adopt this course, with the happy
result that in about an hour's time we found ourselves close to the
summit, and above the line of vegetation. There still remained about a
hundred feet of climbing to be done, however, ere we could attain the
summit; and this climbing had to be accomplished on a slope of some
sixty degrees, composed of fine, loose scoria, that gave way and slid
downward as soon as stepped upon. I did not like to be beaten, however,
but soon found that, without poles to assist us, we should never make
any progress; so we contented ourselves with a walk round the peak--
which I now felt convinced was the crater of a quiescent if not extinct
volcano--and a leisurely survey of the magnificent panorama that lay
spread out beneath us. By the simple process of walking round the peak
we obtained a view of the entire island, with its lagoon and barrier
reef; and so clear and pure was the atmosphere that we could not only
see but also identify every member of the working-party. They were
still digging vigorously; but even as we watched them there arose a
sudden commotion and an excited rushing together among them, and a
second or two later the sound of their voices reached us; but although
it was perfectly evident that the speakers were powerfully excited, we
were too far distant from them to distinguish what was said; and
presently work was resumed for about ten minutes, at the expiration of
which several men leaped down into the excavation, and a minute or two
later we saw a not very bulky object lifted out of the hole and laid on
the surface of the ground, amid the frantic cheers of the entire party.
"The treasure!" I exclaimed. "They have found it, by Jove! And they
have not been very long about it, either. Well, I am sincerely glad and
thankful, for now we may hope soon to be homeward-bound, or at least
bound to some spot from which it will be possible for us to secure
passage to Calcutta."
I spoke with some enthusiasm; but my companion did not respond; she
remained silent, gazing dreamily into the far distance; and when I
looked at her, awaiting some answering remark, I saw that she was quite
pale, that she was biting her under-lip in a fruitless endeavour to stay
its quivering, and that there were undoubtedly tears in her eyes. She
averted her face quickly, but I was confident that I was not mistaken as
to those indications of emotion. Presently she spoke.
"I am glad," said she, "that you find cause for rejoicing in the
discovery that those wretches appear to have just made; and at first
sight it would almost seem as though your troubles should now be nearly
over. But I cannot forget that those men have been guilty of two very
serious offences--first in seizing the brig from you and compelling you
to navigate her to this lonely spot, and next in their act of piracy in
connection with the _Marie Renaud_; and I fear--oh, I fear terribly--
that by and by, when we are nearing the end of our journey, they will
take some desperate step to effectually prevent your ever bearing
witness against them. Have you ever thought of that as a possible
danger to which you may be exposed?"
"Well, yes," said I; "I must confess that such a contingency has
suggested itself to me; but they will require my help to get their booty
home and landed; and I will make it my business to discuss this matter
with O'Gorman in such a manner as to convince him that he cannot do
without me. And meanwhile I must see if I cannot forestall any possible
action on their part by devising some plan which will enable us to
effect our escape in one of the boats when within easy distance of
land."
"Do you think such a thing possible?" she demanded, in much more
animated tones than those she had shortly before used.
"Why, yes," answered I. "That is to say, we must _make_ it possible; we
must endeavour to devise some definite scheme, to be carried out at the
very first favourable opportunity, and we must then devote all our
energies to so arranging matters that when the moment arrives everything
will be in readiness."
We discussed this topic at some length, with no very definite result,
however; and finally, as it appeared to be exercising a distinctly
depressing effect upon Miss Onslow's spirits, I changed the subject, and
we made our way down to the boat again, and so aboard the brig.
But as we entered the inner lagoon we found that all hands had knocked
off work and had crossed to their camp; and presently O'Gorman made his
appearance at the entrance of one of the tents, beckoning us to
approach. I waved my hand in assent, but made as though to put Miss
Onslow aboard the brig first, whereupon O'Gorman hailed that he wanted
us both to land and look at what had been found. So I put a bold face
upon it, and ran the boat in upon the beach, from which we walked
together up to O'Gorman's tent.
As we entered, the first thing that met my gaze was a rusty and
earth-grimed iron chest, measuring about two feet square by perhaps
sixteen inches deep, on either side of which sat a man with a brace of
cocked pistols in his belt, evidently on guard. The chest had been
fastened by two heavy padlocks of distinctly antiquated design, but
these had both been smashed, and the lid prised open, not without
inflicting some damage to the hinges. I noticed, almost at once, that
O'Gorman and his companions wore a decidedly perplexed and slightly
chagrined air, and the reason therefor soon became apparent.
"So," said I, in a congratulatory tone, "you soon found your treasure,
then. I hope it proves to be worth all the trouble you have taken to
secure it?"
"Begorra, thin, it's mesilf that'd be glad to be able to say `yis' to
that," answered the Irishman. "But I'm puzzled; I can't make it out,"
he continued. "_This_ is what we've found,"--giving the chest a kick
that betrayed a certain amount of temper--"but beyant a gallon or so of
pearls there's nothin' in it but pebbles; and I'd like ye to say whether
you think them pebbles is worth annything or not."
So saying, O'Gorman raised the heavy lid of the chest, disclosing an
interior subdivided into four compartments by thin hardwood partitions
running diagonally from corner to corner. One compartment was packed as
full as it would hold of pearls, nearly all of which--if one might judge
by the top layer--were of very fair size, while a few, scattered here
and there, were exceptionally fine; and their exquisite satiny sheen
seemed to indicate that they were all of the first water. Miss Onslow
could not suppress a cry of admiration and delight as she gazed upon
them--which tribute to their beauty--and consequent value--seemed to
afford considerable satisfaction to the finders.
"May I touch them?" asked I of O'Gorman.
"Oh yes," he answered, "I suppose there's no harm in y'r touchin' 'em,
if ye wants to."
I plunged my hand down into the heart of the compartment, turning over
the pearls, and bringing others to the surface; and it appeared that
they were all of pretty much the same quality and value. "Why," said I,
"here is a respectable fortune for each of you in these pearls alone,
even if the `pebbles' turn out to be valueless, which is scarcely likely
to be the case, or they would not have been so carefully stowed away in
this chest. Now, these, for example," I continued, turning to a
contiguous compartment more than half full of crystals that looked like
splintered fragments of rather dull glass, "are uncut diamonds. Yes,"
as I felt two or three of them between my finger and thumb, "there is no
doubt about it: they have the true soapy feel; they are diamonds, and,
taken in bulk, of very great value. And here, again," as I turned to
the next compartment, about as full as that containing the diamonds,
"these are rubies, unless I am very greatly mistaken; while, as to
these," turning to the last compartment, "they are emeralds--and there
are some beauties among them, too, apparently," as I fished up one or
two remarkably fine ones. "Why, O'Gorman," I exclaimed, "you are rich
men--every mother's son of you--there are sixteen handsome fortunes in
this chest, fortunes big enough to set you all up as gentry, or to ruin
you in double-quick time, according to the use that you make of your
wealth."
"Begorra, sorr, that's the plisintest thing I iver heard ye say!"
exclaimed the Irishman, in high glee at my verdict as to the value of
the "pebbles," while the beaming countenances of the twain on guard
betrayed that their delight was fully as great as that of their leader.
There were further sounds of revelry ashore, that night, intermingled,
more than once, with other sounds suggestive of altercation and quarrel;
and just at sunrise, while I was taking a matutinal swim round the ship,
I saw all hands march out, in somewhat formal order, along the glade
upon which their camp was pitched, and disappear across the sand-spit
that formed one side of the loch entrance. Ten minutes later, while I
was towelling myself on the fore deck, in the seclusion afforded by the
position of the galley, I was startled by what sounded like a distant
volley of pistol-shots; and about half an hour afterwards I saw the
crowd returning to camp by the way that they had gone. As I watched
them shambling along over the somewhat uneven ground I was struck by
something rather unusual in their appearance; and presently I discovered
what it was: there seemed to be not quite so many of them. By the time
that I had slipped into my clothes the party had arrived pretty nearly
abreast of the brig, and were close enough, to enable me not only to
count but to identify them. _They were now only fourteen in number; and
the two absent ones were the men whom I had seen guarding the treasure
on the previous night_! Somehow, the absence of these two men instantly
became associated in my mind with the volley of pistol-shots that I had
heard while overboard; and I began to wonder, gloomily, whether the
unearthed treasure had already brought a tragedy in its train. I was
full of this idea as I sat down to breakfast; but as Miss Onslow did not
make any remark or inquiry concerning the pistol volley, I concluded
that she had not heard it, and was careful to say nothing whatever to
her about my suspicions.
O'Gorman and his companions remained in the seclusion of their tents all
the morning, not one of them, excepting the cook, showing themselves
until after dinner. Then the Irishman and two hands appeared; and
presently they jumped into a boat and headed for the brig. I went to
the gangway to receive them--so that we might be out of ear-shot of Miss
Onslow, who was sitting in the after-end of her sleeping-tent, reading--
and, even before the boat got alongside, I could see, by the sober faces
of those in her, that something serious was the matter.
O'Gorman boarded the brig alone, leaving his two companions in the boat
alongside. I led him for'ard, and not until we had reached the fore
deck did either of us open our mouths. Then the Irishman, turning to me
with a very serious face, said:
"Misther Conyers, we want y'r help again, son."
"Very well," said I; "I shall be pleased to help you in any way
possible. What is it that you wish me to do?"
"We wish ye to divide up the threasure aiqually into fourteen parts, and
to give to aich man his own share, so that he may take care of it for
himself. As things are now, wid all the gims lumped together in the
iron chist, the timptation and the opporchunity to shteal is too great,
and we've already lost two of our number through it."
"Lost two of your number? Good Heavens, O'Gorman, what do you mean?" I
demanded, my thoughts instantly reverting to the suspicious proceedings
of the morning.
"Why," explained O'Gorman, "it's loike this, ye see. Whin we dug up
that chist yesterday, and got it over here, we could none of us be
satisfied until we'd broke it open and found out what it contained.
Then, as we couldn't fasten it up again, we decided to mount guard over
it, two men at a time, so that nobody should rob the others by sneakin'
away and helpin' himself unbeknownst. But whin the first two guards was
relieved, last night, the cook took it into his head that they ought to
be searched; and whin this was done, by the Powers! we found that aich
of 'em had helped himself to a handful of the stones, and had 'em stowed
away in their pockets. We thried 'em there and thin, found 'em guilty,
and sintenced 'em to be shot! Which was done this morning."
"So!" I exclaimed in horror, "this is the first result of your
so-called good fortune, is it? A theft; and two of your number slain!
Man! do you know that the fourteen of you have committed _murder_!"
"Murder, is it? Sorra a bit!" exclaimed the Irishman indignantly. "We
thried the two of 'em, and found 'em guilty, all in regular, proper
ordher."
"But," said I, "you have no authority or legal right to try men,
sentence them to death, and execute them. Whatever _you_ may consider
it, you will find that the law will regard it as wilful murder."
"The law?" ejaculated O'Gorman, with a contemptuous sniff. "Oh,
begorra, we'll take our chance of that! But we don't want any more
executions, Misther Conyers, so will ye help us to make a fair division
of our prize, that aich man may have his own and not be tempted to
shteal from another?"
"Are you making this request on your own account, or on behalf of the
rest as well?" demanded I. "Perhaps the others may be unwilling to
trust to my fairness."
"Oh, but they will," answered O'Gorman. "The proposal was mine, but
iverybody agreed to it."
"Very well, then," said I. "I am willing to undertake the job, and will
do my best to make the division an equitable one."
So saying, I went aft and explained to Miss Onslow that I was going
ashore for an hour or two with O'Gorman, to afford him the benefit of my
advice in a certain matter, dived below to my cabin for some sheets of
writing-paper, which I rolled up and put in my pocket, and then,
returning to the deck, descended the side and entered the boat.
On reaching the shore, O'Gorman led me at once to the largest tent,
where I found the entire remainder of the party seated in a circle on
the ground, with the chest of treasure-trove in the centre; they had
evidently so little faith in each other that each had deemed it
necessary to individually watch the chest in his own interest. The
incident would have been amusing but for the terrible element of tragedy
that had been imparted to it by the proceedings of the morning.
My first act, on entering the tent, was to provide, from my little stock
of writing-paper, fourteen pieces of exactly equal size and shape, which
I numbered from one to fourteen; afterwards folding the pieces
identically, so that the numbers written upon them were concealed, and
it became impossible to distinguish one piece from another. These
papers I put on the ground in one of the men's caps, mixing and
shuffling them all together; and next I called for a square of canvas.
They brought me a boat's lug sail, which I caused to be spread flat and
smooth upon the ground; and then I had the chest lifted on to the middle
of the sail, seating myself beside it. Then, starting with the pearls,
I picked out fourteen of practically equal value, and laid them, singly
and well apart, on the canvas before me, explaining my intentions as I
did so. Then to these I similarly added fourteen more, and so on, until
each heap contained the same number of pearls, and was, as nearly as I
could judge, of the same value. There were five pearls left over, and
these I reserved as possible make-weights, so to speak, in the further
division of the gems. Then I proceeded with the diamonds in the same
way, following on with the rubies, and finishing off with the emeralds,
until the entire treasure was subdivided into fourteen parts of
practically equal value. This done, I inquired whether they were all of
opinion that the _division_ had been evenly made; and upon receiving a
reply to the effect that "they supposed so," I gave the tickets in the
sailor's cap a vigorous, final shaking up, and then passed the cap round
in succession, requesting each man to take one paper. Then, when all
had been drawn, I requested them to open their papers and look at the
numbers written thereon. And, finally, the man who held number one was
allowed first choice from the fourteen heaps, number two the second
choice, and so on, until only one heap was left, which fell to the man
holding ticket number fourteen. It was interesting to note the
difference in the behaviour of the men in choosing their heaps; some
hung fire and seemed quite unable to make up their minds for as much as
ten minutes or a quarter of an hour--and they would probably have been
longer but for the impatient remonstrances of their fellows--while
others simply laid their caps alongside the nearest heap and swept the
latter into the former with as little emotion as though they had been
purchasing a penn'orth of gooseberries at a street-barrow.
This process of subdivision of the treasure had run away with a
considerable amount of time, with the result that when I returned to the
brig the usual hour of "supper"--as the evening meal is generally termed
at sea--was long past; and, what was of far greater consequence, I found
that during my prolonged absence Miss Onslow had worked herself into a
perfect fever of apprehension as to my safety; which was not at all
surprising when one came to reflect upon what her situation would have
been--alone among all those ruffians--had anything perchance happened to
me. But she quickly recovered her spirits when I informed her as to how
I had been occupied; and it was a great relief to me to discover, as I
did in the course of the evening, by means of sundry subtle questions
and remarks, that the poor girl entertained no suspicion whatever of the
morning's tragedy. Such being the case, I resolved to keep the news
from her as long as possible; and, with a view thereto, I strenuously
impressed upon the steward that he was not, under any circumstances
whatever, to make the most distant reference to it.
During the fortnight that now ensued, the weather remaining gloriously
fine, I took Miss Onslow away in the boat daily, and together we
explored the island until we had become perfectly acquainted with every
inch of it, and knew exactly where to find its many beauty-spots. On
the first two or three days of these excursions we frequently
encountered members of O'Gorman's gang wandering about the island in a
more or less apparently aimless fashion--most of them carrying canvas
bundles in their hands, which they invariably endeavoured unsuccessfully
to conceal from our view. At first I was at a loss to understand what
all this meant; but on the third day it happened that, on emerging from
a jungle-path that we had made for ourselves, we came upon a kneeling
man busily engaged in digging a hole with a stick at the foot of a tree.
So intent was he upon his occupation that he did not hear us until we
were close upon him, and then he sprang to his feet and faced us with an
expression of mingled consternation and defiance, that changed to one of
confusion as he recognised us. It was the young Cockney whom I have
already had occasion to mention once or twice; and he had gradually
impressed me as being about the most harmless and well-meaning of the
whole gang.
"Hillo, Harry!" I exclaimed, "what are you after? seeking for more
treasure?"
"Why, no, sir," answered he, fingering the peak of his cap as he met
Miss Onslow's gaze. He hesitated a few seconds, considering, and then
proceeded:
"The fact is, Mr Conyers, I was thinkin' of hidin' my little whack."
"Well," said I, "in that case I am exceedingly sorry that we disturbed
you, for now I fear that you will have to hunt for another
hiding-place."
"What for, sir?" demanded he.
"Why, because this lady and I have discovered your secret, don't you
see?"
"Oh, that be blowed!" exclaimed the young fellow. "That don't make no
matter; I ain't afraid of you or the lidy stealin' the stuff; I wasn't
hidin' it from either of you."
"No?" queried I. "From whom, then, were you hiding it?"
"Why, from the rest of 'em, of course. We're _all_ hidin' our stuff
from one another. We don't _tell_ each other so; but we're doin' it all
the same."
"I see," said I. "You are unable to trust each other. Well, that is a
pity. One would have thought that there was not a man among you who
would not have felt abundantly satisfied with what he has secured."
"Maybe we are; but maybe we ain't," answered the fellow. "Anyhow, when
I sees the rest all distrustin' one another, I thinks it's time for me
to distrust them. So I spent all day yesterday huntin' for a good spot,
and comed along this way, and thought I couldn't do better than stow the
stuff at the foot of this big tree."
"Well," said I, "if I were you I should choose some other place. How
are you to know that one of the men you distrust is not even now
watching you--and guessing your occupation--from some place of
concealment among the bushes? Choose a spot that you can easily find
again somewhere in the heart of the bush, and bury it there, where
nobody can see what you are about."
"Thank'ee sir; I will. I think I know a good place not far off," said
the fellow; and therewith, giving a sea-scrape with his foot, he turned
away and left us. As for us, we resumed our walk, and were very careful
not to turn round or otherwise behave in such a manner as to lead the
man to suppose we desired to watch him.
During the period to which I am now referring, O'Gorman and his men did
no work whatever, but--after each had succeeded in satisfactorily
concealing his own share of treasure--spent their time in strolling
aimlessly--sometimes alone, and sometimes in parties of two or three
together--about the island, hunting for fruit, or climbing the cocoa-nut
trees to get at the nuts. Then--I think it was about the sixteenth day
after the unearthing of the treasure--without any previous warning or
notice whatever to me--I saw them striking tents ashore, immediately
after breakfast; and by noon everything had been brought off to the brig
again, and the men had once more taken up their quarters in her
forecastle. The remainder of that day was devoted to the task of
rebending the canvas; but it was not until noon of the next day that the
brig was again in a condition to go to sea. That afternoon, and the
greater part of the following day, was devoted to the task of
replenishing the brig's stock of fresh water, collecting an abundant
supply of fruit, and--presumably--recovering possession of their hidden
treasure; and after breakfast next morning the crew went leisurely to
work to get under way. It took us until noon to work our way out to
sea; and as soon as we were fairly clear of the barrier reef, everybody
went to dinner.