THE PRINCE CONSORT.
Grimkie and John had both been very curious to see how Wick would look,
and they watched for the first appearance of it with great interest. It
proved to be a small and ancient looking town, built very compactly of
gray stone, and situated at the bottom of a small bay which here sets
in from the sea. In front of it was a little port formed by two piers
built out into the water, and curved in such a manner as to enclose a
considerable space of smooth water, with a small opening between the
two ends of them, to allow the fishing boats to pass in and out. As
usual in such cases there was a light-house on the end of one of these
piers.
“The very first thing we will do, Grimkie,” said John, “will be to go
down to the piers and see the fishing boats.”
“After breakfast,” said Grimkie.
It was now nearly noon and the party had had no breakfast, excepting
some cakes and oranges which Grimkie had brought in his knapsack, and
which they ate very early in the morning.
The coach drove rapidly into the town, and stopped at the door of a
snug and neat-looking inn, where Grimkie soon engaged rooms and ordered
breakfast. The weather was cool, too, and Mrs. Morelle requested the
waiter to have a good fire made in their sitting-room. In half an hour
the breakfast was ready, and about the same time all the members of the
party, having in the meanwhile been occupied, in their several rooms,
in making their toilet, were ready to eat it. Of course their appetites
were very eager, and as the breakfast was an excellent one, consisting
of fresh herring nicely fried, beef-steaks, eggs, hot rolls, toast,
coffee with plenty of hot milk and cream, fresh butter, and other such
niceties, they all enjoyed the repast exceedingly.
“What a nice thing a really good breakfast is,” said Florence, “when we
have waited long enough for it to get completely hungry.”
Pretty soon after breakfast they all went out to take a walk to see
the town, and the pier. They first walked along through the principal
street, looking into the shops to see if there was anything new or
curious in them which it would be well to buy as souvenirs. Then they
went down to the water, in order to see the pier. It was rather to
please the two boys that they did this, but still Mrs. Morelle was very
willing to go, for she was curious to see what the accommodations were
for going on board the steamer in case she should conclude to embark
the next morning.
They found that the piers were each very wide. On the inside of the
enclosure formed by them was a range of vessels and fishing boats,
which were moored to rings, and massive piles, on the margin of the
pier, and near them were cranes and other such fixtures used for
discharging cargoes. Then came a broad space to land goods upon, and
beyond a road for carts and wagons. All this was upon the top of
the pier, and on the outside was a high parapet wall to protect the
platform and road-way, above described, from the wind and the sea.
Thus in walking along the road-way upon the piers, one could see
the fishing boats and vessels within the port, and witness all the
operations going on there, but the view seaward was intercepted by the
parapet wall.
Mrs. Morelle was well satisfied with the appearance of the port, and
with the probable facilities for going on board the steamer, which she
supposed would come inside, so as to allow the passengers to go on
board by means of a broad plank.
The weather, too, was very fine, and she presumed that the sea was
smooth. She had an opportunity soon of ascertaining this point, for on
arriving at the end of one of the piers there were steps leading up to
a lookout upon the top of the parapet wall, and she asked Grimkie to go
up there and look out to sea, and make a report of the appearance of
things.
Grimkie did so and reported that the surface of the water was smooth as
glass, as far as he could see.
“Then,” said she, “if there is no change before night we will go.”
Mrs. Morelle and Florence soon returned to the hotel, but the boys
spent most of the afternoon in rambling about the pier, examining the
fishing boats, talking with the fishermen, and watching the various
operations which were going on in the port. When they went home to tea,
Grimkie asked what time the steamer would come the next morning, and
the porter informed him that she was due about two o’clock, but that
there was some uncertainty in respect to the time of her arrival. He
said, however, that she would remain some hours at Wick, and that he
would call them an hour before it would be time for them to go on board.
The whole party went to bed in good season, both because they had so
little sleep the night before, and also because they were to be called
up so early the following morning.
It was about half-past one when the porter knocked at their doors to
waken them. It was light enough to dress without candles, and they were
all soon ready. When they came down to the door they found the porter
there with a barrow. The baggage was put upon the barrow, and the
porter set forward, followed by the party of travellers on foot. It was
a bright and pleasant morning, and the air was calm. Mrs. Morelle was
greatly pleased by the prospect before her.
After walking through several streets, they came to the pier but Mrs.
Morelle looked in vain for the steamer.
“Why, Grimkie!” she exclaimed in surprise, “where is the steamer?”
“She must be out _there_,” said Grimkie, pointing as he spoke to a
column of smoke which was seen rising into the air over and beyond the
parapet wall.
“And how are we going to get on board?” asked Mrs. Morelle.
“It must be that we are going in a boat,” said Grimkie, “but you won’t
mind that, Auntie.”
Mrs. Morelle saw at a glance that it was too late now to retreat, and
she had the good sense to go forward boldly, acting upon the excellent
principle, that when there is anything disagreeable before us which
must be done, it is just as well to do it with a good grace.
Mrs. Morelle found, moreover, as we often do in such cases, that the
difficulties which she anticipated disappeared as she approached them.
At a certain part of the pier, not far from the entrance, there was
a flight of stone steps leading down to the water. The boat which
was to take the passengers to the steamer lay at the bottom of these
steps. There was a small party of passengers immediately preceding Mrs.
Morelle and her company. Seeing them go down at once, Mrs. Morelle
followed, and all were soon safe on board the boat, seated in the
stern. The trunks and other packages were then handed down and placed
in the bows.
After waiting some little time for other passengers who were seen
coming along the pier, the boat put off and was rowed easily out
through the opening, and there the steamer came into full view. They
were soon alongside of it, and without any difficulty ascended to the
deck.
It was now nearly sunrise, but everything was very quiet on board the
steamer. The children seemed quite inclined to remain on deck to see
what would take place, but Mrs. Morelle wished first to go below and
find her berth or her stateroom. So they all went down.
They descended a short and winding stair-way, and at the bottom of it
entered the cabin. On each side of the cabin, near the entrance to it,
there was a row of three or four staterooms partitioned off, which
made the cabin itself in this part, comparatively narrow. It was wide
enough, however, for two long tables which stood here, with comfortable
cushioned seats on each side of them.
Beyond the staterooms the cabin widened to the whole breadth of the
ship, and was terminated toward the stern in a great semicircular
sweep, with two tiers of wide and soft sofas, covered with crimson
plush. The two tiers were parallel to each other, one above and back of
the first, like the seats of an amphitheatre, and almost all the sofas
were occupied by passengers, more or less covered with blankets and
fast asleep. There were also some sleepers lying upon the sofas near
the tables in the narrow part of the cabin, The sleepers seemed all to
be men, except that there were one or two whose faces had a feminine
expression, and Grimkie could not tell whether they were young women,
or very pretty boys.
“Where is the ladies’ cabin?” asked Mrs. Morelle, turning to the
stewardess, who had met the party at the foot of the stairs and
followed them into the cabin.
“Here it is, madam,” said the stewardess. “But it is pretty full.”
So saying, the stewardess led the way to a passage behind the stairs,
and there, pulling aside a certain screen before a door, she disclosed
a room in the sides of which were berths, and on the floor sofas,
cots, and beds made of cushions, all of which were filled with female
sleepers lying in all imaginable attitudes. Mrs. Morelle and Florence
turned back immediately. It was evident that there was very little room
for them there.
“Is not there any stateroom for us?” asked Mrs. Morelle.
“Oh yes,” said the stewardess. And she at once led the way back to the
main cabin, and there, opening one of the doors on the side, not far
from the entrance, she ushered Mrs. Morelle and Florence into a very
nice and bright-looking stateroom.
“Ah!” exclaimed Mrs. Morelle, the moment that she saw the interior of
it, speaking in a tone of great satisfaction. “This is exactly what we
want. Here is a berth for you and one for me. It is _exactly_ what we
want.”
“I suppose there is something extra for the stateroom,” she added,
turning to the stewardess.
“Four shillings each,” said the stewardess.
“We will take it,” said Mrs. Morelle. “And as for you, boys, you must
find places to sleep on the sofas in the cabin. We can’t afford a
stateroom for you.”
“We don’t _want_ any stateroom, mother,” said John. “I would a great
deal rather sleep in the cabin.”
So the boys went to the cabin, and all four of the party were soon in
their several berths or upon their sofas sound asleep. The steamer was
quiet and still, except the slight jarring sensation produced by the
paddles after she began to move through the water, and the passengers
all continued to sleep after this for several hours, for although it
was near sunrise when Mrs. Morelle and her party came on board, still,
in respect to the time for sleeping, it was not much past the middle of
the night.
There began to be a movement for getting up in the gentleman’s cabin
about seven o’clock, and soon after this time Grimkie and John rose
and went on deck. There they took out their maps and endeavored by
calculation of the distance which they had run, and the bearing of the
land which was in sight, to find out where they were.
One of the passengers who saw what they were doing, came and informed
them that a certain large island which they were passing was Ronaldsay,
one of the Orkneys, and that the land beyond it which extended in both
directions as far as they could see, was another of the islands, and
that the steamer would arrive at Kirkwall in about two hours. They
found out the name of the steamer too,—the _Prince Consort_. She was
named thus in honor of Prince Albert, the consort of the queen.
The boys remained on deck watching the land as cape after cape and
headland after headland came into view, for an hour more, and then
Grimkie sent John down to knock at his mother’s stateroom door, and
tell her that they were drawing near to Kirkwall.
In about half an hour after receiving this summons, Mrs. Morelle and
Florence came upon deck.
The steamer had turned in now among the islands, where the water was
sheltered and smooth as in a river, and the views on every side were
enchanting. The principal islands were so large that they looked like
portions of the main land, and they presented an appearance of verdure
and beauty impossible to describe. Great fields of the richest green,
separated from each other by hedges neatly trimmed, or by substantial
walls, extended in every direction as far as the eye could reach,
while elegant villas, and spacious farm-houses, and rows of cottages
appearing here and there, diversified the scene. The fields in many
cases sloped down smoothly and beautifully to the water’s edge. In
other places the line of the coast was formed of rocky cliffs with the
surf of the sea rolling in at the base of them, and far in the interior
lofty mountains were seen marking their dim blue outline upon the sky.
“Well, Grimkie,” said Mrs. Morelle, “what do you think of the Orkneys?”
“I don’t think much of them,” said Grimkie, with an air of
disappointment. “The sea is as smooth, and the country is as beautiful,
as any where in England. I don’t believe the Norsemen had very hard
times after all.”
“Ah!” said Mrs. Morelle, “you ought to be here in January, when there
is as little day as there is night now.”
The cabin and the deck of the steamer was soon all in a bustle in
consequence of the preparations which were made by the Orkney
passengers to land. The steamer turned in more and more among the
islands, until at last she approached Kirkwall, which was situated,
like Wick, at the bottom of a small bay, and had a port formed of two
piers for the protection of fishing boats and other small vessels. The
steamer came to anchor outside this port. Boats came out to receive the
passengers and their luggage. In these boats they were all conveyed
within the port, and landed at a small pier sloping down to the water’s
edge.
Here a number of porters were assembled to take the luggage of the
passengers into the town. There were no carriages. A group of islands
is not the region in which carriages are likely to be multiplied.
Grimkie selected from among the porters one who had an honest face,
and giving him the trunk asked him to lead the way to the hotel. The
porter went on into a very narrow street—the width of it being barely
sufficient for a single carriage—between ancient stone buildings
which had more the appearance of prisons than houses—so few were the
windows, and so deep were they sunk into the massive walls—and thus
they arrived at the hotel.