It should be remembered that the coast of the great Kadiak Island is
here and there indented with deep bays, which at one point nearly cut it
in two. Had the boys known it, they were, in their camp near the head of
Kaludiak Bay, not more than thirty miles distant across the mountain
passes to the head of Uyak Bay, which makes in on the west side of the
island, and which was the first great inlet to be searched by the boat
crews of the _Bennington_. The total coast-line of so large a bay is
hundreds of miles in extent, and broken with many little coves, each of
which must be visited and inspected, for any projecting rock point might
hide a boat or camp from view.
On this great bay there were two or three salmon-fisheries in operation,
and as these always employ numbers of natives who come from all parts of
the island, Captain Stephens had close inquiries made at each; but more
than two weeks passed and no word could be gained of any white persons
at any other portion of the island.
"Naturally we won't hear anything on this side," said Captain Stephens
to Mr. Hazlett. "Not many natives from the east coast come over here to
work, and from what I know of the prevailing tides and winds I am more
disposed to believe that they have been carried off toward the southeast
corner of the island. The land runs out there, and, granted any decent
kind of luck, the boys probably made a landing--if they could keep
afloat so far."
"But what may have happened to them before this?" began Mr. Hazlett.
"Tut, man! We've all got to take our chances," replied the old sea-dog.
"They've done their best, and we must do our best, too."
Week after week, hour after hour, and, as it seemed, almost inch by
inch, the cutter crawled on around the wild coast of Kadiak, tapping
each arm and inlet, literally combing out the full extent of the broken
shore-line. So gradually they passed below the southern extremity of the
island, worked up from the southeast, and one day came to anchor not far
from the native settlement known as Old Harbor. Here a breakdown to
their machinery kept them waiting for ten days. Meantime, the boat
crews were out at their work. One day a young lieutenant came in and
with some excitement asked to see the captain.
"I have to report, sir, that I think we've got word of those boys!" he
said, eagerly, as he saluted.
"How's that? Where? Go on, sir!"
"There's a big boat party back from Kaludiak Bay, sir. They were in
there on a whale-hunt several weeks ago. They saw a camp with three
white boys and one refugee Aleut."
"Arrest every man Jack of them and bring them in!" roared Captain
Stephens.
"Already done that, sir!" reported the lieutenant. "They are in the
long-boat alongside."
"Then bring them here at once!"
A few moments later he and Mr. Hazlett found the deck crowded with a
score of much-frightened natives.
"Who's the interpreter here?" commanded the captain.
A squaw-man who for some years had lived with the natives was pushed
forward. He was none too happy himself, for he expected nothing better
than intimate questions regarding certain wrecking operations which for
years past had gone on along this part of the coast.
"Now tell me," began Captain Stephens, "what do you know about those
boys over there? Why didn't these people bring out word to the
settlement? What are you looking for here? Do you want me to blow your
village off the rocks? Come, now, speak up, my good fellow, or you'll
mighty well wish you had!"
Suddenly Mr. Hazlett uttered an exclamation and sprang toward one of the
natives who carried a rifle in his hand.
"That gun belonged to Jesse, the son of my neighbor Wilcox at Valdez!"
he exclaimed. "Tell me where you got it, and how!"
As may be supposed, it was the Aleut chief whom he addressed, and the
latter now engaged in a very anxious attempt at explanation. He declared
at first that the boys had given him this rifle as a present; then he
admitted that he had promised to take a message up to Kadiak, going on
to say that he had intended to do this, but that his wife had been sick,
that he had been kept at the village by many things, etc.
"He's an old liar, without doubt," said Captain Stephens. "Half of this
band of natives down here are afraid to come to Kadiak because of the
debts they owe the company store. They are wreckers, renegades, and
thieves down here, and you can't believe a word of them. I've half a
mind to hang the lot of them at the yard-arm, and good riddance of them
at that!"
The old chief understood something of what was going on, and now began
to beg and blubber.
"Me good mans!" he repeated, beating on his chest.
"He says that he's got a boy of his own over there with the others in
Kaludiak Bay. He's got a message written out by the boys, but the truth
is he was afraid to go to town with it. Says the renegade Aleut over
there was a good hunter, but a dangerous man--he stole their sacred
whale harpoon here and made away with it--"
"But the message!" insisted Mr. Hazlett.
So at last the old chief fumbled in his jacket, and pulled out a soiled
and crumpled paper nearly worn in bits. Enough of it at least remained
to show the searchers that when it was written the boys were all alive
and well, and were expecting help.
"The old fellow says he was expecting to take the paper up to town
sometime this fall," went on the interpreter. "Says the boys had plenty
to eat--fish and birds, and they had killed three bears--"
"Nonsense!" exclaimed Captain Stephens.
"Yes, says they had killed an old she bear and two cubs, and had the
hides hung up--says the Aleut man had run away when they left--says they
all killed a whale before they left, and left the boys as well fixed as
they are here in this village. He can't understand why you should be
anxious about them, when his own boy is over there, too. Says he can
take you over there all right if you want to go."
"The little beggars!" said Mr. Hazlett, smiling for the first time in
weeks. "We may get them yet."
"Get them? Of course we will!" growled Captain Stephens. "We'll have
them aboard by this time to-morrow. Their camp isn't more than
seventy-five miles from here at most."
The whistle of the _Bennington_ once more roared out, and with the
rattle of her anchor chains again the cutter pushed on up the coast,
carrying with her, without asking their consent, the entire party of
natives, who now fell flat on the deck in terror, supposing that they
were being carried off to the white man's punishment for native
misdeeds.