After a time, Bill began to feel very hungry, and then he recollected
that at dinner he had clapped a biscuit into his pocket. He felt for
it. It was soaked through and through, and nearly turned into paste,
but it served to stay his appetite, and to keep up his strength. At
length he became somewhat drowsy, but he did his best to keep awake.
Feeling about, he got hold of a piece of rope, with which he managed to
secure himself to the raft. Had he found it before, it would have saved
him much exertion.
The feeling that there was now less risk of being washed away, made him
not so anxious as at first to withstand the strong desire which had
attacked him, and yielding to it, his eyes closed, and he dropped off to
sleep.
How long he had been in that state he could not tell, when he was
aroused by the sound of human voices. Opening his eyes, he found that
the sun was shining down upon him, and looking round, he saw a small
vessel approaching. He soon made her out to be a fishing craft with
five people on board.
They hailed him, but he was too weak to answer. He managed, however, to
wave one of his hands to show that he was alive.
The fishing-vessel came on, and hove-to close to him. The sea had
considerably gone down. A boat was launched from her deck, and pulled
up to the raft, with two men in her.
They said something, but Bill could not understand them. One of them,
as they got up alongside, sprang on to the raft, and casting off the
lashings which held Bill to it, the next instant was safe in the boat
with him in his arms.
The man having placed him in the stern-sheets, the boat quickly returned
to the cutter.
Bill was lifted on board, and the boat was then hauled up again on the
cutter's deck. His preservers, though rough-looking men, uttered
exclamations in kind tones which assured Bill that he had fallen into
good hands. One of them then carried him down into the little cabin,
and stripping off his wet clothes, placed him between the blankets in a
berth on one side.
In a few minutes the same man, who appeared to be the captain of the
fishing-vessel, returned with a cup of hot coffee and some white bread.
Stirring the coffee and blowing to cool it, he made signs to Bill that
he must drink some of it.
This Bill very gladly did, and he then felt able to eat some of the
bread, which seemed very sweet and nice. This greatly restored his
strength.
He wished, however, that he could answer the questions which the men put
to him. He guessed that they were Frenchmen, but not a word of French
did he know.
At last another man came into the cabin.
"You English boy?" asked the man.
"Yes," said Bill.
"Ship burn; blow up?" was the next question put to Bill, the speaker
showing what he meant by suitable action.
"Yes," said Bill, "and I am afraid all my shipmates are lost. Though
you are French, you won't send me to prison, I hope?"
"Have no fear," answered the man, smiling; and turning round to his
companions, he explained what Bill had said. They smiled, and Bill
heard them say, "Pauvre garcon."
"No! no! no! You sleep now, we take care of you," said the interpreter,
whose knowledge of English was, however, somewhat limited.
Bill felt a strong inclination to follow the advice given him. One of
the men, bundling up his wet clothes, carried them to dry at the little
galley fire forward. The rest went on deck, and Bill in another minute
fell fast asleep. Where the cutter was going Bill could not tell. He
had known her to be a fishing-vessel by seeing the nets on deck, and he
had guessed that she was French by the way in which the people on board
had spoken. They had given evidence also that they intended to treat
him kindly.
Some hours must have passed away when Bill again awoke, feeling very
hungry. It was daylight, and he saw that his clothes were laid at the
foot of his berth.
Finding that his strength had returned, he got up, and began dressing
himself. He had just finished when he saw that there was some one in
the opposite berth. "Perhaps the skipper was up all night, and has
turned in," thought Bill; but as he looked again, he saw that the head
was certainly not that of a man, but the face was turned away from him.
His intention was to go on deck, to try and thank the French fishermen,
as far as he was able, for saving his life, but before he did so
curiosity prompted him to look again into the berth.
What was his surprise and joy to recognise the features of his shipmate,
Jack Peek! His face was very pale, but he was breathing, which showed
that he was alive. At all events, Bill thought that he would not awake
him, eager as he was to know how he had been saved.
He went up on deck, hoping that the man who had spoken a few words of
English might be able to tell him how Jack had been picked up. On
reaching the deck he found that the vessel was close in with the land.
She was towing a shattered gig, which Bill recognised as one of those
belonging to the _Foxhound_. He at once conjectured that Jack had
managed somehow or other to get into her.
As soon as he appeared, the Frenchmen began talking to him, forgetting
that he was unable to understand them. As he made no reply, they
recollected themselves, and began laughing at their own stupidity.
One of them shouted down the fore-hatchway, and presently the
interpreter, as Bill called him, made his appearance.
"Glad see you. All right now?" he said, in a tone of interrogation.
"All right," said Bill, "but I want you to tell me how you happened to
find my shipmate Jack Peek;" and Bill pointed down into the cabin.
"He, friend! not broder! no! We find him in boat, but he not say how he
got dere. Two oder men, but dey dead, so we heave dem overboard, and
take boat in tow," answered the man.
Jack himself was probably not likely to be able to give any more
information than the Frenchman had done. Suddenly it struck his new
friends that Bill might be hungry, and the interpreter said to him, "You
want manger," pointing to Bill's mouth.
Bill understood him. "Yes, indeed I do; I am ready for anything you can
give me," he said.
The fire was lighted, while a pot was put to boil on it, and, greatly to
Bill's satisfaction, in a few minutes one of the men, who acted as cook,
poured the contents into a huge basin which was placed on the deck, and
smaller basins and wooden spoons were handed up from below.
One man remaining at the helm, the remainder sat down and ladled the
soup into the smaller basins.
Bill eagerly held out his.
The mess, which consisted of fowl and pork and a variety of vegetables,
smelt very tempting, and as soon as it was cool enough, Bill devoured it
with a good appetite.
His friends asked him by signs if he would have any more.
"Thank you," he answered, holding out his basin. "A spoonful or two;
but we must not forget Jack Peek. When he awakes, he will be glad of
some;" and he pointed into the cabin.
The Frenchmen understood him, and made signs that they would keep some
for his friend, one of them patting him on the back and calling him "Bon
garcon."
Bill, after remaining some time on deck, again felt sleepy, and his head
began to nod.
The Frenchmen, seeing this, told him to go below. He gladly followed
their advice, and descending into the cabin, lay down, and was once more
fast asleep.
The next time he awoke he found that the vessel was at anchor. He got
up, and looked into Jack's berth. Jack at that moment turned round, and
opening his eyes, saw his shipmate.
"Why, Bill, is it you!" he exclaimed. "I am main glad to see you; but
where are we?--how did I come here? I thought that I was in the
captain's gig with Tom Nokes and Dick Harbour. What has become of them?
They were terribly hurt, poor fellows! though they managed to crawl on
board the gig."
Bill told him what he had learned from the Frenchman.
"They seem kind sort of fellows, and we have fallen into good hands," he
added; "but what they're going to do with us is more than I can tell."
Just then the captain of the fishing-vessel came below, and seeing that
Jack was awake, he called out to one of the men to bring a basin of the
soup which had been kept for him.
While he was swallowing it, a man brought him his clothes, which had
been sent forward to dry. The captain then made signs to him to dress,
as he intended taking them both on shore with him.
Bill helped Jack, who was somewhat weak, to get on his clothes. They
then went on deck.
The vessel lay in a small harbour, protected by a reef of rocks from the
sea. Near the shore were a number of cottages, and on one side of the
harbour a line of cliffs running away to the eastward.
Several other small vessels and open boats lay at anchor around.
The captain, with the interpreter, whose name they found was Pierre, got
into the boat, the latter telling the lads to come with them.
They did as they were directed, sitting down in the stern-sheets, while
the captain and Pierre took the oars and pulled towards the shore.
It was now evening, and almost dark. They saw the lights shining in the
windows of several of the cottages.
Pierre was a young man about nineteen or twenty, and, they fancied, must
be the captain's son. They were right, they found, in their
conjectures.
Pierre made them understand, in his broken language, that he had some
short time before been a prisoner in England, where he had been treated
very kindly; but before he had time to learn much English, he had been
exchanged.
This had made him anxious to show kindness to the young English lads.
"Come along," said Pierre, as they reached the shore. "I show you my
house, my mere, and my soeur. They take care of you; but mind! you not
go out till dey tell you, or de gendarmes take you to prison perhaps.
Do not speak now till we get into de house."
Bill and Jack followed their guide while the old man rowed back to the
vessel.
Pierre led them to a cottage a little distance from the shore, which
appeared to be somewhat larger than those they had passed. He opened
the door, telling them to come in with him, when he immediately again
closed it.
A middle-aged woman and a young girl, in high white caps with flaps over
the shoulders, were seated spinning. They started up on seeing the two
young strangers, and began inquiring of Pierre who they were. His
explanation soon satisfied them, and jumping up, Madame Turgot and
Jeannette took their hands, and began pouring out in voluble language
their welcomes.
"You say `Merci! merci!'" said Pierre, "which means `Thank you! thank
you!'"
"Merci! merci!" said Jack and Bill.
It was the first word of French they learned, and, as Jack observed,
came in very convenient.
What the mother and her daughter said they could not make out, but they
understood well enough that the French women intended to be kind.
"You hungry?" asked Pierre.
"Very," answered Jack.
Pierre said something to his mother and sister, who at once set about
spreading a cloth and placing eatables on the table--bread and cheese,
and pickled fish, and some salad.
"Merci! merci!" said Jack and Bill, as their hostess made signs to them
to fall to. Pierre joined them, and in a short time Captain Turgot
himself came in. He was as hospitably inclined as his wife and
daughter, and kept pressing the food upon the boys.
"Merci! merci!" was their answer.
At last Jeannette began to laugh, as if she thought it a good joke.
Jack and Bill tried hard to understand what was said. Pierre observed
them listening, and did his best to explain.
From him they learned that they must remain quiet in the house, or they
might be carried away as prisoners of war. He and his father wished to
save them from this, and intended, if they had the opportunity, enabling
them to get back to England.
"But how will you manage that?" asked Bill.
Pierre looked very knowing, and gave them to understand that smuggling
vessels occasionally came into the harbour, and that they might easily
get on board one of them, and reach the English coast.
"But we do not wish to get rid of you," said Pierre. "If you like to
remain with us, you shall learn French, and become French boys; and you
can then go out and help us fish, and gain your livelihood."
Pierre did not say this in as many words, but Jack and Bill agreed that
such was his meaning.
"He's very kind," observed Bill; "but for my part, I should not wish to
become a French boy; though I would not mind remaining for a while with
the French dame and her daughter, for they're both very kind, and we
shall have a happy time of it."
This was said a day or two after their arrival.
Captain Turgot had fitted them up a couple of bunks in a small room in
which Pierre slept, and they were both far more comfortable than they
had ever been in their lives.
Captain Turgot's cottage was far superior to that of Jack's father; and
as for Bill, he had never before slept in so soft a bed. They had to
remain in the house, however, all day; but Captain Turgot or Pierre took
them out in the evening, when they could not be observed, to stretch
their legs and get a little fresh air.
They tried to make themselves useful by helping Madame Turgot, and they
rapidly picked up from her and her daughter a good amount of French, so
that in a short time they were able to converse, though in a curious
fashion, it must be owned.
They soon got over their bashfulness, and asked the name of everything
they saw, which Jeannette was always ready to tell them. Their attempts
at talking French afforded her vast amusement.
Though kindly treated, they at length got tired of being shut up in the
house, and were very well pleased when one day Captain Turgot brought
them each a suit of clothes, and told them that he was going away to
fish, and would take them with him.
Next morning they went on board the cutter, and sail being soon
afterwards made, she stood out of the harbour.