Bill seized Jack's arm, and pulled him down in the shadow of a high
wall, near which they happened at that moment to find themselves.
Some minutes they waited, scarcely daring to draw breath.
The shout was not repeated.
"We may go on now," whispered Jack; and getting up, they crept forward.
Presently, below them, they caught sight of the harbour, with the stars
reflected on its surface.
The most difficult part of their undertaking was now to be performed.
They had to find out exactly where their raft lay.
Bill had not failed to observe the shape of the harbour, and to take
note of the various objects on shore, as he and Jack were brought in
prisoners by the French boat; but the partial survey he was then able to
make did not enable him to settle positively in what direction they
ought to proceed to find their raft.
By keeping on as they were then going they believed that they should
make the shore of the harbour at no great distance from the mouth. They
might then keep along up it until they reached the place where they
landed, near which they hoped to find their raft moored.
"I am only afraid that we may meet some guards or patrols, or fishermen
coming on shore or going off to their vessels," observed Jack.
"If we do we must try to hide ourselves," answered Bill. "We'll keep
along as close as we can under the cliffs, or any walls or houses we are
passing, so that we may see people before we are seen ourselves."
They acted as Bill suggested, and pushed boldly onwards. Not a sound
was heard coming either from the land side or from the harbour. The
water was as smooth as glass.
They were still going forward when Jack seized Bill's arm. "That's the
place," he whispered. "I can make out the raft, moored outside a boat
at the end of a slip."
Bill, creeping forward, assured himself that Jack was right, and, as
nothing could be gained by waiting a moment, they hurried on, and in a
few seconds were on board their raft. Jack plunged his hand into one of
the chests, to ascertain that the articles it had contained were still
there. They had not been taken away.
He could scarcely refrain from shouting out for joy.
Even the oars had not been removed.
They got another from the boat alongside to supply the place of the one
which had been splintered.
"Cut the warps," cried Bill. "We'll paddle on till we find the breeze."
The raft was quickly cast loose, and, getting out the oars, they began
to paddle silently down the harbour. They could not avoid making some
slight noise, but they hoped that there was no one on the watch to hear
it. Very frequently they turned their glances astern to ascertain if
they were followed, but they could see nothing moving. There were
several vessels lower down the harbour, so they steered a course which
would carry them past at some little distance from them.
The raft moved easily over the smooth surface, and they made good way.
There was only one vessel more which they had to pass before they
reached the harbour's mouth. They both earnestly hoped that her crew
were fast asleep, and that no watch was kept on deck.
They paddled slowly by, and more than half a cable's length from her,
moving their oars as gently as possible, and scarcely daring to breathe.
The slightest sound might betray them.
At length they got outside her, and there was nothing now between them
and the open channel.
Again Jack could hardly refrain from shouting.
Just then a voice came from the vessel.
Bill looked back. He judged by the distance the vessel was off that the
character of the raft could not be discovered. He answered in very good
French, "We are going out early this morning, and if we have good luck
in fishing, we'll bring you some for breakfast."
"Thank you, my friend, thank you," answered the man on board the vessel.
Bill had been paddling on all the time he was speaking. He was certain
that the man did not suspect who he and Jack were, and in a few minutes
they lost sight of the vessel altogether.
They now gave way with might and main. They were rowing for life and
liberty; for if again caught, they fully believed that they should be
shot. How anxiously they wished that a breeze would spring up!
For fully an hour they rowed on, till the shore faded from sight.
They were steering by the polar star, which both Jack and Bill knew
well.
"If there's a breeze from the southward, we ought to feel it by this
time," observed Jack.
"Never fear; we shall find it before long," answered Bill. "We are not
so far away from the cliffs as you suppose, and it would be as well not
to speak loud, or our voices may reach any boat passing, or even people
on shore."
"I hope there will be none there at this hour, though they will come
down fast enough in the morning from the chateau, when they find we have
taken French leave," said Jack.
"A very proper thing to take, too, seeing we were in France," remarked
Bill, with a quiet chuckle. "I hope we shall never set foot on its
shores again."
"So do I; but I'm afraid we have a great chance of doing so, unless we
get a breeze pretty soon. I am inclined to whistle for it," said Jack.
"It won't come the faster for that," answered Bill. "We shall do more
good by working our oars. We are sending the raft along at three knots
an hour at least, and as it will be three hours or more before daylight,
we shall be ten miles or so away from the shore, even if we do not get a
breeze, before the Frenchmen find out that we have got off."
As Bill advised, he and Jack continued pulling away as lustily as at
first.
The smoothness of the water was a great advantage to them, for had there
been any sea their progress would have been much slower.
An hour or more passed away, when Bill exclaimed, "Here comes the wind,
and right aft, too! It's not very strong yet, but it will freshen soon,
I hope. Stand by, Jack, to hoist the sail!"
"Ay, ay!" answered Jack, taking hold of the halyards and feeling that
all was clear.
"Hand me the sheet; and now hoist away," said Bill.
Jack, with right good will, hauled away at the halyards, and the sail
was soon set.
The raft felt the influence of the breeze and glided on at an increased
speed. It was cheery to hear the water rippling against the bows.
"We must take care not to capsize the raft if the wind increases much,"
observed Bill. "Keep the halyards ready to let go in a moment; the sail
is full large for our craft, and it would not take long to capsize it."
"Trust me for that," said Jack; "I have no wish to be drowned, and I
feel wonderfully jolly at the thought of having got away. Are you
steering a right course, Bill? It seems to me that the sail must be
between you and the polar star."
"No; I can see it directly over the yard when I stand up and keep well
aft," answered Bill. "The wind, too, won't let us go in any other
direction."
"How about the tide?" asked Jack.
"Why, as it was just on the ebb when we came out of the harbour, and
helped us along, it is, I calculate, making to the westward. It won't,
however, run much longer in that direction, and it will then carry us to
the eastward for a good six hours. We'll be well out of sight of land
by that time, and, I hope, may fall in with an English cruiser, though,
for my part, I would rather run right across the Channel. It would be
fine fun to land, and tell the people how we managed it. They would
think more of our raft than the Frenchmen did, though there are not many
boys afloat who would not try to do as we have done."
Jack was of the same opinion, and as there was no necessity for rowing,
while Bill steered, Jack sat on a chest with his arms folded. Suddenly
he exclaimed, "I say, Bill, I am getting very peckish; I vote we have
some supper."
"Well, we have not far to go for it," observed Bill, "seeing we have got
enough in our pockets to last us for the whole of to-morrow."
As Bill could not well manage to steer and tend the sheet and eat his
supper, too, he let Jack finish his; after which they changed places,
and Bill fell to with a good appetite on some of the old Frenchwoman's
provisions.
"I hope the kind old creature won't get into any scrape for supplying
us," said Bill.
"I don't see how it will be found out that she gave us so much," said
Jack. "When she finds that we are gone, she'll keep her own counsel,
depend on that."
"We must not expend the food too fast, though," remarked Bill. "It will
take us several days to get across Channel; and it won't do to run short
of provisions."
"You forget those we have in the chest," said Jack.
"Are you certain that the Frenchmen allowed them to remain there," asked
Bill, opening the lid of one of them, and feeling about. "Yes! here's a
piece of beef or pork and some biscuit. All right, we shall do now.
I'll take the helm again if you like; I feel more comfortable when I'm
at it, though you steer well enough, I dare say."
"As you like," said Jack. "I'd just as soon stand by the halyards."
They again changed places.
Bill kept his eye on the polar star, while Jack peered under the sail
ahead, that they might not, as he said, run down any craft.
Thus the night passed away. The breeze slightly increased, but Bill
considered that they might still carry their whole sail with safety.
Perhaps they did not move along quite so fast as he supposed. He told
Jack that he thought they were running through the water at five knots
an hour; but four, or even three, knots was a good deal for a raft to
make, with flat bows, light and well put together as it was.
They were too much excited to feel the slightest inclination to sleep,
and being both in capital spirits, did not trouble themselves with
thinking of the possibility that the weather might change before they
could get across to the English coast. A fast lugger would take nearly
two days to do the distance.
The dawn now broke, and they eagerly looked out on every side for a
sail. As the light increased they were greatly disappointed, on gazing
astern, to discover the French coast still in sight, though blue and
indistinct, like a cloud rising out of the water. No sail, however, was
to be seen in that direction. That was a comfort; they were not pursued
by any large craft, and could certainly not be seen from the shore.
To the northward, however, they caught sight of a sail just rising above
the horizon, and soon afterwards another was seen to the eastward, but
which way she was standing they could not determine.
As the sun rose the wind decreased, and before long it became perfectly
calm.
"We must lower the sail and take to our oars again," said Bill. "It
won't do to stop where we are."
"I am ready to pull on as long as I have any strength in me," answered
Jack, as he stowed the sail, and got out his oar.