until the occurrence which I am about to relate, I remember nothing
distinctly--all seems vague and dream-like. I could not say with
confidence, from my own knowledge, whether the interval consisted of
several days, or of only a few feverish and half-delirious hours; nor
whether the sights and sounds of which I have a confused recollection,
were real, or imaginary. I think, however, that it must have been in
the afternoon of the same day, (Arthur is confident that it was), that
Morton came to me as I lay in the bottom of the boat in a state of utter
desperation and self-abandonment and aroused me, saying in a hoarse and
painful whisper, that there was a vessel in sight. Even this
announcement hardly sufficed to overcome the stupor into which I had
sunk, and it was with a reluctant effort, and a feeling akin to
annoyance at being disturbed, that I sat up and looked around me. My
eyes were so much inflamed that I could see nothing distinctly.
The first thing that I observed, was, that the calm was at an end. A
breeze had sprung up, and was blowing gently but pretty steadily from
the south. The surface of the sea was slightly ruffled, and its dead
stagnant aspect, had given place to one of breezy freshness. In this
change there was something reviving and strengthening. Far to the
south, where Morton pointed out the vessel which he had discovered, I
could just distinguish a white speck upon the water, which seemed more
like the crest of a wave than any thing else. Morton had already called
Arthur's attention to it, and he was watching it intently. Gradually it
became more distinct, and in half an hour, I too, could make it out
plainly, to be a small sailing vessel of some description. As she was
coming directly down before the wind, there seemed to be no need of
doing any thing to attract her attention. I now hastened to reanimate
Max and Browne, by communicating to them the intelligence that relief
was probably at hand. In three-quarters of an hour more, the strange
sail was near enough to enable us to see that she was a large double
canoe, such as is used by some of the islanders of the South Pacific, in
their trading voyages. It had two masts, with large triangular
mat-sails, and appeared to contain six or seven persons only, whom we
supposed to be natives of some neighbouring island. As soon as they
were within speaking distance, one of them, to our great astonishment
hailed us in French. Arthur undertook to answer in the same language,
when the other, probably perceiving that the French was not his native
tongue, spoke to us in tolerable English, but with a strong French
accent. It was easy to perceive, now that our attention was
particularly called to him, that the spokesman was a European. Though
almost naked like the rest, and elaborately tattooed upon the chest and
shoulders, his light hair and beard, and florid though sun-burnt skin,
sufficiently distinguished him from them. Of course the first thing
with us, was to make known our wants, and to ask for food, and above all
for water. As soon as they could bring the canoe near enough, the
Frenchman watching his opportunity, reached out to us a large gourd
containing water, of which we drank plentifully, passing it round
several times. Arthur hastened to pour a little into Johnny's mouth,
and the effect was astonishing: he seemed to revive almost
instantaneously, and, sitting up, he seized the gourd himself and drank
eagerly as long as Arthur would let him. The Frenchman next tossed us
something wrapped in banana leaves, a thick, dark-coloured paste of some
kind. It was enough that it was an article of food, and we devoured it
without pausing for any very close examination, though its appearance
was by no means inviting, and it had a crude and slightly acid taste.
He threw us also several thin, hard cakes, similar in taste and colour
to the other substance. Both were probably preparations of the
bread-fruit, the latter being dried and hardened in the sun, or by fire.
Ravenously hungry as we were, these supplies were divided and
apportioned with the most scrupulous exactness. On finding that the
natives were well supplied with water, having several large gourds full,
we passed the calabash round again, until we had drained it dry, when
they gave us another gourd. Meanwhile, though we were too busy to look
about us much, the canoe's people watched us very narrowly, and in such
a manner as to make me feel uneasy and doubtful as to their intentions,
notwithstanding their kindness thus far. As soon as the first cravings
of hunger and thirst were satisfied, I began to return their scrutiny,
and I now observed that they differed in many respects from the
Tahitians, and from all the other Polynesian tribes of which I knew any
thing. Their complexion was a clear olive; their faces oval, with
regular features; their hair straight and black; their eyes large, and
the general expression of their countenances simple and pleasing, though
there were several keen, crafty-looking faces among them. All were
tattooed, more or less profusely, the chests of some resembling
checker-boards, and others being ornamented with rosettes, and
representations of various natural objects, as birds, fishes, trees,
etcetera. Their only clothing consisted of the maro, a strip of tappa,
or native cloth, tied round the loins. A wave happening to throw the
boats nearly together, one of the natives caught hold of our gunwale at
the stern, and another at the bow, and thus kept the canoe alongside.
They now began to cast searching glances at us, and at every thing in
the yawl. I observed the Frenchman intently eyeing the handle of one of
the cutlasses, which protruded from beneath a fold of canvass. He
inquired eagerly whether we had any fire-arms, and seemed greatly
disappointed to find that we had not. He next asked for tobacco, with
no better success, which apparently surprised him very much, for he
shrugged his shoulders, and raised his thick eyebrows with a doubtful
and incredulous look. At this moment the gilt buttons upon Max's jacket
seemed to strike the fancy of one of our new friends, and excited his
cupidity to such a degree, that after fixing upon them a long and
admiring gaze, he suddenly reached over and made a snatch at them. He
got hold of one, and in trying to pull it off came very near jerking Max
overboard. Morton, who was sitting next to Max, interfered, and caught
the man by the arm, with a look and manner that made me fear he might do
something imprudent. The savage, who was an athletic fellow,
obstinately maintained his hold of Max's jacket, and casting a ferocious
glance at Morton, snatched up a short, thick paddle, and brandished it
over his head as if about to strike. Arthur appealed to the Frenchman
to interpose, but before he could do so, one of the natives, a handsome
boy, who was seated cross-legged upon a platform between the masts,
spoke to the man in a raised voice, and with an air of authority,
whereupon, to my surprise, he immediately dropped the paddle, and
sullenly desisted from his attempt. This lad, who seemed to be so
promptly obeyed, did not look to be more than thirteen or fourteen years
of age. His voice was soft and girlish; he had a remarkably open and
pleasing countenance, and surveyed us with an air of friendly interest,
very different from the sinister and greedy looks of several of the
others, including the Frenchman himself. In answer to the questions of
the latter, Arthur told him that we were Americans, and related very
briefly how we had come into our present situation. He then informed us
in turn, that he had been cast away, some six years before, in a French
barque engaged in the tortoise-shell traffic, upon an uninhabited
island, about forty miles from the one where he and those with him, now
lived. After remaining there for more than a year, he and his
companions, having reason to believe that they were in the neighbourhood
of a group occasionally visited by trading vessels, had set out in
search of it, in a small boat. Their belief as to the existence and
situation of these islands proved to be well founded; they had finally
succeeded in reaching them, had been hospitably received and treated by
the natives, among whom they had acquired considerable influence, but
had as yet had no opportunity of returning home.
They were now, he said, on their return from a trading voyage to a
neighbouring island, where they had just disposed of a cargo of mats and
tappa, in exchange for baskets of native manufacture, and sharks' teeth.
Having been becalmed all the preceding day and night, they feared that
they had drifted out of their course, since, otherwise, they ought,
after making full allowance for the calm, to have already reached their
own island. He finished by assuring us, that we might calculate with
confidence, upon enjoying perfect security and kind treatment among
these people.
The conference being concluded, he directed us to put up our sail, and
steer after the canoe; adding that he expected to reach the group before
midnight if the wind held fair. He spoke with the air of one delivering
a command, and evidently considered us entirely under his control. But
of course we felt no disposition to object to what he directed. The
fact, that the natives had treated him and his companions so well, was
an encouragement to us, as affording some proof of their friendly and
peaceful character, and we supposed that he could have no possible
motive for using his influence to our prejudice. Even had there been
any other course for us to choose, to escape perishing, we were in no
condition to make any effectual opposition to the will of our new
acquaintances.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Note. This fish story has several rather astonishing features--at least
to an inexperienced landsman. The sword-fish and thresher are said to
seek and attack the right whale together; but a nautical friend, whom I
have consulted on the subject, says he has never heard of their
interfering with the cachelot, or sperm-whale, which would, he thinks,
be very likely to make mince-meat of them both, should they be guilty of
such temerity: the right whale uses no other weapon than his powerful
tail; whereas the cachelot goes at an adversary with open jaws. Upon my
inquiry whether threshers, "of several tons weight," and jumping "twenty
feet into the air," were common, my friend the captain, seemed piqued at
my implied scepticism as to marine monsters, and briefly made answer,
that there were more strange creatures in the sea, than were dreamed of
in my philosophy, and that "many an old sailor could give more real
information on the subject, than all the natural history books in the
world."
CHAPTER ELEVEN.
A CATASTROPHE.
THE WHIRLING COLUMNS--A STUPENDOUS SPECTACLE--WE LOSE OUR NEW FRIENDS.
"Still round and round the fluid vortex flies,
Scattering dun night, and horror through the skies,
The swift volution and the enormous train
Let sages versed in Nature's lore explain;
The horrid apparition still draws nigh,
And white with foam the whirling surges fly."
The breeze was now steady, though gentle, and Max and Morton set to work
rigging the sail, which for the last two days had served as an awning.
During our mutual inquiries and explanations, the Frenchman had kept the
canoe close alongside of us; he now braced round the yard of his
triangular sail, which had been shaking in the wind, and began to draw
ahead. The young native who had interfered so effectually in Max's
behalf, observing the eagerness with which we had devoured the doughy
mass of pounded bread-fruit, tossed another cake of the same substance
into the boat as we separated, which, when distributed, afforded a
morsel or two to each of us. I had particularly observed this boy on
the first approach of the canoe, from the circumstance of his occupying
a small raised platform, or dais, of wicker-work, covered with mats.
As our sail had been entirely disengaged from the mast and gaff, it was
quite a piece of work to rig it again for service, and by the time this
was effected, the canoe was some distance ahead of us: though she was
far better adapted than the yawl for sailing with a light breeze, yet we
nearly held our own with her, after once getting fairly under way.
When the wind first sprang up, the sky had become slightly overcast with
broken masses of clouds, of a peculiar and unusual appearance. From the
most considerable of these masses, radiated, as from a centre, long
lines, like pencils of light, running in straight, regularly diverging
rays, to the ocean.
We had been sailing in the wake of the canoe, perhaps half an hour, when
I observed in the south-west a singularly shaped cloud, to which a dark
column, extending downward to the sea, appeared to be attached. This
column was quite narrow at the base, but enlarged as it rose, until just
below the point of union with the cloud, it spread outward like a gothic
pillar, diverging into arches as it meets the roof. I surveyed this
strange spectacle for several minutes before its true character occurred
to me. It was already observed by those in the canoe, and from their
exclamations and gestures, they evidently viewed it with apprehension
and dread.
It was moving slowly towards us, and we also watched, with feelings in
which alarm began to predominate over curiosity and interest, the
majestic approach of this vast body of water, (as we now perceived it to
be), held by some secret power suspended between heaven and earth.
"It appears to be moving north before the wind," said Arthur, at length;
"if it keeps on its present course, it will pass by, at a safe distance
on our left."
This seemed probable; but we felt disposed to give it a still wider
berth, and shifting the sail, we steered in a north-easterly direction.
Scarcely had our sail filled on the new tack, when a cry of terror again
drew attention to the canoe, and the natives were seen pointing to
another water-spout, moving slowly round from the east to the north, and
threatening to intercept us in the course we were pursuing. This,
unlike the first, was a cylindrical column of water, of about the same
diameter throughout its entire length, extending in a straight and
unbroken line from the ocean to the heavens. Its upper extremity was
lost amid a mass of clouds, in which I fancied I could perceive the
effects of the gradual diffusion of the water drawn from the sea, as it
wound its way upward with a rapid spiral motion, and poured into that
elevated reservoir. As the process went on, the cloud grew darker, and
seemed to stoop with its accumulating weight of waters.
Our position was fast becoming embarrassing and dangerous. We had
changed our course to avoid the first water-spout and now we were
confronted by another still nearer at hand.
For a moment all was confusion, indecision, and dismay.
"Quick! round with her head, and let her go right before the wind!"
shouted Max hurriedly.
"That would be running directly into the danger," cried Morton, "they
are both moving north, and approaching each other."
"Then let's pull down the sail, until they are at a safe distance."
"I would rather keep her under headway," said Arthur, "or how could we
escape, if one of them should move down upon us!"
"What can we do, then?" exclaimed Max; "we can't sail in the teeth of
the wind."
"I am for going about to the left again, and steering as near the wind
as possible," said Arthur; "the one on that side is farthest north."
This was the course which the natives had already adopted, and they were
now steering nearly south-west. We immediately followed their example,
and the fore and aft rig of the yawl enabled us to sail nearer the wind
than they could do.
In a few moments the funnel-shaped water-spout, which we had first seen,
had passed off northward, and was at such a distance as to remove all
apprehensions on account of it. Not so, however, with the second; for
hardly had we tacked again, when, notwithstanding that we were to
windward of it, it began to move rapidly towards us.
Its course was not direct and uniform, but it veered now to the right
and now to the left, rendering it difficult for us to decide which way
to steer in order to avoid it.
Arthur sat at the helm, pale, but quite calm and collected, his eyes
steadfastly fixed on the advancing column, while Johnny crouched at his
side, holding fast one of his hands in both his own. Morton held the
sheet and stood ready to shift the sail, as the emergency might require.
Onward it came, towering to the skies, and darkening the ocean with its
impending bulk; soon we could perceive the powerful agitation of the
water far around its base, and within the vortex of its influence: a
dense cloud of spray, thrown off in its rapid revolutions, enveloped its
lower extremity: the rushing sound of the water as it was drawn upward,
was also distinctly audible. And now it seemed to take a straight
course for the canoe. The natives, with the exception of the boy, threw
themselves down in the bottom of the boat in abject terror; it was,
indeed, an appalling spectacle, and calculated to shake the stoutest
heart, to see that vast mass of water, enough as it seemed, to swamp the
navies of the world, suspended so strangely over them.
The Frenchman appeared to be endeavouring to get the natives to make
some exertion, but in vain. He and the boy then seized a couple of
paddles, and made a frantic effort to escape the threatened danger; but
the whirling pillar was almost upon them, and it seemed as though they
were devoted to certain destruction. The Frenchman now threw down his
paddle, and sat with his hands folded on his breast, awaiting his fate.
The boy, after speaking earnestly to his companion, who merely shook his
head, stood up in the prow of the canoe, and casting one shuddering look
at the dark column, he joined his hands above his head, and plunged into
the sea. In a moment he came to the surface, and struck out vigorously
towards us.
The canoe seemed already within the influence of the water-spout, and
was drawn towards it with the violently agitated waters around its base.
The Frenchman, unable longer to endure the awful sight bowed his head
upon his hands; another moment, and he was lost to sight in the circle
of mist and spray that enveloped the foot of the column; then a strong
oscillation began to be visible in the body of the water-spout; it
swayed heavily to and fro; the cloud at its apex seemed to stoop, and
the whole mass broke and fell, with a noise that might have been heard
for miles. The sea, far around, was crushed into smoothness by the
shock; immediately where the vast pillar had stood, it boiled like a
caldron; then a succession of waves, white with foam, came circling
outward from the spot, extending even to us.
The native boy, who swam faster than we sailed, was already within forty
or fifty yards of us, and we put about and steered for him: in a moment
he was alongside, and Arthur, reaching out his hand, helped him into the
boat.
The sea had now resumed its usual appearance, and every trace of the
water-spout was gone, so that it was impossible to fix the spot where it
had broken. Not a vestige of the canoe, or of her ill-fated company,
was anywhere to be seen. We sailed backward and forward in the
neighbourhood of the place, carefully scrutinising the surface in every
direction, and traversing several times the spot, as nearly as we could
determine it, where the canoe had last been seen: but our search was
fruitless: the long billows swelled and subsided with their wonted
regularity, and their rippled summits glittered as brightly in the
sunshine as ever, but they revealed no trace of those whom they had so
suddenly and remorselessly engulfed.
The water-spout which had first been seen, had disappeared, and a few
heavy clouds in the zenith alone remained, as evidences of the terrific
phenomenon which we had just witnessed.
CHAPTER TWELVE.
OUR ISLAND HOME.
THE ILLUSION OF THE GOLDEN HAZE--THE WALL OF BREAKERS--A STRUGGLE FOR
LIFE--THE ISLET OF PALMS.
"Keel never ploughed that lonely sea,
That isle no human eye hath viewed;
Around it still in tumult rude,
The surges everlastingly,
Burst on the coral-girded shore
With mighty bound and ceaseless roar;
A fresh unsullied work of God,
By human footstep yet untrod."
The native lad now seemed to be quite overwhelmed with grief. He had
made no manifestations of it while we were endeavouring to discover some
trace of his companions, but when at length we relinquished the attempt,
and it became certain that they had all perished, he uttered a low,
wailing cry, full of distress and anguish, and laying his head upon his
hands, sobbed bitterly.
The Frenchman had told us that the island lay to the northward; and we
now put the head of the boat in that direction, steering by the sun,
which was just setting.
When the first violence of the boy's grief had somewhat abated, Arthur
spoke to him gently, in the dialect of the Society Islands. He listened
attentively, turning his large eyes upon Arthur's face with an
expression of mingled timidity and interest and replied in a low,
musical voice. They seemed to understand one another, and talked
together for some time. The language spoken by the boy, differed so
little, as Arthur told us, from that of the Tahitians, that he easily
gathered the meaning of what he said. Upon being questioned as to the
distance of the island, and the course which we must steer in order to
reach it, he pointed to a bright star, just beginning to be visible in
the north-east.
It is customary with the South-sea Islanders, before setting out on
their long voyages, in which it is necessary to venture out of sight of
land, to select some star by which to regulate their course in the
night-time; this they call the "aveia," or guiding star of the voyage.
They are thus enabled to sail from island to island, and from group to
group, between which all intercourse would otherwise be impossible
without a compass. The star now pointed out to us, had been fixed upon
by the companions of the little islander, at the commencement of their
ill-fated voyage, as marking the direction of the home which they were
destined never to regain. Among other things, we learned from the boy,
that his native island, which we were now endeavouring to reach, was the
largest of a group of three, over all of which his father's authority,
as chief or king, extended: that there were six whites living among
them, who had arrived there many years before, with the one who had just
perished, and had come from an uninhabited island to the southward, upon
which they had been wrecked.
During the night the wind continued fair, and animated by the hopes to
which the statements of the little native had given rise, we renewed our
watch, which had lately been discontinued, and sailed steadily
northward, cherishing a strong confidence that we should reach land
before morning.
The second watch--from a little after midnight to dawn--fell to me. As
it began to grow light I almost feared to look northward, dreading the
shock of a fresh disappointment, that must consign us again to the
benumbing apathy from which we had yesterday rallied.
There seemed to me to be something unusual in the atmosphere, that
impeded, or rather confused and bewildered the sight; and when the sun
rose, I had not made out anything like land. It was not mist or fog,
for the air was dry, and there were already indications of a fiercely
hot day, though it was yet fresh and cool. The sky above us, too, was
perfectly clear, all the clouds seemed to have slid down to the horizon,
along which a white army of them was marshalled, in rounded fleecy
masses, like Alpine peaks towering one above another, or shining
icebergs, pale and cold as those that drift in Arctic seas.
One by one my companions awoke to learn the failure, thus far, of all
the sanguine expectations of the preceding evening. The native boy
could suggest no reason why we had not reached the island, and when
questioned on the subject, and told that we had steered all through the
night by the "aveia," he merely shook his head with a bewildered and
hopeless look. Max, on perceiving that we were still out of sight of
land, threw himself down again in the bottom of the boat without
speaking a word, where he remained with his eyes closed as if sleeping.