to the conclusion that in steering due north, we had not made sufficient
allowance for the strong current setting westward; and he proposed that
we should now sail directly east, to which no objection was made, most
of us having at last come to feel that it could matter little what
course we thenceforth steered. He accordingly took the direction of
things into his own hands: the wind, which had moderated, was still from
the west, and he put the boat before it, and lashed the helm. The
peculiar appearance of the atmosphere still continued. During the
morning a number of tropic birds flew by us, the first that we had seen
since our separation from the ship. About noon, two noddies alighted on
the gaff, and the little native climbed the mast after them; but though
they are generally so tame, or so stupid, as to permit themselves to be
approached and taken with the hand, these flew away before he could
seize them. We hailed the appearance of these birds as a favourable
omen, neither species being often seen at any considerable distance from
land. It was, I suppose, about an hour after this, that happening to
look back, I saw what appeared to be a high island, covered with tall
groves of palms, some two miles distant. The elevated shores, and the
green tops of the trees, were plainly visible; but just at the point
where land and water met, there was a kind of hazy indistinctness in the
view. We were sailing directly from it, and I could not understand how
we had passed as near as we must have done, without observing it.
Browne, catching sight of it almost at the same time with myself,
uttered an exclamation that quickly aroused the attention of the rest,
and we all stood for a moment gazing, half incredulously, upon the land
which seemed to have started up so suddenly out of the sea, in the very
track which we had just passed over.
Arthur alone, appeared to be but little moved; he looked long and
intently, without uttering a word.
"This is singular--very singular!" said Morton. "It seems as though we
must have sailed over the _very_ spot where it lies."
"Unless I am mistaken," said Arthur, "we have been going backward for
some time past: we must be in a very powerful current, which is carrying
us in a direction contrary to that in which we are heading: the wind is
so light that this is not impossible."
"I believe you are right," said Morton, "I can account for it in no
other way."
"We had better then pull down the sail, and take the benefit of the full
force of the current," resumed Arthur: this was accordingly done, and
the mast unstepped.
A short time passed, during which we appeared to be steadily drawing
nearer to the land. The shore itself where it emerged from the ocean,
we could not see with perfect distinctness: a fine, golden haze, like a
visible atmosphere, waved and quivered before it, half veiling it from
sight, and imparting to it an uncertain, though bright and dazzling
aspect: but this appearance was confined to the lower part of the land;
the bold shores and high groves were clearly defined.
"I trust we are not the subjects of some fearful illusion," said Browne,
breaking a long silence, during which all eyes had been rivetted upon
the island; "but there is something very strange about all this--it has
an unearthly look."
As he spoke, the bright haze which floated over the sea near the
surface, began to extend itself upward, and to grow denser and more
impervious to the sight: the wooded shores became indistinct and dim,
and seemed gradually receding in the distance, until the whole island,
with its bold heights and waving groves, dissolved and melted away like
a beautiful vision.
"What is this?" exclaimed Browne, in a voice of horror. "I should
think, if I believed such things permitted, that evil spirits had power
here on the lonely sea, and were sporting with our misery."
"It is a mirage," said Arthur quietly, "as I suspected from the first.
But courage! though what we have seen was an optical illusion, there
must be a real island in the distance beyond, of which this was the
elevated and refracted image. It cannot, I think, be more than thirty
or forty miles off, and the current is sweeping us steadily towards it."
"I suppose then," said Morton, "that we can do nothing better, than to
trust ourselves entirely to this current which must in fact be a pretty
powerful one--at least as rapid as the Gulf Stream."
"We can do nothing better until the wind changes," replied Arthur,
cheerfully; "at present I am disposed to think we are doing very well,
and fast approaching land."
But there was no change of the wind, and we continued hour after hour,
apparently making no progress, but in reality, as we believed, drifting
steadily westward. All through the day we maintained a vigilant watch,
lest by any possibility we should miss sight of the island which Arthur
was so confident we were approaching. Late in the afternoon we saw a
flock of gannets, and some sooty tern; the gannets passing so near that
we could hear the motion of their long twisted wings. Later still, a
number of small reef-birds passed over head; all were flying westward.
This confirmed Arthur in his belief of the proximity of land. "See,"
said he, "these little reef-birds are bound in the same direction with
the others, and with ourselves; you may depend upon it, that the
sea-fowl we have seen, are hastening homeward to their nests, on some
not far distant shore."
So fully did I share this confidence, that I commenced a calculation as
to the time at which we might expect to reach land. Assuming it to have
been thirty miles distant at the time when we had seen its spectrum, by
means of the refraction, arising from a peculiar state of the
atmosphere; and estimating the rate of the current at three miles an
hour, I came to the conclusion that we could not even come in sight of
it until late at night; and it was therefore without any strong feeling
of disappointment, that I saw the day fast drawing to a close, and
nothing but sky and ocean yet visible.
The sun had already set, but the long tract of crimson and
flame-coloured clouds that glowed in the horizon where he had
disappeared, still reflected light enough to render it easy to
distinguish objects in that quarter, when I was startled by a cry of
joyful surprise from the native boy, who, shading his eyes with his
hands, was looking intently westward. After a long and earnest gaze, he
spoke eagerly to Arthur, who told us that the boy thought he saw his
native island. Looking in the same direction, I could make out nothing.
Arthur and Browne spoke of a brilliantly white line, narrow, but
well-defined against the horizon, as being all that they could see.
Morton, who was very keen-sighted, thought that he distinguished some
dark object beyond the low white band seen by the others. As the light
gradually failed, we lost sight of this appearance. It was some hours
before the rising of the moon, which we awaited with anxiety. She was
now at her full, and when at length she came up out of the sea, her
disc, broad and red like a beamless sun, seemed to rest, dilated to
preternatural size, upon the edge of the last wave that swelled against
the horizon. As she ascended the sky, she shed over the ocean a flood
of silvery light, less glaring, but almost as bright as that of day.
The wonderful brilliancy of the moon and stars within the tropics, is
one of the first things noted by the voyager. It may be owing to the
great clearness and transparency of the atmosphere: but whatever the
cause, their light is much more powerful than in higher latitudes, and
they seem actually nearer, and of greater magnitude.
We now looked eagerly westward again; the snow-white line, of which the
others had spoken, was by this time distinctly visible to me also, and
beyond it, too plainly relieved against the clear blue of the sky, to
admit of doubt or illusion, were the high outlines of a tropical island,
clothed with verdure to its summit.
Again the little islander shouted joyously, and clasped his hands, while
the tears streamed down his olive cheeks.
He recognised his native island, the smallest and most easterly of the
three, of which his father was the chief. We should soon come in sight
of the remaining two, he said, which were lower, and lay to the north
and south of it; he explained that the appearance, like a low white line
running along the base of the island, was caused by the surf, bursting
upon a coral reef about a mile from the shore.
Here then, at last, was the land which we had at one time despaired of
ever beholding again, and now we were well assured that it was no airy
phantasm; yet strange as it may seem, our feelings were not those of
unmingled joy.
A thousand vague apprehensions and surmises of evil, began to suggest
themselves, as we approached this unknown shore, inhabited by savages,
and under the dominion of a savage. We doubted not that we might depend
upon the good-will, and friendly offices of the little native, but we
felt at the same time, that the influence of one so young, might prove
insufficient for our protection.
We were in some measure acquainted with the savage customs, the dark and
cruel rites, that prevailed among the Polynesian races generally, and
had often listened with horror, to the recital of what Arthur and his
uncle had themselves seen, of their bloody superstitions, and abominable
practices. As I looked into the faces of my companions, it was easy to
perceive that they were possessed by anxious and gloomy thoughts.
Meanwhile, the current continued to sweep us steadily onward toward the
shore, the outlines of which became every moment more distinct.
Occasionally a cloud drifted athwart the moon, and cast a soft shade
upon the sea, obscuring the view for a time; but when it had passed, the
land seemed to have drawn perceptibly nearer during the interval. At
length, when the night was far advanced, and the island was right before
us, at the distance of scarcely a mile, the native lad, who had been
gazing wistfully toward it for the last half-hour, uttered a plaintive
cry of disappointment. He had looked long and anxiously, for the
appearance of the two remaining islands of his father's group, but in
vain; and now he yielded reluctantly to the conviction, that he had been
deceived by the white line of surf, similar to that which bounded on one
side his native island, and that he had never before seen the one which
we were approaching. This discovery was a relief to me, and removed a
weight of apprehension from my mind. The thought of being cast upon a
desert and uninhabited shore, seemed less dreadful, than that of falling
into the power of a tribe of savage islanders, even under circumstances
which would probably secure us a friendly reception.
But now a strange and unforeseen difficulty presented itself. Between
us and the island, stretched a barrier reef, running north and south,
and curving westward; and appearing, as far as we could see, completely
to surround it. Along the whole line of this reef the sea was breaking
with such violence as to render all approach dangerous; neither could we
espy any break or opening in it, through which to reach the shore.
Towards this foaming barrier the current was rapidly bearing us, and we
were too feeble to struggle long against its force. To permit ourselves
to be carried upon the reef would be certain destruction, and our only
hope of safety seemed to lie in discovering some inlet through it. Our
true situation flashed upon me all at once; I had not before thought of
the impossibility of receding. Glancing at Arthur, I caught his eye,
and saw that he comprehended the full extent of the danger. "We are
near enough to see any break in the reef," said he, "let us now take to
the oars, and coast along it in search of one."
This was accordingly done. But it was not until we had pulled along the
shore for some time, and found that in spite of our endeavours to
preserve our distance from it, we were steadily forced nearer, that the
rest seemed aware of the imminence of the danger.
"The current is carrying us among the breakers," exclaimed Morton, at
length, "though we are heading rather away from the shore, we are
getting closer every moment." This appalling fact was now apparent to
all.
"The wind seems to have died away," said Browne, "at any rate there is
not enough of it to help us: we must put about and pull out of the reach
of this surf, or we are lost."
"How long do you suppose we can continue that?" said Arthur. "No, our
only hope is in finding an entrance through the reef, and that
speedily."
We now steered a little farther away, and strained at the oars, as those
who struggle for life. Occasionally, when lifted on the crest of a
wave, we caught a transient glimpse of a smooth expanse of water beyond
the foaming line of surf, and extending from the inner edge of the reef,
to the shore of the island. The tall tops of the palms bordering the
beach, seemed scarcely a stone's throw distant and you could fancy that,
but for the roar of the breakers, you might hear the rustling of their
long, drooping leaves; but it only added to the horror of our situation,
to see that safe and peaceful haven, so near, yet so inaccessible.
In some places the reef rose quite out of the water; in others, it was,
in nautical phrase, "all awash;" but nowhere could we attempt a landing
with safety. All the while, too, it was evident that in spite of our
desperate exertions, we were being driven nearer and nearer the
breakers. This kind of work had continued almost an hour, when our
strength began to fail.
"There appears to be no use in this, comrades," said Browne, at last;
"had we not better just let her go upon the reef, and take our chance of
being able to get to the shore?"
"O, no!" exclaimed Arthur, earnestly, "that is too desperate."
"We shall be so completely exhausted that we shan't be able to make an
effort for our lives, when at last we are carried into the surf,"
answered Browne, "and we must come to that sooner or later."
"I hope not--there is reason to hope not," rejoined Arthur, "but if so,
we may as well be exhausted, as fresh; no strength will be of any avail;
we shall be crushed and mangled upon the rocks; or if by any possibility
some of us should reach the shore, what is to become of our poor, sick
Johnny?"
"I will look after him," said Browne, "I will pledge myself that he
shan't be lost, unless I am too."
"Let us hold out a few moments yet," implored Arthur; "I will take your
oar; you are the only one who has not been relieved."
"No," said Browne, "you had better keep the helm; I can stand it a while
longer, and I will pull until we are swept upon the reef; if you all
think that the best plan."
It was barely possible that if we should now act as Browne proposed, we
might be carried clear off the reef into the lagoon beyond, for we were
opposite a sunken patch, upon which there was more water than at other
places. Failing of this, the boat would inevitably be dashed to pieces;
but still, if not bruised and disabled among the rocks, or carried back
by the return waves, we might be able to reach the smooth water inside
the reef, when it would be easy to swim ashore.
But to most of us, the attempt seemed too desperate to be thought of,
except as a last resort; and we preferred to toil at the oars as long as
our strength should last in the hope of discovering an inlet. Arthur,
on whose skill and judgment we all relied, steered still farther out,
and for a while we seemed to make head against the swell and the
current.
For full half an hour longer, we kept up this severe struggle, that
admitted not of an instant's pause or respite. But then our progress
became almost imperceptible, and every stroke was made more feebly and
laboriously than the last. I could hardly hold the oar in my stiffened
fingers. Still no break was to be seen in the long line of surf which
seemed to hem in the island, extending like a white wall, of uniform
height, far as the eye could reach, on either hand. I had read of
islands, like that of Eimeo, completely encircled by coral reefs, with
but a single gateway by which they were accessible. What if this were
such an one, and the only entrance, miles from the spot where we were
toiling for our lives! The conviction that we must risk the chance of
success in an attempt to land upon some ledge of the reef, was forcing
itself upon all our minds, when Max, trembling with eagerness, pointed
to what appeared to be an opening through the surf, nearly opposite us;
there was a narrow space where the long waves, as they rolled towards
the shore, did not seem to encounter the obstacle over which they broke
with such violence on both sides of it, and the swell of the ocean met
the placid waters of the lagoon, without any intervening barrier.
Through this gap, the shore of the island could be seen, down to the
water's edge.
Arthur hastily made a bundle of the mast and gaff, and placing it within
Johnny's reach, told him to cling to it, in case of accident. Then,
calling upon us to pull steadily, he steered directly for the inlet. As
we neared it the noise of the surf became almost deafening: the huge
rollers, as they thundered against the perpendicular wall of coral,
rising abruptly from the depths of the sea, sent up a column of foam and
spray, twelve or fifteen feet into the air. When just within the
entrance, the spectacle was grand and appalling. But the danger, real
or apparent, was soon over: with a firm hand, and steady eye, Arthur
guided the boat along the centre of the narrow pass, and in a moment we
had glided from the scene of fierce commotion without the reef, into one
of perfect tranquillity and repose. A dozen strokes seemed to have
placed us in a new world. Involuntarily we rested on our oars, and
gazed around us in silence.
From the inner edge of the reef, to the broad white beach of the island,
a space of perhaps half a mile, spread the clear expanse of the lagoon,
smooth and unruffled as the surface of an inland lake. Half-way between
the reef and the shore, were two fairy islets, the one scarcely a foot
above the water, and covered with a green mantle of low shrubs; the
other, larger and higher, and adorned by a group of graceful young
cocoa-nuts.
The island itself was higher, and bolder in its outlines than is usual
with those of coral formation, which are generally very low, and without
any diversity of surface. Dense groves clothed that portion of it
opposite to us, nearly to the beach, giving it at that hour, a somewhat
gloomy and forbidding aspect.
As we surveyed this lovely, but silent and desolate landscape, the
doubts and apprehensions which we had before experienced began once more
to suggest themselves; but they were dissipated by the cheerful voice of
Arthur, calling upon us to pull for the shore. He steered for the
larger of the two islets, and when, as the boat grated upon the coral
tops beside it, we threw down the oars, the strength which had hitherto
sustained us, seemed suddenly to fail, and we could scarcely crawl
ashore. The last scene of effort and danger, had taxed our powers to
the uttermost, and now they gave way. I was so feeble, that I could
hardly avoid sinking helplessly upon the sand. With one impulse we
kneeled down and returned thanks to Him Who had preserved us through all
the strange vicissitudes of the last few days. We next began to look
round in search of such means of refreshment as the spot might afford.
The cocoa-palms upon the islet, though far from having attained their
full growth, (few of them exceeding twelve feet in height), bore
abundantly, and we easily procured as much of the fruit as we needed.
Tearing off the outer husk, and punching a hole through the shell, which
in the young nut is so soft that this can be done with the finger, we
drank off the refreshing liquor with which it is filled; then breaking
it open, the half-formed, jelly-like kernel, furnished a species of food
most nutritious and agreeable, and probably the best adapted to our
half-famished condition.
Hunger and thirst being appeased, our next care was to make some
arrangement for passing the night more comfortably than could be done in
the boat. Selecting a clear space in the centre of the group of young
cocoa-nuts, we proceeded to make a rude tent, by fixing two of the oars
upright in the ground,--tying the mast across their tops and throwing
the sail over it, the ends being then fastened to the ground at a
convenient distance on each side.
Finding that the bare ground would make a rather hard couch, though far
less so than we had lately been accustomed to, Morton proposed that we
should bring a load of leaves from the neighbouring shore to spread upon
it. He and I accordingly rowed over to the mainland, and collected in
the grove near the beech, a boatload of the clean dry foliage of the
pandanus and hibiscus, which made excellent elastic beds. Johnny
watched our departure as though he considered this an exceedingly rash
and adventurous enterprise, and he seemed greatly relieved at our safe
return. It was now past midnight, and after hauling the boat well up on
the shore, we laid down side by side and were very soon asleep.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN.
THE EXPLORING EXPEDITION.
EIULO--PEARL-SHELL BEACH--A WARLIKE COLONY--AN INVASION REPELLED.
"They linger there while weeks and months go by,
And hold their hope, tho' weeks and months are past;
And still at morning round the farthest sky,
And still at eve, their eager glance is cast,
If there they may behold the far-off mast
Arise, for which they have not ceased to pray."
For a number of days we remained upon the islet where we had first
landed, seldom visiting even the adjacent shore. During this time we
subsisted upon cocoa-nuts and a small species of shell-fish, resembling
mussels, which we obtained in abundance from the ledges of the
neighbouring reef, and which the little native told us, were used as a
common article of food among his own people. We had reason to feel
grateful that, while we were as feeble and incapable of exertion as we
found ourselves for some days, food could be so readily procured. It
was also fortunate that during this period the weather continued
remarkably fine and mild, with no perceptible variations of temperature;
for I have little doubt that in the reduced and exhausted condition in
which we then were, and being without any effectual shelter, two or
three days of bad weather would have cost some of us our lives. The
nights were dry and mild, and no dew seemed to fall upon the islet:
thanks to this genial weather, and to abundance of nourishing food, we
began rapidly to recover strength.
Some time passed before we thought of making any attempt to penetrate or
explore the island. We were, naturally, very reluctant to admit even to
ourselves, the probability that our stay upon it was to be of any long
duration; and we did not therefore feel as much interest in its
character and resources as we should otherwise have done. All our
thoughts and hopes ran in one channel. We looked for the coming of a
ship to rescue us from our dreary position; and every morning and
evening, at least, and generally many times a day, some one of us
climbed into the tuft of an inclining palm, to take a careful survey of
that portion of the ocean, which could be seen from our side of the
island. The thought of acting in any respect as though the lonely spot
where we now found ourselves was destined to be our permanent abode, was
in fact too painful and repugnant to our feelings to be willingly
entertained; we were content therefore, to provide for our daily wants
as they arose, without anticipating or preparing for the future.
A few days passed in this unvaried and monotonous routine, seemed in
reality a long period; recent occurrences began to assume the vagueness
of things that had happened years ago. I remember particularly, that,
in looking back at the dreadful scenes of the mutiny, and our subsequent
sufferings at sea, the whole seemed unreal, and more like a horrible
dream, than an actual part of our past experience.
We soon found that this inert and aimless mode of living--this state of
passive expectation, while awaiting the occurrence of an event which we
could do nothing to procure or hasten, was a most miserable one: though
our physical strength was in a great measure recruited, there was no
increase of cheerfulness. Except when engaged in procuring food, or
making our daily surveys of the ocean, (which was all our occupation),
we were dispirited and listless.
Arthur perceived the evil of this state of things, and set himself to
devising a remedy.