RAFT THE SMUGGLER.
Spite and Hide saw that Faith's cry had aroused the Brownies, and pushed
at their utmost speed directly from the camp. It did not occur to them
that they might be tracked by the threads of web-work torn off by leaves
and twigs from the cords with which they had bound their captives. But
they did fear that one of the Nurses might again cry out; and they
stopped long enough to fasten gags upon their mouths.
Several times the Pixie chiefs turned toward Fort Spinder, hoping to
reach the Old Bridge by the way they had come. But their progress was
checked by bands of Brownies scattered everywhere in the direction of
the fort. The lights of the searchers were seen dancing throughout the
entire plain, and running hither and thither in confused lines among
grass and shrubbery.
More than once the Pixies were on the point of being discovered. Several
times they had to crouch under the leaves, lest they should be seen by
parties of excited searchers. Indeed, their safety lay in the fact that
the Brownies were so much excited; and had all been as self-possessed as
the cool headed True, Spite and Hide would have been captured.
At last they reached a point where the plain sweeps down to the sandy
bank of the lake, which is a natural basin widened into an artificial
pond. The brook that flows from the Hillside spring runs through it.
There is an island in the middle of the lake, covered with grass, moss
and ferns. In honor of the old home the Brownies called the lake Loch
Katrine, and the island Ellen's Isle, names which the Pixies refused to
acknowledge, and called the pond Lake Arachne and the island Aranea
Isle. On this little sheet of water, and its inlet and outlet, the
navies of the Brownies and Pixies floated; and here was the scene of
many a battle between Rodney and his sailors and the Pixies and pirates.
Spite and Hide paused on the border of the plain to consider. It was not
far to the pier of the Old Bridge along which lay the path to the fort.
But the space between them and that point was swarming with Brownies.
MacWhirlie had mustered his entire troop, and set them to patrolling the
plain. Throughout the woods, from the foot of the hill to the very
lakeside, sentinels were posted at short intervals, and burdened as they
were the Pixies could not pass that line.
"Well, Hide, what shall we do?"
"Do? Humph! there is little choice left us now. I will follow my chief.
Lead on!"
"Lead on? Whither?" Spite snapped his fangs angrily as he spoke. "You
got me into this scrape. It was a foolhardy adventure. Now get me out! I
know you have something to advise."
"Very good! Let us kill these pretty captives of ours," said Hide with a
sneer, "and cut our way through to the pier. Or, if you lead the way
with them, I'll follow."
Spite looked down upon the unconscious form of Faith.
"I see no way out of this," he said. "To break through the line would be
certain death. It looks as though it had come to that at any rate. May
the foul fiend take you for tempting me to this madcap raid! Hide, Hide,
bethink you, I pray!" Spite's voice was trembling with--fear, shall we
say? Without awaiting reply from his companion, he took Faith in his
arms and ran down to the edge of the water.
Hide followed him. He had long suspected what no one else had dreamed
of, that Spite at heart was a coward. He had little love for his chief.
Indeed, the thought was not new to the ambitious Lieutenant that Spite
alone blocked the way of his own promotion to the headship of the
Pixies. That he would be a worthy leader he, at least, did not doubt. He
enjoyed his Captain's agitation, and was pleased to keep him upon
nettles. He had already settled a plan of escape.
[Illustration: FIG. 53.--Brownie Fire-fly Lantern.]
Spite eagerly scanned the surface of the lake.
"It's no use looking for the navy, Captain," said Hide. "There it rides,
away down by the outlet. We must pass the Brownie pickets to get at the
boats. Might as well cut through to the pier!"
"Is there no escape then? This is terrible! We shall be slaughtered
outright." He pointed to the semi-circle of lanterns and torches drawing
closer and closer upon them, marking where True and his party were
following hard upon their trail. Spite dropped his burden, sat down, and
fairly wrung his hands in despair. Yes, Spite the Spy, the chief of all
the Pixies, did that!
Hide highly enjoyed the distress of his Captain. He had proved what he
had long suspected, and, best of all, he had gained a hold upon Spite
that would give great advantage over him in the future. He saw that it
was high time to drop this malicious by play and address himself in
earnest to escape.
"Cheer up, my brave Captain!" he cried, "I think I see a way out of
this."
"Hah! Is it so?" Spite was too much elated with hope to notice the
sneering tone of his Lieutenant.
"You shall see wait here a moment." He ran along the sand to a clump of
ferns that bent over from the bank until they kissed the water. He
mounted one of these and disappeared. Soon the drooping tips of the
ferns lifted up, parted, and a curious craft glided out from the cove
formed by the bended foliage. What a snug and secret harbor it was! The
vessel touched the bank close by the spot where Spite stood, and Hide
jumped ashore.
[Illustration: FIG. 54.--The Nurses Carried Away on Raft Dolomede's
Yacht, the Fringe.]
"Now then," he cried, "all aboard! We have no time to lose." He lifted
Sophia from the ground as he spoke, carried her to the boat and laid her
down in a leafy canopy or cabin. Spite followed with Faith.
"Push off now!" said Hide to a tall Pixie who had charge of the vessel.
He put his paws against the shore and shoved vigorously. The waterman
did the same, and the boat shot out into the lake. A brisk wind was
blowing along the surface of the water, and the craft was soon off shore
and out of danger.
The lanterns of the Brownies were seen bobbing along the bank just above
the spot at which but a moment before the boat had been moored. A group
of lights marked the point at which the trail had been lost, and where
True and his party were now standing perplexed.
"Ugh!" said Spite as he watched the scene. It was hard to tell whether
the sound betokened pleasure or displeasure. He was greatly relieved at
the prospect of escape, but was not in the most amiable humor, for all
that. With the easing of his fears came the thought of how he had
exposed his weakness. His pride was hurt. He felt humiliated. He knew
that Hide had been trifling with him, and his wrath grew hot thereat. He
vowed revenge in his heart, but was too wise to show his feeling then.
"I can wait!" he said. He glowered upon the Lieutenant, but soon cleared
up his face and spoke cheerfully.
"Truly, friend Hide, you seem to be a person of varied resources. Pray,
how chanced you to come across this waterman and his boat?"
"The fact is, Cap'n?" answered Hide laughing, "I have to keep a little
private yacht for my own use. There are certain things, you know, for
which one cannot well use the government ships. This is my friend, Raft
Dolomede. Raft, allow me to present you to my chief, Spite the Spy. You
see, Captain, my American friend has great respect for our community,
although he does not belong to us. He has been brought up on this lake;
is a skillful sailor, willing to obey orders, take his pay and ask no
questions. He runs on his own hook--is a privateersman, in fact, on a
small scale. We understand each other pretty well, and, of course, I
knew where he kept his boat moored. He's not on very good terms with our
cruisers; for, in sooth, he doesn't quite understand our revenue laws. I
fear, now, that it wouldn't do to look closely under these leaves! There
might be something contraband aboard besides these fair Brownies. Hey,
Raft?"
Raft's boat was a home-made affair, but was ingeniously built. Dry
leaves had been gathered into a mass, and fastened together with silken
threads. To this had been added a mast, a sail, a jib and other fixtures
so that the structure was a cross between a raft and a schooner. The
leaves served admirably the varied uses of hull, sails, storerooms, beds
and barricade. They caught the wind and drove the boat along as well as
a ship's canvas. They were soft dry couches for sailors or passengers.
The hollows and crevices between them were the "hold" of the vessel and
gave ample storage.
Raft, the owner of this craft, was a handsome specimen of the family of
water-pixies. He wore a coat of chocolate brown, trimmed with a broad
orange band, and covered with double rows of white buttons. His trousers
were pale red. He was quite at home on the lake with his yacht, and was
such a skillful swimmer that he might really be said to walk on the
water instead of swimming through it.[AC]
"How shall I put her head now?" asked Raft. "We're bearing nor' east by
east, and with this wind will soon strike the cave yonder on the orchard
shore. Shall I keep her so?"
"What say you, Captain?" asked Spite. "What are we to do with these,
now?" pointing to Faith and Sophia.
"The first thing to be done, it seems to me," said Raft, casting a
pitying look upon the nurses, "is to give 'em a little breathing
privilege. If you don't take those rags off their figure-heads, and give
'em a breath of fresh wind, they'll soon be dead Brownies." With that he
opened the sharp claws on one of his hands, like a pair of scissors, and
without more ado cut the bands that had been placed as gags around the
captives' mouths.
"All right!" he said, resuming his rudder, "go on with your palaver. But
heave ahead lively, or we'll be across the lake before you decide."
[Illustration: FIG. 55.--"Murderous Assaults Upon One Another."]
Spite had been in a deep study. At last he said, "We must go to the
island."
Raft glanced inquiringly at Hide, who nodded assent. "Aye, aye, Sir.
Port-a-helm it is." He turned the bow toward Ellen's Isle.
"We can easily find lodgings for our fair prizes there," continued
Spite. "But what about Fort Spinder? That is what troubles me. How are
we to get back? It is now too soon after the alarm to think of running
the pickets. Even if it were possible to do that by night as things are
now, it would be madness to try it by daylight. And yet, we must get
some word to our people soon, and have them out of that fort by
to-morrow night, or--" Spite paused and looked serious.
"Well?" said Raft.
"Well?" said Hide, "or--what?"
"You know quite as well as I!" answered Spite. "There will not be a
corporal's guard of Pixies left in Fort Spinder, that's all!"
Hide shrugged his shoulders and looked grave. He had known very well
what Spite meant, and he had a wife and children in the fort. There was
a long pause. Spite and Hide were in deep and anxious thought. They
could imagine the wild natures shut up within Fort Spinder venting their
native savagery in murderous assaults upon one another.[AD] What could
control them when the absence of their two chief officers should be
discovered? Was there any chance for them to return to the fort? or any
other way to prevent the catastrophe which they dreaded? The wind
freshened, and in the meantime the "Fringe" (as Raft called his yacht)
was rapidly approaching the island.
FOOTNOTES:
[Footnote AC: Appendix, Note A.]
[Footnote AD: Appendix, Note B.]