SOMETHING ABOUT WAR AND FIGHTING SHIPS
"It's going to strike the ship!"
"It will cut us to pieces!"
"Throw the schooner over on the other tack!"
These and several other cries rang out on the deck of the _Columbia_.
All felt their hearts come up into their throats as the roaring,
swirling mass of water came closer and closer, until the spray drenched
them completely. The ocean was churned into a white foam and the wind
seemed to suck and blow in all directions at once.
But, just as it looked as if the schooner would be buried beneath a
veritable mountain of water, the waterspout took another curve and slid
away, along the side of the ship and off the stern. The man at the wheel
came close to being carried overboard by the deluge he received and the
_Columbia_ bobbed up and down like a cork. But in another moment the
waterspout was an eighth of a mile distant.
"What a--a narrow escape," faltered Larry, when he felt able to speak.
"I thought we were bound for the bottom sure!"
"Thet's the closest I ever was to any waterspout," came from Luke, as he
wiped his wet brow. "Reckon we can thank Providence we ain't in Davy
Jones' locker this minit!"
Captain Ponsberry did not say much, but kept his eyes fixed on the
waterspout, which was making fantastic curves across the bosom of the
Pacific. At times it was close by and then it would go half a mile or
more away. It was a fascinating scene, full of dread, and gave more than
one onlooker a chill down his backbone.
"I wish it would go away completely," went on Larry.
But this was not to be. The waterspout kept within sight for a good
half-hour, although it did not come near them again. At last it grew
less and less, off to the southwestward, and finally vanished
altogether. The glass was used in that direction, but nothing save a
clear horizon could be located.
"We are clear of it at last," said Captain Ponsberry, and breathed a
long sigh of relief.
"Waterspouts are mighty dangerous things," said Grandon, after the scare
was over. "When I was on board of the brig _Ben Franklin_ we ran into a
spout off the coast of Brazil, and it knocked off the bow and the
forward rail and nearly sank us."
"I met one once, off the coast of Cuba," said the captain. "That went
ashore and tore up the trees like so many weeds for a hundred feet
around. A waterspout is nothing to be fooled with, I can tell you."
On the day following the appearance of the waterspout the weather
changed. There was a slight storm and then a stiff breeze sprang up
which was cheering to all on board. Every stitch of canvas on the
_Columbia_ was spread and the schooner bowled along right merrily.
"I'd like to know how this war is going on, and how Ben and Gilbert are
faring," said Larry to Captain Ponsberry. "A whole lot may have happened
since we left Manila."
"Well, you'll probably get word from your brother when you reach
Nagasaki, lad; and we'll get word from Captain Pennington, too."
"I hope neither of them has been wounded."
"So do I; but when one goes to the front he has got to put up with the
fortunes of war. Being a soldier of fortune, as it is called, is no baby
business."
"Do you suppose the Japs are continuing to bombard Port Arthur?"
"More than likely--if the place hasn't fallen into their hands. They
want to make sure of their footing in lower Manchuria, and they can
never do that so long as the Russians hold a single seaport down there."
"I suppose Russia has a pretty good-sized navy as well as an army?"
"Yes, Larry, one of the largest navies in the world. But their fighting
ships are no better than the ships of Japan. You see, the Japanese navy
is not near as old as the navy of Russia. Almost all of the ships are of
the up-to-date types. Most of them have been built since the war between
Japan and China in 1894 and 1895."
"That would make them only about ten years old."
"Exactly, and I've been told that some of the ships in the Russian navy
are twenty and thirty years old. More than this, all of the Japanese
guns are of the latest pattern--just as they are on our new warships."
"I'd like to go aboard of a Japanese warship," cried the young second
mate, enthusiastically.
"Want to see if it's as good as it was aboard of the _Olympia_, eh?"
"Yes, sir. Of course the _Olympia_ was old, especially alongside of the
_Brooklyn_, on which my brother Walter served in Cuban waters, but even
so she was a bang-up fighting machine. If she hadn't been she wouldn't
have done her share in sinking that Spanish fleet in Manila Bay."
"Well, you may have a chance to go aboard of a Japanese ship while we
stop at Nagasaki. There must be a number of them at that port, coaling
up and taking war supplies aboard."
"How long do you think it will be before we reach that port?"
"That will depend entirely upon the wind, as you know. If we get just
what we need we may reach there inside of four or five days," answered
Captain Ponsberry.
As Peterson and Shamhaven were now behaving themselves they were allowed
to come out of the brig and do some work on the deck every morning and
afternoon. Both begged the captain to forgive them, but the master of
the _Columbia_ would promise nothing.
"You went into this with your eyes wide open," he said. "Now you can
line up and take your medicine."
Semmel was exceedingly bitter at not being allowed his liberty for at
least a few hours a day and said he would denounce the captain at the
first opportunity. But Captain Ponsberry soon cut him short.
"You keep a civil tongue in your head," he said, sternly. "Unless you
do, I'll put you down on hard-tack and water." And thereupon Semmel
became sullenly silent.
Towards evening of the day upon which Larry had the conversation about
warships with Captain Ponsberry a Chinese junk, heavily laden with
grass-covered boxes, was passed. Nobody on board could speak English, so
the hail that was sent over the water brought no results.
"We are getting closer to the coast shipping," said the master of the
_Columbia_. "I suppose we'll meet quite a few vessels from now on."
During the night an unexpected gale came up and the schooner was blown
far out of her course. The gale came from the westward, so the vessel
was blown to the east.
"This will make the trip a day or two longer," grumbled Grandon, after
the gale had spent itself.
"Yes, but as we didn't lose a spar or a rag of canvas we can be thankful
that it is no worse," responded Larry, who was always ready to look on
the bright side.
The gale subsided after a blow of twenty-four hours and then the bow of
the _Columbia_ was once more set towards her destination. Only a few
knots had been covered when the lookout reported a vessel in sight.
"It's a steamer!" cried Larry, for the smoke from the craft's funnels
was plainly to be seen.
"Maybe she's a warship," returned Tom Grandon, who was beside him. "If
so, I hope she's a Japanese."
The steamer was coming along at a good rate of speed and soon they made
her out to be a British vessel. She was a "tramp," that is, a vessel
going from port to port, picking up whatever cargo can be found.
"Ahoy, there!" cried Captain Ponsberry, as the tramp slowed up. "What
ship is that?"
"The _Lord Duffield_," was the answer. "What ship is that?"
"The _Columbia_."
"Where are you bound?"
"For Nagasaki. And you?"
"For Hong-Kong."
A little more talk followed, and the captain of the _Lord Duffield_
vouchsafed the information that he had sighted a Russian warship the day
before.
"A warship!" murmured Larry.
"Which way was she bound?" asked Captain Ponsberry, anxiously.
"I can't tell you. She stopped us and asked a few questions and then
slipped away in the darkness."
"What warship was she?"
"The _Pocastra_, from Vladivostok. I think she used to be in the
merchant service and was built over for the navy."
The captain of the British steamer could give no further information,
and so resumed his course, and the master of the _Columbia_ did
likewise.
"Ain't very nice news, is it?" said Tom Grandon.
"It's very unpleasant news," returned Captain Ponsberry, with a shrug of
his shoulders.
"What are you going to do about it?"
"What can we do, Tom? Trust to luck that we get into Nagasaki harbor, or
some other port, in safety."
"We'll have to keep a sharp lookout for anything that looks like a
warship, unless, of course, she flies a Japanese flag."
Word was passed around to those who could be trusted, and all day long
one of the mates and a foremast hand were kept on the lookout, taking
turns at looking through the best glass the schooner possessed.
"This is almost as exciting as being in a war," said Larry, when he was
on duty with Luke. "Don't you know how we looked for the Spanish ships?"
"Yes, lad; but if we sight a Russian warship it will be small fighting
we'll do, to my way of thinking."
"Oh, we won't be able to fight at all. We'll simply have to rely on our
wits to keep us out of being gobbled up as a prize of war," responded
the young second mate.