As soon as the sail was lowered, the men leaped over the sides of the
boat into the water, and waded to the rocks.
"Who are you?" said one of the men, addressing me, "and how many of you
are there here?"
"There is no one on the island but myself," replied I; "but I'm so glad
that you have come."
"Are you? Then perhaps you'll tell us how to get something to eat, my
hearty?" replied he.
"Oh yes, wait a little, and I'll bring you plenty," replied I.
"Well, then, look smart, that's a beauty, for we are hungry enough to
eat you, if you can find us nothing better."
I was about to go up to the cabin for some birds, when another man
called out:--
"I say--can you get us any water?"
"Oh yes, plenty," replied I.
"Well then, I say, Jim, hand us the pail out of the boat."
The one addressed did so, and the man put it into my hands, saying,
"Bring us that pail, boy, will you?" I hastened up to the cabin, filled
the pail full of water, and then went for a quantity of dried birds,
with which I hastened down again to the bathing-pool. I found the men
had not been idle; they had taken some fagots off the stack and made a
large fire under the rocks, and were then busy making a sort of tent
with the boat's sails.
"Here's the water, and here's some birds," said I, as I came up to them.
"Birds! What birds?" said the man who had first spoken to me, and
appeared to have control over the rest. He took one up and examined it
by the light of the fire, exclaiming, "Queer eating, I expect."
"Why, you didn't expect a regular hotel when you landed, did you, mate?"
said one of the men.
"No, if I had, I would have called for a glass of grog," replied he. "I
suspect I might call a long while before I get any one to bring me one
here."
As I knew that Jackson called the rum by the name of grog, I said,
"There's plenty of grog, if you want any."
"Is there, my hearty,--where?"
"Why, in that cask that's in the water on the other side of your little
ship," replied I. "I can draw you some directly."
"What! In that cask? Grog floating about in salt-water, that's too
bad. Come here all of you. You're in earnest, boy--no joking I hope,
or you may repent it."
"I'm not joking," said I--"there it is."
The man, followed by all the rest excepting one of the party, waded into
the water, and went to the cask of rum.
"Take care," said I, "the spiles are in."
"So I see--never fear, my hearty--come now all of us." So saying, the
whole of them laid hold of the cask by the chains, and lifting it up,
they carried it clean out of the water, and placed it on the rocks by
the side of the pool.
"Hand us the little kid out of the boat, Jim," said the man; "we'll soon
see if it's the right stuff."
He took out the spiles, drew off some of the liquor, and tasting it,
swore it was excellent. It was then handed round, and all the men took
some.
"We're in luck to-night; we're fallen upon our legs," said the first
man. "I say, Jim, put them dried chickens into the pitch-kettle along
with some taters out of the bag--they'll make a good mess; and then with
this cask of grog to go to, we shan't do badly."
"I say, old fellow," said he, turning to me, "you're a regular trump.
Who left you on shore to get all ready for us?"
"I was born here," replied I.
"Born here! Well, we'll hear all about that to-morrow--just now, we'll
make up for lost time, for we've had nothing to eat or drink since
Wednesday morning. Look alive, my lads! Get up the hurricane-house.
Jim, put the pail of water into the kettle, and send the islander here
for another pailful, for grog."
The pail was handed to me, and I soon returned with it full; and, as I
did not see that they had a pannikin, I brought one down and gave it to
them.
"You're a fine boy," said the mate (as I afterwards found out that he
was). "And now, I say, where do you hold out? Have you a hut or a cave
to live in?"
"Yes," replied I; "I have a cabin, but it is not large enough for all of
you."
"No, no! We don't want to go there--we are very well where we are,
alongside of the cask of rum; but you see, my lad, we have a woman
here."
"A woman!" said I; "I never saw a woman. Where is she?"
"There she is, sitting by the fire."
I looked round, and perceived that there was one of the party wrapped up
in a blanket, and with a wide straw hat on the head, which completely
concealed the form from me. The fact is, that the woman looked like a
bundle, and remained by the fire quite as inanimate. At my saying that
I never saw a woman, the man burst into a loud laugh.
"Why, did you not say that you were born on this island, boy?" said the
mate at last. "Were you born without a mother?"
"I cannot recollect my mother--she died when I was very young; and
therefore I said that I had never seen a woman."
"Well, that's explained; but you see, my lad--this is not only a woman,
but a very particular sort of a woman; and it will not do for her to
remain here after we have had our supper--for after supper, the men may
take a drop too much, and not behave themselves; so I asked you about
your cabin, that you might take her there to sleep. Can you do that?"
"Yes," replied I; "I will take her there if she wishes to go."
"That's all right then; she'll be better there than here, at all events.
I say, boy, where did you leave your trousers?"
"I never wear any."
"Well then, if you have any, I advise you to put them on, for you are
quite old enough to be breeched."
I remained with them while the supper was cooking, asking all manner of
questions, which caused great mirth. The pitch-kettle, which was a
large iron pot on three short legs, surprised me a good deal; I had
never seen such a thing before, or anything put on the fire. I asked
what it was, and what it was made of. The potatoes also astonished me,
as I had never yet seen an edible root.
"Why, where have you been all your life?" said one of the men.
"On this island," replied I, very naively.
I waded into the water to examine the boat as well as I could by the
light of the fire, but I could see little, and was obliged to defer my
examination till the next day. Before the supper was cooked and eaten,
I did, however, gain the following information.
That they were a portion of the crew of a whaler, which had struck on a
reef of rocks about seventy miles off, and that they had been obliged to
leave her immediately, as she fell on her broadside a few minutes
afterwards; that they had left in two boats, but did not know what had
become of the other boat, which parted company during the night. The
captain and six men were in the other boat, and the mate with six men in
the one which had just landed--besides the lady.
"What's a lady?" said I.
"I mean the woman who sits there; her husband was killed by some of the
people of the Sandwich Isles, and she was going home to England. We
have a consort, another whaler, who was to have taken our cargo of oil
on board, and to have gone to England with that and her own cargo, and
the missionary's wife was to have been sent home in her."
"What's a missionary?" inquired I.
"Well, I don't exactly know; but he is a preacher who goes out to teach
the savages."
By this time the supper was cooked, and the odour from the pitch-kettle
was more savoury than anything that I had ever yet smelt. The kettle
was lifted off the fire, the contents of it poured into a kid, and after
they had given a portion in the small kid to the woman, who still
remained huddled up in the blanket by the fire, they all sat round the
large kid, and commenced their supper.
"Come, boy, and join us," said the mate, "you can't have had your
supper; and as you've found one for us, it's hard but you should share
it with us."
I was not sorry to do as he told me, and I must say that I never enjoyed
a repast so much in my life.
"I say, boy, have you a good stock of them dried chickens of yours?"
said the mate.
"Yes, I have a great many, but not enough to last long for so many
people."
"Well, but we can get more, can't we?"
"No!" replied I, "not until the birds come again, and that will not be
for these next five moons?"
"Five moons! What do you mean?"
"I mean, five full moons must come, one after another."
"Oh, I understand; why then we must not remain on the island."
"No," replied I, "we must all go, or we shall starve; I am so glad that
you are come, and the sooner you go the better. Will you take Nero with
you?"
"Who is Nero?"
"Nero--my seal--he's very tame."
"Well, we'll see about it; at all events," said he, turning to the other
men, "we must decide upon something, and that quickly, for we shall
starve if we remain here any time."
It appeared, that they had left the whaler in such a hurry, that they
had only had time to throw into the boat two breakers of water, four
empty breakers to fill with salt-water for ballast to the boat, and the
iron pitch-kettle, with a large sack of potatoes.
As soon as supper was finished, they went to the cask for the rum, and
then the mate said to me:--
"Now I'll go and speak to the woman, and you shall take her to sleep in
your cabin."
During the whole of this time, the woman, as the mate called her, had
never spoken a word. She had taken her supper, and eaten it in silence,
still remaining by the fire, huddled up in the blanket. On the mate
speaking to her, she rose up, and I then perceived that she was much
taller than I thought she could have been; but her Panama hat still
concealed her face altogether.
"Now then, my lad," said the mate, "show the lady where she is to sleep,
and then you can join us again if you like."
"Will you come with me?" said I, walking away.
The woman followed me up the path. When we arrived at the platform
opposite the cabin, I recollected Nero, whom I had ordered to stay there
till my return.
"You won't be afraid of the seal," said I, "will you? He is very
good-natured. Nero, come here."
It was rather dark as Nero came shuffling up, and I went forward to coax
him, for he snarled a little at seeing a stranger.
"Have you no light at hand?" said my companion, speaking for the first
time, in a very soft yet clear voice.
"No, I have not, but I will get some tinder, and make a fire with one of
the fagots, and then you will be able to see."
"Do so, then, my good lad," replied she.