A GALE
It was of little use for Captain Rogers to trouble himself in the hope
of avoiding jealousy of Ralph on the part of the other apprentices, for
the feeling was already rife on the part of Kirke.
That ill-conditioned young man despised everyone on board for not being
men of good family, as he himself was, though he was more conscious of
his good birth than careful to prove himself a gentleman by his conduct.
He could not see why he should be made to work, and the son of a
merchant's book-keeper, a lad whose mother let lodgings for her support,
should be cockered up in the captain's cabin, reading and writing at his
ease, practically exempt from hard toil.
Ralph had not enjoyed a tenth part of the educational advantages which
Kirke had thrown away, and was anxious to improve himself now that a
chance of doing so was presented.
Mr. Gilchrist was teaching him mathematics and French, lending him books
upon botany and natural history, especially such as treated of the
country for which he was bound, and also a few volumes of history and
travels. He taught him much by conversation upon these subjects; and
Ralph, feeling that he had one foot planted upon the social ladder,
earnestly desiring to rise higher, flung himself enthusiastically into
these studies as a means for so doing. His uncle did not demand much
manual labour from him; he performed that cheerfully, but saw no reason
why, his allotted task being done, he should occupy his own time in
saving Kirke from doing his share of duty.
There was no great good-feeling between these lads; and Harry Jackson,
the third apprentice, was a weak, ordinary sort of boy, who admired
Kirke for his adventitious graces, and had become completely his tool.
The three boys all slept in part of a deckhouse amidships, a place
divided between the galley and the apprentices' cabin. The ship being an
old one, there were no berths for the youngsters, who slept in hammocks
slung up at night, and taken down in the morning, rolled up, and stowed
away to make room for their meals and accommodation through the day.
Ralph breakfasted with the other two apprentices, their hours being
earlier than those of his uncle's cabin. After this meal, he did what
work was expected from him, and liked to be clean and ready by the time
when Mr. Gilchrist could attend to him in the poop, where chiefly he
spent the remainder of the day.
One morning Ralph awoke suddenly, experiencing a very disagreeable
shock. The time-honoured joke of letting his hammock down at the head
had been played upon him, and Kirke lay comfortably on his own bed
squirting water all over him.
"Have done, Kirke!" he cried angrily. "How would you like to be served
so?"
"Try it on if you dare," retorted Kirke, aiming a stream of water right
into his face. "I only wish you would try it on, just once, and you
would see. Get up! You must swab the decks to-day, I did it yesterday."
"Drop that squirt, I tell you!" roared Ralph, as his shirt was made
dripping wet, and a fresh supply of water was drawn into the tube from
the basin which Kirke held between his knees.
Kirke's only reply was another jet, which streamed down Ralph's back.
Ralph sprang upon his tormentor, and a struggle took place for
possession of the squirt. The tin basin was upset all over the
bedclothes, but Denham flung it away and seized hold of the squirt.
Indignation gave him superior strength, he wrenched the instrument out
of Kirke's hands, and Kirke drove his clenched fist, straight from his
shoulder, into Ralph's face and hit him in the eye.
Fireworks flashed before his vision, and he proceeded to revenge himself
in a fair fight; but Jackson ran screaming out of the cabin upon seeing
Ralph pitch Kirke out of his hammock as a preliminary, and called to the
mate on the watch.
"Mr. Denham is fighting Mr. Kirke," cried he, "and has upset a basin of
water all over him in his hammock."
The mate came in.
"Now, my lads," commanded he, "just you understand that I'll allow no
rowdy work of that sort. Shut up at once, both of you."
It was the voice of authority, and Ralph scorned to tell tales, so he
desisted, pulled a dry shirt out of his chest, and went on deck as soon
as he could.
Being a good-natured lad, his anger had then cooled down, and he began
to swab the deck, thinking that it would act as a peace-offering to give
Kirke the help voluntarily.
Kirke came out slowly and moodily, but did not begin to work on his
part. He stood with his hands in his pockets, a sneer conquering the
lowering gloom on his face.
"I am glad you know your place at last," said he, as Ralph came near
him. "I'll teach you a little more before I have done with you."
Ralph bit his lip to force down an angry reply. He did not want to
quarrel with anyone, as that might give his uncle trouble, but it was as
much as he could do to keep silence.
At this moment the captain himself stepped out.
"Ralph!" shouted he. "Have you seen my three-foot rule? I can't find
it."
"I know where it is," replied he. "I'll fetch it."
"What are you swabbing the deck for?" asked his uncle. "Why are you not
doing your own work, Kirke? I'll have no shirking. Set to at once!
Ralph, I want you in my cabin."
Kirke had no option but to take up the bucket and begin the menial work
which he hated so fiercely.
"Mr. Gilchrist is not well," said the captain. "I hope he is not in for
an attack of dysentery, but he is certainly very poorly. I have
persuaded him to lie still, and I wish you would put yourself tidy and
come and attend to him. Go to the storehouse and get out some brandy for
him. Here are the keys. I am wanted on deck to see about twenty things
all at once."
Ralph hastened to obey. The ship was victualled upon teetotal
principles, but a little spirit was kept for cases of emergency or
illness. None had been used hitherto upon this voyage, and the decanters
were empty.
Ralph opened the locker where the bottles were stored, took out some
brandy, filled one of the little decanters which stood in a silver case,
and hurried with it to the invalid's cabin, leaving everything open in
the storeroom, for the moment, from his haste to relieve his friend.
Mr. Gilchrist was very unwell indeed. He said that he was subject to
these attacks at times; he did not believe that this was dysentery, he
had taken a chill and should be better soon.
Ralph procured some hot water and prepared the cordial for him, but he
was sick at once after taking it; he shivered violently, his teeth
chattering in his head. This frightened his young nurse very much, for
they were now in latitudes where the heat was great; no doctor was on
board, and he knew little about illness.
However, the patient was better after a time, the sickness ceased, the
headache was lessened, a gentle perspiration broke out, and he fell
asleep.
Ralph ventured to steal softly away, and went to lock up the spirit
bottles in the storeroom. There he found, to his surprise, that not only
the one which he had opened was quite empty, but one of brandy and one
of rum were missing.
He called his uncle, who, holding strong opinions upon the subject of
temperance, was very angry. He made a strict investigation into the
matter, but failed to discover the culprit. The bottles were
gone--vanished; nobody would confess to knowing anything about them.
Captain Rogers was very uneasy in his secret mind, for appearances were
against Ralph. No one else had been trusted with the keys, and the
spirit could not have gone without hands. He knew very little personally
about his nephew, being so much at sea himself. He only saw him at long
intervals, and in the presence of others; he seemed a steady boy then,
and Rogers liked him, but this was the first chance he had met with upon
which he could have gone wrong, in this manner, to his uncle's
knowledge. With this doubt about him, the captain spoke very sharply to
Ralph as to his carelessness in leaving the locker open.
Mr. Gilchrist took Ralph's part. He said that he must have smelt the
liquor upon the boy's breath had he drunk it, but the captain knew that
about Ralph's family history which he did not choose to talk about.
Ralph called himself a strict teetotaler, which the captain was not; but
the elder Denham had been a drunkard, and had died from the consequence
of his excesses. Had the madness broken out in his son? Did he inherit
it in his blood? Had it taken that worst of all forms--secret drinking?
He knew what his sister had suffered from her husband's conduct; was the
same thing to begin all over again in the person of her son?
For two days the captain was miserable from this unspoken fear. Ralph
had all the appearance of truth and honesty; Mr. Gilchrist was strongly
in favour of his innocence; but the mate remarked that nobody but Mr.
Denham had been trusted with the keys of the locker, not even the cook
or the cook's mate, who, between them, discharged the functions of
steward.
For two wretched, suspicious, anxious days did this doubt cark at the
captain's heart. Then was little Harry Jackson found drunk--drunk as a
lord--late one evening when off his watch.
Fresh investigations were set on foot, and it appeared that Kirke had
given the boy some liquor as a bribe for silence regarding his own
potations, of which Jackson could not fail to know as they shared the
same cabin. Denham had not slept there since Mr. Gilchrist's illness,
for he was still unwell, though better; and Ralph had begged to be
allowed a bed upon the floor of his cabin, so as to attend upon him if
necessary through the night.
Taking advantage of his absence, Kirke had been enjoying himself, after
his own fashion, with the stolen spirits, and inducing Harry to join him
so as to ensure his silence.
The elder lad's head could already stand copious libations, but that of
the younger one could not, and the very means adopted to secure safety
led to detection.
The captain, deeply annoyed with himself for suspecting his own nephew,
highly wrathful for the trouble thus caused to him, punished Kirke all
the more severely, to give him, as he said, "a lesson which he would not
forget in a hurry." Ralph tried to beg him off, but his uncle was in a
rage and refused to listen to him.
Kirke might have had all the blood of all the Howards running in his
veins so great was his anger at his punishment, and he vowed to himself
to abscond from the ship as soon as it touched shore, nor ever to run
the risk of such ignominy again.
Things were very uncomfortable after this event for Denham. His
annoyance while it was pending had been great, it had made him
positively unhappy. He felt himself to blame for carelessness in leaving
the locker open; he was indignant that the real culprit should cast the
onus upon him, knowing him to be perfectly innocent; and he thought that
his uncle should have trusted him better. At least he should have spared
his own nephew from the charge of dishonesty.
He could not be as friendly as before with either Kirke or Jackson, and
felt very lonely.
Mr. Gilchrist continued to be very unwell, unable to talk to him as
usual. He had to pursue his studies without help; difficulties beset
him; and the other apprentices made themselves extremely disagreeable,
keeping up a constant system of petty persecution which rendered life in
their cabin almost unendurable, yet of which he scorned to complain to
the captain, each separate annoyance being so trivial.
Besides this, the wind increased in strength, and so severe a gale from
the westward set in that the _Pelican_ had to scud before it under bare
poles.
For two days there was cause for considerable anxiety, then the mercury
rose, a calm clear night succeeded, followed by a bright sunny morning.
"I hope the gale is over," said Ralph, coming into the deckhouse and
greeting the other lads cheerfully.
"I daresay you do," growled Kirke. "Counter-jumpers and land-lubbers
funk a capful of wind mightily."
"I think we have had rather more than a capful these last two days,"
replied Ralph, ignoring the insulting language.
"You manage to shirk all the trouble it causes, anyway. I don't see that
you need complain," said Kirke with a sneer.
Ralph was silent. He finished his breakfast quickly and went out.
The men were letting all the reefs out of the topsails, and getting the
top-gallant yards across, in hopes of a fine day in which to make the
most of the favourable gale.
It was a bright, bustling scene, and Ralph was amused by looking on.
The old carpenter stood by him. This man and the sailmaker both came
from the same country village in Cornwall where Captain Rogers and
Ralph's mother had been born. They always sailed with the captain, if
possible, from clannish attachment to him; and loved a chat with Ralph
from the same feeling.
"Nice day, Wills," said the boy.
"'Ees, zur, but it won't last," said the carpenter.
"'Lamb's wool skies, and filley's tails,
Make lofty ships carry low sails,'"
and he pointed to the drifting clouds.
"That is it, is it?" said Ralph. "Are we not having rather a bad voyage,
Wills? Do ships always have so much bad weather as we are meeting with?"
"No, zur, but uz sailed on a Vriday."
"What could that have to do with it, Wills? Why should that bring bad
luck?"
"Can't zay, zur, but it du."
"You Cornishmen are always superstitious, aren't you?"
"Doan't knaw, your honour, as we'm more so than others. 'Tis no use to
fly in the face of Providence ef He've given we the gumption to zee
more'n other volks."
"Did you ever see the Flying Dutchman in these latitudes, Wills?"
"No, zur, I can't zay as I have zeed 'un, but 'tain't given to every
chield to do so. I've zeed Jack Harry's Lights, though, and we wor
wrecked then, too."
"Where was that?" asked Ralph with interest.
"Close to home, it wor. We heerd the bells of the old church-tower
a-calling the volks to evening service all the time we was clinging to
the maintop, and the gear flying in ribbons about our faces, a-lashing
uz like whips, and all of uz as worn't fast tied to the mast swept away
by the sea that awful Sunday night. Jim Pascoe wor lashed aside of me,
and 'Sam,' zays he, 'I wonder whether my old mawther be a-praying for me
at this minute, up to church.' It didn't save he even ef she wor, for a
big sea rose up, and came thundering down on uz, and he got the full
heft of it right upon him, so that it beat the last spunk of life out of
him then and there. There wor but six of uz, out of twenty-one, brought
ashore that time alive; and there wor but life, and that wor all, among
some of we."
"How dreadful!" cried Ralph. "What did you think about while you stood
there all that time?"
"I doan't knaw as I did think much, at all. Zemmed as ef all thought
wor beat out of uz. But they there seamen as wor drownded then answer to
their names still on a stormy night when the wind blows strong from the
west upon thiccee rocks."
"Answer to their names?"
"Ay. You may hear the roll called out, and they men answer 'Here' as
plain as you can wish, at midnight, in the heft of a storm."
"Do you really believe that? Did you ever hear it, Wills?"
"Well I can't zay as ever I actually heerd 'un call them, but I knaws
they as has; and why for no', Maister Ralph. Perhaps 'ee'll believe I,
and find that I speak truth, when I tell 'ee this voyage is doomed to be
unfortunate because we set sail on a Vriday. I telled captain it would
be, but he wouldn't wait for Sunday though I did beg and pray 'un to do
so."
"I can't see what difference two days could make. It would not have
saved us the weather we had two days since, nor will it make any
difference in whatever may come two days hence."
"Theer's a-many things as 'ee be too young to onnerstand yet, Maister
Denham."
"But 'ee did ought to pay heed to 'un, maister," put in Osborn, "because
'ee be Cornish the same as we."
"I have never been in Cornwall, though, Osborn."
"No, I du knaw thiccee, more's the pity," replied the man. "But uz du
mind your ma, when hur wor a mighty pretty little maid, a-dancing and
a-singing about 'long shore, and a-chattering so gay. Uz du all come
from the same place, zur, and we'm proud to knaw 'ee, and to have 'ee on
board, ef it be but for the trip. 'Tis one and all to home, 'ee knaweth,
zur."
"Yes," laughed Ralph. "I am proud enough of my Cornish blood, and would
like to know more of the good old county, though I fear it will be long
before I shall have the chance. You know I am going to Rangoon, to push
my way and try to help my mother. She does not dance nor sing much in
these days. She has a lot of trouble."
"So we've heerd, zur. Poor little Miss Amy, we be main sorry to think of
it. Ef Wills or me can ever be of any service to 'ee, zur, 'ee must look
out for uz when the _Pelican_ comes to Rangoon. We shall always stick to
cap'n, zur, as we've done for many a day. Uz b'ain't likely to leave 'un
to be sarved by any old trade picked up out of the slums."
"That is well; and if I can help either of you at any time, you may
depend upon me. It is a bargain between us," said Ralph, laughing.
The appearance of fine weather was delusive, for the bright sunshine
changed within a few hours to fog and rain. The wind sprang up again,
and the captain was forced to order the mainsail to be hauled in, the
topsails close reefed, and the top-gallant yards struck.
The mercury fell, the gale increased in force, and the sea ran extremely
high. There was a sharp frost in the night, with snow, and the storm was
as furious as ever next morning.
The hatches had to be battened down, and it was dreadful for Mr.
Gilchrist and Ralph, wholly inexperienced in nautical matters, unable to
see or understand what was going on, or what degree of danger there was,
to hear the raging of the elements, while they were in the dark with
nothing to distract their thoughts.
There they were, Mr. Gilchrist in his berth, coughing incessantly, and
Ralph sitting beside him, listening to the tramp of hurried feet and the
shouting voices overhead. The great sea would strike the poor labouring
vessel with a force that caused it to shudder in every straining timber;
it would seem to be tossed on high, and then plunge into fathomless
deeps, as if sinking to the very bottom of the sea. Tons of water came,
ever and anon, rushing overhead. Did this mean that their last hour had
arrived? Were they to be drowned in this awful darkness, like rats in a
hole? Were they never to see God's light of day again, or look once more
over the fair expanse of sea and sky?
They grasped each other's hands at these times, for touch was the only
comfort which companionship could give. They could not talk,--awe
paralysed speech.
Then the volumes of water seemed to drain off in descending streams
through the scupper-holes, and voices would be heard again, and a few
sentences of prayer would break from Mr. Gilchrist's lips.
This lasted for two days, awful days for these poor prisoners; but the
wind was in their favour, and blew them on their way, though a little
too far southwards, and it moderated in course of time.
The captain had the dead-lights removed, the hatches raised, and came
down to see how his passengers had fared.
"I never could have believed that light and air would be so welcome,"
said Ralph; "and it is but a Scotch mist yet, no pleasant sunshine."
"No," replied the captain, "but you will soon have enough of sunshine
now. Perhaps you may even have too much of it one of these days. We have
lost poor little Jackson," continued he, turning to Mr. Gilchrist.
"What! the boy apprentice?" asked he.
"Ay, poor child! Washed overboard in the night, and one of the seamen
yesterday morning. We could not help either of them, the sea was
running so high. Would you like to come up for a bit and see the waves
for yourself now?"
But Mr. Gilchrist declined. He dreaded bringing on one of his paroxysms
of cough more than the closeness and confinement of the cabin; but
Ralph, shocked by his uncle's announcement, was eager to go on deck.
He was not used to death, and it was very awful to him to think that,
while he sat in comparative safety below, yet fearing for his own death
every moment, this boy, so much younger than himself, had passed
suddenly through a watery grave to the portals of that unknown world
where he must meet his God.
Where was he now? What could he be doing? He seemed as unfit for a
spiritual life as anyone whom Ralph had ever met. A mere troublesome
naughty boy, of the most ordinary type; rough, dirty, hungry,--a boy who
could laugh at a coarse joke, use bad words, shirk his work whenever he
had the chance, and who did nothing except idle play in his leisure
time.
What could he be doing among white-robed angels, among the spirits of
good men made perfect, among cherubim and seraphim, with their pure
eyes, around the Father's throne? Yet had God taken him.
The mysteries of life and death came home, in a vivid light, to Ralph's
soul, as he stood holding on to a rope, and gazing down on that boiling
sea, whence he dreaded, every moment, to see his young companion's white
face looking up at him.
Kirke came by, and Denham's good heart prompted him to turn round and
offer him his hand. Little Jackson had run after Kirke like a dog,
admired, followed, idolised him, and Ralph thought he must be as much
impressed as himself by this awful event.
So he put out his hand, saying--
"Oh, Kirke, I am so sorry to hear about Jackson!"
"Bother you and your sorrow! I wish it had been you," replied Kirke
rudely.
Ralph turned away in silence. He, too, almost wished it had been
himself, not that he felt more fit to go, but that the heartlessness of
this fellow struck a chill to his heart.
But Kirke was not so heedless of the event as he tried to seem, nor so
wholly ungrateful for Ralph's sympathy as he chose to appear. This was
the first blow which had struck home to him, and in his pride and sullen
humour he was trying to resist its softening influence. Not for the
world would he have displayed any better feeling at that time, though it
was not altogether absent from his heart.