When Fritz awoke the next day, however, he could not quite make out what
was going on in the place. There was a strong smell of gunpowder in the
air, and he could hear the cracking reports of small cannon, let off at
frequent intervals with much noise in the streets by a crowd of boys,
whose voices mingled with the excruciating sound of squeaking trumpets
and the shrill, ear-piercing scream of penny whistles.
For the moment, he thought he was dreaming again of the old days of the
war, and that the confused medley, which became each moment louder, was
but the half-waking recollection of the bivouac around Metz, with its
many constant alarms of sallies and sorties from the beleaguered
fortress; but, when he came downstairs from his bedroom, he was speedily
undeceived as to the reason for the pandemonium without.
The captain and Eric had already started off for the ship, and only Mrs
Brown and Celia were below waiting breakfast for him.
"What on earth is the matter?" he asked. "It seems like Bedlam broken
loose. Is there an insurrection going on?"
"Ah, they're having a fine time, ain't they!" said Miss Celia.
"But, what is it all about?" he repeated, gazing from one to the other
of the smiling ladies, almost bewildered by the uproar out of doors.
"Fourth of July," replied the lady of the house, as if that was quite a
sufficient answer and accounted for everything.
"The fourth of July!" he repeated mechanically. "What has the day of
the month got to do with it--is it an anniversary of some sort--some
national holiday?"
"An anniversary, indeed!" exclaimed Miss Celia indignantly. "I thought
you were such a good hand at history. Why, haven't you ever heard of
our glorious Declaration of Independence, when the free states of
America severed the hated yoke that bound them under the thraldom of the
tyrant England?"
"Oh, yes, I forgot. I'm sure I beg your pardon for not recollecting
what must be to you a sacred day!" said Fritz, somewhat deceived by the
girl's affected enthusiasm, Celia having spoken as grandiloquently as if
she were an actress declaiming tragedy.
"Sacred day, fiddlesticks!" she replied, laughing at his grave face and
solemn manner. "I guess we don't worry ourselves much about that! We
try and have a good time of it, and leave it to the politicians and
skallywags to do the speechifying and bunkum! The boys have the best
time of it, I reckon."
"Yes," he replied, his ideas as to the patriotic associations of
American citizens considerably modified. "They seem to enjoy
themselves, if the noise they're making affords any criterion of that!"
"I guess so," answered the girl. "They've burnt a few fire crackers
this morning; but, it's nothing to what they do at Boston. Law, why you
should see the goings on there'll be in front of Faneuil Hall to-night,
when the `Bonfire Boys' set to work!"
"By that time, I imagine, I'll be on the sea," said Fritz. "Your father
told us last evening that he would start to-day if the wind was fair,
and I noticed a bit of a breeze blowing through my window when I was
dressing."
"Yes," put in Mrs Brown; "and he said this mornin', 'fore he went off
down town, to tell you to be sure and hurry up as soon as ever you'd
swallowed your breakfast--not for what I want to hasten you away,
though!"
"Did he?" said Fritz, bolting a bit of buckwheat cake and hastily rising
from the table. "If that's the case, I'd better be off to see about my
traps."
"Bless you, they're all aboard hours ago! Eric took them with him when
he started off with pa," remarked Celia demurely.
"Oh, you saw him before he went, then?" said Fritz.
"Yes, I wished your brother good-bye," replied the girl, colouring up.
"Oh!" repeated Fritz meaningly, with a sly glance at her.
"And now, Mr Dort, we must wish you good-bye, too," interposed Mrs
Brown, in order to distract his attention from Celia, who looked a bit
confused by Fritz's interrogatories respecting Master Eric.
"Aren't you coming down to see us off?" said he.
"Guess not," replied Mrs Brown with much composure, her husband's
departure with his ship being of such periodic occurrence as to have
long since lost all sense of novelty. "We'll see you when you get out
in the bay, and wish you good luck in the distance. I hope, mister,
that you and your brother will be successful in your venture--that I do
heartily."
"Thank you," said Fritz, shaking the hand of the good-natured woman
cordially. "I can't express how grateful we both are to you and your
husband for all your kindness to us, strangers in a foreign land!"
"What, do you leave me out?" put in Miss Celia saucily.
"I should think not," returned Fritz gallantly. "I included you, of
course, when thanking your mother. I'm sure words would fail to give
you any idea of my feelings on the subject; but I dare say Eric spoke on
my behalf this morning."
"Indeed, he had too much to say for himself," retorted the girl; "and,
instead of his behaving like a quiet German lad, as I thought him, he
was more of a saucy American sailor boy! Not that I minded that much,"
she added demurely. "It made him more sparkish-like and all the
pleasanter."
"Really?" said Fritz, smiling. "I think I shall have to talk to Master
Eric when I get on board the ship."
"No, nary you mind that," pleaded Miss Celia most magnanimously. "I
forgive him this time; but you can tell him, though, I'll pay him out
when he comes back to our shanty, that I will!"
"All right, I will give him your message," replied Fritz, as he shook
hands with the fair little Rhode Islander, whose eyes were full of tears
as she said good-bye, in spite of her sprightly manner and off-hand way.
"And now, ladies," he added, addressing them both collectively, "I must
say farewell, hoping to have the pleasure of seeing you again on our
return from Inaccessible Island, somewhere about two years hence."
"I'm sure I hope so, too," said the lady of the house kindly, Celia
joining cordially in the wish; and Fritz then left the shanty, directing
his steps down to the quay, where he expected to find the _Pilot's
Bride_ still moored.
She was not here, however; but, after a moment, he could discern the
vessel lying out in the river some little distance from the shore.
There, anchored almost in mid-stream and with a blue peter flying at the
fore as well as the American stars and stripes trailing over her stern,
she looked even more picturesque than when Fritz had seen her lying
along the wharf on his first view of her.
It was much earlier in the month than Captain Brown had stated was his
usual time for starting on his annual voyage to the South Atlantic; but
the skipper had accelerated his departure in order to have time to go to
Tristan d'Acunha on his outward trip, instead of calling there as he
usually did just before returning to Providence--so as to allow the
brothers to pick up a little information that might be of use to them
from the little colony at Tristan, before proceeding to their own
selected settlement on Inaccessible Island.
The ship was now, therefore, quite ready to start as soon as the wind
and her captain willed it; for, her sails were bent, with the gaskets
cast-off and the topsails loose, ready to be let fall and sheeted home
at the word of command. A nautical man would have noticed, too, that
she was hove short, right over her anchor, so that no time should be
lost in bowsing that up to the cathead and getting under weigh, when the
time came to man the windlass and heave up the cable, with a "Yo-heave
ho!"
Presently, Fritz observed a boat that had been towing astern of the ship
hauled up alongside, and then this put off for the shore, with some one
in the stern-sheets whom he did not recognise at first, on account of
the person having a gilt-banded cap on; but, as soon as the boat got
nearer, he saw that it was Eric, who now hailed him while yet a hundred
yards away.
"Hullo!" he shouted; "how is it you're so late? The captain is only
waiting for you to set sail, for the pilot's coming on board now!"
"I didn't think you were going until the evening," replied Fritz,
descending the steps of the jetty, which the boat had now nearly
approached.
"Nor were we, if this breeze hadn't sprung up since morning so very
suddenly, when we least expected it! I suppose it's because of all that
gunpowder firing that the air's got stirred up a bit? But, jump in, old
fellow, the skipper seems a bit impatient; and the sooner we're all on
board the better he'll be pleased."
With these words, Eric stretched out a hand to help his brother into the
little dinghy, which could barely carry two comfortably besides the man
pulling amid-ship, and then the frail little craft started on her way
back to the mother ship, of which she seemed the chicken!
No sooner were they alongside and up the ladder, than Captain Brown's
voice was heard rapidly giving orders, as if no time were to be lost.
"Veer thet boat astern an' hook on the falls," he roared in stentorian
accents. "I want her walked up to the davits 'fore I can say Jack
Robinson! There, thet's the way to do it, men. Now, get her inboard
an' secure her; we shan't want her in a hurry ag'in, till we come back
to the bay!"
"Mr Dort," he sang out presently to Eric, who was standing by ready for
the skipper's orders and watching his eye--prepared to jump anywhere at
a second's notice, and looking so full of eagerness and attention that
Fritz felt quite proud of him!
"Aye, aye, sir," answered the lad, touching his cap; for, nowhere is
deference insisted on so stringently from inferior officers to their
superiors as on board ship, especially in merchantmen commanded by
captains worth their salt. In no other way can proper respect be paid
to authority, or the necessary orders requisite for the safety and
comfort of all enforced.
"I give you charge o' the mizzen mast," said Captain Brown, meaning that
Eric would have to see to all that was necessary for making sail in the
after part of the ship. At the same time, the second mate stationed
himself amidships, and the first officer went forward to the bows, to
superintend the getting up of the anchor, each of them repeating the
several directions of the captain in turn.
"All hands make sail!" then shouted the skipper, who, with his hands in
the pockets of his monkey jacket, stood on the poop deck aft, looking
everywhere apparently in one glance, it was so comprehensive of
everything that was going on below and aloft; whereupon, the men, racing
up the rigging with alacrity, the topsails were soon sheeted home and
the yards hoisted, after which more canvas was unfolded to the breeze,
that came in short, sharp puffs off the land.
The headsails were then backed, as the ship brought up over her anchor;
and, the windlass coming round with a ringing "clink, clank!" of the
pawl to the hearty long heaves of the sailors--who worked at it with a
will, singing in chorus the while--the heavy weight of metal that still
attached the _Pilot's Bride_ to the sand and shells at the bottom of
Narraganset Bay was ere long lifted gradually above the water and run up
to the cathead. The jib and foretop-sail were then allowed to fill
again and the yards squared; when, the vessel, paying off, began to
move, at first slowly, and then more rapidly as she gathered way, out of
the harbour away towards the open sea, some thirty miles beyond.
The wind being light and flickering, the crew were soon ordered aloft
again to set the top-gallant-sails, for the breeze was so far favourable
that the ship did not have to beat out of the bay; consequently, she was
able to spread more canvas than if she had been forced to tack, or had
to be steered by her sails.
Nor was Captain Brown satisfied with top-gallants alone; for, quickly,
the order came to set the royals and flying jib before the men could
climb down the ratlins; and, soon, the vessel was under a cloud of sail
alow and aloft, taking advantage of every breath of air. Towards the
afternoon, the north-westerly breeze still lasting, the ship cleared
Narraganset Bay, running before the wind; when, shaping a course between
the treacherous Martha's Vineyard on the one hand and Gardiner's Island
on the other, she was steered out into the open Atlantic.
No sooner had they got to sea than Captain Brown called all hands aft,
mustering the crew--who numbered some twenty in all, including the cook
and a couple of boys. He then gave them a short speech from the poop.
Some of the men had been with him before, he said, so they knew what he
was; but, as for those who didn't, he would tell them that, as long as
they did their duty manfully, they would find him always considerate
towards them. If they "turned rusty," however, why then "they'd better
look out for squalls," for they would discover, should they try on any
of their notions, that he was "a hard row to hoe!"
The men were next divided into watches and dismissed to their several
duties; after which the _Pilot's Bride_ settled down steadily to her
voyage.
At first, Fritz found the life on board very enjoyable. The motion of
the ship was so slight, as she slipped through the water with the wind
on her quarter, that there was no rolling; and the difference of her
arrangements, with clean cabins and the absence of that sickening smell
of the engine-room which had permeated the steamer in which he had made
the passage from Bremen to New York--his only previous acquaintance with
the ocean-made him fancy that he could spend all his days on the deep
without discomfort. But, after a time, the routine grew very
monotonous; and long ere the _Pilot's Bride_ had reached tropical
latitudes, Fritz would have been glad if she had reached their appointed
destination.
Truth to say, the vessel was not that smart sailer which a stranger
would have imagined from all the skipper had said about her. It was
nearly three weeks before she ran into the north-east trades; and three
more weeks, after she got within these favouring winds, before she
managed to cross the Line, which she did somewhere about 24 degrees
West. All this time, too, to add to Fritz's disgust, they never passed
a single other sail!
The weather throughout the voyage, up to now, had treated the vessel
fairly enough, so no complaint could be made on that score; but, no
sooner had they arrived at the equator, than the wind suddenly shifted
round to the west and south-west, accompanied by a violent squall that
would have settled the _Pilot's Bride_, if Captain Brown had not
fortunately anticipated it and prepared in time.
The ship was nearing Pernambuco, off the South American coast, on a
short "leg," before taking the long one that would fetch down towards
Tristan d'Acunha, proceeding in the ordinary track of vessels going
round the Cape of Good Hope; when, suddenly, towards evening, it fell
nearly calm and sheet lightning was noticed towards the eastward, where
a dense bank of dark clouds had mounted up, obscuring the sky.
This was enough for Captain Brown, who had gone through a similar
experience before.
"All hands take in sail!" came his order, without a moment's delay.
The men sprang aloft immediately and furled the royals and top-gallant-
sails; while others below took in the flying jib and hauled up the
mainsail and trysail--the hands wondering all the time what on earth the
skipper was at, taking in all the spread of the vessel's canvas, when
there wasn't a breath of air blowing!
However, the "old man," as he was generally called by the crew, knew
better than they; and so, with the ship's yards stripped and squared, he
awaited what science and forethought had taught him to expect.
Science and forethought had not caused him to make these preparations in
vain!
The blackness in the south-east extended round the horizon to the west,
and, presently, a thick mist came rolling up from that quarter,
enveloping the vessel in its folds and covering the stars in front like
a curtain, although those lesser lights of the night shone out brightly
in other parts of the sky.
Then, all at once, the squall burst with a furious blast that made the
ship heel over almost on her beam ends, the wind being followed by a
shower of rain and hail that seemed as if it would batter in the decks.
"Let go the halliards!" sang out Captain Brown; and, his order being
promptly attended to, the vessel was not taken aback--otherwise every
spar would have snapped away, or else she would have gone down stern
foremost.
Now, however, instead of any accident happening, the good ship, although
reeling with the blow like a drunken man, paid off from the wind
handsomely--running on for some time before the gale and tearing through
the water with everything flying, "as if old Nick were after her," the
men said!
All hands being then called again, the topsails and trysails were close-
reefed, the courses furled, and the foretopmast-staysail set; when, the
barque was brought round nearly to her course again, with the weather-
braces hauled in a bit to ease her.
This was the first rough weather Fritz experienced, and it cannot be
said to have increased his admiration for a sea life, all he saw of
which only tended to make him wonder more and more every day what could
induce his brother Eric to have such a passionate inclination towards
it! It was a strange fancy, he thought, as he watched the disturbed
state of the wild ocean, lashed into frenzy by the force of the gale,
which seemed to wax more lusty each hour; for, the ship appeared to be,
now, careering like a mad thing through some deep watery valley, between
lofty mountainous peaks of spray, and, the next moment, seeming to be on
the toppling edge of a fathomless abyss, into which she looked about to
plunge headlong to destruction as she rose above the plane of tempest-
tossed water, borne aloft on the rolling crest of one of the huge waves
that were racing by each other as if in sport--the broken, billowy
element boiling and seething as far as the eye could reach, in eddies of
creamy foam and ridges of turbid green, with the clouds above of a
leaden tinge that deepened, as they approached the horizon, to a dark
slatish hue, becoming blue-black in the extreme distance.
"That Shakespeare was a fine fellow!" Fritz said to Captain Brown, who
stood close by the binnacle, keeping an eye to the two men who were now
at the wheel steering; for, the ship required careful handling in the
heavy sea that was running to prevent her from broaching to, and it
needed very prompt action frequently to jam down the helm in time, so as
to let her fall off her course before some threatening mountain of water
that bore down on her bows.
"Ha-ow?" ejaculated the skipper inquiringly, turning to the other, who
was looking over the taffrail surveying the scene around and had spoken
musingly--uttering his thoughts aloud.
"I mean Shakespeare, the great dramatist," replied Fritz, who, like all
educated Germans, had a keen appreciation of the bard and could quote
his pregnant sayings at pleasure. "He wrote plays, you know," he added,
seeing that Captain Brown did not quite comprehend him.
"Oh, I rec'lect now," replied the skipper, understanding him at last,
and his face beaming with curious intelligence. "Him as wrote a piece
called `Hamlet,' hey? I reckon I see it once when I wer to Boston some
years ago, an' Booth acted it uncommon well, too, yes, sirree!"
"Well then," said Fritz, going on to explain the reason for his original
remark, "Shakespeare exactly expresses my sentiments, at this present
moment, in the words which he puts into the mouth of one of his
characters in the `Tempest,' Gonzalo, I think. `Now would I give a
thousand furlongs of sea for an acre of barren ground; long heath, brown
furze, anything: the wills above be done, but I would fain die a dry
death!'"
The young fellow laughed as he ended the apt quotation.
The skipper, however, did not appear to see the matter in the same
light.
"I guess thet there Gonzalo," he remarked indignantly, "wer no sailor;
an' Mister Shakespeare must hev hed a durned pain in his stummick when
he writ sich trash!"
Some hours afterwards, fortunately for Fritz's feelings, the gale broke;
when, the wind shifting round to the northward of west, the _Pilot's
Bride_ was enabled to steer away from the South American coast and shape
a straight course for Tristan d'Acunha.